Nico watched awestruck as black flames engulfed the giant, it was scary at first. Initially the green curse warred with the black flame, it almost snuffed out the flame at one point but was pushed back by a sudden surge of power.

"Looks like she won." Anri said

"Tough girl." Horace admitted

The giant started to dissipate into wisps of darkness that flooded into Arche. Nico heard cries from around him and he turned to see the red eyes in the surrounding buildings start to disappear as a flood of darkness swept out of the buildings and flew towards Arche. Arche floated in the air wreathed in black flames as the swarm of darkness descended on her. The trio watched as the fire swelled and burned before at last firing a pillar of flame into the sky. Then Arche's flame went out and she fell to the ground limp.

Nico ran up and caught her, when he first grabbed Arche he almost dropped her. Her skin was almost scalding hot. He looked down to see her panting and going clammy.

"I think she has a fever…" Anri said

"Lets get her back to the shrine, I think we've done enough for this hunt." Horace said

Cathedral of Respite

Maeve sat atop one of the spires of the structure, next to her were three others. One was Syrio Forrel the Plague Bearer he was leaning against the wall behind her looking out over the city. Sitting to Maeve's right was Lilith Winter the Forlorn Owl, handmaiden to Lady Friede. She had a weeping owl mask with a distended jaw allowing her to open her mouth with her mask on. She wore light silver armor accented with dark leather coverings. From her back sprouted a pair of black rotted wings that folded behind her Her armor covered her chest, shoulders and thighs, the rest was covered by a layer of black leather. The sleeves of her armor was made of a type of semi transparent black silk that flowed off her shoulders to her wrist. Standing on the ledge to Maeve's left was Mikael Eva the Argent Wolf, Watchdog of Lord Farron. He wore a set of dark spiked plate armor that covered most of his body. These three were all Successors of Ash they stood at the peak of mortal power, their abilities rivaled even those of the various guardians of the many realms.

"The girl seems to be doing well." Mikael said as he watched the black pillar of flame fire into the sky

"She's a fast learner." Syrio affirmed

"Quite the endorsement coming from you Forrel." Lilith said dryly

"I give credit where credit is due" Syrio replied calmly

"So who's going to train her next?" Mikael asked

"I'm thinking Sulyvahn then Lilith." Maeve replied

"So I assume I won't be needed?" Mikael asked

"Her fighting style would not work well with the style of the watchdogs." Syrio replied

"Fair enough." Mikael said with a shrug

"Where is Sulyvahn?" Lilith asked

"I believe he has matters to attend to for Lord Aldritch." Maeve replied

"I see, the Aldritch Faithful are ever busy it seems." Lilith said

The four stood atop the spire and waited, soon they saw the small group run into the church carrying the limp Arche. The four gave each other a look before vanishing into clouds of darkness.

Arche's Mindscape

Arche sat on the deck next to her hollows. With the large fireball gone they can now walk freely on the ship, Arche could see it was a welcome change for them. They milled about relaxed and speaking calmly, she looked to them and felt a little happy her soul had at least become a nicer place to live. The only problem was...

"Why can't I get out of here?" Arche muttered to herself

"No idea." her father said nonchalantly as he leaned against the side of the ship

"Getting bored of us already?" Kuurderika asked with a wicked smile

"No it's not that, it's just that we are kind of in the middle of a hollow infested plaza, what if we get eaten?" Arche replied

"Oh you're back in the shrine." Gundyr's hollow said

"Huh?" Arche asked

"Yea we forgot to tell you." her mother said

"So that's why all of you are so relaxed." Arche said with a sigh

"Everything's fine captain just enjoy the sea breeze in your hair." the sailor said

"You can practice how to fight here you know." her father said

"We will fight hollows like that again, you might want to get used to fighting in places like these." Kuurderika said

"Ok… I guess." Arche said as she rose and tried to conjure her blades

The blades appeared but she realised now instead of two she has four, what's more the blades now appeared to be wet and glowed with a sickly green glow. The blades and the tentacles attached to it used to have a smooth texture similar to snake scales. Now however it looked like it was made of hard flexible wood, there were also small purple glowing crystals growing on it.

