Still a Seeker: Book 2 in the Warrior/Healer Series

By Zai Fox

Veenad's seeking has helped motivate the Boda community to start a warrior/healer school. The influx of students brings on its own complications. There are groups that try to assassinate anyone who starts demonstrating warrior/healer abilities. There are also other groups that try to hold these students down to protect their positions.

But just as the warrior/healer school starts to gain momentum a war reaches the region's southern border. The developing warrior/healers become crucial to protecting the region. In addition, there are all kinds of complexities since the characters of their allies are often greatly flawed.

So while the warrior/healers and their allies are outnumbered, their emphases on developing abilities to fight and to heal are able to impact the outcome of the conflicts. But their impact is never as much as they would like.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Apr 26, 2007
• ISBN: 9780595882908

Zai Fox

Dale R. ?Zai? Fox goes by the nickname Zai. Zai has been developing his abilities for healing and defense for quite a few years. He prefers philosophies that work to combine the qualities of a warrior and healer as complements. His warrior/healer website is at www.esaitu.net.

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Copyright © 2007 by Dale R. Fox

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, places, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

ISBN-13: 978-0-595-43970-6 (pbk)

ISBN-13: 978-0-595-88290-8 (ebk)

ISBN-10: 0-595-43970-5 (pbk)

ISBN-10: 0-595-88290-0 (ebk)

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Contents

CHAPTER 1

NEWCOMERS

CHAPTER 2

THREATS

CHAPTER 3

BELONGING

CHAPTER 4

HARVEST

CHAPTER 5

COMPLEXITIES

CHAPTER 6

MEET AND GREET

CHAPTER 7

BONDING

CHAPTER 8

PRIMITIVES

CHAPTER 9

REVELATIONS

CHAPTER 10

BLITZENVAAN

CHAPTER 11

INTERMEZZO

CHAPTER 12

PERFORMANCE

CHAPTER 13

MUD

CHAPTER 14

DHAARM’S WAY

CHAPTER 15

SUBTERFUGE

CHAPTER 16

LOWLANDS

CHAPTER 17

PAIN

CHAPTER 18

KARMA

CHAPTER 19

ENTRAPMENT

CHAPTER 20

BRIDGES

CHAPTER 21

BARGAINS

CHAPTER 22

SURPRISES

CHAPTER 23

RESOLUTIONS

Main or Named Characters

Pronunciation Guide

CHAPTER 1  

NEWCOMERS

Veenad has decided to walk into Boda this afternoon rather than ride. Walking gives him a chance to think. He has gotten so involved in teaching the newcomers at Our Mait’s in addition to his drone bee duties that he barely has any time for himself. Veenad figures he is now about 17 solars of age. He’s starting to think about moving out of Our Mait’s beehive and finding a place more on his own. He’s mentioned this to Fig who just sort of shrugs his shoulders when asked what he thinks.

The expansion at Our Mait’s has pretty much been completed and 6 new students have come from nearby towns. Veenad has also heard there are a few girls that really want to be digging more into warrior/healer studies at Our Mait’s but there are quite a few reasons why this hasn’t happened. People have also been talking about a few teens that would like to be attending but their families don’t have enough money to support it. There are ongoing discussions about how to resolve these sorts of things.

Veenad finds himself teaching a variety of classes that focus on things like marksmanship, healing with plants and herbs, defense and healing, anatomy of people and other animals and horsemanship. People accept that there are more knowledgeable experts. But at least these students as well as several other people accept that Veenad’s implementations tend to be much more skilled than others even though these others frequently have more accumulated knowledge and experience. Everyone that acknowledges Veenad’s enhanced expertise attributes it to Veenad’s dedication towards becoming ever more a golden ruler. At least these new warrior/healer students want to delve into these sorts of things more and more.

But as Veenad is walking into town he notices someone he’s never seen around before. From the looks of him it seems he’s likely from the southern coastal cities of Tient or Clin. He’s got the ruddy darkened skin that comes from being in the southern sun. But Veenad also notices the guy seems to be almost in a daze in some sort of strange way he’s not seen before. He thinks to himself, "That guy looks like he’s on some sort of intoxicating medicine." So Veenad decides to peer deeper and try to read this guy’s spirit. He gets a bit of a shock when he notices it looks like this guy has got some sort of external spirit reaching inside his back and particularly into his head and fairly crazed and violentish heart. It gives Veenad a shiver to realize this guy really looks like he’s given his soul over to Natas like nothing Veenad has ever seen before in Boda! This guy is almost a zomboid in his core. Though, he has a thick layer of illusionary spirit that surrounds his core to give other people much better impressions. Veenad decides to quickly do what he has to do and get back to Our Mait’s so he can talk with Fig and Beenad.

