D&D: RotP - Prelude - One More Night
Afali’s eyes shot wide open with fear as she held in her breath. For the long minute afterward, she stayed still as the scenes in her mind gradually faded into a blur - the same blur she forced it into each time it occurred, attempting to forget it all over and over again.
But sometimes even that wasn’t enough. Sometimes there was nothing to forget other than the dread of an already forgotten dream or snapping awake to the shattered remnants of one she could swear was at the tip of her tongue.
A small groan escaped from the weary ex-sleeper as she rubbed the bridge of her nose before slowly sitting up in her cot. At first when she had been sent to the monastery of the Eighty Empresses^1 it was a non-issue, one not worth bringing up those years ago when she was awaiting her shot at entering the trial and joining the ranks of the swordsages. After sitting in the hall for a month (just enjoying her surroundings) and then being granted her crimson scarf after passing the trial, the forms of meditation she was taught usually gave her enough peace of mind to forcefully lock away the troublesome night phases - that or her busy training schedule would leave her too tired to dream at least.
Despite her attempts, however, the problem never fully left her. Finally there came a time where she was confronted about her distracted mind. Her Shadow Hand mentor, Phinel Delavia, appeared without word in the meditation hall and tapped Afali on the shoulder, motioning for the student to stand and exit toward the less public and less silenced hallways of the premises.
Quietly, the student followed the Shadow Hand practitioner out of the room, accustomed to her teacher’s occasional shift with the shadows of torchlight to meld with the darkness.
“Another night in meditation?” the teacher said more than asked, stopping at vacant section of hallway. When Afali didn’t look like she’d respond, Phinel continued. “You know, even a few of your peers have commented that you've seemed... troubled from time to time.”
The student looked up at her mentor, knowing it was just her polite way of bringing up the subject of her nightmares. She considered how long Phinel, Maju (her Desert Wind mentor), and the other instructors must have conversed over the issue. If Phinel came to speak with her privately, they must have talked about it recently. It would not surprise her if they all probably had known even before the incident with her classmate Kal'in though that incident probably confirmed any of their doubts. Once Kal’in had found out Afali had been having nightmares for years (since she was a young adult), Kal’in had continued to razz her about it out of earshot from most others until Afali had an off day and snapped. A duel had broken out between the two students which had taken three teachers and an older student to break them up and put out the fires. That had not been the end of her troubles with Kal’in. Those only ended when the slightly older student had moved on from the monastery to find a higher skilled mentor.
Afali just nodded silently.
“Maybe it’s time you search outside the walls for an answer to your troubles. We are skilled in many things here, but that of heath and dreams are better studied by others than ourselves here,” Phinel said calmly. “As we’ve taught you what we can here, it was only too soon that you would be given leave to study elsewhere.” She patted Afali’s shoulder and looked to a nearby window. “Hopefully, your path will lead you to relief.”
“So do I, Mentor Phinel. So do I,” Afali said, taking in a large breath to clear her head.
But sometimes even that wasn’t enough. Sometimes there was nothing to forget other than the dread of an already forgotten dream or snapping awake to the shattered remnants of one she could swear was at the tip of her tongue.
A small groan escaped from the weary ex-sleeper as she rubbed the bridge of her nose before slowly sitting up in her cot. At first when she had been sent to the monastery of the Eighty Empresses^1 it was a non-issue, one not worth bringing up those years ago when she was awaiting her shot at entering the trial and joining the ranks of the swordsages. After sitting in the hall for a month (just enjoying her surroundings) and then being granted her crimson scarf after passing the trial, the forms of meditation she was taught usually gave her enough peace of mind to forcefully lock away the troublesome night phases - that or her busy training schedule would leave her too tired to dream at least.
Despite her attempts, however, the problem never fully left her. Finally there came a time where she was confronted about her distracted mind. Her Shadow Hand mentor, Phinel Delavia, appeared without word in the meditation hall and tapped Afali on the shoulder, motioning for the student to stand and exit toward the less public and less silenced hallways of the premises.
Quietly, the student followed the Shadow Hand practitioner out of the room, accustomed to her teacher’s occasional shift with the shadows of torchlight to meld with the darkness.
“Another night in meditation?” the teacher said more than asked, stopping at vacant section of hallway. When Afali didn’t look like she’d respond, Phinel continued. “You know, even a few of your peers have commented that you've seemed... troubled from time to time.”
The student looked up at her mentor, knowing it was just her polite way of bringing up the subject of her nightmares. She considered how long Phinel, Maju (her Desert Wind mentor), and the other instructors must have conversed over the issue. If Phinel came to speak with her privately, they must have talked about it recently. It would not surprise her if they all probably had known even before the incident with her classmate Kal'in though that incident probably confirmed any of their doubts. Once Kal’in had found out Afali had been having nightmares for years (since she was a young adult), Kal’in had continued to razz her about it out of earshot from most others until Afali had an off day and snapped. A duel had broken out between the two students which had taken three teachers and an older student to break them up and put out the fires. That had not been the end of her troubles with Kal’in. Those only ended when the slightly older student had moved on from the monastery to find a higher skilled mentor.
Afali just nodded silently.
“Maybe it’s time you search outside the walls for an answer to your troubles. We are skilled in many things here, but that of heath and dreams are better studied by others than ourselves here,” Phinel said calmly. “As we’ve taught you what we can here, it was only too soon that you would be given leave to study elsewhere.” She patted Afali’s shoulder and looked to a nearby window. “Hopefully, your path will lead you to relief.”
“So do I, Mentor Phinel. So do I,” Afali said, taking in a large breath to clear her head.