Onyx ran her former staff along the flat side of his longsword, the cracked steel blade bathed in the distinct dark blue coloring that all sorceries cast by him held. He held the weapon straight up in front of his chest, wisps of excess energy wafting off of it, the leakage especially plentiful along the damaged areas.
He returned the staff to his hip, grasping the sword's handle with both hands, stance lowered.
Slashes and stabs accompanied by swift footwork few, if any, battle mages could hope to match. He used the chamber beyond the hideaway she'd passed on to him as a training ground, the dimly lit room aglow by the trail wispy light each practiced swing of his sword left behind.
They were powerful. She may not be able to feel the force they were creating, the flames scattered throughout the corner's whipping along with the slashes, but the sounds they created were not something she would ever forget. Battle had never been her specialty though it'd become a necessity later down the line and she'd become acquainted with the deadly swings of a blade.
Far too acquainted.
Sellen's gaze drifted from the trail of Onyx's blade and to his face. Normally he was an open book, emotions plain to see at all times, but now was an exception. It was as if he'd given himself over to his practice completely, all, from his surroundings to sense of self, narrowed eyes focused yet void.
She trailed down to his shoulders, brow furrowing.
After having her sense of time, or rather lack of it, pointed out, she'd made a more dedicated effort to keep track of its passage. It couldn't have been more than a week since he set out with that merchant he'd been traveling with, she was sure of it.
And yet she found herself doubting that.
The first time they'd met he'd been slim, the lightest of muscles beginning to take shape. When he dropped by with that merchant, the light muscle had been turned to the foundation of a lean athletic build. Not one she'd mark as impressive but something she'd consider respectable for any battle mage who'd wisened up and realized it was essential to dedicate some effort into building their physical stamina.
Onyx still retained a build on the leaner side but, in, again what she was sure was no more than a week, his shoulders had broadened somewhat and his chest sported distinctive muscle that led down into a prominent set of abs. The change in his arms, while overshadowed by all that, was nothing to scoff at either, muscles built along their lean length to match the growth of his shoulders.
Whether it be sorceries or the incantations of the faithful, she knew of no techniques which could be responsible for such a rapid change. There existed rituals and other methods that the Golden Order would label heretical that came to mind. As the fastest, the devouring of dragon hearts was among the first to come to mind though she quickly discarded that possibility.
Onyx, while not the sort to run around arrogantly sprouting his strengths, was the sort who took pride in his efforts, power, and the individuality that typically came with that, all the hard work he poured into their lessons a testament to that. He was simply too willful to make that trade.
Which made this rapid change of his so curious. Had she truly lost track of time or was there something more to it?
Either way, Sellen was quite frankly in support of the change.
She may not have cared much for romance and the like, favoring her studies and research, but that didn't mean she couldn't admire the male form. And Onyx had already had a handsome face going for him, now with well honed muscle to go with it he made for quite the specimen.
As he slowed his movements, the glow along his blade flickering, Sellen followed a bead of sweat dripping between his abs and the waistband of his pants.
That maiden of his had to be a prude. If it were her stuck having to dedicate her life to traveling alongside him, Sellen would make damn certain every night was the most enjoyable part of their journey. No, if she just had her physical body, she'd be making he'd be returning to this hideaway for far more than sorceries.
Naturally, as the teacher she'd be rewarding her apprentice's efforts with the ride of a lifetime. Or, who knows, if he had in him, she might just let her throw her down at the desk back there so she could feel firsthand what those muscles were capable of.
…I have been stuck here far too long. Sellen decided, a sigh slipping out. She was supposed to be overlooking her student's efforts, not fantasizing about some impossibility.
"Not satisfied?" Said student was now standing before her, brow raised, and, hopefully, ignorant how ironic that question was.
"Not at all." Sellen said after clearing her throat and straightening her back. "The opposite in fact. With time, experience, and a few more sorceries in your collection, I have no doubt you'll make quite the magic swordsman." While a varied skillset had it uses those who split their attention between multiple studies tended to find an early death in battle though the few that rose above that rule tended to garner quite the reputation.
Aside from the Elden Lord Radagon before he gained that title, the most prominent magic sword to grace the Lands Between was the sister of Rennala herself but no one knew what happened to her.
She was not so arrogant as to claim her teachings alone could elevate someone to such heights, but Onyx had quite a talent for sorcery now that the wound he spoke of was taken care of. Even if he never reached their level, she still had high expectations for him.
"I must ask apprentice-" Sellen began, another detail becoming clearer now that he stood so close and still. "-have you grown taller?"
"Probably." He answered without missing a beat as though a grown man undergoing a growth spurt was natural.
"Though I find myself doubting the possibility, just to be sure, you haven't subjected yourself to any rituals known to addle the mind, have you?" Sellen questioned. "That is your prerogative of course, but I would like to prepare myself for the possibility that you may lose yourself to some form of insanity."
