The First Cultivator

The council of Deepmere gathered in the morning, expecting to find a stack of positive reports. At the very least, they expected Tombul, their representative to the elves and Dageth, to wait for them with a list of new 'properties' gained. Instead, they found a seething Calvore and an icy Ulvandia waiting for them.

"Gentlemen of the council," Ulvandia began once the council took their seats. Her tone was sharper than dwarven steel. "Calvore and I feel we've not been made privy to some extremely vital information."

"Where's Tombul? We expected a report of the subjugation," Arthos said, looking around for the missing man.

"We'll be the ones asking the questions," Calvore snapped. "The level of cooperation we receive will determine your fates. Make no mistake, councilors, I informed my headmaster of last night's events. He is most displeased."

"As are the elves," Ulvandia added.

The gathered councilors were silent momentarily, pondering what could've happened.

"Of course. We have negotiated in good faith," Arthos said. "Ask your questions."

"Who is Azure Magebane?" Calvore said. The councilors could see the fury in his eyes. They turned to look at their fellow councilors. Each had a blank, confused look.

"I personally never heard of such a mage," Arthos said.

"Nor I," Lord Tarwin.

More negative replies came from each council member.

Calvore looked at Ulvandia, who nodded. They both relaxed slightly.

"Very well," Ulvandia said. "What do you know about a blue-haired half-cat-kin?"

More negative replies were given, except for Tarwin.

"Such a kin is known to my family," Tarwin said slowly, his mind racing. What could this be about?

"Oh. That's good," Ulvandia said, her tone changing to that of a sweet poison. "Please enlighten the rest of us."

Sweat formed on his brow despite the morning chill. He had no clue what was going on. That was an unusual feeling for him. He wanted to stall to find out what happened. That wasn't an option here.

"The girl is half-kin with an awakened mana pool," Tarwin said, glad his son was absent. "Two separate mages evaluated her, and her mana pool is too small to cast even basic spells."

Ulvandia chuckled darkly. "Oh, I think that might be incorrect." She then paused. "Or maybe not." Tarwin didn't understand that response at all.

"How do you know her? What's her name?" Calvore asked intently.

"Her name is…" Tarwin paused as he thought. He heard it a few times but never paid it much attention. "Azura, I believe. She is…" He hesitated but knew he had no choice. "She is my son's bastard."

"I know nothing else for certain about this kin. I've done my best to ignore her existence," Tarwin said. He wanted to distract them before he was forced to reveal the botched assassination attempt. He still didn't understand what happened there. "What's this about?"

Calvore and Ulvandia looked at each other for a moment. The elf gestured to Calvore, who took a guest seat.

"Here is a summary of the events last night. Your representative, Tombul, cannot give this report due to an unforeseen case of death. So, I shall do so in his place."

The councilors muttered at this, but Calvore went on uncaring.

"The kin population was successfully restrained and relocated to the bowl with minimal effort. However, between one assault in the slums and a late-night attack on the bowl itself, our forces sustained losses." Calvore paused, letting his words be digested by the councilors.

Tarwin had a bad feeling about this. Did a mage die? It was possible that one or possibly two could have been killed by kin if they weren't careful. Was that it? Did Tombul get himself killed by a kin? Unbelievable. He was powerful. Then he remembered the earlier questions and his assassin's report.

"No…" Tarwin muttered.

"Oh yes," Calvore interrupted those around him. "It came as quite a surprise to us as well. Let's see… ah yes, here it is." Calvore said in a mocking tone, slapping a piece of parchment. "Dageth suffered thirty-one casualties and ten with significant injuries."

"My people lost two elite elves," Ulvandia added. "Two more are crippled."

"How!?" Arthos demanded in shock. The losses were unbelievable. They were just nulls.

"This Azura, or Azure Magebane, objected to your scheme of enslaving her people. Selfish girl." Ulvandia said mockingly, shaking her head. "This half-kin, with a mana pool too small to accomplish anything, bested all these mages simultaneously. She used spells and effects never before seen. During all this, no magic was detected."

Pandemonium erupted as the councilors all shouted statements like ludicrous, and so on. Ulvandia grinned at their shock. At least this part was entertaining.

"I think it would be best if they viewed the memories," Calvore said, looking at Ulvandia.

She tapped her forehead.

