Starry Resonance Ch. 05

The guild had managed to travel a fair distance the remainder of the day after their short meeting, and it was now the first night with Nora as part of Draconian's Tavern.

After the meeting had ended, Roesia had gone straight into her room to set their new course while Nora asked everyone to gather outside late in the night to start their training. Since Elly had already given her consent to have the goddess train them, they all agreed and went about their own business wondering why begin so late. Selt immediately opted out of said training of course.

Yvain for his part went to bed with Nora as she was still dead tired from their coupling. He was too excited though, both due to the redhead in his arms and the coming training and remained awake the entire time.

Currently everyone was outside in a circle surrounded by dark forest, using the carriage as a light source for their immediate surroundings.

"Do we really have to do this now?" asked a sleepy Roesia.

"This is the best time to do it," Nora said. Her tone of voice had changed to one suitable for stern teaching, but the loose-fitting clothes she was wearing detracted a bit from the image. That didn't bother to Yvain though. The new teacher-like impression she exhumed was already enough to give him problems concentrating.

"I finished reading the handbook," Nora said as she set down a slim leather-bound book Nelimir had lent her which contained the information all starting guilds needed to learn, curtesy of Cosmos.

"Elly, allow me to ask gain. You can use starlight, correct?" Nora asked.

Elly was wearing her usual combat equipment, just as she always did during training, while lying face-up on the cold grass with her legs crossed and hands on the back of her head.

"I can," she said.

"But only once a day?"

"That's right."

"Do you know what your rank is?"

Nora went through a similar line of questioning to when she and Yvain first met. Elly gave her the same answers he had given.

"I can only come to the conclusion that you and Yvain are an anomaly," Nora finally said. "The contents of this book contain half-truths and half-falsehoods. Enough so you get an idea of how starlight works, but not enough that you can effectively gather it or use it."

"Is that why Roesia and I have been stuck in place for so long?" Nelimir asked.

"Roesia is a special case," Nora said and looked at the sorceress. "She hasn't been stuck exactly. She might be the biggest anomaly out of everyone here; bar Selt."

The girl in question looked at Nora in confusion.

"Have you received any formal training on how to use magic?" Nora asked.

"I've only heard of it," Roesia said with a shrug.

"Yet I saw you shoot water out of your fingertips yesterday," Nora said. "Can you explain how you did that in detail?"

"I just pulled it in from the air around us and released it, it's not too different from manipulating starlight for experiments," Roesia said. "But it doesn't serve any purpose other than playing pranks and parlor tricks."

Nora cocked her head, genuine bewilderment painting her features.

"What if you found yourself without water and dehydrated?" she asked.

Somehow none of them had thought of the possibility. It was such an obvious idea, yet Roesia and Nelimir looked as surprised as Yvain felt. But if one thought about it, ever since the group left their hometown they had never gone through any dire straits. Their home was equipped with nigh luxurious amenities and whichever items they ran out of could just be restocked at a nearby town.

We really are a pampered bunch, Yvain thought.

Nora waved away her own words.

"That's beside the point. What you managed to do is convert starlight into an element," she said as she walked to the middle of the clearing the group was sitting around. "And regardless of its current combative use, you managed to apply it as a force. Doing all of that requires several levels of rigorous knowledge and training at the hands of a master that far surpasses what physical combatants need," Nora's expression turned apologetic, "and something that is beyond my own capabilities, unfortunately."

Was she saying Roesia was a genius? The idea barely affected Yvain as he was used to the sorceress being beyond the group in terms of intelligence and achievements. He also had no interest in magic or magical contraptions. The competitive spark that would ignite inside him when it came to his master or Nora was not there with the sorceress.

"What I can teach you though, and everyone else here, is the proper method to start your journey in mastering the gathering of starlight," Nora said and beckoned Yvain.

Even with the loose clothes her curves were visible. It was impossible to stop himself from eating them up with his eyes as he stood and approached her.

Nora was reciprocating his hunger, but she was much more subtle.

Once they were face to face, she put a hand on his chest and caressed it.

