Jiran sat straight up out of bed, heartbeat pounding in his ears. The dream he just had may have provided the perfect solution.
The last week had been a series of frustrating failures in creating a weapon for Mayalyn. The problem was her mana being trapped in the closed loop system. He had yet to find a method to draw her mana outside her skin. This problem made it impossible for her to manipulate anything he might make with the beast cores.
He knew he was close to a solution, maybe this new idea would finally be the breakthrough he needed.
Jiran clenched his fist in irritation that he could not immediately go test his new idea. Krikk would not be opening the doors to the shop for several more hours.
It’s too early to wake Mayalyn for training or hunting. What should I do?
Classes start tomorrow and I still don’t have any idea what I’m going to teach for my class. I can put off a lesson plan for a few more days while I see what the professors are teaching.
I’ve already planned out what classes I want to take thanks to the information packet Ramora left in the bag of uniforms.
I guess I’ll jot down a few ideas of what I’m comfortable teaching and adjust them later. Prepared and flexible should be a good approach.
An hour into his planning, movement in his aura alerted him to Mayalyn stumbling out of bed. She clutched a pillow to her chest and shuffled randomly around her room, even walking directly into a wall.
Jiran smiled while shaking his head at her ridiculous antics.
That girl doesn’t even pause being troublesome when she’s asleep.
Her stumbling sleepwalk continued until she eventually managed to open her door and enter the hallway. She then headed straight for his room. Jiran’s amusement did not fade as he watched the semi-conscious girl push his door open.
With a smirk and a twinkle in his eye, Jiran got up from his seat and softly padded over to stand in front of her.
Mayalyn breathed in deeply through her nose, completely filling her lungs with his scent as she swayed side to side. Her eyes were closed and her face was completely relaxed. With her lips slightly parted revealing only a hint of pearly white teeth, she was the definition of a sleeping beauty.
Jiran took a brief moment to admire her perfectly smooth skin and alluring features before he reached out and gingerly rubbed one of her perky ears.
Her fur was cool to the touch. The downy-soft exterior and velvety interior were a perfect contrast.
A quiet, whiney moan escaped her lips as Jiran rubbed his pointer finger and thumb in slow circles. He leaned in close so his mouth was nearly touching her fur.
“Mayalyn, get out of my room,” His voice shattered the silence of the night. His tone was flat and he did not raise his voice.
Inside Mayalyn’s sleeping brain, fireworks sparked between her synaptic neurons. The girl woke up instantly with a sharp intake of breath. Her first sight was of Jiran’s toned chest centimeters away from her nose.
Looking up, she found his glowing green eyes boring straight into her. With a mousey shriek, she spun around and ran away from him. Her flight was immediately arrested when her face slammed into the closed door of Jiran’s room.
She frantically pawed at the vile door handle until it released her from the prison of embarrassment she had woken up in. Jiran watched her go with complicated emotions.
I should have rubbed her ears a little longer.
No, Jiran. Bad, Jiran. That’s the hormones talking. Keep it together.
Jiran stood looking at his door until his heart rate calmed. He lightly observed Mayalyn. She was rolling around on her bed, holding her head, and kicking her feet in the air.
He considered continuing his lesson plan but since Mayalyn was awake now and certainly not going back to sleep any time soon, they might as well get the day started.
He tapped her shoulder with his aura. The usual wake-up call for training seemed to help her calm down. With a final scream into her pillow, she stopped thrashing around and then hopped to her feet. She was dressed and ready for the morning within moments.
She didn’t make eye contact once as they ran through the vacant city streets and out into the fields.
Today was Jiran’s turn to carry the sled. Its long straps stretched dangerously against his shoulders as he ran several hundred kilometers per hour across the hilly landscape. Even supporting it with his aura, the strain of their speed was nearly too much for the Density infused materials.
The hard run had done wonders for Mayalyn’s demeanor. By the time they started stretches, she was steady and strong. Flowing through the motions like she had done them for seasons and not just a couple weeks.
She fought him furiously when they sparred, her nails fully extended. She grunted and growled as they exchanged blows at lightning-fast speeds. For the first time since they had begun exercising together, she drew his blood.
Jiran had moved his arm out of the way of her slash, but she had been holding back the full length of her nails and the millimeter of extra distance was enough to reach his skin. A long gash down his forearm bled for less than two seconds before he healed it with a shaping.
“Good hit!” He praised her.
“Thank you,” Came the mumbled reply. Her eyes were downcast and a guilty look marred her features.
“Look, it’s already better,” He tried to show her his healthy unblemished skin but her mood didn’t improve in the slightest.
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“Why don’t we skip the hunt this morning and head to the forge. I had an amazing idea last night that I’m really excited to try on your weapon,” Jiran let his usually constrained exuberance seep into his voice in an attempt to cheer her up.
“Okay.”
Whatever is bothering her, I hope she tells me soon.
Not knowing what else to say, Jiran led the way back to Cruex. One of the guards cheered when he saw their empty sled. Back slapping and good-natured ribbing ensued as he collected his winnings from his fellows.
“I been losing ere’ day for da last week, glad to see even you two can come up empty sometimes!” The winner jeered as he waved them through the gate.
“You’re welcome?” Jiran responded uncertainly, but the guard had already turned back to his fellows and resumed his obnoxious showboating.
The streets were still relatively empty as the two jogged back to the inn. The smells of breakfasts cooking wafted from windows eliciting a growl from both their stomachs. They shared a quick smile before Mayalyn averted her eyes.
