Book 1: Chapter 13 – Spiritual Energy

The pain Jabari felt wasn't unfamiliar. It was the same searing agony that yanked him from his night terrors every time he dared to close his eyes. The difference was that, usually, the pain vanished after a few fleeting seconds – but this time, the sharp, stabbing sensation in his neck refused to relent.

Deep down, he knew he hadn't been stabbed, but the raw intensity of the pain was so convincing that he couldn't resist checking. His trembling fingers found no blood, no wound, only clammy skin slick with sweat. The lack of injury should have reassured him; instead, it only deepened his dread.

"What…

What's happening to me?!" he rasped, clutching his neck as he struggled to breathe.

His body begged him to cry out, to release the agony trapped in his chest, but the memory of Inayah sleeping peacefully inside anchored him. He forced his mouth shut, stuffed the hem of his fresh, crisp t-shirt between his teeth, and bit down with all his might.

An unshakable instinct whispered to him that if he allowed himself to pass out, he might never wake up again. The thought chilled him to his core. He didn't know where this certainty came from, but the gravity of it left no room for doubt.

The pain, however, refused to yield. It gnawed at him with unrelenting cruelty, stretching seconds into eternities. His resolve wavered. His consciousness teetered on the brink.

Just as he began to surrender, a voice sliced through the suffocating haze like a bolt of lightning. Heba's voice. "If you can't overcome this little bit of pain, you'll never manage to save your sister!"

Suddenly, Inayah's face appeared in his mind – a soft beacon of light in the oppressive void. Her innocent smile, her trusting eyes, her entire being became his lifeline. Clinging to that image, Jabari channelled every ounce of his dwindling strength into resisting the siren call of unconsciousness.

Time lost all meaning. Each passing second felt like a battle waged with nothing but sheer willpower. And then, just as the last ember of his resolve threatened to burn out, the pain relented.

Relief washed over him in waves, drawing a weak smile to his lips as he collapsed into oblivion.

From the shadows, Heba observed the boy's ordeal in silence. When the pain subsided and his body finally slumped, she turned her head toward the entrance and gave Lateef a subtle nod.

The tall figure stepped forward, scooping Jabari's limp form into his arms with ease.

"Looks like I was right to trust my senses after all," Heba murmured to herself, her gaze softening as a faint, knowing smile curved her lips.

…

When Jabari awoke, darkness cloaked the world beyond the window.

He sat up slowly, surprised by how light his body felt. For the first time in years, his mind was free of the oppressive fog of exhaustion. The ever-present migraine that had been his unwelcome companion for as long as he could remember was gone, replaced by a clarity that was almost dizzying.

Looking down, he spotted Inayah curled up beside him, her tiny frame tucked into a ball. Her delicate breaths, slow and steady, filled him with warmth. He smiled and shook his head, marvelling at how serene she looked.

It was then that he noticed the shift.

Despite the pitch-black room, he saw her perfectly – the soft rise and fall of her chest, the strands of hair resting against her forehead. More than that, he could smell the faint trace of the fragrant soap Heba had given them, the subtle floral sweetness still clinging to their skin.

His first thought was that this clarity was simply the result of a proper night's sleep. Perhaps his exhaustion had dulled his senses for years, and this was how everyone experienced the world.

But deep down, he knew better.

No amount of rest could account for the vividness with which he perceived his surroundings. This was something different. Something more.

'Hmm, what's that?' Jabari's eyes widened in confusion as a strange warmth bloomed between his brows – a soft, comforting sensation unlike anything he'd ever felt.

Drawn to the peculiar feeling, he instinctively shifted his focus inward. There, in the space behind his glabella, he "saw" it: a small, translucent sphere of white mist no larger than a fingernail. It pulsed faintly, like a tiny star breathing in the darkness of his mind.

Despite never encountering anything like it, Jabari felt an inexplicable familiarity with the mist. It wasn't foreign. It was his – an extension of himself, as natural as a hand or foot. He knew, without knowing how, that he could control it.

With a simple thought, the mist stirred. It surged backward and spread through his brain like a cool stream of light.

'This... this is incredible!' he thought, his mind suddenly humming with new vitality.

The mist sharpened his thoughts, doubling the speed of his mental processes. And that was only the beginning. Guided by instinct, Jabari willed the mist to flow toward his eyes.

The moment it reached them, his vision sharpened to an extraordinary degree. He glanced toward the window and gasped. 'This is insane!'

Though it was the dead of night, the darkness no longer hindered him. Across the courtyard, more than twenty metres away, he spotted a spider creeping toward a fly ensnared in its web. He could see the fine details of the spider's spindly legs as they shifted with calculated precision, the sticky silk trembling beneath their delicate weight.

Even more astonishing, time itself seemed to slow. The spider's movements no longer appeared jerky or hurried; each step unfolded as though he were watching a slowed-down recording.

Eager to explore further, he directed the mist from his eyes to his ears.

Instantly, his hearing expanded. The distant hum of insects filled the night air like a symphony, each buzz and chirp crisp and distinct. His ears caught the faint, frantic vibrations of trapped flies struggling in the spider's web, their tiny wings beating in futile desperation.

One by one, Jabari guided the mist to each of his senses – smell, taste, and touch – relishing the extraordinary clarity it brought. Every shift in the air, every faint scent, every microscopic detail of the world around him became vivid and tangible.

