The First Cultivator

Morning came too soon for Gerald. He'd stayed up late last night cultivating. He'd been determined to keep at it longer than everyone else. In the end, he'd given up and let Hamal win. His splitting headache and heavy eyelids made him wish he'd listened to Azura. Cultivation wasn't a race. Now, he was paying for his stupidity. He yawned as he stumbled to the cooking pot. Hamal was being kicked awake by his mother.

"Get up, you worthless rat! We've got a lot to do. Oh, don't you give me that look! It was your own damn fault for staying up late."

The rat-kin slowly got to his feet. He shuffled toward Gerald, who decided to have mercy on him and gave him his bowl. He went back for his own. The pair sat together, sipping broth.

"My head hurts," Hamal admitted.

"Mine too," Gerald grunted.

"Are you guys okay?!" A cheerful boom was followed by a loud handclap. They jumped slightly, spilling some of the broth on their clothes. Azura stood behind them, grinning. They just glared at her.

"I told you not to overdo it," Azura crowed in a musical voice. She was enjoying this far too much, in Gerald's opinion. She passed by the pair heading to the food pot. Azura waved a cheerful hello to the kin as she fetched her breakfast, ignoring his scowl.

"She's evil…" Hamal grumbled. Gerald nodded. He was sure his headache had just intensified. At least she seemed more cheerful today, but it might have just been an act. It would take time to heal from Toren's loss. Perhaps staying busy and not thinking about it for a while would be the best medicine.

The pair was allowed only a short time to eat before everyone finished their last-minute packing.

"Everyone, listen up!" Azura called. "It's time for the next lesson. Fortunately, we will practice this one as we go."

Gerald, having finished breakfast, gathered his meager belongings and joined the others. Everyone else was already packed.

"We'll have to go around the city to reach the mana forest. This way, the landscape will conceal our movements."

Groans sounded all around them, Gerald's included. With everyone here and the supplies, that was three days of travel, maybe two if they didn't rest.

"We'll do it in 3 hours!" Azura called brightly.

Gerald just stared at her. That vile fiend! That wasn't even possible.

"Don't give me that look. It won't work on me," Azura said.

"That's because you used it too often," Coralline said to the laughter of the kin.

"Exactly," Azura agreed. "Yesterday, I told you about the one mana-related technique you could use. You'll all invert your mana pools. This will flood your body with the improved mana you spent yesterday cultivating. The better you did, the stronger you will be. Even if you didn't make much progress yesterday, the run shouldn't be too challenging. If we had time, I'd make you run without it, but speed is more important. Besides, this will give you all a feeling for your enhanced bodies."

"What if we can't do it?" A mole-kin asked, looking worried.

"I'll help if you get stuck. Now reach out with your mind and feel for your mana pools, then listen to my voice."

Gerald closed his eyes as his mind sank into his body. The pull from his mana guided him to the source. There, he immediately saw his gains from the previous day. A thick cloud of mana was settled low in his mana pool, with a much thinner cloud resting atop it.

"Anyone having trouble?" Came Azura's voice. Gerald shook his head, not losing focus.

"Great!" Azura said. "Next, mix the thinner mana with your thicker cultivated mana. This will weaken it, but it's necessary. This way, you can fold the entire pool again next time you cultivate. The easiest way is to stir the mana. Imagine spinning it with a big spoon. It will resist you. Without your constant attention, it will come to a stop. This is beneficial at this stage. Mana must be settled before it can be used. Mana in motion is useless. Ki is the exact opposite. So now everyone, SPIN!"

Gerald took hold of his mana, stirring it like a pot. It was difficult at first, but once it started moving, it quickly mixed together. He frowned. His lovely, thick mana was now noticeably thinner.

"Okay, after that is done, stop it. The quicker you stop the mana, the sooner you can use it."

Gerald reached out to his mana, mentally dragging the flow around him. It was like walking upstream for a brief moment before it came to a stop. Done, he waited for the next set of instructions.

"Hang on, a few need help," Azura called out, and a minute later, her voice came again. "I think everyone is all set. Now, grab the middle of your mana pool. Then turn it inside out like you would a hat."

Gerald frowned but followed the instructions. He grabbed the center of his pool and pulled. His pool inverted. It was a weird sensation like his navel suddenly changing so that it stuck out of him rather than in. That feeling soon passed. It was replaced with power! Strength he never thought possible flooded his muscles. He felt like he could lift a mountain. His eyes opened as he looked around. The others all had amazed expressions, whether it was a rat, rabbit, or other kin type.

