That same night, long after most have gone to the land of dreams, Tercius sat on the edge of his bed, his breathing laboured, as his heart hammered inside his chest.
That never get easier, no matter how many times I do it. he thought.
The last hour of his time was spent on breaking more of those chains that surrounded the wisp that now made its home inside of his skill. He got attached to the little fellow as the years went by, naming him Flu, a silly name he came up from shortening the word fluorescent. The name was short and it fitted the rarely moving, sickly looking, light emitting wisp perfectly.
And it can fly, so… Tercius was quite satisfied with his naming sense.
The little guy was probably a being of instinct, over the years showing nothing that could make Tercius suspect that it had even a modicum of intelligence. It stayed with him and only reacted when Tercius tried to break more of those chains, and by doing so releasing more Energy for his skills to use.
There were two things that bothered him about this whole thing with the wisps, the first being that no matter how much of the chains he ripped apart, it still grew back, and at a quite visible rate. It just took one day for the chain to grow back to its previous length, no matter how much he destroyed. It got to the point where he knew that he made no progress at all in liberating this small being and he was getting a bit angry over it. One thing he never did was quit. The Energy for the repair has to come from somewhere. he thought. I just hope I am not draining the little guy. He hoped that if that was the case then Flu would leave of his own accord.
The second thing that made him pull his hair in frustration was that he was now as close to figuring out what these wisps were as he was when he started. He never found any mention of them in the books, not even a remote resemblance to what he had experienced. Either no one other than him knew, which while possible was not statistically probable, or that someone kept it a secret tightly guarded, and his gut was nudging him that this was the case.
Once he got over that initial rush when he left that skill world, as he called it, and got the rampaging Energy under a firm grip, he moulded it into something usable. The Energy passed through his body with no obstacles using arteries and veins and capillaries and after over twenty minutes of careful weaving he had a ball made of tightly packed strands that he kept inside the centre of his torso. pooled just between his lungs. The reason he weaved instead of just pooling it into one mass, was because he learned from experience that if he used weaving first, and then made the mass, then degradation of its form was over three times slower than if he skipped the weaving.
With that over he went on to Mana Manipulation, using his skill to extend his influence over the Mana that drifted all over his body. Suddenly his brain had another limb to use. Much like over a numb arm, his control over it was slow at first, then it got more responsive by each second that he used it. Much like Energy, Mana followed a set of pathways that existed all over his body. These maneries, maneins and manpillaries, as he liked to call them, were a matching set that intertwined itself around blood ways and went from organ to organ making a similar system to the circulatory one.
Tercius could only see the arteries and veins with his Energy Sight, right as the Energy passes through them, but it was safe to assume that the whole circulatory system was in use, only that he had no way to see it until his skill improved, the same thing applying for his Mana vessels.
As far as he could tell, the brain was where Mana originated, because the concentration there was the highest and when he moved the Mana to other parts of his body, the brain was where he could visibly observe new Mana come into being. How? Why? were the question that still waited for answers. But even knowing the questions was a progress he felt deserved a small pat on the back.
His eyes flashed like a cats when he used Mana Sight to observe visually what he was doing to the Mana inside. Without Mana Sight, progress with Mana Manipulation would go much slower, because the skill itself just gave the ability to do it, and each level you just got a bit better at it, but all you had was a feeling as the Mana made its way around your body. When he tried to push it out of himself, as soon as it left his skin, he lost control over it. With Mana Sight he could actually keep track of what he was doing.
Tercius was woken from his musings by a sharp sound of something made of metal screeching against the wall that was right behinds his back. His parents bedroom was on the other side. When he turned his head over for a look, he did it with his Mana Sight still in use, and he saw three outlines of Mana behind the wall. Two were on the bed, near each other, while the third stood at the foot of the bed.
That third outline produced in him a gut twisting sensation that sent cold tingles up his spine.
He knew every signature of his family members and this was not one of theirs.
He saw that the outline was moving its arms around while his parents were slowly in the process of getting out of the bed. His breath held he just observed, he sat on his bed frozen, his body afraid of doing any sudden movements. There’s a wall between you, you idiot. he chastised himself. And with that the momentary paralysis was over, but now he knew he had to do something.
But what?
When someone breaks into your home this late at night it’s not for social purposes, you idiot. came a reply.
