TBC: Chapter Fifty-Two

While Jabari contacted the Protective Unit authorities of Aikon and told them it was safe for the citizens to return to their homes in the morning, the warriors found an inn for Aderes to rest at. Brogan entered a room and gently laid Aderes down on the bed as the warriors filed in behind him.

Asia stood at the foot of the bed and held up her palms over Aderes. Her eyes brightened and a healing shield of blue-white light canopied over the bed. "The blanket of light will work to stabilize his energy," she explained to the warriors. "He will be in a deep sleep for a couple of days, so it's best if we do not move him for now. If he stabilizes by tomorrow night, I will remove the meditative suppression I have placed on him and let him rest on his own."

"Will the burn wound on his hand heal?" Gyan asked as he stared at Aderes's swollen and blistered palm.

"It can but won't completely unless he comes to terms with his pain. Physical wounds that are manifested in an intense emotional state will scar until the pain is released."

"That's why mine remain," Shamira told the group quietly.

Jalena put a hand on Shamira's shoulder. Shamira smiled and put a hand on top of Jalena's.

"The energy of a light warrior is naturally intense, so it is best that you leave Aderes alone. That way he's not reactive to your energy," Asia said. "I will stay with him."

The warriors left the room and entered other rooms further down from Aderes.

Gyan took a solitary walk to the park he was previously assigned to and sat down against the trunk of a large tree. He frowned as he stared in the distance at the smoke that lingered above the ground. Only a short time passed when Valora joined him. She sat in silence on his left side, her back against the trunk. One by one, each of the new masters joined their team beneath the tree. No one spoke. Relaxing in the supportive silence of his team members, Gyan finally closed his eyes and drifted to sleep until the glow of the horizon spilled across the sky.

Gyan woke sometime later to the sound of a small child giggling softly near his ear. He smiled. He slowly opened his eyes to see two big green ones staring back at him.

"I know your name," the small girl whispered. A curly lock of red hair fell across her forehead.

"Dilia, leave the nice light warrior alone," a woman called from the middle of the park.

Dilia backed away and smiled. "Shanlo," she said as she pointed a small finger at Gyan.

Gyan's heart thumped hard at the sound of the term. "Huh?" he said as he pushed himself up to his feet. He yawned and stretched.

"The lady said you were Shanlo," Dilia repeated. "Hi, Shanlo, I'm Dilia."

Gyan's heart skipped again. He placed a hand on his chest. "Hi, Dilia." He looked around to find that his teammates had already disappeared. "What lady?" he asked.

"The lady in the trees," Dilia said with another giggle. She turned and ran back to her mother.

Gyan squinted as he looked at the forest where several groups of people had gathered at the burned remains. He searched the crowd and his eyes fell to the part of the forest that remained unharmed by Aderes's light.

A golden light hovered between two large trunks. It lingered for several seconds and then disappeared. Gyan immediately thought of Affera. She had remained absent from his dreams of late, so it surprised him that he thought of her now.

Valora reached him telepathically. Sorry to let you sleep, Gyan, but you looked so peaceful. Come meet us at the central building. They have food downstairs. We have a short meeting with Master Jabari after.

On my way, he replied.

Shamira answered the door to Aderes's room when Gyan knocked a few moments later.

"How is he?" he asked.

"Better. His meridian flow has returned to normal, so Master Asia went to get some rest. She'll probably remove the meditative suppression tonight like she mentioned."

"I'll return after Council."

Shamira nodded.

Gyan took his time walking the streets of Aikon, soaking in the bustling sounds and chatter that were already alive once more in the marketplace. He watched the children running in the streets and felt the desire to protect them swell within him. His thoughts naturally drifted to Jalena, and his chest tightened.

"Shanlo," the little girl's soft voice rang in his ears. A sharp pain pierced his head. He stopped and placed his hand against a building to steady himself. Sweat appeared on his brow and a warm sensation spread through him.

"Are you alright, Master?" a nearby merchant asked.

Gyan wiped the back of his hand across his forehead and took a deep breath. "Yes…thank you." He hurried down the street.

He grabbed some bread and fruit when he entered the first floor of the central building and then quickly joined the others in an upper room. Jabari passed through the door behind him.

The group bowed formally to each other and recited the warrior philosophy before seating.

Jabari remained standing. "There has been no sign of any more Vaznaun around the area, so I have sent our reinforcements back to headquarters," he announced. "We can discuss last night freely now. Before we get into what happened to Master Aderes, I wish to speak to you about another matter."

