Hager was careful not to wake the sleeping babe he cradled in his arms as he crossed vast distances to reach his destination. That a man his size could move so quickly or gently, much less while moving at several times the speed of sound, was a testament to the power of a Grandmaster. However, he could ill afford the attention that the sonic booms would attract, so he flexed his Spirit to smooth out any signs of his passing.
In the distance, he spotted his destination, an inconspicuous and dimly lit house located in the middle of a quiet dungeon town. Quickly scanning the house with his Spirit, he found the young-looking couple waiting for him in the living room, a warm plate of cookies by the fireplace. As expected, both of them were at peak Expert rank, perfectly suited to raise this child well without attracting attention. What he hadn’t expected, however, was the Master rank mana beast purring by the dim fire.
Hager arrived through the open window, allowing a slight breeze to form to warn the residents of his arrival. The feline was the first to react, opening its eyes to look at Hager appraisingly, otherwise remaining in place. The prospective parents, Peter and Vivian, took longer to notice his arrival, but swiftly stood up to greet him when they did. The woman fidgeted nervously as she approached while the man merely nodded, letting his wife take the lead.
“You must be Hager, right? Nice to meet you,” said Vivian. Though her words were addressed to him, her eyes were locked in the small bundle in his arms. “This must be Elias.”
She carefully reached out to the bundle, peeling back the layers to reveal a frail, emaciated baby, snoring peacefully. The baby woke up as she tenderly brushed her hands against his face and hair. Rather than crying, Elias hiccuped cutelly and reached out with his own hands to try and catch hers, his eyes bright even in the dim lighting. Hager offered the bundle to Vivian without a word and she finally peeled her eyes off the baby to give him a smile and nod, accepting her son into her arms.
Peter approached his wife from behind to look over her shoulder at his baby boy, a smile blooming on his face. Hager couldn’t help a smile of his own as Vivian made small noises while she rocked the baby back and forth. Looking down, he even saw that the cat had approached unnoticed and was looking curiously at the baby, blinking slowly.
Witnessing this scene, Hager was reassured that this young couple was the right choice for raising little Elias. No matter what Sage Ethan said, there’s no way he would’ve let his late friend’s only son be raised by just anybody. He watched on for a while longer but eventually had to interrupt the two new parents, clearing his throat.
“I believe Ethan has told you everything you need to know, correct?” asked Hager, getting a firm nod from Peter. “Good, good… I’ll leave little Elias in your care then. Please take good care of him, his parents were close friends of mine and good people.”
Having said that, he left without another word, not even a slight breeze to signal his departure. He wished to say more but knew it was unnecessary, and he didn’t trust himself not to grow more emotional. According to the plan he and Sage Ethan concocted, he would only be meeting Elias again when he grew up to be a young man. Even then, only for a small time; they couldn’t afford to allow the wrong people to know of his existence. Either way, Hager resolved himself to keep discreet tabs on Elias to make sure he grew up well.
*******
Elias groggily woke up from his afternoon nap and began to look around the room in confusion. Kitty was right beside him when he’d fallen asleep but she was nowhere to be seen now. It didn’t make any sense! Was she hiding from him? That must be it.
Kitty was a good hunter but he was better, he would find her like he’d done countless times before. Elias resolutely made his way out of bed to search for the cat, or maybe his mom, or his dad. Whichever one was fine.
Elias made his way out of his room slowly, walking just like Kitty did to make as little noise as possible. He quietly closed the door to his room and began making his way to the living room. He kept his ears peeled and his eyes wide open, looking for any signs of, well, anyone. Arriving at the living room, he heard noises coming from the dojo next door, and decided to make his way there next. His dad was usually there.
Arriving at his destination, he spotted Kitty quietly looking inside the dojo as his father trained. He knew not to bother his dad during training, but no one ever said anything about watching, and his dad’s movements were mesmerizing. He quietly approached Kitty and hugged her from behind whispering, “found you”. In response, she looked at him and gave him a short meow, licking his nose once.
For a while, he watched as his father trained, punching and grabbing at the air in a slow and deliberate dance. There was something fascinating about the way his dad moved that he could never put his finger on. It was as if he were looking at precious stones, like the ones in his mom’s jewelry, shiny and flawless. Right as Elias was getting bored and was considering going to look for his mom, Peter stopped his training and looked at him, giving him a wide grin.
“Dad, can you teach me how to fight like you?” Elias asked hopefully, for about the tenth time this week. Peter simply chuckled at the straightforward request, shaking his head in amusement.
“Aren’t you too young to start training? You’re barely four years old,” answered Peter. Seeing Elias’ downcast expression at being denied once again, however, he finally gave in with a sigh. “Tell you what, Eli, I’ll teach you one move, okay? I’ll train you for real whenever you’re able to do this one move perfectly, but you can’t keep asking me to teach you until you succeed. Deal?”
“Deal!”
Elias quickly scrambled up to his feet, afraid that his father would change his mind. One move was better than none! Peter chuckled once more and stepped closer, placing his hands on Elias’ head and ruffling his hair. Elias didn’t even complain.
