4 Days Left 0 Days Left

Mursi puttered about in the reception idly checking through the archived folders. He shook his head at the disorder arranged before him. The entire filing system had been designed from the ground up by administrators, though they only rarely oversaw the actual guard post.

The main administrative work occurred within the actual administration building. This was just an outpost of order to keep better track of the inmates, or at least it was supposed to be.

Shaking his head, Mursi began fishing up folders. Now, to sort them by date, name, or year? There was some merit in sorting them by year, then he could easily track how many from each year had come in and how many of them were currently within one of the holding cells. Sorting by name might be more appropriate. It would make them feel less like inmates and more like the students they actually were. Ordering by names instead of number.

Of course, date might be the simplest. Simply order the filing system by months and place the files appropriately. You’d have to change it—or at least expand it—every year, but that wasn’t a lot of actual work. Guardsmen had a lot of free time on this station. And they wouldn’t likely store all records of previous inmates here at the outpost.

Sorting by date it is, Mursi decided as he began to look for ways to denote the different months. He didn’t actually know when they would grab the records and move them into long term storage since he hadn’t worked here for more than a couple weeks.

Someone cleared his throat behind him causing the fourth-year to jump. Turning around quickly, his face paled as he recognized to one who’d come to visit him.

“Teacher,” he muttered saluting Master Sigurd, “What can I do for you?” In the distance, he heard a cry of pain and the familiar sound of obsidian breaking. Mursi tried to look around the older man, but his frame was just wide enough that he couldn’t do so without it being blatant and disrespectful.

“Mursi,” The terse, older man said handing him a letter. It was marked with the sigil of Inga and her house. “This is your payment, now the task is due.”

“Right now, sir?” Mursi cleared his throat.

Sigurd’s lip twitched as he glared at the kid, “Immediately, Student.”

Mursi swallowed hard and nodded, “Immediately, Teacher,” there was another loud crash of obsidian followed by a crack of ice. Mursi latched on to the noise and cleared his throat, “It’s the day-off isn’t it, sir?” Mursi risked hoping to delay. “What’s with all the training?”

Sigurd smiled grimly, “That’s not for you to worry about, Kurri’s Eye is just exercising a few of their rights.”

Mursi bowed his head embracing the pressure as he headed into the holding facility. His hands shook lightly as he cleared his throat, trying to harden himself for what was about to come.

“Oh and Mursi,” Sigurd called down the hallway. “I’ll be waiting here, so I’ll know if you don’t do a proper job.”

The student stopped and looked over his shoulder at the older man who fairly exuded malice. Mursi nodded once and hurried down. It was still early morning and long periods of time in the holding cells tended to disturb the natural rhythm of sleep, he might catch his target unaware. He gently slid his keys into the lock and slipped the door open.

Ranvir stirred awake to the sound of the door creaking, but immediately fell into a coughing fit as the room was filled with smoke. He tried getting to his feet but the tethered smoking the room struck him down, throwing his tired frame back against the wall.

While he’d been occasionally able to focus enough on the outside to eat a little bit or get some water into him, the ritual had taken so much of his focus that he hadn’t ate or drank properly for what he now suspected were days. He crumpled beneath the tethered’s onslaught even, though the strikes didn’t hit with the force that Ranvir’d grown used to from training with his friends.

Desperately, he clawed at his tether-space. The gateway was still white-hot to his senses but Ranvir didn’t care as he pried it open, disregarding the knife stroke of pain that rammed through his skull.

Tether-space rippled with purple energy, the three ropes burning with light and power. All of it swirling with the spinning of power and connection. It felt like he’d been thrown into a winter storm, as the pressure slammed into him. It felt like the air was being ripped from his lungs by the rage of the wind.

Ranvir pushed through the pain inviting the pressure in. With the exchange of energies as his tether power inflated his Veil some of the energy was relieved but far from enough. Ranvir’s eyes pushed open as he felt the pressure of a second-stage weigh down on him, trying to force him away from his power. It hit him like rain did rock. Power flowed so strongly from him that it cast a purple glare on the smoke around him.

Reaching into the said haze, Ranvir plucked the student’s collar out from thin air and hammered a punch straight into the older student’s jaw. This was definitely a student, he hadn’t held his second-stage long enough to have returned from the front lines.

The man staggered back, tearing out of Ranvir’s weak grip. He’d probably been more shocked by the punch than hurt by it. Ranvir shook his head, feeling the burning pain building in the back of his mind.

He’d either done something very wrong or very right in adjusting his tether-space, but he’d absolutely done something very painful. Tears stung his eyes as the smoke tethered rushed back throwing more strikes, even adding some kicks. Ranvir gritted his teeth and tucked his head.

He needed to stop the asshole. Now. Reaching out he hardened the space around the second-stage. The act required him to fight through his opponent’s Cloak, one that he’d already filled with his own power. His enemy’s superior advancement and previous claim over the area was too much for Ranvir’s Veil to overcome. He needed stronger, more powerful ownership of the space.

The power overflowing responded to that one thought. It felt like his entire spirit lurched for the area, rushing through him. Tether-space rushed in the winds of power, as the tether itself spun even faster and ripped a hole right through the space and out his body.

Ranvir’s Dagger exploded fifteen— twenty— twenty-five meters before him finally tapering off as smoke froze before him. Ranvir tumbled off the edge of the bench, his vision blackening at the edges.

“Keep calm, you must keep your mind at an absolute calm, right now. I know it’s impossible, but you cannot afford a single stray thought or you’re risking both our deaths,” Latresekt’s voice rang out in Ranvir’s mind as his expression failed and he vomited onto the floor. Ranvir stomach heaved once more but it was out of content.

He winced at the acid that was forced into his throat before a kick slammed into his ribs. Something popped as he rolled onto his back. Tears fell heedless of Ranvir’s efforts, trailing down his cheeks he tried directing his power to freeze his assailant again. But his senses got confused between the Dagger and the Veil and they both ended up flailing helplessly.

Ranvir tried to cry out but the pain in his chest choked him off. He could hear the student saying something, but making sense of the muddled words were impossible to him.

“Careful boy.”

Ranvir groaned and grabbed for his ribs, crying out what little air he’d managed to gather when he found the impact site. His body had taken too much of a beating. Between his ritual meditation accidentally starving himself, then his power running rampant, and he felt like his body was breaking even before the assailant hit him.

Someone grabbed Ranvir’s collar and hauled him out into the middle of the room dispersing obsidian dust and melted candles. Ranvir’s own elbow bumped his ribs as he was dumped unceremoniously, causing him to whimper. The smoke diluted a bit and breathing became easier, no longer a torture on his throat.

He could barely make out the boot swinging before him. Ranvir curled around his stomach as the kick landed. He gagged once more, though not as violently as previously. Ranvir wasn’t strong enough to handle the pain, his body was too weak and broke too easily.

“No!” Latresekt cried and Ranvir’s power surged for the second time, carrying through the loop in his tether and out into his body.