"DISPLAY MEMORY." It was advanced magic that had little use in everyday circumstances, but it was one she enjoyed. She liked to re-watch her playtime after her toys were broken.

A three-dimensional scene appeared in the center of the council room, starting when the first three mages expired, Tombul among them.

The councilors watched in amazement as the Azure Magebane decimated mage after mage with feats thought impossible. The memory ended when the half-cat-kin fled after surviving a barrage no living mage could have ever withstood.

"What kind of magic was she using?" Archmage Denayd whispered. His comment did not go unnoticed. Everyone could hear him, thanks to the silence. He was utterly astonished. The Archmage title was only given to those who had demonstrated knowledge and competence in all major branches of magic. The fact that he was dumbfounded was remarkable in itself.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"I don't believe she was using magic at all," Ulvandia said. "I had time to think about it. I did not see or sense any magic from her during the battle. She was somehow removing magic from the area. I think this is some new power. Perhaps that is why her people called her Magebane. She might possess the power to destroy mana around her. Perhaps she is consuming the souls of mages for her strength. Then last night was just a feast for her." The idea was preposterous... but then again, so was the situation.

"I vote to initiate an information-gathering mission on this Azure Magebane immediately," Archmage Denayd said. "The secrets of this power must be understood." He received nods of agreement.

Ulvandia clapped her hands together. "Excellent. Now, for the matter of compensation."

"Compensation?" Arthos asked warily.

"Of course," Calvore said. "We agreed to subjugate the nulls for you while claiming our new lands. You failed to inform us of the risks. As such, we received unacceptable losses on what should have been an easy assignment."

"We had no idea," Arthos protested.

"Regardless, those deaths did occur," Ulvandia said. "I think a gesture on your part is required for this relationship to proceed further. If you refuse…" She shrugged.

Further protests died in Arthos's throat. Dageth and the elves did have an army inside their walls.

"Of course," Tarwin said smoothly. "You just took my fellow councilor by surprise. Perhaps remunerations can be accomplished with additional slaves and more land?"

"That will be acceptable," Ulvandia said, and Calvore agreed.

"I'll organize our mages and begin cataloging the slaves," Arthos said.

The meeting ended shortly after. Tarwin did his best to hide his emotions. His son had better have answers for him.

***

Azura awoke slowly. It wasn't the constant chatter around her or the gentle kicking of Tabatha snuggled next to her that did it. It was the only force that usually could draw her from slumber. Food. However, her usual impulse to leap out of bed to seek out her prey was absent. Toren… His absence was too raw. It sucked the joy out of everything. Instead, she lay there cuddling the rabbit-kin. She had insisted on sleeping with Azura. She didn't mind. The girl must have gone through a lot. They all had.

Azura lifted her free arm and stared at her hands. It seemed odd that they were clean. She had washed herself before the funeral. Her mother had insisted on it. But if it felt like they should be stained crimson. She had killed. Not just one or two, but many.

It was strange. She thought she should be sickened or disgusted with herself. Yet, she felt nothing for the deaths. When she thought of Toren and the kin trapped in that pit, she only wished the number had been greater. Was this who she was? Was this the journey of a cultivator? Perhaps…

Raised voices came from the front of the cave, but she ignored them. It wasn't her problem. Her growling stomach was. She was about to get food when her mother came around the corner with a tray full of meat.

Mom, you're fantastic, Azura thought, but remained quiet, not wanting to disturb Tabatha.

Coralline gave the tray to Azura and took a seat next to her.

"You okay?" Coralline asked, her hand resting on Azura's.

"I'm fine, Mom. All healed up. I'm just tired. That's all. It… was a long night."

"It was for everyone," her mother agreed.

"What's going on out there?" Azura gestured to the front of the cave as she began to eat at a reasonable pace.

"They're debating on what to do next," Coralline said. She didn't show it, but her daughter's eating display saddened Coralline. It was like all the joy had been lost.

"I've had a thought on that. Can you get everyone together? I'm unsure if they'll listen to me, but I want to try," Azura said.

Her mother snorted. "Not listen to the great Azure Magebane? I think not."

Azura gave her mother a puzzled look.

"That's what the kin chanted when you fought the mages. You must have put on one hell of a show. It's all they've been talking about."

Azura thought for a moment. A slight grin crept on her face. "I like it."

"Me too," Coralline agreed. She left to gather the others as Azura ate.

