"There's been a change of plans..." Meius leaned against the stone wall of a building within the city. He looked down at his fingertips as he relaxed. Though he had called her here, it seemed as if his attention were somewhere else with the way he didn’t bother to look at her so far.
"What do you mean? Can you be a little specific?" Kataline leaned against the opposite wall from Meius in the long-stretching alley.
"The event from before... Consider it canceled. Instead, I need you to go somewhere else." Meius's eyes moved up towards Kataline's face.
"Meius... Why?" Kataline groaned as she lifelessly tilted her head to the side.
"Don't give me that. I'm under a lot of stress right now, and you're already hard enough to track down as is. I know I ask a lot of you, Avura... But you're the only one I can trust on this." Meius locked his gaze onto the pink-haired girl.
"M-Meius..." Kataline's face grew flushed, but she ducked her head down to hide it from him. It annoyed her to no end to have him call her by that name... But if he knew otherwise... "W-what is it?..."
"There's a little village a few days out to the east of here. Korkolo and some other cultists will be there. Yo-"
"Ah! So, that's what it's about. I figured all of that contract stuff out earlier." Kataline sprang forward from the wall and pointed in Meius's face.
"Mm... I wonder why you went digging for all of that..." Meius smirked as he crossed his arms. Kataline's face took a stern expression in response. "Could it be... That you have a vested interest in Avures? Maybe even a hatred for him? After all, I can't look past your choice of alias now that he's relevant."
"Hmph... I suppose that's none of your concern..." Kataline crossed her own arms and turned away.
"Well... Maybe one of these days I'll learn about that and your real name." Meius shrugged, acting disinterested once more and looking away from her. "Anyways, you're to meet with Korkolo a day in advance of the Lancers arriving there."
"Huh? Why? Can he not handle it?... Or do you not trust him?" Kataline's arms dropped to her side as she looked at Meius with a confused expression. Kataline knew Korkolo could be a bit… “Temperamental”... But, there was a part of her that hoped Meius was coming to rely on her more.
"Like I said... Plans have changed. There is to be zero violence at all. Before, I said it was conditional. Now, there can't be any. To be honest with you, because Korkolo has "Small Man Syndrome", I do not trust him to keep his cool and wits about him. You are going to keep watch over him and remind him of this. If you can't keep him from acting out, do try to mitigate the situation and I'll handle him accordingly when I show up a few days later."
"Okay... I suppose I can do that... I'm still not understanding why though." Kataline stepped back and leaned herself against the wall again. She kept her cool and calm demeanor on the outside. But inside, Kataline was giddy with excitement over her hopes seemingly coming true.
"I can't go into too much detail. But I decided against the original plan... And now... Well... Let's just say I have eyes all over me." Meius closed his eyes as he focused in on a different location. His vision traveled through a series of black and blue tunnels until it felt like his eyelids were forcibly peeled open.
It was as if he were floating several hundred feet in the air now. Though he could still feel his physical body touching the ground and hear everything around him, his vision was in a completely different area.
This was the power of Meius's Shade, ironically named, Eyeless. The ability to create several large, red eyes which could stay in place indefinitely until destroyed or dismissed by Meius himself. These eyes could be ordered to track a specific target or watch a location, letting him know when movement happens. Or, he could even channel his own sense of vision into it, allowing him to manually control and see through it.
The eye turned and tilted until Meius could spot the two buildings that his asset and him were by. Above that particular alley, on the rooftop... Meius spotted a figure. Though it seemed as if they were simply looking at the rooftop itself... There was no doubt this person was spying on them. Why he was here... Meius had no clue... A black-hooded figure with a mask obscuring their face...
"I'm definitely onto something... Whoever this girl is supposed to be... She's sneaky." The Sergeant was crouched down with one knee on the rooftop. His special vision cut through solid matter, and could show any obscured content beyond solid material. The makeup of the soul had spilled forth through these things into his gaze. Despite the fact that, visually, she looked totally different and unrecognizable, his special vision showed him the truth. The same, familiar soul... His target. But alongside her was another.
A vile and volatile concoction of ambition, cowardice, and wrath with a hint of deceit... The Sergeant's face stiffened into a scorned expression as he studied the horrid being. The man himself was unrecognizable to The Sergeant... But he couldn't help but feel that the two souls were very much alike. That is, much to the desire of the woman's own being. How odd...
But, relatively speaking, all the characters this woman had interacted with up till this point have been strange in their own right. He just happened to be the weirdest one so far. That, and there was that one peculiar red-head...
However, The Sergeant had been very careful in his tailing and spying of his target. But, now he felt like there were several pairs of eyes on him. It was unshakable. There had to be multiple people watching him. His nerves calmed and his body tightened. If he was discovered now, then there might be an ensuing fight. He had to be ready. The Sergeant slowly inched his hand towards his back pouch. With his entire body calmed... He began to seek out the source...
"Gotcha!..." The Sergeant grabbed a solid, cylindrical item from his pouch, and pointed it to the sky. In a flash, the item expanded in length at the speed of light. Within the blink of an eye, Meius's vision was disrupted and destroyed. The red eye in the sky was pierced all the way through by a long, blue pole. Though the weapon was blunt, the sheer force had penetrated the Shade and destroyed it. The eyeball popped and dissipated into dust.
"Meius! Are you alright?" Kataline leapt forward and placed one of her hands on his chest, and the other on his cheek.
"Tch... Heh... Yeah..." Meius grinned ear to ear after he instinctively shot his hand up to his right eye. A pool of crimson red blood accumulated right below his eye and slid down his cheek A slight glow emanated from his hand, and soon he pulled away to reveal his right eye once more. But, the blood still remained. Meius stared at the stone wall past Kataline. His pupils dilated as a great heat rose in his body. His fingertips hosted a tingling sensation that coursed through his body. "If he wants a fight... He can come get it..."
"Here... Let me get that for you..." Kataline caressed the side of Meius's cheek, clearing the blood off his face. She wiped it onto the side of her cloak. As she looked back at his face, she couldn't help but get lost into the fierce gaze of Meius's eyes. The way he seemed to look past her... It was traumatizing like before, but she couldn't deny that she loved the way he looks when angry.
"How interesting... Love is strange..." The Sergeant was affixed to their interaction... But, he still felt on edge. Despite the destruction of that eye, he felt like he was still being watched. The pole-arm retracted into its original hand-sized shape around as fast as it grew. The Sergeant stuffed it back into his back pouch as he surveyed the area once more. He obviously knew that the man below was onto him now, but this feeling of being observed was different. But there was no one else watching him...
"This is so incredibly boring." Grula sat on the opposite rooftop from The Sergeant and observed both him and Meius and Kataline. She rested her her head on her balled up fist as she watched on. Though, she did find something intriguing. That girl must be the "Avura" Zen talked about. But, Grula had no idea who that was on the opposite roof. But whoever they were, they seemed to be solely targeting the girl. She wondered if this person could end up being an ally or not... But, it was probably safer to assume not.
"Who else could be watching?..." The Sergeant silently ducked his head around and frantically searched.
"To no surprise, he's clueless. I guess he did have no way of knowing though..." Grula sighed as she watched the man continue to look around. "The Lakentos ability isn't some invisibility or some other really sneaky trick... It's the ability to make oneself completely undetectable. I'm basically sitting in front of him, and he can't perceive me at all. No sound, no sight... But he seems to know someone is watching him... Which means he probably has some form of heightened senses. God... I wish I could just start fighting and be done with this… It’s not that I think this is a waste of time, but Meius should be outright ruled guilty."
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"Don't let the egg crack or explode... Don't push mana through the shell or any part of the egg... Keep the egg intact for one hour..." Avures held his gaze onto the egg as he cupped it with both hands. His steps became slow and methodical as he carefully strolled through the Academy. He could feel it if he focused enough. The mana was already pretty sizable. At this rate, it would ramp up and explode the egg in only a few moments.
