Two hours later, Eqihr was helping me try to activate my destructive abilities, but it was proving even harder than absorbing natural force. Neither of us had the slightest clue how to release it—or even where to begin.
The first idea we tried was the simplest: punching things. Manny was with us and demonstrated his power first. He drove his fist into a tree, and the entire trunk rocketed into the sky, disappearing over the horizon. I gasped, sighed, and then gave it a try myself. My punch left a nasty dent in the bark, but the tree never budged. Guilt sank in, so I immediately healed the damage.
Next, we tried punching water. That went nowhere. Manny nearly emptied the entire pond, while I managed nothing more than a splash. Eqihr kept studying me, trying to understand the problem, but no conclusion came. Finally, we returned to the meadow and attempted to punch the earth itself. Manny struck the ground with all his strength and left behind a crater as wide as twenty tables put together. Eqihr looked to me expectantly.
I clenched my fist and hit the ground with everything I had, but the result was laughable: a shallow dip, no deeper than a baby's cradle. Frustration welled up inside me. I kept hammering the ground, one strike after another, at four-second intervals, until my arms screamed with pain. Eqihr finally grabbed my wrists and yanked me to a stop, shouting at me to quit before I tore myself apart. He scolded me for recklessly burning through my ability.
Manny looked unsettled by my outburst. Before long, I stormed off. Eqihr told Manny to stay behind, but moments later Manny caught up, spinning me around and shoving me back against the tree I'd been demolishing.
"I thought Eqihr told you to stay!" I snapped.
He tried to hold me still, then suddenly slapped me across the face. "Get a hold of yourself, Goshi!"
I turned my face away, expressionless, and shoved him off. "You wouldn't understand, Manny. Your power is perfect."
He stomped the ground, shattering the field around us. "Perfect? You think destroying everything around me is perfect?!" His eyes burned. "I hate this power! At least you can heal. At least your gifts protect people."
"If they were so great," I shouted back, "I would have saved Amoi!"
Silence hung for a second before he mumbled, "Take that back."
I ignored him. Manny's fury exploded. He kicked me down, leapt at me, and raised his fist wreathed in dark aura. I rolled away as the ground shattered beneath his strike, the shockwave tossing me across the meadow. Before I could rise, Manny grabbed my shirt, lifting me off the ground. His fist hovered close, aura swirling around his arm. "Take it back," he growled.
"Reverse!" Eqihr's voice cracked like thunder. Manny was slammed down beside me, both of us pinned.
"What is the matter with you two?" he barked.
Manny powered down, scowling. "He feels worthless. That's the problem."
Eqihr snapped at us to return to the village without another word. I stormed ahead while Manny trailed beside Eqihr.
On the way back, the ground quaked as a massive, three-headed bird dropped from the sky and landed directly in front of me. Paralyzed, I collapsed to the dirt. The central head dove toward me, but Manny appeared in a blur, smashing all three heads in a single strike. He offered me a hand up. I slapped it away.
"I didn't need your help."
"Looked like you did," he muttered, annoyed.
Eqihr gave Manny a nod of approval. "Great job."
Back in the village, Xain and his brothers were already up and active. Xain darted around laughing while Poe and Thieza chased him. When Xain spotted me, he sprinted forward and hugged me tightly, thanking me for healing him. His brothers clapped me on the shoulder in gratitude. Mai approached with worried eyes and asked if I was okay.
I forced a smile. "I'm fine."
Moments later, Manny and Eqihr returned, and Mai's father called everyone to the campfire. He said we needed to start formulating a plan for the war. Eqihr agreed, adding that we'd need allies we could actually trust. Mai's father mentioned that there were still villages loyal to the Yin-Yang spirits. Eqihr suggested one in particular, though he warned they'd been at war with a neighboring town the last time he'd seen them.
That made me think of Yuki—and the two men I'd healed there. I reminded the group that they still lived, and that maybe they could join us. Everyone agreed it was worth trying. Mai volunteered to accompany me. I had never seen her fight, never once seen her display an ability, but something in me wanted her to come.
I twisted my hand and opened a portal. Together, Mai and I stepped through, arriving in the battered town of Yuki.
She asked where to start. I brought her to the spot where I'd left the two men before, but it was empty. They should have stayed put—it had only been a few days. Then a familiar voice called from afar. "Hey!"
We ran toward the armored man waving us down. He seemed unharmed. He asked where I'd disappeared to. I explained that we'd been ambushed and forced to flee. He nodded and filled me in on the state of Yuki. The leader of the town had vanished days ago, but the other two men were alive and recovering.
He led us back to his home and recounted what had happened. Before the attack, the ground had rumbled, and beams of light erupted from the town's corners. Then the army descended, defending and destroying all at once. Four sword users spearheaded the assault, each able to transform their blades into whips that tore through buildings in a single swing. Their strength and aura were overwhelming, and together they fought like predators circling prey.
He admitted he'd nearly lost his life against one of them, only surviving by retreating. He remembered Eqihr locked in combat with another, but when he'd tried to help, he was hurled into a wall. After that, everything went black. When he awoke, he discovered Nazo had taken all of Yuki's children, turning them into soldiers through brainwashing.
Inside his home, we found the other two armored men eating. They brightened at the sight of me and thanked me again for saving them. At last, I learned their names: Sammi Wena, Kalen Imari, and Qui Len. Sammi was the one with the sick younger brother, Kalen had once lost his hand, and Qui had been missing a finger.
I asked Sammi about his brother. He said the boy had been among those taken, spirited away through a portal to some far-off place that sounded eerily like Nova1c. I promised I would look into it and asked if the three of them would come back with us to Mai's village. We needed allies—people we could trust.
They exchanged glances, then all agreed.