"Take the position you normally do when absorbing starlight," she said softly.

Yvain looked at her for a beat longer than necessary, debating on at least hugging her, but the eyes that were on the pair held him in place. So instead, he sat down in a cross-legged position and straightening his back.

With hands interlaced, he looked to her for further guidance.

Nora reigned in her composure and spoke to the group, "The biggest problem you all face is that you don't know what you're supposed to look for, nor do you have the proper method to conduct a search," she said. "What requires a precise touch, you strike with no perceivable intent."

Nora sat down in front of Yvain and grabbed his head in her hands as if holding a ball, "I want you to close your eyes and concentrate on the starlight I'm going to send through you."

Yvain did as told and, with darkness covering his vision, Nora's hands and voice gained a sharper focus.

"First, follow its trajectory," she said.

Before Yvain could ask her what she meant, a current of energy entered his head which immediately cleared all drowsiness away and slid down through the rest of his body.

His consciousness was abruptly pulled with said current. It was as if he suddenly fell back into a void; his body now dropping through a dark limbo where weirdly enough there was no wind.

Yvain's breath and heartbeat quickened. His body, expecting a violent crash with an invisible ground, flailed around trying to grab on to a ledge that wasn't there--inadvertently making it spin in place. His head whipped around trying to figure out where he was, but all that was surrounding him was the color black.

He fell, and fell, and fell with no perceivable end. It was as such that enough time passed for him to right his body and somewhat calm himself down.

In the darkness many questions rushed through his head. Where he was, how he got there, what he was supposed to do, how he could get out of his current situation.

But before hitting on any type of answers or ground, Yvain slowed down from his mad descent and was gently set over what felt like a body of water. He was then forced into the same stance he had taken before and propelled forward against his will.

All around him a river of stars began to paint itself against the black of the tunnel he apparently was now traveling through.

"Try to remember the patterns I'll show you." Nora's voice came as echoes from somewhere far away.

Yvain's slight anxiety didn't match the calmness of it; an anxiety made worse when he tried to respond and no voice came out.

Not only was the change of pace abrupt, but he was not used to not being in control of his body. It made him feel powerless. And such a realization made him uncomfortable. Even when training with his master in his younger years, he had never been subjected to this type of helplessness.

Yet he knew Nora would never hurt him, so he at least managed to focus on how she moved his body while his eyes darted from side to side, trying to use the beauty of the changes going on around him to reach some sense of tranquility and acceptance.

Yvain attempted to commit to memory all the movements Nora showed him. Every turn, loop, fall, and ascent. There were countless changes, too many to learn in a single day as a matter of fact.

However, all the movements felt familiar to Yvain, like he had done them a million times before. Every time the amount of information he had to commit to memory became too overwhelming his mind would release a trap door that would flush all the details into his subconscious. That information would then present itself as always having been there, waiting for him to remember.

Inside the familiarity there were vast differences too. The same way two humans differed but came from the same pelt, these movements had an inherent nature that would never change but allowed for molding.

It brought a question to the forefront of Yvain's mind. What Nora was showing him was obviously a tested training regimen, could this mean, then, that it was just one of many?

The thought didn't have a solid basis to come from, but he felt a strong conviction behind it. That conviction took him down memories of his past training. Two in particular stood out from the rest--the time he created 'Nightfall' and Cosmos's method of starlight absorption. An ability created by a complete novice, and an incomplete training regimen that made the creation of such a skill possible. Wouldn't that mean that what mattered was the how to reach the goal, and not the goal itself? By definition, could he not create his own method? The ideas filled Yvain with breathless anticipation. For now though he would focus on learning what was in front of him, as he lacked a solid base of understanding to branch out from.

The changes in movement went on and on for an indefinite amount of time. That immeasurable quality finally brought to his attention the absence of time itself. How long had he been inside this weird place? It felt like both a long and short time had passed.

It wasn't like when he got lost in Nora's whole being, where time was simply ignored. No matter how much he tried to do a mental reach-out, all he could feel in that river was power and movement.

