It was late March, so it was a little less than five years. Niko went over. A thin woman with dreadlocks smiled at him. “I don’t need a massage. Can I just sit for a second? I need to cycle.”
Saying that word, “cycle,” brought back a world of emotions. Niko had to clear his throat.
The woman took it in stride. “Sure, guy. Take as long as you need.” She motioned to a colorful carpet three feet long and two feet wide.
He sat down cross-legged on the mat and got into position. He’d lost all his flexibility, so he couldn’t get his legs on top of his feet. He put his hands in his lap, his fingers on his left hand resting on the palm of his right. His thumbs were close to touching but he made sure they didn’t. That was part of the cycling process. He focused on his breathing and tried to clear his mind, but that wasn’t going to happen. His emotions bucked like a horse.
He thought of a high school teacher who had made his class read a section of The Pranad, based upon an ancient Hindu text called the Katha Upanishad. The sacred Battle Artist book said the body was like the chariot while the horses were the senses and the reins were the mind. The driver was the intellect. The master of the entire chariot was the piece of the divine inside him. Some called it the Self, but others called it prana.
He tried to keep his mind in the moment. He tried to do one round of the Duodecim, starting with the Sanguine Battle Sign, and he counted his breaths to twelve. He wasn’t even at six and his mind started to wander.
He wasn’t going to be able to cycle his prana like he had when he was fighting every weekend in the junior academic leagues. No, his core of energy was sluggish, partially frozen, and woefully out of shape. It was like when he’d first started, but even then, in first grade, at his local Arena, he’d had the excitement of youth, and dreams, such dreams. Life was a magical adventure where the Arts did seem like magic, and Artists were the greatest superheroes. They did important things in the anime he’d watched. It was all so exciting, and the promise was there, the promise as big as life itself.
The promise had ended with Taylor Sebastian, and his senior year in high school.
Niko knew he wasn’t going to be able to get around the memories, the regrets, the worst decisions of his life, and the worst nights. His concentration crumbled away as the emotions swept through him.
He stood up abruptly.
The woman with dreadlocks had a customer lying on her table, but she gave him a kind look. Her hands glowed a silver color, and that light leaked into the man through his clothes. She gave him a slight nod.
He nodded back.
Niko walked out of the stall. He wasn’t much to look at, a little under six feet tall, a strong if slightly soft fame, a normal twenty-three-old guy with dark hair and muddy green eyes. A light stubble shadowed his jawline, which wasn’t as strong as it used to be. Living and working near a noodle house gave him too easy access to too many carbs.
Yet, he knew that little bit of focus had woken up his core.
He drifted to a wall, leaned against it, and closed his eyes. Before the memories of Taylor had wiped away his concentration, he’d managed to get a little energy up into his fists and it was flowing through him, but it wasn’t the feeling of power, speed, and strength he’d known before. It was there, though. It was enough. He was limited to his First Study technique, his offensive ability. He’d take a couple on the chin, throw a nice series of punches, and then this Stan Howling would knock him down to the tiles.
Niko didn’t mind physical pain. It was better than emotional torture. He’d take a beating and then get on with his life. However, Maddy owed him big.
Teddy came over to Niko’s place on the wall and grabbed his shoulder. “Okay, Niko, I’ve been talking to people. Stan Howling isn’t that tough. I think you might be able to take him.”
Leave it to Teddy Martinez to complicate everything with his dumb, misplaced optimism.
Click here to continue reading Sages of the Underpass.
Books by Shadow Alley Press
LitRPG
Rogue Dungeon: The Rogue Dungeon Series (Book 1)
Civil War: The Rogue Dungeon Series (Book 2)
Troll Nation: The Rogue Dungeon Series (Book 3)
Viridian Gate Online (LitRPG)
Viridian Gate Online: Cataclysm (Book 1)
Viridian Gate Online: Crimson Alliance (Book 2)
Viridian Gate Online: The Jade Lord (Book 3)
Viridian Gate Online: Imperial Legion (Book 4)
Viridian Gate Online: The Lich Priest (Book 5)
Viridian Gate Online: Doom Forge (Book 6)
Viridian Gate Online: Side Quests (Anthology)
Viridian Gate Online: The Artificer (Imperial Initiative 1)
Viridian Gate Online: Nomad Soul (The Illusionist Book 1)
Viridian Gate Online: Dead Man’s Tide (The Illusionist Book 2)
Viridian Gate Online: Inquisitor’s Foil (The Illusionist Book 3)
Viridian Gate Online: Firebrand (The Firebrand Book 1)
Viridian Gate Online: Embers of Rebellion (The Firebrand Book 2)
Viridian Gate Online: Path of the Blood Phoenix (The Firebrand Book 3)
Viridian Gate Online: Vindication (The Alchemic Weaponeer Book 1)
Viridian Gate Online: Absolution (The Alchemic Weaponeer Book 2)
Wuxia
Darkening Skies (Path of the Thunderbird Book 1)
Stone Soul (Path of the Thunderbird Book 2)
Hollow Core (School of Sword and Serpents Book 1)
Eclipse Core (School of Sword and Serpents Book 2)
Sages of the Underpass (Battle Artists Book 1)
Urban Fantasy
Strange Magic (Yancy Lazarus Episode One)
Cold Hearted (Yancy Lazarus Episode Two)
Flashback: Siren Song (Yancy Lazarus Episode 2.5)
Wendigo Rising (Yancy Lazarus Episode Three)
Flashback: The Morrigan (Yancy Lazarus Episode 3.5)
Savage Prophet (Yancy Lazarus Episode Four)
Brimstone Blues: A Yancy Lazarus Novel
MudMan (A Lazarus World Novel)
Two-Faced: Legend of the Treesinger (Book 1)
Soul Game: Legend of the Treesinger (Book 2)
Post-apocalyptic
Armageddon
