Rebirth (Legends of the Kilanor Book 2)

by Jared Stone

  “Huh?” asked Blake. His expression conveyed his complete and utter confusion.

  “I think he’s saying that the two of us are like yin and yang,” explained Lucian. He was once again thankful that he had serendipitously taken Schuntz’s religion class over the past semester, as he was now full of useful knowledge about traditions previously foreign to him.

  “What’s that? Those little black and white swirly circle things?” asked Blake, clearly never exposed to the same beneficial tidbits of information as Lucian.

  “Yeah, those,” Lucian said with a short chuckle. “In Daoism, yin and yang represent the opposite forces that make up the universe. Neither one is good or bad; they just represent different aspects of the world. Yang is associated with the sun, and it’s light, active, masculine, and dry. Yin is associated with the moon, and it’s dark, passive, feminine, and wet….”

  “Woah woah woah!” Blake exclaimed, holding out his free hand with the palm facing Lucian. “I’m clearly not yin, then! I’m not feminine! And I’m not wet!”

  “It’s just a metaphor, anyway,” Lucian countered with exasperation. He didn’t understand why Blake always felt the need to be so protective of his masculinity. “I’ll be the Yin if it means that much to you. Panhavant’s just saying that, although you and I are somewhat opposite, neither of us is bad or good. Just different.”

  The tiny sage sat beaming with a bright smile on his face as Lucian said this, rocking back and forth in delight. Lucian assumed that this indicated he had gotten it right, and he was quite proud of having come to that conclusion all by himself, without the help of Gus.

  “But why me?” Blake asked. “There must be some reason it happened to me, right?”

  Panhavant affirmed with several nods of his head. “Karma,” he stated assuredly.

  It was evident that that was not the answer Blake wanted. He furrowed his brow. “So this happened because of some big bad invisible force that came to punish me for something? Like something in a past life? Nah, I don’t believe in any of that stuff, man.”

  Panhavant seemed confused by the boy’s question. Picking up his hand which held the teacup, he turned it over so that the cup and all of its contents fell out upon the ground beneath. “Karma!” he exclaimed. Blake stared at him blankly.

  “I think,” interjected Lucian, “that something we talked about in class is what he’s getting at. Unlike what a lot of Americans think, karma just means “action,” and it also includes the corresponding reaction. So karma’s not some force out to punish you. It just means that it’s the resulting effect of some cause, like your actions.”

  Blake looked unhappy. “So, you’re saying it’s my fault? The result of my actions? … If I hadn’t gone to the graveyard to steal the necklace in the first place, it wouldn’t have happened?”

  It was at this point that Lucian realized that he had never before given any thought to how Blake had come into possession of Zagan’s coin necklace; but the fact that it was a result of theft seemed only like the most perfect representation of karmic results. It was at least a good reminder of how his own actions ultimately produced consequences, both beneficial and detrimental.

  Panhavant just sat quietly, staring at the boy. His silence was answer enough.

  “Hmm…,” said Blake thoughtfully, absentmindedly taking another sip of tea and scrunching up his nose in disgust.

  9 - Assistance

  Monday, December 1st

  The final day of Thanksgiving Break seemed like a bit of a blur to Lucian as he grappled with the daunting task of understanding and coping with Blake’s condition. The two boys had actually spent all of Sunday with Panhavant at Deer Park, but it clearly was not enough time to get very much accomplished in terms of Blake’s mastery over the hostile energy inside of him. After the tea and contemplative conversation, Lucian tried to show Blake how to meditate, but this went even poorer than Lucian’s own first attempts months before. Blake was apparently not very good at listening to instruction, and he was even worse at sitting still and relaxing for extended periods of time. Teaching Blake to harness his newfound abilities was clearly going to be even harder than Lucian originally feared, and they both left the park that night feeling a little downtrodden and defeated.