When Veenad gets back to Our Mait’s, he quickly finds both Fig and Beenad. Veenad tells them about what he just saw. Both Fig and Beenad agree as Beenad says, Go talk to Jerrad. Tell him what you just saw. He’s likely got the most sense about these sorts of things. Fig adds, I don’t think I’d panic, but you should ride back into town and see where you can find him. Veenad realizes this makes a lot of sense.

It took both Fig and Veenad some time to realize that Jerrad has taken his name to emphasize his interests in Our Mait’s practical views and uses for developing one’s rads, the whorls of spirit that interconnect the different depths and seem to be the source of one’s abilities. Veenad has always felt a bit sheepish around Jerrad. Many people say, Jerrad’s spirit can be like an almost icy fire. He’s cool and hot at the same time, particularly when he gets riled. Veenad has also heard people say things like, Jerrad’s not into seeing himself in a clear mirror like you are, but he’s really into seeing things as clearly as he can. Though, he seems to be a bit distant to some. But almost everyone is real happy to have him as the head constable. Both Fig and Veenad eventually found out that Jerrad has been one of the strongest arguers that they should be treated much better.

So Veenad saddles up Cyrano, who he now calls his lovable tykester. Though, Veenad says he should probably spell it tykestir. As he’s riding into Boda he thinks about how Jerrad looks at least ten solars younger than his mate Jewel.

Veenad understands that this has happened because Jerrad works pretty hard to not be a hypocrite when it comes to dealing with others based on their age. Jerrad seems to pretty much treat everyone with a certain sort of distance and respect. Just as Veenad is riding up to the constabulary to try and find out where Jerrad is he thinks about how much people respect Jerrad’s carving and woodworking skills. The town council actually put Jerrad in charge of designing and managing the construction of the covered boardwalks on Main Street. People from out of town say it’s a sort of awe inspiring naturalistic woodworking, particularly the supports and trim that make use of parts of trees that can’t be used for lumber.

Veenad feels pretty relieved when he sees Jerrad in the back talking with Zrend, another constable. He waits near the front until he can get a reasonable chance to interrupt, Jerrad, it will just take a few ceptons, but I really want to tell you about someone I saw today on the street. Jerrad smiles and Zrend walks out saying, You got good timing because we’re both about to head home for the night. Veenad isn’t sure he wants to talk about his perceptions in front of Zrend, but he decides it’s best to at least take the chance.

So Veenad relates his experience today and finds that both of them listen pretty intently. Jerrad laughs and says, Sounds like you’re describing what some people say is how Our Mait described the spirit of someone who’s pretty much given their self over to possession by Natas and his mean spirits. Zrend also laughs and says, I’d be a lot more skeptical, but it really sounds like you’ve never heard any stories about Our Mait’s descriptions and really have seen this for yourself. Veenad smiles and feels at least a bit less tightly wound up now that they’ve heard his experience. Jerrad adds, There’s really not much else we can do at present other than watch out for this guy and make sure at least all the constables are aware he’s around. If you or your buddies notice anything particularly strange going on with this guy make sure to let us know real fast. But there are likely no real reasons to panic or chase after him or stir up the situation.

Veenad leaves pretty quickly as it is just getting dark. He decides to walk with Cyrano back to Our Mait’s. When he gets back he finds Fig sitting in their hive and tells him how Jerrad and Zrend reacted to his story. Fig says, It seems we really are getting more respect around here. Then Fig adds, I know I’m going to keep an eye out for this guy. I’m sure Hannel, Beenad and at least the warrior/ healer students will make sure they keep alert. Veenad says, I don’t think I’m ready to say anything to the Patinar right now. He’s usually ready to dismiss most perceptions as distortions unless their his own. Then Veenad thinks for a few ceptons and says, I just couldn’t get any sense of why this guy is all the way up here in Boda all by himself. His zomboidness really makes his spirit tougher to read in a lot of ways. Fig just smiles and says, Well, it really is likely to just blow past with almost no one else even noticing. But you definitely got to wonder why anyone would be way up here in Boda, particularly if they are from the southern coast. With this talked through they both go off to other things.

CHAPTER 2  

THREATS

Most everyone has agreed that Veenad should consolidate much of what he is teaching in a single class and call it Defense and Healing. At present, Veenad is teaching this class outdoors on a large patch of grass by the corrals. Everyone in the class is still pretty new to Our Mait’s. Veenad tells the group, I want us to do some talking before we get started with our workout. Since we’re all still pretty new you should make sure and say your name when you start talking. Then Veenad continues after a slight pause, I sometimes find it difficult to figure out exactly what it means to be a golden ruler in particular situations. But it seems to me that everyone would have others try to decrease the dominance and violence in all their interactions and make sure they are being understood. So I try to always figure out ways where I can make sure interactions don’t escalate into something more confrontational or violent. Then Veenad thinks for a cepton before going on, Some people claim the prophets told us to always be non-violent. But this really doesn’t make any sense to me. I am not going to let a gang of thieves rob Our Mait’s and beat up the Patinar if I can help prevent it. If a teen is beating up on a little child, I am going to try to stop it. I think it is wrong to do nothing. But it really seems to me that we need to make sure we are seeing all situations from as many angles as we can and trying to make sure everyone is being treated fairly.

