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Starry Eyes: Blood Moon
The Final Blood Moon

The Final Blood Moon

A few days passed and Danna made no secret of her desires. While she wouldn’t go as far as forcing it or even dressing differently, she was far more affectionate than I ever saw her before. She’d snuggle up to me while watching TV and resting her hands on mine at almost any opportunity. She’d even attempt to lock eyes with me and smile when given a chance. She would then look away after a second or so. Every time she did one of these things, my heart would race, but I couldn’t show it.

During those days, I tried to convince Danna that I was getting better at a faster rate than I was. She believed it briefly, but my knee popped in the next second, causing me to drop to the ground. Since then, she kept a closer eye on me. Even so, she didn’t interfere in my own efforts to rehabilitate myself. It could have been because she believed I knew my body best and could do just fine, or maybe because she thought that leaving me to my own devices would slow down my otherwise speedy rehabilitation and we could spend more time together. Regardless, I couldn’t read her mind and could only speculate.

One day, when Danna came back from work, she seemed a little anxious. She would glance at the door or any nearby windows when she thought I wouldn’t notice. On the contrary, I did notice but didn’t say anything until she started grinding her teeth. It was a habit of hers to do when she was scared or nervous. The habit all but disappeared as far as I could tell, but it seemed to resurface.

“Are you okay?” I said, giving her shoulder a light squeeze. We were watching an old movie and she was cuddled up under me, as had become usual.

“Yeah, I’m fine, why?”

“You’re grinding your teeth.”

“Oh...” She sighed. “It’s just work. Things can be stressful sometimes, is all.”

“Tell me what’s wrong. I might be able to help.”

“No, I can’t do that.”

“Is it classified?”

She simply nodded.

“Alright but if whatever you’re looking out the windows for comes to the door, you can’t blame me for handling it myself.”

She looked me dead in the eye as if she was picking her words carefully, then said, “Alright, I won’t blame you.” She seemed more at ease after our talk but still gave the occasional glance at potential entrances.

The next day, I woke up as Danna was getting ready to leave. She was still half-dressed and shoving a piece of toast in her mouth while making for the door. It seemed that she slept in and was late.

Watching her go, I said, “You forgot your pants.”

“What?” She looked down. “Fuck.” In a rush, she darted back into her room and emerged in seconds, fully dressed.

“Nightmare averted, huh?”

Quickly, she responded, “Yeah, thanks, love you- I mean, fuck- I mean, never mind, love you.” She was out the door as fast as her feet could take her.

Unsure of how to respond, I said, “Yeah... Sure... Your pants are backward... And I hope you put on underwear, too.”

With that, I was left alone with my thoughts. She did really seem to be late, but I couldn’t get the image of her bare lower body out of my mind. If she wasn’t really late, it was a genius ploy to keep me from thinking of anything else. If I gave in now, would it really be so bad? That thought floated through my mind repeatedly, but I resigned myself to a bathroom visit. It took a while to refresh myself, but once I did, I could think more clearly and came to my senses.

“I took those guys for granted,” I said, reminiscing about the Faeries, Dryads, and Naga, living around my tower with whom I spent so little time. If I made any of them my familiars, I wouldn’t have had the problem I was currently dealing with. I’d have summoned a few and gotten home easily with their help. That thought pulled me back to the last thing I remembered before waking up in the hospital. Hierophant, Linnea, and Eldar all revoked our mutual contracts which meant that even if I did have a familiar contract with any of their people, they would likely have done the same or just ignored my summons if I tried.

With more than just Danna on my mind, I subconsciously stretched my limbs for the first time since arriving, and joints I forgot were joints popped loud enough to disrupt my thoughts. It was as if I snapped multiple bones at once, but the feeling was entirely different. A small tinge of pain in some places gave way to a strong pulse as my blood began to rush. I was sitting on the couch and stood. The sudden weight on my freshly popped joints made me fall back to the seat following a tingling feeling that soon subsided. In its wake, I felt strangely comfortable and started dozing off.

After enjoying an extra nap, I started flexing and trying to extend the range of motion of my joints back to where they used to be. This involved standing and sitting repeatedly as well as rolling my joints as best I could. By then, I could at least walk without the crutch, but it still hurt to do so.

I spent most of the day putting myself through this kind of physical therapy for most of the day until I got a strange feeling at some point in the afternoon. I couldn’t pinpoint the feeling, but it couldn’t have been good given my circumstances.

A knock on the door pulled me from my thoughts, and instead of walking, I levitated over. Based on the feeling coming from the other side of the door, whoever knocked backed away. It was also someone I met before.

Hesitant to open a home that wasn’t mine to potential intruders, but more than confident in my own abilities, I twisted the knob and opened the door without saying a word. On the other side were an elderly man and a woman around my age. They spared around three meters between them and the door.

The elderly man was seemingly bald since his translucent hair was in the light. He wore a formal navy blue and white suit and seemed to have a jovial air about him despite the perceived purpose of their visit.

The woman wore a sky-blue dress and her left eye glowed just slightly blue from what seemed like layers of enchantments onto an artificial surface. In contrast to the man, she had a more serious air about her and it showed on her face with a menacing scowl.

“Steven and Mordred, correct?” I crossed my arms. “I was not expecting you to find this residence. What, pray tell, is the nature of your visit?”

Mordred spoke up almost immediately. “Expect the unexpected. Where’s Bea?”

“That is on a need-to-know basis and if that’s all you’re here for, I suggest you leave.”

“Look, we’re here on very specific orders, so we can either do this the easy way or the hard way. Neither of us is going to like the hard way.” Her eye that was glowing softly started glowing brighter.

I narrowed my vision on the woman and said, “Listen, I don’t like making people leave but this isn’t my house and I can’t afford to break anything here. Just go.”

“The hard way, it is.” Her eye started glowing brighter and the blue aura surrounding it began expanding.

While her demeanor made it seem hostile, I didn’t sense any hostility from her. Regardless, I subtly cast ‘nullify’ to stunt her spell before it could get started. Instead of stopping the spell completely, however, it only created a void in the spell around me as the light from her eye engulfed our surroundings, leaving everything in a hazy blue glow.

Less than a second later, the sound of a blade striking earth followed by static, cut through the still air. It fell from the sky between me in the entrance and the two intruders, sinking into the ground. The silhouette of a humanoid creature coated in fur as white as snow, matching the color of the electricity landed silently behind it. I didn’t get a good look at it before its fur shortened drastically to take a feminine shape. As soon as the fur receded far enough to reveal the clothing underneath, I realized it was Danna.

A surge of electricity popped the bubble that was the spell encompassing the area as arcs of white reached the edge of the blue boundary. Danna stood as the fur surrounding her finished receding, leaving her hair stark white and wildly undone.

With the dagger in hand, she said, “This is a warning. Leave.”

I shrugged and said, “You heard the homeowner.”

Steven, quiet behind Mordred, tapped her on the shoulder and whispered something.

Mordred’s demeanor changed and she seemed more relaxed. “You don’t know where she is, do you?”

I didn’t answer and just waved them away.

Finally saying something out loud, Steven spoke up. “In that case, would you happen to know the location of your tower?”

A moment of confusion washed over me but before I could respond, Danna stamped her foot, sending lightning in all directions. “I said, leave!”

