The forest had grown quiet once more around Su Vaen's outpost, as if the world itself was in suspenseful breathlessness awaiting his transformation.
After the hard lesson of condensing his power and ascending to Rank 2, he could sense this new, exhilarating strength coursing in his veins—a strength which was challenge and promise.
With the fresh energy coursing through him, he wished to test the new boundaries of his Tenebris Energy Path by mastering two new skills: one unique to the nature of the Tenebris Energy, and one that would increase his mobility during combat.
Su Vaen began training in the field at the back of his outpost.
He sat motionless under a venerable oak, shutting his eyes to permit inner vision to roam free.
The forest hum dissolved into a receding buzz as he looked inward to the pure energy within. The new Rank 2 Tenebris Energy spilled into his Umbral Repository—dense, potent, and holding potential for new manifestation.
He recalled the mysterious command from that elusive, unheard voice on his accomplishment.
"Fill it again. And again. Until the limit bends."
The phrases had cycled through his mind as he had strained his energy to focus, and now they seemed to guide him once more.
With precise serenity, he began pushing the limits of what he would come to call Tenebris Transmutation.
This power was distinct from his earlier techniques. Instead of just filling raw energy into his strikes or concealing himself.
Tenebris Transmutation allowed him to transmute his dark, thick energy into some other form, molding it into a range of tactical applications.
He conceived of it as a process of alchemy in the depths of his own soul, whereby the dark energy was transformed into a flash of pure force, or even a wave of healing to heal his wounds.
With a deliberate, slow breathing out, Su Vaen envisioned his energy being transmuted—dark threads bubbling and mixing into a concentrated, sparkling burst. At the peak of his inner focus, he muttered quietly, "Tenebris Transmutation!"
In his mental vision, the dark energy started to glow with whispers of deep purple hue.
It coalesced into a concentrated, sparkling sphere for an instant before scattering into his body.
The sensation was unfamiliar to him—mix of hot and cold, as if the power had been cleansed by fire and ice together.
The pain of transforming was present but transient, succeeded by a rush of renewal and pure energy.
Gradually, he opened his eyes, feeling the transformation deep within. He felt lighter, moved faster, and a sharper mind.
Tenebris Transmutation was born—a technique that would ultimately allow him to attune his energy to the task before him, whether that was for a ruinous attack or a brief, reviving respite
With this victory, Su Vaen focused on the second new skill he had conceived—a movement skill he named Phantom Blink.
Descending from his meditation bench, he recalled the days when stealth had been his silent companion.
But now he wanted more than mere hiding; he wanted to vanish and reappear in the blink of an eye, employing his mastery of shadows to evade any foe.
He spotted a reasonably open area in the clearing, its gentle earth smattered with light and shadow.
Su Vaen stood erect, concentrating once more, feeling the tranquil rhythm of his tested heart and the firm coursing of his polished energy.
His awareness extended to the darkness that surrounded him, drawing it inward. Concentrating, he said to himself, "Phantom Blink!"
Invisibly, his form started to fade.
A cold sweep of Tenebris Energy enveloped him, and in an instant, his form dissolved into a fleeting mist of shadow.
His Dimensional Awareness extended, mapping the space around him as he mentally selected a location—a locus at the back of a clump of ancient ferns.
With a last convulsion of will, he braked himself where he wanted, as though he moved through the texture of space.
The sensation was exhilarating—a combination of freedom and precision that left him grinning under his hard face.
Phantom Blink afforded him a rush of agility, a sudden relocation that would be invaluable in battle and stealth operations. It was not quite polished yet; he could feel the slightest lag as his body struggled to catch up with the jump, but the seeds of instantaneous transport were already sprouting in his arsenal.
Su Vaen alternated between these two powers for hours—trialing Tenebris Transmutation and honing the timing of Phantom Blink. Each attempt was a learning process.
He played with the energy current in tentative increments, sometimes overwhelming his senses with great blasts, others creating with care a more tolerable state.
Training was grueling, taking him to his physical and mental limits, but the clearing witnessed his growing mastery.
Between practice runs on his art, he took himself moments of self-reflective peace.
As each successful Tenebris Transmutation spell was cast, he felt the promise of the power to be tailored—to the future where he could set himself up to deal with any situation, be it through delivering a fatal blow or healing his own wounds.
And every time he used Phantom Blink, the thrill of invulnerability—a fleeting ghost in battle—hit him again with the value of swiftness and surprise.
He thought back on the process that had brought him here. His had been a series of painful breakthroughs and quiet epiphanies, of moments in which the presence of Tenebris Energy both inspired him and weighed him down.
But here, bathed in the light of afternoon, he allowed himself hope.
Each new talent was not simply an expansion of strength; it was a step toward the taking back of a future that was his—a future where he might finally mold the darkness into an instrument of transcendence.
The trees within earshot softly hummed with life, but in his secluded clearing, time itself grew elastic, allowing him the room to focus on his inner growth.
The air reeked of pine and earth, and every sound—a distant bird's cry, a leaf's gentle rustle—reminded him that the world was waiting breathlessly for him to move.
When he finally paused, panting from exertion and full of inner contentment.
Su Vaen saw that the road to Rank 2 nicely lay before him. His bones had annealed, his meridians and vessels had adjusted, and now, equipped with Tenebris Transmutation and Phantom Blink, he was ready for the next phase in his advancement.
With one final deep breath, he shut his eyes and let his internal eye seal in his gains. During that quiet instant, he smiled internally. The future was yet unknown, and the testations that would follow would be vast, but for each ability acquired, he was making a promise—a promise that he might forge the shadows into his own future.
And thus, in the eyes of the venerable trees and to the gentle hum of nature as his arena,
Su Vaen stood prepared to take one step forward—a night watchman, a still soul in the wilderness, and now a leader of the new journey.