Onyx chuckled as he raised a hand and reached for her. He waved it about, completely unfazed by the slight of phasing through her head. "I'm learning magic from a witch who's not even really here. I think there are plenty who would already label me insane." He pulled his hand back, brow raising further. "What do you look like under that thing anyway?
"Curious, are you?" Sellen raised a hand to the base of her mask. She allowed it to rest there for but a moment, building anticipation. "But a bit of mystery makes things interesting, don't you think?" She swiftly crushed that anticipation, dropping her hand away.
"You're not an old crone under there are you?"
"And what makes you ask that?"
Onyx shrugged. "Witches tend to be old crones."
"Need I tell you that there are exceptions to every rule?"
"I guess there are the old crones who hide how old they really look with magic." He said, lips curving into a slight smirk. "No judgment if you're one of those."
"I'll leave it to your imagination." Sellen said. "But rest assured that this will be remembered. I don't particularly appreciate being called old."
"But crone is fine?" Onyx said, smirk growing slightly. "I didn't do anything like that. My body's just adjusting to my energy."
He left the explanation there, returning to the chamber to test other sorceries they'd gone over.
So it was that strange energy of his then? Just like his body, when he passed through with that merchant, she'd been surprised to find his presence matched that of what she'd expect from more seasoned sorcerers. And now, in a short week, it now matched hers in terms of sheer size, already gearing to surpass her if these changes turned into a pattern.
She supposed it made some sense. While there'd never been enough evidence or much research in general to prove anything conclusive some always suspected there to be a cause and effect relationship between one's energy and body. One that had nothing to do with knowledge those of Raya Lucaria fearfully labeled forbidden.
Whatever the case, her apprentice was quite the oddity.
Aside from her conversations with the more like-minded masters back at the academy, Sellen couldn't say she quite enjoyed talking with another so much. Pointless banter certainly wasn't something she truly bothered with. Barring thinly disguised insults towards certain colleagues during her earliest days at the academy of course.
She'd been rather arrogant back then, hadn't she?
And there she goes reminiscing again. Watching another walk their journey through sorcery was quite nostalgic. She almost missed those days.
At least back then she hadn't been stuck in a single room, pain dancing at the edges of her mind at all times.
XOXO
Onyx raised a golden necklace from the pouch Kenneth handed over, the glow of nearby glintstone emphasizing the dull gem embedded within it. It was a shade of turquoise that reminded him of Irina's eyes. Throw in a bit of a golden glow and it'd be a perfect match.
It just so happened that the gem had some rather useful properties too. All he needed were some tools and a bit more mana and he could make something truly useful out of the piece of jewelry.
"From where does thine's power stem?" Onyx lowered the necklace back into pouch, glancing up to his right. Marika sat on the edge of Sellen's desk, arms and legs crossed as she looked down upon him. The front cloth of her dress did little to cover her legs and crossed arms brought extra attention to her impressive bust.
Honestly, if it weren't for their bond he'd have wondered if she did such things purposely, but she simply held no concern about how he eyed her. Not uncommon among those who claimed the title god.
"Why ask now?" He said returning to his examination of the jewelry.
"I assumed thou wouldst not be foolish enough to share such things with a "parasite" as thy so eloquently put it." Marika said. "Was I wrong?"
Onyx exhaled lightly. What an elementary way to attempt to manipulate him. Did she think a challenge like that was enough to draw out the information she wanted? She of all people should know that an attack on pride wasn't the way to go. Then again, the simple taunt was enough to get him thinking like this, which could be all she wanted.
And, if the smug sense of satisfaction, however minor it was, coming from her was anything to go off of, his prolonged silence was one of the reactions she'd been hoping for.
Rolling a simple golden band between his fingers, he relocked eyes with her.
Her soul was large. It was hard to tell where hers began and his ended, but it could very well be larger than his own. That was no true indicator of what one would actually be capable of with it, but it was a reliable indicator of one's potential for mana. If she grasped the concept and learned to make use of it…
That'd make for quite the fight.
Either way, this was still a change in tactics from her.
"Tell me about your home." Onyx said.
Marika's brow furrowed. As usual whenever he found a sensitive subject, her rage flared. For once it was swiftly restrained, a breath away from attempting to smash into his senses but restrained.
A first from her.
"I am revered as the Goddess of these lands. Mine guidance will lead thee to power, to the sanctuaries of enemies that will seek thy life, to any and everything one could wish to take from these lands." Marika said. Her composed voice always had a cold assertiveness to it. That hadn't been completely lost, but rather than commanding, she was calculative. "Why ask of that?"
"You're interested in my power. I'm interested in you."
"Why?" She repeated, the simple explanation insufficient.
"Our souls are bound. It's only natural that we seek to understand each other." Onyx said, ring dropped into the bag. "You consider the most important thing about me to be my power. That's fair but I'm not interested in that. I've got enough power." He leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. "Your past. Your experiences. All that'd you've endured. I want to know what makes Marika, Marika."
"Why?" Once again, she thought it insufficient.