"Great! Now… RUN!" Azura called. She took off, and the kin followed. Gerald ran. He had always been slow. When he'd raced his friends, he was always last. His steps had felt awkward and ungainly. Not anymore. He felt like a deer prancing at high speed or a horse with unlimited stamina. He laughed as the distance shrank beneath him. Azura relinquished the lead to allow Fatania to take over. She circled around the group, looking for anyone who was struggling. None were.

"Pick up the pace!" Azura shouted up front. Gerald began to sweat as their speed increased to that of a fast horse.

"You doing okay?" Azura asked. Gerald turned. She was running next to him without effort. She acted like they were taking a slow walk.

"Fine," Gerald said, panting a little.

"I can slow us down if you're having trouble."

Gerald glanced back. He was the last one in the procession. He grimaced.

"No, I can do it."

"I'm sorry about your pa," Azura said after a moment. "He was more of a father to me than my own ever was."

Gerald swallowed, fighting back tears.

"I still can't believe he and Toren are gone," Gerald said. He was glad of the exercise. It was a great distraction.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

"Yeah…" Azura said, her previous cheerfulness facade draining away. The pair continued on for a minute before Azura spoke again.

"I'll give you the power to get revenge. I promise," Azura said, her expression dark.

Gerald looked at her. She wasn't playful now. Azura was ominous and deadly. He had no doubt she would do exactly that. Somehow, that hurt almost as much as losing those he cared about.

"No," Gerald said.

"Huh?"

"Pa wouldn't want me to waste my life getting revenge. He was never big on that. I think he would want me to live how I want."

Gerald watched some of the darkness drain away from his friend.

"Sure," Azura said softly.

"But," Gerald continued before Azura could run off. "Any good smith knows that forging steel sometimes ain't enough. Sometimes, you have to poke someone with it as well. I won't become a cultivator for revenge. I'll become one to protect those I care about."

This time, it was Azura studying him. She sniffled a bit. After a quick dab at her eyes, she responded.

"I can give you that."

"Good," Gerald panted. He wasn't used to running and talking.

"However, you must do something for me," Azura said.

Gerald gave her a confused look.

"Run faster!" Azura yelled before bolting off. It was only then that Gerald noticed that he had lagged farther behind.

"Damn…" Gerald muttered as he ran faster.

***

Brianna Runedane awoke to find the city in chaos. The council had decided to enslave all the kin. Why the fuck did they do that?! Of course, such a decision was only shared with the magical elite. A lesser house like hers wasn't informed or involved in the decision. Was fighting the mist going so badly that they had to take such extreme measures? Perhaps. It wasn't her place to question such high-ranking mages.

It would have been nice to be aware of what was coming. Now, Brianna's family was scrambling. The council had commanded that slave runes be branded into each kin to keep them complacent. Runes were her family's specialty. Her entire family had been dragged off at first light to just outside of town. The sight blew her mind. Foreign mages and even elves were on duty watching the kin, nearly a thousand strong. Sure, there were lots of kin, but they were contained in a deep depression in the earth. Why were there so many mages here? None of this made any sense. Only small groups of kin would be allowed out at a time for the branding, but such security was overblown. The dirty looks the mages around her gave the kin made her wonder if something didn't go according to plan.

Brianna discarded her question as she prepared her station. Not far away, her family did likewise. Her father had been contracted to prepare irons with the correct runes, which were prepared ahead of time. He had thought some criminals were being forced into labor parties. Not this. This was insane. Someone at the top really made a mess of things. How were the four of them supposed to brand all these kin? It would take days! No one who devised this plan had considered the logistics of using slave runes. They probably knew little of rune craft at all.

The art of crafting runes involved creating a rune with a metal infused with mana. The rune would be carved into the desired object, and then molten metal would be added. Once cooled, the rune would be powered up by connecting it to a power source, usually the ambient mana. It was considerably trickier to apply a rune to living flesh. A specialized branding tool was required. It would sear the flesh while injecting small amounts of the infused metal into the burn site, creating the rune. It would be agonizing, but she had spells to help with that. Using such runs on cattle or other domestic animals wasn't uncommon. Of course, the complexity of the rune increased with the function. She felt sorry for the kin. These runes were rather large. Her father had designed them with several functions. When he'd shown her in the morning, it took several minutes for her to understand the design. The rune would combine a locator, pain receptor, and security system. The locator rune was simple and familiar enough. Her father had to custom-design the pain rune, as that was uncommon. The pain rune had two parts. As the name implies, the first part was used to induce pain. The second part of the rune was bound to a foreign mana signature to activate the pain. A mage could use the rune whenever they wanted and from any distance. It felt cruel to Brianna, but the kin were savages after all. With this, they would all be safer. Who knows what the kin would do now that they were enslaved. She couldn't even blame them.

