Brendan did not like him and Kristian knew it!
Brendan was to Kristian a typical ‘warrior’. He was built to fight, very tall and muscular, balding, roguish and very brash. He spoke with a deep bass East End London accent, and was altogether very intimidating.
Brendan’s disdain for Kristian stemmed from his own devotion to his calling. Like most of the hosts he regarded his blending with his Phoenix to be a great honour and the fact that Kristian had been so keen to give his up was an affront to Brendan’s entire belief system.
“Let’s get straight to business then,” Jonathon’s voice was loud and clear, that of a man in control. No one would have guessed that this was the same man who, not long ago, was throwing the entire contents of his desk onto the floor of his office in frustration. “You all know why you are here, it’s simple! The task has been laid out clearly for you in the briefing notes I’m about to circulate. The long and short of it is, I want to know what happened to our good friend and comrade, Oliver. I want answers and I expect those responsible to be brought to justice,” as Jonathon spoke he passed out brown folders strapped together with blue elastic.
All five began to skim through the notes about the mission that Oliver had been on before he died.
Three of them gasped.
Two of them, Kieran and Kristian, did not. Jonathon looked at them, watching their reactions, and wondered how much Kieran knew and how much he had told Kristian.
It did not matter now though, not at this precise moment, Jonathon thought.
“So, I take it I have to go to Berlin then?” asked Kristian.
Brendan, who was also glaring over notes, snapped his head around to face Kristian and sneered, “Yes, well, it does look like that doesn’t it? Think you can handle it?” he leaned back in his chair and placed his arms behind his head, not taking his eyes off Kristian once. Everyone but Kristian ignored Brendan’s blatant sarcasm.
“So all of us are now fully assigned to this case?” Sam was thinking aloud more than asking a question.
“Yes, that’s right Sam,” said Jonathon. “Well, Kieran will not be fully assigned; he will merely be a point of support and help for you, what with the blending ceremony next week, it’s not standard procedure to have a Trinity member acting as a member of a tactical unit.”
Kristian’s ears perked up. What was that? Kieran was going to be taking Wendy’s place as part of the Trinity. That can’t be possible! he exclaimed to himself.
“But he’s so young to be a Trinity member, and he’s…” Kristian stopped himself from talking any further in case he had offended Kieran.
Peter was quick to latch on to Kristian’s surprise. “Yes, it is a little shocking,” he said. “It was quite a surprise for all of us when we were informed.”
Andrew gave Peter a glare which clearly conveyed, ‘Keep your nose out of Trinity business once and for all’.
Kristian noticed the hurt look on Kieran’s face; he felt immensely remorseful. It was not that he thought Kieran wasn’t good enough to be one of the three members of the Trinity; it was just so unusual for someone so young. It hadn’t been his intention to offend his friend, he was merely thinking aloud; a knee-jerk reaction to the surprising news. “Well, if Andrew thinks you’re ready then I won’t say anymore. Besides you were always good at that paper clip trick!” Kristian said in an attempt to restore the friendship he suspected he had just ruined.
Kieran couldn’t believe his ears; he just wished that Kristian would quickly shut up.
“Tell me about it, that paper clip trick troubled me for years,” laughed Andrew and soon everyone except Peter was chuckling. As Andrew was speaking, he looked at Kieran and winked.
“Okay, moving on please,” Jonathon sounded more than a little agitated, “no more talk of the Trinity, back to the task at hand. You four will leave for Berlin in three days,” he pointed at Kristian, Sam, Jean and Rachel.
“Three days?” Kristian’s voice was more raised than he had intended. “Why three days when we could leave tomorrow? We are all good to go, aren’t we?” he glanced at the others, the three of them nodded their heads.
“Yes, they are, but your skills still need to be tested. We need to see how much you remember and how much of the sacred skills you have simply abandoned.” Brendan enjoyed saying this; it was evidenced by the smirk on his face.
“What Brendan means,” interrupted Yi-Mao, “is that you have been away for over two years and we just need to see how strong and fast you are and how finely tuned your Kar’sin is.”