Avures stood still as he fully cupped the egg. The entire thing was rumbling within his grasp. However, it didn't seem too severe. Avures pulled his hands away and let go of the egg. He enveloped it in a coating of his mana, having his magic hug the shell in a snug manner. Not too hard, but not extremely soft either, it seemed as if it was an appropriate amount of mana to use. The egg floated in between his hands. He waited and waited. The pressure was going to come. How much more mana might he need?
Then, the pace picked up instantly. Zen's mana ramped up in great proportion. Before Avures had even fully realized it, that bundle of energy was pressing against the inside of the egg's shell. And then, without further warning, the entire egg exploded outward. Egg whites and yolk got all over his face, hands, and clothes. Avures stood there as he cringed. Bits of shell were stuck to the whites on his face and some was stuck in his hair.
"Oh man. What happened to you?" A familiar voice circled Avures.
"Egg..." Avures sighed as he tried to wipe the messy bits off of him. The voice's source walked around the side of him and stood within his vision. Avures recognized the slicked-back hair and tone of voice from a while back.
"Oh... I see... Good 'ol Zen putting you through the egg test." Pontin put his hands on his hips. "How's it going, Avures?"
"That was my first attempt at the egg test... Wait... You say that as if this is a common thing he makes people do." Avures furrowed his brow and stayed his hands mid-wipe as he stared at Pontin.
"Mhm. I went to ‘em once for magic help since my teacher said he'd know something. So, he gave me the egg test. It's a good way to learn, but damn if it isn’t messy..." Pontin smiled as he eyed the remains of the egg. Of course, there was the yolk, whites, and shell... But, the heap of mana from Zen was still there as well. It floated and shifted constantly, sort of pulsating and flowing like waves in the ocean.
"So... How are you supposed to do it?" Avures continued trying to clean himself off. He questioned Pontin, knowing he might not answer...
"That's a secret. It's a test for the magically inept to learn from."
"I'm... Inept?" Avures's arms stopped in place again as he froze. How could he be inept? He knew the most advanced techniques of the Dark element, he could weave mana without moving, and could make a supply of mana for as long as his body could withstand Flow...
"Well... Inept is kinda a mean word. It's more like-... Inefficient? Unfocused?" Pontin scratched the back of his head as he struggled to find a nicer way to word it. "Eh. Don't dwell on it too much, kid."
"You're not that much older." Avures darted his eyes to Pontin. "Didn't you graduate?"
"Huh? Oh yeah. I'm just hanging around for free lodging... Alumni and all..." Pontin grinned as a bead of sweat rolled down his head.
"Okay... I'm still not getting this though." Avures watched as the orb of mana began to shrink. Bits of yolk and egg whites began to pull themselves off of the floor and Avures's body. They floated around the mana for a few moments, orbiting the energy before reshaping into an egg shape.
"The answer is right in front of ya. Kinda hard to not get it unless ya overthink it… Maybe that's saying too much..." Pontin's voice trailed off as he began to walk along the hall, leaving Avures behind. He waved back to Avures by just throwing his hand in the air. "See ya, Avures."
Shortly after he departed, the bits of shell followed the same process. The pieces all levitated around the inner egg from a ways out, slowly migrating to specific areas before stopping in place. Once every piece had finished shuffling, they all thrust themselves onto the egg whites. The cracks in the shell then seemingly patched themselves. Finally, the egg reformed as if it had never exploded in the first place. However, it immediately began to fall to the ground, being freed from the magic's grasp, and thus, exposed to gravity again.
Luckily, Avures moved quickly and dove forward, just barely catching the egg in the tips of his fingers before it hit the hard ground…
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It seemed that this egg test was pushing Avures to his limit. After he failed the first time, he failed a few more times. Each time, the agony of failure was accompanied by the shame of being covered with egg whites and yolk. And with both Pontin and Zen alluding to how easy this actually was... He felt himself get flustered.
Avures just couldn't understand why he wasn't able to grasp it. The word "inept" stuck around and seemed to float around his head. No matter how hard he tried, the egg continued to explode. He kept putting in twice as much mana as the time before, and would end up with one of two results.
Either the egg completely exploded because he let up... Or, the shell of the egg would crack under the pressure of both forces converging on it. He was stumped, and all he could seem to do was continue on.
Either way, he'd grown bored of sticking around his room or the halls of the Academy doing this. So, he decided to take a stroll through the grounds outside. A change of scenery seemed like a natural remedy to the stress and annoyance he felt. As he walked off the paths to the side and moved by the forest's edge, he heard someone call out his name.
"Avures!" A set of footsteps ran up behind him. Another set also followed in tow. Avures kept his attention firmly planted on the egg, but he turned around to greet the two people. He had already recognized the voice.
"Ventrix... Lylas... Hi." Avures shot his eyes up to look at their faces for a brief second before carefully watching the egg again.
"Whatcha holding, buddy?" Lylas circled his friend, trying to get a peak at what he had palmed so close to his chest. A single bead of sweat trickled down Avures's forehead as he slightly peeled his hands away.
"Egg..." Avures felt his heart race as he continued to reinforce the egg shell with mana. Zen's magic was bundling faster and faster. The pressure of keeping up with it was starting to get to Avures.
"Yup... That's uh-... Definitely an egg." Lylas stepped back from Avures as he saw his friend's face turn red. Sweat poured down his face.
"I'm... Honestly not sure what to-" Ventrix looked baffled as he meandered to Lylas's side away from Avures. However, he was stopped mid-sentence as the egg exploded forth. Avures's face and hands were covered by whites, yolk, and bits of shell.
"Dammit!..." Avures buried his face in his hands with no regard or care for the bits of egg all over him.
"Yeah... I don't know what to make of that." Ventrix slowly shook his head while still having that confused look on his face.
"So... What uh... What's the egg for? Or what was it for?" Lylas held back a small fit of laughter as Avures continued to hide his face away in bits of the ruined egg.
"Zen gave me it as a test... I'm supposed to keep it from exploding for one hour..." Avures's speech was audible, but muffled by him still refusing to pull his hands away from his face.
"You know what? I'm sorry. I guess I just had my mind made up and set on things that I would see and hear today... This wasn't one of those things. I have no clue what to say." Ventrix fought hard against the creeping smile on his face, but turned away as it was a losing battle.
"Let me show you what I mean..." Avures pulled his hands off his face and took a step back. Both of his friends locked their eyes onto the swirling orb of mana as the egg reformed around it over the course of several seconds. Avures caught the intact egg in his hands once again.
Huh?... Okay." Ventrix was taken aback by the egg's restoration.
"I have no idea how to keep it from exploding. See, I'm not allowed to just push mana into the egg or dispel his magic." Avures held the egg with his left hand and used his right hand to tap it. "All I can figure is that I'm supposed to just coat it in mana to the point where it won't explode."
"Have ya tried putting a seal on it?" Lylas crossed his arms as he eyed the egg. "Like a Protection seal?"
"Zen says I shouldn't even need to use a type of magic at all... I'm at a loss." Avures fully grasped the egg with both hands again.
"Maybe it's a misdirection?" Ventrix shrugged.
"Yeah. Like a trick question... Or test in this case." Lylas snapped his fingers and gave a thumbs-up to Avures.
"He might expect you to just listen to his words instead of trying it out on your own. Maybe decisiveness is key?" Ventrix nodded at Lylas's thought.
"Well... No harm in trying, right?" Avures took a deep breath and let his mana carry the egg out of the grasp of his hands. While the egg floated in mid-air, Avures's hands became loosely covered with a translucent black light.
He then curled both hands into a fist and touched his knuckles together. Holding it there for a moment, Avures then pulled them apart and opened up his hands. Spreading out his fingers a little bit, he interlocked both sets of fingers. Following that, he broke that position and used his index fingers and thumbs to make a triangle shape with both hands. And finally, he clasped both of his hands together fully.
The aura around his hands leapt off of him and enveloped the egg. The spinning aura refined as it pulled apart from itself and shrank. It formed four rings made of shadows which continuously circled around the egg in the same positions. The shadows themselves seemed to resemble the signs Avures made with his hands, like the patterns on a curtain. Each ring intersected at the middle of the egg with two being diagonal opposites, one going straight up and down, and the other straight side to side. As the spinning around the egg continued, they closed in on the object until they were physically attached to the egg. The shadows came to a stop and finished wrapping around the egg. Then, they finally dissipated, leaving sets of etched in black shapes.
