The Whisper of the Nightingale

Chapter 1: The Prologue

The Dark Forest. A place that everybody feared. The trees in this forest were so tall and so dense that the forest floor had since long been cast into a stage of perpetual darkness. Many camp-fire stories have been told about this unfriendly place, and the numerous people that have entered, supposedly, never to return. Most people see these myths as just that, myths, but despite the world being in an age of technology, were every inch of the globe was meticulously studied, explorers had never quite been able to navigate through the entire Dark Forest. . . .

Deep in this otherwise silent place the quiet night was interrupted by the light sound of someone running. A young woman was rushing through the dense woods. Normally this person's running wouldn't make a sound, no matter how hard the young woman pushed herself to run, but today was different. If one were to look closely, one would notice that the sleek, black, leathery suit she was wearing was drenched in blood. This in itself was not unusual for her, but this time, most of the blood was hers.

On her back sat a small child whose long, silvery hair whipped wildly behind them as they made their way deeper and deeper into the forest. The child was a young teenager, at most, but had a very androgynous appearance making it hard to tell if it was a girl or a boy. The child's originally white clothes were now dyed red from tightly hugging the running woman.

"Just a bit further, Miss Night!" the child urged.

"Quiet!" hissed the woman; she was afraid that someone might pin-point their location through their voices.

Unfortunately, her fears were not without reason, because a couple hundred meters behind her, dozens of people in black cloaks were rushing to catch up to them. They were being hunted and the distance between the hunters and the prey was slowly shrinking.

The chase continued and before long the pursuers had all but caught up, only tens of meters remained. Just as 'Miss Night' was about to curse that the situation had become hopeless she noticed a clearing up ahead, and on the other side of that clearing was a very narrow passage between two mountain sides.

'This must be the Rift! If the kid can get through to the other side he'll be safe!' The sight made her lip twitch into a slight smile as she forced her legs to make a last spurt towards the Rift. One meter away she stopped and practically threw the child off her back and into the narrow passage.

"Run! Don't look back!" As the young 'Miss Night' shouted she turned around to face the oncoming assault of their pursuers. To herself she thought bitterly 'This is why I never took any protection missions - running away on your own is one thing, but standing ground. . . .'

The child only paused for a second before he too turned and, with tears running down his cheeks, dashed deeper into the Rift. Behind him the clearing had already been filled with nearly thirty angry looking men in black cloaks who all aimed their firearms at 'Miss Night', his savior.

For a moment the silence returned once more to the forest. The pursuers suddenly seemed hesitant to continue, as if their numbers and numerous firearms no longer would be enough to take care of the woman in front of them. After what seemed like ages, an older gentleman stepped out from the crowd.

"Raven Night! By the order of the Union I demand that you let us pass!"

The man's shouts echoed against the mounting walls but Raven's only reply was to, with a flip of her wrists, activate the two sword-units she was carrying along her arms and readying her stance for battle.

"You have already killed nearly a hundred of your comrades! If that child doesn't die, being the Night Songstress won't be enough to spare your life!"

Raven Night glared at the dark group in front of her. Not long ago she had considered herself one of them and she couldn't help but think back on the nearly 25 years she had lived as a faithful servant of the Assassin Union. She had no memories of her parents and by now she barely remembered the horrible orphanage she spent her first three years in. Her first strong memory was from the day a Union member had come to her orphanage and picked four toddlers, seemingly at random, and Raven had been one of them.

The Union member had taken her and her fellow orphans to a run-down warehouse where four people were chained to the floor. The Union member had then given them guns and ordered them to kill a captive each. If they did as they were told they would be granted a place to call home and a purpose with their lives, if they did not they would be killed themselves. Normal kids might not understand the meaning of death at the age of three but these orphans had already lived through enough to know and fear death. The four kids had only glances at each other before they fired their guns.

As a result they had all been taken to the Union to begin their training as assassins. She had been given the name Raven Night; 'Raven' had been the name of chained captive she had shot and 'Night' was her unit. Any other names she had were to be forgotten, and they were.

The training had been grueling. To call it torture would be more accurate, and at times not even that would suffice to describe what they had to experience, but the Union knew what they were doing and the kids quickly became loyal beyond belief. Raven Night had excelled in training and had extraordinary perception. She quickly shot through the ranks and by the age of 18 she was already considered too be the best assassin alive.

She was given the nickname Night Songstress and her 'performance' became feared all over the world. She would execute her missions faster and cleaner than anybody else and by the of 25, the body count left in her wake had reached the equivalent of a medium-sized city, and this not counting the time she was ordered to actually erase an entire city - since it had been done with explosives, rather than by her own hands, she didn't feel like it counted. . . .

Most likely she would have continued to be a loyal servant of the Assassin Union until killed in action, but her latest mission had changed that. She had been sent to a secluded mountain village with orders kill a young child living with the town elders. This was a fairly common assignment; some hotshot had most likely fathered an illegitimate child and now another heir wanted to get rid of the competition. Of course this was all speculation; reasons behind the missions were never stated and Raven never asked.

It was supposed to be a routine hit, but the moment she had laid eyes on her target she had felt an inexpiable urge to protect him. She really couldn't say why. It was not love or pity or any other odd emotional reason - such nonsense had since long been trained away - but there had been a sort of eerie nobleness over the child that had struck at her very soul. It was a presence she hadn't experienced before and it made her question every order she had ever followed. In that instant she had gained the insight to the difference between following orders because you wanted to and simply following out of habit or fear. She hadn't hesitated for a second. Within minutes she had grabbed the kid and started running.

Naturally the Union had learned of her disregard for orders and had labeled her a traitor. Now, half a year later the Union had finally caught up. "Humph! Union puppets, I am done killing for others. Done killing for reasons not my own." As she spoke, the initial disdain on her face was replaced with an eerie sort of calm. "It may be the last thing I do, but I will protect that kid. Come!" At the last word an overwhelming killing intent filled the clearing.

After only a brief millisecond of hesitation the man shouted his order "Engage!"

At once every dark cloaked assassin fired their guns as half of them rushed forward in a frenzy. They knew very well that simple guns wouldn't do the trick against the legendary Night Songstress. Being the queen of all assassins, perhaps even the greatest assassin the world had ever seen, guns had stopped being fatal for her a long time ago. But they would still be a distraction that could slow her down.

Despite the blood flowing from the heavy wounds she had already obtained, Raven Night moved like a light feather with her two swords flying around her in streaks of light. A faint whistle rang out every time she, with perceived ease, blocked an incoming bullet. But as the cloaked assassins drew closer she was forced to split her attention between those fighting in close combat and those who momentarily jumped away only to fire off their guns again. She also had to make sure no one darted into the Rift behind her to pursue the fleeing child.

What followed was a fierce battle where the thirty cloaked assassins took turns slashing and shooting at the lone Raven guarding the Rift. No commands were shouted among the attackers, no cries of pain were heard. Nobody that witnessed the fight would doubt for a second that everyone present were professionals at killing. Every so often an attacker would fall to the ground by Raven's swords and the group was shrinking in size. But her defenses were becoming less and less perfect. It was only a matter of time before a fatal wound would be inflicted.

As the fourteenth attacker fell dead to the ground the air about the cloaked men changed and their attacks intensified. They no longer switched between shooting and engaging in close-combat, but rather combined the two and disregarded the risks of friendly fire.

Raven grunted and stretched out her two swords in opposite directions. The sharp swords effortlessly pierced through two assassins that had drawn too close to Rift too recklessly.

At this point four more assassins rushed in and used all their strength to keep Raven's swords lodged in her last kills and block her line of sight. Not hesitating for a second the remaining cloaked men fired of their firearms straight through their own comrades. Over a hundred shots were fired before the bullet riddled assassins sank to the ground.

Surrounded by corpses Raven sank to her knees, her eyes glazed over as she stared of into the distance, not focusing on anything in particular. 'I . . . I guess this is my limit. . . ,' she thought as her vision became blurry, darkness tugging at the corners. 'Over 25 years of bringing death . . . hehe . . . with today's kills I guess I've surpassed the half-a-million-hits record. . . . Ironic. . . .'

As last strength left her, Raven Night fell to ground with her head facing the dark depth of the Rift. The remaining ten assassins only paused for a second to witness the legendary Night Songstress' last breaths before they started to flood into the Rift. A final thought made it into Raven's mind before the darkness claimed her.

'I hope the kid made it. . . . At least then I've done something good in this life.'

Chapter 2: Life Begins Anew

It was an unusually warm autumn day in the Nightingale Mountains. The forests covering the mountain range looked as if they were on fire; the sunlight hit the slowly moving leaves whose hues stretched from bright golden yellows to racy blood reds. Sometimes the light breeze would loosen a couple of leaves that took to the sky like embers.

Suddenly, a high pitched wail yanked Raven out of the unconscious state she had sunken into. Disoriented, she tried to open her eyes so she could find the source of the screaming. Her eyes refused her command at first, but after some struggling a blurry world of light filled her eyes, and Raven realized to her surprise that she herself was the perpetrator.

'What is going on?'

She tried to stop screaming but her body responded sluggishly.

"There, there. Everything is alright." A gentle soft voice cooed in her ear.

Blinking, Raven forced herself to calm down, slowly gaining control over her body and voice. The wails came to an end and the blurry world became clearer and clearer. Looking at her surroundings and her own tiny hands Raven could only come to one conclusion: she had been reborn, and if the architecture of the room was anything to go by, it was not in a place remotely close to the where - and perhaps even when - she came from!

She was currently lying in the arms of a young woman that looked down on her with tender, loving eyes. A shudder ran through the small body of the former Raven Night - never had she been looked at with eyes like those. . . . The woman was obviously very tired and her long light violet hair clung tightly to her face, but despite this she had a slight warm glow about her. To Raven the woman seemed like a star lighting up a dark night sky.

Without looking away from her newborn baby, the lady spoke: "I'iwi, let Lord Maleo know that he has sired a lovely little daughter."

'What language is this? I can understand what they are saying, but I don't recognize it at all. . . .'

"Yes, Lady Besra." Light steps scurried out of the room.

"Hello, little one." With a pearly white hand, the woman lightly poked at Raven's bead-sized nose. "Welcome to Trinity. I am your mother, Besra." A bright smile spread across her face, and Raven couldn't help but stretch out a fumbling hand towards the woman.

"maoa . . . ," a small sound rolled out of Raven's mouth, followed by a baffled look on her infant face. 'Ah, I can't speak yet - my vocal cords haven't develop completely, I guess.' The baffled look was quickly replaced by that of serendipity; 'this mother of mine seems very kind. . . .' For Raven, the love she felt from this 'Lady Besra' was something she had never experienced before and she already cherished it deeply.

Just as Raven's tiny hand was about to reach her mother's cheek, she could her the door opening and, in the same instant, a huge figure loomed over the bed in which Lady Besra and little Raven were resting. Raven froze and stared at the figure. It was a powerfully built man, at most thirty years old, whose black hair was arranged in a thick braid swaying behind him. He wore fine silken garments in different shades of green, intricate copper patterns were woven over his chest and arms.

