Another hour passed, then two. As his body acclimatized and the pain subsided, Vir dialed Parai’s technique back further. Then he began doing the same on his other arm. Then his legs and torso.
It was at the sixth hour that his consciousness began to lapse. It started first as daydreams. Idle thoughts that filtered into his head. Parai’s technique would stop, prana would assault him, sending him writhing on the cold hard rock, then he’d reassert the technique, take a few moments to recover, and start all over again.
It was an endless cycle, and Vir fell into a daze before falling asleep entirely. Those bouts were far, far worse. He’d nearly doubled his body’s prana capacity, and even then, the full brunt of the Ashen Realm’s onslaught debilitated him. It took him nearly twenty minutes to recover from the pain each time this happened.
He never noticed the looks Cirayus gave him. Looks that had transformed from anxious irritation to appreciation, to outright awe.
Unfortunately, Vir drifted off with increasing frequency, the spikes of pain becoming a familiar presence.
“I’m… not going to make it,” Vir whispered, struggling to keep his eyelids open.
Cirayus grinned. “Lad, you already have.”
“I have?” Vir asked, confused.
“I’ve never seen someone keep a technique active this long. That’s impressive in its own right, but when added to the pain you must be experiencing? Well, you truly are something else. And you know something else I’ve never seen?”
Vir grew somewhat irritated that the giant was leading him on when he was so fatigued. “What?”
Cirayus pointed at his chest. “Nobody can maintain a technique when they’re as tired as you.”
“I don’t get it. What does—oh,” Vir replied, comprehension dawning on him. “Oh.”
“You aren’t cycling Parai’s technique anymore… are you?”
To his horror and amazement—but mostly horror—Vir realized he wasn’t. Quickly, he sought to grab control of his blood, to reassert Parai’s technique.
Huh? That’s odd… The ability activated, the blood traveling through the same pathways as he’d done for so many hours prior. But the pain never subsided. Wait. The pain!
It was gone. Well, not gone, but the pain had subsided considerably. Peering inward with Prana Vision, Vir found that the Ash prana in the air that rushed into his body previously only trickled in now.
“You’re through the worst of it,” Cirayus said. “From here, your body will adjust naturally, given time. Rest, now.”
Deeper. Can go deeper now. Vir had meant to say the words out loud, but the next thing he knew, he’d slumped against the rock, his consciousness fading. Vir allowed it, drifting blissfully off into the land of dreams.
Cirayus looked at the slumbering Ekavir—no, Sarvaak—with pride. Pride and sadness. There had been no lie in his words. None had had such a violent reaction to the Ash. And none had kept a cycling technique active for that long. Even with his mastery of Balancer of Scales, honed over centuries of effort, Cirayus could barely keep it active for an hour. That was already considered monstrous.
It was no simple feat to hold a simple ability active for long durations. The more complex the technique, the more effort required, and the shorter the active duration.
Cirayus knew not what Parai’s technique did for the boy, other than to hold back the prana that sought to rip his body apart. The mechanism likely wasn’t very advanced; after all, Vir lacked even a single tattoo to align the prana. Yet such a technique had to have covered his entire body. If not, prana would simply leak in from areas where the ability wasn’t active.
Which meant its size made it even more complex than the Ultimate Bloodline Arts.
And young Sarvaak had maintained it for half a day. That wasn’t monstrous. It was divine.
The child of Maion and Shari Garga was weak. Far too weak. And yet, Cirayus beamed.
“Lad, you will become a god,” he whispered. “I’m just honored to have been here for it.”
3‘LIMITED’ PROGRESS
Vir awoke to aches and pains. Not anywhere specific—his whole body just seemed to throb, though when compared to the torture he’d endured, it was hardly anything.
“How do you feel?” Cirayus asked, handing Vir a waterskin.
“Like a grakking fool who just entered the Ash with a death wish,” he said, relishing the sensation of the cool water on his parched throat.
The demon laughed heartily. “Indeed. Those who brave the Ash can only be called fools. Yet sometimes, it is the fools who play everyone for the fool, is it not? When they return with great power, having witnessed sights that most dare not even imagine. Who is the fool, then, I wonder?”
“I suppose,” Vir said, cracking a small smile. “Say, how did I survive the journey as a baby? If I had this much difficulty now…”
“We carried with us an Artifact that protected you. Some of the other demons did as well. The bracelets were heirlooms of your clan.”
“Sure would’ve been handy to have that,” Vir said.
“Aye. But not possible, I’m afraid. We couldn’t risk such precious Artifacts falling into the hands of humans. I sent them all back with one of your retainers.”
“Well, I suppose I won’t be needing it any longer. So, what now?”
“Now, you rest,” the demon said, placing an oversized hand gently on Vir’s shoulder. “I shall gather some food for us both.”
“Why? We’ve barely even dipped into our rations.”
“Aye, and you packed food that’ll keep. That’s good,” Cirayus replied. “I took the liberty of cataloging your food while you were asleep. I hope you don’t mind.”
Vir shook his head. “It’s fine. Then why bother going out?”
“Treat this food as emergency rations. There are vast swaths of the Ashen Realm entirely devoid of all life. Dark places of eternal night, with clouds so thick the meager light can’t possibly penetrate. We’ll need to stock up as much as we can for the passage.”
Vir had felt even this part of the Ashen Realm was depressing. It seemed the worst was yet to come.
“I’m kinda amazed there are even edible plants here,” he said, gazing down at the field of endless ash below.
“Most certainly. Most of the beasts here are carnivorous, but the lowest critters are always herbivores. Though, I’m unsure if you could call what grows here plants.”
“What do you mean?”
“They’re closer to monsters who cannot move. The same prana that makes Ash Beasts so dangerous makes the plants here grow to many times their usual size. Some even become aware of their surroundings, ensnaring those who dare venture too close. A defense mechanism, but one that can end you if you’re not careful.”
It hardly came as a surprise to Vir that even the plants in the Ashen Realm were lethal. He wondered what wasn’t.
“I’ll be back shortly. I did not wish to leave you alone while you were asleep. Even up on this ledge where few Ash Beasts can reach, there are always dangers. Stay vigilant, but try not to move overly much while I’m gone. I suggest meditation.”
“I think I’ll take you up on that. Moving anything hurts.”
“Good. Now, I know you must be hungry, but I’ll have to ask you to wait a while longer. It’ll be worth the wait, I promise.” Cirayus jumped off the ledge as if it were merely a single pace off the ground, gliding elegantly down to the base of the mountain, far below.
What a cheat, Vir thought. Balancer of Scales wasn’t merely powerful, it was absolute power. Touching the tattoo on his chest, he wondered if he, too, might own that ability one day. He added it to the dozen other questions he wanted to ask the demon.