"Let's see what you can do so far." Yahni stood in front of him. "Stand and be as calm as possible. Soothe your mind, your heart and calm the ripples of your soul."

She placed her hands on Tsugi's back and he did as she instructed.

When her energy touched Tsugi's, she immediately felt overwhelmed, like she was enveloped in complete darkness, smothered and weighed down. She felt the many open pathways inside his energy, opened portals to another dimension.

Loud whispers and wails came through them. She quickly cast her energy into them and forced them to close one by one. After closing the last one she finally pulled back and opened her eyes.

"I...I can't believe it." She gasped. She looked at Tsugi with dismay. What had this poor boy gone through in the little time she last saw him? She closed all those doors back then too, but here they are, wide open again. She was surprised that nothing had come through yet.

"What?" Tsugi opened his eyes.

"What happened in the short amount of time since we last saw each other?"

"I went through training with my father over the summer. Why?"

"How...how many times since then?" She mumbled. "How many times have you been brought to near death since then?"

"I don't know." Tsugi shut his eyes, he didn't want to remember.

"You've...you've gotten so much stronger in that short time span. That means it's been countless times. I wouldn't be surprised if the darkness is already searching for you. You can try to control it and it'll dim the light a little to prevent them from finding you sooner, but you should be careful Young Master Tsugi. If this keeps going, they will find you."

"So what can I even do with this magic?"

"Since this is dark magic you absorbed from the underworld, it's very similar to that of a grim reaper. Instead of delivering souls like them, you can summon them."

"Like a necromancer? I can summon demons and monsters?!" The sound of a necromancer sounded scary, but intriguing at the same time, to be able to summon an army to fight his father for him.

"Not exactly. Souls are not stable in this world. If you summon them as souls, they will slowly get weaker and soon perish. Nothing gets destroyed, but the soul will have to return and it will take millennia for it to recover, so you will not be able to summon them anymore. What you can do is, you can materialize them. The stronger the connection you have, the stronger it will be."

"How do I do that?"

"You can materialize them with your energy. That's why if you have a strong connection, your energy with the object will be stronger. With that said though, be careful when you summon them, it's like fanning that flame and flickering it making it easier for the darkness to find you.

Even if there were multiple flames but out of all of them, if there is only one that is flickering, that one will be the one that draws their attention. So be careful not to summon it too much. While you have it summoned, that light will become more erratic than usual."

"What happens if they find me?"

"They will try to consume and possess you. You will still be conscious and witness the horror they will wreak upon those you love. The angrier you get, the stronger they get. They will do anything to feed off your negative energy. If that happens, you will live in torture forever. Don't ever let it get to that point."

It wasn't like Tsugi had much to care about anyways. Right now, all he could think about was how he could use this power to kill his father. Whatever happens after that, he could care less right now.

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"Tell me how." He strengthened his resolve to move forward no matter the cost.

"Just like how you can sooth our energy to be calm, you can form it into shapes. You can form anything you want with just the energy, but it won't be as strong as if you have a strong connection to it. Let's practice by imagining something small like a quill." She placed a quill in front of Tsugi. "Memorize this quill, the shape, the size, each individual feather, the smell...the more detail, the better. Then try to make a replica of it with your energy."

"But I thought you said, the more I use it, the more erratic the flame will get. Wouldn't they be able to find me faster if I keep doing this?"

"I'll never do that to you, Young Master Tsugi. We are using just the energy you have right now, we are not opening that door to pull a soul through."

Tsugi picked up the quill and studied it, memorizing every detail, smell and taste. Closing his eyes, he could faintly see the dark aura surrounding his body. He pulled out a piece and shaped it little by little, building the hollow shaft to the individual barbs that form the vane.

Once satisfied, he opened his eyes and looked at his hand. It was a sad shadowy blob of a quill, but he thought it was pretty good for his first try.

"Not bad, Young Master Tsugi. Now, to put it away, you just relax, like how you would calm your energy and it'll go back."

When Tsugi relaxed, the shadowy blob dissipated.

"You're a quick learner. Keep practicing and you'll get better. When you get the chance, try to practice with all kinds of objects. Make sure to keep practicing meditation too. It will naturally shape your aura into a calm manner and it will get easier to control."

"Thank you Yahni." Tsugi smiled brightly at her, ecstatic from learning a new skill. "Is it possible to have more than one magic affinity?"

"I have heard that there were a few that had two different magic affinities, but it's very rare."

"Is it possible to have them all?" He could only hope.

"I'm pretty sure, but I haven't heard of anyone that has all of them."

"Could it be developed later on though?"

"I'm not sure. Like I said, I haven't met anyone that has multiple affinities. I've only heard of them."

"Could you check and see if I have any others?" Tsugi said with a hopeful smile.

"Of course. It's not going to hurt. Come sit."

She placed her hands and Tsugi's back and they both meditated. Yahni strained as she searched and searched.

Tsugi sat patiently, it was like he could feel Yahni poking around like she was searching a house for something, moving things aside, and lifting things. After a long while, Yahni put her hands down.

"I'm not sure, but it almost seemed like I felt a little earth magic. It's very small though."

"Can't I build it though?"

"Yes you can, but it won't be as easy as the massive amount of dark energy you already have."

"It's okay, I will work on it." Tsugi was determined. "That means I can do healing magic right?"

"If you are able to build it up, yes." She smiled.

"Were there any others?" His eyes widened with anticipation.

Yahni shook her head. "No, I''m sorry, that was the only one I could find."

"It's okay. I'm happy to even have one, let alone two!" He jumped up excitedly. "Do you have a magic affinity?"

"I have earth."

"So you can heal?"

"Mhm!" She smiled.

"Mother's been healing you every time we pull you from that metal pole on the hill." Ryna said.

"Thank you for your hospitality Yahni. I will work on building it up. When I am able to build enough earth magic, can you teach me how to heal?"

"Of course Young Master Tsugi." She smiled. "Oh and Young Master Tsugi, a word of advice, if you find yourself in a dark place that you should not be, leave immediately and make sure to close every door you go through so nothing can follow you."

He didn't know what she was talking about, but he simply nodded. Maybe, when it happens he will understand what she was talking about.

"Thanks again Yahni! I have to head back before my father finds out I'm missing." He hugged them and left. He picked up leaves and small twigs from the forest. "These will be simple enough to practice for now." He smiled and ran happily through the forest and over the dead hill to the castle.

He calmed his racing heart and started to engrave every single detail of everything into his mind, from the smell of the walls down to the last speck of dust. He refused for death to find him before he could kill his father. He hardened his resolve as he worked his way back down to the training room.

He knew that this was only the beginning of his fathers game. He must always be ready.