Waterstrider

Canvas Town, Tseludia Station, Pantheonic Territory, Fifthmonth, 1634 PTS

Training my new disciples was a monotonous process due to their relatively low standard of martial arts. The basic forms were an acceptable foundation in a general sense, but they needed to construct a far more specialized foundation if they wished to learn the Downpour Sect’s arts. I could not in good conscience leave them with anything less than a perfect foundation if they were to learn unorthodox arts. I would be failing to fulfill my role as their master.

Each of them were learning the forms at a different rate, and I had put the effort into doing individual training to maximize their individual learning speeds. There was no reason to delay their learning, not when I had time to spare. Just like my own master had, I would teach them to the best of my ability. I placed great importance on such responsibilities.

Still, today I had told them to practice on their own, and advise one another. They seemed to mostly get along, though I got the feeling that Blake Wan was being excluded by the others. Not that it was any of my business. Such a situation was one he would need to change on his own if he wished to. Of course, training was not the only duty they had for today. The disciples of the sect leader inevitably had their own special responsibilities.

“Rachel, how much time do we have?” I asked as I walked down the hallway, having just finished the first meal of the day.

“Let’s see…” she said, appearing before me all of a sudden. “It should be somewhere around a half hour.”

“Alright. Make sure to remind everyone to show up.”

“I legitimately cannot forget.”

The meeting room had still yet to be renovated, as we simply could not spare the money to do so. It barely saw use a couple times per week, so the uncomfortable chairs and cheap table were not issues we had felt needed to be addressed. Still, today was a prime example of the reason such rooms were normally lavishly decorated. But its current state would have to do.

While I waited on my subordinates to arrive, I placed myself in a posture of meditation, feeling the swirls of miasma wash through my cores and meridians. This was a process I had undergone hundreds of times in the weeks since my advancement, and each time my understanding of the changes in my physique and soul continued to become more apparent. The spirit refinement stage was the process of improving one’s soul and its connection to the body. But unlike most spirit refiners, my soul had been carved and shaved down to a fraction of a normal size due to my Soul Severance Art, what had become the forks splitting the rivers that were each of my meridians. The art was easier to use and more effective than ever, but no matter its power, I dared not use it. If any more was carved from my soul, it was at risk of being destroyed entirely.

The current state of my soul was not without its advantages, however. The size of one’s soul had no impact on the powers it could channel into the body, at least not in the way a martial artist used it. A smaller soul merely made it so that I had much less room for error in the process of refining it. Still, by the same token, it also meant I simply had less spirit to refine. If I could figure out a sufficiently effective method of tempering my soul, I would be able to advance far faster than usual through this stage.

After my introspection concluded, I opened my eyes to see some of the sect’s leadership already seated around the table. Jihan and Rachel were present, and Ran was walking in the door right as I glanced in that direction. It did not take long for Eli to enter behind her.

Kein was still in a coma, while Cinto remained busy assisting with the disciple’s transitions into more specific techniques, and preparing them to accept miasma. While Orion had joined the sect’s inner hierarchy, he was busy with training for the sect members. With his expertise, I hoped that he would be able to turn the ragtag mix of foreigners and gangsters into a proper fighting force. Ran, Eli, Rachel, and I were the only founding members currently present, while Jihan was a new presence. Normally when I wished to know something, I would simply meet with the individual in question or ask Rachel, so such group meetings only occurred when there was a pressing issue I wished to discuss with them. Rachel and I had selected this group of the sect’s leaders for a purpose.

The moment everyone had seated themselves around the table, I immediately started the meeting.

“Let’s start with Eli,” I said. “What’s the state of our information network?”

Eli, the only Palace Leader who was unaffected by the recent changes in the sect, met my question with a smile.

“Np problems here, Sect Leader. I’ve been continuing to expand with connections to certain brothels, but am running into limits with my current budget. Based on my knowledge of our current situation, I won’t ask for more. I’ve been submitting my reports to the Vice-Sect Leader, so inform me if there are any issues.”

I nodded approvingly at him. I had already been keeping track of the general state of the network via Rachel, but it was beneficial for discipline to have him directly report to myself.

“Good. What about the Golden Palace?”

Ran chuckled.

“I’m sure you know the answer to that. You never gave permission to return to the predatory practices we were doing in the gang, but even if we did, there’s no way we’ll make enough money. 750,000 is already far too much, even disregarding what a ridiculous amount of interest there will be.” She shook her head. “We really don’t have time for any long term investments, and most schemes I can think of will either take a lot of time or have a high starting cost.”

This was also within my expectations. Even the large corporations would find it difficult to pay off a debt such as the one we had acquired. We had saved the sect by taking it on, but repayment was certainly not feasible through normal means. Luckily, what would occur in less than ten minutes would likely somewhat assist with the matter.

It struck me once more than Ran’s financial skills certainly belied her appearance. At a glance, one would simply think she was just another muscle headed gangster. Only one person remained to speak with.

“How fares your squad?” I asked, glancing at Jihan, who had taken a seat to my left side as he usually did.