“Watch closely, alright?” Peter spaced his feet evenly to his sides, placing one hand on his side and the other one in front of him, a palm away from Elias’ eyes. Then, he slowly punched with one hand while bringing the other to his side. When the movement completed, his hand seemed to sparkle with bright iridescent light, which jumped from his fists to brush against Elias’ face.
Elias’ eyes widened in surprise and amazement, his heart leaping in joy as he giggled. The feeling of the pretty lights on his skin was incredible, giving him the impression of beauty and wonder deep within. Unbeknownst to him, his eyes reflected the iridescent light as he rubbed his hands against his face as if to wipe the lights off. Then, imitating his dad’s movements, he punched forwards, doing his best to imbue the feeling of the pretty lights into his punch.
He imagined that he was presenting his dad with a pretty gift, rather than a punch, willing with all his heart for it to be so. He felt like the joy and amazement in his heart was overflowing as his small fist connected with empty air. For the briefest of moments, he saw a twinkle where he punched, like a flickering star in the night sky rather than the light show of moments before.
Elias’ heart leapt in his chest as he looked up at his dad, only to see him staring down at him with his mouth hanging open. He stifled the pride he felt at his accomplishment in favor of asking a more important question.
“This means that I get to learn how to fight, right?”
*******
“Damn it, Peter, he’s only four years old! How could he possibly have attuned to your mana?” Vivian demanded, disbelief etched in her voice.
“I don’t know how, but that’s what happened,” Peter replied, trying to keep his tone steady. “And it wasn’t a full attunement, not really. It was more like he emulated the frequency of the mana with his Spirit—it’s similar to how I trained to become a Spirit Dancer. It was faint too, just barely noticeable.”
Vivian shook her head, still trying to process it, and he understood her incredulity well. He’d never heard of anyone utilizing their Spirit in this manner before obtaining a mana type.
“I think this is related to th–”
“Don’t say it!” she cut him off sharply, eyes flashing as she glared at him–Peter sighed.
“We need to start training him, love. I know he’s young, but he’s showing interest and this is a good thing. We should be thankful something positive is coming out of his… condition.”
“I know,” Vivian whispered, her voice softening, the fight draining out of her. “I just wanted him to have a normal childhood for a little longer.”
“I know,” Peter said gently, pulling her into his arms. “But just because it won’t be normal doesn’t mean it can’t be a happy one.” He could feel the tension in her body slowly easing, and he held her a bit tighter. He knew her worries well–Elias’ frail constitution would taint his childhood with bitterness and frustration and with the System’s restrictions, there was little they could do about it. At least, not until Elias turned eighteen and could start leveling his Vitality. Vivian took a deep breath, regaining her composure.
“I’ll begin looking for a supplier for training supplements, recovery potions, and such. If we’re doing this, then we’re doing it right. If Elias is serious about training, we might be able to raise his Vitality by a level or two. It won’t be much, but it’ll ease the limitations his low Vitality imposes on him,” she said with renewed determination.
“That’s all we can do for now,” Peter agreed. “At least with his apparent talent, we can mold him into a formidable fighter by the time he’s ready to start dungeon delving. When he does manage to improve his Vitality, he’ll be head and shoulders ahead of his peers.”
“You know,” Peter continued, a thoughtful gleam in his eyes, “if I’m right about this, I might be able to start teaching him Spirit Dancing.”
Vivian looked up at him, one eyebrow arched skeptically. Peter couldn't blame her—Spirit Dancing was a complex fighting style, and even the most gifted practitioners took at least a year to complete just the first step in mastering it. Most never accomplished even that.
“And how do you plan to do that?” she asked, curiosity creeping into her tone.
“Well,” Peter began, a sly grin spreading across his face, “he’s already capable of emulating mana types, so it doesn’t matter that he doesn’t have a mana type himself yet. If I’m right about his talent, I might even be able to teach him how to dance to the rhythm of mana before he reaches the Beginner rank. Then, he’ll have all the groundwork in place to become a Spirit Dancer, all that will be left to do is awaken his Spirit. I might even be able to get him to do that before he obtains a mana type. Who knows what kind of advantage that could give him?”
Vivian stared at him, a flicker of hope mingling with the doubt in her eyes. “You really think it can be done?”
“There’s only one way to find out,” Peter said, his grin widening.
*******
“What are you doing, Eli?” Peter asked, looking down at his son, who was sprawled on the floor trying to peek through the gap under the door.
“Can’t I come in already?” Elias asked, flashing his most pleading smile. Peter sighed, shaking his head.
“You can come in, but you’ll have to promise to be quiet. Your mother is very tired,” Peter said sternly.
“Yes!” Elias whispered triumphantly, scrambling to his feet and pumping his fist celebration. Finally noticing his father’s unamused expression, he froze and tried to reign in his excitement. “I promise I’ll be quiet…”
Elias followed his dad into the room he’d been trying to access for hours. There, his mother sat in bed, gently rocking a small pink bundle in her arms with a radiant smile on her face. She turned to regard him with warm eyes as he entered the room, her smile unwavering.