If she doesn’t say something soon, I’ll talk to her.
Miila cheerfully bounced to their table as soon as they sat down. Oblivious to the undercurrents of Mayalyn’s mood, she greeted them.
“Good morning, Jiran, Mayalyn! Breakfast today is hornbill eggs and meeskowl gravy. It should be ready shortly. Papa’s back is hurting today so we’re a little behind schedule. I hope you don’t mind the wait.”
“It’s fine Miila, could you bring us something to drink please?”
“Yes, coming right up, Jiran,” she responded to him and then leaned down and whispered in Mayalyn’s ear.
“I heard you two banging around this morning, you better give me all the details later,” Mayalyn’s face turned scarlet as Miila bounced away on the balls of her feet while giggling.
I would have thought Niila would be the gossipy one between the two of them.
A bleary-eyed Niila brought their food a short time later. She didn't appear to even realize who she was setting the food in front of as her sunken eyes stared blankly at the wall.
I wonder what kept her up all night. Probably out chasing frogs or something ridiculous.
“Thanks, Niila,” Her only response to his overly cheerful tone was a grunt as she turned back to the kitchen.
Jiran smiled, then attacked his food with all the exuberance of a starving teenage boy. Whatever was bothering Mayalyn, it wasn’t enough to keep her from devouring the superbly spiced eggs and gravy.
Limber and well-fed, the two made the short journey to the underground forge.
Before he implemented his idea for Mayalyn’s weapon, he needed to test it on himself. He would feel terrible if his idea backfired and hurt her somehow.
Over the last several days she had made several pieces of armor with the cloth and leather purchased in the market. He grabbed two of the cloth chest pieces and placed them on the floor in his section of the room.
After purifying the air with his aura, Jiran created several small layers of graphene.
He took a single three-centimeter long, by one-centimeter wide sheet and rolled it up as tightly as he could using mana, a rolling pin Mayalyn had made, and his aura.
He then bonded the rolled-up, three-centimeter-tall sheet, into a tube so narrow he could have threaded twenty of them through the eye of a needle.
That went better than expected, I might need to make them a little thicker though.
After the first success, Jiran made fifty more of the tall, narrow tubes.
He then grabbed one of the cloth chest pieces and pressed it flat on top of another larger sheet of material.
Carefully, he sprinkled his creations onto the cloth. The layer of material underneath prevented them from dropping through the fabric and getting lost on the floor.
He had to gently shake the cloth back and forth several times before all the cylinders were sticking straight up. He then bonded them to the cloth with mana.
Alright! Let’s give it a go.
It felt exactly as he suspected it would when he grasped the modified portion of the cloth. Being stabbed with fifty, three-centimeter-long needles was never going to feel anything other than distinctly uncomfortable.
He focused on the weakest image of an electrical current he knew would result in a spark. With the image formed, he applied mana but trapped it under his skin. The current smoothly flowed through the needles in his hand and sparked into the dry cloth.
The smell of burnt hair and the now flaming piece of cloth in his hands drew the ire of the goddess of destruction.
“What are you doing! I worked hard on that!” She charged at him but stopped before she made it halfway to his side of the room. She looked between the smoldering shirt and his face before mumbling an apology and going back to her tools.
Jiran sighed and walked over to stand beside her.
“Mayalyn, something is bothering you. Do you want to talk about it?”
“No, I don’t want to talk,” She didn’t turn to look at him, the pain on her face was easy to see through his aura.
“Alright, I want you to know I’m here for you if you change your mind,” Not wanting to push her, Jiran got back to work.
The basic principle works, I was able to use the tubes of graphene as a conductor. The current I formed beneath my skin easily traveled out and through the cloth.
The cloth couldn’t handle the current though, and the leather we have probably wouldn’t fare any better with the amount of mana she has flowing through her. I’ll need material at least one tier higher than she is.
Off to the market then.
“I’m going to head to the market and pick up a few materials for the next experiment. Do you want to come?”
She shook her head no, so Jiran headed out with a wave and a smile.
He used the fast lane, dashing through the now busy streets. The city held a strong buzz of excitement as preparations for the first day of the academy’s year neared a crescendo. The streets that usually had room to spare for extra carts and people were nearly packed.
Several times he had to slow or stop for people and carts laden with goods. The trip to the market, which usually only lasted a few minutes, took nearly an hour. Since flying was technically illegal and he wasn’t in a hurry, Jiran slogged along through the crowds.
The first store he needed was a leatherworker. He purchased several strips of soft, cured, Tier four and five leather, suitable for holding the graphene channels. They needed to be strong enough to not tear, porous enough to be easily pierced by the tubes, and sturdy enough to withstand the intense current he knew would be channeled through them.
Jiran spent nearly an hour examining each piece of leather material until he found the perfect ones. He purchased them impatiently and then rushed back toward the inn.
I probably should buy the rods too. I don’t want to bother Mayalyn while she’s not feeling well and if I make them myself they will be so ugly she won’t want to use them.
He ducked into a weapons vendor on their street and purchased two, half-meter-long tonfas with a spike on the short end. They were made of a delicate-looking silver metal. The shopkeeper assured him they had been infused with Tier five mana and would enhance any attacks channeled through them.
The length of both weapons held an intricate design of a tiger leaping through the air. The small handles would be a perfect fit for Mayalyn’s tiny hands.
With a glance at the sky, he noticed it was afternoon already. He thought about heading back for lunch, but was too excited about finally making something useful, so he continued on to the forge.
When he arrived, Mayalyn was gone.