“Very well,” said the old man, “We have all the answers we need. Apologies for intruding.” The pair turned and walked off down the street before vanishing a couple of houses down.

As soon as they were gone, Danna walked into the house past me and said, “We need to talk.”

“You’re telling me.”

Once we were both inside, Danna made sure the door was locked and started pacing back and forth in the space between the kitchen and hallway while her hair turned back to its normal light brown. After nearly a minute spent pacing, she said, “What do you want to know about first?”

I cleared my throat. “Alright then, how about... Did you know they were coming?” I had my suspicions, but I needed to be sure.

She shook her head. “Yes, and no.”

After a moment of silence, I said, “Is that all?”

“No, it-” she sighed. “I knew someone was looking for you- It was just a matter of time before they found out where I lived and I just wanted to protect you.”

“You? Protect me?” The thought to me was absurd but understandable to some degree.

“Yes. I didn’t know what they wanted so I had to figure it out myself.”

“And you didn’t think to bring any of this up with me... Wait, does that mean that whatever you’re doing at work has to do with me?”

“Well... yes and no-”

“Can you just tell me?” I was trying to be patient, but I was also ready to leave.

“I- sure, I might as well.” She started playing with her hands while still pacing. “I’m the secretary for a guild that runs high-profile cases and when you appeared at my doorstep, I had someone look into what was going on back home. They talked to your parents and found out about your protege. After looking around a bit, they found your tower... or what was left of it.”

“What do you mean, ‘what was left’?”

“Wait, I have it in here somewhere.” She reached between the folds of her top and produced a photo.

Watching her made my mind wonder and I couldn’t help but say, “You keep pictures in your tits?”

“Just look at it.” She handed me the picture.

“Tit pic, nice... Sorry.” The picture was of a hole in the ground surrounded by grass and trees with a familiar walkway leading from it. “Tower’s gone.”

“Yeah, and there’s people after you. What did they want?”

I gave the picture back and said, “Beatrix. She ran away from home and I found her on my porch being attacked by search hounds. Apparently, whoever she ran from really wanted her back.”

“But you gave her sanctuary and taught her magic.”

“You could say that.”

Danna had an impressed look on her face. “That’s pretty unexpected for you. Unless she’s hot.”

I scoffed. “Nah, it was her eyes. They’re like mine; starry.”

Danna paused for a moment as disbelief swept across her face. “Wait, is that true?”

“It’d be a dumb thing to lie about.”

“Yeah, but... To think...”

“Yeah, and they want her back. That’s all.”

“So, what happened, anyway?” Danna sounded concerned. “There’s just a hole where your house used to be and uh... well, everything.”

Trying to focus my thoughts, I sat on the couch. “I’d tell you if I knew at this point.”

Danna sat beside me in silence.

“So, you’re a Wielder now.”

Danna looked down at her hands. “Yeah, it happened-um... Let me just tell you.” She took a deep breath. “Remember when I went off to learn magic?”

“Yeah, and you came back hating me.”

“Don’t remind me... Well, I didn’t actually have any notable affinity with magic and I, admittedly, wasn’t very smart, so I couldn’t become anything on my own and they were going to send me home... In the end, I made a contract with a thunderbird and became a Warlock. Even then, I could only even use a fraction of what it lent me.”

Thinking back on all of the times Danna ridiculed me and Penelope for not having magic of our own while she struggled to use any to begin with nearly made me burst out laughing but the memories made me too sad to smirk.

Danna continued, “It was when I... I almost... When I ran-”

“When you almost killed me?” I said, making her stop and shudder at the thought.

“Yeah, that. I broke the contract I had with the thunderbird but at the same time, I awakened as a Wielder. My own power. Ironically, I can still barely use even that and as a result, I undergo a transformation every time I use my power. It hurts a little but it’s better than the alternative.”

“That being?”

“Powerlessness.”

We were silent for a few minutes while I processed her confession.

“Alright, that settles it.” I folded my arms. “I guess I have no choice but to stick around, but not for the reason you think.”

“Ok, then why are you staying?”

“With my tower gone, I can assume that Bea went somewhere out of reach and I don’t need to worry about her. You, on the other hand, can use some instruction.”

Danna placed her hand on her chest in confusion. “Me?”

“No, the other Devastation Wielder. Of course, you.”

“Wait, I never said I was a Devastation Wielder.”

“And a Common Wielder doesn’t hurt themselves every time they use their powers. Normally. Whatever the case, you still need help and I’m here.”

In the end, she accepted my proposal to start learning under me. Once we came to an agreement, I helped her cook, then we watched TV for the rest of the day and fell asleep on the couch together.

The next day, I woke up first and Danna was sleeping soundly with her head on my chest. Impulsively, I kissed her forehead then realized what I did and hoped she wasn’t awake. When I tried to move, I realized that my legs were open, and she was laying on top of me between them. While I didn’t recall what position we fell asleep, the position we were in then was compromising, to say the least. I normally kept my guard up to prevent such a thing, but I got too comfortable. Before I knew it, we were in a compromising position.

Gingerly, I rolled over, making sure to keep Danna away from the edge of the couch. In my efforts, I nearly fell while rolling. Catching myself, I neglected to do the same for Danna, who slipped out of my grasp and crashed to the ground with a hard thump and a yelp.

“Shit, that hurt.” She stood, hunched over, holding her lower back. “What the fuck?”

“Sorry about that.” I sat up. “You fell asleep on top of me, and I tried to roll over, and I almost fell, and then you slipped, and... Yeah.”

“You could have just woke me up.” She started stretching out her back and walking toward the bathroom. “This isn't how I wanted you to blow my back out... Ow.”

“Again, sorry about that.” I sat up and yawned. “When you’re ready, we can start.”

From the bathroom, I heard, “Oh, now you feel like it? Sorry, but my ass hurts.”

“That’s not what I meant.” I stood and allowed my blood flow to normalize before moving around. “You need to learn how to consolidate your power better, or at the very least, not hurt yourself when you use it.”

After a couple of minutes, Danna returned and stood next to the couch with her hands on her hips. “The girls at work said the same thing. They couldn’t really help me, though, and they were Wielders. You think you can?”

“Nothing to it but to do it.” I stood and went to the space between the living room and kitchen with my arms folded. “First, show me your weapon.”

“Fine.” She reached out her hand and a white light accompanied by the sound of a blade being drawn shone for a second above her palm as it formed the shape of a dagger. The light then vanished, leaving behind a fine blade. It was razor-thin and rounded into a long oval shape. The slender profile and overall shape reminded me of a throwing dagger, but the hand guard spread out in both directions like feathers departing from the curve of the blade. The handle looked almost like a handlebar with a rounded pommel. The handle and guard were snow-white with a blue tint to them and the blade and pommel were both silver.

Bluntly, I asked, “Do you know its name?”

Danna looked at me quizzically. “Of course, I do.”

“You didn’t call its name when you summoned it.”

“Do I have to?”

“You don’t, but it’s important that you do until you’ve mastered it.”

After a second of what looked like intense thought, Danna huffed, and her dagger vanished. “Light Spark.” She re-summoned her weapon by calling its name.

Wasting no time, I said, “Now show me your transformation.”

“Now?”

“Yes.”

“Alright, I’m going to strip, though.”

I shrugged. “If that makes it easier.”

