Part II

The Wielder

Chapter Ten

With that as the plan, we jump straight in. Similar to how Joey coached me when I first activated my ability, we take a seated position and practice what is called ‘Iris Control and Circulation’.

Iris control and circulation is all about channeling iris into specific regions of the body. It's kind of like how I used to charge up iris in my legs when I used Defiantos, so I pick up on the technique quickly. It does take some time to learn how to channel iris into my arms, chest, and back without bursting into flames, but I figured it out after maybe a dozen tries.

Once I am able to consistently do that, Joey and Ayden coach me through more advanced movement techniques. For example, channeling iris into my feet so I can run on the walls, or my upper arms to increase my general strength. Once again, it takes longer to become accustomed to circulating iris through my upper body than my lower body.

Lastly, we focus on iris circulation while using my ability. As Ayden described, iris is like a rechargeable battery. Using too much too fast will exhaust one’s iris, and while a wielder can rapidly burn through iris, it takes a long time for iris to gradually recover. So, managing how and when to use the iris is crucial. With that in mind, I test out various levels of strength for multiple things with and without my ability, figuring out what is too much, too little, and just right.

Along the way, I am also taught how to utilize orasi. Orasi has to do with iris circulation, which requires iris to be concentrated in my eyes. Orasi works like x-ray vision, as the wielder can see a visual manifestation of iris. For example, suppose I concentrate iris into my hand before launching an attack. In that case, a person using orasi can see where I have channeled my iris. It’s believed orasi can also determine the category of somebody’s ability, and in some cases, orasi can even exhibit how strong a person is.

Or so I am told. I can’t do any of those things just yet, which Joey and Ayden assure me is normal, expected even. Orasi requires much finer control over iris than normal circulation, which only comes with practice and time. Eventually, though, I’ll be so in tune with orasi that in the future, I should be able to locate where the gemcores are inside other people.

Joey approaches me as we rehydrate and prepare for combat training, “Mateo, do you think every person has the same iris capacity?”

I take a second to think, “No.”

“Why not?”

“If that were the case, you two would’ve gotten tired like I did during some of these exercises. You’ve been training for a few months, so it makes sense you have a larger pool of iris to draw from.”

“That’s true, but there’s also a point where the answer could be yes.”

“What do you mean?”

“When you awaken, you acquire two main things. Iris, and an ability. But there’s something else that everybody receives. Have any ideas?” asks Joey, holding up two fingers.

My brows furrow and I shake my head.

A third finger rises, “Everybody is given the same initial iris capacity.”

Taking a sip of water, I try to sort out my thoughts.

“So… that means. At one point, you technically had the same iris capacity that I do now?”

“That’s right. Iris circulation and control help the human body become more naturally adjusted to iris, as well as steadily increase a wielder's iris capacity. The combat training we’re doing next is great for learning the ins and outs of your ability. The amount of iris you use greatly fluctuates in battle, so combat is a far more efficient but riskier way to grow your capacity. Most days, we focus more on circulation and control, but circumstances are different today. You need to be ready to fight tonight.”

“We had to figure things out along the way,” says Ayden, putting a hand on Joey’s shoulder as he stretches out his quad. “So, you’ll probably catch up to us soon.”

“I hope so, but I have a question. How do you typically do combat training? Just one on one sparring?”

“Usually, yeah,” answers Ayden, heading to the nearest wall and pointing to where the wall and ceiling meet. “Do you see that line of wiring?”

Squinting, I spot a white wire almost blending in with the light gray walls.

“Barely.”

“There’s also one along the ground, and these wires surround the entire room. They’ve been installed by Sorel, and they’re made of wentworth.”

“Wentworth is the same material that’s imbued with our armor, right?”

Ayden nods and faces the wall. Charging his fist with iris, he slams it against the wall, and a glowing forcefield suddenly appears.

His attack rippling out into the forcefield, Ayden turns back around.

“The wentworth shields the floor, ceiling, and walls from being damaged. That said, if your body happens to slam hard enough into the forcefield, it’ll still hurt like hell.”

Walking back over to us, he asks with a cocked brow, “So, you ready for some real fun?”

Taking a long drink from my water, I wipe my mouth and nod emphatically.

***

Somersaulting under my barrage of flames, Ayden casts two gem fists directly at me.

Let’s try this…

Quickly channeling iris into my palms, I crouch and place my hands on the ground. Vigorously thrusting my hands into the air, I create a firewall in front of me as cover. The gem fists burst through the firewall, missing me, and I quickly spin around my cover. Throwing my right hand forward, I blast a small fireball at Ayden. As soon as the fireball leaves my hand, I run after it with another attack in mind.