“Eli, come meet your little sister,” she said gently. Those quiet words were deafening to his ears and he hurried to her bedside. He wrapped his arms around her in a quick hug before leaning in, eyes wide with curiosity.
“This is Isabela,” Vivian said, carefully adjusting the bundle to give Elias a better look. As soon as he saw her, he fell in love.
Elias gazed down into big blue eyes that stared back at him, a little tuft of blonde hair already adorning her head. Isabela opened her tiny mouth, letting out a small sound–half burp, half greeting–and Elias’ heart melted. He had an urge to pinch those rosy cheeks, but he remembered his parent’s warnings about how delicate babies were.
Elias slowly extended his hands towards his newborn sister and gently poked her puffy cheeks. She responded with a soft giggle and he grinned back, knowing deep in his heart that this was the start of a special bond. As much as he wanted to keep playing, however, Isabela’s eyelids soon grew heavier and she drifted back to sleep in their mother’s arms.
Elias stayed around for a while longer, content to watch over his sister, but was eventually ushered away by his dad. He didn’t even try to resist, feeling the day’s excitement catch up with him as well. On his way out, he spotted Kitty staring unblinkingly at the sleeping Isabela with an intensity he’d never seen from the cat.
*******
“Are you tired already, Eli? Weren’t you telling Isabela just this morning that you were going to protect her from the monsters of the dungeon? You said you were training to be even stronger than the wild warrior. Wild warriors don’t quit so easily,” mocked the callous brute wearing his mother’s skin.
Elias pumped his small legs even faster than before despite feeling like they were about to melt off his body with how they burned. Using the wild warrior against him in training, his favorite character from the dungeon stories his dad read him, was just the latest and dirtiest strategy his mom employed to make him train harder. It worked too since Elias desperately wished to be like his hero.
The wild warrior was a powerful adventurer and one of the founders of the world government. He became known for his heroic deeds and boisterous nature, with there being many stories told about him over the years. The one Elias loved the most was about the time that he escorted a young girl to a Master rank zone deep within the dungeon so she could finally meet her father, who’d been in a delving expedition for years. Thinking about this story, Elias fantasized about being like his hero and escorting his little sister through the dangers of the dungeon. However, he’d made the mistake of boasting to his sister in front of his mother–a rookie mistake.
According to his mom, it was possible, if incredibly difficult, to raise the level of his Vitality with training and the right potions. Elias honestly wasn’t sure if he believed her anymore; it has been many years since he’d begun training with his parents and he hadn’t seen any such results yet. Of course, he still took his physical training very seriously. Though, it was mostly because his dad refused to train his combat skills until he trained his body to his mom’s satisfaction. She was not easily satisfied.
Despite the fact that his training was typically difficult to begin with, it was particularly harsh today. Vivian was pushing him through the training session with a feverish intensity, to the point he was beginning to worry, and hope. His whole body burned and Elias felt like his heart was about to leap out of his chest. He fought against the will to simply collapse to the floor again, knowing that doing so will only make the training last longer to compensate. He’d been at this for almost an hour already and couldn’t take it anymore, but he no longer had the energy to beg his mom for a break either, so he pushed on.
For what seemed like the tenth time this training session alone, Elias began to feel his body grow numb. It started with his arms and then his legs, and the numbness began to creep into his torso. He collapsed to the floor once again, unable to continue running as his body failed him. His mother was beside him instantly, catching him before he could crash down and shoving the lip of a bottle into his mouth.
Elias drank the icy liquid inside with his mom’s help, savoring the taste of strawberry and sea water. He felt the potion be absorbed by his starving body before it could even reach his stomach. Its refreshing energy spread to the rest of his body, returning feeling to his extremities and soothing the worst out of his aches.
“Did it work?” Vivian asked, looking at her son expectantly, hope in her eyes. Elias was still doing his best to catch his breath, hopefully without vomiting, again. He was about to put in the effort to respond to his mom when he suddenly felt a powerful warmth spread from the base of his spine to the rest of his body. He gasped as a translucent screen filled his vision, informing him of his accomplishment.
Congratulations! Your Vitality is now level 2.
“It worked!” Elias rasped out, a triumphant smile blooming on his face despite his exhaustion. A glance at his mom revealed glistening eyes and a relieved smile, right before she hugged him tightly.
“Good job, Eli! I told you all that effort would pay off,” Vivian said, breaking into a fit of half-laughter half-sobs as she continued to hold him. Then, she let go and bellowed out, “Peter! We did it!”
Before Elias could even blink his father was beside him, appearing out of thin air, not a sound to announce his arrival. His smile was wide and the pride was evident in his eyes as he joined his mom in her celebration.
“Good job, Eli! This is not something easily accomplished, especially in only four years of training. We can focus a bit more on your combat training now, huh. What do you think of that?” Peter asked with an exaggerated wink. Elias just smiled wider, riding the high of his accomplishment. His joy at pulling back from the brutal physical training for a while also couldn’t be understated.
