A month past and little progress had been made.

Touji's body was sore and beaten. The bruises had formed over his joints, and the cuts were scabbing, but his muscles had grown far more and his movements far exceeded what he had expected.

"Again." Foss commanded, and they did.

His body tumbled to the ground from the force of Foss' inevitable strike.

"That's two-hundred and seven times today, Touji. You really aren't improving." Foss remarked, his face serious.

-Dammit. I could have sworn I could do more push-ups today.

"I didn't know you could count. And I've been trying." He complained out loud as he strained the muscles in his calves and stood up.

"Stop trying to be fast enough and more on ya hand-eye coordination. Reflex is key."

"Eh. I can't sidestep fast enough to dodge though. If everyone can go this fast, I don't stand one bobbling chance."

Foss sighed. "Yer should take a break."

"Can we?"

"Nah."

"..."

-Funny, not funny.

"Selkia. Can ya do me a favor?" Foss turned to the unnaturally quiet Selkia had been standing against the wall, her arms folded for an awkwardly long period.

"Sure. What can your cute onee-san help you with?" She answered breaking her solemn expression and into her normal unhinged "Big sister" persona.

"Can ya use your string on him to make him feel what it's like to react in time. I think he need to experience it first hand in terms of timing."

Selkia grinned, "Sure thing."

She held out her palms, a thin black string wrapping around Touji's wrists and ankles. She situated herself behind him as if to take the reins of a horse.

"Hey, listen. I never consented to this. I prefer being in control of my own body if it's all the same to you."

Selkia smiled in a mischievous yet innocent manner, "Sorry, it's for your own good."

"You gotta trust Selkia on this one." Foss replied before charging forward, his wooden stick hurtling down upon Touji's head.

-Foss you traitor.

Selkia pulled back on the strings, forcing his legs to slip out from underneath them and his arms curling to the far right. He felt the wind rattle his eardrums as the sword passed swiftly past his face.

-I dodged it.

He shot forward, his legs moving at a speed he had never thought possible. His movements had become more fluid as he swung his dagger forward, the tip grazing Foss' arm.

"Good job." Foss complimented.

-I did it.

Selkia's strings pulled Touji's arms back as she sighed. "You're turning him into a one trick pony, you know."

"Not true. But you can't make the second step before the first, can ya?" Foss replied innocently.

"You don't need to make it sound deep, do we?"

-Can we focus on the fact that I landed a blow? I'm pretty proud of myself I'll have you know.

Touji's body was suddenly pushed forward, his stance low, his feet spread apart.

"Dodge."

Touji's vision was suddenly shifted, his neck tilting in a concerning manner. The wooden sword once again descended upon him. His body shifted and slid out of the way, the hilt just barely passing the side of his face.

Touji jumped and lunged back "Holy shit! You didn't tell me we started again! If it wasn't for Selkia my brain would be minced meat."

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Foss burst out laughing. "She wasn't helping ya at all. That was you dodging on yer own."

-Eh?!

"I told you you're doing a great job Touji." Selkia cheered as she clapped her hands in encouragement.

"Eeeeeeeeeh?!"

-I did that? I really did that! There are no wires attached. I actually effing did it!

He squeezed his fist and cried for joy while thanking the gods of practice for making the world a better place. Suddenly he bolted to the end of the hall, stopping at the exit to inform the two trainers that in fact, it was his much-awaited lunch break and his food were calling him to a higher place.

"He's high spirited for a kid who's been through some shit, eh?" Selkia commented while resting her hands over her mildly exposed hips.

"Ya should definitely think of wearing more."

"Why? You getting them male urges inside of you? My cute younger brother is growing up. Don't sweat it, these things happen when you reach that age. Your even cuter onee-san can take care of that for ya." She winked back at him, blowing a kiss.

"Eh... ya should wear more cause y'all catch a cold for real. Also please stop referring ta yer self as older. Also, I thought you hated those days." Foss' voice was flat and emotionless, a complete opposite of his usual energetic personality.

"For real? Did you pick up that phrase from your young apprentice?"

"Well, if ya don't what to talk'n about it, fine by me."

"More importantly..." She walked forward, placing a finger on his chest.

"Why are we pretending I didn't use my artifact on him?" She questioned sternly, her eyes glaring into his.

The smile returned to his face as he stared back up at her. He brushed her hand away with the back of his. "One cannot accomplish what they believe they can’t. Besides, no point in makin' him dependent on ya."

