Book 2: Chapter 26 – Patriarch Darnell Campbell

"Seeing as you're here, I'm guessing you drew the short straw and were tasked with making sure the secrets of the Beast-Warriors remain a secret," Aziz said with a knowing smile as his gaze landed on Nala.

"Good. That means I don't have to waste time with a tedious explanation," Nala replied briskly, brushing past him and letting herself in as if it were her own home.

Aziz turned to the two boys still standing outside. "Your aunt's a little too brazen, isn't she?" he remarked, glancing sidelong at August.

"Come on. Don't mind him," Jabari said, shooting a pointed look at his Master and leading August inside without further comment.

"Well, good morning to you too," Aziz called after them sarcastically.

Jabari gave him nothing more than a grunt and an eye roll as he passed.

The training hall was quiet, bathed in early morning light. As Jabari stepped in, he saw Nala standing by a table in the far corner. But it wasn't her presence that drew his attention – it was the two objects resting on the table.

One was a purple-hued book, its cover thick and ancient-looking. The other was a small vial filled with crimson liquid – the beast blood that would change everything.

"Shut the door behind you," Nala said without looking back.

Jabari turned to see that Aziz hadn't followed them in. As he pushed the door closed, Nala spoke again, her voice calm but resolute.

"As he said earlier, the secrets of the Beast-Warriors must remain guarded. Not even your Master can witness this. He may be your teacher now, but this knowledge belongs solely to the Institute."

Jabari nodded in understanding, the finality in her tone leaving no room for protest.

"Before we begin, you'll need to perform a blood oath," she said. "You'll swear not to disclose anything you learn here today to anyone who isn't currently a Beast-Warrior or hasn't graduated from one of the Beast-Warrior Institutes."

"Blood oath?" Jabari asked, furrowing his brow.

"It's just like an ordinary oath," Nala explained, "except it's overseen by the Heavens themselves. Anyone who breaks it forfeits their life instantly."

She softened her tone slightly. "You don't need to worry. Every Beast-Warrior before you has done it. Everyone after you will as well. As long as you never share what you learn with anyone outside the fold, you'll be fine."

Jabari was taken aback as his thoughts circled back to his sister. Still, now wasn't the time or the place for distracting thoughts.

"So… how do I do it?" he asked without much hesitation. As much as he trusted Aziz, this wasn't his secret to share.

"Simple. Bite the fleshy part of your thumb until you draw blood. Raise that hand and repeat after me."

Jabari followed her instructions, lifting his hand, the crimson gleam of fresh blood staining his thumb.

"I, Jabari," he repeated, voice steady, "swear on my life, with the Heavens as my witness, not to divulge any of the Institute's secrets of Beast-Warriors to anyone who isn't a Beast-Warrior themselves."

A strange sensation rippled through him. The blood on his thumb glowed faintly before dissolving into the air like mist under sunlight.

"It's done," Nala confirmed, catching the flicker of uncertainty on his face.

"Are you sure?" Jabari said, eyeing his palm. "I don't feel any different."

"Let's test it, shall we?" Nala offered. "I know you don't know much yet, but just imagine telling Aziz the secrets of becoming a Beast-Warrior."

Jabari obeyed, conjuring the imaginary scenario in his mind – the result was instant.

His face paled. Sweat poured down his body. His jaw clenched in silence, but the agony etched across his features said more than any scream ever could.

As the thought faded from his mind, so too did the pain. He stumbled slightly, drawing in a shaky breath.

"That was horrible. It felt like my blood was on fire," he gasped.

"The pain intensifies the closer you come to actually speaking the words," Nala said seriously, watching him recover.

"I understand. Don't worry – I have no intention of breaking the oath," Jabari replied firmly.

But even as he said it, thoughts of his sister gnawed at the edges of his mind.

'Isn't this what they made Yah-Yah do the night her vassal was taken?' Jabari's thoughts raced. 'If that were true, then how had she spoken about it with Heba and I? How had the secret been divulged without killing her?

By all accounts, that should have been impossible…'

"Good! Now that that's out of the way, we can focus on why we're really here," Nala said, her tone sharpening with purpose. "How much do you know about becoming a Beast-Warrior?"

"Only that every Beast-Warrior has to absorb the blood of a special beast aligned with one of the five elements to transform their body," Jabari replied, repeating the common knowledge he'd heard since entering the Institute.

"Not quite," Nala said with a small smirk. "That's just a rumour the Institute spread years ago to keep outsiders in the dark. The truth is far more remarkable – the blood we absorb doesn't come from many beasts. It comes from one."

"One beast?!" Jabari repeated, stunned. "But if that's true, how is the element determined?"

"And that," Nala said, her voice dropping slightly in tone, "is the true secret of the Beast-Warriors."

She stepped forward, her gaze turning reverent as she began to speak of the past.

"Ordinarily, consuming the blood of a powerful beast would be the same as drinking poison – it would destroy you from within. But the Patriarch found a way to refine the blood of a certain beast into something we could absorb, opening an entirely new path for warriors like us. And he did so without it killing us in the process."

The awe in her voice was unmistakable, and Jabari felt a shiver at the respect and weight behind her words.

"Not only did he refine the beast's blood," she continued, "he also created what are called the Elemental Breathing Techniques. There are five of them – each one corresponding to one of the five elements. These techniques don't just let you absorb the refined blood – they help you temper your body in different ways, each one focusing on a distinct physical attribute."

Jabari stood there, mouth slightly agape, as the implications settled in. His mind reeled.

"You're not alone in your shock," Nala added, reading his expression. "It's hard to believe, I know. The blood that's created tens of thousands of Beast-Warriors all originates from a single beast. But that beast isn't just any creature – it's the beast partner of Patriarch Darnell Campbell."