Arche practiced and trained with her new abilities and found that she could now do some interesting new things with double the tentacles. She could now put up a shield and a cleaver for a more defensive orientated fighting style. She could also now use her tentacles to move while having access to two blades for a more mobile fighting strategy. Most of all was that she could now conjure a pair of black cannons with four tentacles each. The cannons would fire balls of black fire that exploded quite spectacularly. The draw back of the cannons was the large amount of recoil that the cannons produced. Arche nearly blew herself off the ship when she first fired it.

This went on for awhile as she played around with her abilities, with some guidance from her hollows she learned some interesting ways to use her powers. Arche then felt something change in her own little pocket dimension, she could suddenly sense that she was free to leave. She assumed her body had finally recovered enough for her to regain conciousness.

Arche felt her consciousness return, to put it bluntly she felt like shit. She groggily sat up while clutching her head with her right hand. She had a horrible headache and her entire body felt numb. She must have been running quite the fever. She tried to raise her left hand but found it was trapped by something warm. Arche looked down to see Nico sleeping by her bedside, he was fast asleep on top of her left hand.

Arche let out a small smile as she reached out and gave Nico a little shake. Nico muttered something in his sleep as he woke up, he looked up and once he saw Arche was awake he reached out and pulled her into a hug. Arche caught off guard by the sudden show of affection felt her face grow hot.

"Thank the 41 you're alright." Nico said

"It's… it's good to be back Nico…" Arche replied softly

Nico released Arche and held onto her shoulders.

"What happened, why were you gone for so long?" Nico asked

"Erm… how long was I gone?" Arche said her voice going up a pitch as she looked away

"Oh sorry… I erm…'' Nico stammered going red in the face as well

Arche looked back at Nico and saw the red flush on his face, the two locked eyes for a moment before looking away again.

"So… erm how long was I out?" Arche asked softly

"Well you were passed out for about two days." Nico replied hesitantly

"That's a while…" Arche replied

"So… why were you gone for so long?" Nico asked trying to dispel this horrible awkward atmosphere.

"Her body was trying to adjust to the large amount of abyss energies that she absorbed." said a voice

Arche and Nico turned to see a stern faced Maeve leaning against the open door. She wore her usual stoic expression but there were undertones of unhappiness in her eyes.

"Arche how are you feeling?" Maeve asked

"I'm fine, erm how long have you been standing there?" Arche asked red faced

"Long enough, may I have a word in private?" Maeve asked, although phrased like a question the tone betrayed this was not a request.

"Yea sure." Arche replied nonplussed as she turned her gaze back to Nico.

Nico sensing that was his que to leave, got up and walked out of the room. Arche followed him with her eyes till he vanished from sight. She looked back to Maeve and saw she was still looking at her. She watched as Maeve dipped her head slightly and shut her eyes for a moment. Then she got off the door and closed it behind her before walking over and sitting on the bed next to Arche.

"Ok, well here's the thing I saw what happened there. I am going to give you some advice, whatever that was stop it. It's not gonna end well here, spare yourself and him the suffering." Maeve stated calmly

"Maeve I don't…" Arche began getting ever more confused

"Just trust me on this one, please." Maeve said grimly

Arche looked to Maeve stunned, she has never heard her say that word before. The powerful did not need please, they do not request, they take.

"I… ok but may I know why?" Arche asked

"I can't tell you unfortunately, you'll have to just trust me on this one." Maeve said as she turned her gaze to Arche

"Ok, I trust you, but it was just an awkward moment nothing more." Arche said defensively

"Good, keep it that way. I pray for your sake what you say is true." Maeve replied

"Alright, alright I get it." Arche said

"Ok now onto the other thing…" Maeve said

4 hours ago The Hall of Pillars

"Are you sure of this prediction?" Touch Me asked

"The probability is high." Punito Moe replied

"So are we continuing with the plan?" Takemikazuchi asked

"Yes we need to slowly burn away Jaldabaoth's power, we need to make him believe he can fight our forces off." Punito Moe said

"So you wish to push for the girl to be rushed through the trial process." Ulbert remarked

"Yes, we will need her, she is part of the local indiginous population, she will be a valuable chess piece in the war to come." Punito Moe said

"What if she frenzies?" Tabula asked grimly

"Maeve will be with her, she is a match for the Lords, she will be more than enough for that girl." Momonga said

"So are we agreed?" Punito Moe asked as he looked around the room and saw no objections.