Standing off to the side, Joey watches with his arms folded as he mumbles to himself, “This is the longest he’s lasted. His creativity makes his fighting style adaptable, keeping Ayden on his toes. And although he just learned circulation today, he’s managing his iris well. But…”

Grinning at my innovative attack, Ayden rolls out of the way and shoots another gem fist at me. Caught out and unable to dodge, I quickly spread my iris throughout my hands and forearms.

“He’s far too reckless.”

Trying to catch the fist, I can't stop its forceful momentum. My feet slowly drag backward along the ground as my arms are being pushed against my chest.

I need to plant my feet, but… I can’t circulate any iris out of my arms! Which means my only option… is this!

Bellowing a roar, I engulf my hands with flames, hoping to burn his gem fist to a crisp. With that, I somehow manage to hold the gem fist in place, but I can’t afford to let up for even a moment.

Snickering at my courageous display of defense, Ayden flicks his wrist. The gem fist held between my hands promptly rotates upward, and my grasp slips for only a second.

Damn it!

The fist uppercuts me on the underside of my chin, and I’m thrown backward like a ragdoll. As I plummet to the ground, I try to get back up on my feet, but my right wrist is suddenly thrown back against the ground, trapped by another of Ayden’s gem hands. Then my left wrist is glued down, and before I can channel iris into my feet to try to boost myself out of his grasp, I see Ayden flying above me, casting two more gem fists at my legs.

Landing above me, Ayden holds his fists out in front of him.

“I surrender,” I grudgingly say.

Deactivating his ability and stepping away, my arms and legs are set free. Immediately getting up and walking over to the wall, I channel iris into my fist and punch it as hard as possible.

Can’t believe I lost again... how many times is that?!

“Damn it…” I mumble in between my heavy breaths as sweat drips off my face.

“You’re quick to pick up on things, but you try to finish the fight too quickly,” says Joey.

Grumbling, I turn around.

“What’s with that look? You’re doing well–”

“Shut up.”

Leaning his head back, Joey presses his lips together.

“We’ve wasted almost the entire time, and I haven’t won once! How the hell am I supposed to beat Russ if I can’t win against Ayden!”

Joey cocks a brow, “Are you saying Ayden is weak?”

“N– no. But you both haven’t fought in a duel yet, while Russ has! He’s already won once!”

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“Where’d the tough guy I saw earlier go? You acted like you were hot shit, but ever since you started getting your ass kicked by Ayden… you’ve proven you’re still just a kid.”

“Don’t call me that,” I say, getting in his face.

“Why shouldn’t I? You’re reckless, arrogant, you lash out after you lose. I get you’ve had it rough, Mateo, but we’ve all had it rough. And right now, we’re trying to help you.”

“Why?! So you can fulfill some personal vendetta?! That was why you asked me to join your team, right? Because I earned your respect, whatever that’s worth.”

Joey’s gaze narrows, staring at me for a few seconds, “You did, and I still respect you. We both do. But as soon as things stopped going your way, you started acting like this. Right now, you’re disrespecting us, especially Ayden. You’re acting like you should be winning these duels. Hell, Mateo, it’s your first damn day! Have some damn perspective!”

I look down at the ground and then back at him.

“I didn’t want any of this. For my friend to be murdered. For me to be framed for it. To end up here! To be forced to… awaken a superpower?! I didn’t want to pick a fight with Russ! Twenty-four hours ago, I had no idea I had this ultra-rare power that hardly anyone has! But all those things happened! And now, my mom might be dead, and I couldn’t even know because my brother is an unreliable drug addict who might be high as a kite as we speak! So, what the hell can I do? Huh? Tell me!”

Joey exhales through his nose as I barely keep it together, “You can start taking responsibility.”

Shocked, I chuckle, “Are you saying I killed my friend?”

“No. What I’m saying is that those things happened. They happened, and you can’t change them. Whether you like it or not, whether anything was your fault or not, you’re here. You’re here with me and Ayden, and we’re training you for your duel in a few hours–”

“Yeah,” I say sarcastically. “I have eyes, ya know?”

“Is throwing this tantrum making you feel better right now? If it is, just tell us. We’ll leave. We don’t have to help you. You want to fight Russ on your own? ‘Cause it sounds a lot like you do.”

I open my mouth to speak, but no words come out. Limbering in place, I click my tongue.

“What the hell do you want from me?”

“I want you to hold yourself accountable. I don’t give a damn how cocky you are. Be an arrogant prick all you want. I don’t care! But when you mess up or say something out of line, you better grow a pair and apologize. You’ve disrespected me, disrespected Ayden, and there hasn’t been a word out of your mouth that makes you even seem remorseful.”

Listening to what he’s saying, my gaze shamefully drops.

“Don’t look away,” says Joey, and I lock eyes with him again. “You don’t want to be treated like a kid? Start acting like an adult and f*cking own it.”