"Maleo! Don't shadow walk in front of the child, you will scare her!" reprimanded Besra.

"Haha, how could a child of mine possibly be scared so easily!" bellowed the man named Maleo, but noticing the glare Besra gave him he immediately quieted down, a guilty look on his face.

But Raven hadn't been scared, she had been dumbfounded. How could a man possibly move so quickly? Sure, she had been focused on her mother and no doubt her senses as a baby were not what they had been as an adult, but the man had appeared out of nowhere. . . .

However, before Raven could spend any more time contemplating what she had just witnessed, the man bent down over the bed and scooped her up. His strong arms were surprisingly careful as they gently held Raven. She looked up into the man's face, and she could see the same love and happiness in his eyes that her mother had shown her, only this time there was an overbearing air of protectiveness present. Raven couldn't help but feel that this man, her father, would move the world to keep her safe. This too was a feeling foreign to Raven. 'It would seem I have been blessed with two loving parents this time around. . . .'

Maleo looked pensively at the newborn daughter in his arms for a while. The little infant just looked back at him, eyes filled with curiosity. He couldn't shake the feeling that this little one was trying to learn everything about him just by staring at him. "Besra, this child of ours looks at me like an all-seeing raven. . . ." Maleo was silent for a while. "Yes, Raven. It will be a fitting name for her."

"Raven Nightingale." Her mother tried the name and nodded approvingly.

Raven was quietly shocked. How come her father had given her the same name that she had acquired in her past life? The coincidence was just too enormous! Last time she had only been named Raven due to her first kill, now she got the same name simply because she stared at her father?

The family name was also cause for amazement. The infamous 'Night Songstress' had been born into a family named after the ultimate songstress of the night; the nightingale songbird.

'This must be what is called fate. . . .' Raven's initial shock quickly subsided, what point was there in being surprised at the mysteries of fate?

"Raven Nightingale? Very well, this shall be the second me. Here I will live a life of my choosing with people that genuinely care for me." With this thought Raven Night, a.k.a. the Night Songstress, finally embraced her new self. She was Raven Nightingale, daughter of Maleo and Besra Nightingale, and she was loved.

Maleo kept looking at his new born daughter in his arms. Her tiny mouth had curved into a small smile as he had given her a name, and her big green eyes were quietly looking up at him. Once again he felt as if this child hid unusual intelligence underneath its infant appearance, but as he had just become her father all he felt at this was limitless pride.

"She's got my eyes this little one." He said with a chuckle. "Only fair considering the first one got yours."

He turned to his wife on the bed and lowered Raven back into her arms. As he did so Raven took the opportunity to study the room she was in. It was a fairly large bedchamber, complete with a large double bed, a few meticulously carved wooden cabinets and a gorgeous little desk that stood in front of one of the larger windows, looking out at what seemed to be endless skies. The craftsmanship on the wooden furniture was simply amazing; flowers and leaves tangled their way up the sides and legs of the cabinets and the desk. Within the lush greenery small birds where perched and they looked almost alive.

The tall walls were all made of a reddish stone that had been polished blank and as the sunlight lit up the far-side wall, it seemed as if hundreds of tiny specks of crystal had been embedded in the rock. The multiple tall windows were flanked by thick white curtains that ran from the ceiling to the floor. Raven couldn't help but assume that she had been born into a very wealthy family.

As she looked towards the big wooden door her father had entered from, she noticed a small boy peeping in from outside. He was perhaps five or six years old and looked like a miniature version of her father; he wore the same green robes, but without the copper patterns covering his chest and arms, his hair was pitch black and small braid could be seen hanging over his shoulder.

With Raven back in her mother's arms Maleo faced the boy in the doorway. "Son, come over here!"

"Yes father!" The little boy hurried into the room, stopping at the foot of the bed.

Maleo placed a large hand on his son's shoulder and led him to a place next to the bed with Besra and Raven.

"Look son, this is your baby sister Raven!"

As Maleo spoke, Besra tilted the little Raven in her arms to give her son a better look. Curiosity filled his eyes as he stretched to look at his sister.

"So cute!" he exclaimed.

"Next year you will start your training to become a spiritualist. You have to work hard so you can become strong enough to protect her!" The large hand patted his son's shoulder firmly.

They boy's hazel brown eyes glowed with confidence and resolution. "Yes, father!" Clearly he took his new mission very seriously. He placed his hand his chest, as if copying a military salute, and looked straight in front of him. "I, Haotzin Nightingale, will protect my little sister with my life!"

Besra chuckled. "Very good, my child." Her gentle hand reached out to ruffle the hair on Haotzin's head. "You will have to work hard." Startled by his mother's movements, the young Hoatzin became conflicted about whether he should hold his grand stance or avoid his mother's embarrassing touch. In the end he managed to do neither.

"Mother!" he complained, but Besra just smiled.

Raven on the other hand looked at her 'older' brother with newfound love. This little boy seemed so sincere. She could tell that he really would work hard for her sake. No doubt he was in a slightly rebellious age where he wanted to prove to everyone around that he was a man rather than a boy. Hoatzin had a long way to go, but effort does count and the previously cold assassin heart couldn't help but melt a little bit more. 'What a family I have gained!'

Before Raven could reflect any more on her new family, a wave of fatigue swept through her body and she failed to stifle a yawn. She was completely spent, and had to work hard in order to keep her eyes from instantly closing. Of course, mother Besra noticed her daughter's struggles.

"Okay now. It's time to let us get some rest."

"Ah! Yes. Come son, you mother and sister have had a long day." Maleo kissed his wife on the forehead and led their son out the door. "I'll see you in a while," he called back softly with a smile on his face as he too disappeared out the door.

Besra sighed and sank further into the bed, carefully placing her newborn infant next to her, using her own body heat to keep it warm.

"There my darling, my little Raven, time to sleep." As she spoke the faint glow around her seemed to expand and envelope the child in her arms. A warm, fuzzy feeling spread through Raven's tiny body and, try as she might to stay awake, within a heartbeat she had fallen into a deep sleep.

---------

Over the next couple of days various people came to congratulate the newest addition to the Nightingale family, or 'Nightingale clan' as they called it. Most of the visitors seemed to be either close friends or not-too-distant family members. Raven quickly learned that her father was the ruler of an area called Nightingale Prefecture and that his servants had great respect for him. This information came from the servants themselves who became very loose-lipped as soon as they figured none but the baby could overhear them.

The same servants were on the other hand not very fond of the older sister of Raven's father, Lady Anhinga, who had come to visit quite quickly after Raven's birth. Word was that she never treated her servants well and Raven couldn't help but agree with their negative opinions. Aunt Anhinga had practically stormed into the dining hall where Raven's family had been seated for dinner the day after her birth. Raven, who had been sleeping in her mother's arms, had woken with a start.

"I heard that my dear brother has sired his second child! My congratulations!" The unknown woman with grayish hair and a velvet dark blue gown smiled widely as she rushed over to Lady Besra's side. "Let aunt Anhinga see this little bundle of joy!" The woman had almost already yanked Raven from her mother as she spoke.

Although aunt Anhinga had been all smiles and congratulations in front of Raven's parents, she couldn't help but notice a flash of contempt on her aunt's face when she inspected the newest addition to the family that she held in her arms. Raven had seen that look all too many times in her previous life. Her aunt had considered her an enemy!

Raven had listened intently to the servants gossiping about her aunt after that and if the servants' guesses were correct, aunt Anhinga wasn't very pleased with the low influence her husband held in the prefecture. Naturally an additional heir to the current prefecture lord wouldn't improve the situation. It was a fairly common situation in a powerful family so Raven didn't think much about it.

Raven was of course very curious about her new world but her information source was limited to whatever the people around her discussed so insights came slowly.

'Sigh, I wish I could move around a bit more. . . .'

As a newly born infant, Raven's muscle strength and control was very limited. From what she knew of babies in her old world it would normally take about a year before an infant would be able to walk, but patience had never been one of her strong sides. So, to speed up the process, Raven spent every moment she was alone trying to gain more control over her body and work up her strength bit by bit. It was extremely tiring work and as a result she slept quite a lot.

But when others were around Raven spent most of her time either eating or quietly observing her surroundings. To her relief her mother didn't breast feed her, instead a servant would give her a bottle filled with a delicious sweet liquid that seemed to strengthen her considerably.

Raven's name was one of the much debated topics so she quickly learnt the reason behind it; here, in this new world, ravens were considered a symbol unparalleled wisdom and insight. When Raven kept quietly observing the new world around her, the servants would all agree that the name was well picked. Since Raven's soul had already lived through 25 years of ruthless experiences, of course her eyes would reflect more wisdom than those of a regular infant.

Because of her quiet nature Raven was quickly considered to be a very well behaved child who rarely cried or made any fuss. Sometimes though, the jubilant giggles of an infant echoed through the many halls of the Nightingale palace. To the servants, this indicated that young master Haotzin had been given time off from his schooling and had rushed to entertain his little sister, something he did very well.

"Hear ye! Hear ye!" Hoatzin would yell and strike an impressive pose in front of his sister. "This is the tale of Weebill the Great!"

Clad in fake armor with a large cape fluttering about him, Hoatzin would reenact the stories his father had told him of great battles where even greater heroes and magical beasts fought to the death. Raven would always start bubbling with laughter as her older brother, with a hideous grimace on his face, 'died' for the first time, usually slain by some vicious beast, only to rise again as a vengeful hero who would save the day.

A couple of months passed like this and as autumn turned into winter, Raven was finally strong enough to crawl around a bit. However, due to fairly strict supervision she could never get very far and whenever she was alone she was left in her cradle, whose high bars made escape impossible. She once got hold of a book but to her dismay the scripture was entirely different from her own alphabet so she had to give up on reading for now. Despite all this Raven had still managed to learn quite a lot about her new world.

It was currently the year of 4990 of the so called Trinity era. This she knew because the servants were preparing for the grand celebration - to mark the beginning of a new year - that would take place in a few weeks. It seemed as if this world also operated on a 12 month calendar. She herself had been born on the 13th day of the 10th month - a very ominous date in her old world but people here didn't seem to care.

At another time she had overheard officials discussing trade with her father which told her that the Nightingale Prefecture her father ruled over was one of three prefectures in the northerly Sky Kingdom. Besides the Sky Kingdom, there seemed to be two more countries on the continent, Earth Kingdom and Sea Kingdom. The reason why her country was called the Sky Kingdom was very apparent as soon as you looked out a window; the entire Sky Kingdom consisted of massive mountain ranges that seemed to stretch endlessly into the sky. The view from Nightingale Palace - that was located high up in the Nightingale Prefecture's mountain range - was quite breathtaking. Most likely the other kingdoms had equivalent reasons behind their names.