“Now, who wants some ice cream to celebrate?” Vivian asked, poking his ribs affectionately. She waved her hands mysteriously and a large ice-cream bowl suddenly appeared in her hands by magic. It was his favorite flavor too and he practically pounced on it to the amused laughter of his parents. While he dug into his ice-cream, Elias pulled up his changed Status.
Name: Elias Oliveira
Exp: N/A
Rank: N/A
Spirit: 10
Skill: None
(21,000 exp to level)
Wisdom: 7
Skill: None
(15,000 exp to level)
Intelligence: 7
Skill: None
(15,000 exp to level)
Charisma: 5
Skill: None
(11,000 exp to level)
Agility: 6
Skill: None
(13,000 exp to level)
Strength: 4
Skill: None
(9,000 exp to level)
Vitality: 2
Skill: None
(5,000 exp to level)
*******
Elias dodged a punch to his face and pivoted his body to return a punch of his own, only for it to be intercepted by his opponent. He had given up on winning any exchange years ago, hoping only to last as long as possible without making a mistake. At the very least, Elias knew that his opponent wouldn’t be making any, he never did.
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Peter’s movements were refined and graceful, striking and blocking with precision in a steady rhythm. He had once told Elias that in some ways, a fight was like a game of chess, a game of action and reaction. This was the essence of Elias’ combat training, figuring out the right moves to counter his opponents’. It was a lot more fun than punching and kicking empty air repeatedly until he got the technique right; that part hadn’t been as fun at all.
Elias was nearing the five minute mark on their current exchange when he inevitably made a mistake and stepped forward instead of backwards. As a result, Peter simply sidestepped his blow, landing one of his own on Elias’ ribs. Though his father’s strikes were weak, this mistake spiraled into several others, and Elias was soon forced to concede the match with a groan.
“I was so close to the five minute mark,” Elias grumbled, his fists clenched as he looked down in frustration. Peter merely laughed.
“I think you’re missing the point of the exercise, Eli. It’s not about how long you last. I’m far, far stronger than you and I’m holding back when it comes to skill as well. I’m simply fighting with more skill as you improve, and you are improving, even though you might feel like you’re not sometimes,” Peter explained patiently.
“Really?” Elias asked, perking up.
“Of course,” Peter said with a chuckle. “The purpose of this exercise is to teach you to get in the right state of mind during combat. Focus on letting your body flow more and don’t think so much. When you manage to do that, we can move on to the next step of your training. For now, though, we’re getting a visitor for dinner, so we’re done with training for the day. You should go take a shower and get ready.”
Elias obediently left the dojo to take a shower and get ready for dinner. If nothing else, having the dojo right by the house was very convenient. While he got ready, Elias couldn’t help but wonder who was coming to visit; they didn’t get visitors often and his dad would have told him if it were someone he knew.
Elias stepped into the living room and came face to face with a girl who looked to be around his age. She was wearing a lilac dress and her hair was tied up in a tight ponytail, none of it impeding her as she chased Kitty around the room. She startled when she noticed Elias, raising her head to look up at him with large hazel colored eyes.
“Um, hi. I’m Elias,” he said, forcing out a smile. “Who are you?”
“I’m Melinda,” responded the girl before immediately focusing on trying to catch the cat once more.
Elias watched on as Melinda committed her full effort to a fruitless task. He’d once thought he could catch Kitty too; the realization that she’d only let him had bruised his pride. No, he doubted the girl would be getting anywhere close to touching Kitty tonight. At least the cat was being nice enough to humor the girl, though Elias suspected that his parents pressured her into it. She would most definitely be sleeping with Isabela otherwise.
Ever since his little sister was born, she and Kitty have been absolutely inseparable; wherever Isabela went, Kitty followed. He’d overheard his parents talking about them forming a bond or something, but he didn’t really understand what that meant. Thankfully, Kitty still played with him sometimes, though a lot less than she used to.
Elias scanned the room, finding that there were two more adults talking to his parents, which he supposed were Melinda’s parents. Elias walked up to them to say ‘hi’ and introduce himself, like his mom taught him. Before he could say anything, the couple looked at him strangely, as if startled by something. This unexpected reaction made Elias hesitate, but he was thankfully saved by his mom.
“Robert, Lilly, this is our son, Elias,” introduced Vivian. Then, she looked at him kindly and continued, “go on Eli, say hi.”
“Hi,” he said awkwardly, unsure of what was going on.
“Nice to meet you, young man,” Robert said, schooling his expression.
“Nice to meet you,” echoed his wife, Lilly.
Elias looked to his mom, trying to understand what was going on, and most importantly, what he should do; he immediately regretted it. Vivian looked calm and smiled gently, but if there was anything Elias knew, was when his mom was upset. Worse, he spotted a strange sadness in her eyes which he couldn’t quite place. Observant as always, she quickly saw through his uncertainty and waved him off.
“It’s okay, baby. Go play with little Melinda and Kitty, alright?” she said softly.
