Lee Seng gasped, snapping back to reality. Crow across from him, eating some small cookies as a hot cup of tea sat in front of him. His body ached as he slowly sat up in the arm chair.
'Did I…?' Lee Seng began to think, trying to piece together what happened. He shook his head as Crow looked at him, cookie popping into her mouth.
"Did we… finish?" Lee Seng asked. Crow motioned at the tea.
"Drink it." She spoke covering her mouth. She chewed on the bookie, swallowing it. "Yes, we finished. It took a lot longer than I thought. Way longer than I thought."
"W-what happened? I was… I was in pain and then… I wasn't." Lee Seng asked, grabbing the tea cup and blowing on the hot tea before taking a sip. His tongue burned, slightly, as he pulled the cup away, shutting his eyes to try to fight the pain away. "D-did I… Did I fall asleep?"
"You passed out just after I finished " Crow replied. She grabbed her coffee mug and took a sip of her coffee. "I thought I'd let you rest. It takes a lot out of you and I don't need you passing out on me for the next part of our training."
"Next part? What else are we doing?"
"Basics." Crow cupped her coffee mug as she looked at him. "Do you know the basics of Energy control? Has anyone taught you that?"
"I've done something sort of like that. Passive Energy collection, aura control, energy transference?"
"Mmm, so you have done those things." Crow nodded. "It'll be easier when you're doing it in your spiritual form." Lee Seng narrowed his eyes at her.
"What do you mean by that? We're going to do them now?" Lee Seng asked. Crow nodded and stood up.
"Follow me. We'll start with the basics to see where you're at." Crow motioned and started to walk to the other side of the basement.
'He probably doesn't remember what happened right as he passed out.' Crow thought to herself. The scene flashed in her eyes. She was holding him down with the metallic feathers. His strength was immense, but it suddenly started to grow. Lee Seng jerked forward at her, screaming. His eyes looked glazed like he was blind. A tiny set of feathers exploded flew out of her back, holding onto the enraged Lee Seng. The feathers pushed Lee Seng down onto the chair, holding him down as he continued to thrash his head.
"Hold still. You'll ruin it if you keep thrashing like that!" Crow shouted at him. Lee Seng's eyes sporadically looked around, clearly seeing something she couldn't see. The last bit of energy poured and the noise of a loud pop noise went off. Crow slowly pulled her hand away, watching as Lee Seng's body went limp.
Crow stood in the large open area, watching Lee Seng hobble over as he tried to ignore the pain flaring all over his entire body. She lifted her cup and took another sip.
"What's first?" Lee Seng asked.
"Sit and meditate. Feel the flow of your energy in your Spiritual form." Crow motioned. Lee Seng sat down on the ground and let out a sigh. He closed his eyes and began to meditate, feeling out the energy. It came quicker than normal. He could feel the energy coursing through his veins fast.
"How does it feel?" Crow asked. Lee Seng cocked his head to the side.
"Like a running river. It feels even more free than last time when I was clogged…" Lee Seng replied.
"You were clogged? How did that happen?"
"Someone intentionally blocked it. I got it cleared by some of the Foxes and it's gotten better, but this… This feels too clear now."
"How do you feel at your core? Your head, stomach?"
Lee Seng focused on his head and stomach. He could feel the energy clearest there and in his throat. Was this the result of the Soul gates opening?
"What's the purpose of the Soul gates? Other than opening them and giving you the ability to use energy in your spiritual form, what else can I do with it?" Lee Seng asked, opening his eyes and looking up. Crow had one arm over her chest as the mug was up on her lip.
"Opening your Soul gates gives you the opportunity to use your energy in your Spiritual form if you're able to move between your physical form and your spiritual form. Otherwise, it can greatly increase the effectiveness of your energy in a physical body." Crow explained. She took another sip of her coffee before continuing. "Plus, we opened it for a very specific reason: to test how much energy you actually have."