She reached down and took off her pajamas, leaving just her underwear on before sparks of electricity began running around her body as her hair turned stark white and fur began sprouting in all directions. Her face slightly elongated and fangs began protruding from under her lips. In the end, she looked like a cross between a human and a fox.

Hoping she didn’t notice me staring squarely at her breasts as she transformed, I looked her up and down and said, “So, where did it hurt?”

“I don’t know, everywhere?” She examined herself as well.

“Anywhere in particular?” I started walking around her, examining her from different angles.

“Well, just my ass right now. It still hurts.”

I ran my finger up her back and she stood at attention as her fur stood straight along where I touched. “Try to concentrate.” I placed my hands on her shoulders and ran them along the length of her arms to the back of her hands. “There has to be some spot. That will be the breaking point. That’s where we’ll have to focus.” I stopped in front of her and placed one hand on her lower back while resting the other on the top of her forehead.

She seemed to shudder a little. “Mind going down a little?”

I traced the thumb of the hand on her forehead down to the center and she shuddered harder.

“There. It doesn’t hurt, but it tingles a lot... It feels... Weird.” She seemed to be in a trance.

“I see.” I pressed gently on the spot and Danna’s eyes crossed inward. Slowly, I moved my thumb in different directions and her eyes followed. “Does it feel good?”

“Yeah...” Her eyes started fluttering open and closed while still following my thumb. She looked wistless as she just barely stayed on her feet while I held her in place.

I let go of her lower back to see how her body swayed on its own but as soon as I let go, she snapped to attention and her eyes were suddenly sharp with clarity. “Oh.” I let go of her forehead and placed my hand under her chin, lifting it slightly as I observed her narrow but circular eyes as they were no longer relaxed.

“Why’d you stop?” she said.

“Let me ask you something. If I somehow made it feel even better, would you cum from that?”

Seemingly taken aback by my question, she said, “No? What kind of question is that?”

“Well, it’s just that, pleasure isn’t supposed to be the response to finding the spot.”

“Oh...” Danna looked away with an embarrassed look on her face.

“Probably just means you’re overworked and need a massage.” I reached for her hands and felt across her palms. She loosened her grip on her dagger to make space for my fingers before clutching it and squishing my fingers between her palm and handle. Her entire body tensed up and tears appeared in the corner of her eyes. “That’s it.” With a sharp yank, I pulled my fingers out.

“Ah!” Danna fell to her knees and dropped her dagger. “That hurt.” She seemed to be out of breath and hyperventilating.

“Seems like that’s the spot.” I folded my arms. “Did you even let those other people at work try to help you?”

Danna sat back on the ground while staring at her palm. “Well, to tell you the truth, no. I really thought it didn’t matter but that hurt like hell. Guess I don’t have to worry about my ass hurting anymore.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that.” I walked past her and quickly tapped her backside with the back of my hand, making her jump and reverse her transformation all at once.

Danna rubbed her butt. “Ow! I feel like that hurt much more than it should have.”

“Yep, you’re no Devastation Wielder, but until you master your powers, you’re going to feel like one.”

“I’m an Open Wielder, mind you.” She turned her nose up at me, just like the old days.

“Oh, really? Having access to one hundred percent of your potential from the start makes this a little more complicated.”

“How so?”

“Imagine you’re a balloon and your magic is the air that fills you. It always fills perfectly to maximum capacity, but instead of just being a normal balloon, you have a piece of tape pinching half the balloon together and making it smaller as a result. Most Wielders in that scenario would fill the balloon slowly with natural progress and slowly expand, forcing the tape to peel off over time. You, on the other hand, fill up all at once, and you know what happens when you overfill a balloon that fast. We need to figure out how to peel that tape off before you pop.”

Without a moment of hesitation, Danna said, “Alright, how do I do that?”

I shrugged. “We’ll figure it out.”

Danna put her clothes back on and said, “Well, unless there’s an emergency, I’m off work for the next few days. We have time.”

“Well, depending on how this goes, we’ll only need a few days.”

“Wait, really?”

“Yep, that is, assuming you can still use that scepter of yours.”

“I can. Just didn’t think I’d ever use it again. I’ll go get it.”

While Danna went to grab her scepter, I pondered about recent events. If the tower was gone, what really became of Beatrix? Her future self wouldn’t hurt her past self, but I wasn’t sure if she wouldn’t attempt to corrupt her either. The fact that those people could find me but not her meant that there was some trace of the magic that sent me to Danna around there, or they followed the guild members sent for Danna’s request and found me that way. Either way, I’d have to return there eventually, and I could find out everything I needed then. Until that time came, I needed to make sure Danna could properly defend herself after I left.

Once Danna returned with her scepter, she held it out to me as if I was going to take it.

Looking over it, I said, “Do you know how to infuse your dagger into the scepter?”

She looked around awkwardly and said, “No, not really.”

“Square one, huh?”

“Not... really...” She held her weapons close to each other and the dagger began to glow following a few sparks arcing between it and the scepter. They didn’t look like they were fusing. Instead, it looked like they were repelling each other, and the resulting energy surge saw her hands grow white fur and become claw-like. During this process, she winced multiple times.

Noticing this, I placed my hand over hers and cast, “Empathy.” As soon as I did, it felt like blades slashing across my fingers and the back of my hands. “Stop,” I said.

Dropping both items to the ground, Danna’s hands reverted back to normal, but she just stared at her hands as if they were still holding something. The feeling slowly faded as she made fists with her hands.

“Are you okay?” I said.

“Can I punch you?” Her hands were shaking as she looked up at me.

“We’ll get there, but for now, I need to know, is your scepter a magical item?”

“No, I used to run magic through it. It was never enchanted.”

“I see.” Crouching down, I picked up the dropped items and looked at them closely. The dagger felt unbalanced and awkward in my hand as if it was something I was never meant to wield, and the scepter felt very much the opposite. It felt mundane and ornamental. “That hurt a lot.”

“You’re telling me.” She sighed and spoke under her breath. “I suck at magic.”

“Don’t worry. Like I said, we’ll get there. Did your teachers in school ever teach you any ways to mitigate this kind of thing in case something happened when you were a Warlock?”

With a more audible sigh this time, Danna slouched over to the couch and plopped down. “No, I dropped out before I became a Warlock and they wouldn’t accept me back unless I showed ‘signs of mastery’, or some bullshit.”

Sitting beside her, I said, “Did you?”

“Well... I just kinda hid the fact that I couldn’t really manifest it without side effects. Well, I guess that was proof enough.”

“What kind of side effects?”

“Well, I heard I had really bad spasms when I slept after magic training. Took a lot of favors to keep my roommate quiet. At least she was a girl.”

Shocked, I said, “You? Lesbianism? Damn, you were determined.”

“Well, I did it all for you...” She pouted.

I couldn’t stifle my laughter at the look on her face. “I was joking about the lesbian stuff; you really did all that?”

“Shut up, I don’t want to talk about it.” Her pouting intensified.

“What?” I said, still laughing. “You had to eat her out or something? Or were there toys?”

Danna placed her head in her hands and mumbled, “I shouldnt’ve brought it up- I really shouldnt’ve brought it up- Why did I bring it up- just stop it please.”

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“It’s okay,” I said, patting her back. “I guess someone as anti-gay as you can put your prejudice aside for something you really believe in.”

“Can you just stop it-”

“I just wish we knew that sooner.” My voice had fallen unintentionally, causing Danna to pause.