"Fancy." Lylas nodded his head with wide eyes, impressed at the handiwork of Avures's magic.
"Just how much effort did you put into that?" Ventrix looked concerned for Avures as the boy had started to breathe heavily with sweat cascading downwards all over his face.
"Enough... I think... I really hope this works. I'm at my wits end with this test." Avures lifted his head towards the sky and sighed as he took hold of the egg once more. "I just can't think of anything else..."
"Damn... And you're mostly the brains here..." Lylas sighed and smiled, patting his friend on the shoulder. "At least trying this is better than doing the same thing over and over..."
"Oh... I get it now." Ventrix crossed his arms. At mention of this, Avures locked his eyes onto Ventrix's own. "I guess if it's a test I can't tell you... But I think I understand what Zen's looking for."
"I-... That's fine." Avures dropped his posture and let his gaze drop to the ground. "What are you guys doing out here anyways?"
"I asked Blue-Blood here for a favor. Top secret request. Sorry Brai-" Lylas smirked and held his hands out as he shrugged.
"He asked me to teach him a Light technique." Ventrix made a plain face as he refused to humor Lylas. The two then glared at each other for a few seconds. Lylas made a face of contempt at his friend, feeling a little scorned over the interaction.
"Oh. That's neat. Actually, Ventrix, could you also help me with learning more sword things?..." Avures moved the egg to his left hand as he reached for the handle of his sword with his right. Avures yanked the blade out of its scabbard... But was taken aback when he saw the blade was broken with around only a third of it left. "Oh... That's right..."
"When did that happen?" Ventrix went to his friend's side and observed the broken blade.
"During that fight with Patchwork. Ya weren't there for it, but Brainiac tried to block an attack with his sword... And the dude just shattered his blade." Lylas strode over to the busted sword as well.
"Did you even try to fortify it with mana?" Ventrix looked surprised and disgusted as he continued to stare at the weapon. He wanted to peel his eyes away, but he just couldn’t.
"No?... Enveloping it all in mana seems like way too much mana to be using in the first place." Avures twisted his head and neck to follow the two of them as they circled the blade.
"Ya know... They make weapons with magic in mind for a reason..." Lylas stepped away from Avures.
"Envelop? No. Imbue it. And yes, they are different." Ventrix ran a few of his fingers along what remained of the blade. "But, you didn't grow up with magic... So, you wouldn't really know which is better when."
"Well..." Avures sighed as he felt a bit of resentment rise up in him. He couldn't quite decipher the origin of this feeling, but he mostly equated it to the fact that he studied magic so much that it felt like he should know this. Or, that his friend was belittling him. So... Did that mean it was pride? "I guess I'll just keep that in mind..."
"This won't do..." Ventrix couldn't take his eyes away from the blade. "I'm going to fix this..."
"Hey! Blue-Blood! Let's go get started already." Lylas shuffled on ahead past Ventrix and Avures.
"See you, guys." Avures sighed as he put his busted sword back in its sheath.
"Best of luck to you, Avures." Ventrix waved to Avures before rushing to catch-up to Lylas…
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"It seems stable for now..." Avures continued on his stroll around the Academy grounds. Around ten minutes had passed since he placed a seal on the egg. And while he could still feel Zen's mana growing from within, the seal seemed to be handling it a lot better than Avures's own attempt to manually use his mana to contain it. With the immediate stress gone, Avures's mind drifted as he aimlessly wandered around. "I have to replace both my sword and that technique book... I don't have enough money for both... God... Rael has really put me in a rough scenario this time..."
"Avures!" The feminine voice which Avures recognized way too well called out for him and seemed to be getting closer. Avures looked everywhere but the direction of the voice. He didn't need confirmation. He knew it was Rael. He saw that he had stumbled his way onto the road that spanned between the Academy and the city.
"God... It's like anytime I try to focus on anything... There she is." Avures sighed and begrudgingly turned to the red-haired girl who was now only mere inches away from him. She had a big smile on her face as usual, and her eyes were burning as bright as ever.
"Gosh. Why do you always have to act like I annoy you?" Rael put on a frumpy face as she crossed her arms and averted her eyes away from Avures.
"Do you really want me to answer that question?" Avures gave Rael a deadpan stare. Her demeanor quickly reset back into her happy ways as she giggled.
"Oh, come on! I know you like me!" Rael grinned as she lifted up her arms and put her hands behind her head. She closed her eyes and reopened them as she focused in on Avures's gaze. Her bright red glare tempered to a softer candlelight flame. "What would you do without me?"
"Probably live a peaceful life out in the middle of nowhere." Avures clasped onto the egg a little tighter.
"Do you think you'd be having anywhere near as much fun?" Rael leaned her face a little closer to Avures's face. Avures's face flared with a faint red color as he instinctively turned away. "Aw... Sometimes I can get something outta you..."
"Rael... Leave poor Avures alone. You're flustering him." Olicia rolled her eyes as she waltzed down the road and up to them. Bif was at her side as well. He stayed quiet, amused by what he saw. "Of course you would run up ahead to fucking flirt with him the moment you caught his scent."
"Hey! C'mon! You make it sound like I'm some sort of hound or dog!" Rael's expression turned angry in a snap as she turned herself to Olicia and held her arms at her side.
"You do tend to act like an animal." Avures sighed as he took a single step away from Rael.
"Eh?!" Rael's anger took a depressive and surprised turn as her expression dropped. She twisted her neck to look at Avures and gave him puppy eyes. "I can't win today... Can I?"
"Yo, Brainiac. What are you holding?" Bif chuckled as he stepped past Olicia and Rael.
"Egg." Avures removed one hand from the egg and palmed it, showing everyone else.
"Why is it sealed?" Olicia squinted her eyes, staring at Avures with a dumbfounded look after seeing the black etchings in the egg shell.
"So it doesn't explode." Avures brought the egg to his face and inspected his seal closer. All seemed well... The seal was intact and finely made...
"Pf... Obviously." Olicia clasped her hands over her face as she silently giggled.
"Okay, but why?" Bif scratched his head as he looked past Avures at the path ahead.
"Zen gave it to me as a test. I have to keep it from exploding for an hour. Lylas and Ventrix suggested I try to seal it." Avures curved his finger carefully over the shell, tracing each seal.
"Makes sense to me." Bif nodded his head as he turned back and eyed the egg a little closer. After remembering what Avures said just a moment ago though, he pulled his head away from the egg, not wishing to get all messy. "So... How does it work?"
"Zen has a bit of mana in here that gets stronger until it explodes. Then, if and when it does, it slowly reforms the egg to a point where it hasn’t blown up yet and the test starts again. I can't just push my mana through the egg, and I can't just dispel his magic. I have to keep it like this for an hour... And so far I'm-" Avures carefully watched the egg as he explained the test to Bif... Only for Zen's mana inside to suddenly bundle up and increase in strength and density within a moment. Avures had no time to back up the seal with more mana or energy before it suddenly burst forth. Once again, egg insides splattered all over his face and hands with bits of shell everywhere. "Around... Thirteen minutes in... I just can't fucking get it..."
"Hah... Yuck." Bif wiped off the small portion of egg whites that landed on his face.
"I-... I'm just so frustrated!" Avures's face remained in the same expression he usually carried, but his voice told his anger thoroughly aside from his words. "I've failed several times now. I just don't get it."
"Hm..." Olicia watched the scene in front of her. Everyone's expressions dropped with Avures's small bout of rage. It was unusual to see him lose his temper to any degree. So, Rael and Bif froze in place with awkward looks on their faces. Olicia watched the small orb of energy simmer in the air. "So, that's the source then?"
"Yeah..." Avures closed his eyes and threw his arms out to the side.
"Why not like-... Seal the source?" Bif raised his arms and hands up carefully as he shrugged, thinking that he might be walking on eggshells.
"W-What?" Avures's gaze was pulled forward thousands of feet in front of him against his will as he heard those words.
