Sylas sat cross-legged, his breathing steady as he replayed the previous battle in his mind.
Every dodge, every strike, every use of telekinesis.
He analyzed his movements, searching for inefficiencies.
Unnecessary steps. Wasted energy.
His telekinetic attacks, though effective, lacked precision—too much force, not enough refinement.
'I could sharpen the surface of impact.' Sylas mused.
Instead of blunt force, he could condense the surface of the impact, shape it into something deadlier—perhaps a fine, compressed point capable of piercing through his enemies rather than simply knocking them back.
A slow exhale. His muscles, no longer tense, felt lighter now. His mind clear.
When he was ready, Sylas pushed himself up, his gaze shifting toward the open doorway. He stepped forward, passing through the threshold into a new chamber.
The space before him expanded into a massive arena, towering walls stretching high into the distance, pillars everywhere.
The floor was smooth, the air thick with an unspoken tension.
Akashia's voice sounded around him.
"Young Master, please choose your weapon."
To his left, the ground shifted with a faint mechanical hum.
A hidden compartment slid open, revealing a sleek weapon rack rising from beneath the floor.
Rows of inactivated Aether weapons lined the shelf—some felt familiar, others unlike anything he had seen before.
He studied them carefully. The hilts varied—some long, some short, others forged into strange, curved shapes with random angles.
His hand hovered over them before settling on two double-bladed swords.
He grasped their hilts, testing the weight. Solid. Balanced.
With a flick of his thumb, the Aether surged to life.
Four blue blades ignited with a sharp hum, casting a glow across his face.
Sylas twirled the weapons experimenting and the memories surfaced.
He saw his father first, gripping two wooden sticks, moving with the effortless grace that came with being of a superior bloodline.
His mother stood opposite him, wielding a longer staff, her stance calm and steady.
They circled each other, their play-fight a dance of fluid strikes and teasing feints.
Laughter echoed in the air, warm and familiar.
Then came the others—faces from across generations. Grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, nephews, neicies, all frozen in the peak of their life.
A family that has never known death.
They played together, sparred together.
Past memories surged forward, unrelenting.
Sylas felt his grip tighten on the hilts. No.
With a sharp inhale, he pushed the memories away, forcing them to the depths of his mind.
Focus.
The warmth of nostalgia faded, replaced by the cold clarity of the present.
*******
A black figure slowly rose from the ground in front of Sylas, holding the similar weapons as Sylas.
A low hum resonated through the battlefield as two figures faced each other. Sylas stood firm, gripping his two twin-bladed sword.
Opposite him, the shadow being flickered, its form shifting between substance and mist, twin weapons swirling with dark energy.
A bell sound sounded, the signal was given.
Sylas exploded forward, his twin blades spinning in a controlled blur.
The shadow being matched his speed, their weapons clashing mid-air in a burst of force.
The impact sent them both skidding back, but Sylas twisted, planting a foot against the ground before launching himself upward into a spinning flip.
The shadow being darted forward, its blade slicing through the space where Sylas had been.
But Sylas was already above it, kicking off a nearby pillar to reposition mid-air before descending in a rapid twirl.
The shadow being deflected his attack, but he used the recoil to push off again, flipping over its next strike.
Sylas tried to blast it off with his telekinesis but soon realized that he couldn't, heck he couldn't even feel a drop of aether in the environment.
'Oh...'
Why take away his use of aether when she literally just taught him to use it in a fight.
Sylas landed lightly on a nearby structure, but before he could process his thoughts further the shadow being to reappear beside him.
Unlike when he had connection to aether he couldn't really use his speed thoughts.
Now he had to adapt to this fight without the extra time he had previously.
That didn't stop him though as he twisted, vaulting backward just as a sweeping slash passed inches from his chest.
His feet touched the ground for less than a second before he kicked off, running along the wall of the arena.
The shadow being pursued instantly, its movements fluid and relentless.
Sylas leapt from the wall, flipping mid-air as he spun his blades to deflect the incoming strikes.
Using the force of the impact, he redirected himself downward, turning off his swords rolling smoothly upon landing before springing forward again and turning his swords back on.
As the shadow being lunged, Sylas ducked low, sliding beneath its blade before flipping over its follow-up strike.
He twisted mid-air, catching himself on a nearby pillar before using it to rebound into a spinning counterattack.
His blade met the shadow's with a sharp clang.
The shadow being vanished the moment their weapons connected, reappearing behind him. But Sylas had already anticipated this.
Using the momentum of his last strike, he spun his entire body, using the length of his double-bladed sword to block just in time.
'I need to force it to stay on the defensive.' His family fighting style and bloodline ability was to always be on the offense so why change it now.
He kicked off the ground, flipping over his opponent's next strike and landing on a high ledge.
Without pausing, he sprinted along the edge, vaulting off the side as the shadow being pursued.
He twisted, kicking off a wall to redirect himself downward in a rapid descent.
His blades struck the shadow's guard again, the force of the impact forcing the being to shift backward.
Sylas used the opening to push off its blades mid-air, flipping high above the battlefield.
As he descended, he spun his twin swords in a blur, driving the shadow being further back with relentless strikes.
The shadow tried to counter, but Sylas never stayed in one place long enough.
He rebounded off a nearby column, then a ledge, then the battlefield floor in rapid succession, moving too unpredictably for his opponent to land a clean hit.
'Keep the pressure up. Don't let him anticipate.'
Sylas darted forward, twisting in the air to redirect his momentum before flipping over the being's next swing.
His feet barely touched the ground before he pushed off again, sliding under its next attack and rebounding off the nearby wall and landing on the floor.
Before Sylas attacked he realized that shadow being had paused and stood still and Akashia's voice came,
"Young Master Sylas what have you learnt from this trials?"
Sylas frowned before replying, "From the first trial I learnt to use aether while in a fight and the second one I am not quite sure..."
"Perhaps to not depend too much on the same aether."
"Yes, you are right." Akashia replied.
The shadow being melted back into the ground.
The fight was over.