Under her father’s tutelage, Aylin had learned how to brew remedies from ingredients her father had collected and prepared. The memories of long days spent in his work room flooded back as she snapped another stem, the familiar smell of yarrow bringing back the happiness of those days. The stem and its white flowers joined the others in her basket as she made her way to another tree, having spotted another burst of flowers peaking out from one of the many nooks in the canopy that collected soil and worked as natural, minute growing plots for plants that would be strangled by the darkness of the forest floor. Reshel had sent her to collect the herb- it proved useful in many situations, but particularly in making a fever reducing tea, and many Ast natives had been coming in with cold symptoms, increasing their demand for the small plant. This was a new branch of training she was receiving under Reshel; the actual collecting and processing of ingredients that she had previously only worked with as components to recipes. She plucked a few stems from this plant too, careful not to damage the herb beyond repair, and added them to her now full basket, ready to return to the healer’s hut.
-----
She washed and prepared the yarrow for brewing, so that it would then be conveniently packaged for brewing either in Reshel’s hut should a patient come to him, or to be given to a concerned relative of a bedridden patient still in the village. Aylin took comfort in these mundane works of healing, it gave her confidence to know she could provide some help to others, even if she couldn’t fully control her magic yet. It was easy looking up to Reshel as a mentor and uncle figure, the large Shifter had the presence of personality that commanded attention, but the gentle and firm demeanor of a wise healer. She enjoyed studying under him, but still worried for Biroki all the same, even in knowing he was a powerful Sage, she couldn’t help but feel nervous at his taking part in the conflict with the Alkidike extremists; it was odd- she knew- feeling so attached to someone not her own flesh and blood, but he had taken her in when she needed a home, tutored her in magic when she needed to learn control, and provided her solace in the wake of grief. For all of this she was grateful- grateful, and fearful that she could lose someone else she cared for deeply. “Oi, lost in thought child?” Aylin was startled out of her worried train of thought, realizing that she had been staring out the window, the knife in her hand resting uselessly on the cutting counter before her, “Oh, sorry Reshel!” Reshel let out one of his deep belly-laughs, a twinkle in his eyes as he teased, “You’re more like that nephew of mine than you may think! He was always getting lost in thought when he should have been helping with the healing business!” Aylin returned his teasing with a bashful smile, “I don’t mean to daydream so much, I guess … I just worry is all.” Reshel shook his head and clapped her on the shoulder, “You’re too young for such worry lines. Come now, Biroki can handle himself, have confidence in him, eh? What would he think of his own student doubting him?” She felt herself flush as she shook her head emphatically, “No, no, I don’t doubt him at all! I … I’ll try not to worry so much, but it’s not really something I can help.” Reshel let out another easy laugh at her response, “Well, how about we focus on something else then hmm? How about some healing magic, we can see how you’ve come along?” Aylin’s thoughts turned brighter almost instantly, “Really?!” She loved healing magic even more than mundane healing, it was a chance for her to prove not only to others, but also to herself that she had the potential for restorative magic, not solely the destructive, and it was a vote of confidence if Reshel thought her competent enough to actually use her magic on a patient.
