Series: The Mountain: Book 1: The Awakening

Control

Liam sat pensively in a cross-legged position atop a relatively flat rock as he struggled to regulate the immense aura gathering within. His concentration was repeatedly disrupted by the events surrounding the awakening of his current power. After his overpowering display of his newfound, dark aura, Liam had pestered Shadow with many questions. Of all the answers he received, the one that disturbed him the most was in direct relation to the fine, black sand. Initially, he'd thought where he stood was a special plane Shadow created for his breakthrough, however, he soon learned that this was not the case. 

"Host, it is inherent that you concentrate wholeheartedly on your aura, that is, if you don't wish for a repeat of what happened."

"I'm sorry," he replied as he realized his lack of focus had caused Shadow's intervention, "I just can't help but feel responsible for it."

"As I said earlier, you aren't to blame for that matter. You're still adjusting to your aura so it's only natural if some issues arise. There was no way you could have known forcing your aura past your current limit would've resulted in such an occurrence!"

Liam sat in silence as he recalled how it all started. His unhindered curiosity paired with his careless actions within that special plane had caused unimaginable consequences outside. According to Shadow, the invisible barrier that impeded his aura's path, was actually a representation of his limit at that time. He only needed to shatter the barrier to gain access to aura, however, after breaking through, his aura rather than returning to him, went on a rampage attaining more energy as it expanded. Although it resulted in his impressive breakthrough, the energy required for such power had to come from somewhere. Without any other option, his aura had consumed every source of energy it came into contact with, reducing it to the fine, black sand he saw before him. Shadow referred to this as drained life essence, which if handled properly, could be refined into both weapons and armour for improved durability. 

However, these words flew past Liam's ears as his thoughts lingered on the damage he'd incurred. His seemingly harmless actions had completely drained all life energy around him. If not for the new limit his aura had encountered, perhaps even the entire forest could've been endangered. It was one thing to kill Dire Wolves for survival however, destroying life itself was a completely different story. What concerned him even more, was the feelings that came with such power. It was as if he'd become someone entirely different. 

It was after learning about the destruction he'd unknowingly caused, that he'd asked Shadow to help him find a way to ensure this would never happen again. After a few hours of guidance, it had ultimately been left up to Liam to get a handle on his own power. However, his straying thoughts greatly slowed what little progress he'd made so far. 

'What if this happens again?' he thought, 'Shadow said only the surrounding land was absorbed but what if an innocent person dies because of my carelessness. I don't wish to be like those animals that disregard human lives in search of power. Even worse, what if I accidentally harm Lily after finding her? No! I need to get a hold of this power otherwise there's no telling what could happen. What if I can't control it? Have I bitten off more than I can chew?'

"Silence your mind! This is your power, it is not in control nor will it ever be. There's no need to subdue what is already yours. Only the strength of your will can push you forward onto the correct path."

'Shadow's right,' Liam thought as Shadow's words sunk in, 'Now's not the time to be doubting myself. I gained this power through great effort and I refuse to let it control me! If not for me, then for Lily's sake!'

Strengthened by his renewed resolve, Liam attempted to calm his unsettled aura. After a bit of trial and error, he'd found that covering the ruffled areas with layers of aura worked well to suppress the violent energy. Lapsing into a trance, he repeated this process, continuously improving on this method until he felt that his energy flow had become manageable. 

Liam opened his eyes to the warm glow of sunlight casting itself directly onto his face. He breathed a sigh of relief as his surroundings were mostly unchanged compared to the earlier happenings. 

'Seems my persistence paid off this time as well,' he thought. 

His self praise was interrupted by a low rumble. Liam turned his head all round but could detect no signs of movement. The sound appeared once more, this time a bit louder than before. Looking downward, Liam realized that it was his own stomach that had been producing the noise. This new development caught him by surprise as it was the first time since his return that he'd shown signs of hunger. 

"Shadow, are you there?" he said aloud, climbing to his feet. 

"Mmmm."

"Didn't you say I wouldn't feel hunger as long as I absorbed void essence?" he asked confused by his sudden hunger.

"Considering that your meditation spanned the course of an entire month, the essence you've acquired since then has already been used."

"A month?" Liam said, as he paused mid-stretch, "it felt like hours at most?"

"It would appear that your state of enlightenment warped your sense of time. I assure you, a full month has passed since you began meditating."

"That's insane," he paused, flexing his fingers before continuing, "well, at least it paid off in the end."

"Although you've managed to suppress the raging aura, your solution is only temporary. Over time, your method will lose its effectiveness, until the hidden dangers resurface completely."

"Does that mean I'll awaken one day in another field of that drained life essence?" Liam said, quite alarmed by Shadow's words. 

"If you fail to comprehend your power in time then that scenario will be inevitable."

"Was all that effort for nothing?" he questioned burying his face in his hands.

"The effort put in by the Host wasn't all for naught. It bought you the time needed to fully understand your power."

"Where do I even begin?" he asked looking up as the gentle rays were obscured by light gray clouds rolling gently across the sky. 

"What better way to understand your capabilities than through combat! However, the entity within this forest has expressed great hostility towards you. If not for my concealing of your presence, your position would've long been discovered."

"No need to hide!" Liam said, aura covering his entire body.

Although you've developed quite a bit since your return, you're no match for them as you are now."

"So what now?" Liam queried, aura dissipating.

"Taking your current level into account as well as weighing the external dangers and that which lies within, it would seem that the time has come for you to leave the forest!"

"Leave the forest," he said wistfully. 

Somehow, Liam never thought he'd actually leave this place. Since he'd been back, it'd been one wild encounter to the next, all of which being near death experiences. After everything he'd been through, was he truly ready? Back then, he wouldn't have hesitated for an instant, however, the situation had changed greatly. Now he'd acquired power that put him on par, if not stronger than Sonol himself but was it truly enough? As these thoughts bombarded his mind, a memory of his sister appeared clearing his anxiety.

"Relax!" Liam shouted, scolding himself as he remembered his purpose, "let's just take this one step at a time, you've got this."

Confidence renewed, Liam steadied himself as he began his journey out of the forest.