"Yeah, bro. Like, do w-" Bif stepped back as Avures's face shot over to his.
"No. Obviously, I know what you mean..." Avures's hand trembled as he inched it closer to his mouth.
"What were the exact rules?" Olicia crossed her arms as she looked at the boy.
"I can't dispel it myself... And I can't push mana through the shell, whites, or yolk while it's intact-..." Avures fully covered his mouth and closed his eyes as the answer became clear.
"Dude, just seal it now while it's just sitting there. It's not breaking the rules." Bif shoved Avures by his shoulder and pointed at Zen's mana ball.
"It isn't breaking the rules at all... That's what Zen wanted... He wanted Avures to stop overthinking and look at the problem from the source. He might get it now after what Bif and Olicia said..." Rael had continued to watch on as Olicia and Bif carried the conversation from earlier. She was okay with taking a backseat for now... Especially since Zen had given her an important job that nobody but her was aware of. "Which means its about my time to strike..."
"Let's see..." Avures shuffled over to Zen's ball of mana as it shrunk down in size. Soon, it would reach it's original size and reform the egg. Avures needed to ready his seal before then. He would only have enough time for two seals... But, if the power of the mana was linked to how big it can grow and how long it goes... This would buy him over double the time from before.
Avures summoned his mana forth into his hands as he spared no time in creating a new seal. Copying his motions from earlier, he spread his fingers out and interlocked all of them. And then, he pulled them apart, cusped his hands, and clasped them together. A simple, two-part seal. The aura parted from his hands and swirled around the ball of mana. Within an instant, both strips of etchings latched onto the mana.
This was just in time as the yolk of the egg peeled off of Avures, and whatever else it splashed onto, and clumped around the ball of mana. Soon, Zen's magic was no longer even visible again. However, something burned and awoke inside Avures. Those words from earlier... Decisiveness... He didn't want to fail this test anymore. However, he had only seconds to act. But, as long as he didn't push his mana through the egg, it wasn't cheating. While the egg whites were gathering... Avures brought forth a dark aura to his hands once more.
Touching his knuckles from his fists, and then clasping his hands together... Avures put another two-part seal on top of the yolk, his shadowy inscriptions layered yellow-orange center. Then, as the whites came, he made a triangle shape with his hands, and then clasped them together. Another dark ring of illustrations was bound to the egg whites. Finally, the shell of the egg reshaped over top, putting it back into perfect condition. But he wasn't done there...
Avures took a deep breath in, pulling together what mana he could in his body and through Omega Arcane... And he furiously began to make shapes and signs with his hands. The other three watched with amazement and a hint of curiosity in their eyes. Triangle, knuckles, interlock, and so many more... For the three of them who weren't in the zone, it looked like Avures was doing this at the speed of light. Suddenly, he clasped his hands together...
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Several stripes and rings of midnight black carvings took shape and form from the departed aura originating from his hand. They all swirled and circled around each other in perfect symmetry at an indiscernible rhythm. As they enveloped the egg, no one could see it beyond Avures's seal... Then, it clamped on down... The egg was nearly entirely black with hints of the shell's color barely bleeding through small gaps.
"There... N-... Now I can't... Fail..." Avures bent over as his lungs desperately cried out for relief. His entire body ached with a pain only comparable to near mana depletion. It didn't help that he used his Shade to convert Flow to mana, using it to give him mana equivalent to twice his own pool in order to create seals. Then, the egg dropped. Avures lunged forward and caught it in his hands right in the nick of time.
"Huh? If you just sealed it all up like that, why did you need to keep it from hitting the ground?" Bif scoffed at his friend's desperate move to catch the egg. It only really made him laugh because of Avures's choice to completely tire himself out.
"Magic... Seal... Not a physical one..." Avures continued to catch his breath as he put his face to the ground and clutched the egg closer to his head. He laid there flat on the ground.
"Hm... Well, have fun!" Bif nodded and waved as he continued down the path to the capital.
"Yeah, back to the road. We're heading to the city. Want anything, Avures?" Olicia strode down the dirt path and stepped over Avures. She turned back and gazed down at her friend with a slight grin.
"No... Thank you..." Avures's voice reached out, muffled by the ground and dirt.
"M'kay. See you later." Olicia followed behind Bif.
"We're gonna go see Georgie!... At least I am. I don't know about them. I'll tell him you said hi!" Rael gave a beaming smile as she skipped along the path. She threw one last wave towards Avures before continuing onward. "Bye bye, Avures!"
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"Whew... That should make it safe..." Avures caught his breath as he sat against a tall, dark tree. Holding the egg, it was now completely black. Avures had taken the time to put a few more seals on it once he regained some mana. It was nothing special, just some physical protection seals in case he dropped it or for some other unforeseen accident.
As he clasped the egg, Avures stared at it with a great intensity. Several tries, and around an hour or two later, it seemed like he was finally going to pass this test. Thirty minutes in... Thirty to go... Avures could only wonder what Zen might have in store to teach him. It was clear to him that Zen knew a lot more about it all than he did.
"Avuuuuuureeeessss..." A soft humming was carried along in the wind. Avures took his eyes off the egg and glanced around. His heart had stopped at the mention of his name... But as he checked his surroundings... Nothing. He chalked it up to him just hearing things, or the wind. But the next thing to happen would prove the opposite...
As his gaze slowly settled back to the egg... A searing strip of flame coalesced in front of his face between two hands. Before he could even react, the hands ripped back and brought the flame against his neck. The flame seemed to have a solid component to it as Avures tried to draw breath and was unable to summon any air to his lungs. The sheer heat burned itself into his neck and made him recoil in combination with his attempts to breathe. He kicked his legs and struggled to lift himself off the ground while trying to pull his head forward. But, the strip of fire bound him to the tree, holding him hostage as his neck was trapped between the scalding fire and tree bark. As he choked and desperately tried to free himself, Avures grasped the egg in one hand and used his other to tug at the fire.
The heat charred his hand as he tried to free himself. But it became apparent that he needed to use more force. A small black tendril sprouted from his hand and curled around the fire. The fire seemed to wrap itself around the entire length of the tree and tighten.
But as Avures worked to free himself, the one who created the fire made themselves known. A set of hands clamped down on Avures's other hand. They pried and peeled his fingers off of the egg, taking advantage of the situation Avures was in.
"Ha-ha! Gotcha!" Rael exerted more force in peeling his fingers away, and yanked the egg right out of his hand. She nearly fell backward after prying the egg out of his hands. Rael then clasped her hands together and squashed the egg with her strength... "H-huh?"
Except, the egg didn't crack or fold. Instead, it felt like Rael was trying to crush a solid rock in her hands. Baffled, she brought the egg up to her eyes and observed it. The whole thing was already blackened with seals... So, she couldn't discern anything new. However, Rael figured that Avures must have done something. She turned her attention back towards him...
Avures, now immersed into the action and intent from Rael, worked quickly to undo himself. While Rael was distracted, Avures summoned up more tendrils from his hand to wrap around the flame. With this many, it was simple to pry the magic entanglement from around his neck. As soon as it's solid-like form shattered, the magic dispersed. Whereas normally Avures liked to assess a situation... It was go-time. He wasn't going to fail the test. The spatial void crept up from his arm and over his face, branching into his eye as the shimmering glow erupted forth.
"Eh?" Rael braced up as she watched Avures lunge towards her. She glanced back towards the egg, knowing all she had to do was break it somehow. A bright orange flame encompassed over her left hand as she clutched the egg in it. She reeled her arm back and launched forward, pitching the egg out of her hand at incredible speeds. The egg had a sputtering flame on it as it soared through the air to the tree Rael aimed it at. Avures reached his right hand out as another tendril shot out, trying to catch up with the egg.
A solid thunk rang out as the egg made contact with the tree. The several added seals on the shell lit up with energy as the blow was completely absorbed. The egg lost all momentum and fell towards the ground. However, the tendril finally reached the egg, catching it before it hit the ground and reeling it back to Avures. Avures continued to run forward to the egg as the magical tendril retracted back to him. As the last few inches came back, Avures firmly held the egg once more. But, he didn't stop. He continued to sprint forward away from Rael.