-----
Reshel lead her down to where their patient waited; a young boy sat on a blanket nestled in the roots of the tree supporting Reshel’s hut (a tree that bore the long-since healed marks of many fires) with a determined pout and steel in his eyes. Aylin couldn’t help but feel amused at the boy’s expression, he seemed so agitated at the inconvenience of needing a healer! However, she tried her best to not let any of that amusement tint her outward expression as they approached the young patient and knelt to see the wound that Reshel had already cleaned. He had a deep, but not life-threatening, cut on his thigh; actually, the cut was surprisingly clean and Aylin suspected the boy may have been playing or practicing with a weapon as he had been cautioned against, which would help to explain the grimace he was sporting. Reshel sat on a root beside the boy and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, “Now, don’t you worry Caleb. Normally this cut might take several weeks to heal, with lots of bandaging and herbs pressed into the wound beside to help it along, but Aylin here is going to fix you right up. Ye’ see, I’ve been training her to use healing magic and you’re lucky enough to have her work some for you.” The boy’s expression softened somewhat, that tough act melting to reveal the nervous boy he truly was, and as Reshel gave Caleb’s shoulder a squeeze he winked to Aylin, helping calm some of her own nerves. She gave the boy a gentle smile and placed her hands on either side of Caleb’s wound, settling her nerves and focusing on her breathing, the rhythm of her own life force centering her mind on the beat of her heart. She thought back to one of Reshel’s earliest lessons; they had gone out to collect some of the glowing fungi of the forest floor one rainy day and had paused by an inconspicuous stream. Reshel had turned around in the momentary break in foliage, pointing from the trunks of the forest’s giants around them to the Illi working their way through the forest floor, “We all rely on water Aylin, remember that. It is the life that flows through the veins of all living things, from the mightiest tree to the smallest grub. You can use that water to heal another, as an avenue for healing magic that can soothe burns and mend bones.” He had filled a jug with the water from that stream and Aylin learned later that it was one of his sacred streams, a stream he believed to be more pure for use in magic workings. Aylin felt her pulse harmonize with the boy’s and she called out to the spirit of the water within him, the blood that was moving through his body to the site of the cut and cried out to her with the wrongness of it- of passages meant to be connected, but woefully separated. She let her healing magic gather at her palms, beads of sweat forming at her temples, and released it to flow into that gash, blood vessels connecting back into their proper pathways, the blood happily making its way on its proper course and once all felt right again she let her eyes open. Where the cut had been on the boy’s leg was now an inflamed line where a scar would have formed with regular healing, no excess blood on the surface or bruising evident beneath. Aylin turned to Reshel, beaming with pride, and the boy looked amazed at his leg, jumping up to test the newly healed area.
-----
Aylin lay adrift in the still waters of the lake, losing herself to the stars and sliver of silver moon visible above, their faces reflected in the mirror-like surface she disturbed as her movement caused gentle ripples. She thought of those ripples, of how one’s actions sends out waves into the world that can’t be taken back. She loved the feeling that healing gave her, that she was sending out positive ripples, but she also couldn’t deny the connection she felt with the other elements. Even water could be used to heal or hurt, and she knew she harbored a connection to other elements, and particularly to air and lightning. But those were musings for another time, for now she could simply relax in the cool water and lose herself to the night sky.
[WC: 1444]
Posted: Thu Mar 10, 2016 6:24 am
Well, today was a wash. Thankfully it was just a little bit of chaos, but it could have been far worse! Bandits have been attacking Ast, and we were all scared without Biroki here, but thankfully this man named Ouen showed up with a group of his own fighters and made short work of the pests! He's actually Shiyana's son and he suffered a pretty bad wound to his leg. I was able to thank him for his help by offering him some healing, and received some words of wisdom during our short talk afterwards. He said to me, "I’d just rather up an’ move forward an’ deal with the darkness. Ain’t the sort to leave things undone." and it really struck a cord with me- I'm realizing that this grief I'm holding on to is eating away at me.
I'm back in Ast now, after a day that felt like it would never end. I can't believe another year has gone and past, another year since everyone I knew was lost to me. But I'm not going to dwell on that now, I've spent enough time remembering the past, it's time to anticipate the future.
[WC: 765]
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 3:01 pm
This passage may just end up becoming a scrap piece of paper- I can barely write coherently with my left hand. My right arm is bandaged and Biroki told me not to stress it after the day we've had. The training started out well enough- I was surprised with how well I was doing at channeling Biroki's lightning strikes into the earth beneath me. Then, well, we decided to try something new... I was going to summon lightning, consciously and for the first time since the night I lashed out at the Oban soldier. I was terrified, but managed to summon and direct the electric energy at least somewhat successfully the first time- I completely botched my aim and shattered a crystal. Then I tried focusing on my destination, but fear of hurting Biroki overwhelmed me and the sound of thunder coiled around me and searing pain whipped through my arm. I blacked out and when I came to Biroki was healing my arm- there's still a lightning burn on it, but the damage isn't as great as it could have been. Biroki says there will still be a scar because magical wounds don't accept healing like the mundane do.
I awoke today in a haze- my dreams taking surprising twists and turns last night. It started with fond memories of my childhood, but quickly became darker as sins and virtues were explored. I'm still haunted by the look in that small Oban boy's eyes as he fell into the darkness and by the flames that are at the edge of every nightmare. This time though the soldier was there too, and Biroki with fierce hatred in his eyes. One thing I want to hold on to though is the vision of my future self- I was right there, surrounded by love and warmth, serene and wise beyond my current years.
