Evan was lost, adrift in a sea of memories, feeling as though a whirlpool had caught him, spinning him faster and faster. The world around him moved like a time-lapse, a blur of colours and shapes that coalesced and dissolved before his very eyes. It was like watching a painting come to life, each brushstroke a moment in time that flickered and danced before him, until he was lost in a maelstrom of time. A dull, throbbing ache in his head grew louder and more insistent with every passing second, until it reached a crescendo that threatened to engulf him entirely.

And then he was back, in the room high up in the grand palace, with Lady Sariel standing across from him, a look of cold calculation on her face.

“What the f-” Evan’s voice trailed off, the words dying in his throat as he struggled to comprehend what had just happened. He immediately tried to teleport out of there and realised he couldn't feel his skills at all; it was as if they had disappeared.

Why can't I activate any of my skills? he wondered, concerned creeping into his thoughts. This didn’t feel like the vision, or even the time travel he had experienced before, he wasn’t disembodied, he was really here. Did his [Teleportation] go haywire and launch him into one of the most dangerous rooms in the city? Evan gulped at the thought. He had to figure out a way to get out of this alive.

Lady Sariel stood before Evan, her tall and slender figure emanating a regal air.

Evan's eyes darted around the room, taking in every detail.

The walls were adorned with precious stones and intricate designs that seemed to dance in the flickering light of the candles, paintings and trophies placed on either side. The room exuded warmth and grandeur, leather couches and ornate rugs, sprawled by the fireplace opposite her desk, facing the floor to ceiling windows displaying the sprawling view of the city. The flame from the fireplace caused the air itself to seem to shimmer with an ethereal light that caught the edges of Evan's vision.

It was the kind of place that Evan would have been amazed by just a few moments ago, but now it was just another extravagant display of wealth in the way of his escape.

His heart pounded, yet he remained calm. He believed he could handle any situation, even this one.

“Lady Sariel, I can explain” he raised his hands in an attempt to calm her down. If he played this right, she just might let him go. Despite what he’d seen, she was known to be kind to the dregs, charming and personable. As far as she knew, he had nothing she wanted… Except the ability to enter one of the most guarded rooms in the city undetected. Right.

She ignored him, turning to observe the fireplace, a soft smile on her face.

"Excuse me, Lady Sariel," he said, his voice ringing out in the room. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude," he said, trying to keep his voice calm and steady. "I was just looking for someone to talk to, and I thought maybe you could help me out."

To his surprise, she didn’t even twitch. Evan cleared his throat and tried again. "I said, I was just looking for someone to talk to, and I thought-," he trailed off as he noticed her lack of reaction.

Rude. He decided to get her attention.

"Well, this is a lovely office you have here, Lady Sariel. I don't think I've seen so many shiny objects in one place before."

No response.

"What the hell?" he exclaimed, waving his arms in front of him.

Still, no response. Lady Sariel remained oblivious to his presence.

"Okay, maybe she's just ignoring me," he muttered to himself. "That's fine, I can work with that."

Feeling weightless and disembodied, Evan floated towards her, and realised she seemed lost in her own thoughts, a world away from him. Despite being mere inches from her face. His feeling of disembodiment must be more than just a feeling, he was invisible. Safe. As he drew closer, he studied her appearance with curiosity.

With long, flowing red hair and piercing green eyes. Her skin was as smooth as alabaster, flawless from this distance, and her features were perfectly sculpted. She wore a long, flowing gown of a deep dark red that hugged her curves, adorned with glittering jewels that sparkled in the candlelight. And as she turned to face the city, Evan saw a hint of something darker in her eyes that sent shivers down his spine.

The darkness in her eyes grew stronger, overshadowing her beauty. There was something different about her appearance. he wrinkles on her face seemed more pronounced, and a weariness in her eyes that he hadn't seen before appeared. Her hair was still long and auburn, but there were strands of grey woven through it. giving the impression that she had aged decades in just a few short weeks since he'd seen her on one of the artificers screens in the plaza. Nevertheless, she still retained an undeniable beauty.

Drawing back, he aimed to explore the room, his feet touching the ground.

It was then that he noticed a faint flicker in her eyes. Had she sensed his presence? Or was it just a trick of the light? Evan couldn't be sure, but she continued to stare out into the city below, unmoving.