She was obsessed with thinking in terms of benefits and disadvantages. He supposed he could supply the secondary reason that she'd understand. "Like you said, this bonding of ours was unintentional on both our ends but that doesn't mean either of our souls will be satisfied with leaving the process incomplete. If nothing is done there may not be a you or I."
His lip curled at the mere thought of what might awaited, disgust rising. He wasn't alone in that, Marika's lips doing the same, equal disgust rising up and easily combining with his. He wouldn't let that happen and, if nothing else, he was sure she wouldn't make any moves to hasten that outcome.
"If that does happen, I'd like to understand that person that might be born out of it." He said with a shrug before smirking despite the twisting sense of disgust. "And who knows, if that does come to pass, maybe knowing plenty about you will help me retain a majority of control or suppress you entirely."
Everything he knew about souls told him it wouldn't work like that at all. With something like this, once the process truly reached its endpoint, there would be little to no differentiation between them. Even if there was any differentiation left to make between them, whoever was in control might not see any reason to hold the process back. By then, whatever conscious decision he or Marika would've made would be irrelevant.
But hey, anything was possible.
Marika's anger poured across their connection like a torrent, face twisted by a mix of that anger and the disgust they shared. To his surprise, as her brow slowly eased and her lips thinned into a straight line, it receded.
The disgust did remain, however.
"We exchange questions and answers." Onyx said, taking the chance to clarify exactly what he had in mind.
"And thou trusts that mine answers will be honest?"
He smiled up at her. "They will be."
Her lip twitched downwards once more.
That momentary annoyance faded away, anger and disgust following suit. Something else filled the connection. A foreign sense of calm, that he wouldn't quite describe as peaceful, found its place between them.
"Hmph." A subtle huff left her as she broke eye contact. "I will consider the arrangement."
XOXO
Onyx pulled a book from one of the hideaway's shelves, placing in a small stack he was building. He'd be setting out from this place once again and this time he had almost no idea when he'd be returning or heading out in its direction at all, so he was taking some reading material back him. Not necessarily ones that detailed other sorceries but ones more focused on the practice's history and the nature of all involved with it, all things Sellen had in abundance.
How they went about using sorcery naturally differed but, in that sense, he'd say he found himself the perfect teacher. She wasn't truly set in her ways, openly acknowledging that much of what she'd observed about him would be considered impossibilities by her colleagues, and actively sought to understand both the source and nature of sorcery.
Though that too had its differences. Whatever her reasons for such a thing, he did so out of curiosity and to possible protect himself against the force should that ever become necessary.
It was quite possible their coinciding paths would diverge sooner or later.
"Apprentice." Sellen, having been watching him from the chamber's entrance, called out to him. "A moment of your time, if you would. After you're done preparing for your departure, of course."
Odd. She favored a cool composure, true, and they maintained something of a distance when it came to anything that seemed highly sensitive but that was unusually formal.
One last book placed on the pile, he pulled up the corners of the cloth he'd been placing them on and tied it up before heading over, the collection hanging from his fingers.
"What'd you need?"
"If I recall, you mentioned making a trip to the Weeping Peninsula at one point or another, did you not?" Onyx nodded. "You're already aware of this, but this form you see before you is no more than a projection. My body lies elsewhere, among ruins on that peninsula." Sellen paused, her arms crossed with one hand beneath the chin of her mask. She rubbed her finger and thumb together, hesitant and pensive. "I…I fear that may time here has taken its toll on me and so I would make a request of you."
"I presume nothing of course, master and apprentice are not bound to one another after all." Sellen said. She sounded as composed as ever but her tone lacked the lax coolness it typically sported. There was a certain…desperate hope to her, hidden behind formality but still clear to him. "Would you make the journey there? To my body? I have something that I can only trust with you."
Onyx raised a brow. "You just want to hand something over? You don't want me to free you?" He asked. He'd always assumed she was stuck or imprisoned. While he had been through many periods of absolute isolation and had little issue dealing with it, even he wouldn't be so quick to suffer this small, enclosed space Sellen had been in for so long.
Sellen chuckled, equal parts amusement and bitterness within it. "While I appreciate the sentiment, the academy's shackles prevent it from being moved. As much potential as you may have, apprentice, they are not something easily broken." She explained. "I wish only to entrust something to you. If you would make the journey."
Shackles, huh? Onyx thought. Whatever kept her locked up must involve some advanced form of sorcery she'd yet to bring up if she was so sure he couldn't do anything about it.
Even if she were right, that didn't mean he couldn't make an attempt.
XOXO
(A/N: Don't mind Sellen being horny, that's just the isolation talking. I definitely don't plan on making her low key a nympho when it comes to Onyx. Definitely, most certainly not. Once again though, any chapter with her perspective in it seems to blow up in size. Woman does way more thinking than me.
Chat, am I stupid? Why am I talking like I'm a streamer? Isn't that cringe? Chat, am I cooked? Alright let me stop.
Shameless plug time: patreon .com/thirdratewriter for those who would like to read a little over two weeks ago and throw some extra support my way at the same time.
Anyways, hand over your stones so I can get horn- I meant happy. Definitely what I meant.)