Ever since he’d taken Riyan’s Ash’va a week ago, his life had become a living hell. Both his and Maiya’s chores had tripled. He was positive that such intense manual labor was bad for his wound, but Riyan’s healing magic kept him frustratingly on the mend… In fact, he’d made a complete recovery. This only worsened his situation, since he could no longer use his condition as an excuse.
Thanks to his actions, they now had to sign out on a roster every time they wanted to leave the abode. They wrote down where they were going, how long they’d be gone, and all outings longer than one hour required Riyan’s explicit permission. This was all in addition to the aforementioned tripling of their housework, which was by far the worst part.
Maiya still hadn’t forgiven him. If he could rewind time, he’d have told them where he was going… but he’d still have gone. His discovery about the relationship between Prana Vision, as he’d named it, and blood flow had absolutely been worth it. Now, he sought every opportunity to exert himself. If there was a single silver lining about all of this, it was that the increased blood flow from his hard labor had helped him hone Prana Vision.
The previously faint colors now dominated his vision. So much so that he had to develop ways of ignoring them, slowly getting used to this new normal whenever his heart rapidly beat.
He’d made some discoveries. After comparing Maiya’s prana signature with Riyan’s, he was now almost sure that Maiya had a Greater Affinity for Ice magic and a Lesser Affinity for Wind.
As for Riyan, Vir concluded that he possessed the ‘Earth’ Affinity. It was a color that shouldn’t exist at all, but it was everywhere, dominating the ground, in rocks of all sorts, and to a lesser extent in trees.
Vir himself was the biggest mystery. The tiny trickle of prana inside him was all inky black, and even after a week of using his ability, not a single thing in nature seemed to share his affinity. And he wasn’t even sure if it was an affinity. It looked different to Prana Vision, in a way he neither understood nor could explain. Like it was denser, somehow. More profound. More… ancient.
As he’d expected, neither Riyan nor Maiya had heard of black-colored orbs, forcing him to conclude that they simply didn’t exist. Or maybe the Altani knew and hoarded it as a trade secret, though that was unlikely.
Maiya stretched her back after an hour of mopping the packed clay floor, heaving an overly exaggerated sigh. “I swear, it’s just like you to do something like this. Whenever something gets into your head, it’s like the rest of the world doesn’t even exist anymore.”
Vir smirked. She was more on point than she realized. After all, he could see an entirely new world now. He almost pitied her for not being able to experience sight in the same way he could.
“Not funny, Vir.”
“Sorry.”
Riyan walked into the kitchen, an evil grin on his face. “If nothing else, you’ll gain some muscle from this. Your scrawny bodies could use a bit of meat on those bones.”
Easy for you to say, Vir thought. Riyan never had to worry about putting food on the table. The famine wasn’t easy for anyone. Getting a solid two meals a day had been a challenge for Vir and Rudvik. And the lumberjack needed more food than Vir did, which often left him with a half empty belly. Vir suspected he’d be far more muscular if he’d simply had more to eat growing up.
“The time has come to assess your combat potential, boy,” he said, sweeping his gaze across both Vir and Maiya. “Follow me.”
The broad-shouldered man turned and strode out, not bothering to wait.
Vir hastily put away his cleaning rag while Maiya stowed her mop, both scrambling to wipe their hands clean before darting after their instructor. Neel joined up with them, smelling a spicy event about to happen. The bandy possessed a deceptively keen nose for this kind of thing.
As they walked, Vir perked up some at where their instructor was leading them.
The locked door.
We’re finally going to see what’s inside! His heart beat faster in his chest.
The large reinforced wooden doors hinted that the room beyond was not a small one.
When Riyan pushed open the doors, Vir was proven correct… but he’d never imagined just how massive the space was.
Vir stepped into the enormous dome and looked up. Its roof soared to at least five stories in height. Skylights and mirror arrays embedded in the ceiling provided a bit of light, but most of the illumination came from the warm glow of Magic Lamps set into alcoves at regular intervals, spiraling all the way up. Deep, golden sand filled the entire floor of the circular space.
“What is this place?” Maiya asked in wonderment as Neel bounded through the sand, tail wagging in glee.
Riyan gestured to the racks that ringed the circular space. “I originally built this as a place of training and meditation. On these racks, you will find nearly every weapon in the Known World.”
He wasn’t joking. Vir perused the myriad of steel and wooden weapons that lined the walls. Several of which he couldn’t even recognize.
From polearms like the one the knight had wielded, to talwars and shamshirs, arming swords, greatswords, maces, and even spiked flails. All of them looked worn and abused, and none were of high-quality. Then again, training weapons didn’t need to be. A separate rack contained wooden versions of most of the steel weapons.
Craning his neck up at the roof, it dawned on him just how deep underground they actually were. He could hardly believe this room had existed the entire time.
“If you pass my test, this is where you will spend most of your days ahead. Training. Improving. Growing.”
A mask of determination covered Vir’s face. He couldn’t afford to fail here. What a chance this was! His golden opportunity to gain the strength he’d so badly sought. No matter what, he had to succeed.
Maiya regarded Riyan with suspicion. “Who are you, really? No average person has anything like this. You’re Sawai, aren’t you? An aristocrat?”
“One must always practice their craft,” Riyan said, ignoring her last question. “Otherwise, the blade dulls. Like many structures, we built this one with the help of magic, and that is all you need to know. Now, we shall test the boy’s potential.”
Vir didn’t care who Riyan was or what he wanted from him, so long as the man could train him. After witnessing Riyan’s combat skills and seeing this room, there was no longer any doubt in his mind.
“What do you want me to do?”
“Remove your shoes,” Riyan commanded, doing the same himself. “First, unarmed combat. You will duel against me. Fight for your life, boy, because I shall show you no mercy.”
The massive warrior strode to the center of the dome and adopted a low, wide stance. Bending his knees, he held his arms forward, like a great tiger ready to lunge onto its prey.
Vir faced off against him, ten paces away, a shrew in comparison. His bare feet sunk into the deep sand that scraped against his soles. He needed twice the energy into every step just to walk straight.
“Begin,” the Ghost of Godshollow ordered.
Vir lunged with every ounce of strength he could muster. The fight for his future had begun.
Maiya and Neel sat watching the two combatants from the perimeter of the dome. From the moment they faced off, Maiya knew how this would turn out.
On one side was a battle-hardened warrior who lived and breathed combat. Who wielded superhuman Talents, and who’d no doubt trained endlessly for years on end.