One of the teens in the class speaks up, Hi everyone. My name is Vroos. He then looks more at Veenad and says, I understand this is why we make so much effort to learn to do things like wrist locks, joint locks, limb locks and throws. I especially like being able to block someone’s punches and make the blocks hurt the limbs of the attacker. Vroos pauses and thinks and then continues, But I get frustrated that I am putting so much effort into compensating for someone else’s selfishness. A lot of the time I’d like to just punch someone in the face if they are trying to punch me in the face and end it right away. Veenad smiles and says, I think that sometimes we really do need to treat things as quid pro quo. People need to know that we are very capable of doing unto them what they are trying to do unto us if we can’t come up with something better. But I really try to dimin things as much as I can without making me or others too vulnerable to someone who’s trying to be overpowering. But I also try to make sure I dilin things so that everyone involved feels like they are getting to represent themselves. Veenad continues, It seems to me that this is why we try to practice out situations so that we will respond automatically in ways that dimin as much as reasonable. I think practicing with others also gives us the chance to improve our strategies and try to figure out better ones.

Vroos replies, I guess I really do understand why Our Mait seems to really have said that we need to get our efforts to be a golden ruler to go through and through us so that when we react without thinking we can still be trusted by Elohim and the guardian spirits even in the most challenging situations. But I really don’t think this is easy. I’m getting more and more comfortable with seeing my true impulses and urges in trying situations and assessing them. I’ve definitely been brought up more in ways where we are just supposed to obey and not question. Though, it really hasn’t been as bad as this sounds. Everyone else sort of chuckles in agreement.

Veenad replies, It seems to me that everyone does a lot of replaying things out in their mind after they happen. It seems we all get these sorts of urges all the time. I try to make sure when I’m replaying things through in my mind I’m really trying to figure out ways where I could have done better as a golden ruler. Veenad continues, Fortunately, it’s been my experience that as we get more and more of a reputation for trying to be a golden ruler and represent and protect ourselves and others, most others become less and less inclined to try and intimidate or dominate. Almost everyone in Boda was never all that bad. But I’ve noticed that I get a lot more respect even when I travel to neighboring towns these days.

Another teen in the group says, Hi, my name is Kyl. It’s spelled with a y, and it’s got the long y sound, but there is no e on the end. I’m from Duur. One of the reasons my dad was real happy to have me come up here is because we’ve got some gangs in our town that get away with way too much. He’s almost ready to move up here to Boda even though he says it would mean starting over. He hopes that Duur can soon get a troupe of constables like you have here in Boda. This is the biggest reason that me and Kraffe are coming here.

Another guy interjects, My name is Wend and I’m also from Duur and I know what you’re talking about. My dad has to keep hired hands around for additional protection. Though, it’s definitely not as bad as it is in the cities on the coast. Wend continues, My dad always says trying to dilin things while involving everyone as much as you can to come up with approaches that win for everybody is real important for good business. But it’s real hard to do even when people will get more money from it. Everyone chuckles with a bit of an air of frustration at the truth of what Wend just said.

Veenad interjects, But what I keep finding is that as I get better at healing and defending I’m able to continually improve my abilities to dilin and dimin. Some people say I’m too motivated. But I really think it’s important. Two other teens start talking at the same time essentially saying, You got to be constant when trying to be a golden ruler. Then one of them continues by himself, I like people to call me Felid because I so much like big cats like Cougars and Panthras. Then Felid pauses for a cepton before saying, One of my teachers always used to say, ‘If you aren’t working hard to dilin, then you are jumping to conclusions. If you aren’t working hard to dimin then you are jumping to contusions’. Everyone chuckles and then Felid says directly to Veenad, It seems to me that we all expect others to be evaluating themselves whenever we don’t like something they’re doing. I’m definitely not anywhere near as constant at self evaluating as you seem to be. But it’s great to hear some of the stories about what has happened with you and see how it really does seem to make a difference if we strive to be a golden ruler and see ourselves and everyone in a clear mirror.

Veenad says, I’d like to keep talking a lot more, but we really should be practicing some throws and rolls. Remember to try and keep your movements as simple as you can. Try to get more from less effort and make use of the energy and flow of your attacker and redirect it. So the members of the group pair off and spread out so that they can take turns practicing both throws and rolls and defending from pretty obvious attacks. Veenad shouts over the group for a bit saying, Eventually I want everyone to learn to say the medical names for the particular body parts they are grabbing when they do a throw. For starters we need to learn both the muscles and the bones. But this will take some time. Then Veenad continues, It seems to me you also need to become more and more aware of what sorts of motions each body part can make and can’t make because these are real important for figuring out how to improve your locks and throws. Even as Veenad is talking the group