Rael gave chase, not letting her friend gain too much ground away from her. However, there was no chance of that. There were certain differences between Avures and everyone else. That being, Avures didn't know how to properly enhance his physical abilities with magic compared to everyone else. In comparison, he was much slower. But, the way he held the egg... Rael had to force a full-on confrontation. She reached for the handle of her battleax... Avures stopped and turned to look directly at her. His eye was glowing...
"Are you trying to kill me?!" Avures kicked his feet down as he forced himself to stop in place. Using his kick, he dodged to the side as Rael leapt forth and heaved her ax down at him. Her strike expelled flames upwards as the ax hit the ground and split the earth where Avures once stood.
"No! I'm trying to break the egg!" Rael bent her knees and yanked her ax-head from the ground as she put herself in a stance. A smile spanned on her face as the embers in her eyes flared to a tremendous degree. It was this joyous expression and light in her eyes that Avures found himself drawn towards... However, considering the situation and force she was using, it was a little disconcerting. But it made him think... Was this just a fun game to her? Even with that attack being one that could kill him?... Then again, it seemed that there might be an expectation from her. An expectation that Avures wouldn't succumb to something like that... This was just playing rough.
Rael shot out from her stance, effortlessly maneuvering around trees and rocks alike as she dashed straight for him. Avures gripped the handle of his sword and unsheathed it... However, he was greeted with only a small portion of the blade remaining. He winced as he forgot that his sword was still shattered. She was getting too close for comfort... Avures chucked the hilt and handle at Rael. A small burst of fire brushed the hilt out of Rael's way as she made one final jump at Avures. Descending upon him with a side swing...
Avures managed to barely duck out of harm's way as the flames enveloping Rael and her ax grazed just over his hair. Avures planted his left hand to the ground as he clutched the egg in his right. Deep, blackened shadow emerged from his hand as Perfect Dark took shape. Within a single moment, the darkness spanned out thirty feet in all directions. Two large, towering coils sprouted from the ground and wrapped themselves around her. The midnight coils subdued her wrists and ankles before covering the rest of her entirely. Rael disappeared from all sight as the two tendrils covered and suspended her in the air.
He knew it wouldn't hold her for long, so Avures took off. He journeyed further into the forest with great haste while he knew Rael was still subdued. Along the way, Avures slowed down and planted his hand onto the trees he passed. A small puddle of shadow was left behind... Traps for Rael... He still had no idea why exactly Rael was trying to stop him from passing his test... But, he knew that he wouldn't let her succeed no matter what.
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Rael was motionless within the cocoon of Avures's magic. She giggled at the notion of having to chase him further. She thought she had him for sure... She especially thought she had already won too. Still, if anything, Rael found the chase to be exhilarating. She let aloud one last jolly laugh before focusing down. Her eyes softened as her entire body tensed up. Honing in on the space around her...
Avures's sprint had somewhat slowed as he planted his last trap. He was breathing heavily and needed to slow down on his traps and running. How much longer did he have?... The seals were set to expire the moment Zen's mana disappeared from the egg. Despite how the mana bubbled and seemed to shift and swirl... It couldn't gain enough momentum to break through Avures's seals. Twenty-five minutes seemed to be the estimate...
He took this moment to catch his breath. He could feel it. His entanglement was still holding. He had time. Avures wasn't sure if he could beat Rael in a head-on fight at the moment if it came down to it. Once a seal or trap is placed, it no longer requires continuous sources of mana. So, Avures was able to replenish his whole pool of mana if needed... But, relying on Omega Arcane after already using it for so much mana... It could really deal some damage to him from the sheer amount of Flow. It would be too risky.
Another concern was the location at which they fought at. The forest behind the Academy was a free-fly zone for destructive elements like Fire. The main species of tree that grew in this forest is one which is fireproof while rooted to the ground. As long as there is any water in the tree... It can protect itself from fire by specially utilizing that water. Which meant that Rael was free to fling magic about as she pleased… Not that she probably even realized.
An explosion erupted from the forest back towards where Avures had run from. He could feel it. Rael was freed. The magnitude of the explosion made the branches and leaves rustle all around Avures. Heat was carried on the wind and crashed against his face as he got the feeling that Rael was closing in.
And correct was his hunch as Rael skirted over and around the trees, hopping from branch to branch and traversing the ground as she energetically approached. This time around, her eyes were much more intense and focused. An unwavering gaze with the gentle sway of a controlled fire. Her lips were formed into a small smirk. As she grew closer, she could see him in the distance getting closer and closer. However, as she passed by a tree, she caught a glimpse of something black from the corner of her eye. A shadow on the tree. A thin tendril with a point shot out towards her.
Her smirk changed to an open mouth smile as Rael felt that Avures was ready to play. Rael slightly turned her body and swung the ax with one arm, chopping the tendril in half before it reached her. But, with one sliced down, the other several trees Avures had implanted the same trap on activated. A web of thin, black wires surrounded the area around Rael. With sharp points forming on them all, Rael let out an exasperated giggle. Avures watched on from a distance he felt appropriate... Which really wasn't far enough in his own hindsight.
"Tell me if this looks familiar, Avures!" Rael raised her left hand up to her face. She pointed her index finger and middle finger upwards while curling her other three fingers into a half-fist. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath as she relaxed. Avures watched with a mix of panic and disbelief as a bright red circle emerged out from her, with Rael serving as the epicenter. The circle spanned out far... Several feet past Avures and beyond.
He instantly understood what was happening. It was Rael trying Perfect Dark like in how she told her story. But, with her element being Fire... It should just sputter out. After all, Avures knew that creating a platform for casting like this worked a lot better for Dark instead of Fire. Mainly due to sheer differences and other factors.
The dark chords surrounding Rael made their move. The magic strings lunged straight for Rael...
"Wooooooo!..." Rael raised her left hand and arm as high as she could, maintaining the shape of her hand. Her expression reached levels of joy that would be infectious for others. Her mouth stood agape with a great smile. Her eyes seemed bright enough to shun out the sun. Within a moment of her raising her arm, the red circle around Rael began to glow orange. And, without further delay, a circular inferno of fire shaped like a ring released upwards from the ground at the center. Anything that wasn't the trees or Rael was instantly overpowered and burned away. Avures's tendrils were instantly blown away by the sheer power of Rael's blazing counterattack.
As the rising inferno ceased, another part of the orange circle would instantly fire up from the edges of where it previously activated. It was like an outward explosion that kept reaching out the more it exploded. Avures shot his eyes to his feet. He saw that, within moments, he would be caught in one of the many waves of fire. As each ring of rising inferno fired out and grew wider, the intensity lowered. Still, Avures knew how dangerous this was.
Clasping the egg fully, Avures bowed his head and took a deep breath. He closed his eyes as a dark, shadowy sphere enveloped him. He had no moments to spare as the second his shield finished... The ring of fire was upon him. The sheer intensity of the heat and blaze cracked and tore at his shield. Though it withstood a great share of force, Avures's shield didn't hold much longer as it shattered in the middle of the rising fire.
Avures ducked... But still felt the ravaging agony of heat swirling around him. His skin charred and burned, left with patches of red and blisters on the side of his face. He grunted and shouted in pain as the flames crackled off and seemed to cut him deep with the burning of a volcano.
However, as this ring finally passed, the other remaining rings sputtered out without a roar. Avures remained crouched down as he winced and agonized over the burns on him...
Rael was ready to make her move... As Avures tried to recover... She attached her ax to her back and wasted no time in closing the gap between her and Avures. Though she put away her ax, she had no intentions of stowing any attack. Avures had no chance to get out of the way. Rael lunged forward with her clenched fist brought as far back as she could take it. And, with a swift motion forward, threw the hardest haymaker she could muster. The punch collided right into Avures's jaw on the burned side of his face.
His cheeks rippled from the sheer force Rael brought upon him. It looked as if his entire jawline snapped apart as his neck gave way and his entire head turned... As Rael finished the follow-through of her attack... Avures fell to the ground completely limp. His head and face thumped against the hard ground as he lay there motionless.
