Sword And Training

The sword was even more powerful than I had anticipated. Its energy seemed to have dissipated after my first swing. I couldn't help but wonder if it had something to do with me. How could I maintain control over it? The sword brought forth many questions in my mind during the battle, but I had to remain focused on the task at hand.

The leader of the clan eyed the sword in my hand with both suspicion and curiosity. But that didn't deter him. In fact, it only seemed to enrage him further. It was clear that I was attacking him with something I didn't fully understand. The damage I inflicted was inevitable.

The clan leader wasted no time. In an instant, he was beside me and had already delivered a powerful punch to my stomach, knocking me down.

Despite being knocked down once again, I was determined to stand back up. I reached for my sword that had fallen by my side, but the clan leader stepped on my outstretched hand and spoke in a harsh tone directly to my face.

"It's over panda. That's it."

He pressed down on my hand with his foot, wanting to hear me admit defeat. But I refused to give up, no matter how much pain I was in.

"No," I said through gritted teeth. "It's not over."

Seeing the fatigue in my eyes and the wounds on my body, the clan leader let out a long breath and lifted his foot off of my hand. He took a step or two back before speaking again.

"The war is already over," he said softly. "But you don't want to believe it. Don't fool yourself anymore."

The leader of the clan had already turned his back to me and was slowly making his way towards the palace. It was true that I had lost the battle, but there were still a few things I wanted to say to him. I called out after him.

"I may have lost the battle," I said, my voice shaking slightly. "But I also lost myself. I'm sorry for using the sword without control. I was wrong. But I can't go back empty-handed with just a broken stick in my hand. My friends need my help. Please, at least teach me how to use this sword."

The sound of his distant footsteps came to a halt after I had spoken. We had made a deal with the leader of our clan, but now I had nothing left. No weapon, no place to go. The leader, perhaps aware of my situation and feeling some regret for breaking the only weapon I had left, paused before turning his head to look at me.

"Be here at sunrise tomorrow morning," he said gruffly. "I'll train you. But don't ask for anything more."

Excited and grateful, I replied happily, momentarily forgetting about my broken stick.

"I promise," I said eagerly. "Nothing more will happen and you won't regret it."

With those words, the leader left the palace garden without another word and all that was left for me to do was wait for the next morning.

...In the light of the next day…

The sun had risen once again and I found myself waking up inside the palace. I was filled with excitement and curiosity as I thought about the training that awaited me and the skills I would gain. I quickly made my way to the garden, barely taking the time to grab a few bites of food before heading out.

The sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon and even though there was a slight fog in the air, I could see clearly. I had less than two weeks to complete my training and return to my friends. After a short wait, the leader of our clan arrived in the garden.

Although my wait had been brief, it felt like an eternity. But I knew that I needed to be patient and determined, so I remained silent until he spoke. The leader approached me and stood in front of me before taking a deep breath.

"I haven't trained anyone in a long time," he said slowly. "And I didn't intend to start again. But I feel responsible for breaking your only weapon during our battle. So, I will teach you how to control the other weapon you possess - the sword. But first, you must learn about the power of our bloodline."

Not only was I going to learn how to use the sword, but I was also going to discover the power of my own bloodline. The day seemed to be getting better and better. I was finally going to fulfill the reason why I had come here. Grateful for what I had heard, I looked at the leader of our clan as if to say thank you.

"I would be honored to wield the powers of my bloodline," I said earnestly.

"Yes," he replied. "But it won't be as easy as you think. I observed your sword during our battle. It seems that the more anger you release, the more aggressive the sword becomes."

"So the more I rage, the stronger my sword becomes?" I asked.

"Yes," he nodded. "But you must learn to control your anger or else the sword will emit unbalanced power. That's why you must first learn the most basic power of our bloodline - the control of ki. This will allow you to channel energy outward or inward and balance and use the sword freely."

"In short," I said slowly. "I will learn to control my anger."

"No," he shook his head. "It's more than that. Controlling ki is not just about controlling emotions. It also allows you to radiate energy which can quickly heal an injured person, revive a withered flower, energize a tired individual, and much more."

I was familiar with the concept of ki control, but I had no idea just how powerful it could be. Curious, I asked the leader one of the questions that had been on my mind.

"You mean like the people of the angelic race?" I asked.

"They are not angels," he replied. "They earned that nickname because they have wings. But our power is more advanced than theirs. We can energize our entire body while they can only energize a wounded person's injury."

"What about the sword?" I asked. "Does it emit anger like the wolf bloodline?"

"As long as the sword is controlled, its power is harmless and can be balanced," he explained. "But people of the wolf bloodline are born with anger. This anger is not ordinary - it's very difficult to control, especially during battle. Over time, they lose themselves to it. No matter how much they try to hide it, they cannot escape their nature. They are the true nightmare of humanity."