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 3:03 pm
I learned so much of fur and feathers today! I was finally able to really meet Lasarra, the half Alkidike beast tamer that lives at the edge of the village with her family. She had a sprite named Pounce with her and I was able to ask her about all sorts of animals that people tame as companions.
I met another half Alkidike today, her name is Mnyiri and she was accompanied by the most amazing sailscale! She was just passing beneath my meditation nook and making wonderful music as she walked- she had bells in her hair- and I struck up a conversation. I'm so glad I did too, we spoke about sailscales, Alkidikes, Shifters, and I even got to escort her to the market for dinner and had her try everything Ast has to offer.
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 3:06 pm
Looking for Lightning Class Affinity Solo
Aylin woke to the first light of morning peaking through the canopy and knew in her heart that today was a finding day. She dressed eagerly and washed the last residue of sleep from her eyes in the carved wooden water basin resting by the door. She left Biroki a note while she hurriedly ate breakfast- she would be gone until nightfall in all likelihood- and set forth into the morning mist rising from the warming ground.
She loved the smell of the forest after it rained. And rain it did last night, a violent thunderstorm had made its way across the jungle while Aylin spent the greater portion of the night watching for lightning flashes, excited by a sighting to the southwest before she had finally managed to drift off to sleep. Aylin wondered how she could still feel so connected to thunderstorms when it was lightning magic that most terrified her. It dawned on her that perhaps it was the unity of elements found in a storm, air carrying clouds of water aloft in the heavens, water in the form of rain mixing with moist earth to release its perfume into the damp air- making everything feel fresh, and clean, and new. Lightning could bridge that gap between the heavens and earth, filling the air with broken light and crashing sound, and even this could bring forth the element of fire, should the lightning set spark to a forest. Perhaps the discomfort she felt with her own lightning spells came from her unpredictable control of such a powerful phenomenon.
And that was the reason for this journey. She found herself moving in the direction that she had seen lightning the night before, letting the spirit of the forest guide her towards what needed finding. Even she didn’t know what she was looking for until it came across her path- a mighty tree had fallen prey to the storm, its lightning-scarred trunk fractured into many splinters. Aylin picked her way carefully towards the tree, some splinters only as wide as her pinky, others wider than her waist, and all were flung within a twenty foot radius of this perished forest giant. She approached the lightning-struck trunk reverently and placed her hands upon its scars intuitively, swathes of bark had been torn from the trunk to reveal the heart of the wood beneath. It positively sang to her with magical energy, the tree must have been dying already for the lightning to travel so deeply within as to fracture it- imbuing it with a new kind of life. She lifted her hands with a small smile, she knew now why she had come here.
It had become painfully clear to her during her last practice with Biroki that she was not yet focused enough to truly harness the lightning she could call to herself. Grounding herself with a physical connection to the earth was not suffice- she needed to channel her energy, to have a focus outside her own mind that could be used to harness the constant hum of magic she felt around herself. She found herself wandering through the splinters around the tree, watching out for crystal shards that could slice an unwary foot open, and found a piece that was just about as thick around as her wrist and long enough to reach her shoulder if she stood it on end. Yes, this would do perfectly, she would carve her staff from this tree that sung of lightning strikes.
The rest of the day was spent picking her way back through the forest towards Ast. The large splinter proved awkward to travel with- she wanted to carry it gingerly so as not to injure herself, and found it impeded her ability to move easily through the trees- restricting her to the understory. It would have to become an extension of herself, an extension of her will. She would have to move through the jungle as fluidly with her staff as she had on her own, there was no point in having a tool if it could not be effectively used and carried. She realized this as she made her way home, determined to make this fragment of wood into the staff she knew it could become.
The next few days were spent shaping the staff, sanding down the splinter until it became smooth and whole, its own entity separate from the tree that had forged it though lightning-strike. She brought the staff to a weaponsmith so that it could become an actual focus for magic workings, and with the staff finally complete, Aylin set herself to practicing with it.
