Chapter 8 Part 4 of 4 (Patreon)

“They are worse than you are,” Weebla said, watching Erik and Rugrat. They ate, discussing their latest fight, talking about what went well and what they needed to change.

“I was an exemplary student.”

“Do you want me to get your school record? I don’t think that there is a single professor that would call you an exemplary student. No, the thing is that you were was alone; you didn’t have a team behind you, you were stronger than all the others and you didn’t have peers. Those two, the way they fight, the way they work together, even in one another’s roles, they’ve adapted in the space of a week.”

“Trust,” Xun Liang said, from a place much deeper and solemn. “They trust one another with their lives, and that is not some throwaway statement with them, it is a real statement that they feel down to their bones.”

“You think that the academy is going to let this go?” Weebla couldn’t hide her concern.

“I don’t think they will,” Xun Liang sighed. “For too long we’ve been up here at the top of the pile, looking down on the people in the lower realms as if they are somehow lesser because they do not fight in the Tenth Realm. Ironic that we want more people to fight beside us, but we alienate others.”

“Do you think you’ll need to step in?”

“Not yet, no. I don’t want to take away from them.” Xun Liang looked at Erik and Rugrat. “They are both strong, and they are not from any Association. If they can cause an upset in the academy, create a stir through the ranks and show them that we need to work with those outside of the Associations it will be a start.”

“You know their backgrounds,” Weebla said.

“Yes, of course.”

“They have the backing of the Alvan Alliance, and control the lower realms. The last time the lower realms had the power to contend with the higher realms it caused the rising wars. They very nearly wiped out all the Elves and Gnomes and it almost led to a genocide of the humans in the lower realms.”

“Erik and Rugrat are not the kind of people that would pursue war for the sake of war.”

“No, but their people are protective, if something were to happen to the two of them and the Associations were to blame… You know that in the agreements to allow the Associations into Alva that the Association is regarded as nothing more than any other merchant, no extras.”

“I didn’t, no.” Xun Liang frowned.

“The Associations tried to get around this by enticing the other nations around the Empire to host them. All of them refused. The Associations have little hold in the First and Second Realm. While those Realms hold millions of people, their population is more than five times that of the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Realm combined. Alva is much closer to them than the Associations.”

“Why is it that I don’t feel angry or upset in the slightest, but think it makes sense?” Xun Liang said.

“Because in dealing with the sects and others of the Ten Realms, the Associations have become used to dealing with threats to their power. They are not used to allies.” Weebla patted his arm. “They’re waiting on you.”

Xun Liang cleared his throat and stood. Erik and Rugrat took a drink of their water, clearing away their food into their storage rings.

“Okay, you two have just learned how hard it is for the other in their role and what they have to consider. You have just two days until your fight. Now you will be fighting in your original roles. Erik you will be on the front line and Rugrat you will be acting as his support. Try not to almost die too many times. Oh, and the Telarri might be a bit stronger this time. See you in two days.”

He waved as the duo disappeared.

***

“When thinking about the elements, just considering them as just fire, or as metal or earth is really only surface level. With metal you can use lightning as a ranged attack. You can use the metal aspect to reinforce your shield. They are two sides of the same coin.” Erik shovelled in more food, chewing enough to talk again.

“Lightning runs through our bodies, you use it to fire your nerves and that makes the rest of your body react. You speed up the transmission of those electrical impulses.” Erik’s hand appeared next to Han Wu’s head, a breeze rushing past as tingles ran down his spine. “If you shoot current through someone they’re not going to have a good time and you can take them out of the fight. You hit that lightning into their muscles or their nerves, you can give them a lot of pain and you can mess up the signals running through their body. Fire, we think of flame, but it is also heat. If you can warm up your muscles, they are more supple, you can react faster. You can also reduce the heat if your muscles heat up too much, draw that heat away. Flush through with earth element, remove the lactic acid, you can last for hours. You’ll remain focused, no heat strain, at your peak for days, not hours or minutes. Just a shot here and there as well. Focused use will win over unfocused wastefulness every time.”

Erik continued eating. “Now that impulse. That—” He snapped his fingers. “That’s the good stuff, that’s what I want to get to.”

Han Wu knew the look in Erik’s eyes. Many would take it for wildness, chaos of the mind. It was drive. Erik had seen a path forward, a way of progress and he was chasing it with every fiber of his being, every discovery led to the next advance. In nine months the way he moved, the way he fought was completely different.

Han Wu looked over to Rugrat who was busy forming mana into different solid items, talking on the principles of smithing, mana and elements and the combination of craft with fighting.

“All right, back in,” Xun Liang said. He had allowed the Special Team to meet Erik and Rugrat at the teleportation pads to debrief them, in between training.

The Special Teams moved off the pad as Erik and Rugrat quickly put away their food and drank down water.

“Erik, work on your coordination when you’re using your elements. Rugrat, you need to work on disrupting your enemy. As you adapt and use the elements around you to cast your magic, the more or less of a given element around them, the weaker or stronger the attack the Telarri can hit you with.”

“Disrupting the elements around them should weaken their attacks,” Rugrat said, putting on his helmet, dampening his voice.

“See you later.” Erik’s body radiated heat, relaxing him, ready to fight as he disappeared.

Han Wu moved towards Weebla and Xun Liang and bowed. “Thank you.”

“What for?” Xun Liang frowned.

Han Wu rose and laughed. “Those two are hard to work with, stubborn as the roots of a hundred-year-old tree. They’re good people. They’ve been going through the motions for a long time, trying to learn as much as possible, but it’s been too long since I saw them this alive. So thank you for igniting their passion again and making them feel alive.”

He bowed again, the Special Team joining in.

“What kind of teacher would I be if I didn’t do this much,” Xun Liang said, waving them off, embarrassed.

Han Wu laughed.

“No matter if we are no longer to stay in the Academy, know if you ever need something then we would be happy to assist.” Han Wu left it at that and headed out with the rest of the team members.

***

“Did you sense their cultivations?” Weebla asked as the last member shot up through the elevator shaft.

“All of them are around Erik and Rugrat’s cultivation,” Xun Liang said.

“How many nations in the lower realms would have dozens of others that are as strong as them as their guards? And their guards still respect them?”

Xun Liang tapped his hand in thought.

“I also hear that the Prime Student has returned with her team.”

“That one is a terror.” Xun Liang shook his head. “Those three are nothing but trouble.”

Weebla snorted. “You can say that again. Did Erik and Rugrat pick a name for their team?”

“The Door Kickers.”

“What does that mean?”

“Not sure, some Earth thing probably.”