He frowned, and his eyes took on a look of deep concern. "You have prepared for combat all your lives and each of you has proven your ability to take care of yourselves. You have done remarkably well for taking on the largest assignment a team has ever undergone without being given the time to fully indulge your studies. Now you must utilize the compacted training you have undergone. It is important to use your gifts of light to the best of your ability at all times, especially in critical moments when you are overrun by the enemy or distracted by an unexpected event, and your teammates are not near. Part of the reason you have been trained to control your mind is so that you remain mentally astute…" he swallowed, "…especially in emotionally challenging times." Jabari's voice rose harshly. "You must look beyond distraction!"

The warriors jumped and stared at the master with widened eyes.

Jabari lowered his gaze and took a deep breath. When he spoke again, his voice took on a gentler tone. "There have been many warriors that have lost their lives unnecessarily because of losing focus, and many have been dear friends of mine. Training the apreidus can be difficult for a training master. Not because it is difficult to teach children, but because there is attachment that grows from bonding with you as children and watching your growth over time. I do not want to see any on this team perish because they fail to use their hard-earned skills in battle at the expense of emotion."

Valora sniffed as Brogan sat up and cleared his throat. Danika quickly wiped a tear from the corner of her eye.

"One thing in particular I am referring to is that you must, under all circumstances, get use to using your teleporting ability in battle more than you have." He turned to Gyan. "Master Gyan, you could have teleported to Master Aderes in the midst of an attack so that you were beside him to cast the shield. It would have saved you from injury as well," he said sternly.

Gyan felt his face warm. His gaze dropped to the table as he nodded. "I know, Master. I-I'll remember."

Remember the story about my parents, Gyan? Jalena told him privately. I don't want to see you—her voice turned to a whisper. I can't lose you too.

The warm sensation Gyan felt earlier intensified. His throat thickened. He grabbed the glass of water sitting in front of him and drank the entire thing.

Jabari turned to Tarak. "Master Tarak, no matter how brave and strong you are, the battlefield is no time to prove how much damage you can take at a given time. You should have been teleporting away from the groups of Vaznaun that attacked you until those in your team could assist you properly."

Tarak gave Jabari a nod.

Jabari looked at each in the group. "Although it takes some energy to continually teleport during repeated attacks, it takes more energy to heal yourself from injury.

Getting used to sharing some of your light to boost a fallen teammate can also make a difference between success or failure in a moment. All of you are to remember these things from now on."

Agreements were voiced around the table.

"—Okay, Master."

"—Sounds good, Master Jabari."

"—Assured."

Jabari sighed and took a seat. "Now, we will speak of Master Aderes. It appears as if the Vaznaun's entire purpose for the attack last night was to target him."

"But, why here?" Brogan asked.

"Mordán knew that we would respond immediately given that it is within the borders of Alsar," Jalena stated. "He aimed for a central location in Alsar, where news of the attack would reach us quickly."

"I agree," Jabari said.

"The Vaznaun only attacked Master Tarak and Master Gyan," Valora stated.

"I think it had to do with the type of charismas they carry," Jabari answered. "Both have the best chance of removing or helping others from a distance, so distracting them would be critical in order to have the effect on Master Aderes that Mordán was aiming for."

"His aim was for Aderes to go into an uncontrollable rage?" Jarek asked in confusion.

"Not entirely, Master Jarek. By using Akila's disguising spell on the girl so that she looked like Lesiana, he wanted to trigger a psychological and emotional reaction in Master Aderes to the point that he lost reason."

"To see what it would take for him to lose focus and weaken him enough to kill him?" Jarek questioned.

"But, they didn't even try to attack or capture him after he got to the girl," said Valora. "They retreated instead."

"It might have been just to test how much it would take for him to weaken his resolve," Gyan said.

"That's one reason," Jabari stated, "but, I feel it is more. Akila has already captured one of us." He looked at Valora. "So, I wouldn't put it past her to use Master Aderes's desire to rescue Lesiana as a way to capture him."

"It was to bait him then?" Hoshi asked.

"But, their plan backfired," Brogan stated. "It didn't weaken or lure him away."

"It didn't lure him yet, Master Brogan," said Jabari. "And it did and it didn't weaken him. What happened to Master Aderes is what happens when a light warrior experiences an emotionally triggering event from an unbalanced state."

"Did he open his Reserve like Master Jalena did in front of Akila?" Gyan asked.

"Yes," replied Jabari.

"What is a Reserve?" Hoshi asked.

"We have not had time to teach you fully of your Reserve power as the training for releasing it comes after Chiséi," Jabari answered. "Reserve is a term used to represent the gateway of the core power that resides within you. When you reach a specific state in which you feel depleted mentally, physically, or emotionally, you have the ability to reach internally and open this gateway. You can also open it in a controlled fashion if you anticipate a powerful attack from another. Each warrior has the ability to connect with and unleash the power from the core of who you are. This power is unlimited as far as we know, but the body must reach a balanced state and be strong enough to wield the power."