She stood in the grove she used to practice under Biroki and realized she no longer felt chagrin in coming here, the evidence of missed spells as scars on the trees around her didn’t fill her with fear at the power of magic. It was part of working with the raw elements of nature, part of the song of life in this jungle, and part of herself would simply have to harness that magic to her will if she would be of any use to this world. She let out the breath she had been holding and held out her staff with her right hand, the feathered spiral of her lightning scar traveled down her arm, connecting her spiritually to the lightning-struck staff. The lightning she had released as a child had scarred her emotionally, but that scar was now healing. The lightning she welded now as an adult had left her with a physical scar, but this one she would keep as a reminder of the ferocity and unpredictable nature of lightning magic. A reminder of that childhood scar that couldn’t be so easily healed with magic.
She gathered electricity around herself and released, channeling it from her spirit, through her staff, and watched with wonder as the lightning struck its mark. True to hit as every spell this day had been. With every successful casting her confidence grew; yes she knew that she could not cast every spell without fail moving forward, but just knowing that she could bend the elements of this world to her will- in any small or great way- filled her with pride. Aylin was well on her way to working the spirits of the elements she heard around her every day. [WC: 1060]
I can't believe we're already home, and that I actually traveled outside of Jauhar for that matter! Biroki took me with him to the Oban Tournament, saying that it would be good for me to practice using my magic against other people my own age. And I had never sparred with anyone other than another magic worker, so I was shocked when I won my first match! The victory felt rather short lived though, and my inexperience showed as I lost my second match.
I don't know how to feel about Oba after this trip. For so long it's just existed in my nightmares, but when we were there all I saw was a diverse gathering of people coming together to celebrate and compete with one another. The sights and smells were overwhelming- but in a good way. I think I'd like to go back someday and learn more about this foreign place.
Posted: Sun May 15, 2016 10:29 pm
What an amazing Sol Festival this year! I actually ran into Ondine while helping with the lantern-making area, it was nice seeing her outside of a situation pitting us against one another in battle. I also met Volka and the three of us talked about our matches during the tournament and how we should definitely train together in the future if we're all still in Ast.
(I also won this adorable little green and purple surelia at the fishing booth- I think I'll name him Edwin!)
Aylin woke from a fitful sleep, she hadn’t been getting much in the way of rest since the festival. She kept thinking back to her prayer to Serin, how she had wished for guidance. It seemed to her as though guidance might have already found her, even before her prayer, as her thoughts returned to the dreams that had been haunting her of late. The fires were still there, the hint of smoke seeming an ever-present scent in her resting hours, but now those heart wrenching dreams had changed. Now the recurring dream ended not with her striking down the Oban soldier and seeing the life leave his eyes, but with flames lapping at the heels of her parents as they ran- a thick cloud of smoke that concealed their escape or demise coalescing into a dark figure with shining hair. It was an almost comforting presence, one that rang of familiarity and seemed to radiate a challenge, You want answers? Then go seek them.
It called back her memory of her conversation with Ouen after he and his fellow bandits had dispatched the bandits plaguing Ast in Biroki’s absence during the Alkidike conflict. How they had spoken of pasts and memories while she had exercised her healing magics. Her words floated back to her as she lay in the crumpled sheets of her bed, “Remembering is sometimes all we have … something to hold onto when days are dark.” Ouen’s reply stuck out starkly in her waking thoughts, “Guess it’s so for some folks. Me, I’d just rather up an’ move forward an’ deal with the darkness. Ain’t the sort to leave things undone.” She untangled herself and rose to move quietly and efficiently about her small room. The room in Biroki’s home ... a home he had opened up to her and that she had needed as she grew from the distressed child he had rescued from a survivors’ tent in Neued to his- at least somewhat- competent prentice.
Serin’s shining face guided her way through the familiar paths leading from the small village of Ast into the wider jungles of Jauhar. It felt as if the goddess was smiling upon her sudden decisiveness- uncharacteristically brash as it may be- and the cool moonlight felt like an embrace in the warm, wet air. She said a quick prayer before turning on that last bend that would hide her master’s home from view and thought of the note that would be waiting for Biroki when he rose. She prayed that it wouldn’t cause him undue stress and that she might find success so she could return all the sooner. Her words echoed in her thoughts as she stepped forward into the din of night.
I’m sorry that I didn’t speak to you personally Biroki, but I knew this is something I had to do on my own. I need closure, need to know what happened to my parents. Memories of that night haunt my dreams and waking thoughts. This has to be done by my own hand or it will mean nothing for my own peace of mind, so I have left for Neued. I will return once I have found my family or laid them to rest.
