My boots echoed softly against polished slate as Cynthia and I made our way out of the elevator and through the academy's lower corridors.
"...She was being ridiculous," I grumbled.
Cynthia smiled without looking at me.
"Who was?"
"My mother."
"I suspected as much." She snickered into her hand.
I let out a low groan. "I practically had to sneak out to get here this morning."
"I bet you did."
"She even slept in my room… She made me dinner, breakfast and read me stories like I was a child…" I turned back to face her and raised a finger, pointing as I did so. "And somehow she still found enough time to fuss over me every five minutes."
"No mother wishes to receive word that her child may never come home. You disappeared into the Beast Glades for several days, Elias. Can you imagine how scared she would've been?"
"I was only gone for two days," I groaned. "And she knows I can take care of myself!" My voice rose inadvertently.
"She knows, Elias; she saw that firsthand, but you came back unconscious."
"...That's a minor detail she wasn't supposed to know about," I mumbled, looking away from my self-proclaimed grandmother.
Cynthia's grin widened into a toothy smile as her skin creased below her eyes. "I somehow doubt Alice shares that opinion."
"But still…"
"It's a parent's job to worry about their children; you'll understand when you have children of your own someday." She interjected.
"I didn't know you had children?"
She shook her head, still smiling. "Every student at this academy is my child," she said matter-of-factly.
"Even the stuck-up noble brats?"
"Especially them."
I rubbed the back of my neck as I looked up at the still cackling older woman.
"So how come I'm your grandson, not son then?"
She smirked back at me, ignoring the question as she quickened her pace. After a few more steps, we reached the end of the corridor, where a pair of familiar reinforced doors stood.
Holding a hand out before her, she watched the doors glow faintly before quietly folding inwards.
"Since when could they do that?"
"I had them synced to my magic's signature," she said curtly as she strode into the bright room.
Before I could even set foot on the grass, a voice cut through the room's faint ambience.
"Look what the cat dragged in," the old elf grinned. "You look well, Cynthia. A little wrinklier than last week, mind…"
"Thank you, Virion; you look radiant for one so ancient…" She smirked back.
My attention drifted past the old elf.
Near the centre of the room, Tess sat cross-legged atop the grass with her eyes closed.
Wisps of pale green mana drifted lazily around her before dissolving into the air.
At the sound of our voices, one eye slowly opened.
The two continued back and forth as we drew near. Before I could even question why they were here, I was speared by a blur of silver hair.
"Te-"
"Are you okay, Lias?" she said, holding me by my shoulders at arm's length.
She shook me.
"When I saw the snarler queen's fall on you and…"
My head spun as she jolted me more violently.
"Uhhh"
She stopped and let go of my shoulders.
"S-sorry…" she said bashfully. "I-I uh…" she snickered, scratching her reddening cheek.
"It's- is… uhhh…" I fell to my knees and watched the floor spin.
Tess set a hand on my back and ran it softly between my shoulders.
"Sorry, Lias…"
"It's fine…" I exhaled, "It's just-" I gagged in a heavy breath as I tried my best to keep my breakfast down.
After a few more ragged breaths, I climbed back to my feet. Tess looped an arm under my shoulder as we hobbled towards where Cynthia and Virion stood.
Virion looked me over from head to toe. "How do you manage to look worse now than you did coming back from a two-day dungeon crawl?" He snickered.
"There are far more hideous monsters-"
Tess released me and shoved me forwards in the same movement.
I caught myself after a few shaky steps and rejoined the now-group of three.
"It's been too long, Virion," I waved as I smiled at the elf elder, "How long has it been?"
"Who knows," he snickered before adding with a shrug, "Not long enough."
Cynthia folded her arms.
"As entertaining as this is, I do believe we have something more important to attend to."
"Hm?" I looked between the three of them.
Virion's smile softened.
"Right."
He turned towards Tess. "How are you feeling?"
She straightened a little. "Nervous."
"What are we doing?" I asked, finally growing bored of waiting for them to explain it to me.
"You didn't tell him?" Virion asked, looking towards his long-time friend.
"I assumed you would explain the process to him," Cynthia explained, narrowing her eyes.
With an exhale, the old elf scratched the back of his neck as he turned to me.
"Do you remember way back when, when you first came to Elenoir?"
"I do."
"Do you remember how I kicked your ass on the roof?"
"Uhh…"
"Do you rem-"
"Yes, I do, I do remember. Please get to the point, or I'll be here till I'm greyer than the three of you."
"Well then…" With a cough, Virion centred himself. "Your dear brother gave my darling granddaughter a beast will as a gift when they reunited at the start of the school year..."
"I see…"
I do not.
"I, as well as your brother, have been helping Tess integrate with her beast will."
He walked towards her and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Aside from that one incident that landed your brother in the infirmary, Tess has reached a point where it is safe for her to draw upon the beast's power. However, up until now she's only been skimming the surface of its power."
"So you want her to be able to utilise the will properly?"
He smiled at me and nodded. "The final stage is called integration," Virion continued. "Rather than borrowing the Beast Will's strength, she'll begin making it her own."
"Like when you…"
I stopped myself as I recalled how that fight ended.
"Yes, when I used the first stage of my will in our fight, or whenever your brother bleaches his hair."
"Then why am I here?" I asked, looking up at the old elf.
He gave me a blank look.
"Oh… right," I rubbed the back of my head as I looked away.
"The Beast Will places tremendous strain on its host. If Tess's body begins suffering damage, I'd like you to heal her before things worsen."
"Of course," I smiled.
