originally posted in:The New Dojo
"What, am I the only one to have made it to the top or something?"
English
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"Of course you are!" The old man told Zane. "You're in a crowd of a bunch of kids. Who do you think made it up there before you?"
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"Well I felt something inside me, a kind of force that just made it easier to climb."
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"You ain't still feeling it?" Quinn asked Zane with a raised eyebrow. Zane still felt the power around him. "You're hair is flying around like someone is taking a fan to it. You know what? Actually? Time to talk." Quinn went on. His mind wandered, a lot. Even in practice and training when he would give orders, sometimes he would end up telling stories of past contracts. "All of ya! Four laps around the village! Since you couldn't learn to climb! Go!" He yelled. The kids all began to run laps instantly but Quinn stopped Zane. "Time to talk, climber." The Master nodded to The mistress, who walked away and began to yell at the runners.
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"So what is this power? Did my parents have this ability as well? Or what about my brother and sister, why didn't it manifest in them?" He rambled on.
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"Walk with me Zane." The old man said as he walked towards the mansion at the head of the village.
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"Yea sir." He said as he followed the master.
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The two approached the stairs to the mansion. However Quinn had a difficult time making his way up the steps. Zane felt the strange power subside within him. "Help an old man up the steps would you?" Quinn asked Zane.
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"Of course master." He moved to go support Quinn, but started to feel drained from the loss of power.
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The two walked up the steps, and the old man opened the set of grand brown wooden doors. Upon entering Zane saw the grand lobby of the mansion. There was a table in the centre of the large dome room which had a vase of dark flowers sitting in it. The stairs curved around the walls up to the top balcony while there was a doorway on the main floor dead ahead past the table. There were also hallways to the left and right. This was Zane's first time in the mansion.
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"Oh wow....This place is amazing!" He exclaimed.
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"It really is isn't it?" The Master agreed. "Come with me Zane." He said as he walked past the small table and into the large room ahead. As Zane entered he saw massive room that stretched across the house. There were paintings and artwork everywhere, all hung up on the walls. They were illuminated by the windows on the back wall which shined sun light through into the room.
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"This place really is huge, how many rooms does it have?" He asked.
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"Hmmmm. A hundred and...thirty five?" The old man said with a hint of guessing. "A lot, really. Many rooms. Lots of rooms."
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"But wait, why do you need so many rooms if only you and the mistress stay here. Unless you have servants, but even then I assume they'd sleep outside in another building...."
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"Excess, dear boy! Excess!" The man said with a smile as he walked down the hall of paintings. "Ah. But enough about this house. It is time we discuss you."
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"And whatever that power was. Has something like that ever happened before?" He asked.
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"Yes. Many, MANY years ago. Before you or I drew breath. These figures, the ones with powers like yours, could only be conjured by those with nightingale blood. Now, nightingale blood is not actually literal. It is simply stating that someone has passed the trials needed to be a nightingale. Once one person has passed the trials of becoming a nightingale, upon surviving till their eighteenth birthday, they are blessed with the Bond of Night." The man explained. It seemed that Zane was not stopping him. "See, the Bond of night grants a nightingale abilities other men and women would not be able to handle. They are rather minor things, like an increase to endurance and speed for example. However as soon as one is carrying the bond of night, Fate does not favour them. Do you know what fate is, Zane?"
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"An uncontrollable force that directs the paths we take in life isn't it?" He asked.
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"Mmmm. So you have been studying. Close, but no. Fate is the [i]developing[/i] events we cannot control. Our actions direct fate, which has its own results. At least, that is the nightingale belief. You are free to study any religion you wish and accept its definition, there are many." Quinn went on. "Now, fate does not favour someone who has the Bond. At least that's what we say. In reality, fate goes against those with the bond to test their will. That is why the bond was made in the first place for the nightingales. Fate itself developed the bond for us so that it can be used. It...is also why many of your comrades are Children, rather then adults. See as soon as one has the bond, they are marked for death. It is up to extreme cunning for a holder of the bond to survive. That is why children being born into the clan, such as yourself, is so rare."
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"I see....Go on then." He said, his mind racing.
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Zane had actually forgotten this conversation a long time ago. It was possible that his seven year old mind could not comprehend it at the time, but luckily, this was a dream. "I will!" The Master said. "Now, the bonds of night tie themselves to their holders as I stated before. But, something fantastic happens when a man and a woman come together, and both bear the bond. I umm...won't explain to you the details of some of that. But, I will explain the results. When those of the bond have offspring, the child is gifted incredible powers by fate itself. Of course, once they are branded by the bond, they still will be tested. But, the offspring will have greater chances of survival then their parents. Then those who come after them will become more and more powerful... But only one generation has ever survived. NOW. Your father and mother both had be bond. They came together, and had three children. Your sister, your brother and of course you. All three of you have the capability of having the powers bestowed to you by fate. These powers will reveal themselves under certain circumstances, at least that is what the old texts have written. Today, you have displayed evidence of your powers, while your siblings still must learn..."
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"My mom and dad....Are they still alive? I can hardly remember them...."
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"Hmm? Oh, no! They are very, VERY dead!" The old man exclaimed with a chuckle. "They just survived long enough to have you three! Which is a very impressive feat!"
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"I see, how old were they? And what were they like?"
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"Both of them were very...collected. Your mother tended to be less patient then your father however. They would have been 29 or so when both were killed. A contract gone wrong you see. It involved some unstable politics in the gellidius region. I won't go into it but both were confirmed to have been killed."