Aylin was shocked by how quickly time could move when one was on a mission. During her training in Ast the days could bleed together, between practicing medicine with Reshel, refining her magic with Biroki, and exploring the local jungle a steady rhythm had crept into her new life. Of course there were unique and interesting days- even the mundane rhythm held its own interest as she observed herself growing stronger and more competent- like when she met new people, Myniri of course leaping to mind, or special occasions cropped up. The tournament in Oba had been a decisively life-changing event for her. She had not only face off against other prentices in willing battle, she even surprised herself by having enough control of her more volatile lightning magic to win her first match. Beyond the combat though was what it had meant to travel. She had never before left Jauhar, had certainly never stepped foot into or mixed with those who had been the cause for the invasion that had destroyed her home and life as she knew it. It had instilled in her some small confidence that she could venture out into this world and survive it, certainly learning from her experiences and mending the damage from her past. That confidence had emerged when she left Ast for Neued some weeks ago, and even though she hadn’t had Biroki to make the journey with this time he obviously had enough faith in her ability to survive on her own as to not come raging into Neued in the time that had passed to demand her return.
Now of course that would be unnecessary… She examined the dirt beneath her fingernails and smiled at having accomplished what lay before her with her own two hands. Two small mounds in an otherwise ordinary meadow. One of the many that were in the process of reclaiming these burnt areas of the forest, the only reminder of the war that had ravaged the land in the blackened boughs of trees now thick with crawlers straining for the patches of sky now open to them with the trees’ death. New shoots were in abundance, already on their way towards becoming sturdy saplings that would reclaim that sky from the vines. Two such saplings had been moved. Unearthed and replanted such that they were now intertwined in the center of the clearing, runes carved gently into the trunks to tell their shared story. So maybe it wasn’t just with her own two hands... there had also been opening herself to the connections all around her, coaxing the thrumming life of the water traveling through the trees to cause the unnatural twining. But even this magic was turned by her own hand, as were the inscribed ruins that spoke of her mother and father, of the lives that had become one and resulted in her birth, her kind childhood, and ultimately the tragedy of their shared demise.
Aylin blinked back tears, and thought back to her meeting with Dalashee. The other Shifter had seemingly appeared from thin air one day in the marketplace of Neued. Aylin had been asking after any members of her village to any and all she met that were old enough to remember the war, the tents of refugees, and- hopefully- what had happened to the survivors. The lack of answers was disheartening, her village too small perhaps to be remembered, too many years fogging the memories of those who might have met them, but she hadn’t lost hope yet. She found that she had a stubborn streak after all, and she wasn’t going to give up in such a short time, no that kind of failure would not be tolerated, just as she refused to tolerate any failure on her part in learning to control her magic. Then, seemingly by chance, Dalashee had come to her; a neighbor from the old days, and hardly recognizable by her burn and the years that had passed. She said she had heard Aylin’s questions, that the inquiries had trickled through the market and surrounding neighborhoods until they reached her old and tired ears. But there was kindness in the lines of her face as she lead Aylin through winding streets towards the edge of the city, it seemed to Aylin that the elder woman had laced her arm through Aylin’s not for her own support, but to provide it to the young Shifter as she told her what had come to pass. Her mother had not fared well the night of the attack- she was merely an artisan after all- and although the couple had made it to Neued alive, the injuries she had received and the arduous journey to safety had taken their lethal toll. Her father had wept, mourning the loss of a wife and child, but being a healer gave him cause to survive his grief and throw himself into helping the ill and injured that stayed here after the immediate threat of invasion had passed. Even this ardent work was short-lived though, he had pushed himself to exhaustion and his own body succumbed to the very illnesses he was helping to treat. By the time her tale was over they had arrived in the clearing Aylin now sat in, stone markers bearing her parents’ names the only reminder of the lives that had been lost- these same stones now nestled in the roots of the interlocking saplings.
She had sobbed that first day, overcome by the sight of the stones, and had for days afterwards at the memories brought acutely back to the surface by their presence. But she was able to grieve, to finally mourn their loss and ultimately, with her work before her, say goodbye. It wouldn’t be a goodbye that lasted forever- she knew she could come back here and that the trees would be growing strong with the nourishment of her parents at their roots. In this way, the last of their life force would be transferred to the growing trees and the memory of her parents could live on, in her and in the story of their bark. Rising to her feet with a last gentle caress of the grooves in their trunk, she felt the freshly turned earth beneath her feet and could feel the magic of the earth thrumming there beneath the surface. She stepped from this grove that was sacred, at least to her, and prepared to move onwards. She was ready now, ready to return home and continuing to grow, just as the saplings behind her would.