Yvain felt weirdly naked without the pseudo-omniscient information. It was a knack he had carried with him as far back as he could remember and at this point it was as natural as having limbs. His body didn't take into consideration his worry though and kept barreling down the tunnel. He could only hope that this would be a temporary thing and concentrate on the now.

Eventually another tunnel filled with stars appeared ahead of the shrinking darkness.

When Yvain crossed it, a slight shock ran through his body. It didn't cause any pain, but it did make his body feel just slightly lighter, his muscles just a bit stronger.

"You've completed a full cycle," Nora's echo said. "Remember the feeling as it'll indicate a successful loop." Yvain's speed then dramatically slowed down. "Now it's up to you to propel yourself forward."

Yvain became a bit alarmed. How was he supposed to do that? In the past he would only feel the starlight around him and pull it into himself with no set pattern or path; this bizarre river wasn't a part of the process. Neither had he ever tried to do something so precise on such a large and long scale with the energy.

"But don't worry, I'll walk you through the process," Nora said.

Is she teasing me? Yvain thought. He could swear he heard a hint of amusement in her words. Unfortunately all he could do right now was quietly follow her guidance.

"It's not difficult at all. In fact, you already know how to do it. Just remember the way you've absorbed and used starlight in the past," Nora's soft echo said.

Considering the illogical situation Yvain found himself in--the river, the painted stars, his body floating on its own, the disembodied voice-- he found it difficult to believe her words. How would the simple act of pushing starlight into his body make any of this work?

"Right now you are inside your Galaxia," Nora said.

The word was foreign to Yvain. He made a futile attempt to ask her what it meant.

"When you absorbed starlight in the past you would simply push it randomly into your body," she said. "While that can bring benefits of a sort, true development and power comes from the Galaxia itself. In other words, you must now push starlight into your current location. The gathered energy will give you reign over your body's movements which will allow you to propel yourself forward."

As if all that needed to be explained, was explained, a force Yvain hadn't noticed surrounding him began to give back control starting from bellow. He should have felt glad, but against expectations no feeling came to his legs. They sank into the dark watery depths beneath as the invisible power slid up ever so slowly. A modest fear gripped his chest since he still had no idea on how to put what Nora said into practice and he couldn't communicate with her his ignorance. He could easily drown in complete silence.

Thankfully the force didn't fully leave, stopping Yvain from completely sinking.

"Try and do what I just explained," Nora said.

Yvain wanted to do nothing less, and as his heart pounded against his chest, he tried to absorb starlight on his own. Nothing happened. He envisioned the starry power surrounding him, his breath inhaling it into his lungs, his pores latching on to it--something he had done countless times before--but only emptiness greeted him. The ubiquitous power that had always been easily accessible was nowhere to be found.

He couldn't talk to Nora either, so he remained in place with the silent splashing water, unable to do anything.

"You can't do it?" came Nora's somewhat stunned echoing voice.

No answer.

"Yvain?" Nora called.

Was she expecting him to answer back? Was his inability to speak his own fault?

"Oh stars, forgive me," Nora said with a self-blame sigh. "You can't use your own voice to speak in here. Instead, think of the words you want to say to me and visualize them shooting out of your mind."

"What do you mean shoot them out of my mind!?" Yvain yelled, scaring himself in the process and some of the water around him vibrating.

Nora gave a slight grunt followed by a small laugh. "You really are a wonder. Try to make them flow out, instead of actually shooting them out."

Knowing that his sudden outburst caused Nora some discomfort, Yvain did as she said and carefully allowed his mental words to simply drift out.

"Hello? I have no idea how I'm doing this," he said.

"That's how a lot of these things work," Nora said. "The systems are there because they don't outright cripple us; created through blood, tears, and death. But for ages the power of starlight has remained for the most part a mystery."

"Sounds dangerous," Yvain said.

"It is," Nora said. He could almost see her giving a somber nod. "The theory for this little feat is that we have entered your Galaxia through the manipulation of starlight and consciousness. Two things completely unrelated to your actual voice."