“What do you mean?”

“I really didn’t tell you?” I sat up and looked Danna in the eye before she looked away. “Penelope was gay. I really thought I told you.”

In response, her jaw dropped, and she just stared blankly at the wall.

“Did I really not tell you?”

“No- I... I don’t know, you probably did, but I didn’t really pay any attention- or, something... Maybe I was too shocked.”

“Probably. You know, Penelope and I used to joke about you trying to kill me because I knew and you didn’t. You know, I’m actually kinda surprised you never found out on your own. She was pretty prolific in a few circles, you know? Of course, I was right alongside her.”

After a moment of silence, Danna said, “Oscar, am I a bad person?” She sounded like she was going to cry.

“Nah, you were just unmovable. A rock. Penelope didn’t want anything to chip away at you. That’s why we never told you anything. It was her decision and I respected it.”

“Oh, god, I am a bad person.” The tears started welling up, but before they could fall, she started feverishly wiping them away.

“I think she just didn’t want you to worry any more than you already did. Put too much on your plate and it’ll all go to waste.” I stood. “Speaking of. Being a Wielder is all about growing as a person, right? Maybe this is what you needed. At this rate, you might be able to take that first step you need.” My mind flashed back to the rage in her eyes from years ago. “It’s not your fault.”

Wordlessly, she reached her hand up and I grabbed it. After a second, she shook my hand away and gripped the air as if reaching for something else. Realizing what she wanted, I gave her the scepter and dagger. Placing them in each hand, she looked down at them as a tear, charged with electricity, fell in between them. Lightning sparked from both objects and her hair turned white as more sparks shot out from her in different directions and arced back to her body. The electrification only worsened as she gritted her teeth and started closing the gap between the scepter and dagger.

Since my ‘empathy’ spell was still active, it felt like pins and needles were poking and prodding at my skin from underneath and growing larger as they did so. Soon, it felt like blades running across my skin again, but everywhere.

As I stood there watching, Danna put all of her efforts into accomplishing a simple task for many that, for her, was no less than monumental.

The gap slowly closed until they were barely a breath away from each other. At that point, the electricity stopped all at once and Danna’s eyes went blank. The pain stopped all at once and I could feel a strong heartbeat in my chest, but it wasn’t mine. Danna had entered her inner space and was likely speaking with her spirit animal. While everyone had a spirit animal, only Wielders could freely communicate with theirs and it seemed that she didn’t do it on purpose. After a couple of minutes, she opened her eyes.

Noting her blank stare, I said, “Are you alright?”

“I can do it,” she said, with a slow nod. “But not now. I need more than just my own power.”

“No.” I stood and went to the space between the kitchen and living room. “You just need another form of your own power.”

“What does that mean?” Danna stood and watched me.

“I’ll tell you but first, we need to go somewhere secluded. Your house is secluded enough but it’s also a little cramped for this.”

“The forest out back is pretty secluded. Would that work?”

“Is it an enchanted forest?”

“You think I would live here if it wasn’t?”

“What kind of fey live there?”

“Mostly fireflies, satyrs, the odd pixie here and there, and I think a druidic monk who calls himself an Ent.”

“Any wendigos?”

“Nah, I heard the Ent man got rid of them all.”

“That sounds fun, let’s go then.”

Around an hour later, Danna and I were heading outside. We took turns in the shower and Danna changed into her old school uniform. It was a white tunic with light blue trim, a blue, enchanted utility belt, and a tall, white, wide-brimmed, pointed hat with a blue hem.

Looking her up and down as we left the house, I said, “Do you have to dress like you’re in school?”

Danna smiled and said, “If you’re going to teach me something, I’d rather be dressed to learn. Besides, it’s made to the same specs as a combat outfit. It won’t get blown apart if something happens, so I won’t be caught naked in the case that something backfires.”

Sarcastically, I said, “Oh, wow, If I thought of that, I’d have asked you not to wear it.”

"In a forest full of satyrs, you gotta be fucking kidding me."

“Don’t worry, I can take care of that.”

“Alright, I’ll leave it to you then.”

After just over an hour of travel, we decided to stop in a large clearing.

Looking around, I said, “Now, we just need to communicate with the local fey. There needs to be a lot so they can spread the word to stay away from this place.”

“How are we going to do that?”

As an answer to her question, I looked her up and down then rested my gaze on her chest.

She placed an arm over her chest and said, “This is the wrong context to be looking at me like that.”

“It’ll be fine. Just stand by me and they’ll know their place.”

She shifted a little closer to my side. “Just don’t do anything weird. I don’t want the forest creatures to think we’re just fucking in the forest.”

“I just need you to call out to them. A female voice will get their attention more than a male one would. I’ll just cast ‘echo’ on you and you should be heard pretty far out.”

She sighed. “Alright, just do it.”

Silently casting ‘echo’ on Danna, I firmly groped her behind with my hand, and ran a couple of fingers between her thighs, pressing upwards. The resulting moan echoed back in the distance as she tried to grab my wrist before I pulled my hand away. Immediately after, I dispelled the spell.

She turned and gave me a quick jab in the arm. “What the fuck was that about?”

I held up a finger and said, “Wait for it.”

As expected, a few seconds passed and a group of fey appeared from the woods around the clearing. Satyrs galloped excitedly to meet the sensual moans of a female and a few small, bioluminescent faeries, awakened by the sound, looked around between the leaves in the trees with a fog of sleep hanging over their heads.

Clearing my throat, I put my arm over Danna’s shoulders and said, “Hello, forest folk. I am Oscar, a Wizard. This is my student. What we will be doing here is highly volatile magic. I will put up a barrier around this area to protect the surrounding forest. I’d appreciate it if you could spread the word to stay away from this clearing until further notice.”

“What’s in it for us?” One of the satyrs stepped forward with his arms folded.

“You horny little guys will have the privilege of not getting incinerated if something goes wrong.”

“Who are you to say something like that could happen?” The satyr sounded confident.

I raised my hand toward the satyr. “Enfeeblement.” He, alongside all of the other creatures peeking between the trees around us, fell to the ground instantly aside from the ones supported by branches or leaves. None of them moved but some twitched slightly as they tried and failed. “This isn’t even close to the extent of my power and my student here surpasses me in that aspect. If something goes wrong, your mobility isn’t the only thing you’ll lose.” I released the spell and the creatures all started slowly moving away.

The satyr that was talking to me backed away with a look of fear in his eyes. “Alright, we get it. Spread the word, right? We’re on it.” He turned around and dashed between the foliage.

I tapped Danna on the shoulder. “And that’s how you do it.”

She put her hands on her hips. “By threatening them?”

“It’s either a threat or a deal, you know that.”

“I also know that they have a guardian that might be coming for us right now.”

I scoffed. “I can handle it. I’m not called one of the ‘Twelve Demon Wizards’ for nothing. Regardless, we should get to training right away. Vaulted canopy.” The surrounding treetops leaned in toward the clearing and the natural magic housed within them spread out and created a translucent green dome over the area. “First thing’s first, I’m going to inundate the area with magic and see if that causes a reaction, ready?”

“About as ready as I can be.” Danna summoned her dagger and pulled out her scepter.

“Alright, blast furnace.” Our surroundings gained a red hue as my spell overtook the space within the dome of trees, causing the temperature to rise drastically. “Now we wait. Well, I wait, you can take this opportunity to show me how you normally practice your magic.”