"We do not teach you to unleash your Reserve before master studies so that a warrior has enough time to practice and familiarize themselves with being energetically balanced so that this state automatizes within you. Living in this balance helps to solidify your foundation of light energy so that you act with your heart and mind as one instinctually until the entirety of who you are is embedded in every thought and action. It is only after this state of living has been repeatedly practiced that one should attempt to open their Reserve."

"So, what happened to Aderes is what could happen to any of us when we are unbalanced and try to open it?" Gyan asked.

"Yes. Rather than Master Aderes controlling the power of his Reserve, his Reserve began to reclaim him. Your Reserve power is meant to heal or resolve whatever issue arises. If you are in control of your power and energetically balanced, a solution should formulate easily within your mind even in a temporary state of depletion or when faced with an obstacle. Your Reserve power simply assists you in reaching the solution you wish. From a controlled state, you direct it accordingly. However, if one is unbalanced while releasing their core power, they are doing so from a state of pain in which no solution appears to satisfy an intense desire. In this state, the Reserve power still seeks to satisfy a desire, but because the wielder of the power is not in a state of control and feels lost within, the only solution is to end all pain for the wielder. This is done by consuming the wielder completely back into the core, which is what Master Aderes began to experience."

"Aderes's core power was destroying him before you stepped in to stop it?" Jarek asked with an incredulous expression.

"Physically, yes," Jabari replied. "Unknowingly, he was destroying his own physical form in order to end his pain. Although returning to your core is not really considered destructive, one has to unbind from the body to do so, which is a destructive process when it is evoked from pain."

"So, if it isn't driven by pain, then returning to your core power and ending your physical existence doesn't have to be like what happened to Aderes?" Valora asked.

"You're correct. If from a balanced state, you desire to release all of your Reserve, your physical existence will cease, and you can simply disappear within the light. It does not have to be destructive or painful and will only be so if unleashed from an unbalanced state of mind.

"Master Aderes attempted to direct the power of his Reserve in the beginning and succeeded. The enemy was completely demolished by the expanded light of his gladaé, and he was in control of his light enough, so it did not destroy the entire forest. His light retracted after it reached the Vestian. However, destroying the Vaznaun did not resolve Master Aderes's emotional pain. His focus and call to his Reserve was out of alignment because of the overwhelming heartache for Lesiana he carried within him. In response, his core attempted to satisfy the desire to destroy the enemy as well as the desire to destroy the pain within."

"Why didn't Aderes's light harm Valora or Jarek when it touched them?" Danika asked.

"A warrior's core frequency of light mirrors each other," Jabari stated. "As light warriors, we all possess the same frequency within, so any light carrying the same frequency will pass through you. The charismas we possess are different because they carry a specific frequency that is unique to each warrior. Therefore, your charismas can still affect each other, although not to the same degree as it would on one who is not a warrior.

"When the power of the Reserve is unleashed, it only attempts to destroy frequencies within range that differ from its own. For example, I warned Master Jalena of Master Aderes's attack in case Eclipse was in range of his light. Had Master Aderes been in a balanced state, he could have directed the light to avoid Eclipse. But, since he was not completely in control, it is likely that Eclipse would have been destroyed in the attack if Master Jalena had not teleported her to safety."

"What will happen to Aderes now?" Gyan asked in a low voice.

"We let him recover in peace and then the elder masters will meet with him to decide what's best for him in regard to his path," Jabari stated. "He may not wish to stay with the Order."

Several warriors made sounds of protest, but Jabari held up his hand for silence. "I realize that he is not only your teammate, but also your friend, and has been since childhood," he said softly. "Those bonds will always remain. However, experiences change people. It changes their desires, and we can only honor what Master Aderes's wishes are now. Once he recovers and meets with the elder masters, we will know more."

Hoshi took a deep breath and quickly wiped the silent tears from her eyes. Next to her, Danika grabbed her other hand.

Gyan's heart sank. Aderes had already told him that he did not want to work for the Order any longer. He felt helpless. He needed to move. All eyes turned his way as he abruptly stood and moved to stand at a far window in the room.

It will be okay, Gyan.Jalena's voice gently entered his mind. We will figure it out.

He closed his eyes and nodded.

"Are we to remain in Aikon until he wakes?" Valora asked.

"Yes," Jabari answered. He smiled. "In fact, through the request of myself and Elder Master Syam, I believe that your families should arrive from Yevani shortly after midday for an evening visit, so try to enjoy your short break and not dwell too much on any unknowns."

The room broke out in a buzz.

"Thank you, Master Jabari!" Danika said.

Jabari bowed to the warriors and exited the room.