The young, black-haired girl's mind is thrumming with tiny whispers. Her head is completely empty of any thought; she only manages to feel the enormous pain in her body slowly disappearing. She wants to open her eyes but doesn't have a drop of energy to do so, so she must strain her ears to find out what is happening in the world through the whispers.
Meanwhile, on the back porch of the cabin, the warrior still has his hand on Alexa's forehead. Emily holds her friend's hand. Francesca looks at the unconscious girl with strong resentment; while she already knew Alexa was hiding something, she never thought it would be something so big. Tyron is poking the girl with the piercing's body with a branch. This slightly annoys the blonde, who says, "Will you stop doing that!" But he continues, replying, "I'm checking if the Master didn't kill her."
Jayden: (curing Alexa) "Why do you think I would have killed her?"
At that moment, the three students exchanged worried glances, as each of them had records of the violence he normally used against someone. Tyron, once he confirmed she was still breathing, said, "Well, Master, understand: when I met you, you killed about five or six people without a problem and didn't even worry or seem affected by it." The brunette looked her Master in the eyes, still holding the defeated girl's hand, exclaiming, "I'm very grateful to you when you saved me, but you also killed someone by tearing a part of their body off with your bare hands." The man looked at the blonde, waiting to see what her example would be. She closed her eyes, remembering the times she had seen him in action. Once she had everything in mind, she opened her eyes, saying, "It's true, like that time you appeared to save us from that gang—you almost killed them. When we had to bring Antonio here, you broke his nose just to keep him asleep, and not to mention the times you casually issue death threats. There's no pity or remorse for what you do."
The warrior shrugged his shoulders, returning his gaze to the wounded girl, accepting that she had suffered an enormous amount of damage. He sighed, looking at the other students, and said, "She has fissures in almost all her bones. So, since I'm sure you have a lot of questions, I'll answer everything related to me. That way, when this idiot wakes up, you only ask her questions related to her and her relative."
The three students gathered in a circle. After deciding what to ask first, they separated. All of them, with their chests held high and with the most rigid posture, asked at the same time, "What are those things about Barriers, Grand Master, and Master?"
Jayden: (looking them in the eyes) "They are titles of hierarchy. For example, right now, you are Students—people who are just starting their journey. When you complete this stage, after passing a test..." (He scratches his chin) "... or a tournament, you receive the title of Master, at which point you receive a payment from the Council. Obviously, you have to complete certain tasks that are assigned to you and must take a student under your tutelage. Then follows the Grand Master rank, where one has great prestige along with a bunch of other nonsense. To achieve this title, you need to train someone who reaches the title of Master, and you automatically become a Grand Master. And..."
Emily: (a little scared) "Sorry to interrupt you, but that woman said you were a Barrier and that there were only two others, as if only three people held this title."
Jayden: (closing his eyes) "... The Barriers are the maximum level any Grand Master, Master, and/or Student can aspire to. The Barrier of Power is the name given to the user with the greatest amount of internal Fiu and the best control over it. The Barrier of Experience refers to users who master the greatest number of techniques along with the greatest existing knowledge. And the Barrier of Skill is the most complex, as it refers to pure talent and the ability to perform techniques perfectly."
Francesca: (serious) "Perfection?"
Jayden: (frowning) "Yes, it is when a technique is performed completely without errors. That technique becomes invincible against strength, speed, and even the sheer amount of Fiu."
Tyron: (curious) "Why are the Barriers so important, according to that woman?"
Jayden: (sighing) "Because they receive great support from the Society of Users, and the decision of one of them is almost at the same level as that of the Council. To reach this rank, the best users registered by the Council and those recommended by the Barrier in question are summoned for a tournament, where, if the existing Barrier is still alive, the challenger must defeat this person to obtain their title."
Francesca: (serious) "Why would help be necessary for one of these to prevail over the others?"
Jayden: (closing his eyes with a frown) "Because of the cancellation cycle among them: Power defeats Experience, Experience defeats Skill, and Skill defeats Power. I know you won't understand this, so to make it clearer: brute power defeats knowledge, knowledge surpasses talent, and talent humbles brute power. Also, I'm sure you will now ask what the Supreme Master is..."
The three nodded, curious.
Jayden: (opening his eyes) "... Well, the Supreme Master is that person who manages to obtain the Master rank in all the existing tool- and body-based arts. They must also have the knowledge of the Barrier of Experience, the talent of the Barrier of Skill, and the enormous amount of Fiu of the Barrier of Power. They are the ultimate authority in the Society of Users; they care for and protect all beings and are in charge of making all decisions related to the good of existence."
Francesca: (puzzled) "But if he is in charge of deciding everything for people like you, then what is the purpose of the Council of Masters?"
Jayden: (looking at the sky) "That is the problem. It has been more than eighty-one years since a Supreme Master has emerged. Therefore, until a new one emerges, the Council of Masters would be in charge of administering the entire Society of Users."
Emily: "What is the Society of Users?"
Jayden: "Simple: it is a Society where all living beings who manifest their Fiu outwards, or those who have had training, as is your case—Student rank—are found."
Tyron: (surprised) "Then that means Nick could also be a student, couldn't he? That would explain why he was so strong!"
Francesca: (serious) "Don't talk nonsense; it's impossible that he also..."
Jayden: (looking at his students) "Yes, Nick is a student of my friend Nersu. I asked him to fight you."
