Stillness pressed against InuShin’s shoulders like a thick fog of thought. His body grew heavy, feet dragging along the ground, its pulse faintly resonating within him. Wandering for what seemed like hours, he witnessed many unusual things.

  Well, nothing more unusual than what he’d already witnessed.

  A spectral fox teased, taunting him to give chase. A ghostly bird soared through the sky, phasing through the trees. A shadowy horse rested near a lake, watching his every move.

  No longer colorful and vibrant, the sky hung in a quiet shade of violet-gray with faint twinkles of what could be stars. Not that he was confident in what his eyes told him. Not in this realm.

  Crystalline trees lined his narrow path, towering like mountains, their trunks smooth and glassy. Each one refracted not just his image, but echoes, fragments of other selves. In one, his younger self reflected, wide-eyed and curious. Another, he knelt in a field, drenched in blood, his eyes hollow with loss. A third showed him dancing around a campfire, laughing and playing. Thousands, if not millions, of images flickered in them.

  None of them felt like him, but they all seemed so real, causing his heart to ache. Stomach to churn. Eyes to sting.

  With each step, an echo resonated, like a rock skipping across a lake. The vibration pulsed through him.

  “Where did you go?” he asked aloud.

  No response.

  InuShin exhaled harshly and folded his arms in his haori sleeves, pressing forward.

  An open field appeared before him, a cool gust of air brushing against his face. The air tightened around him, not threatening, just aware. A presence without form.

  His tree stood tall, more alive than before, stretching far into the dull sky. The branches appeared stronger, the leaves more brown and faint green than black. Streaks of silver and blue, like lightning, pulsed through the trunk and branches.

  At the base, the blue pond stood still, reflecting images of himself, expressions unfamiliar to him. Grief, fury, rage, solemnity. A child reaching for something unseen. A teenager stepping towards a war. An adult drenched in blood, battleworn.

  Dipping his fingers into the water, the images shattered. The ripples fanned out, but never stilled.

  Growling deeply, frustration clawed its way into his chest.

  “Why bring me here if you won’t even talk to me?!” his voice cracked, ache taking its place in his chest. “I’m tired of always being alone!”

  A breeze curled around him, brushing his cheeks like a quiet hush. Humming, faint and harmonic, chimed from the tree.

  Suddenly, a mist emerged at the base of the tree. Thin, soft, glowing a faint violet.

  A silhouette of a horse emerged from within, enormous. Elegant. Pinkish-white fur covered its hooves and lower legs. Its hair, light blue with glistening lights along its body. Silverish-purple mane and tail flowed like silk. Its most striking feature, a spiraling horn, silver and slender, protruded from its forehead, just above its eyes.

  Riding on the back of the powerful yet beautiful creature, the mysterious elder woman. She wore her purple gridlock kimono, gray hair tied into intricate braids.

  Heavy steps, the mystical horse moved around the pond and approached him, stopping just before him. Piercing violet eyes bore into him.

  Heart pounding, InuShin stared up at the creature, breathing shakily. “I’ve never seen a horse like that.”

  The woman slid off the horse, smoothed her clothes out, and stepped beside its head, gently brushing her hands. “This is Ríonach, my unicorn companion.” Her accent, thick. Yet easier to understand. “She was helping me guide another spirit. Another lost on their journey.”

  Relaxing his muscles slightly, he straightened himself, gaze never leaving the imposing creature. “Where were you?

  She didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she stepped around Ríonach and approached the pond, gazing into the rippling water, yet her reflection held perfectly still.

  “I had to speak with someone,” she breathed out. “An old friend, for guidance and understanding.”

  “Guidance for what?”

  Her face remained neutral. Calm. Subtle sadness in her eyes. “Confusion for what I need to do, to bring balance back to the realms.”

  “Realms. You keep saying realms. What do you mean?”

  “I sense the energies of the world shifting, things are becoming imbalanced, blending, melding.”

  Confused, InuShin sighed. “I don’t understand. Can you stop talking in riddles?”