In that instant his brain went over what he was capable and any sort of physical attack on his part would be something that his parents, especially his father could do. He only had the element of surprise on his side. Then it hit him. But I have something else too. Focusing his attention at what was happening in the room next to his, he saw that all three were in a standing position, his parents huddled together, while the invader stood in the middle of the room one of his arms extended, pointing straight at his parents.
That scene made him hurry up a bit. He ran like the wind to his door, stopping to gently open them. As soon as he was able to slip in the crack without touching anything, he did, leaving the door as it was. Glancing behind him he saw everyone in the same positions as they were before and he sped up, his feet bare, leaving tippy-tappy noises as he went by, but the walls and any door, not to mention the distance, were enough for the sound not to reach his parents bedroom.
Down the stairs, he went left to the dining room and made his way to the kitchen.
Tercius raised his head directly up and saw that the man was making his way to his parents, a step, a pause, a step again. His parents moved back, the outline of his father moving in front of his mothers, standing right in the path of the invader.
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Hurry up you idiot! he screamed at himself for his momentary distraction. You are losing precious time.
He ran to the stove, then putting his left leg in the opening where wood went he climbed up on the stove making a small screeching noise as the legs of the stove scratched the stone floor. But he had no choice. He was just over 1,5 meters tall while when they made the house the ceiling was 2,6 from the floor. He didn’t know how high the stove exactly was, but it was at least a meter tall, and that came close enough for his plan. His nails managed to scratch the surface of the ceiling and he briefly glanced up, to observed where everyone was.
The intruder was coming his way.
It's now or never. he thought.
He jumped and when his hands touched the ceiling he used Stone Shaping to dig in his fingers deep, letting the skill go the same instant he felt his fingers pass through.
A pain made its way down his arms, but he gritted his teeth and pushed back, using Stone Shaping with his left hand while the rest of his body hung from just four fingers of his right, and he almost screamed in that moment where he pulled himself up.
His left hand slipped in deeper, the ceiling passing his wrist where he stopped using his skill on his left and turned his attention to his right. It was now easier to stay this way, his left arm strong enough to hold him while he adjusted his right. Releasing a silent scream, he took a deep breath and continued.
Now with both arms up to the wrist in the ceiling, it got so much easier to move. Aren’t you glad you can do this. a snide part of him whispered. Tercius made his way to cross the path of the intruder, hanging from the ceiling like some monkey, as in his mind he grunted Left, right, left… keeping his mind off of the pain that his right hand kept sending down the arm.
Using Stone Sight he saw where his hands were and went upwards, pulling one hand at a time, until he saw that just a small layer of stone covered the tips of his fingers.
His arms were just over the middle of his forearms inside the ceiling as he settled and raised his head, adjusting his vision to see Mana, and observed as the intruder came closer and closer his way, soon to become his prey.
Now! his left arm pierced the floor and grabbed the leg, his right following an instant later, grabbing the other and in that moment losing what held him up, gravity reasserted its control over his mass.
He felt himself falling, and he did not let go of his prey. He screamed in victory when the man’s legs lost the ability to pass through stone, courtesy of his hands, and became stuck right below his knees, if Tercius did his maths right. He saw the outline of the man fall hitting the floor with such force, that the whole ceiling downstairs was shaking. Then screaming from upstairs started and he could feel his grin stretch from ear to ear. Gotcha.
He let go of his pray and fell down, his knees taking the worst of the straight fall. Ouch. he thought. Looking up he saw that he got the feet and a small part above the ankles to come with him. Around the spots where his preys lower legs were, the ceiling had lost the smooth surface it had, the volume of stone his hands and now his preys legs displaced creating bumps and lumps that looked ready to fall off at any moment. Now is not the time to worry for structural integrity.
Running as soon as he could he went for the stairs, only to remember that he wanted to get a knife, and make a sudden U turn to go get it.
***
Tercius burst through the wooden door, making the door crash into the solid stone wall and waking anyone in the vicinity, if the screams of the intruder weren’t enough to do it. Inside he saw his parents standing over a shape in the middle of the room and he ran towards them.
"Hey! You two alright?" he asked as his eyes went over them, looking for any injuries. His father was crouching over the form on the floor, while mother stood there with an unlit candlestick. Both were in their night clothing, a long white shirt that went well over the knees, and if there was any blood he was sure that it would be easily visible.