"Now we just have to see if she has the mettle to pass the trials, it's a tall order even with our help." Momonga said

"Well I suppose it's time for you to break the news to your little Lords of the Abyss." Ulbert said with a grin

"They won't like that." Chagama said

"They are prisoners, enchained in servitude to make amends for their folly. If it is displeasing to them all the better." Momonga said coldly

2 Hours Later Outworld Citadel The Profaned Valley

Maeve stood beside her father, she had her mask on due to the location of this meeting. This place is one of the areas with the highest known negative energy density. Beside her floated Midir and Jormungandr, they rarely got the chance to see their fellow lords so she decided to give them the opportunity.

"My lord you cannot be serious, this is a violation of the rules." Lord Farron growled

"I am serious, you will accommodate this turn of events to the best of your ability, are we clear Farron?" Momonga said coldly

"My lord why should this welp be given preferential treatment, is it perhaps because of her affiliation with your precious daughter?" Farron challenged

At those words the flames within Momonga's eyes flared in anger. Massive dark hands appeared and grasped the lords before slamming them hard into the ground in front of Momonga, cracking the nearly indestructible stone under the force.

"You forget yourself, dog." Momonga said dangerously as he reached out and grasped thin air. In his hand emerged black chains that were connected to Farron's body.

"My apologies my lord, forgive me." Farron said in a strained voice as the hands crushed him into the floor.

"You are chained as a sinner, you are sheep to bleat at my pleasure, a dog to watch my front door, you are nothing. Or have you forgotten? Should I remind you of why you are here?" Momonga said as he tugged on the chains eliciting a growl of pain from the Abyss Lord.

"Forgive me my lord, it will be as you say." Farron groaned out as the chains started to steam.

"Of course it will be, you exist because I permit it, existence exists because I permit it. Remember this well dog what is given can be taken away." Momonga said as he tugged the chains viciously causing Farron to roar in pain.

"Hmph a dog dares to question the master, you grow bold in my absence Farron." Momonga said coldly as he released the chains and the hands disappeared.

"I didn't mean to displease you my lord." Farron said shakily as he prostrated himself before Momonga along with the other lords.

"You think I didn't know that you were the one hindering my daughter and all her young proteges? This is my domain, my world, I know everything. I allowed it to happen because it was necessary to ensure non unworthy can ever leave this cage lest they destroy the innocent outside. Now however the situation is different so I am changing the rules. Am. I. Clear." Momonga said coldly

"Yes my lord." chorused the prostrated lords.

"Good. Now Maeve here will tell you which hollows she needs and you Farron will help her fetch them personally like the dog you are." Momonga said

"Yes of course." Farron replied not a hint of displeasure in his voice

At those words Momonga vanished in a cloud of darkness leaving Maeve alone with the lords. Farron raised his gaze and looked hatefully at Maeve. Maeve merely smirked under her mask, although the smile could not be seen the lords could sense it.

"So ready to get started?" Maeve said cheerfully

Farron merely growled in response before rising and glaring at Maeve.

"I'll take that as a yes." Maeve said with a smile

Arche's Room

"So there is a new arrangement, there won't be another hunt. Instead the hollows will be brought to you and you will devour them. This is done in the interests of time, to put it bluntly there is a war coming to your home world and the powers above will require your abilities to preserve your home." Maeve said

"What? Is that why Eden has come to the continent?" Arche asked

"Yes, more will be explained once you are out of here, just know this it will be a war unlike any other that has ever occured on your world. As far as your world is concerned it will be a war to end all wars." Maeve said grimly

"So I just have to get out of here?" Arche asked

"Yes, sadly you still have to go through the process, those touched by the abyss have a chance to frenzy when they leave this place. The host must be stronger than the hollows within in order for them to control their powers. " Maeve replied

"Well that makes it simple then." Arche said

"Yes I suppose it does." Maeve said

"So whats next, do I just go and devour one now?" Arche asked

"No for now just rest up tomorrow you will be meeting another trainer. He is a strange one…" Maeve said with a shake of her head

"Ok well I suppose I'll see you around Maeve." Arche said

"Yea I'll drop by again." Maeve said as she stood up

Arche watched as Maeve walked to the door and opened it. Right before she stepped through she turned and looked Arche in the eyes.