Elias jumped at the opportunity to leave this awkward situation behind him, quickly making his way over to where Melinda was still failing to catch Kitty. As he walked away, he heard Robert speak again in a low voice, “forgive my rudeness, but is everything alright with your son, Peter? We know some excellent healers we could recommend.”
Despite clearly understanding the futility of his efforts, Elias decided to help Melinda catch Kitty. Even if succeeding was likely impossible, it was still fun to chase the feline. Coordinating with Melinda was also a new experience for Elias, as he wasn’t really used to playing with many kids his age. Soon, however, he was panting and had to give up on the game, leaving Melinda to play with Kitty by herself. The girl frowned and pouted, but decided to take a break as well to keep Elias company.
“Why are you so weak? We’ve only just started playing,” Melinda grumbled, resentment in her tone. “You look weak too, you should eat your veggies. My mom said that it’s important to eat your veggies if you want to grow strong.”
“I’m sorry,” Elias replied, looking down in embarrassment. “I just have a really low level in Vitality…”
“Aren’t your parents trainers? Just ask them to train you so you can get stronger,” said Melinda giggling. Then, she looked around conspiratorially and continued in a whisper, her chest puffing out slightly, “that’s why we’re here, you know? Mom and dad say I’m really talented and could become a famous adventurer, so I’m going to start training already to build up my foundation.”
“That’s not the same thing,” Elias insisted, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “I already train everyday, but it’s really hard to raise attributes without leveling in the dungeon.”
“Oh, don’t be whiny, if you train, you get stronger. That’s how it works, my daddy said so,” Melinda said, now glaring at Elias. “If you’re not growing stronger then you’re not training hard enough.”
Hearing those words made Elias’ vision go red in spots, a new experience to him, all things told. He was used to seeing spots, especially during his physical training with his mom, but this was very different. Elias’ heart tightened in his chest and his breathing came faster, and just as he was about to say something stupid, his dad interrupted them.
“Kids, come have dinner!” Peter yelled from the living room. Melinda got up with a huff, turning her head abruptly to walk away from him. Elias was left alone, fuming in anger. He only began to calm down when Kitty walked by, brushing her fluffy tail against his leg. However, he chose to excuse himself and go to his room instead of eating dinner, no longer hungry.
Over the following days, Melinda visited often for physical training with Vivian and even apologized to Elias for being insensitive during dinner. Elias didn’t feel much sincerity out of her apology but chose to accept it anyways, eager to put this all behind him, feeling like he also overreacted. Watching her training with his mom, however, he couldn’t help but be envious by how relaxed her training was compared to his. She didn’t even have to drink a recovery potion due to overexertion. Despite that, and the fact that Elias has been training hard for years, Melinda’s performance in training was leagues above Elias’ own; his low Vitality simply made him grow tired too quickly.
Elias was glad to finally have someone his age around the house, though, since Isabela was still way too young to really play with him. Kitty also spent most of her time with his little sister since she was born, so he’d been a bit lonely. Melinda filled the spot of a playmate wonderfully and the two of them became good friends as time passed, the friction between them from their first meeting forgotten.
*******
Elias punched, Peter blocked. He kicked, but it was pushed aside. On and on they flowed through a rhythmic cycle of advancing and retreating. They’d done this many times before and it was hardly a challenge anymore. His dad would set a slow rhythm and they would trade blows over and over until he inevitably made a mistake.
Over time, this exercise truly became more dance than fight in Elias’ eyes. It didn’t require the same decision making it used to. The moves and counters were ingrained in his body and mind, allowing him to flow through each motion purely by instinct and muscle memory. Elias could feel himself slip into a trance as they continued exchanging blows, allowing his instincts to take over completely.
It took a long while for Elias to succeed in achieving this state during his training sessions, his movements becoming effortless and his strikes more decisive. In response, his dad stopped holding back as much, letting his own movements flow more freely. However, right as he was getting comfortable with their pace, something changed.
Elias felt like Peter was suddenly dancing to a completely different song, to a different rhythm. He punched forward to arrest his father’s advance, which should have forced him to block or dodge. Instead, his father’s movements were out of sync with his own just enough for the punch miss, failing to connect by a hair’s breadth. Elias’ eyes widened in surprise, but he could do nothing to stop a fist from slipping through his now open guard. Thankfully, his dad stopped his punch right before it connected, an unexpected act of mercy.
“Congratulations, Eli! You’re finally good enough that we can move on to the next steps of your training,” Peter said with a grin.
“Really? Yes!” Elias felt his heart beat faster and his fatigue bleed away in his growing excitement. Finally, after years of begging and pestering his dad, he would find out what the next stage of his training entailed.
“Now, you noticed that I did something differently towards the end of that sparring session, right?” Peter asked, getting a nod of confirmation from Elias. “Well, before I tell you what I did, exactly, I need to explain a few things about how my fighting style works. You feel how we are always moving in a certain rhythm when we fight, right? In our case, it’s a back and forth rhythm, an endless cycle of advancing and retreating. All these years, I have been copying the natural rhythm of wave mana, a tier 2 mana type.”
