In order to recreate the techniques of the wind mages, to be agile and indistinguishable from the famous air nomads, I had to put in much more effort than I had originally thought. For several days, I tried to learn only the basics, my food ran out several times, and I had to distract myself to go to the city for supplies. The biggest problem was controlling the element — sand was much heavier.
Many of the techniques from the scrolls had to be applied at such speeds that my natural "rigidity" was a major distraction. Yes, I knew how to run and jump, but I constantly stopped before striking to push the heavy sand. I had to find a compromise. Control less sand, but at amazing speeds.A couple of times, as they say, I broke a wheel on a stick, but I adapted to completely different speeds. The sand was already helping me to run faster through the library's multi-kilometre corridors, and I even raced with Afka, as I called my fox assistant. The spirit body was not limited by the simplest laws of physics, and when I needed to show one of the departments quickly, she would rush to her destination through the wind and walls.
But I liked the philosophy of the air nomads even more. When I wanted to relax, I read the works of various gurus, whose measured reflections on the life of every living being resonated with me. First and foremost, because they were not blind to the conditions in which a person could find themselves. If you had to kill to survive or to maintain balance in the universe, they all came to the conclusion that there might be no option other than killing.
"The works of Guru Patika are particularly profound. A person can become many times better if they subdue themselves. He knew how to tame other people's anger with a single touch, and as he writes, if a magician achieves the same as him, it will make him the master of his own destiny," I said, bringing a cup of onion and banana soup made from ingredients from the nearest settlement to my mouth and glancing at Afka. "Would you like some?"
"R-r-r...
"You know, by the way, this is better than dried meat. It's so refreshing and invigorating.
Spirit*
Afka hit my hand and spilled the drink on my face. With a predatory hiss, the nit hid among the bookshelves, sticking out one snout and sticking out its tongue. If it weren't for Guru's teachings, I would probably have thrown the cup back at her... but after drying myself off and realising that without further instruction I would never understand the true meaning of the harmony Patik wrote about, I took out a more down-to-earth text.
In the section on wind magic, there was a book by an unknown Master. I would hardly have paid attention to the technique of an unknown person if it hadn't been the legendary air scooter. The technique, invented by Avatar Aang himself, allowed one to move across horizontal and vertical surfaces while maintaining high mobility.
Since even children in the canon possessed this technique, it didn't take me long to replicate its sand version. Although it was difficult to maintain balance at first, I had a dense sand vortex under my feet that could accelerate to amazing speeds.
"R-r-r-r! " growled Afka, whom I was trying to catch up with and pull by the tail. Usually, she managed to escape me on the wall, where my speed slowed down a bit, but now, quickly closing in, I grabbed the animal's bushy tail and landed on the bridge. "Af-Af! Ry-ya-ya!
"Are you trying my poor assistant?" a voice immediately rang out behind me. I loosened my grip, allowing the fox to slip away and quickly run off, and I looked at the menacingly towering Wang Shintong.
"Um..." With a wry smile, I quickly recalled the teachings of my guru, "I'm trying to enlighten the soul of this lively creature. If he spills my soup on me, he could ruin my books!"
The owl's head bent and stretched out menacingly. His eyes focused on my sand scooter, which I had to quickly turn off.
"I see you are learning the wisdom of a dead people and not forgetting to improve yourself. The techniques of the air nomads were mostly aimed at preserving life, which is why I like them more than the others.
"Me too! But to be honest, I'm planning to start studying other cultures soon, as they also had a big influence on the development of my ancestors.
"Man, if you follow the peaceful philosophy you've been reading so intently all this time, I can make some concessions," the owl's neck surrounded me, but I was surprised by something else. The offer seemed very strange. "I can allow the spirit of knowledge to accompany you, since you have become so close to it. But not just like that — it will collect the knowledge you gain or create.
"Oh...
"Choose:
1 - Accept the offer (You will only be able to deviate from the Guru's philosophy to a minimal extent. You will be accompanied by the spirit of knowledge)
2 - Deceive (You are used to choosing less honourable options and do not intend to bind yourself with oaths. You may distort the oath. You will be accompanied by the spirit of knowledge, the punishment for deception is unknown)
3 - Make a more serious agreement (You will commit to not killing anyone and not eating meat. The spirit of knowledge will begin to assist you in learning about your abilities)
4 - Refuse (You do not agree to take spiritual vows, but you do not wish to betray anyone. Wang Shin Tong will accept your honesty and will not deny you access to the library as long as you do not break its rules).
The phrase "spiritual vow" made it clear that he was offering me more than a simple agreement. Even if Anubis couldn't say what the consequences would be, I had to take the choice seriously... but the true philosophy of the air nomads remains and will always be limited. Still, it would be foolish to think that I would not break my oath, at least for the sake of loved ones, whom I hope I will have. To maintain peace, not to seek revenge... I am not crazy enough to completely renounce killing; some people simply do not deserve forgiveness, but to keep it to a minimum is the task of a decent person.
"You know... I'm glad that at least someone doesn't judge me by my appearance," I met the owl with a rough, if insincere, glance. He, and even Afka, didn't care about appearances, so it was unpleasant to lie to their faces. "Therefore, I will gladly accept your faithful companion as a friend.