'I think I'll call you Spirit for now,' he thought, returning the mist to the space behind his brows.

Yet even as the mist settled, an unshakable curiosity tugged at him. There was something more it could do. He could feel it.

Without hesitation, Jabari sent the spirit back to his brain and willed it to divide into five equal streams, each one directed toward a different sensory organ.

The moment the mist touched all five senses simultaneously, though, agony erupted through his skull.

"ARGH!" he roared, his body convulsing as though lightning had struck him.

The bed rattled beneath him as he thrashed from side to side, his muscles seizing with each pulse of pain. Sweat poured from his skin, soaking the sheets within seconds.

"Jari?! What's wrong? What happened?!" Inayah's terrified voice pierced the haze of pain.

Jabari couldn't respond. His jaw clenched so tightly that his teeth ground against one another. His hands clutched his temples as if trying to contain the explosion ravaging his mind.

"HEBA! HELP! PLEASE HELP HIM!" Inayah screamed, her tiny hands gripping his arm as if her touch alone could anchor him through the storm.

The door burst open with a crash. Lateef, with his sword drawn, and Aten, who held a shimmering orb of water suspended above his palm, entered first, followed closely by Heba.

Their eyes scanned the room, searching for danger. Finding no visible threat, Heba's gaze fell on Jabari's writhing form.

Her expression shifted from caution to concern as she took a step closer. "What's wrong with you now?" she muttered, more to herself than anyone else.

…

The following morning, Jabari woke from yet another unplanned, bone-deep slumber – the irony of it all not lost on him.

Before meeting Heba, sleep had been an elusive tormentor, always just out of reach. Now, it seemed to ambush him without warning.

Glancing around the room, he felt a strange sense of déjà vu as his eyes landed on Inayah curled up beside him, her tiny frame tucked into a familiar ball. The difference this time was the pale morning light streaming through the window, casting soft golden patterns across the wooden floor.

His thoughts drifted back to the moments before he'd blacked out, and he inhaled deeply, a faint shiver running through him. The pain he'd endured still haunted him.

The agony from breaking the nightmare curse had lasted longer, sure – but this? This was something else entirely. When he'd split his spirit among all five senses, the pain had been sharper, more immediate. It had felt like every nerve in his brain was being skewered simultaneously.

Now that the pain was gone, clarity replaced the confusion.

He remembered the exact moment when the energy, once contained within his senses, had extended outward, forming an invisible sphere roughly a metre in radius. Within that sphere, his senses had operated in unison – seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and feeling every detail around him with unnerving precision.

But his mind hadn't been ready. The torrent of sensory information had been too much, too fast, forcing his body to shut down in self-defence.

'I was lucky to survive that,' Jabari thought grimly. His gaze shifted to the bedside table, where an empty mug rested, still carrying the faint, pungent scent of medicine. 'I guess I owe Heba even more than I thought.'

As his mind replayed the incident, another detail emerged – a fleeting moment of surprise just before the agony consumed him.

He remembered the air around him brimming with countless tiny motes of light. They had drifted like dandelion seeds, shimmering softly. When his spirit touched them, a feeling of warmth and familiarity washed over him. It was a sensation unlike any he'd known: peaceful, inviting... almost like a long-forgotten memory.

"Just what was that?" Jabari murmured, his brows knitting together. He longed to experience that feeling again, but he also knew he wasn't ready. Not yet.

"Jari?"

His sister's drowsy voice pulled him from his thoughts. Looking down, he saw her eyelids flutter open.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her voice small, her eyes still shadowed with worry.

"I feel amazing," he answered truthfully, a gentle smile spreading across his face as he ruffled her hair.

"That's good!" Inayah let out a relieved sigh. "You were screaming so much last night; I got really scared."

"I'm sorry for scaring you," Jabari said, guilt flickering through his chest. "But I promise, I feel like a whole new person. You don't have to worry about me anymore."

"Okay..." she nodded hesitantly, then tilted her head. "How long do you think you've been asleep?"

Jabari frowned. "I dunno... a few hours?"

"It's been three days," Inayah declared matter-of-factly, wrinkling her nose. "That's why you smell so bad."

"Three days?!" Jabari's jaw dropped. "Wait, hold on – three whole days?"

Inayah giggled and pinched her nose. "Yup. And you stink like rotten eggs."

Jabari groaned, rubbing his face. "Unbelievable. Have you been taking the medicine Heba said she'd make for you?"

"Yeah," Inayah said, her expression twisting with disgust. "It tastes disgusting, though."

"But does it work? How do you feel?"

"I feel great! I don't get dizzy as much anymore."

"That's amazing news!" Jabari beamed, pulling her into a hug and squeezing her tightly. Relief flooded his chest. He'd been grateful to Heba for helping with his nightmare, but this – this was different. Nothing mattered more to him than Inayah's health.

"Ugh, Jari!" she squealed, still pinching her nose. "You really smell bad!"

"You've only been out of the slums for a few days, and already you're too posh to handle a little body odour?" Jabari teased, giving her cheeks a playful pinch. "All right, Princess Clean. Go back to your room while I take a shower. Can't have you fainting from my stench."

Inayah giggled and scrambled off the bed. As she skipped toward the door, Jabari couldn't help but smile, the warmth of her laughter pushing away the lingering chill of the memories from the night before.