Newfound Knowledge

Not a single word came out of my mouth as we walked alongside each other, we walked beside each other, side-by-side and stride with such confidence, although a bit strange the first few minutes before eventually gaining composure and following along obediently.

He led us further along the beaten path for a while, his voice was distant but still audible enough for me to make out every syllable, he spoke: "We'll start the training immediately, I presume. Now that we are away from prying ears and eyes. Tell me Cyrus, why do you want to be stronger?"

I didn't understand the meaning behind his question at the time, I was confused and unsure. How am I supposed to know the answer to something that is completely subjective and vague? Then, in a soft whisper he spoke, "I asked you what makes you want to strive for more, you clearly possess power. But, why do you have it? Is it an inherent trait given at birth? If yes, then what causes a person to evolve and become stronger?"

A wry grin crept its way onto his lips. I answered: "I've always believed that strength should be respected and treated as something to aspire for rather than scoff and ignore it, the power I possess was a gift given to me by the Gods and I want to use it to the best of my ability." In reality, I still have yet to find my purpose in this world, but as long that I continue to exist, I will make sure to do what is right and just with my bare hands and mine alone.

He turned his gaze to me, the corners of his eyes crinkling up a bit, and replied: "Good answer, that is an adequate response. Now, onto the next lesson."

He flicked his finger up into the air, a golden string appeared from thin air. The golden string started weaving itself between his fingers like a rope until finally, at its center, was an enormous diamond shaped gem.

"The lessons for the day have commenced, we will be going into some basic topics today, I'll explain as we proceed." The gem floated in front of his palm as he placed both hands together and began to channel energy through it. Within seconds a small beam shot forth from the center of the diamond and struck a tree at the bottom, knocking the thing completely over with ease. The entire trunk split apart like paper mache as the trunk was sent spiraling upward through the air, bouncing off several other branches along the way.

Then, the gem flew from his grip, flying high into the sky, aiming directly at another target nearby. It didn't matter how far away or high the gem got, it's path always remained consistent and smooth.

After about five more hits, he stopped shooting beams and grabbed the gem again and focused on me. He must've noticed my expression as his voice sounded amused. "Quite impressive, isn't it?"

I nodded. I knew he wasn't going to stop now and waited patiently for his next trick. The beam reappeared and was immediately fired once more, this time it streaked across the ground leaving behind a trail of smoke. It hit a boulder about half a mile in the distance and smashed into the boulder like a car would crash through a brick wall, leaving a massive hole behind.

This technique is extremely powerful and it looks like it has immense destructive potential. The tree that the previous attack hit toppled and fell onto a pile of leaves, scattering them everywhere. It left behind a large burnt crater as a testament to its power.

"May I ask what you are trying to show us here?" I finally opened my mouth and questioned him, I know that the first lesson was something very similar to this, and I already understand the basic theory behind it, but I guess I am wondering, if this is the base level, just how strong will we become if we are able to master these basic skills of magic.

"Hmmmm..." He thought for a minute before replying, "Magic, no matter what type is fairly easy to learn, yet it takes countless hours of dedication, concentration and drive to accomplish at a high skill level, if you really put the time into training your ability to harness your mana, then it is very possible that you'll be able to make magic look like second nature and that's the difference between becoming a legendary magic-user and an ordinary commoner mage."

Before he continued to lecture us I had to cut him off. "Sir, you do know that I can't use normal magic, I only have the ability to use Aether."

His head shot around towards my direction so fast I swore it almost fell off and rolled away into the bushes, after hearing the tone in which I had said those words I quickly explained that my body naturally harnesses this Aether, I cannot create it from nothing like regular Mages.

"Rafael never mentioned that you could use such a sacred form of magic. You do know what this means, right Cyrus?" I looked over to Azriel curiously, what did he mean by sacred form? Before I had a chance to even formulate a response he had begun to lecture me about my ability.