"Remember what I said about that boy, I am serious, don't do it." Maeve said sternly

"Yes of course." Arche replied hesitantly

Maeve merely nodded as she exited the room, leaving Arche to wonder why she was so adamant about it. Arche mulled it over in her head but could find no conclusion, resigning herself to her own ignorance she layed back down on her bed and tried to get whatever rest she could. She had a feeling the coming days would be very hectic.

The Next Day

Arche sat at the dining table with the other three, they were eating in silence as was their usual routine. Talking made the taste much worse since it moved the weed around in their mouth. They were halfway through the meal when Arche spotted Maeve approaching with a small box under her arm. She stopped at the table and placed the box on the table.

"What's that?" Arche asked dubiously her voice strained due to the foul tasting weed

"A gift from my father. He rarely does things like these, so I assume there must be a reason." Maeve replied with a confused frown

"So what is it?" Arche asked

"See for yourself." Maeve said as she opened the box and revealed set of ten scones.

The first thing they noticed was the rich buttery smell than escaped from the box, to Arche it smelt like a piece of heaven.

"This is for us?" Arche asked

"Yes, I am told it was made personally by Amanomahitotsu sama, it's a special pastry that will improve your rate of absorption for abyss essence." Maeve explained

"Then should we just leave it all for Arche?" Nico asked

"What you do with it is up to you, but I recommend Arche eat at least six of them. The buffs are quite potent and they taste quite good." Maeve said with a shrug

"How long do they last?" Arche asked

"Quite awhile, about half a year, more than enough for the rest of your training, it was supposed to come in a potion form but Bukubuku Chagama sama said you four might need a treat having been here for so long." Maeve replied

"That's very kind of her." Arche said with a smile

"Oh yes, Bukubuku Chagama sama gave me this a well." Maeve said as she reached into a pocket dimension and pulled out a flask. She put the flask on the table and opened revealing a fragrant chocolate aroma.

"This is a gift from Bukubuku Chagama sama, it's hot chocolate, her words were as I quote, it tastes like home. Not very sure what she meant by that but maybe you all can find out." Maeve said calmly

"Thank you for bringing us all of this." Arche said as she stood up and pulled Maeve into a hug.

Maeve stood there stiffly as Arche hugged her, she awkward raised her arms but stopped midway. After the pause she reached up higher and was about to return thee embrace before deciding against it and extracting herself from the hug.

"Well it's good to see you like the gift, I'll be back at some point." Maeve said with a wave as she abruptly left the table.

"She's not very good with affection is she?" Nico deadpanned

Arche didn't reply she merely looked to Maeve's retreating back. She looked back at the scones on the table and wondered what was going on in that girls head. It was like she was afraid of affection, she does good by others but hates gratitude. A truly strange combination…

Without much other choice Arche sighed and sat down at the table. She reached in and grabbed one of the scones before biting into it. Immediately she tasted the warm buttery pastry with vanilla and white chocolate sweetness flow over her palette. It tasted like a slice of heaven to her, she wasn't sure if it was really as good as she thought it was

Once the group had finished their meal they were summoned to the sparring room once again. This time a different figure stood before them, the figure had a strange mask, the mask was a mass of cracks with no shape or reason to its shape. The mask covered it's entire head in a cylindrical shape and at the top there was patterns reminiscent of tree branches that extended from the crown. It wore a set of long flowing robes. In each hand it clutched a pair of short swords, one glowed with a purple magic light, the other was alight with a bright orange flame. The blades were held gently at his side as the figure waited motionless in the centre of the room.

Arche approached cautiously remembering all too well the last time she let her guard down around one of these abyss users. She held her staff up and conjured her black scythe as her blades appeared around her in a defensive formation.

"There is no need for that child." the figure said

"Who are you?" Arche asked now lowering her guard

"I am Sulyvahn the Forgotten Son first among Aldrich's Faithful." the figure said its voice sounding peaceful and ancient. It strangely brought a sense of peace to those who listened to it.

"Ok so are you replacing Forrel?" Arche asked cautiously

"Yes, he has determined that you have learnt all you can from him so I will be taking over for your magical education." Sulyvahn said

"Magical education?" Nico asked

"Not for you, from here on out the training will be carried out separately. Forrel will continue to train others while you girl will be with me." Sulyvahn said

"So what now?" Arche asked

"First will the other three follow me." said a familiar voice from the door. The group turned to see Forrel standing at the door, he was leaning against the door frame as he motioned for the rest to join him.