The last part of the rune prevented removal. If it was forcibly removed, it would quickly siphon all the mana from the kin, killing them over a few hours. Such an act would not affect a mage who can control their mana, but for a null, it was perfect.

Brianna set aside the final parts of her workstation as the first of the kin was brought before her. He looked like a wolf or dog-kin who had a slight limp. The mage escorting him gave him a shove forward.

"Get on the table, face down," Brianna commanded. The kin hesitated, eying the table dubiously.

"PAIN TOUCH," The escorting mage said as he touched the kin. The kin screamed, falling to the ground. Startled, Brianna took a step back. That seemed rather excessive. The mage appeared to disagree, his face livid. The kin convulsed on the ground for several moments before going still, panting heavily.

"You were commanded to get on the table, you animal," The mage sneered. The kin complied as the mage left to get another. Next to the table, another one of the foreign mages smirked, watching the scene.

Brianna swallowed nervously. These guys weren't fucking around. Her tools ready, Brianna grabbed some shaving tools and started clearing a spot on the kin's upper right shoulder.

"I've never studied rune craft," the mage beside her station said. "Will this take long?" Brianna looked at him. He was somewhat handsome with short green hair and a thin goatee. His eyes were hard, as if he were upset about something.

"I first have to prepare the site. Then, cast a numbing spell. Once that is done, I will get the brand from the brazier. The brand has a special spot for the magical metal to be poured in. After the rune has cooled, it has to be energized. After that, the kin's natural mana will sustain it," Brianna explained as she shaved a small patch.

She reached out to cast her numb touch spell on the kin when the mage stopped her.

"Allow me," He said. "PARALYZE."

Brianna frowned. "He'll still feel the pain."

"Good," The mage said.

"What!?" Brianna said. "There is no need for this…" She left her question open.

"I'm Grandor," The mage said. "And it is completely necessary. The kin have to be shown they can't resist us."

"I think they understand that already," Brianna glared as she gestured to the captive kin.

"Ha!" Grandor shouted in a humorless laugh. "Tell that to the Auzre Magebane."

"The what?"

"Oh, you haven't heard yet? The story will spread soon enough. The damn kin kept shouting it all last night. I'll tell you what I know, but you should keep working. We have a lot to do."

Brianna's frown didn't change, but she relented and went to the brazier.

"HEAT PROTECTION." She grabbed the brand with her bare hand without the slightest sign of discomfort. She then filled a small chamber with a specially prepared metal solution.

"Sorry," Brianna said as she pressed the brazier down on the exposed skin.

The kin didn't make a sound. She was sure he would have, but the spell froze him in place.

"CONTROL METAL," Brianna chanted, guiding the molten metal into the flesh. Thirty seconds later, she lifted the brand and some charred skin away from the site.

"COOL SURFACE."

"HEALING TOUCH."

Brianna finished casting and then laid her hand on the rune. She let her mana gently flow into the first part of the rune creating a vacuum which sucked in the kin's mana. Even with their dormant mana pools, the rune could still draw power. It was now self-sustaining.

"That was interesting," Grandor said. "Doesn't seem that difficult."

"It's not," Brianna agreed. "It's more about having the right spells for the task. Also, knowing how to prepare the magical metal."

Grandor released the paralyzing spell as a new kin was brought to her. The kin on the table let out a sobbing cough as he was roughly pulled away to stand in a new line. There, several of the foreign mages and elves began looking them over like goods on a shelf.

The kin wordlessly hopped on the table. Brianna prepared the kin's shoulder as she spoke.

"Tell me about the Azure Magebane."

Grandor scowled at the name. "Shortly after, we finished rounding up the nulls. The camp was attacked. I wasn't there, but I lost a friend during the raid. I also heard that a hundred mages died."

Brianna gasped. "Who is the Azure Magebane? A group of rogue mages who tried to steal slaves?"

"SHE IS OUR SAVIOR. THE MAGEBANE WILL FREE US FROM…"

"PARALYZE!" Grandor shouted, and the kin stopped speaking.

Brianna looked to Grandor, who grimaced. "It's not a group but a single kin. Some type of monster. She made a deal with an evil entity to gain the power to kill mages."

Brianna had a terrible suspicion. "How do you know she made a deal?"

"What else could it be?" Grandor shrugged.

"What did this kin look like?"

"A half cat-kin with blue hair."

Brianna walked to the brazier and almost fell on it. It was her. It had to be. The kin she met in the forest. The one she owed a mana debt to. She shuddered. In a daze, Brianna finished branding the next kin. Immediately, another was before her. She ignored Grandor's questions when possible. She gave just enough answers to avoid suspicion. All the while, her mind raced. Gods above, what would she do when the Azura Magebane came for her?