  The day had now arrived for Lucian to go back into his classes and attend the review sessions for final exams on the following week. Lucian suggested to Blake that he should return to Deer Park alone for more training, but he was met with a resounding “NO WAY!” It seemed that Blake wanted nothing to do with Panhavant in Lucian’s absence, and Lucian could sympathize with that…. He, too, wouldn’t have been caught dead going to the park alone at first without the clarifying presence of Gus. As such, Lucian’s packed schedule in preparation of final exams made it unlikely that they would return to Panhavant until the next weekend. He only hoped that any serious complications for Blake would be kept at bay that long.

  As he mulled over these thoughts, Lucian climbed the squeaky-clean stairs to the second floor of the building housing his World History classroom. The professor of this class had been one of those kind enough to offer review sessions for his students in preparation for the final, and Lucian was certain that it would benefit him to attend. He arrived at the correct door, turned the handle, and walked inside.

  “Lucian!” exclaimed the joyous, smiling girl next to Lucian’s usual seat. She was the only person in the room, and Lucian could see that she was overjoyed to see him again.

  Shoot! What was her name, again? thought Lucian frantically. Violet? No…. Lilac? No, that’s not even a name, stupid…. It’s…, It’s…, LILLY!

  “Hi, Lilly,” said Lucian with a smile as he came and sat down next to her. Her green blouse on this day perfectly matched her eyes, and her red hair and light skin made her look as if she was the very essence of an Irish lass. Lucian chuckled to himself as he pictured her at the end of a rainbow, fervently guarding a pot of gold.

  “How was your break, Lucian?” she asked him softly, her enthusiasm once again muffled by her timid exterior. Although Lucian was still not thrilled by the prospect of conversing with her, he was in a much better mood than he had been the first time they had met. He honestly even felt a little guilty for the short, dismissive way he had treated her. He made the commitment to himself that he would try harder to make her feel welcome and view her as his perfect partner in practicing patience.

  “It was really nice, thanks,” he said earnestly. This was, on the whole, a true statement, if he took into account the majority of the break and cast aside the latter part involving helping his roommate survive the demonic assault on his wellbeing. In retrospect, it was actually very kind of Lilly to ask, as he had not received the same type of genuine interest from either Willow or Blake upon his return. “How about yours?”

  “Oh, it was very pleasant,” Lilly responded, folding her hands one over the other delicately in her lap. “My grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins all came over to our house, and our family had a big Thanksgiving dinner. Then, we went to our church for the Thanksgiving service, and the pastor gave a very beautiful sermon on giving thanks. It was just lovely.”

  There she goes again with the religious stuff…, mumbled Lucian in his head. He wondered why she always felt the need to insert such things into her conversations, but he tried to remind himself that it was clearly an important and central part of her life. Patience, Lucian, patience, he repeated as a mantra to himself. It’s good that she has something in her life that she cares about so deeply.

  “Wow, that sounds really nice,” he stated with a conscious smile. He then reached out in front of him and flipped open his notebook to a blank page. Although it was still probably five minutes before the professor would show up, it gave him something to do while he was just waiting there. He always felt antsy and awkward sitting still with nothing to do, unsure of where to put his arms or where to look. After a moment of silence, he turned back toward Lilly.

  “So, ar
e you nervous for this final?” he asked her.

  She gently shook her head, sending the flowing red locks rippling down around her cheeks. “No, not very,” she responded shyly. “I’m a history major. I’ve studied a lot of this before.” Upon saying this, she blushed slightly and turned a bit away from Lucian, as if embarrassed by her own confidence.

  “Haha, I wish I were you right now then!” Lucian said jokingly. “There’s just so much information on this exam; I don’t know how to keep it all straight in my head!”

  Lilly paused thoughtfully. “Well…, if you want…,” she began hesitantly, “I could help you study. You know, if you need some help. Maybe we could get together sometime this week to review?”