"Go on." Arche said to the other three

Arche knew the others would not be able to cast any specialised spells, they clearly lacked the power to do so. She knew if they were going to get out of here she would need to be as strong as possible, she was starting to wonder why did they even allow the other three to join her? She wasn't complaining but still why? They were so much weaker than her now, she could easily take them all down with barely any effort and she still has two more hollows to devour. Arche watched as the other three leave the room before she turned and looked back at the Sulyvahn.

"Very good now come sit down." Sulyvahn said as he sat down onto the floor.

Arche obeyed as she sat down opposite Sulyvahn.

"Now girl, I believe you can cast spells, would you please show me." Sulyvahn said calmly

Arche nodded as she held out her hand and cast a [Burn Lance] in her palm. A fire lance appeared in her hand, it burned with a furious intensity. The colour was now different instead of the usual orange color, the flame now burned in a white glow.

"Hmm spell strength is acceptable but spell type is weak." Sulyvahn said as he cupped his chin

"I learned these spells when I was much weaker." Arche replied

"Yes I can see that, you were a spell caster before you arrived here?" Sulyvahn asked

"Yes I was a caster of the fourth tier." Arche replied

"Well I will get this out of the way first, those who wield the powers of the abyss are without exception primarily melee combatants. Some may favour heavier spell use as compared to others but fundamentally our spells are to augment our melee capabilities." Sulyvahn said

"So what kind of spells would be beneficial?" Arche asked

"We will start with this buff called [Mantle of Chaos]" Sulyvahn said as he reached into a pocket dimension and handed Arche a scroll.

Arche unfurled it and looked to the contents, she was able to comprehend it but it was the most complex spell she had ever seen. This was well beyond the 5th tier of magic, the level of complexity was on another level.

"This will take too long to learn." Arche said

"Hmm what do you mean?" Sulyvahn asked perplexed

"I mean it will take awhile for me to learn how to cast it." Arche replied

"It appears you are not aware then, this is a special scroll, known as a tutorial scroll. It is infused with the knowledge on how to cast it, simply pour your mana into the scroll." Sulyvahn explained as he gestured to the scroll

Arche did as she was told and poured her mana into the scroll immediately she felt a connection form in her mind. She saw the runes on the scroll glow and the scroll burned away, Arche felt a flood of knowledge surge into her mind. She was overwhelmed as the concepts and knowledge overloaded her psyche. Then as quickly as it appeared it stopped, Arche blinked the stars out of her eyes and found she knew exactly how to cast the spell. Abit disbelieving on how easy it was, she tried to cast it.

[Mantle of Chaos] Arche intoned and she saw her body was wreathed in a dark purple radiance. She felt her strength rise dramatically and her mana pool seemed more volatile and violent.

"[Mantle of Chaos] one of the most popular spells among the abyss users, originated from ancient undead liches, it boosts physical abilities, defenses, resistances and makes spells infused with negative energy. It is part of the group of spells known as dark sorceries, which is the go to repertoire of spells an abyss user will look to in combat." Sulyvahn explained

"Dark sorceries… is it something like necromancy?" Arche asked

"Similar but not the same, necromancy is the reanimation of a reagent using negative energy. Dark sorceries use negative energy to infuse and empower the user, the condition for success and effectiveness is the user must have an affinity to negative energy. This normally only applies to undead but we are an exception to the rule." Sulyvahn explained

"I see." Arche said

"Now let's try something else." Sulyvahn said as he handed her another scroll.

Arche opened up the scroll and she read the title, as she looked across the runes laid out in swirling patterns she felt her blood go cold. This was truly dark magics, evil in its construction and profane in it's execution. [Burrowing Agony] the title read, Arche almost felt afraid to use the scroll, what dark secrets will invade her mind if she should choose to learn this spell.

