Aimless Ascension

"Gale," Imani called, "show him the mark."

"Yes." I got out of my trance and uncovered my left wrist, getting closer to the resting figure. I held it closer to his eyesight.

A'caen squinted to see as Imani brought a magical lamp to help. I held my hand like that until he was satisfied with his scrutiny.

Then they started discussing between themselves again.

Finally, I couldn't take it anymore and butt into their conversation.

"What's he saying?" I asked Imani, who seemed to understand the native tongue of this realm pretty well. Well, better than me for sure.

Instead of answering my question, she asked a question of her own. "Has there been any change in your wrist?"

I shook my head. "Nothing other than it healing up."

Imani squinted her eyes and delivered the answer to A'caen.

"What is he saying?" I repeated my question. I really didn't want them to get back to their discussion without me again.

Imani exchanged a look and got confirmation from A'caen. She sighed and opened up about what they were discussing.

"He believes that to be a fate mark," Imani said, "even though Uncle Philips said otherwise."

My mind churned in excitement as I heard her. Of course, I barely understood the term, but it did sound cool.

"Okay," I said, putting a check on my excitement. "What does that mean, exactly?"

Imani looked at me carefully, as if wondering whether she should impart the knowledge or not.

"Jah ho," A'caen urged her.

I didn't know much about the native tongue, but I understood that much. I meant "to continue" or "do it".

"As the name suggests," Imani said in a neutral voice, "you have been marked by fate. To your death, that mark will be with you. In normal circumstances, it would have given you an edge over others in cultivating magical power, however, under the circumstances, we were now, not so much. Truth be told, you shouldn't hold too much hope."

I frowned. Not going to argue about hope, but I have other questions of my own. "Is there any specific reason I got this mark to his understanding?"

Imani worked as the mediator to deliver my thoughts across to A'caen. The burned man answered the question as Imani delivered it back to me.

"There could be various reasons," she said. "Fusion of Fate locks is the most prominent, but he's absolutely sure you haven't fused with one. The other reasons were more ambiguous. For example, some special people are born with such marks, some at birth, some manifested in later years. Some divine manifestations could be the cause of this too, or getting in contact with something of higher dimension.

"As you're off earth and had no special circumstances, he feared you're not of the latter case either."

"Then what?" I asked.

"He wasn't sure," Imani answered. "There are too many mysteries about fate marks and fate locks to give an absolutely certain answer."

"Maybe a dumb question," I asked, easing my frown. "What are fate locks again?"

Imani turned to A'caen, unsure of what answer to give me. She got the answer and delivered it to me in one sentence. "Magical tools that enable you to have magical power."

"Like how Joseph can draw fire out of thin air?"

"Exactly," Imani said.

The frown returned to my brows. "So he mentioned this isn't a fate mark from a fate lock," I asked. "Does that mean it won't give any magical property?"

"It certainly will do something," Imani translated, "but it can be something highly useless, or something you'll never be able to release."

"Why?" As I asked, I understood the answer. The slave collar. But I appreciated her long explanation she delivered.

"No matter, fate lock, fate marks or other magical properties, all need an energy source to act. Vital energy is the lifeblood of Fatebearer. Without it, nothing will work. And with this slave collar strapped to your neck, you'll never be able to release even a wisp of vital energy, even if you have them."

I begged to differ, but I wasn't sure if it was the right time to drop the information about that mysterious girl who healed me. For all that mattered, they would probably think I'm just spouting nonsense or already lost it, as I'm pretty sure even with all their resources they won't be able to find her unless she decided to open herself to their scrutiny.

"What's a fatebearer?" I asked.

"Someone who's marked by fate."

"So, essentially, someone like me?" I pointed towards myself.

Imani exchanged a look with A'caen and pursed her lips. She or the A'cean didn't consider me as one.

I swallowed my breath and thought about it. I practically have nothing to consider myself as a magical fatebearer. I did have the fate mark, but I have no idea how I got it. Maybe due to the intervention of some higher power.

Anyway, the important thing right now was understanding why the A'caen called me here. I was sure it wasn't just for some discussion. And the other important thing was. . .

I stopped my thought process and focused on the burned man. He was a capable man and had been a magic practitioner. A powerful one at that. The slave collar left him powerless to use his vital energy again, however, he should have his knowledge about that stuff intact.

He should be able to answer my question, right?

"I have a question of my own," I asked, trying my luck. Finding them not rejecting, I continued: "How do I find inner peace?"

Imani looked at me with concern, while A'caen was wrapped in bandages for me to notice anything.

"Why?" Imani asked, furrowing her brows.

"Um, because I'm worried about my mental state?" I tried to give some answers. "Because I don't want to go insane?"

Imani narrowed her eyes and turned to A'caen who said something in his language. Imani blinked at his words and turned to me again.

"Are you trying to find ways to cultivate vital energy?"