  Lucian was touched by the offer, but also very torn. On the one hand, he couldn’t really see Lilly and him ever becoming very close friends, and he didn’t want to lead her on in such a way. They simply didn’t seem to have very much in common, and her religious leanings appeared to be in stark contrast to his own. But, on the other hand, perhaps she was sincerely just trying to be helpful; and Lucian felt that he needed all the help he could get, as he hadn’t exactly made this class a priority over the past few months.

  “Alright, yeah,” Lucian said, nodding. “I’d really appreciate the help. Thanks!”

  “You’re welcome,” Lilly said bashfully, turning away slightly in an attempt to hide her blushing. Lucian really didn’t have a good feel for why the girl was so embarrassed all the time, but he found it a bit confusing and off-putting. Most girls never acted this way around him. Willow certainly didn’t.

  “Good,” Lucian continued, “then maybe this week-end? I think if we got together on Sunday, the day before the exam, it’ll be the most helpful, because I’ll have some time to study everything on my own between now and then. After that, you can refresh it all for me the night before.”

  “Okay,” Lilly said with quiet excitement. “Sunday afternoon would be the best for me. I have church and a meeting with the new university chaplain that morning, but we can meet up right after that if you want!”

  “That sounds good to me!” Lucian agreed. She must really be lonely and in need of friends in this new school, he then thought to himself, proud that he had taken the high road and decided to chat with her after all.

  * * *

  Tuesday, December 2nd

  After a long night of studying – or at least trying to study while Blake watched some ridiculous action movie too loudly on his laptop – Lucian found himself up early and walking toward the old, run-down exterior of the Religion Department. Blake trudged along sleepily by his side, clearly not accustomed to being up so early, though it was already 8:00 AM; but this was still quite the feat for the average college student. Lucian just smugly considered it the karmic result of Blake choosing to stay up long past when he should have gone to sleep.

  Lucian had made the decision the night before to go talk to Schuntz about Blake’s particular situation. He didn’t know whether or not Schuntz would have any advice on such matters, but he had so few other places to turn that he thought he should at least give it a shot. Checking the professor’s online schedule, Lucian discovered that the final exam office hours had been set at 8:00 in the morning..., probably as a passive motivator to any slacking students to wake up early and do something productive with their lives. Thinking he might not catch the professor alone at any other point in his busy day, Lucian determined that they should stop by at that time, when few, if any, other students would be there. Willow had also been invited, but an early morning rendezvous with her least favorite professor and Blake, her new sworn enemy, by her side somehow hadn’t appealed to her. As such, Lucian and Blake traveled there alone.

  “Couldn’t we have done this over the phone, or that crystal, or whatever else you could use to talk to him?” Blake asked grumpily.

  “No, I wanna be there in person,” Lucian answered. “He might have better insight if you’re actually with us in his office.”

  “And you’re sure this was the only time he was available?” Blake complained.

  “Yes,” Lucian responded bluntly. He had very little sympathy for his roommate, who had no classes or final exams to take…, even if he was currently plagued by potentially hazardous demonic energy.

  Blake just let out a huff of disgruntled breath as the two of them mounted the crumbling concrete stairs and stepped up through the crooked green entrance. Creakily making their way back to Schuntz’s office, Lucian lightly rapped his knuckles against the solid wood of the door.

  “Enter!” called out Schuntz’s voice from within the office. Even in welcoming, the man came across as unduly harsh.

  Lucian cracked the door open enough to squeeze his upper body through and leaned inside. “Sir, I was hoping I could speak with you…,” he said, almost apologetically.

  Schuntz looked up from the stapled papers he had been reading and glanced at the boy. Lucian could once again hear the sound of classical music issuing from some unknown source and floating through the air, filling whatever space was left in the office not occupied by piles of books.

  “Mr. Aarden, perhaps you did not comprehend my gracious offer last time you were here,” Schuntz stated. “You will not be required to take the final examination, and, as such, I see no need for you to come to my office hours.”

  Lucian shook his head. “It’s not about that, sir,” he said. “I wanted to ask you for your advice on my roommate, Blake. He’s having some trouble after the… uh… demonic possession and all….”

