NOVEL SIMPLE 25. Vitality
The bath had been refreshing and Aloe felt alive anew. Though the water made her aware of her hunger. Now that she actually had towels, Aloe dried herself and went to the kitchen. There she grabbed a cauldron, dived into the oasis (a spot far away from where she had bathed), and lit up the hearth.
She didn’t intend to make a fancy meal, far from that. Her intention was to drop some of the beans and jerky into the cauldron and call it a stew.
“Hmm, maybe I could use some of the black seeds to give it taste.” But once she opened the jar, Aloe remembered that there weren’t many. She sighed and left them apart; they were better in the greenhouse’s parterres than her stomach.
As Aloe waited for the water to boil, her eyes were directed to Karaim’s cultivation technique. The diary rested on the desk, she had taken it out at some point, but her memory from yesterday’s night was blurry.
Her fingers lay on the cover, today was the day.
Today she would use Evolution.
“I’ve talked enough about the Aloe Veritas and the Na’mul Ter’nar, now I want to focus on the first evolved plant I made.” Aloe liked how the page was developing. “First I need to clarify some points. When applying vital energy to seeds, you will not always get an evolved plant. Evolution isn’t a straightforward art. Most times you’ll end up with a healthier, maybe fast-growing plant, but not an evolved one. And besides, it wasn’t until the discovery of the Aloe Veritas that I knew what evolved plants actually were.”
“Hmm...” Aloe scratched her left cheek. “It’s not good. You are now stating that there’s a failure chance...” Nonetheless, she continued reading. For what her situation respected, she was now trapped in the greenhouse for a month.
“The first plant I evolved is quite literally the most basic of all: grass. I don’t know if it’s because of the simplicity of the plant, but the grass was the first plant I managed to evolve. Its effects are rather minimal, but considering how much grass one is able to grow, quantity surely overcomes quality in this aspect.”
Aloe was left dumbfounded, eyes open like plates, as she read the next line.
“All the grass in the oasis has been substituted by Cure Grass, its evolution.”
The girl jumped from her chair, grabbed the jar with dried Aloe Veritas leaves, and rushed for the oasis.
“He must be joking,” Aloe muttered under her breath. “It’s just normal grass!”
But that didn’t stop her from carefully grabbing a leaf, albeit she wanted to waste it by identifying herself, and rubbed the cut section on the first blade of grass she saw.
The ink spots on the Aloe Veritas began wobbling, letters rapidly forming. And they read:
Species: Cure Grass
Sobriquet: Munchers
Description: An evolved member of the Poaceae family, a species known for its ability to grow virtually anywhere and restore vitality upon consumption.
Alignment: Life
“Impossible...” The words left Aloe’s mouth short of a whisper. “It’s really not grass.” She had trouble believing it, so she kneeled on the grass patch. “There must be a distinction, any difference!”
Her eyes were scarce centimeters away from the blades as she inspected them. They truly looked like normal grass. The blades were far brighter than those in Sadina, but she had attributed that to the oasis and the uncontrolled growth, not some weird magic. But...
“Are they a bit blue?” It wasn’t much, it may as well be a light trick made by the reflection or the sun, but the blades of Cure Grass seemed to have a faint blue shade to them.
With a sigh, Aloe went back home. It was surprising that she had been sitting in a pile of evolved plants but the grass itself didn’t look anything special. She returned to reading the cultivation technique.
The next section was the same text that the Aloe Veritas had shown her, once more, the text was perfectly identical.
“Now that you’ve become acquainted with the concept of vital arts and evolved plants, it is time for you to learn how to use vital energy.” The phrase excited her. “Oh, that reminds me that the Aloe Veritas technically calls vital energy ‘vitality’. I discovered that it was the same concept once I ate some of the Cure Grass.”
“You did what?” Aloe was at a loss for words. The old man was utterly senile.
“The sobriquet was what gave the idea. The veritas calls it ‘munchers’ so I tried to munch the Cure Grass, and surprisingly, it worked.”
“Surprisingly, he says.” She continued reading.
“Whilst the taste isn’t the best, it did partially restore my energy. I have also found that it works for headaches, though the quantities needed to chew are far too much to consider it useful. Every blade contains an infinitesimal amount of vital energy. Or, I should say, vitality. Now, as for the usage of Evolution, you first need to be able to sense your vitality.”
Aloe didn’t know why, but she didn’t like that wording. Vital energy seemed more appropriate.
“It was very difficult for me, taking me years, but I had no mentor to help me, so I hope my instructions will be more than enough.”
“Heavens, I hope so. I don’t have years.” Aloe was getting more and more remorseful of her hotheadedness. She should have read all the cultivation technique before rushing to the greenhouse.
“First, get naked.”
It took Aloe all her willpower to not through the book out of the window.
She took a few breaths. Maybe more than she would have liked to admit but continued reading.
“It is incredibly difficult to sense vitality for the first time. I have heard really awful things to unlock this ability, either involving virgin blood baths, drug ecstasy until you no longer feel you are alive, or orgies. I cannot confirm these methods works, except for the latter. That does work.”
The deadpan on Aloe’s face was worth of legends.
She, much to her lament, continued reading.
“The main idea behind my unlocking method is the deprivation of life and meditation. You need to stand in the desert without any clothes shielding you as the light and heat assaults you. This is dangerous.”
“Yeah, no fucking shit.” Her voice had shed any pretense by now.
“But it will bring you slightly closer to death. You have to do this whilst holding a seed, any seed will work, in your hands. During the whole session, you need to only focus on the seed, on its vitality. Once dehydration starts kicking in, you should feel its vitality. That is why I also recommend not having eaten or drunk in a while, as then there will be more pressure in your body to succeed.”
Aloe was at a total loss of words. What Karaim asked her to do was simple, albeit demeaning, and slightly lethal.
“Modesty or magic?” It was a rather tough choice, but ultimately, Aloe caved in. Evolution was the whole reason she had come back to the greenhouse.
Taking note of the last sentence, she checked the water on the hearth. It would still take a while to boil, but not enough to do whatever Karaim wanted her to do. She carefully removed part of the wood and closed the door to the hearth. The reduced fuel would mean she would have more time.
And then, regretfully, she took her clothes off.
Somehow, she felt even more ashamed than the first time she bathed in the oasis. That time was about necessity, but this... it felt like she was exposing herself gratuitously.
As for the seed, she checked in the storage closet and found Cure Grass seeds. Karaim didn’t state any type of seeds, but considering Cure Grass apparently held more vitality than normal, this should make it easier to detect the vitality. Or so she wanted to believe.
Aloe stepped to the outside, hot sand met her feet in a scorching greeting. She didn’t step back because she knew it was going to get worse.
Painfully, she walked into the desert. Away from the oasis, the house and the other buildings, and any other signs of life. She hid behind a dune, so she couldn’t even see the oasis.
“I hope this works because if not, I’m going to resurrect Karaim just to kill him again.” And then she sat on the sand.
Instantly, she felt the scorching sand burn her thighs and buttocks.
Aloe bit her underlip, her skin would be sore tomorrow and probably longer. The sun already began focusing on her as her back started to burn.
“Let’s begin.” Aloe’s words were charged with pain, dread, and shame; her eyes showed likewise.
