Chapter 34: Go where the wind blows

Chapter 34: Go where the wind blows

“The pessimist complains about the wind, the optimist expects the wind to change, the realist adjusts the sails.”

William Arthur Ward

There is very little choice that I have in regards to where and how I live. I do not have any control over the matter. I can either rail and rage at where I am, hope that it will somehow get better or simply make the best of it.

Father had been visiting us on our very own Alcatraz every now and then but he had not rescued us from our somewhat arduous training, at least not yet.The initial posting of this chapter occurred via Ñøv€l-B!n.

“Mother said you might be hungry.” He said with a wan smile as he took in our somewhat hardened appearances handing us a loaf of bread, a chunk of cheese along with some stew. Our time on the island so far may have been good for gaining the skills Grandfather felt we needed and practicing them. But it had not aided my growth, particularly when compared to my own nightly ninja training regime. Sometimes we learn best at our own pace and what was the rush as long as I managed to maintain control of my magic.

Sure, now I could Lie and had basic Knife skills but we had yet to unlock any other significant developments other than skills levels here. Grandfather’s school of hard knocks seemed based primarily on running away, evading trouble, and then knifing it if it got too close. Maybe this was only the basic level of training for beginners but there was so much more I could do with my mind in the comfort of my own box at home.

I missed my mother and food had never tasted so great as we wolfed down the breakfast. Nothing ever tasted as good as home cooking and the small amount of stew we had to share between the two of us tasted of our mother's love for us.

We had got a lot better at foraging for shellfish, food along the shoreline even going as far as drying out what looked like seaweed to eat. But the best days were always days when he visited. Father had arrived just after we had awoken. Arriving so early we had yet to leave the house. He poked his head in but other than trying his hand at the locked doors and watching us eat. He soon took us back to his boat. My swimming had improved enough that he deemed it now acceptable to take me and Aleera out on the boat and I was his good luck charm.

“Where should I cast then Kai?”

Father’s boat skipped along the water, Aleera’s magic filling the sails when the wind lagged. It was a great family time together. She seemed happy to finally tell her father about everything she could do and proud to show off as well.

“Watch this.” She said pushing a burst of Mana into her spell. Giving the boat a burst of speed to push us over the top of a swell. Keen to demonstrate her own importance now that Father was in the circle of trust.

“Easy there Aleera. Try not to capsize us.” Father smiled to remove the sting of the restriction. Truly happy it seemed to have us all out on the lake as a family.

I hadn’t told them how I could tell where the fish were with a combination of Echolocation, Mana Sense, and my Super Senses. But father was happy to trust in my uncanny ability to pick out the best places to stop and cast the nets which when he listened to me often came up full and heavy.

“Cast here,” I said pointing to the port side of the boat. We were coming up on a shoal of decent-sized fish father would be keen to catch.

“Net overboard.” He shouted as he cast the net. Any cloud of concern over our incarceration on the island disappeared with the pleasure of sailing and the joy of not struggling to find the fish or catch them with my father’s help.

Apparently in order to support the story that mother was working hard on a complicated piece of tapestry she had actually started one. Father had been banished for the daytime at least from the house as well as us in order for her to finish it.

Father looked a little unsure when talking about mother. He still loved her and us but clearly had complicated feelings about the secret we had all been keeping in one way or another. But he was always happy to put aside his worries and enjoy the moment with us. He truly enjoyed sailing and his enjoyment was infectious. Flying over the waves was fantastic.

The best bit about sailing though was the experience gain. Fish have lives. Fish gained experience and when I was able to point out where they were for Father to catch. I seemed to gain part of that experience when he ended their lives. Far more even than the shellfish, we gathered along the shoreline.

1 ant = 1 experience

1 shellfish = 10 experience

1 fish = 100 experience

Perhaps it was due to how far up the food chain they were. Each haul of fish I was finding for him would pull in between 10 and 100 fish gaining me 1000 to 10,000 experience. I wasn’t sure if father knew that my contribution was being counted somehow by the system or not but it was quickly adding up.

While training might be leveling up my skills.

Sailing was going to be the thing that gave me enough experience to level up quickest so far.

This world truly did reward the death of others with more personal power.

It made me wonder how strong was my father.

Vitality: 112

Endurance: 24

Strength: 24

Dexterity: 26

Senses: 115

Mind: 114

Clarity: 45

Magic: 112

Free Points: 20

Skills:

Tier 1: Time sense (LV 26) Listening (LV 26) Meditation (LV 34) Swimming (LV 26)

Humming (Lv 22) Sneak (Lv 22) Whistling (Lv 22) Singing (Lv 22) and Drumming (Lv 22)

Running (Lv 15), Acting (18), English (Lv 15), Spanish (Lv 15), Japanese (Lv 15),

German (Lv 10), French (Lv 7) Dodge (Lv 10) Breath Control (Lv 7) Sight (Lv 15)

Scent (Lv 15) Detect (Lv 15) Taste (Lv 15) Bulosa (Lv 7) Draw (Lv 4) Climb (Lv 5) Calligraphy (Lv 5) Mathematics (Lv 5) Decoding (Lv 5) Lie (Lv 3) Knife Skills (Lv 3

Tier 2: Sense Mana (LV 34) Eavesdrop (LV 25) Memorisation (LV 22) Composition (Lv 22)

Recall (Lv22) Pain tolerance (Lv 12) Piano (Lv 20) Violin (Lv 20), Trombone (Lv 20),

Saxophone (Lv 20) Linguistics (Lv 16) Translation (Lv 16) Stealth (Lv 11) Quick reflexes (Lv 10)

Tier 3: Echolocation (LV 25) Expel Mana (Lv 31) Absorb Mana (Lv 31)

Mana Manipulation (Lv 15) Ignite (Lv 15) Freeze (Lv 6) Boil (Lv 10)

Tier 4: Mana Drain (Lv 20) Parallel Processing (Lv 15)

Tier 5: Mind fortress (Lv 17)

Skill experience: 21,100

Origin experience: 10,000

Combat experience: 25,100

Crafting experience: 0