As he spoke, Peter removed a small blue and white stone from his pocket, glowing a bright blue color that reminded Elias of the waves on a beach. He’d only been to the beach once, when they took a family trip to the ocean a while back, but he’d loved swimming in the ocean, especially because of the waves; they were really fun. Peter offered the magic stone to Elias so he could take a better look.
The surface of the stone was etched with small runes that glowed a bright blue color, but Elias was fascinated by what he could see past those. Up close, it seemed like a wave had been captured within the small stone, its ocean blue and foamy white colors moving in a never ending cycle. Elias could almost hear the wave crashing and smell the salt water, so he put the stone against his ears like he did with conch shells at the beach.
At the edge of his perception, Elias could just barely sense the slow back and forth of waves in the ocean, like a quiet melody he could feel more than hear. He immediately recognized the rhythm of this melody, as he’d been dancing to it with his father for years. Now, for the first time, Elias finally understood why his dad always said that their fighting style was more akin to dancing than fighting. He’d just never been able to listen to the melody they had been dancing to.
“So, we were fighting to the, uh, rhythm, of wave mana, right? Does that mean that you changed the mana rhythm you were dancing to in that last fight?” Elias asked, puzzling out what was going on. Peter smirked in response and began to fish out another stone from his other pocket, this one glowing a yellowish white.
“That’s right, Eli. These are both energy stones obtained from different Journeyman rank monsters and enchanted to emit mana corresponding to the energy they contain. The stone you’re holding emits wave mana, while this one,” Peter said, shaking the new stone in his hands. “Emits wind mana, which is also a tier 2 mana type. Still, you got one important detail wrong; we weren’t dancing to the rhythm of wave mana, I was. All you were doing was following my lead.”
“What? But weren’t we fighting in the same rhythm?” protested Elias, furrowing his brows and crossing his arms in front of his chest, his lips curling back into a pout.
“Yes, but it’s not the same thing, not exactly,” Peter explained with a chuckle. “I was attuning my Spirit to the mana and using that connection to emulate it in my movements. In other words, I was letting the mana guide my movements like a dancer lets a song guide theirs.”
“Oh,” Elias replied, confusion creeping into his tone.
“Don’t worry, Eli, you’ll get there soon enough; you’ll understand the difference then. For now, although you’re not quite ready to learn how to attune your own Spirit to the mana directly, we can finally begin to switch things up a bit. I’ll show you a few different rhythms, other than wave mana, and we’ll dance to them. Just follow my lead like before and when you can switch between different rhythms seamlessly, I’ll show you how to dance to the mana itself.”
Peter walked up to a small cabinet and grabbed a small ornate wooden box, placing it on the floor in front of Elias and gesturing for him to sit. He opened the small box to reveal several engraved energy stones glistening inside, their runes glowing with the color of the mana they emitted. Elias spotted the four stones representing the four tier 1 mana types: water, air, earth, and fire, with twice as many stones representing tier 2 mana types, such as steam and sand mana. Elias placed the wave stone he held on a slot near the water stone and Peter placed the wind stone he held in a similar slot near the air stone.
Without further ado, Peter grabbed the water stone and stood up, putting it in his pocket and setting his stance. Elias quickly copied his father’s actions, standing face to face with him as they always did before sparring, and Peter began to move. Elias immediately recognized the sequence of movements as the first one he’d ever learned. It only consisted of punching forwards and blocking backwards, two moves ending in the same spot; a sequence they’d cycled through countless times over the years.
The pair exchanged blows evenly until Peter’s movements suddenly became more fluid, allowing a punch to slip through Elias’ block. He was startled by the change but continued to cycle through the motions, relying on years of practice to keep his focus. Elias relaxed his muscles more to make his movements more fluid like his dad’s but failed to capture the distinctly water-like flavor into his own movements. Regardless, he persisted in making small changes to the manner in which he moved, trying his best to copy his dad, until they were once more exchanging blows evenly.
They continued their back and forth for a long time until Elias began to grasp the essence of his father’s movements. The secret, he found, lay in copying the feeling of his father’s movements, rather than their characteristics. He imbued the feeling of water he got from his father’s movements into his own and began flowing more seamlessly between each punch and block, each movement blending into the next.
Just as Elias was starting to feel comfortable, Peter slipped out of their repetitive sequence to truly dance to the rhythm of water. His movements became even more unpredictable and fluid, seemingly suffocating Elias’ own, forcing him to lose out on every exchange. Still, Elias persisted through the exercise, trying his best to capture the feeling of water he felt from his father, taking every hit with a smile on his face.
Elias was finally able to compare the difference between dancing to the rhythm of wave mana and water mana. All things told, the rhythm of water is simpler, due to it being a tier 1 mana type, but he was a lot more used to the rhythm of wave mana. It still took Elias the rest of the training session to finally adapt to the rhythm of water well enough to once more exchange blows with his father evenly.
Over the following days, Peter showed Elias how to dance to the rhythm of all the four tier 1 mana types, even allowing him to skip physical training with his mom during this time. Throughout, he made significant improvements to his ability to both capture the feeling of his father’s movements as well as infuse it into his own. He had a lot of trouble switching between rhythms quickly, but was slowly getting better at that too.