WC: 1635
This is Aylin’s final step in closing the chapter of her past and moving on to that of her future. She has grown stronger as prentice and through her tournament battles has seen the fruits of her labors to better control her magic. With finally coming to peace with her parents’ demise she is now able to expand her horizons; she feels free to leave Jauhar without fear of leaving the possibility of her family out there looking for her and can thus seek out new opportunities to learn and grow as a spirit worker. She remains uncertain in matters of using magic to mend or break lives, but she is now willing to get out there and seek those answers rather than being paralyzed by the fear of discovery.
Posted: Tue Aug 08, 2017 8:12 am
You wouldn't believe what happened at The Grand Market, I can hardly believe it and I was right there at the front lines! Well, taking a step back first, I met another hybrid- Ziel- while I was wandering through the stalls for gifts and food. I am continuously amazed by the hybrids I meet- and by the number I've met so far! They have such an interesting world view coming from two- or even more- cultures! It's so different from how I grew up completely surrounded by members of my own race and familiar faces.
But I digress, the most incredible thing happened while Ziel and I were eating! This large dark form was approaching from the horizon and a bunch of other fighters and I rallied to protect the Market, but we weren't needed at all! The form was actually a large flying ship (THAT isn't even the most incredible part), and although it crashed the crew survived. The crew was comprised of two entirely NEW races- with gear the likes of which I've never seen. Some had yellow skin, fiery hair, and bright green crystals- apparently these are the "Lightning" people, and the others- the Geians- were dark-skinned like the Obans, but with light tattoo-like markings instead of crystals and their hair and eyes were a multitude of soft greens and blues. Apparently they come from an island continent across the see called Belrea where they have an Academy that's in charge of their society and making all kinds of advancements and discoveries! They offered up the opportunity to go back with them to Belrea for anyone willing to make the difficult journey, but there's no way I could leave yet. There's still so much I need to explore on this continent- this was my first time in Sauti! I still want to travel to Oba and Matori to make amends with what I experienced as a child, not to mention seeing Tale and Zena!
So needless to say, I did not volunteer to travel back with them. On my way home though I did make a discovery of my own! I happened across an injured sailscale, and thank Serin I had spent time speaking with Mnyiri and Lasarra! She's a fierce little creature and I was terrified of being bitten, but thankfully she was weak and I was able to hold her still long enough to work some healing magic on her broken tail. I think that helped her bond with me, and I know it made her trust me more, because I was able to carry her then without much of a fight and feed her as we traveled back to Ast. We've grown fond of each other since-I can't say the same for the other villagers though as Iona can be a handful. [WC: 468]
Ugh, I went to go fetch medicinal plants for Reshel today and was met with complete and utter failure. The request was a simple one, and I've gathered these herbs countless times in the past- but never before with Iona. I was collecting the yellow flowers that grow in what I call the "hermit's hollow" when she suddenly flared up- knocking me off balance with her wings and hissing at a sumudu that had been hiding there. I was very suddenly aware of the speed at which I was approaching the ground- thankfully I was able to call the air to my aid and I was able to walk away from the fall with nothing more than a twisted ankle. I was too tired to heal it myself though and had to stumble my way home with my staff for assistance. Iona at least was happy with the snack she had caught, but I'm wary of taking her with me again until she can control the urge to hunt without me.
I was lucky this time, but such a fall could be disastrous. My ankle is still a bit tender, but Reshel was able to heal it with his magic, so I was still able to assist him with the preparation of other medicines for the townsfolk. I’m afraid that I may have disappointed him though, it was such an easy task and I completely botched it. I’ve wanted to spend more time training Iona, but I’ve been so caught up in my own that I guess I’ve been failing her. It’s really no excuse though- she was a wild sailscale and I should have known better than to just take her blindly home with me. I have to put her needs first- and she needs training, otherwise someone else could get hurt too, and I couldn’t bare being the cause. I should seek out Lasarra again for advice on how to proceed. [WC: 323]
