Chapter 5

Left hand holding his right forearm, Alexiel concentrated! There was a slight look of discomfort that showed on his face as he channeled the blood essence to the palm of his right hand. 

Without any extra tools, his palm split open. To outsiders it just looked like his skin split apart on its own. Only he knew it was through the manipulation of his more ordinary blood that he created a blade like structure on the inside that he used to slice open his palm. 

Intense heat waves and a strong bloody smell wafted throughout the bedroom! Thankfully enough, another small bonus of his mutant blood was its natural allure. 

It didn't really smell much different from normal human blood, but exposure to increased amounts gave off a very comforting feeling. 

This was all happening before the blood essence left his body. 

When it finally appeared the heat wave was much more intense and so was its allure! At first glance it didn't even appear the same as normal blood as it was a bit opaque and had a soft glow to it!

Even to Alexiel this was an uncommon sight. It seemed his efforts were truly not done in vain! 100 units of blood superimposed unto itself showed tremendous promise! 

The sight didn't last for long as Tristant was quick on the pick up! From the top, the ruby-like drop of blood looked to be freezing over!

Symmetrical cerulean crystal patterns creeped down the drop of blood trying to encapsulate it! 

"UNHOLY FUCK!" 

Tristan cried out! This was clearly a much grander task to take on than he realized! The density and raw energy of this single drop of blood was beyond anything he'd ever worked with before!

He can say without a fraction of a doubt this was an all new arena and he wasn't sure he would succeed!

"Keep your wits about you! Focus! We must succeed or it'll take months before we'll get another chance!" 

Alexiel directly cut through the bullshiit and let him know, this was the time to put all his effort into their plan! 

The Crystallization was extremely tedious as everytime a portion of it was converted over, it would fold and realign in on itself.

What started as a round single drop of blood began to rise at its head into a single point!

That point had three sides and looked like a small trigon sitting atop the drop of blood that didn't seem to have shrunk much if at all! 

Sweat was forming on the fleshy side of Tristan's face! He grit his teeth and keep pushing his ability forward! 

It's not that he had reached his limit or anything of the such, but it was the action of using a muscle you never fully stretched properly!

Alexiel noticed his discomfort and made a suggestion. 

"Don't force your ability like a brute, sense it, let it guide you!"

Tristan was extremely inexperienced but he trusted his friends' words very much. He no longer gazed at the happenings between their hands and just closed his eyes. 

"Sense it…"

He thought about what that meant and took a few deep breaths. Sure enough he could feel the resonance between him and the work he was performing. 

He didn't notice it but Alexiel paid attention to all the happenings. The wounded side of Tristan's face began to glow softly, shortly after the crystal began to expand across his body and in turn was entering into a completely crystallized state.

The light he emanated continued to increase! The radiance was filling the entire room!

When the brilliance began to be hard to look at directly the trigon had already expanded into a pentagon! 

In a few breaths the nearly completely crystallized drop of blood folded and shifted one more time before becoming an octahedron shaped crystal.

The glowing finally began to recede and between the two boys a cerulean crystal with purple lightning patterns floated there. 

Trisran felt a shift in his ability and went to open his eye. 

In this completely crystal form Alexiel could finally see the difference in his fully functional crystal side and his damaged crystal side. 

The parts of his face that had no issue all though he stood there in this gem like form, still held very human-like movements. 

His eyelid opened, his cheeks could rise and fall, his lips parted ways. This crystal form had a softness akin to regular flesh. 

On the other side his damaged face was akin to a ceramic mask. It didn't hold the same softness that gave rise to the sense of living stone. It just looked like a nice smooth carving in some places. But it mostly felt inanimate, morbidly dead.

For a moment silence deafened the room. Alexiel finally had trouble standing and took a step back!

Tristan was roused from his daze and immediately went to reach out. Before he could grab alexiel though he took notice of his Crystallization. 

"Oh I…" 

Even more so the sound of his deep but slightly synthetic voice startled him. 

It's not that he hadn't taken the initiative to crystallize himself before,  but it was only a finger or toe here and there. Maybe the rare full hand or foot. But his entire body? Never!

Tristan, completely dazed in the midst of his own perplexity, missed catching Alexiel, who continued to stumble backwards until he tripped over his own feet. 

Thankfully he was able to land on his own bed and avoid injury. 

The sound of his body hitting the bed woke Tristan out of his stupor. 

"Alexiel, I'm sorry! Are you alright?" 

Alexiel was catching his breath on the bed and his usually amber skin seemed a few shades paler. 