It would likely take years for Elias to master this technique, especially since he still had to master the rhythm of all those tier 2 mana types as well. Still, he couldn’t help but grow excited at the prospect of learning how to attune himself to mana when he did.
*******
Elias’ arms trembled as he put his all into one more push up, only to collapse to the ground a moment later while the girl beside him kept on going strong. Melinda’s arms were well toned and strong, even for a fourteen year old. It was a testament to her impressive attributes that she was able to improve at such an astounding rate. She’d also outgrown Elias significantly, having hit puberty almost four years ago, whereas he hasn’t had his growth spurt yet. All of this culminated into Elias being severely outclassed by Melinda during physical training with his mom. At least he managed to raise his Vitality by another level last year, making him look slightly less scrawny.
Combat training with his dad was going far better than his physical training, though his lack of conditioning meant he got tired quickly even then. He already learned to dance to the rhythm of all the available tier 1 and tier 2 mana types. Peter had even let him try to learn the rhythm of storm mana, a tier 3 mana type; that had been fun.
Melinda began learning how to fight as well, though his dad wasn’t teaching her his fighting style. From what he’d heard, she wouldn’t be ready to learn it anyways, since she hasn’t mastered the basics yet. Elias was ashamed to admit it, but he was glad over that fact, as it meant that he was better than her in something, at least.
“Alright, that’s it for today, kids,” Vivian said with a clap of her hands as soon as Melinda finally failed her own push-up. “Do you want to stay for dinner, Melinda?”
“No, thank you. My parents are expecting me home,” Melinda replied with a polite smile. Vivian nodded in acknowledgement and excused herself to check up on said dinner next door, leaving Elias to clean up and close the dojo.
Elias watched as Melinda gathered her things to leave, feeling his heart beat faster and blood rush to his ears. He approached her slowly, his steps seeming to grow heavier and sluggish as he fiddled nervously with the pockets of his pants. She turned to look at him approach, her gaze even, and his nervousness redoubled.
“Are you sure you can’t stay? We could play a game after dinner, or something,” Elias said awkwardly. She looked at him with those large hazel eyes, brows furrowing, and Elias averted his gaze.
“I can’t,” she replied curtly, immediately resuming packing her things.
Elias took a deep breath and gathered his courage, even puffing his chest out slightly. He’d been meaning to tell Melinda how he felt about her for a while now and always backed down at the last moment. This time, he would go all the way, no more excuses. Like his mom told him, the worst thing she could say is “no”, so he might as well go for it.
“Melinda. I was wondering if,” Elias’ voice cracked slightly and he nervously cleared his throat. “I was wondering if you would like to go out with me sometime, as in a date.”
Melinda, the beautiful girl he’s had a crush on for the longest time, his only real friend, burst out laughing. Elias’ heart dropped at her reaction, his face turning red in embarrassment. She looked at him again and made some effort to get herself under control upon seeing his reaction. However, Elias still caught her suppressing another fit of laughter as she looked him up and down, as well as a slight shiver.
“Oh, you’re serious,” she said, still stuttering with laughter. “Sorry, it’s not funny, but no. I don’t want anything like that with you, sorry.”
Melinda quickly grabbed her things and left hurriedly before Elias could even respond. As soon as she left the dojo, Elias heard her burst out laughing again, this time making no effort to contain her volume. Elias balled his hands into fists and clenched his jaw so hard he feared his teeth would break, his vision growing blurry as tears formed in his eyes.
Elias walked to the punching bag hanging from the ceiling in the corner of the dojo and began striking it, weakly at first, but with increasing power. He let his anger and humiliation flow into his blows, his sweat mixing with the tears that fell from his eyes. He felt himself slipping into a rhythm as he struck over and over until he was too tired to continue, his bleeding hands as red as his eyes.
Vivian obviously noticed his state as he entered the house but neither she nor Peter said a word. Elias grew even more embarrassed to realize that with their attributes, they probably overheard everything from inside the house. Later that night, his mom brought his dinner to his room and gave him a long hug, and he almost cried again then and there. The next day, he pushed himself during training like he’d never done before.
He wasn’t stupid, he saw the way that Melinda looked him up and down before laughing at him. He knew that his physique wasn’t attractive, that he wasn’t attractive, and there was nothing he could do about it for now. However, he made a silent vow that one day, he would show Melinda just how wrong she was about him.
*******
Elias trembled with excitement as he arrived at the dojo for training with his dad, a goofy smile on his face. The birthday present he received the night before from his parents gave him hope that he’d finally move on to the next stage of his combat training, though they refused to confirm his suspicions. All Peter said was that, “you’ll find out what it’s for in training tomorrow,” with a wink. The way he saw it, it could only mean one thing, considering what Analyze said about the stone basin he was gifted.