  Reaching out, she brushed her fingers through the mane of Ríonach, speaking, this time with words unknown to InuShin.

  The words rose and fell like waves from the wind and sea, but with measured grace. Tight and deliberate cadence. Some consonants whispered like soft rain, others struck like thunder. Beneath it all, a breathy, tidal softness, like mist over a lake, punctuated by sudden sharp glints of weathered steel.

  Nodding curtly, Ríonach snorted and then trotted off into the distance, disappearing into a pinkish-violet mist.

  “There are things happening, in different realms, but I don’t know the cause, nor where to look. I am as confused as you, but I’m seeking answers, to understand, to restore balance.” She spoke softly. Gentle. “Multiple realms exist around us, and while spiritually connected, they are physically disconnected. Until recently. Something occurred, and they’re becoming physically connected.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Your mother and father come from different realms, never destined to meet,” inhaling sharply, she frowned. “However, destiny is not what it once was, and they were able to meet, and thus, you were born. It makes you special, unique, rare.”

  InuShin stood silent, trying to make sense of everything.

  “Normally, Ríonach would’ve journeyed with you here, but I’ve taken a special interest in understanding what is happening. I took it upon myself to guide you in your self-discovery.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means we have another lesson to learn. Come with me.”

  The glade shimmered beneath the ghostlight, the soft pulse swelling like a breath. A faint mist swirled lazily.

  Around them, the world shifted, turning into a battlefield. Winding paths of creeks emerged around them, filled to the brim with bristling cold water.

  In preparation for the unknown, InuShin took deep and measured breaths. Moist grass coated his bare feet, arms resting loosely at his sides, his ears twitching in anticipation. Wet earth filled his nose.

  “Most important, defense,” the woman said softly. “Defense begins with stillness. Not silence. Not stagnation. Stillness. The kind that listens without reacting.”

  One hand behind her back, the other holding a single drop of suspended water, pulsing like a slow, beating heart. She released the drop. It crashed into the ground, vanishing with a whisper.

  Closing his eyes, the moisture in the air around him stirred, brushing against his skin like a breath. He tried to grasp it with will, to pull towards him like before.

  Nothing happened.

  “Do not pull,” she murmured from somewhere behind him. “You are not a thief. You are kin to water. Invite.”

  InuShin took a slower breath, grounding himself as the memory of drowning rose. Lungs burning, vision blurring, the weight of helplessness, but he didn’t fight it. Instead, acknowledging, he let it drift past like a current.

  The moisture rippled against his skin, light. Delicate. Opening his eyes, the air shimmered faintly as the light reflected against the moisture, gathering around him light a veil, translucent.

  “Good,” her voice echoed with approval. “You’re not commanding. You’re communing.”

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  “Communing?” he furrowed his brows.

  “Sharing your thoughts on a spiritual level.”

  Without warning, a small orb of condensed water shot toward him. Eyes widened, surprised. Scared. His instincts forced him to flinch as the veil bent and flowed with him, redirecting the projectile towards the ground.

  “Defense is not resistance,” she explained, appearing before him and circling him. “Water bends, it does not break. It listens to your intention, not your panic.”

  Another water pulse lashed out, large, arcing with force.

  Narrowing his focus, the veil expanded, stretching thin in the center and thicker around the sides. The wave struck and flowed around him, spiraling past like river water around a stone.

  Clarity settled in, the power of trusting the water to choose the gentlest path.

  The woman stood near the pond, several droplets surrounding her, suspended in the air. Each one shifted, directed towards him, becoming arrows and needles.

  Fear spiked, his veil started rippling uncontrollably as water weapons approached him. Centering himself once more, breathing synced with the water rhythm, a circular barrier formed around him, rotating in a soft whirl.

  One of the arrows connected with the barrier dissolved with a hiss.

  InuShin stood in silence, chest rising and falling as the protective sphere evaporated into a mist.

  Smiling, she said. “You’re learning, but it is time for you to rest.”

  Standing still, InuShin watched the woman turn around. Left alone? Again? How long this time? His stomach churned, a cold, empty chill brushing across his skin.