"Good," Cynthia clapped. "Can I leave everything to you?" she asked, looking to Virion.
"Yes, yes," he waved dismissively to her. "Now, scram, you old bag."
Cynthia shook her head as she let out a heavy breath.
"Lias, don't go burning yourself out, okay?"
"I'll be fine, Grandma." I nodded. "How hard could this be?"
She shot me a final smile as, with a nod, she passed through the open double doors.
"Shall we begin?" Virion asked, looking between his granddaughter and me.
Tess nodded and turned towards the centre of the training room before lowering herself onto the soft grass once more.
Crossing her legs beneath her, she rested both hands upon her knees and closed her eyes.
"Right, so… when's it supposed to happen?"
"Whenever you shut up." Virion groaned as he sat before Tess.
"Right, right…" I muttered as I hovered awkwardly a few paces away from the pair.
I watched as…
…
…
Nothing happened…
…
…
I watched as the two synced their breathing and closed their eyes, but nothing, in the slightest, had happened in the minutes since.
"...This is considerably less exciting than you advertised," I muttered, finally growing impatient.
Virion didn't so much as twitch.
I sighed and let both myself and my gaze wander across the chamber.
Sunlight spilt through the crystal ceiling overhead, scattering pale reflections over the grass beneath my boots. The faint breeze that usually drifted through the room had all but disappeared, leaving only the quiet rustle of Tess's breathing.
With a grumble, I sat on the small lake's edge and tossed flat stones across its calm, as I had back then. Back when Arthur…
I shook my head as I spun a stone, with it bouncing thrice across the water before falling below with a resolute plonk.
"...Four."
Ripples spread across the surface before fading into stillness.
"...I can definitely do five."
Reaching beside me, I picked up another smooth stone before weighing it in my hand.
Just as I drew my arm back...
"...Hm?"
The hairs on the back of my neck rose in unison as a chill overcame me.
"...Virion?" I called back over my shoulder.
I wasn't awarded an answer from the old elf.
He remained seated before Tess, his breathing slow enough that he almost looked asleep.
"...Tess?"
Neither of them moved.
A knot settled low in my stomach.
The room had gone unnaturally quiet.
The gentle breeze that always wandered through the chamber had vanished. Even the lake beside me had become perfectly still, its glass-like surface reflecting the crystal ceiling without a single ripple.
"...That's not ominous at all."
I climbed to my feet, brushing the grass from my trousers.
An oppressive humidity pressed in on me, clinging to me tightly as I neared the pair.
By the time I stood only a few strides behind Virion, I could finally see Tess properly.
A thin emerald wisp drifted from her skin.
It swayed in the air like a vine hanging from a tree. But it almost looked alive.
I know Plants are alive, but this…
It looked almost sentient.
I shook off the thought as the tendril swept towards the grass below the younger elf.
The once-sharp blades wilted and turned black as they slumped and crumbled.
I took a step back.
"Virion!" I called, taking another.
A second, third, and fourth growth grew from Tess, each looking more plant-like than the last. Each thicker than the last.
"Lias!" Virion yelled, snatching his hands back from Tess.
A black shroud enveloped him as he shot towards me.
"Get ba-"
A deafening crack split the chamber as a torrent of emerald mana erupted from Tess.
The blast swallowed everything.
I barely had time to throw my arms up before the shockwave struck me.
"UGH!"
Grass, loose stone and shattered crystal were ripped into the air as I was hurled backwards like a ragdoll. The lake beside me erupted into a towering wall of water that vanished into the storm of mana before crashing back down across the chamber.
I came to an abrupt stop as the old elf caught my extended left arm. The feline-like elf had dug himself into the ground with his left claw while holding me with his right. He faced the torrent of wind and debris, keeping both himself and me low to the ground.
I planted my feet beside his, my boots carving long furrows through the grass as the fury pushed back at me.
"...What the is that?" I shouted over the roaring wind.
Virion didn't answer me as his narrowed eyes never left the centre of the room.
I followed his gaze towards the mass that had taken root.
"...Tess?" I mouthed in horror.
The young elf was nowhere to be seen.
In her place stood a cocoon of intertwined black vines nearly twice my height.
Each thick tendril pulsed like a beating artery, swelling before tightening again. Sickly emerald light seeped through the narrow gaps between them, illuminating the chamber with an eerie glow.
The torrent weakened, and I was able to stand without Virion's support.
I gathered mana to my dimension ring and pulled my sword free. The sword gifted to me by the monster at the room's apex.
In a singular clean movement, I stabbed the weapon to its hilt into the soft soil as I took a knee.
"What the is that?" I shouted. "What the hell happened?"
"I-I" Virion sounded but was cut off by a thunderous crackling.
A whip-like vine snapped towards us.
Noticing it before I could even sense its movement, Virion released his hold of the dirt and tackled me out of the way.
Once again, I was sent flying back, rolling and bouncing against the soft green grass.
I slid to a stop on one knee, my palm digging into the earth as clumps of moss tore free beneath my fingers.
"...Virion!"
The old elf blurred through the air before landing roughly halfway between me and the cocoon.
With a thunderous crack, dozens of thick roots burst from beneath the grass before twisting into thorn-covered vines. They exploded through the grass in every direction, each thick enough to rival tree trunks. Thorn-covered branches twisted together as they climbed higher, splitting crystal pillars before spreading across the ceiling like the roots of some monstrous tree.
"Get up!" Virion barked. He looked back at me over his shoulder. "You need to keep Mo-"
A black vine slammed into his side with a deafening crack, launching the old elf across the chamber.
"Fuck…" I exhaled, climbing back to my feet.