She frowned, her brows furrowing. "Fine. You win. I just don't like lying to the kid."

"Even though he's lying to us?"

***

The moon's light was weak and barely visible through the forest's canopy. The darkness was dense and foggy. The scent of rain filling the air with dreary sentiments. The sloshing of footsteps in the wet moss was the only sound present in the wilderness.

A cloaked man surveyed the area, his ears alert and his mind prepared. He ducked into the thicket, the leaves rustling from the branches above. Fairial stepped out from behind him, her gaze intense.

"We've arrived."

They crouched low, the foliage blocking their presence. Fairial peered over her shoulder, signaling a female companion to follow her.

"This way." A male voice called out from the treetops; his body shrouded in the shadows. She motioned to her companion to follow, and they did.

As they journeyed, the faint glow of a torch pierced through the bushes up ahead, the rain still persisting. Fairial fastened her pace, the other doing the same.

As the two broke through the foliage, the light was casted down upon them, the source held by a man dressed in a leather outfit, a black cape, and a hood. Fairial threw her hand before her face as he pointed into the valley ahead of them.

"Here." The deep and hoarse voice spoke, his age showing through his vocal tone.

"Wha-what happened here?" The black knight gasped, her face grim and eyebrows furrowed.

The ground before them was torn apart and uprooted, the soil overturned and boulders upheaved from their original place of rest. It was now just a barren wasteland, not a soul present.

Fairial's stood speechless, her eyes wide and mouth agape.

"How?" Fairial's companion inquired, her expression stern, dropping the bag to the ground in confusion.

"Where... where did the forest go?"

***

Touji sat with his loaf of bread before him accompanied by a bar of butter and an apple. He would usually have his bowl of soup but the cook had apparently run out and wasn't able to restock, leaving Touji to make due.

-Well, the stew wasn't all that intense either so I won't complain. What is strange to me is how fluffy this bread is. For unexplained reasons only the bread has tased out of this world. Get it?

Touji cringed at his own joke as ironic as it was before turning to his companion who sat silently on the other side of the table, a loaf in one hand and a scroll in the other. He was a very tall and large man of stature, his shoulders broad and his height exceeding the six-foot mark. He wore a leather chest plate, the metal covering his collar bone and the shoulder pads bulky over top of the cape. His green hair was cut short and his eyes were a deeper of the same color.

Touji blinked twice, a frown plastered across his face.

"Hey, uh. You were the, um... guy who saved me back there... what I mean is like a month back. I'm Touji, except you probably know that. Anyways, nice to meet you."

The man ignored him, his eyes fixated upon the scroll in hand. Touji took another bite out of his bread and leaned inwards.

-So, this is going about as expected. Number one rule in a situation like this: don't engage.

"Thank you for that..." His voice trailed off as he attempted to bring the interaction to a favorable close.

-Dammit. This is awkward.

Touji hastily finished the rest of his bread and shoved the apple into his pocket before making his way out the door.

"My name is Draken. Val Draken."

Touji froze mid-step. His body slowly turned to meet the man who still had his nose buried in his writings.

"And you're welcome."

-That could have gone a lot worse.

Touji approached the door, the wooden knob clicking open. He quietly closed the wooden door behind him, trying not to disturb whatever that monster of a man was doing. As he tiptoed away a voice of a much higher tone could be heard behind him. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

He turned around to see Maphori, her face livid, her mouth wide and her eyes locked onto Touji's. His body tensed as the image of the surgical knife past by his eyelids.

"Why are you sneaking around here?!" She bellowed.

Touji's face paled, his body slowly backing away.

"Uhhhh, no. No. Nope. We are not doing this now please. I don't want to disturb that very big man back there in the other room."

"Don't play tricks with me. What have you done?!"

Touji shook his head profusely, "Nothing, and besides I thought we were good?"

"Good?" She began to approach him, her heels clacking against the stone floor, "Good. I know your pulling something behind our backs. I can smell it."

Touji's face lowered as he noticed something happening inside him. He was losing control. The mask he was wearing was slipping off.

"If you do anything to Fairial I will-"

"-What are you going to do? Kill me again?" He snapped.

The hallway fell silent. Maphori stood stunned.

Touji covered his mouth, his hands trembling.

"What do you mean by that?" Her eyes were piercing, her expression dark and solemn.