“Think we can try again?”

Snow simply nodded, closing his eyes, this time easily relaxing his body.

The warm hands against his skin disappeared, and then only a very small part of his back was touched, since he was probably using the tip of a finger to do it.

It was kind of ridiculous, he thought ironically, that just a few moments ago he had irrationally panicked just because of something so insignificant.

The prickling sensation on his skin reminded him of what he was supposed to be doing, and Snow did his best to clear his mind of any thoughts or ideas.

Images of a small patch of bright-green grass filled his head. It looked so real, the scent of the fresh grass invading his nose, that it was as if he were kneeling on the ground, his face practically glued to the fresh, green, stems.

As he stared at it, he noticed a small movement in the dirt. And then a thin, elegant golden sprout broke through the soil, stretching towards the sky above his head. It curved elegantly as if dancing, undulating in the air and growing at an amazing speed. Soon enough it had sprouted equally golden leaves, that filtered the warm light of the sun. And when Snow looked up, it was still growing, developing new leaves and new elegant branches.

“Once you capture it, once you’re able to understand it, just guide it towards the land beneath you. Allow it to take form there,” the monster told him, his voice unusually calm, even gentle, and Snow allowed his body to relax even further, imagining that he was pouring that golden, warm feeling into the land beneath him.

It was a strange feeling. Maybe because he had imagined something like filling an empty box with that golden sensation, but the box was far from being empty. The land beneath him already had its energy, its own life, and there was no space left for the golden sprout he had envisioned.

Maybe he could simply gift that feeling to the living things that already existed there, he considered, instead of forcefully placing something new in that already crowded space. After all there were all those small seeds, sleeping scattered all over the place, and the small sprout of a tree that had just seen the light of day. Somehow, doing things this way felt more … right, than trying to impose his own idea, than trying to bend the land to his will, forcing it to accommodate his vision.

“Good. Now make it stop. Like closing a door. Make the flow stop.”

Like taking one last breath, Snow thought, filling his chest and simply exhaling.

“That went much better than I thought,” the monster told him, and Snow blinked his eyes open, and blinked again, gaping at the small clearing around them.

It was as if spring had arrived to that small space. The grass around him was so tall that it reached his head, and there were flowers everywhere, some he’d never even seen before. Not to mention that he could swear that there were more than a couple of trees that hadn’t been there just a moment ago.

“I … did this …?”

“Who else? I most certainly didn’t,” the monster replied dryly, his form growing taller, telling him he’d gotten up.

Snow followed his example and looked around, eyes wide in disbelief.

It was … beautiful, he thought. But it was beautiful in an abnormal way. Because there was no way all those flowers and plants, and trees could naturally coexist in the same place at the same time.

“Some will die …” he whispered, sadly, and the blue eyes turned his way.

“What?”

“Some will die … because they were not supposed to sprout yet … it’s not the right season.”

Nox¹Literally nox (night). Where Nox is the name of the Clan, also the name of a Province. ZaiWin²Literally zai (blade) + win (chaos). just stood there as if his feet had just been nailed to the ground. The saddened expression on the face of the boy standing in front of him was like a jarring noise screaming in his ears.

The clearing around him was so amazingly filled with life that it was as if he’d stepped into a famous painting; an impossible, colorful, bountiful painting. And yet that kid stood in the middle of all those colors like a white stain, a shocking flaw on an otherwise perfect canvas, completely untouched by the infinite colors around him. Even his emotions were the complete opposite of the vibrant life surrounding them.

ZaiWin had thought he’d be ecstatic with his first success, like any other brat his age would have been. After all, he’d seen him get childishly excited with the most stupid and basic things. Certainly succeeding in controlling one of his markings on the first attempt would have a similar effect.

He had apparently been wrong. Because he had felt it. Felt the unnatural nature of the daitai³Literally dai (light) + tai (mark), or Holy Markings, considered Heavenly Blessings. They’re the source of power., something very few ever became aware of, happily using their markings however it pleased them, not caring about anything or anyone beside fulfilling their own goals. The Temple could say that the daitai were a blessing all they wanted, but ZaiWin had always felt they were more like a curse, easily creating arrogant, despot, cruel, petty men; easily creating victims in those who hadn’t been lucky enough to be born with them.

“That’s what happens every time you force your will upon others, either by using your markings or not.”

Snow looked back at the cold, blue eyes staring at him and lowered his head, feeling sorry for the flowers he’d forced to bloom ahead of time and that would soon inevitably die.

“If it bothers you so much make sure you have a better understanding of the world around you before you act. Make sure your actions are helpful and just, and not the mere exercise of power over those who have none.”

Snow nodded, understanding, even though those words didn’t help him feel any better.

“Get dressed. This is enough for today. ZenTar⁴Literally zen (silent) + tar (wind) and the others are probably waiting for us at the camp. And it’s not good to rush into these things.”

Snow nodded again and searched for his clothes amongst the tall grass, putting them back on.

Only when he was finally dressed again did the black dome above his head open, almost as if it were made of black water, silently retracting into a circle and then disappearing amongst the grass.

Even though Snow couldn’t see it with all the tall vegetation around him, he still felt a cold shiver run through his entire body when those dark symbols slid beneath his feet, converging into the point where they’d initially come from.

Silvareiel

Snow is such a quick learner! I'm really thankful for that! ?