She paused, her voice becoming almost reverent. "It's said that its power is on par with the Patriarch himself. When the Beast-Warrior method was first developed, it offered its own blood without hesitation – for the sole purpose of protecting our homeland. That's the kind of creature we owe our strength to."

Jabari was indeed shocked, but not for the reasons Nala assumed. His thoughts were caught on something else entirely.

'I didn't even know there were other breathing techniques aside from the [Empyrean Breathing Technique]. If the Patriarch created the elemental ones, then…

Could he know about the [Empyrean Breathing Technique] too? Just who is Darnell Campbell…

And how is he connected to me?'

That inexplicable sense of familiarity he'd felt when first hearing the Patriarch's name now resurfaced, stronger than ever.

"There are two components to every Breathing Technique," Nala went on, unaware of his inner turmoil. "First is the stance. Then, the breathing itself. Both are relatively straightforward once you've seen them in action. There's an in-depth explanation in this manual." she held up the purple-coloured book. "Normally, I'd have you read it slowly before guiding you through it."

She paused, then gave Jabari a curious smile. "However, according to a former apprentice of mine, your perception is sharp. In that case, it'll be faster if I demonstrate the pose and let you mimic it."

"Former apprentice?" Jabari echoed, glancing toward August. But the boy was completely disinterested in their exchange, already immersed in his usual morning endurance training in the corner.

It clearly wasn't him.

"I'm talking about Kwame," Nala clarified. "The one who invigilated your trials six months ago."

"He was your apprentice?" Jabari asked, surprised.

"My first," Nala confirmed with a nod. "I took him in when I'd just become an Elder, many moons ago."

She waved the memory aside. "But that's not important now. Focus – this is the Lightning Pose."

Without further warning, Nala moved. Her feet shifted to just shy of shoulder-width, then she squatted low, angling her upper body forward at a precise forty-five degrees. Her arms extended above her, forming a straight line with her back, and her fingers interlocked – save for her index fingers, which pointed directly toward the ceiling.

From the side, Jabari could see it clearly: the stance mimicked the shape of a bolt of lightning. Everything about her form was sharp, controlled, and perfectly aligned.

She held the position for three seconds, then relaxed, smoothly rising to her full height.

"Okay. Your turn," she said simply.

No further instructions. No corrections. Just a challenge – unspoken, but clear.

Jabari closed his eyes and allowed his perfect memory to take over. Every detail of Nala's demonstration replayed with crystalline clarity in his mind. With slow, deliberate precision, he adjusted his stance – feet placed just shy of shoulder width, knees bent, upper body angled forward, arms raised in a sharp line above his head, fingers interlocked save for the twin points of his index fingers, aimed directly at the ceiling.

From the side, he mirrored the exact form Nala had shown him – a jagged bolt of flesh and discipline, shaped like lightning itself.

'Kwame was right,' Nala thought to herself, her eyes narrowing in quiet astonishment. 'His perception is impressive.'

"Good," she said aloud. "Now, stay in the Lightning Stance and listen carefully. Of all the Breathing Techniques, the Lightning Breaths are the most difficult to master. They're short and sharp – but above all, they must be controlled."

She stepped forward and tapped her finger lightly against the table, setting a steady rhythm at half-second intervals.

"With every inhale, you must completely fill your lungs with oxygen – every single corner. And with every exhale, you must release all of it. If you fail to do either fully, the technique won't activate. But the real difficulty," she added, continuing her rhythm, "lies in the timing."

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"This," she said, "is the tempo you need to follow."

"Before we start, exhale. All of it – completely." Nala instructed.

Jabari obeyed.

"Now inhale – until you can't take in a single breath more."

As he did, she observed the movement of his chest with a trained eye. "Good. Now that I understand your range of motion, we can begin."

She resumed tapping.

"Remember to try and foll-" Nala stopped mid-sentence, her words cut short as her eyes widened.

She blinked, unsure if she was seeing correctly. But no – there was no mistaking it. Jabari had already found the rhythm, perfectly syncing his breaths to her tempo as though it were second nature.

Unreal…

The [Lightning Breathing Technique] was famously unorthodox – its rhythm uneven and deliberately complex. Unlike [Empyrean Breathing], which followed a smooth, continuous cadence, the Lightning variant pulsed in jagged bursts. Even the most talented lightning-seeded students often took close to an hour to fully grasp the timing. With Jabari's perceptive gifts, Nala had estimated perhaps ten minutes.

But to do it instantly?

Even August paused his training, casting Jabari a surprised glance.

Jabari, however, remained oblivious to the storm he had stirred. His attention was turned inward, focused entirely on the sensation blooming within him.

'It really is similar to the [Empyrean Breathing Technique]… just less efficient,' he assessed, activating his inner sight. 'Where [Empyrean Breathing] tempers every part of the body, [Lightning Breathing] seems to concentrate almost entirely on the nervous system – speed, reflex, sensory awareness…'

He could feel it. The lightning breaths were already stimulating his nerves, heightening their responsiveness.

And something else caught his notice.

'With [Empyrean Breathing], I can only last forty seconds before reaching my limit. But this… I could hold this for at least five minutes without issue.'

Nala finally found her voice.

"Although the Breathing Technique won't have any effect until you've absorbed the Beast Blood – which makes it harder for most to gauge if they're doing it correctly – based on how quickly you picked it up, I don't think you'll struggle at all."

But instead of satisfaction, her words only deepened Jabari's confusion.

'If it doesn't affect the body until after the Beast Blood is ingested? Why can I already feel it strengthening my nerves then? And if others can't?'

His thoughts spiralled inward.

'Could it be my bloodline? If so… then the man from my vision must've had the same one as me. Which would mean…'

His eyes widened as a staggering possibility took shape in his mind.

'Patriarch Darnell Campbell…

Is he a member of my fam-'

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