Purple Headbands

"Now that you're able to externally manipulate Spirit in the form of |Corrupt Slash|, my Lord, I will cease to teach you new Abilities until your mastery over these techniques improves over time." Baku explained to me.

"How do I practice when learning the Ability once is enough to completely master it?" I asked.

Baku shook his head, "I am not instructing you to practice your already acquired Abilities, my Lord, you must practice the manipulation of Spirit that led to the creation of your Abilities."

"So I need to create more Abilities?" I asked, almost entirely sure I was right.

"That's correct, my Lord, but do not confuse quantity with quality. Learning a hundred Abilities similar to |Corrupt Slash| such as other blade-like projectiles does little for your understanding of Spirit manipulation. You must create something that suits you – ideally with principles other Nobles will have difficulty peering through." Baku advised.

"What? Why?" I looked at the black bear confused.

"As I mentioned, Spirit may take all forms – that too applies to my Lord's adversaries. If my Lord creates an Ability that relies on heat or energy for its strength, then other Nobles simply need to mold their Spirit in such a manner to diffuse my Lord's heat. Not only do more complex Abilities provide proof of mastery – they prevent others from easily pinpointing flaws and weaknesses in the Ability itself."

I sat on the Domain floor and pondered Baku's advice. I suppose it makes sense that the Abilities have weaknesses. Well actually – I guess it should have been obvious. If Spirit has the ability to take on the role of any element and any constitution, then in that moment whatever the Spirit is mimicking would naturally be just as weak as the real element itself.

Which is where the hypothetical complexity is supposed to arise. Since Spirit can possess the properties of anything, it could naturally possess the properties of multiple things all at the same time! Accomplishing this, of course, is easier said than done.

Much like the general understanding that it's impossible to imagine a color you've never seen before, it's similarly, if not much much more difficult to imagine properties of matter joining together. Therein that dilemma lies the beauty of complexity.

So with that understanding out of the way, the more pressing matter is finally at hand; how the hell am I supposed to contextualize that conjoining of quite literally all universal properties?

"For starters, we'll start with my Affinity – Void." Then Baku, godsend follower of yours truly, an angel in disguise, saves me from my existential plight.

"Think of the Void as if it were a mirror universe –" Teacher Baku began his craft, "wherever there is that exists, there similarly exists its absence. The Void is that absence – that which is the opposite of matter – some call it anti-matter, I call it Void. Utilizing the Void, my Lord, accessing it, is like taking a blade to the mirror that separates the two existing planes. Upon severance with the blade, depending on one's mastery of their blade and the technique applied, the mirror can either shatter and crack or, if done right, will leave behind merely a slice into the Void. This cut into the Void instantly devours all that exists as, within the Void, only nothing can exist."

"But I thought Lost Souls were in the Void?" I asked.

"Lost Souls do not possess a material being and therefore are not bound by such physical laws." Baku grunted as if annoyed by my lack of 'common' knowledge.

"While Void is undoubtedly one of the most destructive and mobile Affinities it does, however, possess quite an annoying drawback." Baku sighed in resignation.

"And what is it?" I asked, playing along to Baku's teacher role-play.

"Void cannot move along the physical plane. It cannot be a projectile or easily cover large distances. Void IS the tearing of the physical universe. Much like a tear in fabric, Void can only travel by means of connecting tears which can only be done by means of the Void caster. In mundane terms – it's forced melee exclusivity."

I sighed upon hearing Baku's explanation. I can mold my arms into any shape but can't use them to launch my fingers as arrows. And now the only Affinity I can properly study has the exact same ridiculous flaw!

"But wait –" I raised my eyebrows, "|Corrupt Slash| is a ranged attack. Isn't that Void Affinity?"

Baku looked at me incredulously, "My Lord, 'Corrupt' is in the title itself. Naturally it is of the Corruption Affinity that my Lord's arms possess."

"About that –" I side-tracked our conversation momentarily, "is this normal?" I raised my black arms.

"Is what normal, my Lord?" Baku asked.

I thought for a second. "Body parts with a forced Affinity, I guess?"

Without a second thought, Baku nodded his head. " It is very common, my Lord. The dragon's famed gland is one such example. Depending on the Affinity of the dragon, a corresponding gland will grow along their windpipes. By merely directing their Spirit into these glands they are able to perfectly convert the Spirit to their Affinity creating the famous 'dragon's breath' of flames or lighting, etcetera and etcetera."

"So another gift of Nobility?" I prodded.

"Precisely, my Lord."

"So where am I in the Nobility ranking?" I asked, honestly curious. I know Baku mentioned that demons and angels are Third Rank Nobles, but I suspect that this physical manifestation of an Affinity might play a role in these grand rankings.

"As a Demon Lord, my Lord is a Second Rank Noble."

My eyes widened in surprise. "Demon Lords are categorized differently from demons?" I asked the obvious.

"Well of course they are my Lord! You cannot compare a mere demon to the likes of a Demon Lord! Lords are of a higher existence! A greater being!" Baku roared in pride.

"What's the angel equivalent?" I asked, merely curious once again.

"Archangels!" Baku snapped back, "Enough questions! My Lord must begin his training!"

***

"One, two, three, four! One, two, three, four!"