"Speaking of which, what in the stars is a Galaxia?" Yvain asked.

Nora didn't immediately answer. It made him slightly frustrated as it'd be easier to tell what she was thinking if he was able to see her expressions.

"I'll have to ask for your forgiveness again," Nora said. "This is my first time trying to give a formal training on starlight, I guess what I might consider intuitive now isn't the case for a new student."

"What about Charlotte? You never taught her?"

"I...never got the chance," Nora's echo said sadly.

Yvain inwardly flinched at her downtrodden voice. He should have known better than to bring up her daughter.

"But to answer your question," Nora said, pushing herself to sound upbeat, "it's the vessel inside of you that harnesses starlight. It runs through every corner of your body and without it you would basically be starless."

A vessel? Yvain tried to create such an image in his mind, but only the guild's ride appeared. He couldn't very well have a carriage inside him, could he?

"Could you be a bit more specific on what you mean by vessel?" he asked.

Nora gave a theatrical hum that lasted a couple of seconds as she thought her next words through.

"How about looking at it as a series of tubes interconnected throughout your body? That's how my teacher explained it to me. We run starlight through these tubes ourselves which in turn strengthen us."

That sounded more reasonable than a carriage, considering that the whole process felt like moving through a tunnel. But everywhere Yvain looked, even beneath him, there were nothing but stars. He wasn't inside a tunnel now; he was inside the night ether itself.

"That's easier to envision I guess," Yvain said. "But I'm still having problems with absorbing starlight. No matter how many times I try, I can't feel any of the energy at all. It's like it's not even there."

"That's because you're trying to absorb from your own Galaxia. The starlight in it has already been processed by you, thus making it fuel for the rest of your body. It can't be absorbed again," Nora said. "Instead, focus on the outside and bring new starlight in."

"How did you know I was absorbing from my Galaxia?" Yvain asked. He hadn't even realized he was doing so until she mentioned it.

"Because I had the same problem on my first attempt," Nora said with a hint of melancholy.

Even she had problems at the start? Yvain attempted to bring up an image of a younger Nora training with starlight in his mind. But that wasn't right; she was a starchild, an immortal. She had always looked as she did now. Did her kind suffer through the same setbacks humans did?

"Here," Nora spoke and Yvain's body was suddenly rushed up through the sea of stars until it was back inside the void. It kept going for a few breathless seconds before completing its journey.

"Maybe with this you can better visualize things," Nora said.

"You seriously need to start warning me before you-" Yvain stopped his reprimand when bellow him a fully realized series of tunnels, shinning intensely, caught his eyes. They were the same tunnels he was just in. They all crossed and interconnected each other in an incoherent jumble, suspended over a backdrop of darkness.

"That's my Galaxia?" he asked.

"And this is the pathway between it and the outside world," Nora's echo said. "It's also the path through which you can absorb starlight from the outside." She then moved Yvain down into his Galaxia once more, this time gently, and set his body back into its meditative form.

"As I said, move your focus farther away, and soon you will feel the power you are looking for," Nora said.

Yvain gave short and quick nods to the disembodied voice and himself, still thinking of the surreal image he just witnessed, before closing his eyes and pushing his focus to search for starlight.

Following Nora's advice Yvain ignored the energy he could feel around him and moved into the void. From there he pushed up constantly, looking for the quarry she promised would greet him eventually. And it did. Or at least, the feeling of it did. His senses latched on to it and like a funnel, the starlight spiraled down into the void and then his Galaxia.

"That's it!" Nora excitedly said. "Now, I'll release just your legs again." As she finished her words Yvain's legs went into the water below. With the loss of proper form, the quantity of starlight went down sharply. "Here you are in a mental manifestation of your body, so muscles have no use. To set yourself back in place use starlight itself. Surround yourself with it and move your every limb into the desired position."

Now that Yvain had an actual source of starlight everything came intuitively. It was no different than manifesting the power on the outside or gathering and manipulating it into releasing his self-created ability 'Nightfall'.