"Fy-fy-fy," the creature laughed sharply. "Humans know how to twist words in ways that spirits cannot. I am watching you, human, very closely and attentively... But I entrust you with the spirit of knowledge.
"Thank you very much. But... do I really have to give up meat?
"No, I actually like to eat a couple of mice myself.
Blinking innocently, making me smile, the free-flying bird disappeared from view again. So now I had to look after the lively creature that was now sitting on the bookshelves and sticking its tongue out at me. Guru Patik, I want so much to learn how to calm creatures with a single touch, like you, great master.
My time here continued in another section, with the culture of the water people. It was divided into the Northern and Southern tribes, but the principle of their magic was the same — smooth and graceful movements reflecting fluidity and changeability.
The techniques of this discipline were quite simple. Water was about the same weight, requiring a more stable position and constant circular movements, as my father had taught me. Literally all the combat movements I knew could be repeated with water. I pored over the techniques until nightfall, even when the hourglass turned over, signalling the start of a new day, because it was so interesting.
There is only one significant difference between the schools of water and sand... the healing technique. Water could restore the flow of Qi in the human body, which accelerated regeneration through the body's own strength. I noticed that when I tried to repeat this technique exactly, but on sand, I gained the same ability to dry things out.
"I have a faint feeling that my father learned this technique from the water mages... - having learned the subtleties, I remembered how I dried out the bandit by holding his hand... most likely I sucked out all his Qi. I destroyed everything down to the last drop - that's why he lost control of his magic so quickly.
The more I learned about the details of Earth magic, with all its possible ramifications, the more powerful it became in my eyes. What if I studied Qi not through silent scrolls, but thanks to the teachers of the water people? How much deeper would I be able to understand Earth magic, and how much better would it ultimately prove to be than all the other so-called schools? My to-do list grew longer and longer.
At the end of my stay here, I had to study the culture of the Earth. If water magic seemed easy enough, then stone came to me without any problems at all. Back in the caves, I honed the basics, knowing that sooner or later they would come in handy. Combined with the physical strength and superhuman control that all sand mages boasted, I had no problems with the basic techniques.
And even so, the seemingly monolithic magic of the earth was capable of surprising me.
"Avatar Kioshi used a weapon to enhance her magic! After studying a scroll detailing the history of one of the Avatars, my eyebrows began to rise." Her fans allowed her to control earth and wind magic on a more subtle level. She invented the principle of energy accumulation, whereby a sweeping weapon can amplify a single burst of magic!
The style she invented was considered the best for earthbenders. But as far as I knew, it could only be learned on Kioshi Island.
"Afka, didn't anyone run there to copy such a useful technique? - Looking reproachfully at my fox, I received only a dry glance in response. She sent me away," - Slackers. That means we'll go there ourselves!
That cheered her up. After carefully studying the section on stones and minerals, I was finally ready to go. Yes, I didn't learn everything there was to know, because to do that I would have to stay here until the end of my days. I couldn't be so greedy, especially when I had the spirit of knowledge. His presence gave him one incredible advantage: he could get me any scroll from the library and bring it to me wherever I was.
The only thing was... I still didn't want the library to just disappear in an instant and the spirits to return to their world. What I mean is, the canon had to be changed.
"Afka, please show me the planetarium.
Smiling at the assistant, I quickly followed her through endless dark corridors. We climbed into the actual archives of the library until we found ourselves in one of the hidden sections. I wasn't even surprised by the giant hall, which made me look like an ant. I calmly approached the calendar in the centre of the room and remembered what I needed.
"So, I need the date of the solar eclipse," I said, placing my hands on the stone calendar, which reminded me of the Mayans, and began to turn it slowly. The mechanism in the centre moved the "sun" and "moon" on the dome. Finally, when I saw the moon cover the sun, I stopped and wrote down the exact date.
"What are you doing here?" a voice suddenly rang out behind me. I wasn't surprised anymore; I could feel her movements through the vibrations in the ground. After so many days, I just smiled quietly and turned to the owl.
"Oh, Shin Tong. Tell me, have you ever seen a solar eclipse? Not in a planetarium, but a real one," I said, approaching the bird and hugging her.
"No, I think it's pointless and foolish to leave the library. That's what my assistants are for.
"You know, you can't understand the world through books and projections of the real world alone. By seeing everything with your own eyes, rather than in pictures in books, you will gain more experience and knowledge. At the very least, you will be able to write down your own thoughts about what you have seen in books.
"When is the next eclipse? - the bird glanced at the calendar, shaking its head doubtfully." - I'll think about whether it's worth clearing my busy schedule for such nonsense.
"Well done," he said, waving his hand, putting his hands in his pockets, and heading for the exit. The owl looked closely at my outfit and the pumpkin with sand behind me.
"...Are you finally leaving?
"That's right. As I said, there's a lot in the world that you can't learn from books.
"Pffft. Don't forget to pass on your new knowledge. And if you see a solar eclipse... pass on the scroll with the thoughts that come to you at that moment.
"How greedy you are!
Smiling, I just raised my hand and gave him a thumbs up. It was time to leave the desert.
***
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