Apart from these insights, she had also heard various tidbits about the state of the prefecture, loads of gossip about who was courting whom, and even managed to snap up information on various hidden passages and places the servants had found during their rounds - she couldn't wait to explore these once her legs got strong enough to carry her.

But there were also some discussions she overheard that she didn't quite understand.

Servants would talk about magical beasts that roamed the mountains and forests around the City. They would talk in grave voices with serious faces, but the stories would be nearly as extreme as her older brother's reenactments, indicating that there actually was some truth behind them. They also expressed much relief that Lord Nightingale hired so many 'spiritualists' to keep these beasts away from the various cities spread throughout the mountain range.

Raven had no idea what these so called spiritualists were, but if they could fight of the magical beasts in brother Hoatzin's stories they must be quite amazing. After all, those beast were capable of everything from spitting fireballs to freezing time itself. She guessed the stories were a bit exaggerated, but still!

Raven tried her best to find out more about this, but since her speech still was limited, there wasn't much she could do.

---------

The new year's celebration arrived. That day the otherwise dark city around the Nightingale Palace lit up like a sea of stars. On a balcony facing the city, Lady Besra stood dressed in a fabulous white fur coat. In her arms was her nearly three months old daughter, wrapped in a warm bundle. Besra lifted Raven so she could see out over the city below.

"Look my darling. Today is the Day of Light! On this darkest of days we honor the past year and welcome the year to come by burning away the darkness. Thus we purify not only the night but also our hearts."

Raven stared with wonder in her eyes at the city below - it was truly a sight for the soul.

"My lady Besra." A solemn voice called out behind them.

It was Besra's head maid I'iwi, who had been with her on the day Raven was born. I'iwi's hazel brown hair was in the same tight knot on her head that I'iwi always wore. Her gown was dark red and on her chest she bore the emblem of a high level servant, indicating for everyone that she served the head family directly. I'iwi continued, "Lord Maleo and young master Hoatzin have returned from the celebrations in the city. They are headed for Spirit Hall."

'Spirit Hall?' Raven's eyes lit up. She had never heard of it before.

"Thank you, I'iwi. I will go there at once." Besra turned and left the balcony.

"Shall I take young mistress Raven?"

"Yes." Besra started to hand over Raven to the servant, but as she did, the normally complacent little girl started to wail desperately.

'This is the first lead in weeks; no way I'm letting mother go without me!' Raven refused to give in to I'iwi's cooing.

Besra stared at her daughter. This was the first time she had protested so vehemently when being left behind. Besra only hesitated for a moment before collecting her daughter once again in her arms. "Oh well, I might as well bring her. It will make little difference."

With her daughter in her arms Besra made her way deeper into the palace than Raven had ever been before. Raven curiously observed the hallways they were passing through, subconsciously expanding her inner map of the palace - old habits die hard and some were worth keeping. Soon they arrived at a winding staircase.

"I'iwi, you may wait here."

With a nod to her servant, Besra started ascending the stairs.

Chapter 3: Spirit Essence

Lady Besra, with the infant Raven in her arms, reached the top of the stairs and entered a dimly lit chamber. The chamber had nine walls made of a semi-translucent stone that allowed the starlight outside to slightly shine through. In the center of the room sat father and son on either side of a large symbol that glistened on the floor.

Maleo lifted his head and looked quizzically at the Raven.

"She protested when I tried to leave her with I'iwi. Don't worry she is a quiet child, she won't disturb her brother. Right little Raven?"

The infant blinked, an innocent smile on her face.

"Very well. She is too young to be affected anyway," laughed Maleo. "Take your seat."

Without hesitation, Besra elegantly sank to the floor next to the glistening symbol. As Raven came closer she noticed that symbol consisted of three overlapped and interlocked triangles that created a complex star-like pattern. Each triangle-side had been made by different colored stones inserted into the floor. The segments were made of what looked like white jade, red jasper, orange amber, yellow serpentine, green jade, light blue amazonite, indigo lapis lazuli, violet charoite, and deep, black onyx. Raven's thoughts immediately went to the rainbows of her old world, that embodied every aspect of light.

Once Besra, with Raven, had taken her place on the floor, Maleo turned his attention back to his very nervous son. Hoatzin tried is best to hide this nervousness, but his eyes darted from the symbol on the floor to his two parents, out through the translucent walls and then back again to the floor. His hands were tightly clenched in his lap.

"Hoatzin." Maleo spoke with a steady and serious voice. "Son, this year you will turn six years old. With two spiritualist parents this means that your soul should be crystallized and strong enough to start walking the path of spirit cultivation."

By now not only Hoatzin looked on his father with deep interest; Raven also stared at her father expectantly. 'Finally some insight to this spirit-business!'

"As you know, leading Spiritualists throughout the ages have accomplished astonishing deeds. They are capable of defeating horrendous magical beasts and single-handedly defeating great armies. Fights between true masters can shake the entire world. But how can they do all this?" He gave Hoatzin a look, encouraging him to continue the explanation.

"By cultivating spirit essence!" answered Hoatzin eagerly.

"Indeed. But how?"

"Ah! By . . ." Hoatzin faltered.

Maleo hid a smile. "It is done by establishing spirit connections between your soul and the spirit energies that flow throughout the very fabric of the world" He explained. "Once a connection has been made, you can start cultivating your own spirit core. With your spirit core established you can use collected spirit essence to strengthen yourself, both passively and actively during battles." He studied his son for a moment then asked. "So, what are the different levels of cultivation spiritualists are separated into?"

This time Hoatzin didn't hesitate. "There are three levels of spiritualists. Spirit Novice, Spirit Adept and Spirit Champion."

"Right. And beyond that are the true masters, Spirit Masters. Each level is divided into low, mid and high. As you advance the differences in these levels grow larger, with the biggest leaps between title changes. It might not be entirely impossible for a low level Spirit Novice to defeat a high level Novice, but a low level Adept will wipe out both without any problems. Then again a high level Champion will always crush a low level Champion despite them both being 'champions'. So ber that in mind!"

Maleo paused and fished a grey pendant out from a pouch he carried at his hip and tossed it to his son. "This is a spirit stone. Every Spiritualist is required to carry one and its color reveals the level of its owner. Apart from intrusively examining others through physical contact or willingly releasing spirit essence this is the only way to tell the cultivation level of another spiritualist."

"Once you managed to form a spirit core and thereby have entered the stage of a lower Spirit Novice, a speck of white will appear in the pendant's center. This white will then spread until it fills the entire pendant. When it does it indicates that you've reach the peak Novice stage. When breaking through to the next stage a red speck will be formed at its center and the process will start again."

Maleo parted the fabric of his robe to reveal a deep red pendant with a large orange center. "Novices are white, Adepts red, Champions orange. Supposedly, true masters are yellow. Your own father is approaching the mid Champion stage, with a possibility of breaking through any day now." He smiled proudly, and Hoatzin looked as his father with big, wondrous eyes.

Mid Champion? What did this signify? Within the entire Sky Empire, consisting of perhaps four million inhabitants, there were probably no more than a couple hundred mid Champions! They were extremely valuable assets for the Empire. Even if Maleo hadn't been born a noble, he would be held in very high regard.

To the side Besra gave a small cough and glanced at her husband.

"Ah, yes. That is all quite far off for you, son, but train hard and you might get there." Maleo stuffed back the pendant into his robes. "Today you will attempt to make your first spirit connection, once you have three you will be considered a lower Spirit Novice, capable of forming your spirit core."

"The first connection is always the hardest and it is difficult to say when your soul is strong enough to make it. However! Today is the last day of the year, the Day of Light, and as midnight approaches spirit essence will pour into Spirit Halls all over the continent, marking the new beginning. This is the optimal time to attempt making your first connection."

"It comes," Besra urged.

In the center of the nine-pointed star, a dim light started to spread.

"Son, close your eyes and relax. Focus on the darkness in your mind and try not to resist when you feel a slight push in your mind." As he spoke, both he and Besra closed their eyes and started to breathe in slow, rhythmic, breaths. Hoatzin only hesitated for a moment before he did the same. Raven on the other hand stared at the accumulating light in the center of the symbol with growing eagerness. This was the first time she had witnessed something so . . . magical! The light moved as if made of water as it stretched upwards pouring into a large sphere. After a while the flow stopped and the sphere floated in mid-air, swaying slightly.

Suddenly the spirit essence split into three smaller spheres and one very large sphere. Even the smaller ones varied in sizes - the smallest no bigger than a finger nail, the largest was the size of a thumb - but the fourth sphere was the size of a watermelon. Raven barely had time to notice how the smallest sphere shot at high speed towards her older brother before the biggest sphere slammed into her and her mind went blank with pain.

It felt as if thousands of tiny needles tried to drill their way into her head at once. Instinctively, she turned all her senses inwards and what she saw changed the way she viewed the world. In her head hovered a dim, light-green prism. The moment she saw it she knew that it was her crystallized soul. If the pain she felt at that moment hadn't been so excruciating she would have found it amusing that something that had caused so much religious debates and even great wars in her old world not only existed but turned out to be something so . . . simple.

She was, however, distracted by the pain. The source was without a doubt the bright light that endlessly pressed at the prism, trying to force its way in. She wanted to push the light away but there was nothing she could do. In reality, even if she had known how to put up a fight, she wouldn't have been strong enough for it to make any difference. Finally, the first ray of light managed to penetrate deep into the prism. As it did, it was as if the dam broke; countless rays of light forced their way into the depths of her soul, latching on to whatever they found in there.

Raven had lived through all kinds of torture methods imaginable to man in her old life - in most cases, it had been part of her training as a child - but none of it came close to what she was feeling now. She wanted to cry out, she wanted to get away, she wanted it to end any way possible. But none of it happened. Her body didn't listen to her, and as more and more rays penetrated her soul her senses only became more heightened. She could feel everything; not only her own pain but the pressure the stone under her mother felt from being sat on, she could feel the air's hopelessness as it was being breathed in and out by the people in the room, she could feel the excitement and hunger of the raw spirit essence pushing its way into her mind. Everything.

It was all just too much to bear. . . .

But, just as it started to feel as if her soul was going to shatter for good, the pressure stopped. The spirit essence stopped trying to force its way in and instead allowed itself to flow freely along the already established connections, filling her soul. The pain subsided and was replaced by a warm, fuzzy feeling. She was healing.

Her previously dim prism now shone brightly, around it floated a haze of excess spirit essence that didn't seem to have fit inside. The extreme clearness Raven's senses had held during the connecting process had faded considerably but she could still tell that the spirit essence seemed to be waiting for something, but Raven didn't know what it was.

As she was contemplating this she heard her father speaking. "Son, how did it go?"

Raven opened her eyes and saw her brother's bewildered gaze.

"Father! That was amazing! It hurt at fist but once I stopped resisting everything changed. It was as if I could feel the very air I was breathing! It was absolutely amazing!" Hoatzin couldn't have hid his excitement even if he wanted to.

"Good, son! Very good indeed!" Maleo looked at his son with overflowing pride. "New connections are always a bit painful but you get used to it. In the future they will come more naturally as your soul grows mature enough."

