Chapter 5.6 - Meditation

Calder had a great admiration for the boy's resilience, even more now that he knew about the incomplete bond. Everything Adam had done to that point was two times harder than it should be, and still, he did it.

"It's a technique of energy transfer." Adam was totally focused on the man's words. "I share a portion of my energy with the dummy, and that way, I don't have to control it myself."

"But how does it do all of that if you're not controlling it?"

"When we share energy, we also share a portion of our conscience with the recipient, so with a single thought, it knows what it has to do."

Calder tried to advance again, but Adam stopped him.

"How many can we create at once?"

The possibilities for attacks and strategies were endless with those things.

"It depends on how much energy you can channel to them."

Even with the answer, the boy didn't move, and Calder knew he wouldn't unless he gave him more information.

"We get our own energy from the Universe, so it's infinite." Adam was opening his mouth to interfere when Calder raised his hand to stop him. "But we don't use it all at once. It's dangerous to others, and no one knows what would happen to us if we did. Channeling takes more mental agility than strength."

Adam lowered his arm, processing the information. There was a lot about his powers he didn't know, but also, the potential was limitless.

"Controlling one dummy is barely noticeable, but controlling one thousand demands the same amount of mental control."

Having received the answers he wanted, Adam needed time to absorb it all. In a first evaluation, they were as powerful as the Element was, but their mind needed to be just as potent to control these forces.

Self-control wasn't something you could download or read in a book; it was a skill that had to be improved.

"If I finish my bond with Earth, I'll be able to use more energy, right?" His eyes were full of hope and ideas.

Calder could feel the anxiety in the boy's voice. Adam wanted to learn and be powerful. The old man wished he could just give it to him, but it wasn't that simple. Some things he would have to find on his own.

"Yes." The Water God gave a final answer.

In his mind, Adam was already coming up with ideas to connect in a deeper way with his Element. Being in direct contact with it always triggered some hidden emotion, making him feel the history of the material and getting to know what it was made of.

Having given up on the training with Calder, Adam turned to the exit.

"I'll be going then."

Adam had no idea where he was going. If he wanted to talk to his Element, he would need some sort of mystical place. First, he thought about the temple for obvious reasons, but he didn't feel a lot of Earth magic in there. Maybe the Elements' patio, where he was before Calder wasted his time.

Being dragged from one place to the next really helped him get around on his own. It didn't take long, and he was back under the moonlight.

Looking around, the Playboy tried to find a spiritual spot to sit, but nothing seemed right. He walked around, flew up, expecting to find some sort of energy breeze to help him out, and failed.

"Fuck this!" He landed and sat down on the stone floor.

In direct contact with the rock underneath him, he could see its shape, size, and weight in his mind. It was a basalt stone, the same one used on the pillars. He wondered how that place must have looked when locals were building it.

The pillars were positioned in alignment with the moon and the sun. Reading the hours on a solar watch was something he never cared to learn, but he knew that was one of the purposes of that place.

Enough about the stars, the Earth God rubbed his hands in preparation for whatever was about to happen.

"Let's fucking go."

Using unnecessary caution, Adam touched the floor. From his cinematographic experience, physically touching mythical things triggered something in people. Ready to test that theory, the boy spread out his fingers and touched the stone with his palm.

The feeling was cold, getting hotter in contact with him. In total silence and with a clear mind, he waited for the revelation. Maybe Earth would come to him in the form of a woman or as a voice in a mountain, but he was rooting for the female form.

Nothing happened for so many reasons. Adam's mind was filled with random thoughts and expectations about the encounter. He couldn't make it stop, even though he knew he needed to clear his mind.

Cursing and complaining internally, the Playboy took a deep breath. This time, he would try to think about the world around him.

Under his palm, he felt the rugged texture of rock, though it was sculpted to be as smooth as possible. He ran his fingers along the spear marks that shaped the brute rock. A thin layer of dust attached itself to his fingertips. As if he was seeing it with a microscope in his head, Adam rubbed his fingertips together and felt the pale grains of dust.

Earth could be an enormous rock or a grain of dust. The Elements had so many forms, and each served a purpose that made the world what it was.

A bit of sadness stung his heart. He wanted to be accepted as he was accepting her. In his thoughts, he couldn't call his Element anything other than in the female form. The Earth practically gave birth to everything alive, it fed and sheltered humans, animals, and plants. All things depended on her.

He depended on her. With Earth's help, he would be able to save his mother. For a second, he let a few intrusive thoughts penetrate his mind, mostly worries about how she was where he was keeping her.

Being dragged into that mess was something he never imagined in a million years. Adam wasn't religious; he never believed or gave a crap about the afterlife. What he wanted was to get away from the terrible people he called friends, and look where it got him. Where it got his family.

"Fuck!" A shout of anger broke the silence.

In his dark mind, his thoughts crumbled, and he opened his eyes. Thinking only made things worse. There was zero magical aura in that patio, and he was wasting time.

Standing up after giving up altogether on meditation, Adam went to get his books. It was probably best to go back inside and read a little.

Earth was not up for bonding tonight.