Plague is in two states at once. I cannot define it anymore. --76.7 Seconds Post-Integration.

  Another day, another dollar: [Direct Deposit Now Available: +180 Standard Credits].

  With that latest check, his balance now held at over three-hundred credits. An incredible sum to have sitting in his account. Another few days, and he should have enough to pay, in full, the month's land grant balance. But with that kind of money, he could also go Dandy shopping, even look into buying some enhancements for his dorm!

  Not that he had the time to worry about shopping and bills.

  Earlier, after some studying and Interior scouting, he signed up for a League tutorial happening later that afternoon. Like every tutorial, if he passed, he would be granted a new rank. Though he hadn't yet encountered a mandatory League session during his normal working hours, he wanted to be as prepared as possible for when it did pop up. Besides, with him having already decided he wanted to grind the League's rankings as quickly as possible, it wouldn't behoove him to dawdle.

  With lunch in his belly, Clark got himself down to the League's training stadium. He wondered what the goal would be this time.

  Salsa was already waiting for them when the recruits filed their way into the stadium. They had a serious look on his face.

  The trainer cleared their throat, calling for silence. "I bet you all are wondering why I look so grave."

  A murmur spread among the recruits, though only for a moment. Salsa continued: "Is it because the crusade to retake the executive lounge has hit a snag? Or perhaps my downcast look has to do with something from my personal life? Both are good guesses, but both are wrong. I have this serious look because," Salsa paused. When he resumed speaking, his tone was wholly different, much brighter. "I know how to Generate!"

  No one knew what he was talking about.

  Salsa's look lightened greatly, showing everyone that his deadpan look was only an act. "Generation," he said in his normal, typical register. "Is the bread-and-butter alms of the League. It is not a combat skill, but it is just as important, if not more important. What is Generation? Simple. It is the restoration of mana through the body's natural means. Generation is what will grant you graces when your aura flags. And before you start bemoaning how you don't have much aura, therefore, this is irrelevant to you, no, it's not! As I look at everyone here, I see no one which doesn't have a Small Grade aura. I reckon a couple of you might, with a lot of practice, already be capable of using magic naturally -- though to be clear on that front, unless you have authorization from the Green Guild, you will be promptly arrested. What I mean is that all of you are at a stage where you must start considering how you manage your mana and aura."

  The notion his aura was 'sufficient' in some way surprised Clark. Salsa said he thought a couple of them might be able to use magics naturally. Did Salsa mean him?

  "'What is this Generation?' I hear you saying. It is similar to meditation. The biggest difference is that you are focusing less on your thoughts and more on the presence of your aura. This is all abstract, so let's dive into the actual content of today's tutorial. Everyone, sit down. Or lie down. What's important is your spine's straight."

  Clark sat with his legs crossed. He straightened his back. He knew where this was going; his parents had taught him meditation techniques.

  "Follow along to my voice. We will begin with our eyes open. Breathe in deeply through your nose and hold your breath until I say release."

  The recruits did so.

  "Now, release."

  The recruits released their breath.

  "Continue to breath in through your nose and holding your breathe prior to releasing. Now, we move on to the next element. Our thoughts. To generate effectively, and to sense of aura, we must keep our minds clear. Obviously, this is easier said than done. If you are anything like me, your head runs roughshod a mile a minute. So, how to we clear our minds? We don't... our effort in Generation, in this meditative practice, is not to 'clear our minds of thoughts.' It is the opposite, in fact. We want to acknowledge our thoughts before we send them on their way. If those thoughts return? We simply acknowledge them once more before again sending them on their way, and then we return to our meditative practice." Salsa spoke clearly and loudly. His tone was gentle but direct. Like a father who learned how to control his temper for the sake of his children.

  Clark had no trouble following along.

  "Our thoughts can be troublesome. They can cause distress, anxiety, depression, more. Meditative practice cannot cure these thoughts from ever happening, but with repeated usage, you can become mindful of those thoughts and how they relate and effect you. Everyone. Please, close your eyes, and return to your normal breathing. Continue to acknowledge and send on their way your thoughts. Normal breathing -- in and out."

  Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

  After some minutes of this gentle breathing, Salsa continued his guided meditation. "Sometimes, our head can be like a child's clattering toy. We might think at times that we can use the clatter to deaden the clatter, somehow use it to our advantage and control the clatter. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Meditative Generation is about working with your mind through the practice of mindfulness. Acknowledge your thoughts, then return to the object of your focus, in this case, our breathing."

  More minutes of quiet passed. Clark followed along to Salsa's guidance like a pro. Their remarks were startingly similar to his parents' philosophy.