Raven couldn't help but snort coldly inside. 'You call that a bit painful? They must have insane pain tolerance. . . .'

"Now then, tell me son, what do you see with your minds inner eye?" Maleo inquired.

Hoatzin closed his eyes and breathed calmly. "I see a clear prism with a string of light flowing out of it."

"That would be your first connection to the spirit energy that is the very fabric of the very world. As you grow older and your soul matures, more connections will be formed. As they are formed, your perception and ability to cultivate will increase."

Out of curiosity, Raven took a closer look at her own soul and it gave her a huge shock. '. . . 243!? 243 connections? Is that even possible?' As she pondered over this another thought hit her. '. . . hehe, at least it explains the additional pain. If one connection hurt, what would over 200 times that feel like?'

Her father continued. "As your connections increase you will notice that your soul will follow the same color scheme as you spirit stone. White, or clear, being the weakest, followed by red and so on. However, your soul strength and your cultivation won't necessarily be in phase. The strength of your soul merely indicates how fast you can absorb the spirit essence, your cultivation will depend on what you do with it."

Yet again Raven was baffled. What about her own soul? It was green, and according to her father, shouldn't it be either white, red, orange or yellow?

'Perhaps it's a consequence of being reborn with my mind intact. . . .' Raven speculated.

"On average you will establish one new connection every year or so, but extreme events might cause your soul to develop faster than that. There is no other way to develop your soul, so you have to make sure to live your life to the fullest or you will get stuck," Maleo continued.

"Yes, father!"

"But remember, the strength of your soul is important since it will improve you cultivation speed, but when it comes down to it, the most important thing is to have a strong cultivation! A spiritualist with a weak soul can still make up for it by cultivating relentlessly and even if you have the strongest soul in the world you won't be able to break a twig if you don't cultivate properly. If you want to be able to protect your sister you have to work hard!" Maleo's voice was stern as he reminded his son.

"Yes, father!" Hoatzin straightened up a bit and glanced at his smiling mother and the infant in her arms.

"With only one connection, forming a permanent spirit core will be impossible, but you can still start cultivating to increase your overall strength. Tell me, is there any spirit essence floating around your soul?"

Hoatzin looked a bit puzzled. "No, father."

Maleo frowned slightly then glanced at his wife with a mischievous smile before he waved his hand in front of him.

"No matter." He paused for a second, then started instructing his son.

"Focus on your existing connection and try tugging at it. As you do, the area around your soul will slowly fill up with spirit essence. You will notice that once the essence enters your mind you will able to control it and move it around your body. It will be a bit hard at first but you will get the hang of it. Once you can freely control it, move it towards the area right below your navel and let it circulate there until you feel you can't hold it any more. At that time just let it go and it will naturally disperse through your body and return to the world around you."

Hoatzin looked nervously at his father.

"Go ahead, try it. It will come to you more naturally than you think." His mother spoke softly, coaxing her son into action.

Hoatzin nodded and once again closed his eyes. Both parents looked at their son with anticipation. His aptitude for controlling the spirit essence within him would be very important for his development over the next couple of years. It would be crucial for him when time came for him to join a spirit school. After all, since it would take roughly three years for him to get enough spirit connections to form a spirit core he would be young but not unusual among his peers, but if he could control the spirit essence efficiently then he could be taught several breathing techniques that would lift him above the rest.

What nobody noticed was that in Besra's arms, little Raven copied her brother; she too closed her eyes and slowed her breathing. For her this state came very naturally since meditation had been a big part of her training as an assassin. Within her mind Raven observed the hazy essence swirling slowly around her soul and the 243 connections that extended from her green prism. With a thought she tried to extort pressure on the floating essence and to her surprise the cloud of light easily moved away. Raven quickly realized that even though she had no problems what so ever to move the essence, making it flow exactly where she wanted was a bit more tricky. However, she was persistent and within just a minute or so she had figured it out to the point where it almost became second nature.

Excitedly she led the essence down towards her navel, but as it approached its destination she was in for another surprise. The closer she got the faster the essence moved and before she had a chance to start rotating it herself, all spirit essence was sucked up in a small vortex, right below her navel. There it formed a small and slowly rotating disk of dense white light. Without her knowing how, Raven had already managed to form her spirit core! But how could she not? The minimum requirement was to have 3 spirit connections, she had over 200!

Raven studied the vortex and tried to move the spirit essence within in the same manner as before but nothing happened. Perplexed, Raven turned her attention back to her spirit connections. This time she 'tugged' at them as instructed and new spirit essence flowed into her soul. The prism flashed slightly and slowly a new haze started to seep into her mind. Once the haze was roughly the same size as before no more essence came to her no matter how hard she tried, so Raven instead tried to once more move the new haze towards her navel.

Yet again the spirit essence seemed drawn to the newly formed vortex but this time, as the new essence was absorbed and started rotating, almost all of the old essence was forced out and dispersed throughout her body. As it did Raven could feel how her cells welcomed the essence like it was rain in a desert. Her cells were already in a state of rapid growth due to her being an infant, but spurred on by the spirit essence the growth rate accelerated immensely. But now, rather than focusing solely on growing in size, her cells now also focused on growing in strength and flexibility.

The process only lasted for a couple of minutes but once it was done Raven was exhausted. Every muscle ached as after a hard work out, even her skin tingled, but it was a welcome ache because Raven knew what it meant - she was getting stronger, and fast! She yawned and opened her eyes to see how it was going for her brother.

Hoatzin was still sitting with his eyes closed. His brows were slightly furrowed in concentration, but it didn't seem as he was going to give up any time soon. Raven wanted to stay awake in support of her brother but soon she had no choice but to give in; she was just too tired. She yawned once more, snuggled closer to her mother's chest and fell asleep.

Besra noticed this and gave her daughter a light peck on the forehead before returning her attention to her son.

---------

Barely one hour later husband and wife walked into their bedchamber with happy smiles on their faces. Their son had not only managed to form a spirit connection on the first try but also only required half an hour to grasp how to control the spirit essence within him. This was borderline genius! By the time spirit school drafting came around, with the right guiding, Hoatzin would perhaps be unrivaled within the Nightingale prefecture and among the best within the empire. Chances were high that he could get accepted into the Imperial Sky Academy of Spiritual Arts in Sky City by his own strength, rather than relying on his father's name. Only 1 in 10,000 could do that!

They were still smiling when they crept into bed, but as Maleo glanced at his wife he remembered something.

"Congratulations on your breakthrough," he whispered as he hugged his wife tightly. "Giving birth to little Raven must have helped your soul this time."

"Hmm, what are you talking about?" Besra mumbled as she moved closer to her husband. It had been a long day and she was starting to feel it.

"Didn't you establish multiple connections or even enter the ranks of lower champions?"

This caused Besra to snap out of her sleepy state. "How could I possibly?" As she stared at her husband in bewilderment she pulled out a pendant from under her sleeping gown, it was mostly red but it still had a thick border white. "I'm still a mid-level Adept!"

Maleo frowned. "But then were did all that spirit essence go? I sensed so much in the hall at the beginning. . . . I figured I would get enough to break through to mid-level Champion, but I barely got any. . . ."

Usually cultivators would slowly store more and more essence in their spirit cores, strengthening their bodies as they go along. As their bodies grew stronger, so would their spirit core, and once the spirit core was strong enough it would evolve to the next step and the cultivator would improve a level. However, during the Day of Light, the spirit essence that flows into Spirit Halls behaves differently from usual.

During these circumstances the spirit essence formed is hungry for change and works actively to improve its surroundings. Because of this, cultivators at a bottleneck can use a Spirit Hall to forcefully evolve their cores. Every one present in the Hall at midnight during the Day of Light would get a share of the gathered spirit essence; the share would be proportionate to the strength of their souls. This spirit essence would then willfully enter the spiritualist's body and try to improve it as much as possible by increasing the strength of said body, sometimes to the point of a breakthrough.

"That makes no sense darling, you must have sensed wrong." Besra sighed and settled back on her pillow. "Go to sleep. It's been a long day."

Maleo felt that his wife's explanation didn't completely hit the mark but what could he do about it? He had checked his son before he sent him to bed and his wife clearly hadn't advanced beyond expectations either. He had no choice but to let it go and try to fall asleep.

Maleo didn't even consider checking his daughter, and why would he? Historically, the earliest age someone had even been able to form one lone spirit connection was at the age of 4 and that child had been put through some extremely traumatizing events in order to strengthen the soul. How could he know that the cute little daughter sleeping soundly in the next room had lived through more than most people do in multiple lifetimes? If he had known, it is hard to tell if he would be happy for her potential or heartbroken by the hardships she must have experienced.

Chapter 4: Three Years Pass

A slight breeze caused the sheer white curtains to sway and stretch, like delicate wings, into a faintly lit chamber. Just out of the curtains reach stood a wooden bed, whose life-like flower carvings almost seemed to sway in shifting sunlight.

The thick covers on the bed started to move and a small child made its way out from underneath. As the child moved away from the bed long dark hair flowed behind her, its tips slightly grazing the floor. At first glance the hair seemed black, but as she stepped into the sunlight at the foot of her bed, its color shifted to a dark violet shade.

The child absentmindedly grabbed a thick velvet robe hanging over a bed post a walked over to the window, draping the robe around her as she went. She paused and looked out at the mint green mountain range that stretched out beneath her window; spring had arrived and the trees were bursting with new life. A fond smile spread on her face.

If an adult had seen her now, her expression would have puzzled them. It might not seem as much but her smile was one only those who realized the value of and truly cherished spring would reveal, and yet here it was on a child that impossibly could have lived through more than a couple of winters.

She glanced towards the chamber doors before smoothly sitting down at a chair in front of the window. Her face now looked more fitting for her age as she smiled happily. She tapped her fingers three times against her chair and in the same instant the third *tap* echoed throughout the chamber, a light knock came at the door. Shortly after, the door opened and a middle-aged woman walked in with a tray held high in one hand.

When she saw the child waiting happily in front of the window, she sighed lightly.

"Young Mistress Raven, will I never catch you sleeping in?"

Raven just smiled. "Good morning, I'iwi."

It had become something of a game for her to always be awake before any of the servants came to wake her. So far she was winning easily. And how could she not? Her spirit connections made it practically impossible to sneak up on her. If not using some Divine Martial Skill, such as her father's Shadow Walk, of course.

I'iwi shook her head and placed the tray she was carrying on a small table by the window. She picked up a mug from the tray and handed it to the smiling child, who clasped it with both hands. Steam rose from the mug and a sweet scent, reminiscent of honey, filled Raven's nose. As Raven sipped the warm liquid while looking out the window, I'iwi pulled out a comb from within her robes and started to brush the long violet hair of the child.