Slightly bobbing my head until I’m assertively nodding, I begin, “I’m sor–”

“No,” Joey shakes his head, manifesting his crozier. “I read this thing a while back, one of those ancient tales, and something stuck with me. When friends apologize, they promise to do things differently, and from then on, they make good on that promise.”

Looking at Joey for a few seconds, I give him a singular curt nod. Walking past him over to Ayden, standing nearby with his arms folded, I extend my hand.

“I– I didn’t think– I promise I won’t do that again.”

“Well, there'll be plenty of opportunities to get some payback,” says a smirking Ayden, shaking my hand, but his grip suddenly tightens, and his smile disappears. “But just for the record, if you imply I’m weaker than Russ again, I’ll send you to the infirmary.”

He lets my hand go, and I give him a frail, “Yeah, that’s fair.”

Walking back over to Joey, I say, “And I promise I won’t disregard your efforts of helping me. That goes for both of you, actually.”

Joey taps his crozier on the ground, gesturing with his hand for more.

My mouth twitching, I stubbornly ask, “And do you have any more advice?”

Joey’s face lightens up, “Oh! Never thought you’d ask!”

“Hmph,” I grunt as another knife stabs me in the chest.

“You’re naturally talented, and your ability is strong. You know that, but you still incorporate agile movements to disguise your strategy. That said, you're fighting more with your muscles than your head. You’ll have a real chance against Ayden if you start showing some restraint.”

“You make it sound so easy. I just learned how to use this power today and–”

“And you’re already this good,” interrupts Joey, his eyes sparking a berry red.

Ayden remarks, “Oh? You’re actually going to spar?”

“Only so he can beat Russ,” replies Joey. “There’s something important I need to teach him about realms.”

“Why do I need to learn about realms?”

“‘Cause Russ has a Resu ability.”

***

While we stand on opposite sides of the room, Ayden takes his place in the center. Once he confirms we’re both ready, he throws his arm down, and the duel begins.

His crozier glowing, Joey instantly activates Hazard Shift, and the inside of the room transforms into the terrain of a desert, his iris aura changing into a sandy-yellow color. Scooping up some sand in my hand, the sand slips through my fingers.

“It does feel real… is there a way I can reverse your realm?” I ask.

“Realm abilities are powerful, but they can be countered,” says Ayden. “For one, every realm can only cover so much area in the real world. Right now, while we see a desert, we’re technically still standing in the real world. So, if you decide to take a step forward in this realm, you’ll take a step forward in the real world. Are you following so far?”

“I think so.”

“The most important thing to remember about realms is they aren’t infinite. Not a single one. They’re three-dimensional and stretch over a certain distance. Some might be in the shape of a cube, others in a hemisphere or a pyramid. A few may expand to only twenty feet long, while others could stretch miles.”

“That far?”

Joey says, “Yes, but typically, the size of a realm influences how powerful it is. The smaller the realm, the stronger it is; the larger it becomes, the weaker it gets. Imagine trying to control the iris of a realm stretching multiple miles. It’d be incredibly difficult, right?”

I nod, and Joey continues, “That said, no matter the size, realms can’t be maintained for long. I am using a lot of iris to maintain this realm, and I’ll eventually have to deactivate it. Also, the border of a realm is fairly easy to spot. Do you know why?”

Considering that he mentioned the need to maintain a realm, I take a guess, “Because you have to focus more iris toward maintaining the border?”

“Correct. Firstly, my realm can only expand as far as the environment surrounding me allows. Since we’re in an enclosed room, my realm can only expand to the perimeter of this room. This isn't the case for every realm, but it's all we have to work with. Try using orasi. You should be able to see the border of my realm quite easily.”

Activating orasi, I recognize the same sandy-yellow iris particles that make out the room's dimensions inside the desert realm.

“Wow, you’re right.”

“The way to escape a realm is simple. You just need to break out of the realm in the physical world. Of course, a Resu wielder won’t allow you to get away that easily. But what if you can’t escape? What would your strategy be? You’d be fighting against somebody with a home-court advantage.”

“I–” I stagger, unable to think of a worthy answer. “I don’t know.”

“Come on, Mateo, I thought you knew everything.”

“Yeah, yeah,” I shake my head. “Is there one? I honestly can’t think of anything.”

“There isn’t. If you can’t escape, you have to fight. And you’ll be at a disadvantage.”

“What if Russ’s realm doesn’t have a limit?” I ask. “You said these duels take place in an arena, right? What if his realm expands larger than the arena? What if there’s not a way out?”

“Then you’ll have to fight in his realm, whatever it might be. However,” says Joey. “In a battle of endurance, you’ll outlast most Resu wielders, even with your inexperience. Your heavenly flames are incredibly versatile and capable of supporting you on offense and defense. Even though you haven’t figured out how to fly yet, you know how to heal yourself during battle, and that’s just the basics. Continue practicing, and I’m sure you'll learn all kinds of secrets about your ability.”

