12 hours passed since they started the borderline torture that his uncle called a special training session. The only thing that makes it special is that my ass is whooped at every corner, Tercius lamented in a small corner of his mind. After a few initial hiccups, they settled into a rhythm where their surroundings faded and they only focused on the present.

Nothing else existed.

Once Lux was sure that his nephew stopped holding himself back, he stopped with the senseless beatings and any kind of verbal communication. Lux was not here to abuse the boy, but rather to help him with what he could.

Once the boy went to the Academy, there would be little time for a sword and shield, if any. Not when Tercius had other, more important, things to see to.

Today was Lux’s last opportunity to make sure that the boy remembered his heritage.

Across from Lux, breathing heavily, Tercius observed his opponent. The older man was also having difficulties with procuring enough oxygen for his body, and the perspiration he saw on the older man’s face was likely mirrored on his own.

At least it felt that way.

The leather armor he donned clung to Tercius’s skin like glue, and in those rare moments where a twist of the body forced them to separate, a sucking noise would undoubtedly follow. Like two Roman gladiators in the Coliseum, the men fought swords slashing and flashing, shields bashing. When one attacked, the other would defend, each of them joined in a dance. When one moved, the other followed, and so they went at each other.

"Stop," Lux suddenly shouted, just as Tercius was about to land a strike. "Stop,"

It took him a moment to process what his uncle ordered, and he saw the older man was not looking at him anymore. His uncle's eyes were unfocused, and Tercius recognized the look. His uncle was observing a skill.

"Did you break a barrier?" Tercius asked, trying to catch a breath.

"No," Lux said and slowly turned to look at him. It took Tercius quite some time to learn to read his uncle’s stony expression. His uncle’s face was solemn and a bit sour, but at the same time his eyes shined with excitement. "I just gained a skill,"

Well, that explains the sourness. Tercius concluded internally. He knew that his uncle was angling for a specific skill for quite some time now.

Before they started this training, Tercius made a rather large transfer of Energy to his uncle, in the hopes that the older man might break a few barriers himself. Lux did not tell Tercius what skills he had nor how many he had, but his uncle told him that one was at level 60 and two were very close to it. With help from Tercius, Lux had hoped to get this skill into Expert levels without having to pay the usual price.

After all, to give up a skill you toiled and bled for for decades, was no easy feat. Level 60 of any skill took work and dedication, took giving up time with your family, missing important things in their lives. Important things in your own life. And then when the barrier undoubtedly came, it demanded a price.

A sacrifice.

But if you have Energy, Tercius amended in his mind. Then the sacrifice become a bit obsolete.

"What's the skill?" Tercius asked, despite the knowledge that his uncle would probably just tell him to mind his own business. The small shine in his uncle’s eyes told him the answer before the words came.

His uncle looked at him, his eyes unblinking and wicked sharp, downright predatory. "It's called Sphere of Cognizance,"

"Is it any good?"

"Oh, yes," Lux said with a smile. "There is no doubt about that,"

Sphere of Cognizance (1)

A sense of spatial awareness that is manifested in a spherical range, with you at the center. While in use, your perception, especially towards moving objects, is moderately increased. Your hand to eye coordination is moderately increased. Every skill level increases the effect by a small degree and lowers the cost of its use by a small degree.

"How does it manifest?" Tercius asked.

"I will try now," Lux said then went silent for a moment, his back turned to Tercius.

"Move slowly towards me," Lux said. Once more Tercius did as asked without question if only to speed up his uncle's tests. "Stop. Go towards the door, but now run,"

Turning around, he bolted away from where his uncle stood. In a moment his uncle called him back.

"This new sense is some 3 meters in a sphere around me. When you moved at a walking speed, I was able to… see you. No, not you, something that was left as you passed. When you ran you were practically a bright light in a dark night," Lux explained, his eyes closed, as he tapped his foot on the ground. "I do see the surroundings, but very vaguely,"

"Does it work with your eyes open?" Tercius asked.