As she worked, I'iwi pondered about the odd fixation of the child waiting patiently while I'iwi fixed her hair. For a child of her age to agree to sit still for nearly an hour every morning so that I'iwi could tend to her long locks was very unusual. Normally, the hair of such young children would be kept short out of convenience, but from the day the first hairs had grown on Raven's head until today, three years later, she had adamantly refused to let anyone cut her hair. Even as an infant she would thrash around so much that the servants had no choice but to let it grow. This behavior stood out for this otherwise complacent child that rarely made a fuss and seemed to enjoy reading more than old scholars.

How could she know that, for Raven, the long hair had become somewhat of a symbol for her new life? She relished having it long, to the point that she even let her Spirit Essence stimulate its growth. In her old life, her training had begun the same year she turned three, in other words when Raven was as old as she was now. As an assassin she had been forced to keep her hair short out of necessity; long hair was not only easy for an enemy to grab, it also served as an identifying characteristic that potential eye-witnesses could remember her by. Not that she ever left any witnesses. . . .

Barely an hour later, I'iwi took a step back and inspected her creation. Raven's hair had been braided and pinned to her head in complex patterns, efficiently keeping it off the ground. A lone, thin braid hung lightly over her shoulder, extending down to her waist. It was quite an adult hair style but surprisingly it fit this child very well. Three years of spirit cultivation, during a period of already rapid growth, had resulted in giving Raven a relatively strong but lithe body that showed none of the typical chubbiness of normal three-year-old toddlers. Her face was cute but not overly round and she was a bit taller than your average three-year-old as well, measuring just over a meter. If someone were to guess her age they would put her at perhaps six, at the youngest, but even then her appearance didn't quite fit. Raven looked more like a miniature adult than a well developed child, disregarding the lack of passing through puberty of course.

I'iwi handed Raven a light blue dress, and once she had slipped into it, I'iwi draped a soft gray fur coat over Raven's shoulders.

"Young master Hoatzin is training in the northern courtyard as usual." I'iwi said smiling and opened the chamber door with a slight bow. I'iwi knew very well that Raven enjoyed watching her brother train.

Raven answered with a smile of her own and passed through the doorway, heading towards the northern area of the mansion. The two guards that had been standing on either side of the door immediately stirred and followed behind her. The mansion was well guarded but the two younger members of the Nightingale family had their own guards with them wherever they went.

---------

*BOOM!*

Just as Raven stepped out into the courtyard, a large bang vibrated through the open area and a small figure flew several meters backwards before tumbling to the ground. As soon as the figure hit the ground it curled up in a ball, instantly regaining some control over the falling motion. It was her brother.

"Haha! Good, son! You are improving."

In the other end of the courtyard stood her father, beaming with satisfaction.

"Again!" Haotzin was already on his feet and had started running towards his father. Determination filled his eyes.

Raven quietly slipped into a fur-covered armchair that had been placed by to the side of the courtyard, looking out over the training area. As she settled down, she wrapped herself in the coat she was wearing - it might be spring, but spring in the Nightingale mountain range was still quite a cold affair. Flanking her were her two guards. Together the trio observed father and son training in the center of the courtyard.

Amusement twinkled in Raven's eyes. She really liked this part of the day. Hoatzin was very dedicated to his training and would train relentlessly. Thanks to his advanced spirit control, Hoatzin had spent every day cultivating spirit essence with various breathing techniques. Even without a complete spirit core he had improved a great deal over the past three years. Raven couldn't help but think of her old world; here her brother might be considered close to a genius but there his progress would be simply impossible, even within the Assassins Union. Hoatzin might still lack the skill to win in a battle, but his strength was already comparable to that of someone five years his senior. It really showed the potential of spiritualists.

Raven observed her brother approaching her father at a high speed.

Ever since her brother had managed to establish his third spirit connection a few months ago, her father had taken it upon himself to start his training in basic Divine Martial Skills.

Even though Raven had instinctively understood the spoken language of this world it had taken her roughly a year to learn how to read it, and since then she had spent a great deal of time reading about many things concerning her new world. Divine Martial Skills had been one of them. From what Raven had read she knew that even though increasing your cultivation was the most important pillar stone for a spiritualist, in order to use your cultivated spirit essence efficiently you had to practice the Divine Skills.

There were two major types of Divine Skills; Divine Healing Skills and Divine Martial Skills. Divine Healing Skills were mainly practiced by women since it didn't require hours of physical training and gave the added effect of safer childbirth. For example, the slight glow Raven had noticed around her mother at her birth had been Besra's Divine Healing Skill Nourishing Light that continuously replenished your body, countering exhaustion. Divine Martial Skills on the other hand forced you to train relentlessly in order to master them. But once you did, you would be able to crush mountains with pebbles.

Both sets of skills had two things in common. The first was that both contained a nine-level categorization system that divided different skills into power levels - level one skills were the weakest, level nine skills the strongest. Although there were nine levels in theory, in practice most people never came into contact with skills beyond level three. As prefecture lords, the Nightingale clan most likely had access to a handful of level five skills and perhaps one or two level six skills. Beyond that was the realm of legend.

The second thing they had in common was that the Divine Skills could not be taught simply by observing, you had to get them imprinted on your very soul before you could even start practicing them. This had been a great source of irritation for Raven the past two years; the moment she had read about the Divine Skills she became so excited that she nearly fell out of the chair she had been sitting in. However, her excitement had soon died because there was no way she could possibly learn them.

There were essentially two ways to get a skill imprinted on your soul. The first was to learn it from a Divine Scroll written with spirit essence. Once read, the spirit essence in the scroll would flow into the reader to complete the imprint. These scrolls were however very precious and the three-year-old Raven had no way of getting hold of one. Of course, if she had asked her parents she might have been given one but she would have a hard time explaining why she wanted it without revealing that she'd already formed her spirit core.

Unfortunately the second option was even worse since it meant that someone who already had a skill imprint would form a temporary spirit connection with the person who wished to learn the skill, thus copying the imprint to the next soul. This option would instantly reveal not only how far your cultivation had come but also how many spirit connections you had.

Raven had clearly understood from all her reading that someone like her, with 243 spirit connections and a spirit core formed right after birth, was completely unprecedented. According to the books in the mansions library, the highest recorded amount of spirit connections in Sky Empire had been a legendary Spirit Master some hundred years ago, but he had been an 80-year-old man and his connections had still been in the quite far off from 200.

Raven had, by now, reached 245 connections and she could feel the next one connecting soon. All things considered, she would be seen as a monster. Or perhaps a miracle. Either way, it would change her life drastically if someone found out. This was something Raven feared more than anything - she had never lived a peaceful life before and now she was determined to keep it.

Of course, in theory, it should be possible to develop new Divine Skills on your own but very few had ever succeeded. The existing skills had usually been developed over countless generations.

Thus, Raven had chosen to quietly cultivate her spirit essence, without the aid of breathing techniques or Divine Skills; judging by the increased size of her spirit core she suspected that her cultivation had reached the mid-level Spirit Novice realm by now, but couldn't say for sure without a spirit stone. Also, without any Divine Skills to use it with, her core was of little practical use for Raven.

But Raven wasn't too disappointed. Even without any breathing techniques, her numerous spirit connections more than made up for it, keeping her cultivation at an alarming rate. Her brother's six-year head-start and aided cultivation still put him slightly ahead in terms of physical strength but Raven was catching up. Quickly.

She had also kept training her old world's martial arts to ensure a level of control over her body that she was comfortable with. In fact, this was perhaps the area she was most pleased with - practically since birth, Raven had nourished her cells with nearly boundless spirit essence. As a result, her body was extraordinarily flexible and resilient. She could train for hours on end without getting tired and some techniques she had trouble with in her past life, she could now execute flawlessly.

*BOOM!*

Haotzin once again flew across the courtyard, but he regained his footing a bit faster than last time. By now his previously green robes where covered in layers of dust.

"Again!" he shouted and once more rushed towards his father.

As he came closer Maleo swung out a big arm that first seemed to miss Haotzin but . . . *BOOM!* Hoatzin was sent flying.

"Again!"

The guard on Raven's right chuckled softly. "He has determination at least."

"Verdin, don't tease. It took you a year to come this close to learning the Shadow Walk." The left guard, Rook, teased back.

Raven simply smiled. These two guards were in their late-twenties and had quite recently graduated from a spirit school in the Nightingale prefecture. They had been the top of their class, both renowned for their fast learning skills. How else could they be guarding their lord's only daughter so soon after graduation? They were both lower Spirit Champions and Raven was very fond of the two; they were very loyal to her family and proud to be guarding one of them personally, but they never put on airs or treated those with lower status ill.

Raven focused her attention on her brother as he yet again tried to move past his father. Haotzin's task was actually quite straightforward. He was to run straight at his father and then use the second level Divine Martial Skill Shadow Walk to swiftly sidestep around Maleo, at the same time as he avoided his father's heavy arm sweeping towards him.

Raven could sense spirit essence collecting at the soles of Hoatzin's feet as he tried to perform the Divine Skill, but it was not stable enough this time either so she felt that failure was eminent. Seconds later Hoatzin was tossed into the air.

'He is so close. . . .' Raven mused to herself. She might not be able to learn the skill on her own but with her heightened senses she could clearly tell where the differences between her brother's faulty activation and her father's perfected version lay.

As Haotzin sprang to his feet and repeated the process once more, Raven's eyes flashed with insight.

'Hmm, it might work!'

In the same instant the loud bang rang out from the collision between father and son, Raven sprung to her feet and rushed towards her brother before her guards had a chance to stop her.

"Brother! Brother! Play with me!" a radiant smile spread across Raven's face as she bounced up and down around her brother at the center of the courtyard.

The soon to be nine-year-old Haotzin was a head taller than Raven so he bent down until he was face to face with her.

"Sorry little sister, I need to train with father. I can play with you after lunch." He placed a hand on her shoulder to push her off to the side but Raven easily sidestepped him.

"But I wanna play now!" Raven pouted.

Haotzin sighed. "Later," he repeated and made a second attempt to push his sister back to her armchair. However, Raven once more slipped out of his hand, now moving further away, giggling loudly.

"Hihi, you have to catch me first!" A small pink tongue popped out of her mouth as she teased her brother.

By the armchair, guards Verdin and Rook started to move forward to collect their young charge, but Lord Maleo raised a hand to stop them. He quite enjoyed seeing his children play and his son had reached a bottleneck anyway - some distraction might do him good.

Hoatzin gave his father a pleading look but Maleo only chuckled.

"You heard her, son. A woman's requests must be fulfilled, even a miniature one's." He crossed his arms and leaned against the courtyard wall. "Hurry up and catch her so we can continue."

Raven giggled and balanced on the heels of her feet. "You have to catch me! You have to catch me!"

With yet another sigh Haotzin finally gave in and started to chase after his taunting little sister. To his surprise Raven didn't run, but rather waited for him to grab her. Just as he thought the ordeal would be over quicker than expected, Raven shifted her body slightly and moved around him, her loose braid flowing behind her.

"Hihi, almost! Almost!" She laughed brightly as she moved away.