Danna took a deep breath and gave a short cough as if she inhaled smoke. “Was that an extreme spell? The air is so hot.”

“Yeah, don’t worry, you can handle it. If not, you’d be on fire.”

“If you say so.” She took a long, drawn-out breath and walked forward until she was a few meters away before turning around, closing her eyes, and sitting in the grass with her legs crossed. After a few seconds, I could feel the energy coming from her. Tiny white particles started appearing around her, but they started vanishing in puffs of flame after getting a short distance from her. She seemed to be focusing the particles into one point, but they didn’t last long enough to be gathered. Regardless, she began levitating off the ground. Her focus seemed to replace the application of a levitation spell. Next, she started taking deep breaths and as she did so, she levitated higher before lowering down as she breathed out. The particles leaving her grew to twice their original size then shrank back while becoming brighter. Even so, they still burned as they left a short distance from her. Eventually, she levitated back to the ground as what felt like a pressure wave leaped from her in all directions. The push of her energy created a small radius around her that burned away in seconds. She continued breathing deeply while her aura expanded and burned away simultaneously. While this happened, her eyelids were twitching as if something was bothering her. Eventually, she opened her eyes and said, “I can’t focus.”

“Is it the heat?”

“No... I don’t know. It’s like something is interfering. I guess I just haven’t done this in a long time.”

“So, you don’t realize your aura’s being burned away as you expand it outside your body?”

“That’s what that feeling was? It felt like I was just exhausting myself doing nothing.” She batted air toward her face. “It is really hot.”

“Well, it is a magic field created with fire magic. Do you know how to utilize magic fields?”

“What? Of course, I do. This is just unnatural mana.”

I raised my brow. “Unnatural? What part of my magic is unnatural?”

“Well, it’s from you, not nature.”

“And I’m not a natural creature?”

She seemed to take a moment to think and said, “Nevermind, let me try something.” She cupped her hands together and a white ball of light appeared for a moment before arcs of electricity erupted around it that spread out to coat her hands.

”You did it, good job.”

“Thanks,” she said, seemingly still in concentration.

“Next, I want to see you do magic field conversion.”

“What?” She sounded dismayed as if I was asking her to do the impossible.

“Not right now. Just do what you were doing. We’ll get to that later.”

Danna’s lightning ball vanished and she went back to meditating just as she was before. This time, her expanding aura didn’t burn away immediately. Instead, it seemed to act as a barrier between her and the surrounding heat. Even so, it didn’t expand as far as it once did to be burned away. Soon enough, she opened her eyes, and they were coated in white sparkles. “How long did that take?” she asked.

“About an hour.”

“Good. I can finish the rest, then.” Danna stuck her hand out. “Light ball.” A white ball the size of a small marble appeared at her fingertips and started growing slowly. Moving her hand over a bit, she cast the spell again and nothing happened until she repeated this action, creating a new light ball the size of her palm as the last one sparked into existence. Quickly, as those two formed, she moved again and created two more simultaneously as the first marble-sized ball grew to the same size as the rest. Once all five light balls were formed, she raised both of her hands and then lowered them, casting a different spell, “Sanctuary.” The balls of light circled around Danna and fell to the ground where they etched a white circle around her before stopping. The ground within the circle started glowing white and the balls disappeared as the light radiated outward. “Alright.” She sighed. “That’s the first exercise done.”

“How many more exercises are there?” I asked.

“Like, four or five more.” She touched the ground. “Starlight.” The light started emitting a softer glow. “Star guardian.” The soft glow started rising up and made a dome over Danna as she prepared to cast another spell. “Magnetosphere.” The dome started crackling with electricity as it seemed to become a cloud of plasma, appearing as a border of fluff replacing the already soft dome covering Danna. She leaned back and opened her eyes, now with narrow pupils, propping herself up with her hands with a heavy sigh. “That’s another part done.” Next, she plopped down onto her back, spread out her limbs, and started hyperventilating.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Yeah, to tell you the truth... I can’t move.” She giggled in exasperation. “I could never get past this part.”

“Makes sense. You slow-cast a ‘light ball’, delay cast another one, swiftcast the next one, then dual-cast two more. I wouldn’t be surprised if you stopped there but then you ritual cast ‘sanctuary’. You looked like you were at your limit then you kept going.”

“Well, I was.” She reached her hand up then it flopped back to the ground. “I really fucking overdid it... So, gonna explain everything else I did to me while I recover?”

I shrugged. “Eh, sure. So, you cast a basic conversion spell to change the hard glow of the light magic to a softer, more malleable version before using it to ritual cast an advanced spell, surprisingly. Finally, you ritual cast the advanced light spell into an extreme lightning spell. Every step seems to be in place to keep you from using up too much magic at once. Given how every spell in the second exercise is completed before you cast the next one, you’re probably supposed to take your time and cast each one slowly instead of in quick succession. Is that about right?”

Still exasperated, Danna said, “Hell if I know. You’re the first person who could even tell me what I did.”

“Really? What about your teachers?”

“She hated teaching... Wouldn’t tell me shit... Wasn’t even a real teacher... Just looking all cool and stuff... I thought... teacher... but then...”

“Are you okay? You’re hyperventilating pretty bad.”

“Yeah... I’m bad-good-bad-whatever... Woo! I’m beat... I’ll just... sleep here for a bit.” her eyes closed slowly.

Watching her rest, I thought about how she was still surrounded by her spell and had an idea. Snapping my fingers, I cast my own spell. “Awaken.”

Danna’s eyes jolted open and she exclaimed, “What the fuck! You can’t just do that. That shitty fucking- Ah-” She placed both of her palms on her temple. “Just like her.”

“Your teacher?”

“Who the fuck else? A pain in my ass.” She sat up. “What did you do that for, anyway?”

“Before I tell you, why would your teacher wake you up?”

“She always made me dispel the spells I set up before I rested. It was annoying as hell. It’s like taking apart a damn knot or something.”

“Sounds about right,” I said, with a nod. “At this rate, you’ll be drained of magic and not even know why. Most spells have a timer but feeding a spell keeps it going past its time. You were intending to keep the spell going while you were asleep, right?”

“Is that bad?”

“Your teacher really told you nothing, did she?”

“Nope.”

I sighed. ”Eventually, the timer on this spell you cast will run out and it would take all the mana it took to cast it all over again to keep it going if you don’t regulate how you feed it. You’ll probably die if you just take a nap while you’re already too exhausted to even feed the spell to begin with.”

“Oh, shit. And if I just let the timer run out?”

“As long as you don’t intend to continue the spell, you’ll be fine.”

“Good to know...” Danna relaxed and her breathing seemed to normalize.

“Ok, tell me about school.”

“What? Why?”

“You learned enough to know how to feed mana to a completed spell but not enough to know the consequences. Who was your teacher?”

“Believe it or not, it was one of the Twelve Demon Wizards.”

“Oh, really? I might just know her then. What was her name?”

“Belial.”

I couldn’t help but laugh out loud at the absurdity. It took me over a minute to calm down while Danna watched me quizzically.

“What’s so funny?”

“Oh, she’s actually a good friend of mine. I just talked to her a week before I got teleported here.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah, and she lied to you. She was a teacher. I think she just told you that to get you to leave her alone. Well, persistence is key. What made you think she was all cool and stuff?”