"Aether is extremely powerful and unique magic, which can bend the fabric of space. When used correctly, an aether-type mage can tear through the air like it is a piece of paper, which can lead to teleporting from point a to b instantly, or it could be used for defense, depending on its usage. Unfortunately, very few people can ever attain it." He let go of the gem and let it rest on the palm of his outstretched hand as he continued his speech. "Very few people have actually witnessed an aether mage in action, let alone try to battle against one. In all of history, only ten have existed, but each of them could have torn the planet apart with sheer strength alone."

For me to get a brief rundown on aether magic from someone who's not very versed in it, is amazing. From what I understand, most mages cannot use their own spells, instead they rely solely on the knowledge of ancient scripts which contain powerful spells written inside.

Me and Ariel are very lucky that we were brought out to Azriel's office to train together. And honestly, I'm just glad my mom didn't freak out. "Why is it such an amazing ability? I don't get why everyone treats it as some kind of holy magic, I've never heard of it."

He smiled again, patting his lap softly, the grin on his face growing more sinister by the second. I could see from the glint in his eyes that there was a deeper meaning behind his actions. "Oh but you should know. For someone like myself, an expert on the arcane and sorcery, should be able to answer your questions. Then, perhaps I may need to refresh your memory of this fact. The strongest warrior is not the one who carries the largest sword, nor the fastest sprinter, but instead he is the one who knows how to use his weapon and run faster, using techniques that most people never learn. Someone, like the man who defeated and destroyed an entire army of a thousand warriors, by himself. A man who wields a broken blade and who possesses a weak body. His technique was so advanced that all it took to beat those fools was a mere slap on the wrist."

I tried to understand the words that he was saying, then I realized I was a 10 year old soon to be 11 year old child. There was no way I was supposed to understand what he was saying, but I knew that he would know when I would lie. I shrugged it off, deciding to leave him be and continue to watch, hopefully I'll get lucky enough to have him show off a little bit more.

That's exactly what I hoped. Just by the looks alone you could see the excitement, the absolute glee that radiated from his face as he lifted the gem again. A strange power began gathering, radiating throughout the whole area. This isn't just some average show. I felt excited too, I knew I had seen something I should not have.

With his free hand, he pointed at the next target tree. The gem suddenly flew and hit it dead-on. This time he used a little bit of force to burn up some of the extra power he had gathered before using it. When he was done, the tree was missing about two-thirds of its bark. He didn't even seem slightly fazed either, instead he just shrugged his shoulders and said something along the lines of: "Haven't even gotten to the interesting bit yet..."

Then he stopped, he turned towards Ariel and I and smiled. "Why don't we have some demonstration from the both of you two? I would like to see both of you condense your mana into a ball and fire it at one of these trees here." he gestured towards the now flaming tree in front of him, which had already been smashed into ashes, "I know you have done something similar to it before, I want you two to channel your energy, your aether and have it swirl around in front of you for a moment, let it dance a bit and gather more of a charge."

Both of us looked at him inquisitively before hesitantly obeying his orders and beginning the spell that he'd wanted. But I had an idea; instead of following his instructions exactly and conjuring a simple orb of magic I would take his explanation of gathering up a charge a lot farther and much deeper, I'll channel my aether into forming the same shape of the crystal that he was showing me and not an orb.

And that's what I did. Within seconds, I could see a large shimmering diamond form in front of the me and take shape, taking roughly five minutes for it to be complete.

I was surprised I had even done this considering I'd never had used a spell to do anything before, but this should work if the diamond holds the same properties that his did, which I can't help but be a little excited about.

Azriel took notice in this fact and smiled, seemingly satisfied that I was paying close attention. "I wonder if your aether crystals hold the same potency as mine? Or perhaps you're doing something different than simply creating an elemental sphere?"

I glanced over at Ariel and I could see that she had little struggle in what she was doing as well, I have to say I was a bit worried that she wouldn't be able to keep up with me, I'm sure she'll be fine.