The sound of marching echoed throughout the jungle. The vibration of boots impacting dirt shook the trees and cast ripples across calm bodies of water.

At the forefront of the operation, Admiral Adams led while wearing a determined expression – his voice resolute as he commanded the march further and further into unexplored territory. Around this time a week ago they left camp, the black pyramid, and marched in solidarity under the Admirals ruthless guidance.

They marched for all of the waking day and continued deep into the unnerving nights. Under the Admirals command, they slept for merely four hours a day – half of the platoon taking their rest in the first four hours of night while the others followed four hours later.

Groggy, exhausted, and unruly, the band of once computer techs and school teachers did their best to meet the Admirals grueling expectations. Behind the Admiral, four men covered his flank – each of them dawning a purple headband, a clear indication the four men belonged to the 'Awakened' sub-section of their makeshift militia.

The purple headbands, a silly means to classify his subordinates, were created and implemented by none other than the Admiral himself. Although an unawakened, he didn't hesitate to blindly support and encourage not only the segregation of the two groups, but also the overwhelming favoritism granted to those who possessed some aspect of the extraordinary.

Under the Admirals tutelage, various rules revealed themselves to guide and coach the newly adopted militia members – the number of the rule signifying its importance and demonstrating yet another hierarchy within the Admirals plan.

The first of many rules, Rule 1, enforced the sacrifice of unawaked for Awakened. The rule was as follows: Ensure the lives of the Awakened under any and all costs. From the Admirals perspective, he had long ago been modeling his plans with the assumption of Awakened favoritism. Once they returned, the Awakened would be revered as heroes – gods amongst men able to perform feats of unimaginable proportions and the Admiral sought a slice of that cake.

Still unawakened, the Admiral desperately searched for means of ascension. He meticulously stole Olive's magic Circles alongside coveting the secrets of many other Awakened Abilities. He tried to recreate Church's smoke fiends, he studied the decayed flower petals left behind by Lily's Ability and even often found himself straining his fingers in any attempt to conjure magic or manipulate the world around him – all to null amounts of success, of course.

In fact, the only success the Admiral has found in recreating others Abilities is the Circle he stole from Olive. Through drawing that Circle and only through drawing that Circle has the Admiral been able to stimulate his mana and genuinely feel what it's like to awaken alongside his subordinates.

As such, the Admiral experimented with the Circle relentlessly. From sacrificing living humans to dead ones, slain Goblins to still squirming ones, he even attempted to offer a jungle tree as sacrifice alongside various other plants and fauna – to no success unfortunately.

Through experimentation, the Admiral has determined that Olive's Circle solely responds to sacrifices of the living, but more specifically living beings with some semblance of intelligence. For example, although severely underdeveloped, the Goblins could be said to possess some sort of intelligence.

Afterall, they construct various weapons and traps, possess the means to tattoo themselves with intricate and ornate markings, and especially in the greater depths of the jungle, their intelligence seems to grow even greater. As a result, Goblins are able to be sacrificed while something like a beetle isn't.

Furthermore, desperate to enhance his own strength, the Admiral doesn't hesitate to utilize the men under his guise for such purposes: Rule 4 - if able to and without sustaining considerable injury, capture the Goblins alive.

"Wait –" A boy's voice interrupted the constant barrage of marches.

As he spoke, the Admiral raised his left arm into the sky and immediately all of the following men stopped in their tracks.

Looking behind him, the Admiral patiently waited while eyeing one of his newest recruits, a purple headband wearer, a young man at the age of eight-teen who had wild, unkempt hair and thick, bushy eyebrows.

"There's a cavern underneath us." The boy spoke with his eyes closed, the palms of his hands pressed onto the jungle floor, "I can't sense the end of it, it must be massive." He spoke in awe.

"Can you find the entrance?" The Admiral asked, his eyes appearing like that of snakes, greedy and venomous.

But the boy shook his head, "If there is an entrance it's not anywhere near here," he opened his eyes and stood up, "but the cavern runs this way and that way. We can just follow it." He shrugged.

"Very well!" The Admiral directed his gaze towards the remaining men behind him, "Change of plans gents! We're going cave hunting!"

With Marco now leading the militia, the boy who sensed the cavern beneath them, the group shifted their march and continued even further into the jungle's embrace. In the distance, hidden deep within the foliage of the jungle and guarded behind its robust thicket, a hollow passageway cut into the side of a mountain of stone.

Torches lined the walls of the cave while a strange rope dangled between them all, connecting the various torches to a much larger cauldron located near the entrance of the hollow space. Bitterly dark and dangerously quiet, much deeper within the cave system stood a pair of giant doors bound together by an ornate, golden goblet.

The doors, remarkably green and vibrant, nearly glowed within the darkness, seemingly possessed by a pulsating and warm energy. Golden leaves scattered across the huge doors further enhancing the innate sensation of reverence that the underground hall exuded.

A few more days passed in pursuit of the cavern's entrance until eventually the group of over twenty men stood outside of a massive hole within the side of a mountain. The gaping entrance cut into the rock like a blade, the walls were smooth and the passageway was narrow.

Noticing the familiar alignment of torches, however, the Admiral's demeanor rapidly shifted to one of a crazed entrepreneur. Here lies yet another opportunity to take advantage of!