“So, we gonna talk about the fact that your aura is on fire?” Reggie asked. Which confused Nathan greatly. How was his aura on fire? Glancing around he didn't see anything off about his aura.

“Whatta ya mean my auras on fire?”

“Look at it, it's definitely way stronger but its all out of whack. Your going to have to reign it in and get control over it or your just going to be wasting energy.”

“How do I ‘reign’ my aura in?”

“Ugh, just look up some basic aura control exercises.” He grumbled while fumbling to make coffee.

“Alright i'll do that today since I don't have work. First though could you rate the durability of my aura. I've been thinking of trying to make some extra cash at an arena. Maybe try to get recruited by a battle sect” Nathan half joked. His brother looked up from his coffee and took a long look at the bubble of aura Nathan was projecting. He then ruthlessly obliterated the entire thing. Nathan collapsed to his knees in the most pain he had ever felt. It was completely different from a physical ache. He felt like something fundamental to his very existence had just been torn to shreds. His brother looked at him with little to no pity in his eyes. He didn’t know what was more devastating, the wound or the fact that his brother had no sympathy for him.

“I would rate it to be a D rank defensive aura technique in terms of raw power, but closer to C rank in regards to capability to shrug off blunt damage. However you have literally no clue how to fight. You also don't have nearly enough pain tolerance to fight. If having your aura destroyed is enough to send you to your knees you will never get past the F tiers. Are you serious about fighting? If so im more than willing to teach you, but this could be considered light training”

Nathan took a moment to consider the agony he was in and the potential of having his brother teach him how to fight. It didn't take long for him to decide. Steeling himself he picked himself up, then bowed to his elder sibling.

“Please instruct me” He pleaded. His brother stared at him with a mysterious intensity.

“Nathaniel Crest do you understand the depths of hell? Because you will wade through them to reach the heights of heaven.” He recited.

“I can't claim to know the depths of hell, but I am willing to go through anything to change my destiny.” Nathan finished the cheesy movie quote still shivering in pain. His aura had begun reforming but the pain still lingered. Ultimately though, his aura would reform stronger than it had been when it was destroyed. The blessings of youth. After eating the breakfast buffet he had made, Reggie left for work and Nathan found himself with plenty of free time for the first time in forever. He checked his text messages, finding a message from Sasha about work. He would be getting paid time off while the building was repaired and cleaned, which would take a week and a half to get back up to code. After that he started doing some aura control exercises, but his aura still felt tender after Reggie had sliced it to pieces faster than Nathan could even observe.

Eventually he settled on doing some meditation and then some work on the Steel Body technique. He settled into a trance like rhythm of breathing in, burning his body with ather, then rushing his essence from the surface of his skin to every inch of his body shoving the ather into his soul where it was rapidly refined into more essence. And etherium which was now quite useful to him. Hours of doing nothing but strengthening his body later Nathan found himself adrift. It was a restful feeling as his consciousness floated through the endless expanses of his mind. Eventually he found himself observing his soul in this strange state of mind. He saw how ather was broken down and had its core components re-arranged into the two energies he was familiar with. He saw other small parts building up in small clumps where they simply took up space without contributing anything. Others flowed out with his essence and etherium, presumably flowing into his body and ather. He watched for what felt like a small eternity, pondering how to use those bits of ather or at least get rid of them.. Then he snapped awake, stood up in a frenzy and quickly fell back down into a pile of blankets and pillows he used as a meditation mat. He caught his breath and then calmed down. He had absolutely no clue what to do with that information. Were those impurities he had built up? He shrugged then headed to take a shower.

A half hour later he stood in the steaming bathroom half dressed looking in the mirror. Loose fitting pants that used to be to small for him were barely kept up by a belt, and his gut had shrunk to the point that he almost couldn't believe it. Just a few months had done so much for his physique. It would likely only be another before he got his aura back from the aura promise he had made about getting a six pack. It wouldn't be nearly as much as it would have been before he got his aura creation technique, relatively, but it would still be a considerable boon. He took a moment to battle his long, thick, and mangy curls into submission. He did not win that battle. Grumbling to himself he checked the time. 5:00 PM. Reggie wouldn't get back till six. He could go to the gym, but his body felt like he had run it through a meat grinder. Of course it was also that much stronger because of it. So Nathan took a short walk to the hair stylist down the street.

Feeling much more confident about his looks after getting a nice haircut, and some new clothes that were a bit snug but would probably fit well after he shaved the last vestiges of his past self, Nathan headed home. The streets were still crowded, both with cars on the road, and people on the sidewalks. The city of Ria never truly slept. He was a few turns from his house, and Reggie should be back. He could get home and have plenty of time too-

Quickly turning to see who had grabbed his shoulder, he felt several more hands reach out and begin ripping him into an alley. He tried to get out a scream but his mouth was covered before he even realized what was happening.