“Have you continued with any of the meditation techniques you were taught? Can you still even hear Saranthea’s voice?” Brendan said again, clearly trying to provoke him to retaliate.
Kristian was about ready to hit back and tell Brendan where to go when Jonathon interrupted, “The discussion is over, Kristian. You will work with Andrew and Sam on the meditation, your fighting skills and Kar’sin will be tested by Yi-Mao this afternoon, and you will leave for Berlin in three days. Furthermore I would like a day-by-day plan of your investigation drawn up before you go.”
“That’s fine,” said Kristian. He was exasperated with Brendan for bringing to everyone’s attention that he had deserted the Order and was consequently not as connected to his own Phoenix as Brendan was to his. He knew Brendan was right, but he was still annoyed with his attitude and he felt humiliated.
“Right, everyone! Back here at six please so we can review tactics. I would like you all to complete sections one to three of the briefing notes by then as well,” as Jonathon spoke, he rose out of his chair.
As Jonathon, Peter, Andrew, Yi-Mao and Brendan left the room, the others quickly opened their notes again and began scanning sections one to three.
After a few moments of frantically reading, Yi-Mao suddenly re-entered the room and asked Kristian to step outside with him.
Silently and obediently, Kristian stood up and followed his old Master’s lead as he walked out of the room.
Standing outside the door, Yi-Mao looked around to check that nobody was listening, “So how are you feeling, young man?”
“I’m good, sir. I thought that coming back here would be more difficult than it has been. I guess I forgot about all the things I liked about the Order,” Kristian said, attempting not to sound daunted.
“Umm, yes,” replied Yi-Mao, “we do have a habit of doing that when we don’t like something; repressing all the good things about it. It’s your subconscious trying to help you move on and justifying the reasons why you left.”
Kristian stared at the floor, almost afraid to look the old man full in the face. “Yes, I guess you’re right.”
“So, are you planning to stay this time? Or is it just the one mission?” said Yi-Mao.
“Just the one I hope,” Kristian replied; he had decided it was pointless beating about the bush, especially with Yi-Mao. “This whole world-within-a-world thing was never really me. I like partying, I like studying, and I like being me too much.”
“You like not having responsibility?” Yi-Mao’s words were kindly said, not an attack, just a question. “You know you can still have all those things that make you who you are, Kristian. At least to a degree. Those people in there have had a tough time of it and we are all counting on you to stick with us through what is likely to be a harrowing investigation. You can always go back to your life once the task is done but, for now, you need to be the focused, determined young man we all hope you are.”
Those words stung Kristian; he sombrely replied, “I hope I am as well, for all our sakes.”
“You must focus all your energies, my son, and help bring in Oliver’s killer. Report all your progress to me, won’t you?”
“Yes, sir.” Kristian had nothing but respect for this great man; he was the fastest and most formidable Phoenix in the Order, as wise as he was strong. “I will not fail you, Master. I’m going to get him,” Kristian boldly spoke.
“Him?” Yi-Mao’s eyes widened with mock
surprise. “Already you know who the culprit is, do you? Do not be foolhardy, Kristian, no rushing in. Only patience will bring you the answers you seek. You are smart, level-headed; let those traits be your weapons. You are much more of a warrior than you know. It doesn’t just take strength and courage to be a hero, you know?” Yi-Mao turned to leave as if the conversation was over.
“Courage?” Kristian muttered to himself, “I could certainly do with some of that.”
Somehow Yi-Mao became aware of Kristian’s doubts, “You have more courage than many people I know. Not everyone is strong enough to be who they really want to be, and to stand up to Jonathon as well. You have proved you have all the courage you will ever need. Now you must channel that courage,” Yi-Mao spoke quietly and with conviction, but did not turn around.
“I guess I just wish I was a little bit more like everyone else around here,” said Kristian despondently.
“Maybe in time, Kristian, you will obtain that which you most desire. Have you ever asked yourself why Saranthea chose you as her host?” Yi-Mao still did not turn to face him.