  “No,” he muttered.

  “Hm?” She turned around, tilting her head.

  “I want to keep training.” InuShin curled his hand into a fist, chest tightening.

  “Too much training isn’t good for the body; it needs time to recover.”

  “It's not just about the training,” he tightened his jaw, a sting forming in his eyes. “All I do is wander. Alone.” His voice cracked. “Before coming here. I was always with my dad. I don’t get to talk to anyone. Just myself. And these other images.” Streams fell down his cheeks. “But when you are here, I have someone to talk to. Even if it's lectures or training. It helps me feel less alone.”

  His heart ached, body trembled, and breath shook.

  “So please. Stay for a little longer. Even if it’s just one more minute.”

  Silence filled the air.

  His heart echoed in his ears. His muscles tight. His eyes squinting, fighting the urge to full-blown sob.

  “Okay,” her voice filled the void. “Tell me, little pup, what do you feel?”

  “Huh?”

  “Deep inside you, a new emotion stirs. Tell me.”

  Through heavy breaths, he spoke through clenched teeth. “Frustration.”

  “What else?” Her expression remained soft, warm.

  “Anger?”

  Nodding slowly, she smiled. “Good, why?”

  “Because I’m not strong. I abandoned my Father because I was weak. I’m stuck here because I’m weak. You can leave whenever, but I can’t. I just want to move forward, do what I’m supposed to do.”

  The terrain around them vibrated, shifting. The ground and creeks ascended high into the air, forming enormous waterfalls around them. The thick streams thundered into the jagged rocks, forming a thick mist.

  No longer a whisper, the water roared. Violently.

  Atop a large stone, the woman stood. “Let’s channel that anger. Many believe water is only passive, but it is relentless. Patient when needed, yet devastating when it chooses.”

  Drenched from head to toe, InuShin stood in the middle, his silver hair clinging to his cheeks. The weight of his soaked kimono wore heavily on his shoulders.

  “I want you to attack me.”

  Clenched hands. Tight jaw. Water surged from the flooding ground around him, rising in a spiral. But it thrashed, unstable. Gritting his teeth. Listen to me.

  Suddenly, the serpent-shaped water exploded, and InuShin shielded his face.

  “I can…” his shoulders shook, sniffling.

  “You’re not here to contain your pain,” she interrupted. “You’re here to direct it.”

  InuShin stared at her.

  “Water doesn’t suppress emotion, it amplifies it.” She hopped down from the water, bare feet splashing in the water. “If your rage is aimless, your power will be too.”

  Raising her arms, the waterfall behind her split, curling upward and forming into two swirling serpents, watching over her like protectors.

  “This is what it means to shape intent.”

  With a flick of her wrist, the water serpents opened their mouths and jagged, pressurized shards shot from them. Whistling, the water pierced the air and punctured a rock with the ease of paper. Steam rose from the impact.

  “Again,” she commanded.

  Inhaling sharply, InuShin raised his arms and outstretched them, furrowing his eyebrows. Tension formed in his back and shoulders.

  The pool surged once more, rising into a thinner spiral, like a whip. Curled around his arm. Dense and fluid.

  He cocked his right arm back and then slung it forward. The water cracked like a whip, hitting a boulder and leaving a deep groove.

  “Again.”

  Another wave of his hand and two spirals of hardened water, shifting into arrows. Opening his hands, palms outward, InuShin thrusted his hands forward, and both arrows hurled towards another target.

  The woman.

  Widening his eyes, his stomach sank as he closed his hands.

  The arrows persisted.

  Smiling, the woman waved her arms in a circular motion. A misty veil appeared before her, and the arrows collided, dissipating with steam.

  “How did you—?”

  “I’ve always had a bit of luck, little pup,” her eyes glinted with pride. “Good work.”

  “I could have hurt you.”

  “And that is a risk of having such powers, InuShin,” she slowly approached him, stopped a few inches, and knelt to his level. “In a world of strength, there comes a chance of inflicting pain on others if we are not careful. But in protecting the ones we love, we must do what is necessary.”