Hoatzin blinked. How had his sister moved away so quickly? He spun around and tried again, but once more she moved away in the last instant, like water slipping through his hands.

How could a barely trained 9-year-old possibly compare to the experience of a master assassin? Raven easily made up for their differences in strength by her perfectly executed footwork. What's more, from a distance it simply looked as if she was happily dancing around her brother. Unless you paid extreme attention to what was going on you wouldn't notice anything odd.

The "dance" continued for nearly 5 minutes and Haotzin was growing more and more frustrated. He had even started to use his incomplete Shadow Walk to assist him but he couldn't get the concentration of spirit essence at his feet high enough for it to make any difference.

The jubilant laughter of the young girl filled the courtyard.

"Hihi, brother is so clumsy! You move like an elephant!" Raven swayed lightly on the tip of her toes and once again twirled out of reach.

"Hmpf! What elephant? You're the one who moves like a Shadow Fairy, tipping around on your toes. . . ." Suddenly Haotzin's eyes widened and he stopped dead in his tracks. Next to him a mischievous smile crossed Raven's face only to be swiftly replaced with the earlier pout.

"Tche. Brother is so boring. You can't catch me no matter what!" Raven stopped her dodging and stomped back to her armchair and sank down with a loud *humph*.

The three older men in the courtyard stared at the young girl with astonishment and confusion. Five minutes! This three-year-old had danced around with her six years older brother for five minutes without him being able to catch her. Sure, it had looked more like a dance than a game of catch but when Haotzin in desperation had tried to rely the Shadow Walk it became apparent that the kid was actually trying his best.

"Father." Haotzin ignored his sister's comments and looked over at his father with new determination. His call roused Maleo from his thoughts of Raven's performance. "Can we continue?"

Maleo smiled and pushed away from the wall he was leaning against. He was really proud of his son's tenacity.

"Come!"

Chapter 5: Time To Enroll

From her armchair Raven watched as her brother resumed the previous exercises rushing towards their father. This time however, the spirit essence that flowed to his feet was no longer spread over the entire soles of his feet but was instead concentrated to only the front halves. Maleo swiped out his arm as soon as Hoatzin was within range but in that very instant Hoatzin had already appeared behind his fathers back.

"Yes!" Hoatzin raised a fist into the sky, pride filling his face.

Maleo blinked in surprise and then started laughing.

"Hahaha! Son, well done! You still have some ways to go before your spirit core is strong enough for you to preform the full Shadow Walk but by focusing on half the area you can indeed pull of this version." His big hands smacked his son on the back. "Good thinking!"

Maleo glanced over to the still pouting little Raven. "Make sure to thank your sister. You got some insight from playing with her, no?"

"Yes, father!" Hoatzin bowed and then also glanced at his sister. He would indeed have to think of a way to pay her back; who would have guessed that her game of tag would give him such ideas? If nothing else, next time she requested him to play her, he would have no right to refuse, regardless of the situation.

"Good, good. This will do for now. Go and clean up for lunch."

"Yes, father!" Hoatzin bowed once more and hurried of towards his chambers. Without her farther having to order it, guard Verdin stirred and followed his young master out. Hoatzin's own guards had been dismissed before the training so Verdin would naturally take their place temporarily.

Seeing her brother leave, Raven jumped to her feet, her previous pout nowhere to be seen. "Lunch!" she chimed happily and ran of towards the dining hall, her remaining guard close behind her.

Maleo looked pensively at the small female figure leaving the courtyard. What an odd daughter he had.

---------

A few minutes later, the family of four was seated around a smaller table in their private dining hall. I'iwi was standing to the side instructing servants where to place the trays of food they were carrying. Once they were done, Besra motioned for them to leave.

A variation of dishes had been paced on the table and their lovely aromas quickly filled the room. Raven noticed that even her favorite dish, stewed Mountain Owl with Frost Berries, was present. She pointed happily at the dish and before she had the time to ask, her brother had stretched over to give her a hand. Afterwards he served himself the same dish.

"Hoatzin, your father told me that you have managed to activate the Shadow Walk."

"Right now it's more of a step rather than a walk, mother." Hoatzin replied humbly. "It's not complete yet."

Raven hid her smile by drinking a large gulp of milk. Her father had often stressed the importance of not overestimating ones strengths and Haotzin seemed to have taken the preachers to heart.

Maleo simply nodded but Besra smiled happily. "Well done, my little Hoatzin!"

"I'm not little anymore, mother! I've already started learning my first Divine Skills..." Hoatzin protested.

"Right you are, son! Well spoken." Maleo laughed and smacked his son on his back so hard that Hoatzin dropped his fork. As it hit his plate, a red Frost Berry was flung across the room.

Raven started giggling uncontrollably and Besra shot her husband a reproving glare.

Maleo caughed slightly but placed his hand on Hoatzin's sholder, preventing the boy from rising to collect the wayward berry. "Never mind that. Late next month, the Imperial Sky Academy of Divine Arts will have their entrance examinations in Sky City."

At this Hoatzin stopped trying to get up, and Raven's giggles quieted down as well. Both children looked at their father with excitement.

"I want you to go and take the exam, son."

"Really?" Hoatzin asked enthusiastically.

"Yes. As my son you might get accepted on your lineage alone but I want you to earn it on your own. If you can't pass you will return home and attend our Nightingale Academy. But with your spirit control you should have no problems!"

"I will make father proud!" Hoatzin was still happy but now determination seeped through every inch of him.

"You are a young man now so I will not accompany you. In two weeks you will leave with your guard detail. After that, as long as you get accepted, it will be a year until you can come home for a visit. This will continue for ten years. You are aware of this, right?"

"I know, Father. I still want to go."

Next to Maleo, Besra was smiling a bittersweet smile. She of course wanted the very best for her son, but to be separated from him for such long periods of time was still going to be painful for her.

Raven sat quietly for a while. She was really curious about the Sky Empire's capital and also about this Sky Acadamy. She quickly made up her mind.

Gingerly, Raven jumped down from her chair and walked around the table to her father. She grabbed the sleeve of her father's robe and looked up at him. Her green eyes were big and she looked so sweet that that even the coldest of men would melt in front of her. She lightly bit her pink lower lip before she spoke in a pleading voice.

"Father, can I go too? I want to cheer big brother on!"

"This..." Maleo frowned slightly. Originally he had only intended to send a small group guards with his son but if both his heirs were going it would be a completely different matter. Additionally, Raven was still so young. If she went it meant a governess or more had to go too.

"Pleeeease father!" Raven pulled of the remarkable feat of looking even sweeter as she pleaded yet again.

Besra chuckled lightly. "Let her go with him, Maleo. I will join them too, that way you can just focus on sending enough guards for us."

Of course, secretly Besra was overjoyed with an excuse to follow Hoatzin on his journey; it would be overprotective for her to join her son, but staying by her tree-year-old daughter was only to be expected.

Maleo sighed. He knew very well what his wife was thinking.

"If you insist." At least this way there would be no need for the governesses.

"Yeay!" The little Raven jumped up and down. She had gotten quite accustomed to acting like the spoiled little child she was supposed to be during the past three years.

Raven twirled around and threw herself at her brother, laughing happily. Hoatzin gave her a big hug and patted her on the head.

"Isn't this great? I get to show the capital my adorable little sister!" A bright smile was on Hoatzin's face too.

---------

Preparations for the trip started the very next day. Travelling was quite the affair for the wife and heirs of one the Sky Empire's three prefecture lords, especially for such a long trip as to Sky City. The best guards were chosen and safe travel routes were discussed - it was a time of relative peace on the continent in general, but there were still some bandits roaming around and you never knew when peace would turn to war; no risks were to be taken.

Sky Empire is one of the most wide-stretched countries on the continent and since it consists of mostly mountain ranges, it made the trip on the roads would take over a year, perhaps even two. Even between neighboring cities the journey would usually add up to a month or so, if done on horseback. Naturally a country would find it hard to stay united under such circumstances, but Sky Empire had a solution; the Everest Hawks.

The Everest Hawks were one of the aspects of the journey that Raven looked forward to the most. The Everest Hawks are a type of magical beast hawks that are incomparably large. The smallest of them are still large enough to carry a full-grown man on its back several hundreds of kilometers without tiring. The largest can use their talons to carry heavy cabins, big enough to fit up to a dozen fully armored soldiers inside. With these huge birds the travel times are reduced a hundred times over, turning the trip from Nightingale Prefecture to the capital city from nearly two years to a bare month.

Roughly five centuries ago the Sky Empire had started breeding these previously wild beasts and, by now, every city and larger village had a merchants guild responsible of tending to their appointed Everest Hawks. The hawk herd that would live on nearby mountain tops and be called upon using special whistles. Richer families might even have their own Everest Hawks. Naturally the Nightingale clan was no exception. Raven had with envy watched her father teach Hoatzin who to fly a smaller one not to long ago.

Now two of the clans larger Hawks were being prepared for the journey. One would carry Besra, the children and maid I'iwi. The other one their ten guards. The Everest Hawks could fly day and night for nearly a week without landing so both Hawks would be accompanied by a flying crew of three people taking turns guiding the birds. The hawks could be trusted to fly all the way to their destination without supervision but it was better to have someone keep track of their physical and mental state at all times so as to not tire them needlessly.

Apart from the actual travel arrangements, a large variety of goods had to be packed. If Hoatzin was to be accepted into the school he would move into the dorms immediately. This meant that all necessary personal effects had to be brought from the beginning. He would get a school uniform but he would need more than that if he were to live in a distant city for the next year. Two large trunks were filled with everything from copies of books from the clan library to high-level battle gear.

An additional trunk was filled to the brim with extravagant gifts that Besra would present during her visit. Since she was going, they were bound to be introduced to plenty of high-standing figures, including the Imperial family. There was no getting around that and gifts would be expected.

For the same reason two travel-cabinets, that basically looked like large trunks tilted over so as to stand on their smallest side, were also prepared. Within them hung two beautifully tailored gowns in fine, sky blue, silks. Intricate cloud patterns were woven into the fabric with copper-like thread. At their feat lay complex head ornaments, shimmering with golden luster. These were the official gowns noble women would wear while officially visiting other prefectures. Every prefecture had the same gowns, but the thread used to weave the patterns would vary. The other countries had similar traditions.

Raven might be young but she would still be expected to wear hers, and since she obviously had yet to be married her head ornament also included a veil to cover her face with. Only core clan members and their personal servants had the privilege to see her face before marriage, forcing her to wear a veil whenever leaving the Nightingale residence.It was a notion extremely foreign to Raven herself. But she had learned to stick to the rule very quickly though..

She had once accidentally walked in on a public forum her father had held in their main hall, and over fifty merchants and normal citizens had seen her face. As a result every non-clan member present had been given the required punishment: one whiplash for every year since Raven was born! Fortunately Raven had only been two at the time so no one was severely injured, but she still felt extremely guilty about it all and had secretly vowed to make it up to them at a later time.