The three young people were surprised. The brunette and the blonde wondered about the reason for that action, while Tyron simply felt a pang in his chest, thinking his Master disliked him so much. So, with puppy dog eyes, he said, "Do you hate me so much that you had to ask a friend of yours to beat me up?" The warrior yawned, looking at the teary-eyed boy, and replied, "Your existence is completely irrelevant to me. I had to know if you were ready to start training with real tools, which is why I told that brat to face my weakest student. Because if he could withstand him, it meant you were ready to move on to the next stage." The brunette fell to the ground, knowing the warrior saw him as a weakling. Emily patted him on the back while wondering why she wasn't considered the weakest, and Francesca puffed out her cheeks, holding back a laugh.
Tyron: (surprised) "Hey, then tell the girls who the Director is! They think I want to hit the one at my school!"
Emily: "Yes, please! If it's serious that there's a person threatening our city, we need to know!"
Jayden: (sighing) "The Director is the leader of a small army that wants to impose a new organization focused only on dealing with the arts that are in danger of extinction. He has an army and needs more people to follow him to have enough support, which is why he is conquering different states in this country."
Francesca: "The relative of the sleeping girl said that the sword was in danger of extinction. Why is that?"
The warrior analyzed the question in his mind. His dark brown eyes were slowly tinging with a reddish color as he said, "About twenty years ago, a family, or rather a Clan, killed every user of the sword as if they were nothing because they did not comply with the demands that were made. Only a few managed to save themselves." His eyes stopped turning red when he saw that his student was fully waking up. Alexa tried to move, but a great pain stopped her. She noticed the adult's hand on her forehead and understood that she was still alive after the fight against her sister. The other students, realizing their friend was better, two of them ran to hug her, leaving the blonde who looked at her with a gesture of disapproval. Even though Emily and Tyron hugged her gently, a complaint was heard from the girl, who was still being attended to by the adult.
Tyron: (smiling) "It's great that you're still with us!"
Emily: (crying with joy without letting go of Alexa) "You're a real idiot for risking your life like that!"
Francesca: (serious) "Yes, yes, lots of joy, but you owe us quite a few explanations, Miss who trained to save animals."
At that moment, the two closest to her moved away, standing on either side of the blonde. Alexa remained silent for a longer time. This seemed to annoy the warrior a little, who pointed a ball of energy with his left hand. When he shot it, a clone emerged from the ground to continue healing the black-haired girl. So, he entered his cabin and came out with a rope. He lifted the short-haired girl onto his shoulder, walking towards the training field while saying, "I'm going to see how I solve the problem with your guest, so you don't have the excuse that I'm here not to talk. And don't worry, whatever he does won't reach me." The reunited teenagers focused their gaze on Alexa, who took a deep breath, mustering her courage, and said, "Okay, what do you want to know?" The blonde took a step forward, replying, "First of all, you're going to tell us who you were fighting against!" The black-haired girl heard this, resigned herself to lying, and replied, "It's my sister." Emily was the most surprised by this since she had known her long before they knew they were training with the same person. Francesca was the one who was unmoved by this revelation, saying, "Good, now tell us why you fought seriously against her and not against the other adversaries we've had." Alexa frowned as her warm gaze dimmed. She replied, "Because it is part of my true objective." This made the dark-skinned boy take a step forward, saying, "And what is that objective?"
Alexa: (serious) "To kill her."
Emily: (scared) "Why do you want to do that?!"
Alexa: "You wouldn't understand!"
Francesca sat down next to her, looking her companion in the eyes, and said, "No, we won't understand, unless you explain it. So start talking." Alexa sighed, accepting this. She looked at the cabin ceiling, saying, "It all happened eight years ago..."
-FLASHBACK (Two days before Alicia's death)-
I woke up sitting in the back of the car. My sister was next to me. Seeing that I had finally opened my eyes, she smiled at me as was normal for her. It was very common in my childhood to sit for several hours on the way to my grandmother's house. Valeria was looking out the window at the resplendent landscape while the driver said, "Happy, young ladies? We are a couple of kilometers from reaching your destination." My sister and I exchanged knowing glances. The vehicle pulled over to the side of the road since it was difficult for a limousine to travel an unpaved road. Our driver opened the door for us to get out. Once there, we both stretched. The man handed us our backpacks, said goodbye, and started the return trip. Valeria and I walked for several kilometers, but my feet already hurt. I thought I should have listened to her about the footwear; she always told me what was best for me. So, tired, I threw a tantrum. My sister's green and calm eyes indicated what I was eagerly awaiting, so I ran, climbing onto her back to continue the journey. After six more kilometers, that one-story house with white walls surrounded by flowers was finally visible in the distance. The metal roof was painted green, and several animals walked around the yard. I screamed with excitement at the closeness of our objective.
Valeria: (sighing) "Is it necessary for you to always do this every time we are close to Grandma's house?"
Alexa (age 5): "Yes! Maybe someday she'll hear me and come!" (laughing)
When we finally reached the entrance, I jumped off Valeria's back. I ran towards the house, only turning my head to stick my tongue out at my sister, who did not hesitate to accept the challenge. We both ran at maximum speed. I was the first to cross the fence that surrounded her home, and when I was about to open the door, my grandmother opened it. She was a woman a little taller than normal. She always wore her hair tied in a ponytail. She had few wrinkles and stayed in very good shape despite being about seventy years old. Her smile, as soon as she saw us, was something that could make you forget anything bad that had happened to you. So, with that smile, taking off her hat, she said, "My girls!" hugging me and inviting Valeria with her right hand to join. After greeting us, my grandmother looked at us a little annoyed, saying, "You took too long; I almost finished all the food! Come on, it's time for lunch!" We both knew it was a lie; she always made a lot. So, we entered the house ready to eat...