Cyberspace; The Ultimus Collection

Chapter 26, Dying Embers

Derick dragged Daniel through the woods and through the streets of the ethernet city. A fury no man had ever seen from Derick, not ever since the war, emanated throughout his body. Daniel fought desperately to free himself from Derick's grasp, but to no avail. No, Derick had a fierce grip on Daniel's shirt collar, a grip only strengthened by a sound morality. His hands were tied, bound by a promise, an obligation to keep the streets clean of filth and rot. If he's going to make do on that promise, then he has to do whatever is necessary. Derick's hands are tied, and by extension, so are Daniel's. The two arrived back at the old guardian school. Derick kicked in the doors and continued to drag Daniel all the way to schoolyard. He then threw Daniel into the dirt and mud.

"It's about time we did some real training." Derick coldly announced.

"What the fuck Derick!? Are you insane?! Sending Catelin and the rest to go deal with that monster without us!" Danile stood up. "We should be out there with them! Not here trying to work in some exercise!" 

"Sit down!" Derick struck Daniel across the face. He fell back to ground, stunned more than bruised. Dark clouds loomed overhead, and thunder boomed across the blackened skies, all as if to emphasize the direness of the situation, of the struggle. Daniel felt and rubbed his cheek. "This has been a long time coming. I'm ashamed that I didn't start this sooner. Maybe I was just naive, maybe I was just hasty, but somewhere down the line I sacrificed methods and integrity for results. And look at what that got us! I haphazardly skipped crucial steps in making you a proper guardian, and now because of my mistakes I just might've cost us the lives of two innocent children and God knows how many else! So look me in the eye again and tell me that we need to go back out there, tell me that despite your lack of control it is the right thing to do to rush back out into danger!" Rain began to sprinkle down upon the poor souls of this world. 

"Derick please, we don't have much time!" Daniel stood back up. "What do we do when we return back to the fight and discover that we've already lost, that because we took up precious time training, we let even more innocent people die!" Derick struck Daniel again.

"There's that determination, the very thing that got you here. Your primary strength comes from your mind, but not your body. I seek to change that. You're right, there's a lot to lose here, but the cost of doing nothing is greater than trying. If dive straight in, go back into the breach, we have no chance of winning. But if we take our time, we just might see a glimmer of hope. Stand up, try to strike me as I have struck you." Derick commanded, and Daniel obliged. He stood up once more and drew upon his power to create a sword and shield. 

"Fine, you want me to strike you? Then I'll knock you off your feet!" Daniel swung at Derick, who effortlessly deflected Daniel's attack and pushed him back.

"Wrong, again!" Daniel scowled and charged back at Derick, who once again beat him back. "Again!" Another attempt. "Again!" After another. "Again!" After another. "Again!" 

"Grrrr! Damnit! Why can't I hit you!?"

"You can clearly use your powers, just not effectively. You're slow, sloppy. You lack elegance, form, or grace. You lag behind and as a result your technique suffers. Tell me Daniel, what did you feel when you fought Vincent?"

"I don't know, anger? Frustration? Determination?"

"Our powers Daniel, imagine them like a flame. A force of nature, a gift from the gods, tasked with engulfing and displacing darkness with light. Sure, even the tiniest of flames could accomplish this, but only the strongest flames excel at it. And in order to get those strong flames, they need to be fueled, kindled. Just like how you would kindle a campfire with wood, us guardians kindle our flames with emotion. Our wills, our souls are what fuels the strength within. So use your anger to really come at me!" 

"Oh okay, you want me to use my anger huh? Alright, I'll give you my anger!" Daniel began another onslaught on Derick, swinging violently in an attempt to damage the knight, making sure that when he did, he could surely feel the anger inside him. But alas, not much progress was made. Derick continued to block and deflect all of Daniel's attacks, however now needing to throw in the occasional dodge. That is until Daniel did land one clean strike against Derick's hand. 

"Hm... Clearly you have the emotional drive. So something else must be halting your progress." Derick pondered for a minute, while Daniel stood fuming in front of him. "You must be shackled by something, tangled up in unseen chains. It could be your unfamiliar origins, or maybe your inexperience. But whatever it is, it's slowing you down. You move with unknown weight, and I believe it's also keeping you from properly fueling your flame. Only in moments of raw unbridled emotion does your true potential shine through."

"So what do you suggest we do huh?" Derick drew his sword. 

"We don't rest until those shackles are broken."