  Schuntz laid down the paper in his hand. “And what seems to be the matter?” he asked.

  “Well, apparently, even though the demon is gone, some of its energy is still inside of him,” Lucian explained.

  Schuntz’s face dropped down into a troubled frown. “Yes, that could be serious indeed,” he commented sullenly. “Alright, where is he now?”

  Lucian slowly creaked open the door the rest of the way, revealing his roommate standing behind him. Blake displayed a forced smile and lifted his hand in a sort of pathetic half-wave.

  “How presumptuous…,” Schuntz mumbled as he stood up from his chair and walked around pillars of books to the center of the room. Lucian entered and Blake followed, closing the door again behind them.

  “Alright, come stand over here, boy,” the professor commanded with the air of a doctor examining a patient. Blake stepped forward, closer to the old gentleman. The expression on his face betrayed the fact that he was feeling nervous, though he most certainly would never have admitted it. Schuntz rubbed his hands together a few times before holding them up in front of Blake. They began to emit a soft red, pulsating glow.

  “Yes, there is certainly a remnant of the demonic energy still within you,” Schuntz stated assuredly as his hands swept through the air in front of Blake. “And I sense that it is working quite actively to subvert and destroy your own energy….”

  Blake seemed less stunned by the news at this point and more simply confused. “Really?” he asked the professor. “You can tell all of that with your glowy hands?”

  Schuntz’s face contorted into a scowl once again, and he lowered his arms as the red light faded away. “What is your family name, boy?” he asked.

  “Ummmm…,” Blake said, trying to decipher the man’s meaning. “You mean, like, my last name? It’s Valenti.”

  “Well, Mr. Valenti,” Schuntz began, once again putting on the airs of a superior, “I most certainly am able to assess your internal status with my ‘glowy hands,’ as you so eloquently put it. Do you know what a Demon Queller is, Mr. Valenti?”

  Blake shook his head cluelessly. Lucian did so in the background as well, though the question had not technically been addressed to him.

  “Yes, few in the West do,” Schuntz continued, as if this fact was truly lamentable. “A Demon Queller is a practitioner of East Asian techniques for hunting, trapping, and eliminating negative collections of energy manifested in the form of ghosts, demons,
and other malignant forces. While living in China, I was trained in this honorable discipline through the direct line of tutelage stretching all the way back to the venerable Zhong Kui, the most renowned and powerful of all Demon Quellers. So, yes, I know quite a bit regarding demonic energy.”

  Lucian was amazed. It seemed his professor was just full of secrets and surprises. “Panhavant told us there’s no way to get rid of it,” he interjected. “Is there anything you know of that could cure him?”

  Schuntz solemnly shook his head. “Unfortunately, the enlightened master is correct,” he answered in a tone that made Lucian question if he was addressing Panhavant sarcastically or not. “I have never seen such a case where an individual has fully purged his body of demonic energy. Once it has entered the body’s natural energy stream, it will integrate itself so completely that separating it is nearly impossible. Even if some have appeared cured, it has always been proven that the demonic forces are simply lying dormant, looking for an opportune moment to reemerge and overtake their host. There have been a few masters who have gone on to live full lives while remaining tainted in such a way, but the vast majority of subjects are simply slowly corrupted until they die. Or worse….”

  Blake’s face dropped at this, and he hung his head in despair. “Dammit…,” he whispered dejectedly.

  “Well, what was the secret for those masters who did manage to live with it?” asked Lucian, trying desperately to look for the bright side. “Do you know how they did it?”

  Schuntz turned toward his student. “I regrettably know very few details regarding that subject, Mr. Aarden,” he admitted. “They are honestly so few and far between that I have only encountered one such individual before in my life. However, from what I could discern, the master in question had fully accepted it as his fate and adapted himself to use it as a strength instead of a weakness. I believe that this outlook and disposition ultimately led to his success. By embracing his new status, he somehow found the key to existing in a sort of symbiotic relationship with the foreign energy.”