Danna shrugged. “I can’t really explain it. It was like she carried herself differently or something. Like she stuck out like a sore thumb against all of the faculty. I think there were some rumors about her, too.”

“Makes sense. Wanna be the best? Learn from a hieratic.”

“I think she said something like that at some point.”

“Makes sense. She’d have been talking about herself. So, the real question is: did she just give you a bunch of tasks to go do or did she actually watch over you.”

“She just made me do exercises over and over again. While she just sat on her ass and slept a bunch.”

A smile crept across my face as I came to a conclusion. “I see.”

“That’s a creepy smile, what are you thinking?”

“Well, it looks like she saw something special in you. Otherwise, she probably would have had you go into a forest and just survive for a while or something.”

“Really? It just felt like torture... But, I guess I was accepted back in the academy thanks to her.”

Thinking aloud, I mumbled, “Maybe it was a stress test? No, maybe it was just stress...” Realizing what Belial was onto made me scoff. “Alright, what’s the next exorcize?”

“I’m supposed to cast ‘lightning break’, then ‘shockstate’, then ‘purge’.”

“After that?”

“I’m supposed to meditate on it for a bit.”

“Then?”

“There was one more thing, but she never explained it to me. She said she would if I ever got to that last step, but I never did.”

“Probably because you’ll figure it out on your own, anyway. Are you feeling any better?”

“A little.” She sighed. “I could probably stand in a bit.”

“Alright, we’re done for now then.” I snapped my fingers and dispelled my ‘blast furnace’. As soon as I did, the field of plasma surrounding Danna expanded by six times since it was no longer fighting the pressure of my magic. “That is, unless you think you can cast ‘lightning break’ on that ‘magnetosphere’ surrounding you. Actually, if you can do that, you should be able to do all three spells.”

“Seriously?” Danna sounded beyond tired but unable to sleep on account of the spell I cast on her.

“Yeah, can you?”

“Do you make your own student do stuff like this?”

“No. Just you.”

She breathed deeply and sighed. “Fuck it, whatever.” struggling to her feet, Danna reached forward as if she was reaching for something. “Lightning break.” With the sound of glass breaking and an electric shock, the fluffy halo surrounding her shattered as if it was a solid structure. Before it could vanish, she cast, “Shockstate.” Causing electricity to spring from her body, arcing out in all directions and changing her uniform to stark white with just the faintest hint of blue while adding spikes that accented every edge and opening. While it looked like the ‘magnetosphere’ around her vanished completely, my left eye saw the mana from the ‘magnetosphere’ returned to her somehow and was used to create the ‘shockstate’. Finally, she cast, “Purge.” The electricity coating her body vanished all at once and became a soft cloud of white particles surrounding her that only my left eye could see.

“Time to meditate?” I said.

“To be honest, I’m surprised I didn’t pass out. Then again, you did cast a spell on me, so I guess it makes sense.” She plopped onto her butt and likely gave herself whiplash as she sat still for a moment before folding her legs, clasping her hands, and closing her eyes.

I watched closely as the mana hanging in the air around her moved toward her, seemingly coating her in sparkles. A moment turned into a minute turned into an hour and Danna was unmoving the entire time. All the while, the glitter coating her body started fading as if she was re-absorbing all of it at once.

A couple of hours passed and I started getting worried. I approached and reached toward her then reeled my hand back when an arc of electricity reached out to touch me. The energy was looking for somewhere to go and electricity always follows the path of least resistance. I had no choice but to stand and watch over her from a distance.

While waiting, I decided it was the right time to remove the cast from my ankle. Lifting my foot, I tapped it with my finger and cast ‘impact‘, making it break in two before falling to the ground. Shifting my weight onto it felt no different from when it was in a cast, but I had to get used to rotating my ankle again. While I did that, I waited.

The sun hit the horizon at some point and by then, I was levitating around in boredom, making sure to stay far enough away from Danna that I didn’t get shocked. In my boredom, I started wondering what Danna was wearing under her tunic. Even though I got a feel, I wasn’t really trying to feel so I couldn’t tell what she had on under there. She did say that she was worried about the satyrs, so she had to be wearing something and curiosity got the better of me. Preparing a teleportation spell in case I got too close, I turned upside down and slowly levitated toward Danna until I felt like I was as close to her as I could get. Taking a breath, I cast ‘gust’, blowing wind up her tunic and lifting it.

For a second, I thought I blinked, and Danna was gone until I looked up and saw her looking down at me. She was standing over me while I was hovering close to the ground. At least I could see that she wore shorts.

“Expecting to see something?” she said with a smirk.

“Not really. I figured there wasn’t much to see but I was curious.” I put myself back to a standing position and backed off a bit. “That was a hell of a burst of speed. I’m assuming you figured out the next step?”

“I think so.” She pulled out her dagger and it started glowing. “I think those exercises made it so this balloon could inflate just a little more before it could pop.” The dagger lengthened and changed shape until there was a blade on either side of the handle. The blades looked like miniature versions of the kind of straight sword my parent’s shop used to sell. “Hmm...” Danna looked at the new weapon in thought. “I’ll name it... later... Can’t think of anything now...” The weapon in her hand vanished and her weight dropped as she fell unconscious.

Acting fast, I caught her and lifted her into my arms. The strain hurt my joints, but it was a welcome pain to a certain extent. Regardless, I made her levitate while I held onto her. Next, I dispelled my ‘vaulted canopy’ spell to the sight of someone just outside the boundary of the barrier as it vanished.

It was a rather tall humanoid probably around eight feet tall in a dingy green cloak with a staff headed with a deer skull. Their own head was obscured with a vaguely skull-shaped bubble of darkness with two red dots for eyes. It reached its hand toward me and a spark of electricity akin to a bolt of lightning sprang from Danna all the way to the creature, causing it to retract its hand as it was struck.

I put my hand up and said, “Sorry about that. Might be a good idea to stay away from this area for a few hours. Volatile magic and all.”

I heard a deep, gravelly voice radiate from all directions. “You dare trespass into this domain and contaminate the forest?”

“That isn’t my intention but if you have a problem with me, you can come discuss it with me face-to-face.”

In an instant, it appeared in front of me with a green sheen coating its visage.

I waved my hand, dispelled the apparition, and said, “Gotta come to me yourself if you wanna have a talk.”

The voice returned. “Very well.” The humanoid glided across the ground toward me and a translucent green bubble surrounding it steadily became more visible as it approached.

I released Danna and made her levitate behind me. Folding my arms, I watched the humanoid stop just within striking range. “So, what do you need? Something about pollution?”

“Arrogant human.” The voice from before emanated from the humanoid. There was no visible mouth to speak of. “Your tricks don’t work on me. I do not fear you.”

“Oh, you mean, my eyes. If you feel afraid, then you’re the human here.”

After a moment of staring me down, the creature let out what I could only assume to be a drawn-out breath. “I see. You are the pollutant.” It reached out and a black finger coated in vines stuck out from the cloaked arm. “Leave this forest now. You will only be warned once.”

“And if I don’t?”

“Fate is not kind to those who tempt it.”

“Are you calling yourself fate?” I smiled, ready to act, just in case.

“Never return or the forest will have your head.” The figure vanished and its presence faded but I could still see the glitter surrounding it as it only made itself invisible and hid its presence with the natural mana. It was watching me.