He raised his hand and waved Tristan off. Clearly he needed a few moments to collect himself fully. 

Tristan only nodded and allowed his focus to return to himself and the glowing gem in front of him. 

He reached up and touched the broken part of his head, which surprisingly felt much softer when using his fully crystallized form as opposed to when using his fleshy hand. 

It was so strange, he could feel a burning tingly sensation, something akin to what one feels when a wound heals. It almost made him want to start scratching the area repeatedly. 

Getting a sense of warmth flowing through him, his attention landed fully on the crystal that was born from the unity of their two abilities. 

He felt very drawn to it, he had never felt this way about anything he had ever used his ability on before ever! 

It was a little scary and overwhelming, like he was losing his ability to reason to this need to grab out and consume this gem. 

Right as the calling was beginning to become too much and he was reaching out to grab hold of the beautiful object Alexiel began to stir.

"Wait! We don't know the dangers, I may have miscalculated!"

Tristan shook his head! 

"No, I want whatever this is at all cost! I can feel it calling to me!" 

Alexiel released a sigh, he could feel it too. It was similar to how he felt with those patients who had taken in his blood. 

But the connection he felt now was so powerful it was like a piece of him was othered! It was slightly disorienting but it didn't feel wrong. 

He didn't feel any great need to consume it like Tristan did but he did want to cradle it and keep it safe. 

"Alexiel I can feel my wounds healing and I haven't even consumed it yet! Once this is a part of me I feel, no, I know I will go through a great metamorphosis!" 

Alexiel nodded. 

"I believe your ability shares a Symbiotic nature with you just in a different way than mine does with others. 

The Symbiotic nature of our abilities coming together… there's no telling what lasting effect it'll have on you. 

We may… be bound to each other for life. I don't want to trap you. I'm sorry."  

This sobered Tristan's thoughts, he took a deep breath even though it doesn't seem he necessarily needed it, something closer to habit. 

Tristan took two steps back and collected his thoughts. But even then he wasn't quiet for long. 

"Thank you, I can't say I understand how you feel from your perspective… but I'm not afraid. Not of what it might change me into, even if that might mean being in a bond with you forever. 

You told me you wouldn't throw me away, does that still stand? Will you accept me at your side? We're mutants, we can't live like regular people as it is. 

You are already my comrade in my heart, and I know you feel the same way about me. 

Say it, say that you're not afraid and I will gladly accept this, this…" 

"Heart! That gem feels akin to my heart… idk how exactly, but i feel me in the most fundamental aspects of it."

Alexiel finally got up and started heading towards Tristan. He grabbed the gem in his hands and held it tightly. 

His gaze finally landed on Tristan full of determination. 

"I'm not afraid, and I promise, I won't throw you away! Remove your shirt."

Tristan who's clothes had crystallized with him didn't make any movements, the crystalized outline of his shirt just receded into his body like cotton candy into water. 

Alexiel's empty hand grabbed Tristan's solid shoulder and his other hand placed the blood gem right beside where Tristan's natural heart would be. 

"Urghhh, urgghh, ARRGHHHHH!!!!!" 

Alexiel fumbled a few steps backwards as Tristan's body suddenly erupted with intense amounts of energy! 

"AARRGGGHHHHHHH!!!" 

The lighting in the room darkened as Tristan's radiance took dominance! When the gem made contact there was a resounding clack! 

It was as if two magnets were being stuck together! Then Tristan's body began to shimmer like lake water and the gem slowly sunk beneath the surface!

Those purple lightning patterns creeped their way all throughout his crystal body. Those lifeless crystalized wounds and fractures grew whole and took on their proper features. 

It was mesmerizing to watch. This wasn't the end though. 

When the lightning patterns completely filled his body the shimmering didn't stop. Instead, starting at the extremities, Tristan began to liquify and fold in on himself! 

His body was shrinking! 

"Oh no. Oh no, no no no!! What's happening!?"

The sight of this caused great anxiety within Alexiel!

But everything was happening too fast! He didn't know what to do. 

In only a few breaths there was no more sound coming from Tristan, just a floating glowing fluid! 

Before Alexiel could make heads or tails of the situation, the fluid lunged onto him!

It went directly for the barely closed wound on his hand and began to enter his body. 

Alexiel was speechless! He didn't try to wave the fluid off but instead spun his hand in front of him with the deepest gaze he's ever held for anything!

This fluid found its way to his heart with haste, it filled every inner nook and cranny of Alexiel and even spread along the outside of his skin, he was completely covered. 

Then he himself was completely consumed!