"The very beginning. Theory before practicals." He speaks, holding his chin with his left hand.
He suddenly nods and turns to look at me.
I blink. "What is it?" I ask.
His lips curl into a dry smile as he places his two hands behind his waist, taking a slow step forward. "Come, walk with me."
My brows rise instinctively, and I tilt my head. "Wha—"
"Just come." He says, darting his head forward to continue walking.
I let out a long exhale, cleaning off the dirt on the rear of my pants. Then I rush toward him, and we walk side by side at a slow pace.
I turn my head left, looking straight at his face. His lips are widened, and his eyes are closed, like he's reminiscing about something. Or maybe he's just enjoying the warmth of the tender breeze blowing against our faces.
"You see, your family... they never explained it to you." He suddenly speaks. And as he says that, I turn away from him. Looking up at the different buildings in the distance, away from this garden.
"Yes, they didn't.." I reply, my voice low, softening as I speak, "I only know that I was supposed to have a high amount of Chi during my fifth birthday, and I didn't. So.."
"So that is what you know." He completes. "You see, chi.. chi isn't anything grand. Chi isn't majestic and it's not beautiful. It's just an energy that every living being is born with. It's our life force. Our soul energy." He speaks with a stern tone. "This energy can't be used in any way. At least none that anyone knows of. It just exists deep within us."
He suddenly halts. And I pause too, looking at him with a consternated expression.
His eyes are focused on the ground and on the green grass that lies beneath our feet.
He crouches a little and points his index finger at the grass as he shoots a stern look at my face. "Do you see the grass?" He asks.
What is he even doing?
I nod. "Yes, I do see it."
He looks down at the grass again, and this time, he plucks a single plant from the ground and stands up.
"Hold it." He says as he hands it over to me.
I blink, my lips pressing together as I stare at the grass on his hand.
Why is he giving me grass? What..
I just let out a soft sigh and take the grass from his hand, and he continues walking.
I stand still for a second, just staring at the grass.
"What is this supposed to be? Or do?" I ask calmly.
He beckons to me with a flick of his right wrist. And I quickly walk up to him.
"That grass.. It has Chi, albeit a faint one."
My eyes widen, and I look at the green grass in my hand again. And I sniff it.
It smells like dirt.
He lets out a weak chuckle as he taps my left shoulder. "Look up at the sky."
I waste no time, and I immediately look up at the bright blue sky.
"The birds flying in the sky all have Chi." He declares.
Birds?
Yeah, the…
I look clearly at the sky, and I see birds flying around, and I hear the high-pitched sounds of their tweeting and chirping.
I've.. I've never even noticed them. Why?
I notice some of them perched on the buildings in the distance. And some of them are flying high, just above this garden.
Even their sounds, I never heard them until now.
Was my consciousness stopping me from noticing their presence? Or Ralyn's body? But why?
"Ralyn," Dinan calls, and I take in a deep breath, shaking my head. "The grass, the birds, the insects, the animals. All living things possess chi. But the fact that they possess chi does not make them extraordinary. The only thing that'll make them extraordinary will be their ability to wield Tein with their chi."
"And those with weak Chi cannot wield Tein. They cannot carry the weight of that energy. They will die if they try. And it won't end with their death.. He scratches his jaw. "And you, Ralyn, are one of such beings. Your Chi is equal to that of the grass and the birds. It's weak. So weak that I can barely feel it."
"And that means I can't wield Tein?" I ask.
"That's correct. But it's more than just that..." As he speaks, he outstretches his right hand toward the direction where we sat earlier.
A whoosh sound travels through the air, approaching us with a ferocious speed.
As the sound reaches us, the air around me changes, the breeze becoming more aggressive as it blows against me, and I shield my face and shift back instinctively. Crouching into a fighting stance with my fists balled up, my forehead wrinkled and my heart beating drums of warning.
I squint my eyes, looking at Dinan's hand. And he tightly clenches something.
The wooden sword. It... it was the thing that traveled through the air from where he kept it.
At this point, I drop my guard, my jaw opens wide, and my widened eyes stare blankly at his amused grin.
He slashes the wooden sword in the air and twirls it. And as he does so, he moves his body in a strange pattern, twirling and twisting.
His waist moves flexibly, and his feet tap the ground in rhythmic motion like he's dancing.
I'm standing, and I have no idea what expression I have on my face. But one thing I know for sure is that..
"It means that you can't be a swordsman." He speaks, his voice calm, low and tender.
His dance with the sword doesn't end. And the more he dances with the sword, the more the air around us sways, twirling around his sword in a pristine flow.
Then, as he takes a step backwards, he takes his wooden sword with him, and he holds the hilt of the sword with both hands, his eyes closed. And the wooden sword immediately changes color, from brown to..
No. It's not..
"It's not changing color," I calmly whisper, still stunned in place, my eyes dare not close. "It's like a warm, bright hue of light is wrapping around it."
And with a twirling motion, he jumps high in the air, his legs swaying around the air in a prim manner. Then he lands softly, and as he lands, the ground where I stand slightly reverberates. All the grasses on the ground of the entire field quiver and shake in a wavy motion. The reverberation affects my body and heart subtly.
The light that wrapped around the wooden sword disappears immediately as he kneels on one knee and plants it on the ground.
Then he stands, holding his waist.
"That is tein!" He declares, his voice as loud as a roar.
As he yells, I blink, my body quivers subtly, and goosebumps flood my skin. Not from fear or from horror. But from..
My heart keeps pumping, never stopping, as I hear the chilling echoes travel through my spine.
I grip my chest tightly, the rate of my breathing spikes, but my lips widen slowly and slowly until a full, ear-to-ear grin plasters on my face.
Then I look him in the eyes.
What..
"What exactly is this Tein?" I manage to voice out.