Evan wandered through Lady Sariel's office, with its walls adorned with intricate tapestries and ornate decor. He knew he shouldn't be here, but his curiosity had gotten the better of him. His eyes wandered over the priceless artifacts that littered the room, adorned on the walls. Stealing from her would be stupid. Practically suicide. Completely insane.

Maybe next time.

The room was bathed in a soft golden light that reflected off the diamond constructs and works of art Lady Sariel had interspersed among the artifacts. Evan had never seen such exquisite craftsmanship before, and he couldn't help but admire it all.

Suddenly, a sharp pain exploded in his back. He was thrown forward, hitting the ground hard. His form flickering. Lady Sariel stood still, staring out of the window as if nothing had happened. Evan scrambled to his feet, bewildered by what had just occurred.

One of the artifacts was hovering in place, facing him. A dagger. He glanced at Lady Sariel - she remained staring out at the city skyline, as if deep in thought.

The diamond dagger hummed before hurtling at him again. Evan dived out of the way, desperately looking for something he could use as a shield as it sunk into the far wall.

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His connection to his skills bloomed to life as he leapt onto the floor. The mana pumped through his veins in three different beats, his skin tingling with a sensation he’d had for so long he hadn't even known it was there. He could feel the ebb and flow of mana in the room once more. He searched the room, as the dagger shook the wall in its attempts to free itself and attack him again, and noticed how the currents flowed around some of the items in the room. Evan couldn't help but marvel at the sheer variety of items on display. There were weapons that seemed to pulse with energy, diamond constructs that glimmered like stars, and ancient artifacts that felt older than time itself. Each object had its own unique aura, its own story to tell. Some felt weak and unremarkable, like a flickering candle in a vast darkness. Others, however, were like standing next to a sun, their energy almost overwhelming.

Three of those sun-like weapons rose into the air to face him, their diamond surfaces flickering with the flames of the fireplace. Evan immediately teleported towards the door.

The constructs were too quick. The swords launched at him. As Evan flew through the air, having gained momentum in the void between spaces, he reached forward, fingers outstretched to grasp the door. He would’ve teleported through it, if he could, but he was unsure if that would work. He had crashed into and through many things since he’d awakened the skill, but he’d never truly attempted to bypass solid matter, and never anything as large or solid as those doors. If he crashed into the doors like he crashed into the guards at the testing centre, his life would be forfeit.

He could feel the hum of the blades gaining on him, hear the air practically screaming as their sharp edges cut through the space between them. Evan was forced to dodge out of the way, his form flickering again. Glancing at the door again, he saw a wall of diamond had descended from the ceiling. Blocking his escape.

He had never tried teleporting through an object before and had no idea what would happen. He had smashed through buildings to get here the first time, with no idea how he was unhurt. He didn't want to risk it, the gash on his back had removed any illusion of safety he had. He would have to find another-

A blade crashed into the ground beside him.

He teleported across the room in a mess of movement, trying to put some distance between himself and his attacker, but the artifacts in the room were relentless. More swords, more weapons, and more constructs rose into the air, all of them flashing and glittering in the dim light of the office's smouldering fireplace.

The constructs seemed to be everywhere, and their blades sliced through the air, leaving a trail of diamond sparks. They moved with precision and lethality, closing in on him from all directions.

Evan's heart was pounding in his chest as he surveyed the room. With a steady hand and his very being on edge, his eyes darted from one artifact to the next, desperately searching for a way out. The seconds between each breath felt like minutes. He could feel the energy of his skill coursing through his veins, like a river of fire, constantly shifting, a tug in his gut, waiting for him to release control and be moved.

He gave in to the sensation.

He felt the same familiar pull in his gut, but this time, it came from every direction, almost before he even had the thought he disappeared, giving in to the pull from above. Evan reappeared several meters above his previous position, hurtling towards the high ceiling. He surveyed the room in mid-air, a sea of blades glistening as they sped towards him, their reflective light almost leaving afterimages.

He decided to crash through the window and escape, and rely on his skills ability to control his momentum. As long as he arrested his momentum before he hit the ground, he'd be safe. There was no way these artifacts would follow him that far away from their owner. His stomach churned at the suspicion they probably could. He didn't care, he'd figure it out. He launched himself at the window, disappearing and reappearing ahead, at high speed.