His uncle opened his eyes and Tercius did not observe anything changing about the man. His uncle merely brought a hand to his temple. "Oh yes, but it also gives me an instant headache. My normal vision and this skill… are somehow overlapped,"

His uncle paced around a bit, stumbling at times. "Let me acclimate myself a bit to this, then we will continue,"

Well, I guess that makes my chances of ever winning go from a possibility to zero. he complained internally. "Uncle, I will go and get us some more… water,"

Suddenly Tercius was aware that everything they said could have been heard by someone. They did not even whisper. Mana Sight flared to life, his green eyes blazing in the dark circular room, as he made a quick rotation on all sides. Up, then down, and only then did he breathe a bit easier. There was no one visible. But even that did not snuff out his rising paranoia. Mana Sight had failed him with that mage, the man employing an enchantment to mask his presence. If something like that existed, there are sure to be skills with the same effects.

The cloak that the dead mage wore was now his. However, before he could use it, the Mana signature of the dead mage had to be cleansed from it. His uncle told him that a month or two should be enough for that, and so he packed the cloak within his backpack. The cloak of the other mage, the one his uncle killed, was retained by the older man.

He conveyed his concerns to the older man, who waved him away. "That's my bad, I did not think straight at the moment. But even if someone did hear about my skill, which I doubt, so what if they know? I will be leaving the city in a mere day," Lux whispered.

Tercius sat on a bench, near the weapons and armors, taking the water jug and sating his thirst. Closing his eyes, to anyone looking from the sidelines, he looked asleep. In fact, he was in Meditation and going into the inner world of Shield Mastery. Once there, he proceeded to tear as much of the chains on the wisp as he could. Pain wracked his senses, but he persevered, as he knew that now was the time to put his best foot forward. He would help his uncle get the skill at least a few levels up, no matter what.

Pain flared up his arms and shoulders, and he disregarded it, tearing more pieces of the chain than ever before. He was safe in the knowledge that once he returned to Meditation, these discomforts would melt like snow under a hot summer sun.

Like pulling weeds in a garden, one hand grabbed and pulled while the other threw away what she already tore away. While Tercius's attention was on the small wisp and its bindings, in his surroundings a wind was starting to form. The overflow of Energy created some kind of a difference in pressure and a whirlwind started to rage in the surroundings. In the eye of the storm Tercius stood, his face red but his eyes calm. As if everything around him happened to someone else.

That was in fact the way that he resorted to using in situations like these, where the pain became too much to bear. Just think that this is happening to someone else. he repeated. My body is a mere puppet that I control.

Tercius stopped, but not because of the pain nor the Energy storm that raged around him. His uncle was waiting for him.

Exiting the inner world of Shield Mastery and then slowly letting Meditation wash away his pains, he observed how even under the soothing waters of Meditation, his body somehow felt ready to move.

That was… both painful and… exhilarating. he realized. But I got caught into that feeling, this could have been done in a few sessions, instead of one. That’s… dangerous,

Meditation kept at bay his emotions and apparently it even managed to contain the need he could feel tethering. His body was currently urging him to move, and as soon as he stopped using Meditation, he would be forced to comply. So he took a moment to compose himself.

He never held the amount of Energy he had now, at this moment. By his rough estimation, the quantity eclipsed his largest amount ever held by ten times. Tercius knew that this next part of weaving Energy into manageable…

The feeling of bursting at the seams went away.

His body’s need to move stopped in the same instant.

Like air escaping a punctured balloon, the Energy rushed out somewhere. With great haste, he left Meditation and used his Energy Sight to observe his physical surroundings. He did not feel the Energy leave his body, but that was what terrified him the most. If not out then where?

As Tercius thought, there was not a single grain of it anywhere around him. He searched his body, as far as his eyes could see, and just like around him, nothing was there. Not a grain nor a speck. He had a thought that one or more of his skills broke the barriers, but that did not seem to be the case. Tercius went over all of his skills and everything looked the same.