"Oh... I think I went a little overboard..." Rael put her index finger over her lips as she darted her glance around. "Still... I guess I win... Hehe..."
Rael snatched the egg from Avures's motionless hands with ease. As she eyed the egg, Rael felt the urge to gaze back at Avures. She couldn't help but feel a little bad for having done this without explanation... To Avures, it probably seemed like she just came out of nowhere to mess with his test.
But, Zen did put her up to this in order to gauge Avures's focus. And, if not for the extreme force she used, probably would have held on. She did feel guilty after all.
"Well... You'll get to try again soon enough. So, here..." Rael bent over and grabbed Avures by his armpits and torso. She lifted his upper half slightly off the ground as she dragged him over to the nearest tree.
She carefully positioned him sitting upright against the tree, staring at his face for a few moments after finishing. She kept watching him. She had only knocked him out... So, it was like watching him sleeping. Rael crossed her arms as she averted her eyes away. She remembered a couple nights ago how Avures seemed off-put by that and how Olicia poked fun at her for it.
However, she still had a job to finish and didn't want to waste too much time. Rael let out a quiet laugh as she bent over once more. Putting her face close to his, she closed her eyes and planted a soft, tiny kiss on the tip of his nose. Rael pulled her head away and stood straight up once more as she opened her eyes.
"Better luck next time, Avures." Rael skipped away as she securely held the egg in her hands.
The egg withstood all of that physical and magical harm. Avures's seals had done their job, and were continuing to do so. But, that made it troublesome for Rael now. After all, it wasn't like dispelling her own magic. Dispelling the magic of someone else requires some know-how. Normally, to dispel the work of someone else, one would have to disrupt the flow of mana to it first or use Anti-Magic. The latter was not something Rael could do... But besides that, this wasn't an ordinary case. Rael found a tree a good distance away to focus at. She sat down against it and studied the egg.
This was a seal. Seals, Curses, and Traps were all mainline uses of Enchantment Magic besides the usual physical enhancing capabilities. Dispelling these worked differently from anything else. Rael stared at the egg as she hazily tried to recall what Zen taught them about this stuff.
"Blah blah. Blah blah blah-blah-blah..." Zen pointed at his magic chalkboard with his finger as everyone observed with the utmost diligence...
"What?... Oh God... Uhhhhhh..." Rael let out a single laugh as her nerves started to get the better of her. She could only wonder now how she wouldn't be struggling with this if she had just paid attention.
"Blah blah use blah inverse effect blah blah..."
"Right!" Rael remembered a crucial detail... "When trying to dispel “blank”, apply the inverse effect to the source and it will deactivate."
But as she reignited with excitement... She soon realized how confusing this was. Firstly, the egg was covered with a multitude of seals. Second, how long would it take to remove all of them? Third, how does one use the inverse effect of a seal? The seal is to keep whatever is inside protected... Rael scratched her head. Was she supposed to... Use magic to pierce it? That hadn't worked before...
"Blah blah diagnose blah blah blah cause and effect... Blah blah..."
"That's right! Find the cause to get rid of the effect!" Rael snapped her fingers as her face lit up again... "Wait... How does that work either?"
Rael's sudden mood change dropped again to a confused state.
"Blah blah counteract by repeating blah blah..."
"Ah-Hah! That's right!" Rael swayed back and forth with excitement as she fully recalled how to deal with Seals. All she had to do was repeat the exact methods Avures used to create the Seals. That would be, the interlinking done with hand signs along with using equal or greater mana... Rael's smile slowly dropped as her eye twitched. Her hands shook slightly as the full brunt of realization hit her. How was she supposed to copy Avures's methods completely?...
She had watched him make the signs for the first seals... And then later stalked him and saw him make the others... But she had missed the part where he put a seal for physical defense on it. And she also couldn't recall the exact signs either. The reason for this?...
"You idiot!... You should have been paying closer attention!..." Rael's face warmed with redness as she cusped the egg with both hands and smacked herself on the forehead several times over. "But his eyes are so cute!... It's all I could focus on!"
Rael groaned and kicked her feet in the air and to the ground for a few moments before taking a deep breath. There was a lot on the line for her... To be precise, a hefty reward from Zen... She stopped with her act of frustration and honed in on the egg. She laid her legs out straight and placed the egg on top of her thighs, holding it still while she cracked her knuckles.
"Woo... Okay..." Rael took another deep breath as she finished cracking her knuckles and loosened her hands by swinging them around. "Let's see..."
Rael's wrists seemed to emanate a reddish-orange aura, flowing like a small, kindling flame. Sprouts of slow, crackling mana swayed back and forth around her wrists. Then, without another moment, the rest of her hands shot aflame with a deep, dark red color of mana. The magic flowed in waves down to her fingertips, the tip of the flame-like shape flailing around with each pulse. With a fierce look of determination on her face and a wild manifestation of her power in her hands, Rael started the arduous process of eliminating Avures's seals.
As she fiddled with her hands, making different shapes and gestures with them, Rael tried to recall the signs he primarily used... It took a few minutes of mindlessly shuffling her hands around to remember some of them. Interlock, knuckles, and triangle... Those were the three she could muster up from her shoddy recollection. However, it seemed as if figuring out the others would be a matter of trial and error. Rael sighed as she continued to string together a series of other signs. Knowing Avures, Rael predicted that, at the very least, Avures most likely endlessly practiced the signs taught in class rather than making his own. His tendency to obsess over the knowledge in front of him made this guaranteed.
She had around twenty minutes to figure it all out... It felt hopeless... Like that big bag of gold was getting farther out of her grasp with every moment she didn't dispel a seal. There were around thirty signs commonly used with seals... It could be any combination of them... But, Rael was not a quitter. Narrowing her eyes down on her hands and the egg sitting between her legs, Rael's hand motions sped up as she remembered each sign bit by bit. Then, doing them in random order.
In her mind, this started to become personal. Sure, Zen put her up to this. It was Zen's game. But, it was really Rael versus Avures. And she wasn't going to let him win. There were only so many combinations he could make for seals. As Rael got more thorough in trying every order, it felt as if she was on the cusp of figuring it out.
Then, it happened. As she finished a combination, the shapes Rael had made took form from the mana coating her hand. The mana leapt from her hand and hovered over the egg, mimicking her hand signs. However, it just hovered there.
"Ah-ha!" Rael balled her hand into a fist and shook it as her mouth curled into a grin... "Eh?"
It wasn't moving.
"Oh... Not... Enough mana?" Rael put her hands in front of her eyes. All of the red and orangeness of her power lay before her above the egg. She needed equal or more... Rael pointed the palms of her hands out towards the floating shapes. Flowing out from her body, that fearsome red hue of her magic crackled out in its purest form. The beam of mana conjoined to the levitating signs and poured forth into it. The signs themselves glowed brighter from its red-orange color, turning more into a brighter flame hue of orange.
"There! Ha-ha!" Rael ceased the pouring of her mana and brought her arms in close as she shook her fists with glee. The bright, glowing shapes had finally received enough mana. The shape they had taken began to dissipate as the accumulated mana whisked out from it like translucent tubes. It funneled directly onto the egg, causing one of the strip seals to glow brightly. Within a few moments, all of the mana had been spent, and the seal was bright like a lively fire. The etchings stretched out and rose into the air, exposing the seal completely, and peeled away bit by bit. The seal that had been on the egg was now no more...
"Eh!?... No way... Ah!...." Rael threw her head back against the tree as she groaned with great displeasure. The seal was gone... However, it had only made a single, tiny speck of the egg shell visible. It had only gotten rid of a single seal. It took her around three minutes to even find a matching combination and a surprising amount of mana... The leaves and branches above her head swayed with the light breeze. Rael slapped her cheeks and held her hands on them. She took a deep breath and allowed the sight to calm her. She tilted her head back down with a slow motion as she put her gaze back on the egg.