"This is a hybrid spell, it is a mixture of a curse and entomancy. The spell is coalesced by negative energies into its current form, a very potent spell if used correctly." Sulyvahn said

"This spell seems evil." Arche said slowly

"It is, it's a devouring hex type curse, the darkest of curse types. Combined with entomancy it brings a new meaning for an invading curse. A truly masterful spell created by Lord Aldritch himself." Sulyvahn said proudly

Arche gave him a fearful glance, she had been warned by her master in the past about learning dark magics. Due to the nature of spell casting in order to master dark powers you must let the darkness in and this will twist one's soul beyond repair. However, she also knew she was now a vessel for the darkest of creatures so abit more darkness wasn't going to hurt. With those thoughts in mind Arche absorbed the knowledge in the scroll.

Arche immediately recoiled as the foul knowledge flooded in, instinctively her mask appeared so obscene was the knowledge her psyche thought it was an attack.

Hahaha now this is some interesting stuff…

Arche heard her hollows say, once she came back to her senses she banished her mask and looked up at Sulyvahn. She could swear she could feel that bastard smiling behind that cracked mask.

"Why don't we give it a try?" Sulyvahn said as he rose

Arche got up hesitantly still having mixed feelings about this knowledge. She watched as Sulyvahn jingled a small silver bell and dark portal appeared. From the portal emerged a hollow bound by black chains. It looked weak, just like one of the random ones found roaming the ringed city.

"Go on try it." Sulyvahn said

Arche had her second thoughts but she was already in this situation there wasn't much sense in backing out now. She was already an accomplice to this dark sorceries so if she was going to be damned it was probably already too late.

[Burrowing Agony] Arche intoned and watched as the flesh on her right hand bubbled and burst. Holes appeared in her flesh and insects crawled out of her hand, jaws gnashing seeking flesh. Arche pointed her hand at the hollow and watched as the insects flooded out of her arm and descended on the hollow. The insects burrowed into the hollow and tore it apart from the inside out. Soon the hollow went limp as those accursed insects did their work.

Arche looked back to her hand and saw that the flesh had healed thanks to her regeneration. This must truly be a unique spell, it wouldn't work on undead because this spell used the living flesh of the caster to help fuel the spell. The spell would kill most living casters as the cast would shred the flesh from their arm. This meant this spell was tailored to be used by abyss users, this was a spell that took advantage of their unique physiology.

"Very good girl, now let's move onto something more esoteric… that it is if you feel you're up for it." Sulyvahn said as he pressed his fingertips together

"Tell me." Arche said coldly

"That's what I like to hear." Sulyvahn said jovially

"But first give me some of your blood." Sulyvahn said as he held out his hand

Arche furrowed her brows and glared at him. That request certainly came out of nowhere... Arche trusted this man as far as she could throw him and she wasn't a very good at throwing anything. With a sigh, she held out her hand and used one of her blades to cut her palm open. She let the blood drip onto his hand and looked on as magic circles appeared.

"Most interesting, you have quite the unique combination of abilities. I look forward to seeing your true form." Sulyvahn said

"True form?" Arche asked

"Ah yes I suppose no one has told you yet… I assume you have multiple different entities living within you yes?" Sulyvahn asked. Arche nodded as she continued to gaze intently at Sulyvahn.

"Well you see once you have passed the trials your powers will mature, your hollows will combine and fuse with your soul. Once this happens your abilities will morph and change into its final state, after that there would usually be only one entity remaining within you. There are exceptions of course but let's not look at that for now." Sulyvahn explained

"So what is the point of me giving you my blood?" Arche asked

"Ah well that is the million dollar question isn't it? You see you have a few interesting abilities at your disposal. You have [Black Fyre] [Drowned Curse] [Tendrils of Ruination], all of which are powerful abilities you should be able to create some interesting spells with those." Sulyvahn said

"Create spells?" Arche asked

"Yes you must create your own custom spells to take advantage of your abilities. I will teach you how." Sulyvahn said

The next few days were filled with lectures and experimentation. The lessons were long and esoteric but Arche strangely found them enjoyable. She always had a liking towards magic and it was actually her childhood dream to create her own than once her new spell blew up in her face, if she was still fully human she would long be dead. Eventually she came up with a new spell but she needed a name for it…

Mfecane…

Her hollow said in her mind. Perplexed Arche asked what it meant and in response it turned out that it means the crushing. Appropriate, very appropriate for what the spell does. She mentally binded the word to the spell and finalised the spell the structure in her mind. The spell was crude merely an amalgamation of her inherent traits into a serviceable spell. It turns out all those hours struggling to stay awake during Spellcraft lectures back in the academy was worth it. The fundamentals she learned were invaluable in this endeavour and yes the best the empire could offer in their greatest academy was the fundamentals. In these past few days Arche had learned more than she had in an entire year in the academy.

