Book 1- The Ark of Time

Chapter 6

The woman walked with Horatia in silence until they reached the entrance to the training grounds, "So, what's your spirit's name?"
"Aurora." She did not each glance in the girl's direction, looking away as the brunette entered, "This is as far as my father has allowed me to go." Horatia nodded, waving as she left, the door closed behind her and left her in the darkness as she walked towards her grounds. Confused on what she should do, the girl hesitantly placed her hand in the middle of the door, the cold wood scraping against her palm as a yellow wave of light extended from her hand, the door became warm as the light pulsated through the door, seeping through the grains and into the depths of the material.
The door unlocked and Horatia pushed it open to see the two nobles, standing a few feet apart, glaring at each other, "Have you been up all night?"
"Kind of?" She saw a mop of grey hair, matted to his forehead with sweat, "I'm actually starting to get tired a bit now..."

"I'm not going to leave until you train me!"

She was left without a reply as the two continued with their fight. Brandon was fighting with his flaming bow, but Ruleum had no weapon on him, instead, he dodged every single shot. "Don't worry, I still have plenty of energy to train you in a bit."
"You should be concentrating on the fight, brother."
"Of course." Suddenly the boy's expression turned serious, thin, glowing lines of flames brightened on his hands. The enveloping flames imitated the shape of an almost animalistic claw. Ruleum charged at Brandon, who retreated towards the walls, his weight shifting between his feet as the teen ran towards him briskly. The claws were slashed at the man, leaving behind a trail of blazing embers. The arrow's Brandon held melded together to create a glistening, long handle, which was lifted to block the attack. A grin formed on his lips, the image of him fading as another appeared behind. His orange orbs interlocked with the image, blocking his swing just before it hit. The blow knocked him back, his feet wobbling as Ruleum attacked again. Brandon moved away from it early, allowing Ruleum to swing upwards instead, heading straight for his face.

The spear's head intersected him, and he dropped down low. His foot swung at Brandon's, his shin aching as he did so. The brunette tumbled; his spear dug into the ground as he grasped onto it. But that was enough.

An extended claw approached, its flaming surface tingled on Brandon's tan skin, and it came down upon him just as he got up, "Give up?" The grin plastered across his face as his claw stood above him sizzled the man's blood, "I win this time."
In a sudden movement, Brandon had grabbed a hold of his claw and swung his spear upwards.

The intimidating look in his eyes froze the scrawny boy in place, "You did it again. Don't look down on your opponents, Ruleum."
The moment passed, and in a second, his surprise was replaced with joy, "It was on purpose that time." His fingers twitched, "Alright... I give up." His hands fell to his side and the flames died out. Brandon let out a sigh, letting his spear disintegrate into nothingness before it could land.
"Good job, you're getting better." He gave him a pat on the back before turning to leave, "I'll see you back at the house."
"Thanks." With a smile, Ruleum waved.

Finally mustering the courage to walk up to him, Horatia smiled, "Wow, you guys are really good. It kind of makes me feel like I was lucky to last that long in a fight with him... I do understand how I lost though. Your fighting style is... unpredictable and fast, Brandon probably got used to that over time, huh?"

"Yeah... He's learned from all of the times I've challenged him to fight." The noble turned to Horatia, "So, are you ready to start your training?"

"Is this absolutely necessary?" The brunette swung the weapon around with her fingers, the unusual weight made her queasy as she lifted them up, "They're like the one's I create, but they're heavy. I don't know if I can get used to it."
"Yes. I figured if you learn magic so fast, maybe it's about time you start your swordsmanship before you become dependent on your magic."
"Is being dependent on my magic that bad though?" He chuckled.
The Vesta changed his stance, watching Horatia as she observed him, "It's better if you're closer to the ground when you're in a fight, that's rule one." She nodded, observing his demonstrations, "You can try to improvise your movements in a fight, but learning the basic moves is probably best for now. I wouldn't advise you learn anything advance just yet."
"Okay."
Horatia watched as Ruleum attached a claw like weapon to his hands, "So, show me what you learnt." The girl nodded and began, she swung her sword exactly how she remembered her teacher had shown, "Hmm..."
Horatia stopped, "What? What's wrong?"