Finished, Azura slid out of bed just as Tabatha grabbed her hand.

"Don't leave me," Tabatha said. Azura gently patted the kin on the head. Hand in hand, the pair left the back of the cave.

Azura exited the cave and saw the gathered kin. Close to fifty stood around talking. They instantly stopped once they saw her. They turned toward her, waiting. Azura was a little overwhelmed. She wasn't sure how to begin when Hamal raised his hand.

"AZURE MAGEBANE!" He roared and was quickly joined by all the others. Azura blushed at the attention and scowled at Hamal, who gave her a slight, sad smirk. Jerk. Helpful. But still a jerk.

The chanting continued for nearly a minute before her mother calmed them down.

"Umm," Azura began. "I'm unsure how to say this gently, so I'll be blunt. We're in trouble. Not just us, but all kin. The mages have taken their oppression to the extreme. Our family, friends, and entire race are all in trouble. It's up to us here to stop it."

"How can we? We're not like you," a rat-kin called.

Azura glanced at Fatania, who gave her the same smirk as her son. Had she set that up? Probably. That woman was indeed worthy of being the leader of the rat-kin.

"You can be," Azura said. A collection of gasps sounded around the cave entrance. "I have discovered how to awaken mana pools. But know this. You can't be mages. You will never have sufficient magical reservoirs to be any type of mage." The collected group seemed to deflate at that.

"But why would you want to be one?" Azura asked, then continued before anyone could answer. If someone had… that would have been awkward.

"You can become greater than a mage. You saw or heard of what I did to those mages. I can show you a power greater than mana. You can become like me, a cultivator. It won't be easy or quick. It will take years. But you can go beyond your limits to heights never before imagined. I need you. I can't do this alone. I will train you in the art of cultivation. Together, we can liberate the kin. Will you help me? Will you give it your all to become cultivators?"

An astounding cheer was her answer. Just to make sure she went on. "All those interested, please join me on my left side, all those who want to live a normal life on the right. I won't judge you for your choice. I can't guarantee safety or success. I promise to do my best to help you if I can." Not a single kin chose the right side.

"Let's begin," Azura said, and felt a tug on her arm. Tabatha was looking up at her, determined.

"Me first," she said.

"Mom, can you grab me something to sit on? This is going to take a while."

Coralline and Fatania soon returned, each with a stool as Azura searched her core, the tiny core pieces nestled in the center of her ki spiral. As always, the sight awed her.

Isolating out a single piece of crystallized ki, she directed it into her bloodstream. She fought the ki's pull to return to the center, forcing it out into a single drop of blood resting on her index finger. A white star blazed in that single drop of blood. Azura was awestruck at how heavy that drop was. The ki was far too large to be contained in that small space.

"Open your mouth," Azura said to the rabbit-kin. She needed a way into their body. Tabatha reluctantly opened her mouth. Azura set the single drop on her tongue. She withdrew her finger, directing the ki through Tabatha's body toward her dormant mana pool. She wrestled with the ki's desire to return to her as it traveled deeper inside.

Azura didn't notice how Tabatha's eyes were wide in amazement or the reactions of the others. She just focused on controlling the ki. She reached the destination, forcing the ki into the dormant pool. With a surge of power, Tabatha's mana pool awoke. Job done; she directed the ki out of her back to the surface. It pushed its way out of her skin in a drop of blood, where she collected it. Strange… The color of the ki had changed. It was a light pink, but the intensity of the light was no different. Had that happened last time? Maybe. She was too frantic to have noticed much at the time.

"Amazing," Tabatha said. "What was that?"

"That's ki. Train hard, and that power will be yours someday."

Tabatha nodded and left the stool on unsteady feet as the next kin sat down. Using the same piece of ki, she began again…

***

Fatania stumbled away from the stool, her mind ablaze. That had been the most incredible experience of her life. She could feel her mana. How wondrous. Yet, she knew Coralline had been right. That speck of ki was more glorious than an ocean of mana, how she wanted it.

Fatania had gathered many sources of power during her life. Magical artifacts, favors, and elixirs. None of it compared. She couldn't wait to start training. However, before that, they had to find a safe place. This cave wouldn't stay hidden for much longer after last night's events. They needed somewhere where they could live and train. Somewhere, mages would never think of looking for them. As she felt the mana in her stir, Fatania knew the perfect spot.