Teris smiled as the rising sun woke him from his sleep. He had passed the Trial. All he had to do now was return to the Cissic stronghold and hope the ugly business with Abel last week didn't rear its head, but he wasn't overly concerned. Kohar, his mentor and war-leader, would probably intervene on his behalf even if worst came to worst. He rose from his sleeping nook in an ancient tree high above the jungle floor, stopping only to retrieve his bow and knife before descending with an easy grace. It was no more than a few hours back home, and he could barely contain his excitement. No more communal housing for him, and his skills in hunting and battle would ensure he'd quickly climb the ranks of the Cissic warriors. His meditation had progressed well this past year, and Teris felt confident he wasn't far from his second Awakening.

He ran quickly through the jungle, ready to start his new life. Teris moved through potential obstacles with ease, leaping over rocks and roots with practiced ease.

Focussed as he was on his destination, he failed to notice the movement on the edge of his vision until it was too late.

An impact greater than he had ever felt before smashed into his gut, throwing him violently to the ground. Never one to stay down, Teris rolled to his feet, drawing his bow and nocking an arrow in one motion despite the pain that threatened to overwhelm his body. He quickly scanned the dense jungle around him, looking for his assailant. He almost couldn't believe it when he saw who it was.

Abel stood bare-chested before him, glaring at Teris with brutal eyes that seemed to be carved from flint. Teris was about to laugh at his would-be tormentor, but the chuckle died in his throat when he properly observed the man in front of him. Abel was different than before. He had been huge, sure, but ungainly and slow, with fat where muscle would have served him better. There was none of that now, and the beginnings of fear started to build in Teris's stomach. Abel stood taller than before, at least a head and a half above Teris, with an ease and confidence that Teris had never seen in him. His fat had been replaced with strong, unyielding muscle, and he seemed to have grown into himself. He looked like he had seen twenty summers, not sixteen, and Teris was struck with a sense of wrongness from the contrast. The scars he had inflicted on Abel were gone too, although Teris noted five strange circular scars over his tribesman's chest. Abel smiled. It was a predator's smile, cold and hard, and it didn't reach his angry eyes.

"I'll bet my bones you didn't expect this, whoreson. I'm not going to bore you with too much talk, so I'll just tell you what's going to happen: I'm going to hit you three times. Each one will take something away from you, and I'll leave you broken on the ground before me." Abel delivered his speech with a cold certainty that gave Teris pause for a second, before he loosed his arrow without responding. He was the best bowman of his cohort, and even among the tribe's seasoned warriors most could only claim to be his equal. He didn't intend to allow this newly changed Abel to get close to him, so he aimed right between the man's eyes. The arrow hissed towards Abel with incredible speed, and Teris relaxed slightly at his opponent's impending death.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

That lasted about half a second before Abel somehow spun around the arrow with unnatural speed, grabbing the missile out of mid-air before rushing towards Teris with the same incredible pace. Teris's heart dropped as he realised what had happened: somehow, this brute had somehow undergone his second Awakening. As skilled as Teris was, he was no match for someone who had attained a Bloodforged body. His only choice was to run, but this option was quickly closed to him as Abel reached him with ease. There was a quiet pause as Abel allowed Teris to fully process his inferiority before he struck his former rival across the face with a fist stronger than a warhammer.

Teris's world spun in circles as he was dimly aware of his body flying through the air before he crashed hard into the base of a tree. White-hot pain flooded his face as his shattered jaw hung open stupidly. He forced himself to look up at Abel, seeing his own teeth strewn about on the jungle floor. Blood poured out of his mouth as he dizzily realised that there was no escape.

Abel walked confidently towards him, gently inspecting Teris's arrow between his fingers as he did so.

"That was the first strike. There's that pretty face gone for good. Two left, alright?" Abel said mockingly. Teris tried to think of something to say back, but his mind felt foggy, and he couldn't even move his jaw to speak. Abel reached him, paused again, and punched him in the ribs like an angry god. Teris heard them splinter a second before he felt it, and the pain took any remaining thoughts away from him. He writhed on the ground, vomiting blood as he did so.

"That's two. Won't be easy going through life with that much internal damage, that's for sure. Don't worry, it gets worse."

With that, Abel lifted his foot and brought it down on Teris's knee.

The joint tore apart under the force of Abel's kick, and Teris was dimly aware that he had just been crippled forever. He howled in agony, not even knowing which part of him hurt the worst. It wasn't over though, as Abel knelt over him, grabbing Teris's ruined jaw with a hand that may as well have been made of iron for all his chances of getting free.

"You're just missing one final touch. One moment." With that, Abel drove the arrowhead into Teris's forehead, scraping against bone. Just as had been done to him a mere week ago, Abel ripped the arrow across his face, leaving a horizontal gash on his forehead which quickly started gushing blood.

"There. A masterpiece. Have a good life Teris. I certainly will." He was still looking at Abel's baleful eyes when the darkness took him.

Teris regained consciousness hours later, or so he guessed by the position of the sun. For a brief instant he forgot what had happened to him, what had been done to him. He was very quickly reminded. His whole body was wracked with pain, and tears mixed with the dried blood covering his face. He wanted to lay here and never move again to save himself the agony of motion but staying here overnight and defenceless was certain death.

Have to stand. Have to get back. Teris tried to stand, nearly pushing himself up from the ground before another set of bloody coughs tore their way from his lungs, and his knee screamed in agony. Teris crashed to the ground bonelessly, his ever-present grace deserting him.

I'm sorry mama. I'm sorry.

Barely even thinking, Teris reached out, grabbed a root that protruded from the dirt in front of him and started the long crawl home.

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