  Clark breathed in, then out; if a stray thought came and continued for more than a few seconds -- which happened often -- he simply acknowledged that thought, then dismissed it, returning his focus to his breathing. Simple as the exercise could be, it changed his life when his parents first taught him.

  "Open your eyes."

  Clark opened his eyes. Salsa sat before them, legs crossed. He looked peaceful.

  "How do you feel? Hopefully, a touch less intense, with a mind at least a little less cluttered -- maybe? If not, that is fine. Meditative Generation is a practice. Receiving its full benefits takes time. It will require you to practice every day. But that is only half of the struggle. We've explored a brief overview of the 'meditative' aspect of Generation, but not the actual generation bit. So, let's get to that now. Touch your aura. Don't think about it, just do it. Look at your hand. Do you see?"

  He was not the only person who gasped when he looked at his arm and saw a wispy thin material evaporating from his skin. "Is that my aura?!"

  "It is okay if you don't see anything. It only means you must practice more. And practice is as easy as, well, sitting down, controlling your breathing, and acknowledging your thoughts. For those of you who do not see your aura, please continue to focus on this core exercise. Guided tutorials are on the League website. You may continue to follow along throughout the duration of this tutorial or return to your accommodations and focus in silence there. If you cannot see your aura, you will not be able to pass this tutorial, so the choice is up to you."

  Several people got up to leave. Clark was giddy at seeing his own aura for the first time to give those who left much attention other than more people got up to leave than he figured.

  "Now, for those who remain and can see your aura," Salsa continued. "Place your hands on your knees. Bend your heads in accordance with your position -- tilt down if you're sitting or lean up if you are lying down. Whatever you do, you must be in a position to see at least a small part of your body so you can glimpse your aura. Good. Now that everyone can see a bit of their bodies, we will bring to our mental forefront the notion of our auras as the focal point of our mindfulness practice. Close your eyes. Visualize the aura in your mind, grasp it with your mentality, shape it by imagining its ebb and flow."

  It was difficult for him, but Clark managed to do what Salsa wanted. He visualized the airy coat which he had seen around his hand, then... he felt it.

  The feeling of his aura was not like touching his fingers together. It was not like any skin-on-skin contact. To him, it was akin to feeling those moments in his head where the fluctuations of his brain caused moments of light-headed happiness or numbed depression. He could feel it, sense its presence, but not in as tangible a way as his corporal body.

  "Grasp it..." he recalled Salsa's instructions. "Meld it with your mental eye."

  He imagined his mental eye as having hands, perhaps psychological hands. These hands touched his aura, massaged it, even. He didn't know how exactly his aura responded to his probing, but he felt it shift, felt its shape change in response to his probing massage.

  Salsa's voice again broke through the crowd as well as his overthinking. "It is okay to feel lost. It is okay to feel like you don't know what is going on with your aura. It is even fine to feel like this might be a waste of time. This is only the beginning."

  The recruits continued 'massaging' their auras. Though Clark hadn't a clue where he stood on the whole 'whether it was a waste of time or if he was doing well' question, he felt relaxed while he visualized and kept focused on his aura. When Salsa stopped the tutorial, he felt letdown, as he only had just started to get into it when the guided meditation ended.

  "Is that all...?" Surely, there had to be more.

  Not even realizing Salsa had heard him, as he had mostly muttered to himself, Salsa replied, "Yes, Clark. There is much more. But that and the techniques within are the topics for another day. Needless to say, you passed." More loudly so all the recruits could hear, Salsa announced, "Everyone passes. I had a good look at all of your as you meditated. No one here displayed low-rung mentality." Salsa made some dashing movements on his tablet. Moments later, a System notification came.

  [Congratulations! You've Earned a League Promotion! Rank W Achieved!]

  "Heck on some shet, yeah!" was his response. Well earned, in his opinion.

  Salsa dismissed the group. Although Salsa did not ask him to stay behind this time, he lingered a while after the others departed.

  "Can I help you, young man?" Salsa asked him.

  "I was curious if you could speak more about the advanced meditative techniques? My parents taught me meditation when I was little, and I plan on integrating my daily practice with this Generation stuff. I feel if you took the time to explain, I would accelerate my progress immensely."

  Salsa gave him a look over as though he were an item at an auction. "You're more advanced than your peers. I can see that much. I don't think now is the right time for teach you more than the elementary form of Generation. If you are so advanced, come back when you can mold your aura into a unique shape. Until then, we no longer have business on this topic."

  It wasn't the response he hoped for but it was what he got. Salsa excused himself, saying he had another session to prepare for, so Clark left.

  "That was a letdown," he cooed to himself back in his dorm. "But I guess that just means I have a new goal..."

  Clark sat on the floor, his back to the wall. He took a deep breath and started another meditation session.