She took a minute to stare at the egg and contemplate her next move. There was simply no way she could undo every single seal the proper way. With the seals intact, she couldn't make him fail by pushing her mana through either. Which meant that the only option she had left... Was to try and forcefully break the seals through her might alone, and, hopefully, destroy the egg in the process.
Rael huffed and forced herself up to her feet, grabbing the egg and clenching down on it with both hands. Every single muscle in her upper body tensed up, straining to the highest degree. Rael's brow furrowed as squeezed with a force that heightened every moment. The physical conditioning of the Academy had made her quite muscular, even for someone with a smaller feminine physique like herself. The level of her fitness showed with how her veins and muscles flexed outward for the span of her arms, almost bulging out with the sheer intensity. As she brought more crushing power onto the egg, Rael felt as if she was closer to breaking her own hands than even cracking the shell.
She let up for a moment, took a deep breath, and doubled down on her powerful clamp. Forcing her reservoir of mana to enhance her physical attributes, Rael gave this effort every last bit of might she could muster... But in no way did the egg give whatsoever. Nor did any of the seals waver.
"Jeez... There's just too many of them!..." Rael let the tension in her muscles go as she caught her breath from all the laborious straining she did. It was easy for her to recognize that the seals all covered each other in such a way that allowed them to bend, but not break. And, the only way directly around that was to dispel them. But, they were all different combinations as far as Rael could tell. Though she was sure that he was using the basic symbols, Avures's predictability in that regard was overwritten by his tendency to be extremely thorough and get every use-case out of something when possible. Whether by intention or habit, Avures, who had over millions of different combinations at his disposal, most likely made each seal a different series of symbols with no direct overlap in order or shape at all.
After all, Rael figured there was no way Avures knew she was going to ambush him. He didn't expect it, and therefore, didn't exactly plan for it. But, that tendency to be precise and thorough meant that either he expected/predicted something horrible to happen, or some sort of profound accident to happen. From how it seemed, Avures had used more than enough seals to contain Zen's mana. Which meant that every seal he placed after was merely insurance.
Rael felt like she was going through mental circles as she attempted to make sense of her friend's methods and find an answer... But it proved to be more of a waste of time than anything fruitful. Still, she knew that she had one trick up her sleeve. Magic-oriented seals tend to work against Flow because of the opposite, yet strangely adjacent, connection of Mana and Flow. In the case of this, Rael still had her Shade.
A Shade which she had displayed before. A Shade made from a desire to become stronger, but also a desire to not fall victim to the design of someone else... "Full Body Xplosion"... A great weapon of destruction. Full Body Xplosion is Rael's Shade which allowed her to burn away every little speck of Flow spanning out around thirty feet from herself. She could even forcibly congregate the Flow into compact and dense forms, turning them into sudden explosions when she ignites them. It also automatically and harmlessly burns away any Flow that makes its way inside her body and soul. This was by design to protect her from her own receptacle in the case of serious exposure against her will. And, considering the nature of her being, Rael never needed to expose herself to a large amount of Flow in order to make a Shade. The receptacle had already made her viable to the energy source, shown by Xilvas's test all that time ago...
In a way, it became insurance against her worst fears, and one of her most powerful tools. Rael underhand tossed the egg out in front of her. It sailed through the air before beginning its plummet to the ground. But, Rael had no intention of letting it hit the ground. She bent at her knees ever so slightly and raised her right arm up, pointing her index finger directly at the egg.
"Bang!" Rael's lips curled into a joyous smile as she commanded the Flow all around the area to concentrate on the egg. And, within a moment, a direct explosion rang out centered directly onto the egg. Fire burst out from the target area as the incredible force of destruction sent shock-waves outward. Smoke bellowed out from the origin with a mix of light gray and black smog. However, it wasn't plentiful and revealed the sight of the egg once more.
Rael's smile dropped the moment she gained sight of the sealed egg, practically unscathed from her attack. It had been sustained in the air a little longer with the centered explosion, but once again cascaded towards the ground. Rael huffed again as she honed in on the target once more. This time, she raised both her arms and pointed at the egg.
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!" Rael pulled back her arms slightly and then fully extended them again several times over. The movements and repeated "bangs" coming from her synced up with the onslaught she unleashed with her Shade. Each explosion rang out with each pointing of the finger and shouting the word "bang". Centered on the egg, each fiery force of devastation swept away leaves and branches all around with the sheer magnitude of its power. And yet, it seemed that each time Rael's attacks had little to no effect on the egg, prompting her to continue. Every renewed attack brought out more frustration than the last as the object continued to be protected by the insane amount of seals put onto it…
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"Damn it... Just how many... Times do I gotta do this?..." Rael fell to her hands and knees as she couldn't find the strength to stand upright anymore. Her lungs felt devoid of air as she sucked in as much wind as she could. Sweat dripped off of her arms and face from the sheer exertion of using her Shade this much.
The egg landed onto the ground. The ground was devoid of any grass, leaves, or branches at this point. Instead, it was just a brown heap of dirt. Rael lifted her gaze to the egg. After a while, some of the seals had begun to peel away. It seemed that her efforts weren't for nothing. However, she could only see around half of the eggshell. And she had no idea just how much time was left...
"C'mon... C'mon!... I'm not gonna let Avures win!" Rael gritted her teeth as she pushed herself back to her feet. She stood unsteady, swaying back and forth as her sweaty bangs swept over her vision. She brushed her hair aside with one quick movement as she lurched forward and swiped the egg off the ground. As she continued to catch her breath, Rael tossed the egg up in the air once again. "Time to break this stupid e-Ach!..."
Rael grabbed her neck with desperation as she felt something thick constrict around it. Her eyes gazed downward as she struggled with fierce resistance. A black tendril was wrapped around her neck. Instantly, she knew the source, but had no time to process her next move as she felt her entire body get yanked backwards into a tree. Her back hit the bark and she choked up a cough from her lungs, dropping the egg in the process. She reached out with a distressed motion, but couldn't reach it. The tendril wrapped itself around the tree while still keeping its grip around Rael's neck. Eventually, it forced her onto her butt on the ground below with her back against the tree.
"Tch... How does it feel?" Avures strode around the side of the tree as he sighed. He bent over and picked up the egg once more. He couldn't remember exactly what happened before he was knocked out other than that Rael punched him, nor could he tell how long it had been. But, since there were seals still on the egg, he knew the hour wasn't up yet. Still, it had to be close. And Rael had made decent headway against his protection. "Just how much longer do I have?..."
"A-Ach!..." Rael clawed at the tendril with both hands as she fought for each breath. It only took one more moment for her to break free though. Summoning up what mana she could, extreme heat emanated from Rael's hands, taking the shape of a flat, orange aura on the palms of her hands. The boiling aura burnt through the tendril and allowed Rael to pry herself free from its grasp.
"Huh?" Avures removed his focus from the egg after hearing Rael choke out. He thought that it probably wasn't the best idea to leave her choking there. So, he turned around...
"Avures! You jerk!" Rael kicked off the ground and launched herself at Avures with her arms reaching out.
"You did it first!" Avures stumbled backwards out of the way of Rael's dive. As Rael dove past him, she caught herself and tumbled forward back onto her feet. Avures firmly held the egg in his right hand and postured himself.
"Yeah, but that was a dirty sneak attack!" Rael ran towards him and threw a punch aimed for his head.
"You did a sneak attack on me!" Avures ducked out of the way and shimmied backwards. He observed as Rael pulled both of her arms back under her chest while she took a deep breath. Avures's eyes became fixated on her moves as he realized what was happening. He slid his right foot back and swung his left hand upward, raising a Dusk Wall between the two of them.
Rael bellowed forth with a stream of fire directly from her mouth, forming into a large meteoric orb of ardent magic. Her powerful Fireball crashed directly into the wall and burst open, blasting away the dusk wall and layers of dirt all around them. Smithereens cascaded down from the remnants of the techniques clashing as Rael dashed to Avures once more.
"When did you even wake up?!" Rael was only a few inches away as she threw her left fist towards the right side of Avures's face.
