Chapter 7 Summary

## **Draw**

Hadith tells Tau to see Uduak. Tau brushes this off, and goes to training. He beats Chinedu easily, and then takes on Hadith and Yaw at the same time. Tau wins, but Jayyed calls the fight a draw before it truly ends. Tau is in shock, and Jayyed and Hadith laugh. Hadith convinces Tau to see Uduak.

## **Brothers**

Tau visits Uduak, who confesses that he hadn’t been beaten since he was a child. Once he grew he was even capable of beating a Petty Noble as a kid. Uduak admits that Tau is the strongest among them now, and Uduak thanks Tau for coming to visit.

## **Pain**

Scale Jayyed is sent to a training fight at the Crags. Uduak is too injured to join, so morale is low. Hadith works to lift the men’s spirits, and is assigned inkokeli for that and for his skill with military strategy. They have a skirmish (training battle) with the Indlovu. Tau starts to take out two Indlovu, but an Enervator takes him and the other fighters to the demon world. The Enervator held the souls in the world for too long, and she and some of the men are mentally broken.

## **Skirmish**

Tau fights an inkokeli named Zesiro. Tau breaks his fingers and knocks him out. They finish the rest of the Indlovu, and win their match.

## **Legend**

The men of Scale Jayyed celebrate at a tavern, and Yaw recounts the story of Tau’s strength and prowess on the battlefield. Tau, feeling bashful, talks with Jayyed and leaves the tavern and stumbles across Zuri.

## **Gifts**

Zuri is happy to see Tau and tells him to hold her. He does and they talk. As they discuss skirmishes, things start to go poorly because of their new difference in rank/caste. The change the topic, and Tau asks about enervation and Kellan Okar. She tells Tau that Kellan Okar is in Scale Osa, and she explains that enervation drags people’s souls into Isihogo, and then tells Tau of the history of the Omehi and the Cull.

The Goddess Ananthi created everything, and gave the different races of men different gifts to commune with her, but Ukufa grew jealous of her, and turned many races of people against the Goddess. However, the Omehi stayed loyal to the Goddess Ananthi. Ananthi created Isihogo from her body and its energy to be a prison hold Ukufa and his demons. However, before the Goddess could finish the prison, Ukufa drew as much energy as he could from Uhmlaba (the mortal realm). This caused all the races of men to lose their immortality, terrifying them. Some called to Ukufa for help, and Ukufa offered immortality in exchange for their souls and service. These people became the Cull.

## **Breathe**

Zuri explains enervation, and says that, “Everyone can enter Isihogo, but the corrupted, the demons, attack all living souls, seeking vengeance for their imprisonment. They can do no physical harm, so long as the soul they seek to destroy does not draw energy from Isihogo. Drawing energy from the underworld makes you corporeal there.”

She goes on to explain that the Gifted are able to shroud their souls from the demons. So, they are able to draw energy from Isihogo without getting hurt because the demons cannot see them as long as their shroud is intact. However, if their shroud fails, then demons can kill them. This is what causes "demon death".

So, Tau learns that he can go to Isihogo on his own, and has Zuri teach him how to go into and out of Isihogo-- anyone can enter via meditation, and can exit by either exhaling or dying while they are in Isihogo.

## **Demon**

Zuri and Tau go to Isihogo. Tau tries to fight the demons, but fails. He dies in Isihogo, and returns to Uhmbala. Zuri yells at him, concerned, but helps him up.

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