Yet, as far as Energy went, he was dry.

It had to go somewhere. he thought anxiously.

"Tercius, come, I think I am ready to try a bout," Lux said, swinging his sword around in an intricate dance, his eyes closed.

"Not now uncle, I need to think," he said.

"Oh? Scared of my new skill?" Lux teased, a small smile forming on his lips. "Don’t dawdle, make your strategies, and then come,"

Tercius did not feel the need to refute his uncle’s misconception, so he returned to observing himself. He got up and took a small walk, and everything seemed to work as it should. He felt no compulsion to move, but rather did it to see if anything would happen.

What do I do now? he thought. Should I try it one more time? I’m going to the Academy tomorrow, and I am not sure how safe it would be to do experiments there. This might be my last chance, in a long while, to do it.

That final thought sealed his decision. Tercius sat on the bench and once more entered Meditation. The effigy for Shield Mastery was there, and through it, he went to the inner part, the Core, of the Shield Mastery. There, on a giant triangular shield metallic green in color, Amber's cute head stared back at him. Flu seemed more spirited than before and came to him as soon as Tercius appeared. He had some apprehension of repeating what he did moment before, but he steeled his nerves.

No omelet is made without broken eggs. he chanted as he ripped white Energy chains as pain assaulted him. Burning yet cold, the pain blacked out his mind, yet his body sustained no injuries, so he pushed on. This is training, he screamed internally. My body is a puppet,

Energy started whipping about, the previous events happening once more. Tercius forced himself to stay focused on observing his surroundings. Time passed with pain and strained eyes. Finally, he noticed that above a certain limit the Energy was moving in one direction.

Into the gray fog that surrounded the inner world of this skill.

Like an electrical current travels the way of the least resistance, the Energy gushed that way, no matter how much Energy he managed to free from the chains.

As soon as he stopped ripping the chains, the level of Energy inside of him dipped to a certain level and stayed that way. It was somewhere around thrice of what he usually took when he did this. Everything above that went into the fog, like water down an unclogged drain.

Hmm, there must be some upper limit. he thought, once more steeling his nerves. With deep breaths, that he did not actually need in this spiritual space, Tercius grabbed the chains. Let’s see if I can reach it.

***

Lux observed his nephew as the boy sat with his eyes closed, slouching a bit forward. Tercius dark blood-red hair fell over his forehead, nearly reaching this eyebrows, as the boy’s face was a mask of serenity. Only Septimus’s children inherited the hair Lux’s Mother was so proud of. Even when she passed her 70th mark of age, she still dyed her hair in the same color she once had. If Lux told her, merely for that fact she might go and get her grandchildren. Only… Lux was not sure if he should even mention anything about Septimus and his family.

Lux turned his attention to his new skill, for there would be time to think on those thought and make a decision.

This new skill proved difficult to use when his eyes were open, his mind having problems processing a double set of visual information. The skill was not entirely visual, yes, there was a visual component, but that was only the least part of it. The thing that made this skill exceptional was that it used multiple senses of which the tactile was, in his opinion the most important. Lux knew that he would have to dedicate some time to figure out the nuances.

Take for example, his sword. When the skill was active, Lux knew where it was, as if he saw it yet his eyes were closed. He knew just far away from the tip of the sword from his center was, how fast the tip moved…

The same thing with his own extremities.

When Tercius ran behind his back, the boy briefly gained this brightness, which forced Lux to pay attention to him. When Tercius walked normally, Lux was still able to see his outline.

In his mind, this skill reminded Lux of when someone threw a stone into water and waves start to appear from the spot it hit. The same thing happened here when his nephews passed through Lux's Sphere of Cognizance he made these ripples that were impossible to miss when his skill was active.

He not only saw those ripples, but felt them, smelled them, heard them… It was overwhelming at first but with each minute of use he gained more familiarity.