"Tercius!" his mother went in for a hug as soon as he came close and he returned it with the same ferocity.
"Are you two alright? Mother!" he snapped when the woman would neither answer nor let go of him.
"We are fine Tercius, don’t worry. But we have to help him." his father said. Tercius felt a wave of confusion wash over him. Who is this him?
Then his eyes saw the man whose legs were broken just below the knees, his white bone sprinkled in blood jutting straight out and a pool of blood spreading slowly. Damn. Did I do that? he felt strangely proud of that. The man was screaming even as his father tried to calm him down.
"What?" this man invaded their home, and Tercius saw the sword on the floor near him. It was not his fathers. This man came here with intentions so obvious that Tercius lifted the knife that he brought with him, his eyes looking at the clean edge. Finish what you started, a part of his said. He deserves it.
He felt such rage and anger when he thought about how close he came to losing his parents. He always thought that it would be difficult decision to make, yet now he was not so sure. They are worth it.
"No Tercius! Drop that!" his father saw him and when the man’s eyes saw what Septimus was talking about, they went wide with realisation and he screamed. "NOO!"
"What’s going on?!" his grandparents came rushing in, while his grandfather voice rumbled from the door.
"Ciron, get Tercius!" his father yelled as he tied the man’s leg with a belt. He felt arms wrap around him, and suddenly unable to move he dropped the knife from his hand, the noise from its fall echoing with the screams.
"Don’t worry it will be all right." his father kept repeating to the downed man. "Ciron can you get his legs out?" his father asked frantically.
"First tell me what is going on here? Who is that? And how di..." his grandfather rumbled as he pushed Tercius behind his back.
"He is an intruder, I saw him threaten them with that sword, so I ... oh grandfather I think we will need to fix the floor, it could collapse at any moment." Tercius said, his entire being thirsting for the man to suffer, and saw the already pale man go paper white.
"Leave him there Septimus, let the bastard bleed out, I will go get the Sentinels." his grandfather rumbled and Tercius could feel the peaceful man turn vicious. There were few things that truly bothered his grandfather and threatening the lives of his family was one of them. "So you did this Tercius? Well done, well done indeed."
"Children get away from him, let Ciron go for the Sentinels and I can watch over him. Aurelia and the baby are crying, go to them." his grandmother said and he saw the older woman take the large candlestick out of his mother arms and grip it near the candle end, like one would a bat.
"Listen, you don’t understand..." his mother began speaking to her parents.
"SHUT UP ALL OF YOU! Did you not hear me? Get his legs out of the floor! Now! Damn you Ciron! Do it NOW! This is my brother!" his father roared as he tied the other leg and tightened the rope.
***
It was early morning when Tercius escorted Darina out of their house, the woman tired and curious bade him goodbye. He looked down at his hand where just an hour ago a lot of bruising and swelling made him unable to make any kind of movement. Now he could make a fist with no pain whatsoever. The powers that healers wielded would be his one day, he made a promise.
Last night, after his father finished making a tourniquet for his brother he took grandfather with him, and went to get medical help that his brother needed.
Right now that same brother laid passed out on the bed of his parents, where he and his mother and grandmother moved him after he passed out a few moments after the older men left. The legs were once more whole, with only some pinkish skin left as proof of the fracture.
Tercius did manage to get his mothers side of the story out by the time Darina came. It seems that she was woken up by accident and saw the large man just standing there, putting his index finger to his lips, when she snapped and took the candlestick that was just a hands reach away, and threw it at him. She saw little of what happened then as she immediately went for the other candlestick that was on his father side of bed, while she heard a sound of metal hitting metal and then the candlestick hit the wall. My wall. Tercius thought.
Then Septimus got up and saw what was going on, almost jumping on the man immediately, when the man started talking while he held his sword in front of him.
His mother did not want to tell what they were talking about, but from the way that this brother came he was sure that his father did not part with his previous family on friendly terms. Why would he sneak into our house at night otherwise?
He felt the sleep calling for him, the adrenalin from before spent, yet he did not want to do that just yet. As Tercius looked at the grim faces of his grandparents he knew that his father will have to answer a few questions.
And he wanted to hear those answers.