  The waterfalls slowly descended around them, molding back into the open field it once was. Mist hung low to the ground. Standing stronger, not because he mastered his emotions, but because he gave them purpose.

  “You’ve seen what water is capable of when driven by pain, but the strongest attacks don’t come from fury alone. They come from conviction, InuShin.”

  She folded her hands into her haori sleeves and then pulled out a small weapon. A tantō. Its black wooden scabbard reflected off the glistening light, a blue cord wrapped around it. Its handle, short, light brown wood with a dark blue wrap, forming little diamond patterns on both sides.

  With both hands, she outstretched towards him, blade facing her. “I believe this belongs to you.”

  Using both hands, InuShin bowed slightly and accepted the weapon, the familiar weight settling into his palms. “Where did you…? When? I thought I lost it.”

  The warmth in her face never faded, smiling. “You did. But sometimes we must lose something before we’re ready to carry it again.”

  Frowning, he glanced down at the small weapon and then back to her. “Why now?”

  “You’ve begun to listen,” she said simply. “Not just with your ears, but to the flow of water within you. Come.”

  On her feet, she walked towards the towering tree.

  InuShin followed close behind, the damp grass brushing against his feet. Tantō in hand, he ran his thumb across the wooden scabbard. Father. I still have this of you.

  His tree stood tall, branches filled with many more green leaves than when he arrived. Several browns and a few black ones hid within them. The silver streaks pulsed in the branches and trunk, this time leading towards the base.

  As they approached, InuShin saw it: nestled into the tree’s base, a swirling portal of purple and silver danced. Inviting him.

  “Why another portal? Can’t I just stay here? Talk to you? I don’t want to be alone.” He stared up at her, heart aching once again as he furrowed his eyebrows.

  “You said you don’t want to be alone anymore,” she smiled softly. “You’ve spent enough time here, alone, plenty of time to reflect and learn. Now it is time for you to understand what is missing from your other half.”

  “My other half? The S?lvcù half? Is this where I am going?”

  “Indeed,”

  “Will you come with me? So I have at least one familiar face by my side.”

  “I have many things to do, places to see, secrets to uncover. These things beckon my call, and I must go to them so therefore, I can’t depart with you. You must continue without me.”

  “Will I understand more there?” he asked softly. “What all this mean?”

  Her gaze lingered on him, fond but unreadable. “You will understand what you need, when you need it. The rest will come in fragments. Truth often does.”

  “That’s not very… comforting,” he muttered, but a small smile tugged at his lips.

  Chuckling, she knelt once more, looking him in the eyes. “You are not here for comfort, little pup. No journey worth traveling is comfortable. They are filled with pain, joy, sadness, anger, love, and everything in between. Embrace for what it is.”

  Nodding slowly, he looked into her eyes once more, the dance of the portal reflecting in her eyes. “Before I go… what’s your name? Really.”

  “I’m surprised you didn’t ask me sooner. Laughing playfully, her eyes shined brighter than ever before. “I go by many names, each fitting, each false. But for now?” Her smile softened. “You may call me Duanna.”

  Exhaling heavily, he relaxed his shoulders, uncertain if it was the truth or just another lesson wrapped in mischief. But it didn’t matter. The truth comes in fragments.

  “Will I see you again?”

  “The future is full of mysteries, and we have no way of knowing,” she winked, playfully. “But I believe luck will be on our side, for us to cross paths again. So until then, I bid you well on your journey, InuShin.”

  “Goodbye, Duanna,”

  Shifting towards the swirling portal, it shimmered like constellations in the sky. His heart pounded, as if it was trying to break free.

  Will I get to see, Mother?

  Without looking back and a firm grip on the tantō, he stepped forward, entering the portal, and warmth rushed through his body, like a welcoming hug. The scent of mysterious yet sweet floral engulfed him. The light of the portal shrouded his vision, forcing him to close his eyes.

  Sounds flooded his ears: a coursing river, rustling leaves, birds chirping, feet slapping against the ground, and… laughter?