---------

Two weeks went by quickly and on a crisp spring day Raven and her family gathered in the main courtyard. In the center stood the two cabins that would house them and their guards on the journey to Sky City. The ten guards that would accompany them were waiting patiently to the side. Raven's personal guards, Verdin and Rook were among them. The crewmen appointed to the trip were making last minute checks, calling short commands to each other as they worked.

"Well then."

Maleo glanced at the sky above them before he went down on one knee to be face-to-face with Hoatzin. He grabbed his son's shoulders and gave him a firm look.

"Remember who you are; as a Nightingale you have a great heritage but you must never abuse this, nor let your self be abused by others."

Hoatzin swallowed. "Yes, father."

"I know you will make me proud." Maleo stood up and patted his son on his back.

Raven watched as her father and brother said their goodbyes. There was an awkwardness about it that Raven found quite amusing. She even had to bite her lip to stop herself from giggling when she caught her father scratching the bridge of his nose, stealthily removing the moist that had gathered in the inner corner of his eye.

It was obvious that her father was trying to be strict and resolute in front of her brother but at the same time she suspected that Maleo was even more unwilling to see Hoatzin go than her mother. Haotzin was his first-born son after all. Maleo knew the importance of letting him spread his wings, but knowing and wholeheartedly approving were two different things.

A minute later, Maleo waved for the guards to enter their cabin. Verdin and Rook winked at Raven as they disappeared inside. Noticing the movements of the guards, two of the crewmen pulled out a small silver whistle each and placed them to their lips. No sound was heard, but instants later two distant figures appeared in the sky. Raven watched with awe as the figures grew larger and larger, and finally two huge hawks landed on the ground next to the crewmen that blew the whistles. The sight of the Everest Hawks - these two easily five meters tall - with their glacier white feathers, never seized to amaze her.

The hawks lowered their majestic blue-tinged heads so that the men on the ground could reach them. The crewmen in turn placed their hands on the birds' beaks. Raven knew that this was done to initiate the spirit connection that would allow them to communicate efficiently with each other. Even if the Hawk's intellect was far from being on par with humans, the spirit connection would allow bird and man to instinctively understand each others needs. To call it a bond between equals was however incorrect. The crewmen could use the same connection to give orders that the hawks couldn't refuse.

"Come children, it is time for us to leave." Besra gave her husband a quick kiss before leading her two children into the passenger section of their cabin, followed closely by I'iwi.

Once inside, Raven rushed to the window that faced her father still in the courtyard. She waved enthusiastically and thought to herself 'This being-a-kid thing is quite refreshing!'.

"Bye, bye, father!" she shouted as the Everest Hawks spread their enormous wings.

With only one beat of the giant birds's wings, wild gusts of wind spread throughout the courtyard. In the next moment Raven felt the cabin sway slightly, and within three breaths they where already nearly a hundred meters above the mansion.

Hoatzin joined her at the window and together they looked down on the city that spread around the mansion. Most houses were built out of wood, that had later been painted in a rusty red copper paint that kept the harsh weathers at bay. These houses were intermingled with the light green specks of spring trees. It might not be an awe-inspiring sight, but it was indeed beautiful, and it was their home.

Raven looked up at her brother. He had a complicated expression on his face. Raven could guess at the conflicting emotions he must be experiencing; he was excited for what he was going to experience but reluctant about what he was leaving behind. Hoatzin was after all only nine and this would be his first time away from home, away from his family.

"Brother! Brother! What will Sky City be like?" Raven twirled around and plopped down on the nearby couch.

Hoatzin joined her at the couch and started retelling the stories he had heard about the city. Raven had of course already heard, or read, all of these stories before but she wanted to distract her brother. As Hoatzin spoke the reluctance in him seemed to fade, leaving only anticipation.

And so, the journey flashed by. Most days were spent reading or telling stories but every once in a while the hawks would lower the cabins to the ground to rest for a day while the travelers used the opportunity to stretch their legs. The cabins were fairly large but for the ten guards that shared the same space as the four people riding in Raven's cabin, it became quite cramped. On these day's the company would arrange larger meals and even have sparring sessions for entertainment and for practice. Raven really enjoyed watching these.

All the guards were lower Spirit Champions and their battles were quite spectacular. As they fought, they used various Divine Martial Skills that would sometimes allow them to move at extreme speeds, sometimes combine blows with various elements such as fire or lightning. Of course, they couldn't go all out in fear of attracting unwanted attention, but it was none the less amazing to watch. Both Raven's and Hoatzin's eyes twitched slightly every time a martial skill was activated; none of them could wait until the day they too would start to learn these martial skills. Raven realized that it would take some convincing of her parents to let her train in the martial skills rather than the healing ones but she would deal with that problem once it comes.

One skill set in particular caught Raven's interest. It was used by one of the smaller guards and it went by the name Sonic Swords. They were a peculiar set of Divine Martial Skills in the sense that they evolved. When you first learned it, it would only be a level one skill, but if you practiced with it relentlessly you could gain additional insights and evolve the skill. There seemed to be no limits how far it could go. The small guard who used it seemed to have evolved it to the rare fourth level; Silent Pierce.

The small guard would keep his sword sheathed as he moved around his opponent. Once he found a opening he would then silently withdraw his sword. It looked very unremarkable, and yet somehow his opponents never seamed to be able to tell where he would strike at and as a result almost always lost. He never even had to use any of the other Sonic Sword skills. As an ex-assassin, Raven was quite envious about this skill, she could tell the frightening potential of such attacks. But, as usual, there was no way for her to learn it so she had to settle for watching.

After sparring the company would return to their cabins and the Everest Hawks would take of yet again. Four weeks passed in this manner and on the 29th day after their departure from Nightingale City Hoatzin suddenly jumped to his feat and rushed over to the bay side window. His eyes were round in awe.

"Little sister, come look!"

Chapter 6: Sky City

Raven bounced up from the floor, where she had been reading a book about various Magical Beats, and joined her brother at the window.

"Wow!" Raven didn't need to act her astonishment this time; nobody could see Sky City for the first time without being impressed.

The city truly lived up to its name. Four mountain peaks stood fairly close to each other as they stretched towards the sky. The center peak was the tallest, with the three slightly lower peaks surrounding it. Around the foot of the mountains spread a large city, several kilometers in every direction, but the city wasn't limited to the ground.

Making its way up the mountains, several layers of settlements extended between the peaks, suspended over nothing but air. A great waterfall flowed down the middle peak, branching out into smaller waterfalls at every new level. Despite being covered by higher settlements, even the lowest levels had no problems getting plenty of sunlight since the distance between them where so great. Hundreds of Everest Hawks were constantly traveling between the different levels and the surrounding city.

The Sky City was located slightly further south that the Nightingale prefecture. As a result spring had come further here and dark green greenery wove its way up the mountains and intermingled with both the houses around and on the mountain. As their cabin drew closer to the city, Hoatzin nudged Raven's shoulder and pointed to the top of the center peak.

"That must be the imperial palace, Indigo Cloud Palace!"

Raven lifted her gaze and noticed an extravagant structure sitting on a plateau above the massive waterfall. The Indigo Cloud Palace's stone walls shone with a light blue shimmer amidst the otherwise dark stone surrounding it. Large portions of the palace perturbed daringly over the plateau's edge, defying both gravity and logic. It was many times larger than the Nightingale mansion, with multiple towers extending towards the skies.

Raven wondered if not most residents of her home city would fit within.

"Raven, come here."

Just as the cabin got close enough for Raven to start seeing people milling about the city, her mother called out to her. Raven reluctantly turned away from the window and obediently walked over to her mother. Besra placed a simple veiled ornament on Raven's head.

"You have to be careful not to drop this, little Raven."

"Yes mother!" Raven would not make that mistake again...

Not soon after, the cabin swayed slightly and with a soft thud it came to a stop. Outside of the cabin Raven could hear the roaring sounds of rushing water.

'We must have landed quite close to the waterfall...'

Raven glanced back towards the window, but before she could move to look out, the cabin door opened and a familiar guard bowed in the doorway.

"My Lady Besra, young master, young mistress. We have arrived at the imperial residence, Indigo Cloud Palace."

The guard moved out of the way and Besra stood up to walk out, motioning to Raven and her brother to follow.

Once outside, Raven noticed that the cabin had been placed on a constructed landing area, protruding the middle peak's mountain wall. Several similar platforms could be seen on both sides of the one they were on. At the end of them all were the foundations of the awe-inspiring imperial palace she had seen from the sky. This close it looked even more daunting, as if it was challenging heaven it self with its high towers, and ornate walls, reaching endlessly upwards.

Besra walked towards the palace, closely followed by her two children. Hoatzin had grabbed Raven's hand, keeping her close to him as they came approached the palace. Excitement filled both their eyes, but Raven noticed a tinge of nervousness beneath the surface within her brother. How could he not be nervous? He was about to meet the Emperor for the first time.

'My dear brother... He hides his nervousness so well and strives to comfort me at the same time. He will grow into a fine man one day!'

Of course Hoatzin wanted to comfort her, if he was nervous, his little sister must be even more so. However, in her past life Raven had been sent to assassinate both kings and emperors numerous times, why be nervous only to meet one?

Raven and her family were flanked on both sides by palace guards - their own guards would have to wait by the cabins until the emperor gave them permission to enter - but I'iwi followed the family five steps behind them, carrying a small wooden box.

Finally Raven's mother reached the end of the platform. Slightly lifting her gown, she curtsied gracefully; her knees almost hitting the ground as she spoke with a lowered head.

"Lady Besra of the Nightingale Prefecture pays her respects to Sky Empress Nene."

Behind her Raven copied her mother perfectly while Hoatzin bowed deeply. I'iwi kneeled behind them..

"We pay our respects to the Empress!" the children echoed in unison.

"Oh my! Dear Besra, we are childhood friends! No need for all this formality."

The sweetest voice Raven had ever heard filled the air and a pearly white hand reached out to pull Besra to her feat. Raven straightened to see a petite woman in a gold-shimmering gown warmly embrace her mother. Even though her face looked very young, the woman's hair was pure white and flowed like water over her shoulders.

"As you wish, Nene." Besra laughed as she answered the embrace wholeheartedly.

Behind Raven's veil a small, dark-violet eyebrow rose.

'To think my mother had this good a relationship with the Empress... Quite impressive!'

"I know Mallard usually greets the Prefecture Lords but when I heard you were coming I begged him to let me do it." Empress Nene smiled mischievously as she backed away from Raven's mother.

Besra glanced questioningly at her imperial friend. "Begged? You?"

"Haha, well, 'forced' sounds so harsh." A saint couldn't look more innocent.

Raven immediately got a good impression of the woman. She had an impressive nobility about her that remained even as she joked with Raven's mother. She had no doubt been raised for her role since birth, but no haughtiness was present at all.

Besra chuckled and waved a hand signaling I'iwi to get move forward.

"I have a gift for you."

