Depression and Growth

Among the many challenges that existed for him to learn the material that sat in front of him, the revelations kept coming. Things he had heard about, mythical things were common on the world of Shiyan.

Dragons, Great Dragons, Wyrms, Phoenixes.. he had even met a Phoenix lord personally. There were many marvelous things in the world he had awakened to. As it was drawing toward closing, he felt a bit guilty, stealing the books. Though, in his mind, they did not belong to the Library specifically. Still, he needed to learn things without having to pay for access. He had enough materials to last a lifetime of leisure, if he so chose it. Sitting in the Library he wondered how he would be able to seek his revenge. If killing was no longer an option due to time, political actions, whatever, then he would have to find a different method to target the Zao Clan.

The Appraiser position was the easiest to learn about the material value of things, even learning quite about about the auras in passing while he did it. The problem would be what he would do afterward. Books were stacking up on the desktop, he wasn't just skimming either. Closing time was about to come. Packing up in a hurry, he started to put the books back and saw a letter drop from one on the bottom. He picked it up and put it away.

As he approached the doorway, he was fearful that he would be struck by an other worldly force. Step by step he inched his way closer to the doorway. He remembered the letter, took it out and was about to start reading. He turned it over to inspect it, looking for a name, anything to give a clue about what it might contain.

It didn't contain a seal, nor did it have any identifying marks on its exterior. The envelope was fancy, machine made and gave off a fiery aura. Once he had pulled the letter from it, it burst into flame, flaring up and dissipating quickly.

There was no smoke, no ash, no envelope.

'That's weird.' Errit unfolded the letter.

"This message is to the person reading my book. If this appeared, that means you should look for me in the future. Carry on." The page caught flame, flew into the air, burned for a moment and compressed into a tiny stone. It dropped into Errit's hands. There was an unmistakable aura in the pellet.

"I guess this is his marker?" Errit put the pellet sized bead away and strode through the door, a wave of pressure came over him and then backed off. 'oh shit, here it comes' Errit thought.

He took another step, then another. Then, he was halfway across the road, down past the diner, down past the block and headed for the wetlands. He was sure his doom would come. His sweat soaked back caught the wind and cooled him down.

"I should study and pass this test, then, I can move toward their Capital and make a move." Errit studied what the driving force behind all the people he had encountered. Their primary drive was power, power over nature, power to live on as they saw fit and a sense of freedom in that aspect. It was a dangerous world, people died, constantly from strange effects, curses, beasts, nature itself. The power to overcome such obstacles was their linchpin.

Staring at the night sky, his mind raced with consideration of becoming the bad guy. 40 years had passed since his death, his meaningless and effortless death. It was concerning, revenge is always best served cold, and for him it would be ice cold. No one would know why. No matter the direction he chose in his future, his immediate situation and future required his focus. He jumped into a Tree, channeled a bit and the branches grew to accommodate his posture. His control over his ability was getting better, but his leaking aura caused a spike in almost all plantlife around him. He felt like a living battery, giving them his energy, used.

When he was feeling the resentment, a force took over him, his power flipped. The plants around him started to wither at an astounding rate, decay took over and the tree began to topple. Errit jumped and got himself under control with the help of the Wandering Chains. The grass and other energies were starting to sap from the earth, drying it to stay alive but no matter how hard the plant struggled, it withered and died. Errit stood, unwilling to move for a moment.

Things were dying all around him. He focused, calming his mind. It didn't help. The ground began to splinter, dry and crack further, its life energies taken. A depression began to form with Errit at the center.

Massive pulsations came from the chains after a few minutes, their green luster restored to a vibrancy that he was sure only to be temporary. Throwing the Chains out, his power channeled along them, grasping, branding and grappling anything it touched. His aura marked the object like a seal. The Objects lost their aura, fell lifeless and crumbled. Energy flowed into his body through the chains.

The Tattoo revolved on his skin, knotwork appeared. Errit laughed. He had used the name Kink before and now it was even more fitting. He took off the mask and put the Blackout hat to cover the marking on his face.

Sitting cross legged in the depression, he did his best to communicate with his ability. A technique described in the Alchemy notes, Harris had spoken about adjusting to random power changes and how to gain control over them quickly. Sometimes just a nudge in another direction could change everything for a process that was under way.

The Chains slowly came to a crawl and then stopped, he worked his fingers into the soil and tried feeling for the aura in the ground. Threads, barely noticeable lingered beneath. Life from hundreds of years ago swept over by time and dirt began to spring up. Large leaves, species that were missing from the area and many new trees began pushing through the cracked soil bed.

It looked like a Jungle, Errit looked things over and compulsively gathered as many samples as he could keep an interest in. There were so many plants coming out of the depression. He sat down and calmed himself some more. Watching his power levels closer, the growth began to subside. It felt like a roller coaster of life and death.

A Ruble started, tumultuous fluctuations in his aura started. It was being consumed again by the plants, bonding and absorbing each other, wild vines sprang out and into the area. Errit's power was going into overdrive.

He tried to regain his focus and slapped himself in the face, 'Get a grip.'

The energy was flowing out of him in a tide, waves of plant life sprang around him. A Deep Golden Aura leaked from his forehead and traveled to his heart.

The mark on his face traveled down his body and closer to his core. Disappearing like a Lie, it faded into his chest, a mark appeared, different than the last. Its character unknown, Errit couldn't tell what it meant. As it disappeared, fading into his chest once more, his power normalized, coming to a still.

Checking his surroundings, he was boxed in.

Lush leaves and trees surrounded him like an epicenter and core to their growth. Leaping over a few branches, he saw the range of his outburst. There were auras visible to the naked eye, they appeared everywhere throughout the affected area. Errit swapped over to the Hunters Mask and dashed to the nearest location.

Sitting among a bunch of lesser herbs were shining bones. Unearth during the growth, their auras were leaking out into the open air. Errit sprinted between each of the fragments, several hundred in total covered the wetlands which had risen considerably around the depression. The canopy shot up an additional 45 feet and strange plants that didn't belong to the current growth patterns were abundant.

The rare herbs were of less interest than the bones, Errit could feel the people nearby approaching his area ready to poach the new growth. He hurried. There were still a few dozen scattered around after the first hour of hunting. With people approaching, he was unwilling to risk discovery. he grabbed as many herbs and plants along the way and left the area.

About seven kilometers outside of the City, a rock outcropping provided shelter, though it seemed oddly placed. Markings on its interior roof explained why. 'Made by Gunny, 31749. We lost another friend today, I couldn't travel. It hurts, the loss. My dear Weniary, I will join you soon.' Errit read the passage, it was touching. He sat under the memorial lodestone marker.

"That looks tasty." A small rabbitlike animal, not unlike the Jackalopes had appeared near the waters edge. The Chains tore it to pieces, disassembling it. Errit thought in advance and pulled out the pan, catching the meat before it fell. He added some garlic and herbs, a leaf that smelled like coriander and some of the Moonflower pool water to the base of the pan. It simmered.

More movement could be heard from a distance, but Errit had the Mask on and nothing he was wearing looked threatening. The Campfire sparked and a twig snapped nearby, they had found his camp.