Feeling slightly better, I engulf my hands with a blue and white scorch, “Right. We should get started before you have to put down your realm.”

The ends of his mouth curving upward, Joey says while tapping his crozier on the ground, "Your healing capabilities are extraordinary, so don't expect me to hold back."

In accordance with his shining crozier, a ring of sand rises around Joey. Tilting his crozier forward, two whips of sand lash out toward me. Channeling iris into my feet, I hop over the whips before circulating iris back to my arms.

Reeling his left hand backward next to his ribcage, Joey clenches his hand into a fist and twists it. Unbeknownst to me, the two sand whips I had evaded have been redirected, wrapping around my ankle. Throwing his crozier down, I’m sent plummeting back into the ground.

Damn… guess I shouldn’t have pissed him off.

Creating a wave of sand to ride, Joey rapidly closes the distance as I get back on my feet. Only once he’s practically on top of me do I notice him, and he swings his crozier like a baseball bat in an attempt to lacerate me. Leaning back, my eyes track the crozier as it barely passes above my nose. Standing back upright, I thrust my hands forward with open palms, blasting a fireball at Joey.

Forced to back off, Joey surfs along the dunes to reposition. Not wanting to give him time to think, I throw my arms behind me and burst forward, using flames as a fuel source to amplify my speed even more. Keeping an eye on me, Joey raises his crozier, and the sand around him rises, lifting him up on a pedestal. Closing his eyes, he holds his crozier across his body with both hands.

Wondering what he’s trying to do, I send two more fireballs his way. Without reopening his eyes, a wall of sand blocks my fireballs before they strike, and that’s when I realize what is about to happen.

A sand tsunami towering behind Joey has taken shape, and I am about to be buried.

In the following split second, my mind works on overdrive as I recall everything I have been told about realms. And that’s when I remember one crucial detail.

I can’t fly, but I can still use my flames as exhaust to boost myself!

Bursting up until I’m at the same height as Joey, I hover in the air momentarily.

A realm can only expand as far as the room allows. Which means we must be at the ceiling, and this sand above him isn’t real! It’s an illusion!

Thrusting my right hand forward, a piercing missile of flames sears through the air at Joey.

“So, you figured it out. I’m impressed.”

Using the sand beneath his feet to avoid my attack, Joey taps his crozier down, and sand from below ensnares both my ankles. As the sand yanks me down, I try to incinerate the sand, but more sand wraps around both my wrists, capturing me in a web-like design.

Slowly lowering myself, Joey hovers before me, putting his crozier to my neck.

“I surrender.”

Deactivating his realm, the sand disappears, and I fall on my back. Wincing in pain, I sit up and fumble my hand around my back, using my flames to heal me. A moment later, a hand was in front of my face.

“Good fight. If you had been more composed at the end, I’m not sure I would’ve won," says Joey.

“Thanks, but the tsunami illusion threw me off. You had it from there.”

“Not really. You figured out what I was doing pretty quickly. If you hadn’t attacked first, I would have been in a tough spot,” says Joey, lifting me up. “Your adaptability is a nightmare to deal with, so if you learn when to show some restraint on the attack, you’ll reach new heights as a fighter.”

“At– at the end,” I stutter. “Why shouldn’t I have attacked? Does it have to do with restraint?”

Joey’s eyes seem to grow a little wider.

“You’re still working out the kinks to your ability, but your talent on when and how to use iris already puts you on par with us two. Also, recognizing that the tsunami was a bluff is proof of your remarkable intelligence, but your adrenaline and desire to win clouded your judgment. You have the instinctual traits of an elite wielder, so how ‘bout you tell me why.”

“Mateo, here!” says Ayden, tossing me my water.

Taking a long sip, I pondered about Joey’s statement and replied, “You were in the air, away from most of the sand. I already knew the tsunami wasn’t a threat, so I wasn’t in any immediate danger. But I threw an attack anyway, leaving me distracted and vulnerable, costing me the fight. If I had maybe closed the distance, I would’ve stood a better chance.”

“Not maybe, absolutely. Resu wielders hate fighting when their opponents get very close because then the advantages of their realm can work against them. If you had relaxed your mind and body, you might’ve recognized that and gained the upper hand.”

“I’ll keep that in mind for tonight,” I say, drinking the rest of my water.

Ayden taps his fist against my chest, “Had a hell of a time sparring with ya today, man. You made me feel the thrill of a fight, something this other guy hasn’t done in a while.”

Joey rolls his eyes as I say, “Don’t worry, I’ll beat ya soon.”

Ayden scoffs, “We gotta head back to the left in a few minutes, so you go wash up first.”