*******
Elemental Fountain
Rare
Sculpture
Effects:
* Energy Storage
* Mana Generation (tier 3 max)
* Mana Containment
*******
The sculpture was simple yet elegant, a thick white marble pillar that stood a meter tall, both its top and base squared and wider than the column itself. It was now the item he possessed with the highest rarity rank. To Elias, the Mana Generation effect specifically could only mean that his dad deemed him ready to learn how to attune his Spirit to mana.
“Good morning, Eli,” Peter said with a grin as Elias walked in the dojo, clearly amused by his son’s excitement.
“Good morning, dad,” Elias replied impatiently, eager to begin.
“Are you ready to find out what your birthday present can do?” Peter asked.
“Yes!” Elias replied enthusiastically. Peter chuckled.
“Alright, choose an element first,” Peter prompted, moving to stand by the stone pillar.
“Hum, water,” Elias replied tentatively.
Without another word, Peter turned to the pillar and placed his palm upon its flat top. Water began to slowly pool at the top of the pillar and flow down its side, evaporating into a thin mist before it could reach the floor. The mist then spread outwards from the pillar, seeming to hit a barrier a few meters away, forming a slightly misty hemisphere around the statue.
“Alright, Eli, as you can see, the pillar emits a lot more mana than those stones I use, which will make this a lot easier on your Spirit. I want you to sit down inside that misty area and feel the mana with your Spirit. The sensation should be similar to when you touch those enchanted energy stones, but many times stronger. You should try to listen to the rhythm of the mana,” Peter instructed, gesturing for Elias to step into the area affected by the Elemental Fountain.
Elias took a deep, nervous breath, and stepped into the enclosed area, feeling like he was suddenly submerged in a pool of water. Unexpectedly though, he was still completely dry despite the mist feeling wet against his skin.
Elias closed his eyes and embraced the sensations he got from the mana, letting himself truly feel it with his Spirit. Deep within himself, he got the impression of formlessness and fluidity, of flowing rivers and rising tides, feeling himself commune with the very concept of water with an intensity he never had before.
Elias sat down to meditate as his dad instructed, immersing himself deeper into the impressions and sensations he got from the water mana. One moment, he was like a drop of water rolling down a leaf, only to fall to the ground, infiltrating deep into it until he joined vast underground rivers. Other times, he was the river, feeling everything within itself and giving life to all around him. Moments turned to minutes, but Elias failed to find any rhyme or reason to the impressions, to find the rhythm of the mana.
“Alright, enough,” said Peter, a slight furrow to his brow. “Let's try something different this time. We’ll spar to the rhythm of water mana like we usually do, but I want you to concentrate on the mana rather than me this time.”
Saying that, Peter entered the area enclosing the water mana and gestured for Elias to get up and be on his guard. Elias obliged eagerly, happy to try something different after failing to obtain any results so far. Peter set his stance and began, starting with a forward kick at Elias’ midsection. Elias quickly recognized the rhythm, slipping into it as naturally as breathing.
As instructed, instead of focusing on his father and following his lead, he opened his Spirit to the water mana once more. Again, he felt many impressions and sensations within the mana, causing him to be overwhelmed and lose his focus on the fight. He threw his hands down in frustration but immediately raised them, ready to try again.
Several times, he and his dad danced to the rhythm of water, only to stop soon after as Elias lost his rhythm. Just as he was about to snap in frustration, he remembered the time when he was first learning how to dance to the rhythm of different mana types, years ago. He had only succeeded when he began infusing the vague feelings he got from his father’s movements into his own. So, he tried to infuse the sensations and impressions he got from the water mana into his movements.
Elias blocked his father’s blow like a waterfall falling on a boulder, suppressing and overwhelming. Then, instead of immediately losing his focus and missing a step, he creeped into Peter’s guard like a forming river. With every exchange, Elias began to realize that there was an underlying pattern to the impressions he felt from the water mana, a natural rhythm to his actions. He felt how each move flowed into the next, like every action is a part of a greater whole. The mana itself was guiding his movements and it felt sublime.
Before he knew it, Elias was grinning widely as he continued to spar with his dad. The longer they fought, the more he was able to adapt to following the mana’s lead rather than his dad’s, and it showed in his technique. His movements had never felt so natural and effortless, as if he were in a combat trance, but many times more profound. Peter looked down at his son with tears of pride glistening in his eyes, a similarly wide grin plastered on his own face.
“Good job, Eli, I’m proud of you,” Peter said, hugging Elias when he grew too tired to continue their spar. “You’ve nearly mastered Spirit Dancing and you’re still fifteen years old! I know some people that would want to strangle you in envy if they knew someone so young reached this stage. All that’s really left is awakening your Spirit but you’ll really need to be at the Beginner rank to do that. So, for now we’ll just keep on training your fighting skills; practice makes perfect. Plus, water mana is not the only type of mana your birthday present can emit.”
Elias puffed out his chest at his dad’s praise, feeling a flutter of excitement at the reminder that there were still many different mana types that he could try. He still didn’t know how impressive his accomplishment was, exactly, but he did know that Peter did not hand out compliments easily. If nothing else, Elias was even more convinced of how amazing this fighting style was, and it seems that there was still one last stage before mastery–he couldn’t wait.