“You never know what kinds of people you’ll deal with in these random forests, huh?” I raised my hand and lowered it, casting a spell. “Negative space.” The spell scattered the dense residual mana left over from training and also dispelled the creature's invisibility. I only cast it for a second, so I didn’t have to catch Danna as the levitation spell on her also vanished until I recast it immediately. “Nice to see you again,” I said to the humanoid. “Did you miss me or were you just standing there the whole time?”

“What are you?” It focused its gaze squarely on my eyes.

“You’ll have to see me again to find out.” I placed my hand on Danna and slow-cast, ‘flicker’, allowing myself enough time to say a little more before we both teleported in a wisp of flame. “Maybe next time we can have a little friendly spar.”

In the blink of an eye, Danna and I were back in the living room. I took the lady to her room and left her in her bed while I took to the couch.

The next day, I woke up to Danna trying to get comfortable under me. I reached my arm around her and said, “You don’t have to sleep under me, you know.”

“But I want to. Can you rub my back again? My lower back still hurts.”

“Eh, sure.” I shrugged. “If it makes you feel better. I did cause it.”

Danna snuggled up against me and pressed her head against my chest. “You can start now.”

Teleporting into a standing position, I placed my hands on her back, pushed her flat against the couch, and said, “Alright, get comfortable and whatever you do, don’t move. Just bear with it for a bit and it’ll be over quickly.”

A few minutes passed accompanied by a cacophony of cracking noises and harsh screams. By the time I was done with the massage, Danna looked totally relaxed with her face buried in the cushion. I smiled at my handiwork and sat at the edge of the couch beside her until she started moving again. When she did, she reached for me and when she touched my side, she balled up her fist and punched me.

“Ow, what was that for?” I said, standing.

“That hurt like hell, jackass. I fucking blacked out. Were you trying to kill me?”

“Of course not. Your back should feel much better, though.”

“It does. Thanks, I hate it. It hurt way too much to get to this point. Don’t do it again, please.” She never moved her face from the cushion.

“Alright, I won’t do it again unless you ask.”

“Cool. I’m never complaining about my back again.”

“That-a girl.” I went toward the kitchen. “Want me to make something?”

“No, I’ll cook. You’re a guest.” Danna shuffled around on the couch and stood, stretching. “Wow, I actually feel great. You did a good job. I hated it but I feel great now. Think you could massage a few other places next time?”

“I’ll think about it.”

After breakfast, we prepared to head back out. Danna was back in her uniform, and I could finally wear shoes on both feet. I walked around with mostly full, albeit slightly stiff, mobility. While I was busy testing my joints with various motions, Danna watched me from the doorway until I noticed. We went out the door soon enough and made our way into the forest. On the way, everything seemed unusually silent.

Looking up, Danna said, “Something’s wrong. What did you do?”

Offended, I said, “What do you mean? I didn’t do anything.”

She looked at me like a disappointed mother. “What did you do?”

I shrugged. “I might have gotten into a dick-measuring contest with the forest guardian.”

Danna audibly slapped her forehead with her palm. “Are you fucking serious? I live here. I don’t want to be the enemy of the fucking forest. I like to sleep at night, you know.”

“It’ll be fine-”

“No, it won’t. If he shows up again, shut up and let me talk.”

I shrugged again. “Alright.”

We walked for around thirty minutes and the trees started rustling ahead of us as if a breeze was coming toward us, but the wind wasn’t going that way. A second later, the humanoid from yesterday appeared. It lifted its vine-coated darkened hand and a translucent red heart appeared in its hand. “Leave now.” It squeezed the heart lightly and I felt its grip on my own heart.

Watching this happen, Danna stepped forward and said, “Wait. I know you two got off on the wrong foot but we’re not here to hurt anyone. In fact, let him make it up to you somehow. There’s no need to curse each other.”

Placing my hand on my chest, I cast ‘phantom flame’, causing the heart in the humanoid’s hand to catch fire and dissipate.

The humanoid closed its hand and nothing happened. “This man is a curse upon this land. If he does not leave, the forest will take more drastic methods.”

“Is that a threat-” I started.

Danna pushed her hand against my mouth. “SHH!”

“The forest makes no threats,” said the humanoid.

Moving Danna’s hand, I said, “How about this: We only need today. We can be done by nightfall. We’ll be out of your, uh... not hair by then. If not, we can have that friendly spar I was talking about.”

After a moment of silence, the humanoid vanished into unnatural darkness accompanied by what could only be described as the sound of a group of hissing snakes.

“That went better than I thought,” said Danna. “What the hell is wrong with you, Oscar?”

“My eyes.” As soon as I said that, Danna made a somber expression. “He sees the curse as it is but he’s definitely overreacting.”

“Like someone else I know?”

“Do you know somebody like that?”

“Whatever, let's go, we only have all day.”

“Eh, glass half full.”

After we made it to the same clearing as yesterday, we took a look around in case any fey that didn’t get the message from last time were hanging about. There were a few pixies floating around, likely gorging themselves on the mana left in the air from yesterday, who scattered back into the forest as we approached. No other creatures seemed to be nearby, so I cast ‘vaulted canopy’ again to enclose us and protect the area outside the clearing.

Giving thought to what our next step should be and also considering the possibility of my work already being done, I said, “So, first thing’s first. Can you evolve your weapon to that second form again?”

“Not a chance.” Danna shook her head. “It was like a perfect storm. If I try it again, I might just explode. Literally.”

“Your spirit animal told you that?”

“More like, it almost happened... and my spirit animal told me after the fact.”

“Ah...” I scratched my head. “So, I guess the easy way is ruled out. Natural talent won’t help us much and we’re on a time limit. Alright, plan A.”

“You mean plan B?”

“Nope, I figured you wouldn’t be able to do it in a day. I just wanted to verify your current level of progress. I can’t put a limiter on you since we don’t have the materials and, well, I think you have enough control of your powers that the kind of limiter I know how to make would be functionally useless.”

Danna put her hands on her hips and stood ready. “So, what’s the plan? I’m up for anything.”

“Alright, then, give me your hand.” I reached out my hand and she put hers in my palm. Channeling the flow of ki into my palm, I let it radiate out. “Do you feel that?”

“Feel what? There’s nothing... Am I supposed to feel something?”

Just as well. I figured that if she had trouble with magic, she’d have a harder time learning ki. “Not really. Alright, do you feel this?” stopping the flow of ki, I channeled some spirit energy into my palm and let it radiate out.

“Yeah, it’s cold... but hot?”

“What you’re feeling is spirit energy. That’s what I’m going to teach you.”

“Spirit energy?”

“Yeah. It’s not hard to teach or learn and if you can utilize it properly, you should be able to bolster your magic and even use it as a reinforcement to your body so you can draw out your full potential.”

“Alright, so how do we start?”

“Easy.” I let go of her hand and pressed mine squarely in the center of her chest. Focusing my spirit energy on the spot, I started pushing my soul through Danna’s body and forcing her soul out little by little. “You feel that, right?”

“Yeah. It feels weird.”

“I’m pushing on your soul. Push back if you don’t want to be pushed out.”