When she was studying back in Arwintar, the very idea of creating a spell was something that only the true masters of the craft could accomplish. There were stories everywhere of spells going wrong turning the casters in chickens or blowing up an entire section of the school. Some of the worse ones were necromancy or curse magic going wrong, cities have been wiped out when foolhardy spell casters sought to tamper with powers beyond their understanding. The dangers were obvious which was why she was never thought the specifics on how to create spells, the concepts were simple but the execution was a completely different animal. Too much power, the structure overloads and it explodes. Too little power and the structure will collapse in on itself and it explodes. Your structure formation is bad? Well your spell just cost too much mana to form and you dried out halfway through the cast and guess what? It exploded…

Arche stood there apprehensively as she raised her hand, the spell was far from perfect she knew. It seemed to her the efficiency was poor and the cast time seemed too long. She would need some time to iron out the kinks.

[Mfecane] Arche intoned, she felt her mana drain away in torrents as the spell formed. A few metres in front of her a glowing green circle appeared in front of her. The circle was wide about 5 metres in diameter, She watched as teeth appeared at the edges of the circle and a pair of semi circle shaped jaws closed around the circle from both sides clamping down like a bear trap. The jaws were made of rotted wood and the teeth were black just like her blades. The teeth were also wreathed in black fire and the jaws gnashed furiously, chomping down mercilessly. If something living was inside those jaws it would find itself crushed into little bits.

"Not bad child. It could use some work but definitely a step in the right direction." Sulyvahn said as he nodded approvingly.

"Thank you." Arche said softly

"Now for today's homework, go back and improve the spell. Start by improving it's mana efficiency." Sulyvahn said encouragingly

Arche nodded mutely before standing up and leaving. Somehow this strange man always made her feel uneasy. He seemed friendly enough but somehow it all seemed fake, like it was an act to lure in unsuspecting prey. Sighing she returned back to the main hall and found the other three seated at their usual corner of the hall.

"How was training?" Arche asked as she took a seat next to Nico.

"Same as usual, would it kill Forrel to not hit so hard?" Nico said as he tried to wrap up a nasty gash on his arm.

"Here let me." Arche said as she took the cloth and chilled it with her magic before wrapping it around the wound.

"Thanks." Nico said gratefully

"So what about you Arche? What great sorceries did you manifest today?" Nico asked dramatically. As he said this he raised his arms in a mock spell cast but realised that was a mistake as a shot of pain travelled up his wounded arm.

"That's what you get." Arche said with a laugh as she watched his face go green from the pain.

"Look at you laughing at my misery." Nico said ruefully

"Hahaha alright I'm sorry." Arche said as she wiped a tear from her eye

"Still hurts…" Nico grumbled

"Are you having a tantrum?" Arche asked with a chuckle

"No…" Nico pouted

"Ok ok I'm sorry." Arche said trying to suppress a smile

"I'll forgive you if you do me a favour." Nico said

"Favour?" Arche asked curious

"Close your eyes." Nico said

Arche confused but trusting Nico closed her eyes without a second thought. She was half expecting to get a face full of some gunk Nico probably found in some rancid corner of the shrine. Instead she felt something soft and warm press against her cheek for just a moment. Arche's eyes shot open just in time to see Nico pulling his head back.

"Did you just…" Arche asked as she felt her face growing hot

"Did you like it?" Nico asked awkwardly

"I… I don't know… it's a bit sudden don't you think?" Arche blustered

"So it's not a no." Nico said

"What? Nico it's not about…" Arche began

"No no no you didn't say you didn't like it, so I see this as an absolute win!" Nico said as he held his arms out dramatically

Arche could only look at him slack jawed and embarrassed out of her mind as he let out a loud hearty laugh.

Authors Notes:

Hey guys sorry for the really long delay, been struggling with a lung infection this past week. Constant coughing and horrible muscle aches don't make a very good physical state for writing. Will hopefully get better soon.