“I’ve asked myself that many times, Master, and the answer still escapes me. I guess there wasn’t anyone better around that day, huh?” Kristian mocked.
This time, Kristian’s former Mentor did turn around as he spoke and he looked at him intently as if trying to imprint his words on Kristian’s memory.
“A Phoenix selects its host because that is the person whom it believes it will be able to do the most with. A Phoenix does not see, nor hear, nor think as we do. They are beings from a world we know little about, their wisdom and power is far greater than our own. Your Phoenix chose you and there is a reason for that, whether you want to believe it or not. Stop doubting her, she is far smarter than you, smarter than me. You need to have faith in her, and in yourself!” As he finished he walked determinedly away, leaving an astounded Kristian to reflect on what he had just heard.
My Phoenix chose me; she picked me! Kristian declared within himself. His train of thought continued: And she is not going to leave me no matter how much I want her to. Yi-Mao is right, I must focus all my energies on getting the most from Saranthea and completing the tasks that are expected of me. With that, he stood up straight and with a look of utter determination on his face, he turned and walked back into the conference room. In a clear and commanding voice, he said to his four companions, “Come on guys, we’ve a lot of work to do. Let’s do this!”
…
Kristian had now been training for over two hours, repeating duel after duel with Amar. Amar was a competent Phoenix host, and a keen believer in Brendan’s philosophy on the role of the Phoenix. Like Brendan, Amar had a strong contempt for Kristian and sparring with him now gave him the perfect opportunity to vent his aggression, and Kristian was feeling it!
Yi-Mao had always described Kristian’s hand-to-hand combat as inventive at best, and the last two years had not done much to change his style at all. Amar had won every single hand-to-hand combat that had taken place since Kristian had reluctantly agreed to revisit fight training. Kristian, however, protested that the sparring arena was a ‘controlled’ environment and nothing like the reality of the world outside the building. He liked to believe that in an attack, adrenaline would just take over and his sparring skills would be a great match for any opponent that came along.
The sword duels that followed on the other hand were a different matter altogether. Amar was barely able to stand his ground against Kristian who had always had a talent for the blades. Even during his time absent from the Order, Kristian was a keen fencer, even good enough to captain the university fencing team to the semi-finals last year, and his technique was impressive.
Calling an end to combat, Yi-Mao dismissed Amar and sent him to find Brendan and to prepare for the long journey to the Kar’sin monastery in Japan. Yi-Mao and Kristian watched Amar leave the sparring arena, a large open space with markings on the floor and an impressive array of weapons adorning the walls with the duelling ring in the centre. As soon as Amar had exited, Yi-Mao turned to face Kristian and looked relieved that it was just the two of them.
“I must say, your swordsmanship skills are very impressive. In fact, your use of the blade seems perfect. Your moves were almost seamless and effortless. The sword glided through the air with ease. Well done!” Yi-Mao paused for a second. “I know you haven’t summoned your sword since you have been away, but do you still think you can?”
Feeling a little smug with Yi-Mao’s initial comments, Kristian gave a modest shrug, “You sound too surprised! And I haven’t tried, I didn’t want to. I still think I could, do you want me to try now?”
“No, not now,” continued Yi-Mao, “we need to talk about your fighting techniques. Your hand-to-hand combat leaves a lot to be desired. You are undisciplined and unorthodox. You are far too defensive and when you do attack you leave much of your body exposed.”
This second comment did not provoke the same reaction in Kristian as the first! He wasn’t overly concerned. He knew his combat skills were not the best in the Order, but as he had thought before, if the time came to actually put them to use, he was sure he could wing it. His response again was to shrug his shoulders. This time though it was as if to say ‘so what?’
“Now that I have assessed your fighting skills, it’s time to evaluate your Kar’sin,” said Yi-Mao, sounding somewhat disappointed with Kristian’s response to the critique just given. This filled Kristian with dread. There would be no shrugging of the shoulders. He had not practised these skills at all since he had left. assuming that he would never need them again, and it wasn’t practical to practise them when you lived in the middle of a bustling city.