Her eyes widened as she seemed to realize the implications of what could happen if she failed to resist. She opened her mouth as if to say something but just looked forward blankly. A white silhouette of her figure outlined her body and started moving backward as I pushed against it. I could feel her starting to fight back after a few seconds. She was regaining a grip on herself and pulling herself back together. Slowly, her outline dragged itself back into her physical form, pushing me back as she reclaimed herself.

“How do you feel?” I said, removing my hand.

“Weird...” Danna stared down at her hands and waved them around slowly, trembling slightly. “It’s like tingly, but not...”

“Yeah, you’ll get used to it. You’re really feeling your body for the first time. Eventually, you’ll be able to do it on purpose. Unlike magic, spirit energy is easy to use and apply. The only problem is; you’ll need a lot of it to actually affect the world outside of yourself. The benefit of that is that you can use it as a substitute for the burst of magic you need to cast spells. You won’t have to build up dangerous amounts of mana to trigger the casting of any of your spells. Instead, you can use the power of your soul which regenerates naturally over time and works more subtly. I’m sure you can already do it if you put your mind to it right now.”

“Right now?” Danna looked at me, then her hands again. “Right now?”

“Right now.” I stepped back. “Cast any spell. Just remember how it felt to fight against getting your soul pushed out. That’s how it feels to use your spirit energy. Focus on that feeling as you ready your spell then allow your mana to flow into it as you cast it.”

Taking a deep breath, Danna pointed her pals toward an empty space nearby. Her eyes grew sharp as she seemed to go into deep concentration. “Electric palm.” Her hands flashed white and a bolt of electricity sprang from them a yard forward into nothing. “Holy crap, that was easy. How come more people don’t know about this?”

“More people don’t need to know about it. Magic being as mainstream as it is, is already a problem in and of itself. Besides, you could already use spirit energy before I just taught you.”

“Because I could feel it?”

“Bingo. It’s a metaphysical part of you that’s shaped and formed by your life experiences. You’ve had so much experience with it, probably from struggling with magic, to begin with. You had to have had a lot of near-death experiences, huh?”

As if coming to a realization, Danna nodded her head. “Yeah, those were a dime a dozen when I was first learning.”

“It’s probably what your spirit animal was hinting at. Those things know their Wielder better than the Wielder knows themselves.”

A look of excitement spread over Danna’s face. “So that means-” She whipped out her dagger and scepter before pushing them close together. A gentle whirlwind seemed to encompass them as sparks of white electricity jumped between them. Once they were barely a hair away, a larger bolt leaped out from between them and struck Danna, surprising her and causing her to pull them away from each other. “Ow, that didn’t work.”

“Much closer than before. If anything, you should be able to do it by tomorrow. Right now, I want to teach you a spell.”

Danna stood at attention as if she was a soldier waiting for orders. Her gaze was silent and intense. I couldn’t tell if it was a result of Belial’s training or if she was just that eager to learn.

“Have you heard of the ‘hand of god’ spell?”

“I have. It’s one of the strongest lightning attack spells, right?”

“That’s right. I’m going to teach it to you. Watch and learn because I’m only showing you once.” Making sure to take each step in casting the spell as slowly as possible, I started by gathering my spirit energy into the tips of my fingers and making an avenue for my mana to flow seamlessly. Closing my hand allowed the disconnected points to converge into a chokepoint, creating pressure like a valve that had yet to be released. Next, I converted the wild nature of my innate fire magic into the spontaneous nature of lightning by creating weak connecting points for the flames to funnel throughout my body until it converged upon itself into a stream that jumped between the disconnected points to bridge the gaps. Finally, I allowed that electricity to run through my arm and pool where my spirit energy had in a seamless transition that put no strain on my body. The result was bright yellow lightning that coated my arm up to my elbow and now, the spell was prepared to be cast. “Hand of god.” I struck toward the ground, but the pressure created at the point of impact, even though the point was within my palm, created a hole in space following my intended point of impact. A hole opened up just before my fist stopped and all of the energy imparted in the strike went to the other side. A corresponding hole opened up in the air a few meters away and the lightning, shaped like my fist but the size of my body, struck the ground.

The whole time, Danna watched and seemingly took notes with her eyes. “So, I’m supposed to learn how to do that?”

“If you watched carefully enough, yeah. You have until sundown. This will be a real test of your abilities.”

“Wait, you’re just gonna spring a test on me like that?”

“Put that soul to work. You got a strong spirit so it shouldn’t take long. I believe in you.” As I spoke, I steadily moved backward out of range of any negative reactions to her failing to cast the spell.

“If you believe in me, why are you standing over there?” She gestured toward me.

“It’s easier to watch from over here. Get to work, we only have all day.”

Danna rolled her eyes and started trying to replicate the steps I showed her. It took her only a few minutes to create a veil of lightning around her hand but failed to create an impact strong enough to act as a trigger for the spell. Instead, she just punched at nothing with her arm still coated in electricity. After a few empty punches, the lightning dissipated, making her redo the spell from the start.

I knew she wouldn’t be able to cast the spell in just a day, but I wanted to give her something to work toward. At the very least, she’d be able to mix her magic and spirit energy well enough to seamlessly combine her dagger and scepter and that was enough. She seemed well off enough aside from that, that she wouldn’t need me around to teach herself anything more. After all, she had a whole guild to learn from.

The hours passed and Danna only got so far as to make the lightning deform around her hand in a circle where the impact of her fist was supposed to be. Twilight was approaching and it was almost time to go.

Approaching Danna, I said, “Alright, you can stop now.”

Looking up at me in frustration, Danna’s face softened. “I failed, huh?”

“Yep, but that’s fine. Try combining your weapons again.”

“Oh, sure.” She produced the dagger and scepter again and this time, there were no sparks as they came in contact and started glowing. Once the glow subsided, the scepter teamed with electricity bottled within the crystal at the top as it gave off a faint glow. “I did it.” The surprise in her voice was melancholy as if she not only didn’t expect to do it, she didn’t want to do it.

“Yep, we’re heading back now. It’s getting dark.” I dispelled my ‘vaulted canopy’ spell and started walking back toward the house. Looking up, I saw the moon barely peaking over the treetops. It was a red orb slowly rising in the sky. I mumbled, “The blood moon again. The first and final one I’ll see here.”

“Wait for me.” Danna hurried behind me.

“On second thought, let’s just teleport.” I turned around and put my hand on her shoulder before teleporting both of us back.

Despite how much mana she used, Danna was still able to function normally and cooked dinner. Even though I tried to help, she wouldn’t let me. After we ate, we sat on the couch watching old movies. As always, Danna snuggled as close to me as she could.

Halfway through the first movie, I said, “I’m all better.”

“I know. You’re going to leave now, right?” Her tone was as melancholy as when she successfully fused her weapons.

“Yeah. I’m leaving. When you wake up tomorrow, I’ll be gone. Don’t worry, I can find my way.”

“Before you go... Can we, do it...” She looked at me and moved her face closer to mine. “Just once?”

My heart skipped a beat, but I had to stand my ground. “I’m sorry, we can’t-”

“Please, I’m still in love with you, I... just want to feel you one more time before you’re gone for good.”

She was right. I would be gone for good and I wanted it as much as she did. Of all the thoughts to run through my head, none of them concluded doing it once was negative. Maybe my logic was more fallible than I thought or maybe I stopped thinking with the correct head, but I gave in.

With my voice shaking in my throat, I whispered, “Just once.”