SKY OF PAPER: AN ASIAN STEAMPUNK FANTASY

CHAPTER 9

Spring had come, and in the days that followed, it seemed that winter was in such a rush to leave it had forgotten to take the snow with it. All around, budding flowers and bright, shimmering grass burst from the snow-patched ground. The trees too, seemed to be aspiring to become like the everbloom tree at the Wudan wall as their first leaves peaked out from their barren branches.

Though the world was changing, I had no time to stop and admire it. Training was to be where all my time was spent, and the people that watched over me, made sure that I did not forget my duties as a student. Kassashimei had made it a habit to wake me every morning. She was always in a rush, quick to grab me by the collar or sleeve and pull me down the hallway, like a dog that refused to follow its owner.

I had come to realize that she was also a strangely spiritual person. Everyday she seemed to be appeasing some kind of spirit by dressing differently or warding away bad luck by uttering some eerie chant. One day, her hair was adorned with ten pony tails and she wore bracelets that had feathery fox tails dangling from them. She explained in detail that she was giving tribute to the ten tailed wolf that protected the plains animals and tended to the forest trees.

She knew more about spirits, curses and blessings than any priest I’d ever known. Sometimes I even questioning whether or not the things she believed in were either truthful or something she’d completely made up.

On most days, Etsu attended my morning training. As for her reason for being there, she told me that she was making sure that everyone was properly carrying out their duties. I wondered, however, if her true reason was to watch over Kassashmei and I, and break up our constant, petty arguments.

As for Han and Kidou, not a single word was uttered to them about my morning training, even though the temptation to reveal my secret was hard to resist at times. I had accomplished so much, more than what was allowed for such a fledging student, that I felt a strong need to share with them, my incredible experiences. The surreal excitement of taking a sky boat into the air, of bonding with my very own shyo mah, these were moments worth boasting, and yet, none of my classmates would ever know of the extraordinary privileges that I had been honored with.

Masa and I hardly ever spoke to each other outside of class. I rarely saw him in my dorm, except at night, and by then, he was already asleep. He still continued with his pranks, stepping on my feet during Kaikua class or stealing my tamma and hiding it when I wasn’t looking. Han made sure to report his misdeeds, but most of the time, they were largely ignored. Instead of reprimanding him for misbehavior, they continued to scold him if his performance and studies were shown to be lacking. Even though he was idolized when he did things well, the teachers were quick to swat a stick or lay a firm hand if he slipped by even the smallest measure. With all the attention that Masa was receiving, I decided to forget about Master Lu’s request that I look out for him. After all, I had little reason to respect that horrible man or his selfish demands.

As the days continued, my abilities steadily improved. Even though I was nowhere near as skilled as Lai and Mai, I had learned to carry out the basics of their teachings almost flawlessly. Kassashimei and I were better attuned with each other, and as such, we learned to levitate and move rocks, pebbles, even tree trunks, all with noticeably improved precision and grace. Eventually, we found ourselves flying the sky boat move up and down and across the tree tops without so much as a single crash. Even with our successes, Lai and Mai emphasized that this was a slow, patient process, so we were forbidden to move the boat along any faster than a crawl.

After training, there was always the task that I’d dreaded most, serving tea to Master Lu. After learning of his daughter's death, I began to understand the reason behind his bitterness. I’d never known any other emotion from him other than contempt and dislike, especially for me. From the rumors I’d heard, he was once a stern, but understanding man, but from what I’d seen, he seemed to be a crazy, sometimes fanatical person, and each day, it got worse.