The drain on Mana was considerable, but if Lux really went all out he might be able to push some two to three minutes of constant use. No other skill of his came close in expenditure.

Lux could barely wait for the skill to reach level 20 and then Tercius would… Oh.

Like a ton of bricks, something settled on his mind and gut. Tercius and he would only have some 12 more hours of practice. Lux had a thought about the time when this skill made its way to level 20, that he could go to his nephew and the skill might cross the barrier the way Tercius preferred. His nephew had suspicions that when the barrier was crossed with a sacrifice of another skill, it somehow marred both of them, diminishing their potential.

Perhaps there was something to the boy's words.

Now that Lux remembered where Tercius was going and where he was going, Lux suddenly did not worry about the skill anymore. Even if Lux and his nephew met six years later, the possibility where Lux would manage to level the skill to level 20 was what? At his age? 50-50? 40-60 against him? Worse?

The skill was an excellent addition to his set, solving multiple of his weaknesses in one go. He now had a skill that allowed some modicum of orientation and sight for complete darkness, his hand to eye coordination skyrocketed from an already high point. The... level of observation within his sphere was frightening. He felt... omnipotent in his domain. Once more his gaze fell on his nephew, the boy responsible for this skill.

It was over half an hour since he and Tercius last spoke, so he was wondering when the boy would return to the land of the living.

Once I go back home, I will need to be a bit more proactive. Lux thought. It is high time I take some matters into my own hands.

A movement captured his attention. Before his eyes Tercius started to shake, his movements erratic, looking as if one of those blasted lightning mages used their magics on him. The boy fell from his sitting position, right on the floor, as Lux ran towards him.

"Tercius. Tercius." Lux repeated, frantic. Then his hand landed on his nephew's upper arm.

For the sensation that came up his arm, Lux had no description. His body was in ecstasy and pain at the same time, an overload of senses.

A visceral scream escaped his lips, as a memory he thought deeply buried resurfaced, the feeling somehow reminding him of another time. Now is not the time for the past.

He knew what was going on. The boy called it Energy, and would often share it with him as if he shared mere bread or water. Tercius said that he was going to get some more, but something must have gone wrong.

The Energy kept streaming into Lux, and he felt... new and refreshed. The boy kept shaking, but Lux did not see any damage being done, no blood anywhere and he was still breathing. As Lux mulled over tipping one of those potions Seliana bought into the boy, Tercius grew calm. It was as sudden as when he first started shaking. One moment his body writhed, the other it stilled.

Lux rushed to check for pulse and breath, and everything was as it should be. "Tercius… are you well?"

"...I am, I just need a moment," Tercius said with an exhale, his voice cracking a bit, the eyes still closed. "This was just…overwhelming. But now…" The boy started laughing while Lux worriedly looked over the prone boy.

That was putting it mildly. The Energy that coursed through Lux was demanding release, and he finally understood what the boy described when he told his tale.

This was what allowed a boy of 11 to have 16 skills.

16 skills! 11 cycles old!

This was what allowed his nephew to get a skill to the end of the Adept tier.

Lux turned 50 cycles old a few months back and he found himself having the same number of level 60 skills as his 11 cycles old nephew. The skill Tercius had was supportive in nature, but still… Lux might as well tell this to the whole world and he was sure that no one would believe him. "No sane person ever would," Lux made a correction with a murmur.

It was difficult to move, his muscles barely obeying the commands he issued, but the Energy craved movement, he knew this somewhere deep down.

Lux spotted Tercius opening his eyes, and he knew what must be done. Since the Energy wanted for him to move, he would, but on his own terms. Lux slowly moved towards his weapon and shield, each step forward bringing more control over his body. Reaching down, he took one in each hand and closed his eyes. Sphere of Cognizance was activated and Lux turned to his nephew.

"Stop pretending infirmity. Come, there’s work to be done,"