She crouched down and looked at her as she sipped her coffee. Lee Seng looked at her, oddly.
'What did she mean by that?' Lee Seng wondered.
"Continue with your meditation. We'll try out your aura out in a bit." Crow stood up and waved at him.
—
"So how do you feel? Doing okay?" Jacob asked. The Wang siblings had gathered around Keng as he sat in bed, back against wall.
"I feel fine. Just a headache. And hungry." Keng replied. Isaac awkwardly hovered in the back, giving glances at Keng.
"I didn't think there would be this many healers about." Bright looked behind them. "Elder Jyu'so and sir Gorrum must've really been worried about you. You must be something special."
"I guess." Keng shrugged.
"This way, healer." Gorrum motioned. Gorrum walked in with a familiar looking woman. Gorrum motioned at the crowd as they split, revealing Keng. "That's the one Elder Jyu'so and I were talking about earlier. Keng, this is Spiritual Healer Faira."
A light bulb went off in Keng's head.
"OH! The jelly!" Keng pointed.
"What?" Faira looked at Gorrum. Gorrum looked at her confused, slowly realizing what Keng meant.
"Ah, yes." Gorrum nodded at Keng. "He tried one of your infused jellies during the Sensory test."
"Oh, another taste sensor?" Faira looked over at Keng. "Interesting." Faira made her way over and stuck out her hand. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Faira, a Spiritual Healer from Pea'ir."
"Keng." Keng shook her hand, an odd sensation coursing through his body as Faira looked at him. "W-what was that?"
"Hmmm, his Soul gates are open." Fair pulled away. She stood up and looked at Gorrum. "Freshly opened. You said his gates opened without anyone being here?"
"Correct." Gorrum nodded. "We think it's because his soul is connected to his Vessel's, Lee Seng."
"Hm, interesting." Faira spun back around to look at Keng. "That could be the reason. But the strangest thing is that you're here while he's… Where again?" Keng took a moment to feel it out. He didn't know how the skill worked, but he could always feel where Lee Seng was.
"A place in between?" Keng tilted his head. "I don't know where that is."
"A place in between?" Gorrum folded his arms together. "That sounds like one of the Death realms."
"The only Death realm close to Earth would be Limbo. The mirror Realm to Earth…" Faira whispered.
"Hmmm, why would he be there?" Keng asked.
"Dunno, but his soul gates opened and he's in Limbo so… We can only assume he opened it."
"Does his Soul gates look okay?" Lily asked. Faira looked over at her and nodded.
"It's more than fine, honestly." Faira turned her attention back to Keng. "You're pouring with energy. Was he always like this?" She turned to look at Gorrum. Gorrum stepped in closer and examined Keng. He shook his head, stepping back.
"No. It is more concentrated though." Gorrum answered.
"So he has more energy?" Philip asked.
"Yup." Faira nodded. "I think this would be a great time to channel your energy. Get a feel for it and then try using some abilities."
"O-okay?" Keng answered. Keng closed his eyes and took a breath. The sound of rushing water filled his ears. He could feel his core burning, clutching it as he continued.
"How is it?" Lily asked.
"It's so much more energy." Keng replied. His head tilted to the side as he continued to feel it out. He forcefully stopped himself, opening his eyes. "A lot more than I remember."
"Is that good?" Philip asked.
"Most of the time it is." Bright replied.
"Soul gate opening is a lot of work." Jacob added. "It usually takes awhile to get into it, but he's been asleep for a couple days so it seems normal."
"Now we do the fun part." Faira sing-songed. "One of you want to spar with him?" She scanned the room. Isaac caught her eye. "You. The darty eye one."
"Huh?" Isaac snapped out of it. "What?"
"Didn't you say something about someone making a bet with Keng, Gorrum?" Faira looked at Gorrum. "Is it this one?"
"Well, yeah, but—" Gorrum began to say when Faira continued.
"Then we can use him. You two can have your fight and Keng can use his new gates."