Arcane

In the Mystical Space, Aezir is sitting in a lotus position parallel to Fluff, waiting for the guidance of Khavahk. His black hair was getting ruffled by the wind as he focused. The pair were solemn and concentrated in their endeavor.

"What I want you to do is feel the Universe's Essence from Fluff. Use the Mark as the vessel for the Essence to pass through. Do you feel it?" Khavahk inquired.

Aezir continued to focus. Slowly, the Mark on his hand glowed, and he began to feel the Universe's Essence flowing through his body. "Yes"

"Great. Now, the bond is sealed. Your body strength is getting stronger relative to the strength of your bond. Let us move on to Arcane." Khavahk said. "The only purpose of the Essence is to strengthen your body. In order to combat, you must use the skills of your bond. Talk to your bond to know what her abilities are."

<Fluff, what are your abilities?>

<Fluff can eat! Fluff eats a lot>

'I can eat too! Alas, come on, shake your brain a little. Hmm, I need a visual input.' Aezir thought.

<Why don't you show me how you eat?>

<Kya!>

Fluff slowly moved to a place where there were tall grasses. The two men could not help but be mesmerized by the cuteness of Fluff. 'How cute! She walks just like a penguin--' Aezir's thoughts quickly came to a halt after Fluff opened her mouth from nowhere and sucked the grass in front. Like a vacuum, her mouth sucked the grasses till all in a particular area was gone. 'Damn.' Aezir thought.

<G-Good job, Fluff.>

<Kya!>

"Now, from what she showed. Derive her ability." Khavahk said while moving under the shade of a tree, preparing to lie down.

<Fluff, grant me your ability.>

<Kya!>

Aezir then stood and positioned his arm in front of another set of grass. He visualized what Fluff did and tried to manifest it. Sweat already started to drip on Aezir's forehead. It is evident that he is trying hard. He concentrated hard, even trying to use the Universe's Essence inside him, but all was for naught.

Khavahk bit through an apple with a smile. He was obviously enjoying the show. His grin gets bigger and bigger every time Aezir fails. "You are getting closer, kid. It is indeed possible to do it."

Aezir just ignored the taunt from Khavahk as he was quite driven on his task. On the other side, Fluff was constantly tilting her head and moving around in confusion. She is feeling uncomfortable. It was as if she ought to do something. Sweat dripped like rain from Aezir. Even as a spectator, one can feel the headache he is having just based on the veins that are almost about to pop out of his head.

After a while, maybe due to Fluff experiencing somewhat of a calling, she jumped to Aezir. However, she did not bump him. Instead, she merged with Aezir. Khavahk immediately stood up. He almost spat out the apple he has just eaten.

'This damned kid! Is he a demon or what? What kind of talent does this brat have!?' Khavahk exclaimed in his mind. Never in his wildest dreams did he think that he would grasp this in less than an hour. He just wanted Aezir to develop a bond with Fluff and establish a strong connection with him to make it easy for him to use Arcane. He never factored in the fact that Aezir would be able to use Arcane all by himself.

A small black hole appeared just in front of the hand Aezir used. It then sucked all grasses within its reach, just like Fluff did. 'How warm and comfortable,' Aezir thought. He felt that Fluff was a part of him. He can feel a very strong attachment toward her.

"I did it, sir! Was that Arcane?"

"Yes, it was. What you achieved right now is the first stage of the bond, 'Beast and Man as One.' This is a decent achievement, but it took you quite a long to achieve it. You are already 13, yet you are only at this level. You need to work hard." Khavahk mocked.

Aezir could only lament his slow beginning. He attributed his late start due to the beliefs of his village. He was sure that he needed to greatly catch up to reach the top.

"Ack." Aezir suddenly felt uncomfortable. He felt something was just detached from him. He saw Fluff lying on the ground, covered in sweat. It looked exhausted.

<Fluff, are you okay?>

<Kya...> She said while trying to express as much energy as possible.

"Just let her rest. This was her first time binding with you so this is natural. You need to practice binding for a longer period of time while constantly using your ability. You and Fluff also need to train your bodies. Perfect your basics before you do this again." Khavahk said. Although he was amazed by the talent of Aezir, focusing on this achievement will only set Aezir back since his basics are not yet solid. "Do not rush it. It is important to take things one step at a time."

"Yes, sir."

The days then unfold. It was filled with countless training regimens that consists of several body-breaking activities. During the five months of this hellish training, Aezir wanted to run as far away as possible from Khavahk. Even Fluff hides in Aezir every time it sees Khavahk approach. However, this was not for naught. Aezir felt that his previous self was incomparable to what he is now. His body is no longer skinny. He developed muscles and grew to about 5'3". His agility, speed, tenacity, and other attributes also skyrocketed. Even though they did not practice Arcane just yet, the Universe's Essence inside him continued to grow as both of them developed. The initially blue Mark on his forehand was having shades of Violet as well. Fluff is near a breakthrough.

"This is it for now. You have polished your basics greatly. Staying here any longer at the moment will only cause detriments. Go on, fight! Experience the real world and learn from your experiences there." Khavahk said.

"Yes, sir! It is time to get out. Maybe, I can rise to the surface and withstand the cold now. I still need to return to the village." Aezir said with longing eyes.