I did not bother to preempt my words. Jihan and I had an understanding, and he would be able to easily guess what I wanted to know.

“We have fully recovered from any residual injuries, and are prepared to act as a strike force at any time.”

“Good. I’ll be putting you to use very soon. How about the Reth? Have they settled in?”

We had considered whether it would be easier to just ship them back home off the station, but that both prevented us from making use of them while they were here, as well as being a cost the sect could not currently afford.

Jihan frowned. The matter of the Reth had been placed in his hands because he cared so much about them. After all, their well-being was a task that both his clan and his religion demanded of him. While we were still keeping their presence secret from most of the sect, all of the Palace Leaders had been informed about the matter.

“They’ve settled in fine. They’re bored, but the Vice-Sect Leader has been able to entertain them.” He gave Rachel a meaningful look. He had inevitably found out about her true nature as a result of interacting with the Reth, though he had been fully willing to keep it a secret. “The main issue is food. We’ve been able to alter some of the Seiyal and Tovus food we have, but we simply cannot manufacture some of the nutrients they need with the poor quality synthesizers we have. We’ll need to find something better pretty soon or they’ll start getting a nutrient deficiency.”

“I see. I may have a solution for that. Rachel, what’s our time?”

She was pretending to lean backwards in her seat, though of course she was unable to affect it at all. In fact, the only reason the seat had been pushed out from the table at all was that she had asked me to do it for her.

“I believe he’s entering the door at the moment. Your disciples have greeted him.”

“Good. Make sure he reaches here without delay.”

Eli and Jihan were all looking over to us, confused. After all, I hadn’t informed them about our guest. Ran, of course, already knew. Out of everyone in the sect, she was the one who had the most interactions with him due to our shared economic interests.

The door to the meeting room opened, and I saw Lin usher our guest inside, trailed by his bodyguard. Outside the door, I knew that a few of my other disciples would be waiting. I hadn’t actually cared which of my disciples performed the role of greeting and entertaining him, other than the fact that I did not wish for Blake or Qian to do it. I had doubts about their public relations skills, for different reasons respectively.

As he entered, everyone at the table stood to greet him except for myself. I smiled.

“It is nice to see you again, Nahalken. It’s been awhile.”

The short Staiven smiled in return, sitting down in a chair that had been prepared for him.

“Lady Fulstovis has brought us back together in the pursuit of further mutual benefit. Of course, you will not betray the terms of our contract?”

“You need not be concerned about that. The Redwater Sect prides itself on its honor.”

Nahalken snorted in amusement at my words.

“Yes, I’m sure,” he replied with a dry tone. “I’ve heard you have a money problem, and have brought you another opportunity. Of course, I can give you a loan or funds, if you wish.”

Left unsaid was how he intended to make us repay such a cost. Still, it was something we would need to consider. First, we would have to deal with the task he had set us up to at the moment.

“Let’s set that matter aside, for the moment,” interjected Rachel. “Let’s discuss this task you wanted to speak to us about. We’ve brought several specialists here to discuss the matter.”

“The matter is rather simple. An upstart had decided to go into business selling a cheaper and more effective version of one of our flagship pharmaceuticals,” he said. “Wouldn’t it be nice if there was an accident in their manufacturing plant? Particularly if said accident caused the Justice Office to discover some sort of illegal action being done there.”

Ran smiled, leaning forward on the table. “Do you mind if some of their equipment mysteriously goes missing?”

“A lot can happen during an industrial accident. Who would notice a missing machine or two?”

As an experienced businessman, Nahalken knew how matters worked in the underworld. It was, after all, why he had forgiven us from stealing from him and chosen to build such close ties as an investment. It was another risk, but it was also an opportunity. I glanced over at Jihan, who caught my hint.

This was a test for the sect, but it would also be a test for him specifically. We spent the next half hour discussing the matter with Nahalken, before bidding him farewell as he returned to the second district.

Perhaps we really had been blessed by the Goddess of Commerce. This was an opportunity to both fulfill our deal with the Venin Group, and also one to help assuage some of our debt problems.

Divine Blessings: [Not everyone worships deities, even within races like the Staiven. Of course, it is extremely rare to find a mad conspiracy theorist who does not believe in their existence. After all, evidence for the existence of deities is incredibly apparent. How could beings who do not exist control a very large portion of galactic territory? Despite the known truth of their existence, many of the 'blessings' and 'miracles' ascribed to them are simply the product of chance and circumstance. After all, how does one know whether a fruitful harvest was accomplished with the blessings of Estrivai or simply hard work and good fortune? Still, according to the churches, the gods will on occasion manipulate events or reality to bless believers and those who represent their domain, regardless of their faith. It is common for deities to only give such blessings to their chosen people, like Relya for the Escalos, or Cierra for the Seiyal of Sunlit Hall. In recent decades, the targets of such blessings for the deities of the Pantheon have expanded beyond the Staiven to all who live within the Pantheonic Territory, a matter which has occurred around the same time as the Pantheon's churches' expansion of their recruitment to non Staiven species.]