17 Ch.16

"A thunderstorm?" Erik failed to see how it fit him nor how he could actually shape a core like that.

"The first reason is that your family members are thunderstorms on the battlefield when they use their bloodline's ability. Lightning is also the Basara symbol."

Basaras did not only have a blessed body, the Beast God had given them an innate ability that was dreaded by their enemies.

[Berserk].

Erik had rarely used it in the past, fearing the drawback; a blinding fury during which one doesn't discern friends from foes. In exchange, their strength and speed increased. Neither would they feel fatigue and pain.

The few times Erik had triggered it, a storm of anger surged within him as he rampaged until his thirst for blood was satiated. Most of his siblings adored this bloodline ability. He hated it. Nothing worse for a warrior than losing control over his mind.

To him, it wasn't a blessing but a curse.

"The second reason is that lightning is considered the strongest aspect of nature amongst shamans and the Beast God's followers. If strength is your goal, that will help you reach it."

Although dead, the gods still had many followers who continued their legacy, the Basara clan was amongst the ones perpetuating the Wildfather's religion, and many in Nurmen still revered the dead god.

Shamans feared but also revered lightning.

They thought lightning channeled nature's wrath, that each time it struck, it was a message from the heavens and possibly a death sentence to those who deserve it.

Erik was both a shaman and a follower of the dead Beast God.

"Third is because of your path. You wield no weapon, like lightning, you are the weapon. You hit fast and hard, seeking to kill your opponent in one blow, just like when the lightning strikes."

Erik wasn't entirely convinced by that one but Old Bone made a valid point; he'd rather vanquish his enemy with one blow rather than with numerous flashy ones, a philosophy drilled into his head by none other than Caliber.

Wolf Style philosophy.

"Fourth reason is that having an animated shape is better than a static shape for wyrd cores," the dog translated.

"Animated shape? How am I supposed to craft something that stirs within me when a core is a solid object in essence?" Erik was puzzled, he's never heard of such a ridiculous thing before.

"She says it's not easy, otherwise everyone would do it. You'll have to start slowly by first creating a prison of your choice for the storm. Begin with a tiny storm that will grow as you rank up. Eventually, it'll become so powerful the storm will break its prison, naturally forming a complete animated core. Wow, oh! The b... benefits will be awesome!"

Caw.

The raven nodded.

"When it'll reach its animated state, it will lower the chances of de, de ,de… hey, is that even a word Old Bone?"

Caw!

"Desynchronization?" Erik guessed.

When someone deviated from what their core stood for and represented, they would lose their compatibility with it, leading to a bottleneck. It's one of the most important reasons one should take the time to pick the right core.

"Yes, friend. She says since your core won't have a solid shape, it'll be less inclined to desynchronize. A solid shape makes for a single path carved in concrete. If you deviate, it's the end unless you yourself change fundamentally. But an animated shape can be slightly reshaped if needs be."

"Interesting, I've never thought about it this way before," he said. An idea suddenly popped up, one that would potentially give him a unique core. "Then can't I make a shapeless core?"

Ca, ca, ca, ca. Old Bone laughed with bird noises.

"What's so funny?" Erik asked.

"She's mocking you," Rex said. "How could a core function if it is shapeless? It must have a shape. That's the one rule that cannot be bent."

"Fine, fine, I was just trying to find a new concept using what you taught me," Erik came back to the important topic. "Are there more reasons for picking a thunderstorm?"

"Yes but she says the most important is its compatibility with the power slumbering within you." Rex's ears perked up, looking at the raven. "Huh? What hidden power? Can he create an un... unlimited amount of bones? That would be so cool!"

Old Bone gave him a stern look.

"I can't sense anything inside me apart from wyrd, though," Erik said. "If there was something else, I'd know it."

Caw.

"She says you won't feel it but it's there, she can guarantee it," Rex said. "It's up to you to find and unlock it. She's set you on the path, the rest is up to you. Well, if you can't form your core in a month, she says she'll give you a hint. I think you should trust her on this, friend. She's r,…reliable when it comes to these kinds of stuff."

Rex's previous arguments may have changed her mind a bit but she wasn't willing to give her full support until the bond was made.

No matter, Erik was already satisfied with what he learned, particularly that animated core concept.

"Thank you for your insight, Old Bone," he said. "And, whatever my clan has done to your kind, I'd like to offer my sincere apologies. If in the future I can right the wrongs, I'll do it."

Caw.

"She says it is not your place to apologize because you can't speak for your entire family. However, she ap..., appre..., appreciates the sentiment." The dog said, "Old Bone also says she doesn't dislike you as much as she does your clan. You're not half bad. Wait, what does that even mean?"

Erik chuckled, he felt his relationship with the raven take a step forward; a small step perhaps, but a step nonetheless.

"Well, now that you've given me ideas, I have the urge to train," he said, getting to his feet.

"Already!? You've trained all day, only stopping when trespassers entered our territory." Rex was baffled, this human trained too much. His friend ought to rest! Rest was important too!.

"I'll only train my mind by visualizing a thunderstorm, no more physical exercises for today," Erik reassured his friend.