He scrambled across the room, dodging diamond constructs and leaping over glittering blades. He could feel the mana surging through his veins, aiding in his sensations. He needed to stay alive. His movements became a blur of motion, a dance of life and death in the midst of a battlefield.

Tripping over an artifact, another narrowly missed his heart. Evan tumbled to the ground, rolling to a stop, as the sound of the wind whistling grew louder. The shadows on the wall displayed blurs of motion speeding towards him.

He gritted his teeth and leaped, twisting in mid-air to avoid a razor-sharp blade that sliced through the air where he had been a moment before. The blade embedded itself in the wall with a metallic clang as he teleported in the opposite direction to his leap, completely reversing his momentum.

He could hear the sound of the diamond constructs clashing behind him, echoing through the grand office. See the shadows of sparks as they clashed, dancing across the walls, illuminated by the fireplace. He had reappeared upside down this time, spinning, the world a blur. But that was OK. At least he was heading towards the window.

Blades rose from the artifacts on the floor ahead to meet him. Evan cursed under his breath, his mind racing as he searched for another way out. He teleported backwards, arresting his momentum, and hung in the air in free-fall as the blades rose to meet him further away. He needed to think.

He closed his eyes. Trying to sense the flow of mana in the air as the blades parted through them. He could feel them more clearly, but it was no use. Some of them were so faint he would have to see them to know where they were. Evan tapped into his skill, fire pouring down his veins once more. He held it there, keeping it flowing, constantly drawing as small an amount as he could manage from the dense maelstrom of mana shifting through his body as sweat trickled down his brow in concentration. He felt stretched in all directions, loose, as though underwater. It was as if any sudden movement would send him hurtling in that direction, disappearing through space at a moment's notice. The mana in the air surged, he could feel more of it now.

Evan felt a sharp pain in his side, and realised that one of the constructs had scored a hit. He gritted his teeth and twisted in mid-air, using his momentum to dodge another incoming blade. He teleported from the centre of the room towards the wall, reappearing sideways in a run. Each step supported his momentum along the wall as he once again headed for the window.

The room was a blur of motion and colour, a kaleidoscope of diamond constructs and shimmering artifacts. Evan could feel the mana surging through the room, like a storm gathering on the horizon. He dodged and weaved, ducking under a spinning construct and twisting around a glowing sphere of energy.

Evan hit the ground running, sliding across the polished stone floor like a skater on ice. He could feel the mana coursing through his veins, enhancing his senses. He bounded up a wall, his feet pushing off against the diamond surface of the dagger lodged in there, and flipped over a pair of spinning blades that sliced through the air like scythes, a teleport towards the ceiling sending him away from the blades, aiding his movements.

He slid across the ceiling, launched by his last teleport, a wicked greatsword made of diamond thrown off course by the displaced air he left in his wake. It flew by his head, missing by inches. As it whizzed past Evans head, he caught a glimpse of the intricate patterns etched into the diamond surface, each one sparkling like tiny gemstones. The flames of the fireplace reflected within.

The glass window was so close now, he could almost taste it. He had angled his legs, preparing to shatter through.

The world around seemed to dim as the greatsword passed by. Evan barely had time to register the flash of light before the sword hurtled past his head. It was a thing of beauty, a diamond-encrusted greatsword that seemed to glow as it reflected the light from its many angles. He noticed its edge was impossibly sharp, slicing through the air, whistle of the wind, sharp and piercing, as its aftershock threw his hair aside. The blade was a glinting blur of light, barely slowing down as it sliced through walls, flooring, and even other constructs. Leaving a deep gash across the tapestry. The blade was wickedly sharp. It immediately halted in the air in front of him.

Evan crashed into its flat side, falling through the air. Before he could even make sense of his surroundings, he found himself suddenly suspended in mid-air, like a fly caught in a spider's web. Blades, sharp as razors, whirled towards him from every direction, seeking out his flesh with ruthless accuracy. Evan had no time to react, no way to avoid the blades. Several of them sliced into his limbs like a hot knife through butter, pinning him to the wall like a gruesome work of art, the rest strangely missing him. The pain was indescribable, and he couldn't help himself as a cry escaped his lips. Evan hung there, beaten, but not defeated.

"Who are you, and what are you doing here?" Lady Sariel asked, finally turning to face him, the sea of blades turning with her, a diamond sword materialising in her hand.