"Keep it for now." Nene interrupted. "Let me take you to your quarters. There we can talk undisturbed and you can hand me this gift of yours."

She nodded to one of her attendants before grabbing Besra by the arm and walking of into the palace. Hoatzin and Raven glanced at each other before hurrying after the pair of ladies.

---------

After that Raven and her family had been lead to the spacious suite they would use while in town. As soon as they have entered the empress had ordered her attendants to inform the emperor of their arrival and then leave. The moment the servants had left Nene had pulled Raven's mother into a nearby sofa and started chatting about everything between heaven and earth.

Soon after a middle-aged, sturdily built, man in golden robes had strode into the room and before Besra or her children had the time to stand and welcome him, Emperor Mullard had laughed waved for them to stay seated.

"Any childhood friend of my wife's is a childhood friend of me. No need for formality in private." With that he had sat down as well and joined the conversations.

Like this the days passed. Empress Nene would arrive everyday to talk with Raven's mother, sometimes joined by her husband, sometimes alone. Raven grew really fond of the imperial couple. They were very friendly, and seemed just and fair in their ruling; Raven could understand why the people loved them.

Once a day, Hoatzin would head out to join their family guard's training sessions and Raven would keep him company. She had hoped to be able to sneak of and explore her surroundings a bit more but Verdin and Rook were on duty even here so there was nothing she could do.

One week later, to the day, Besra and Raven rose extra early in the morning. Today was finally the day when the young applicants would have their entrance exams in hope of earning a spot at the Imperial Academy of Divine Arts. After the examinations concluded, a minor banquette would be held at the palace for all children of nobles and foreign dignitaries that might have passed. Since Raven and her mother were going to attend all of this, they had to dress as tradition demanded from the start.

But dressing according to tradition took time. Simply putting on the gowns was complicated, not to mention getting the head ornaments in place; to make it in time, Besra had to work on Raven's hair at the same time as I'iwi worked on Besra's.

As the minutes turned into hours the delicate ornaments were slowly woven into place by interlocking braids, while some hair was left to hang freely down their backs. Once the coiffure was done, the multiple layers of the gowns were draped around the two ladies. All together it took nearly four hours to get ready. The results, however, were quite spectacular.

Raven looked at her reflection in the large mirror in her mother's chamber and sighed slightly in appreciation. With the extravagant dress in light blue silks on, together with the exquisitely arranged hair and veiled head-ornament, Raven looked like a combination of the magical Water Nymphs she had read about in her books and the elegant geisha of her old world. When she moved bells tingled in her hair and the thin fabrics of her gown swayed slightly. The free, floor-long, hair down her back rested on the long hem of the dress that swept the ground as she walked.

The traditional dress came even more into its element when worn by Raven's mother. On Besra, the dress perfectly showed of her supple waist and promoted her firm bosom, without becoming too evocative. Next to each other, one was a goddess, the other a fairy.

"I'iwi, go bring my son."

I'iwi bowed and left the room and soon after returned with Hoatzin in tow. He wearing the same green robes as always; since he was attending the exams he would not need to change until afterwards. If he passed he would change into the Academy's uniforms. As he caught sight of Raven and his mother pride filled his happy face.

"It's an honor to be blessed with two so beautiful women in my family! The very flowers of heaven would seem dull in your presence." He might be young, but Hoatzin knew to compliment beauty when he saw it.

Besra just smiled.

"Come, it is time to leave for the exam."

Together the four of them left the suite and the Indigo Cloud Palace.

---------

"Lady Nightingale, this way, if you please."

A middle-aged attendant bowed deeply before slowly leading the way down a narrow corridor. Raven and the two women with her had entered the auditorium hall of the great Imperial Sky Academy of Divine Arts. Hoatzin had been already left them to join the rest of the applicants in an other area.

The attendant elegantly opened a door at the end of the corridor. He bowed once again as Besra and Raven passed him, walking out on their personal viewing balcony. I'iwi nodded politely to the attendant before closing the door quietly. On the balcony there were two rows of comfortable chairs and a small table with drinks on it, all of it facing out towards the stage below the balcony. Beyond the stage was the common viewing area where family and friends of other applicants were allowed to watch the exams.

'It would seem as if we are as much part of the entertainment as the examinations...' Raven mused to herself.

Probably up to two thousand people could be seated below, but today nearly half of the seats were empty. Raven had noticed that quite a lot of the people below stared up at them with curious eyes, some would even point or nod in their direction whilst whispering something to their neighbors.

Usually prefecture lords only attended the entrance examinations if an heir was present. For example, Rock Wren Prefecture had no lord or lady present today since their heirs were older and already attended Sky Academy.

"All rise for their Imperial Highness, Sky Emperor Mallard Bateleur and Sky Empress Nene!"

A loud voice echoed through the hall and everyone present, including Raven and her mother, rose to their feat and looked up at the balcony directly above the one Raven was in. This was the arrangement, the three prefectures each had a personal balcony above the stage and the imperial family had theirs above those three.

The couple Raven had come to know a bit over the past week walked out on imperial balcony, with Nene's hand resting on her husbands arm. With them standing next to each other Raven couldn't help but notice how different they looked, they were almost each others opposites even. Were Empress Nene was lithe and petite, Emepror Mallard was muscular and tall. Were one had white hair that flowed like water in the wind, the other had pitch black hair trimmed too short for the wind to move very much at all.

'Like Yin and Yang...' Raven finally made the connection and chuckled softly to herself.

Behind them walked a very muscular man with wavy blonde hair. He wore a sea green, silk jacket with two rows of buttons down the front. He seemed very imposing but Raven noticed that his right hand kept grabbing at his hip.

'He is a warrior then...' Raven recognized the nervous tick that swordsmen would find hard to get rid of the moment they moved around without their weapons.

Emperor Mallard lead his wife to one of the foremost chairs on the balcony and let her sit. He gave a light nod to Raven's mother and another of to the left. Leaning out, Raven noticed that a man she recognized as Lord Griffin, the prefecture lord of Red Griffin Prefecture, sat on the left-side balcony.

After the two nods, his Imperial Highness indicated for the blond man to take the chair to his left and sat down himself. The rest of the hall followed suit.

Out on the stage walked a bearded elderly man in a light grey scholar's robe. Over right chest was an embroidery of the same nine-pointed star that Raven had seen on the floor in the Spirit Hall over three years ago. Even though she hadn't entered the Hall again she had since then learnt that it was the symbol representing all spiritualists, the Spirit Star. Elders and students at various spirit schools would have the emblem on their uniforms.

Once at the center of the stage the elderly man bowed towards the Emperor before turning to face the majority of the crowd.

"Welcome to the annual entrance exams for the Imperial Sky Academy of Divine Arts!" his strong voice echoed out into the hall. "I am Elder Kagu, and I will administer today's final exam." He paused and gazed out over the audience.

"All applicants have been checked and they have all passed the first requirement; establishing their spirit cores before the age of nine. But, as you know, Sky Academy has even higher requirements before accepting new students."

"896 children have applied for the exam this year, most likely less than ten will pass." Elder Kagu continued and at his words a sharp intake of air spread throughout the hall.

'Only ten? So few...' Raven was quite surprised. She knew getting in would be hard but ten out of nearly a thousand was far worse than she had expected.

"The final exam is a simple test of control." a small light-spark popped out of the man's hand and came to rest in his palm. "Every child will be filled with one hundred small orbs of my spirit essence. They will then have five minutes to use their own spirit essence to force them out. From years of experience I can tell you that eight out of nine will be able to expel up to ten orbs. One in ten is likely to manage up to twenty. One in a hundred might succeed in expelling thirty. This is the bar they must pass to get accepted into the Sky Academy."

The requirements to get accepted were really very high. Even though Raven and her brother had almost a 100% chance of being born with a crystallized soul due to both of their parents being fairly skilled spiritualists, crystallization was an inherited trait which meant that with normal parents the likelihood of being born with this feature was close to none existent.

Of the four million inhabitants of Sky Empire, only 40,000 would have the potential to become spiritualist during their life-times. To then be able to form a spirit core before the age of nine almost always required access to a spirit hall that would allow the first spirit connection to form early. This reduced the pool to roughly 20,000 people. Statistically, at any given moment, less than 2,000 of these would be between the ages of five and nine. To have nearly 900 children with their cores formed present at the same time was already more than usual. Still, only ten were likely to be accepted.

"We will test the children in groups of a hundred. Let the first group come in."

The doors to the side of the stage swung open and the hundred children swarmed in, but Raven quickly noticed that her brother was not among them. Elder Kagu watched as the children formed ten neat rows.

"Remember, use of any Divine Skill is strictly forbidden." He looked sternly at the youths on stage. Raven could clearly feel him using spirit essence to apply increased mental pressure on the group. Many swallowed and started sweating under this pressure.

"Don't resist." The elderly man shouted and thousands of small orbs of light streamed out of the Elder, swirling swiftly around the children before splitting up and surging into the waiting participants. The spectators could see how every child now had one hundred small dots of light spread out over their bodies, clearly visible through both skin and clothing. The whole ordeal was quite beautiful to watch actually.

"You have five minutes, starting... now!"

On Elder Kagu's mark every child on stage closed their eyes, focusing on the foreign spirit essence within them. As they did, some the dots started moving slowly, clearly under the influence of the children. Soon the first sparks of light were forced out of their hosts. Once outside, the small orbs started circulating around the child it had come from.

As the minutes passed, more and more light filled the stage, but as the five minute mark came, none had reached the thirty-orbs limit. Elder Kagu stopped the exam by simply retracting all orbs back to himself and then asking the children to leave the stage and take a seat in the audience instead. While the failed children walked of the stage, their faces filled with regret, the next group walked in and once more formed ten neat rows.

This process was repeated once more before the first pass came; in the third group a pair of identical twins managed to both expel 33 orbs and thus earning a place at the academy. From the balcony to their left Raven heard a content chuckle.

"Good, very good!"

It was Lord Griffin that had spoken, and looking back at the two twins Raven could clearly see the family resemblance.

'First pass and with margins... Good for them.' Raven smiled slightly behind her veil. Being the first to pass any exam would always leave a good impression. Naturally the prefecture lord would be extra happy for the luck of his heirs.

Raven turned her attention back to the stage. Four more groups came and went, each producing one successful applicant, resulting in a total of six passes as the eighth group was asked to take the stage. Most had just barely passed but one applicant had amazed the crowds by removing an impressive 35 spirit orbs. To Raven's dismay she had recognized the boy as her eldest cousin Dunlin, son of aunt Anhinga.

If his mother was annoying to deal with, Dunlin was a virtual pest. He was one month older than Hoatzin and he was spoiled to the core. He lived under the impression that everyone either adored him or was too ignorant to know better. Raven hoped that someone, anyone, would preform better than him. At least that would be a thorn in his otherwise rosy life. But as the eighth group filled the stage Raven abandoned her current train of thoughts.

Because at the very front of this group stood a very familiar face, Hoatzin.