Understanding how to shape an animated core might take a while, if he took too long, he might miss his best years.

Childhood was where someone's body adapted better to one's needs, energies included. Muscles, bones, organs, life circuits, everything was still growing, being shaped, reshaped.

Entering adulthood with a body perfectly fitted to his path would make things easier for his future.

For that, he needed a core, the sooner, the better.

He had no other ideas in mind that suited him than the thunderstorm. Some reasons brought up by the raven made sense, still, he wasn't entirely convinced. Erik did feel a connection with the aspect of a thunderstorm, but not a complete one.

His understanding could be lacking or it wasn't fit for him.

Either way, practicing while imagining a thunderstorm would help him comprehend an animated core's creation.

Plus there was that connection with that hidden power, while he trusted the raven wouldn't spout such bullcrap, he could hardly believe something he wasn't aware of slumbered in his body.

'Unless…, unless it's the Weavers' gift.'

Now that got him intrigued.

***

"Difficult" didn't even begin to describe the daunting task of creating an animated core.

Erik has been visualizing for two weeks without neglecting his other obligations, thinking his knowledge of solid cores would help, it did little to decrease the difficulty.

Immobility was far easier to picture. As long as one focused hard enough they could do it. A moving shape was, well, it moved. How was he supposed to make a core move anyway? Common knowledge dictated cores couldn't be moving once crystalized.

Erik had already found the shape of the jail within which he'd trap the thunderstorm or whatever he'd put in it when he was certain of his choice; a glass sphere, the idea came from the snow globes he liked staring into since the prison shouldn't be too sturdy, that would be perfect.

He's yet to figure out how to shape moving objects, even less a thunderstorm where lightning, wind, clouds, and other elements were mixed together, creating such a complex shape wasn't within his current means.

Sure, he could imagine a storm, however, the image was blurry, not precise enough, and needed to take into account the unpredictable aspect of each element composing a storm.

'Wildfather, gotta take a break or my head is gonna explode,' he thought, getting up from his sitting position on rocky ground.

Erik channeled [Shaman Senses] to see in the dark, using burning wood to always light the cave was a waste of resources.

"Ah, so you're back, White." Erik forced himself to keep a poker face when the ghost suddenly passed through a wall into the training room. "I've never got the opportunity to thank you for showing me this place, so, yeah, thank you."

The ghost nodded, not taking into account its sudden apparitions, that lost soul wasn't so bad.

"Nooow…, I guess you aren't here to hang out. What do you me want to do? I'll try my best to accomplish the task since you've helped me find this place." Erik might not have stumbled on it in such a large forest encompassing half the Wolverine clan territory.

White moved out of the room, Erik followed it, guessing the lost soul's intent. They passed by the main room where Old Bone was sleeping, then exited the cave, petting Rex guarding the entrance on his way out.

There were a few wandering clouds on the horizon, a beautiful cold day like the ones Erik liked, maybe a bit too much snow to his taste.

White finally stopped, and its blurry white arm moved, pointing towards a direction Erik recognized as the south, three months in this direction would bring him to Tiger Gorge.

"How long will it take to reach the destination?" Erik asked, "One hour?"

The ghost shook its head.

"Two hours?"

The ghost shook its head again.

He went up the numbers, eventually, hours turned into days until the lost soul finally nodded on one week.

"Fine, as promised, I'll do my best to return the favor. Gotta make preparations for such a long journey so I'll depart tomorrow."

Seemingly satisfied, White vanished, leaving Erik to plan his journey southward.

***

"A ghost!?" Rex ran around the main room, panicked. "Go away! Go away!"

"It's fine, Rex," Erik reassured him, "If it weren't for him, we wouldn't have found this cave."

Old Bone flew to the dog and slapped him to reason with her black wing.

Caw!

"G, g, good ghost?" The golden retriever asked, trembling.

"Yes, like many others, White is a soul stuck in the spiritual realm who hasn't passed into the Void or came back from it." Erik eyed the scared dog, "And it is a shaman's duty to put them to rest."

"S, so you're…, helping the good ghost?"

Erik nodded. "I am a shaman. Plus, it showed me kindness, it'd be rude not to return the favor. That's why I must depart tomorrow. If you want, you guys can wait for m—"

The dog's ears perked up, "I, I won't let you go alone, friend."

Caw.

"Old Bone says she can't let you out of her sight."

Erik smiled warmly. How long has it been since someone overcame their fear for him? Well, the last time had been the same dog that was facing him with trembling legs. Last time, Rex had given up his life for Erik.

'Last time… will not come to pass this time. I swear it on my wyrd and honor.'

***

"On wyrd cores. They should be shaped with care. The shape must coincide with the cultivator's desire, path, beliefs, these must be strong enough to endure the passage of time. If the cultivator err, change fundamentally, then they are doomed to stagnate because they wyrd no longer align to their core's."

—Patrick Uzel, Magnum Encyclopedia.

***

Author's Query:

What did you think of the chapters so far?

Were they too long? Too slow? Too fast (well it's a fast pace story...)

Anyway, if you guys got any ideas you'd like to share, please leave them in the comment section.

Thanks and read you later :)