“Ah, yes, my Kar’sin” Kristian hesitated, “well, to be truthful I haven’t really had much opportunity to practise them, what with, you know, school and stuff.”
“School and stuff?” questioned Yi-Mao with a curious smirk.
“Yeah, my Uni life leaves very little time for me and what with living in London, in a shared flat, it’s kinda hard.” Kristian knew that these were lame excuses; the truth was, he really hadn’t been that bothered about his Kar’sin.
When he had left the Order he had not intended to ever return and he had not given a second thought to practising any of the skills he had learnt. In fact, he had buried them along with all the memories he had made whilst active in the Order.
Yi-Mao was scrutinising Kristian wondering just how bad this was going to be.
“Well, we shall just have to see, won’t we?” Yi-Mao said, “We shall begin with the basics, maybe the palm projection technique. I assume you won’t find that too hard?”
Kristian didn’t know what to say; he felt ashamed of himself for his lack of enthusiasm. He knew he was going to be in big trouble if he could not even achieve palm projection.
“With luck, concentration and commitment on your part,” Yi-Mao began to pace around Kristian before he continued, “once you have shown me this technique, we can take a look at your object projection and your non-palm projection, okay? However, I understand this may take some time. These techniques are always hard to master and too easy to forget, without constant practice. It’s almost like Peter doing ballet!” Yi-Mao had a twinkle in his eyes but was obviously quite worried.
Kristian smiled. Although Yi-Mao’s words were an underlying warning, his old master had a kind way about him, which made Kristian believe he was capable of anything with his guidance. He was right, though, he hadn’t practised at all, and even when he was in the Order, his techniques were lousy and uncoordinated.
“Well, Master, I shall endeavour to try and impress,” said Kristian in a rather mocking tone.
“Let us hope so. Now shall we begin? Basic palm projection, do you remember the technique? You need to concentrate all of your mind and focus inwards to your Phoenix, let her come through and imagine your body being engulfed with her light and energy. Focus this energy into your palm and project the light out
of it. I want you to put up a basic shield around yourself,” Yi-Mao said as he came to a halt behind Kristian.
Kristian stretched out his right arm. He was right-handed and it was more comfortable to project with this arm. Closing his eyes, he thought back to all his Kar’sin training. Reaching deep into his mind, he tried to pass beyond the barriers of thought and tap into his innermost energy: his Phoenix.
“Don’t try too hard, Kristian, let her come through naturally,” said Yi-Mao noticing the strain on the young man’s face.
Kristian took a deep, slow breath and let his thoughts fade away; he continued to breathe gently and deeply, and slowly but surely he closed his conscious mind. He could hear a low ringing in his ears and a buzz in his head, then a sort of calm engulfed his whole body and he felt his insides glowing with energy. He had done it! Saranthea had come through and was moulding her energy with his imagination. Automatically and without even thinking about it, he held open the palm of his right hand and imagined a barrier of light bursting from it. His hand tingled, the sensation was strange but comforting. Slowly opening his eyes, he was amazed and relieved to see a shield of shimmering jade green light in front of him, emanating from his right palm.
Yi-Mao could not help but be impressed. Kristian had put up an imposing shield and had shown more promise than he had originally thought Kristian capable of.
“Well done. Now, lower it slowly,” Yi-Mao commanded.
Without even moving an inch of his body, Kristian allowed Saranthea’s energy to lower the shield she had helped him create. The bright green light flowed backwards, into his palm. He opened his eyes again and let out a huge sigh and a smile. “Wow,” he said, “impressive, even if I do say so myself!”
“Don’t be too hasty,” Yi-Mao answered. He was impressed but it was only the beginning. Kristian’s arrogance was his downfall; Yi-Mao became aware of this two years ago and was not inclined to let Kristian indulge this weakness again.
The Phoenix Chronicles_Alone in the Light Page 9