"Only a minute or so ago!" Avures swayed himself to the left and took a step back as he attempted to dodge Rael's attacks. "I'm lucky I even woke up from that punch!"
"Heh... I did go a little overboard!" Rael grinned ear to ear as she swung her other fist where Avures moved to, stepping forward to match his backpedal. As her punch came towards him, Avures chose to duck under and take a small step back. In response, and according to her plan, Rael's grin opened up to show her teeth as she brought her leg up and swung a kick out to the side.
Avures had no time to move as Rael's metal boots collided with his face and knocked him off his feet. He rolled onto the ground, still keeping a hold of the egg in his hand, but awkwardly grasping the right side of his face with his left hand as he experienced the agony from Rael's strike. The overwhelming pain wouldn't last, however, as he refocused back on Rael who pounced on him. She brought down the entirety of her weight on Avures, laying on him as she fought to get a hold of his right arm.
They rolled back and forth in the dirt as they fought for control of Avures's right hand. All she needed to do was pry his fingers off the egg and break it. They grunted and breathed with the weight of each other constantly shifting. Every time it seemed Rael had his right hand, Avures would use what strength he could muster and roll them over, using his leverage of being on top to free his hand.
But, finally, Rael caught him in the middle of one of these rolls and sprung to her feet while pulling his wrist away from his body. Avures couldn't get up in time to match, and Rael made quick work of yanking the egg from his grasp.
With victory practically in her hand, Rael sought to end the contest now. A large sum of gold was to be hers. Her hand ignited with a blazing orange aura, the mana leaping from her hand like embers of a large flame. Rael brought her arm back, stepped forward with one foot, and winded back every last bit of force she could. Then, she hurled the egg forward into the nearest tree, using her magic to propel the egg with the power of a hundred explosions. As she released all of her power and magic into this throw, she also threw herself forward onto the ground.
Avures tried to stop it as he stood back up, but the tendril sprouting from his hand was too late. The egg ripped through the air like an arrow shot by an expert hunter. Then...
Splat...
Both Avures and Rael were stunned. Eggshell and egg whites splattered all over the tree bark and even past it. The yolk ran down the tree as the two of them stared in awe.
"Did I-?..." Rael didn't lift her eyes from the shattered egg as she stood back up to her feet.
"Wait... I think I did it..." Avures didn't see any trace or presence of Zen's mana where the egg was... Nor did he sense it either.
"Aw man. I was right... I really can't win today at all..." Rael dropped her gaze to the ground as she groaned... It only lasted for a moment though, as her expression perked up with a slight smile as she turned towards Avures and stared at him. "You won... Aren't you at least a little excited?..."
"I guess... I didn't really expect this..." Avures blinked a few times and shook his head. A test put on by Zen for his abilities... And he passed.
"Well... It's very like you to react this way."
"Why did you attack me anyways?" Avures raised an eyebrow at Rael as she giggled to herself.
"It was a test... Within your test... Obviously, if I let you go without any sort of opposition, you'd probably have had a way easier time. And I can't have that cause the hard stuff is coming next." Zen walked out from behind a tree off to the side with his arms crossed. "This test was something I devised years ago... And it just so happened to attack every single weakness you have... Given that I added a variable to it."
"Hehe-heh..." Rael closed her eyes and gave Avures the biggest smile she could. Her shiny white teeth and innocent smile told Avures everything he needed to know.
"And, even though you technically failed the job I gave you..." Zen sighed as he strode over to Rael. Her face reset with a bit of surprise as he pulled out a brown leather sack that jingled as it swayed in his grip. "You still presented the hurdle I needed you to be. So, good work."
"Yes! Wow! I can win today! Thank you, Mister Zen!" Rael jumped to life with full excitement as he dropped the bag in her open hands. Rael couldn't bear to withhold any giggles as she reached her hand in and pulled out a gold coin. "Yes!-Yes!-Yes! Hehe!..."
"Of course..." Avures rubbed his face with the palm of his hand as he sighed.
"Woo!... Alright! Now I go meet with Georgie for real! Bye-bye Mister Zen! Bye-bye Avures!" Rael skipped past the two of them while waving back at them. She wasted no time in moving back to the road to get to the capital...
"Avures. To pass my test, you needed to have the following qualities: Wit in order to discern the parameters that lead to your victory. Decisiveness in order to go forward with your own instincts. Initiative in order to be able to take the needed step in the moment to set up your victory. And lastly, focus in order to keep yourself grounded and fixated on what is in front of you." Zen raised a finger with each of his points, totaling four.
Avures looked at the splattered egg and recalled it all. Though he had received advice and help, the achievement felt like his own. With Bif's simple observation, Avures realized how Zen worded the rules to outline the route to victory. With encouragement from Lylas and Ventrix, Avures felt confident in using Seals even when Zen said it wouldn't be needed. And, he even took the precautions of sealing it up even more on a whim and going through with sealing the core itself. And finally, by focusing solely on the egg, Avures had safeguarded it long enough from Rael in order to pass the test.
"It seems you were able to adapt and achieve all of those things. Using those same ideas and methodologies, you can be on par with your peers with some aptitude. In essence, if you can operate like that all the time, you can be as good of a Lancer as anyone else." Zen dropped his arms to his side and gave a slight smile.
"I see..." Avures darted his eyes to the side. He put in a lot of effort, but he felt as if he couldn't claim this achievement as his own. After all, it was the suggestions of everyone else that pushed him forward. Those suggestions opened his eyes to the answers that sat right in front of him. What was the point of this if he didn't naturally come to it on his own?
"Come..." Zen turned away from his student and beckoned him to his side. Avures obliged, striding to his teacher's side. But as he walked alongside him, he couldn't help but feel dejected.
"Mis-... Master Zen. I'm not so sure that I can really take credit for all of that. Sure, I did everything necessary... But, it was everyone else who gave me a push forward. I-"
"Avures." Zen turned his head to face his student. They locked eyes. The same smile sat on his face. His eyes commanded silence from his student. Zen refocused on the path ahead and Avures did the same. "Have I ever told you that you remind me a lot of myself when I was younger? Because I used to think the same way as you do currently. You're not likely to forget what you've learned... But, you're so unsure of how to continually execute these concepts outside of the original use-case. You're scared of failure, but who isn't?"
"I understand what you're saying. But, I don't think I understand what you're getting at." Avures stopped at the edge of the tree line. He wasn't sure as to where Zen had been leading him before... But now, it was all clear. A long, midnight shadow crept out from the branches and leaves hanging above and behind him, spanning out several feet ahead. Zen traversed the dark path ahead, entering into rays of light that shone onto patches of petaled life. The invigoration of sunlight drove Zen further ahead to the edge of a cliff. He stopped and gazed over the drop. His sight traveled up further to take in the horizon beyond. Then, he turned to face his student once more.
"Witness the sun, Avures." Zen put his hands on his hips and cast his vision upwards to the top of the trees behind Avures.
Avures waltzed forward, not sure of what Zen was exactly asking of him. So, he decided to take it as bluntly as possible. Looking at his teacher's face, it seemed as if there was a certain peace about his mood. As he stepped into the light, he decided to turn and stare upwards...
Avures instinctively covered his eyes the moment the burning set in. Zen snickered for a moment before Avures's vision adapted to the bright light. The way it sat behind the trees made a peculiar shape. But he couldn't deny that the shining rays made him feel relaxed. Like he had a purpose and felt fulfilled. It was as if he made a great accomplishment, and he was bound to complete more.
"The sun doesn't waver. It follows the same cycle everyday flawlessly. It is automatic, and it's unlimited potential is focused solely on us. You may not understand or naturally come to the line of thinking needed to pass my test, but you have the experience. And that experience is worth everything. The sun is not consciously aware of what it does... But it fulfills its purpose and duty..." Zen smirked and lowered his head. Avures turned his head away and stared at his teacher. Zen let out a sigh and raised his head once more with the same grin on his face.
"I'm still not sure I-..."
"Well, I did try to borrow a lesson someone taught me and adapt it. But simply put, much like the sun, I will instill into you the automatic usage of your focus and potential. Avures... I am going to teach you the Principles of Zen."