Lucen's body appeared in the first floor of the tower.
Around him, the only visible things were black skulls and stone-like bones.
The place smelt like burnt stones. The wind was hot, and the eerie silence sent chills down his spine.
It's no time to be scared, now that I have bonded with a strong entity, I should strive to be the best, he thought.
Lucen looked around, trying to see if any of his classmates were there.
"It seems they've gone deeper. I'd better catch up with them."
As he spoke, the thought of wiping the smug smile from David's face arose.
He turned back and scanned the area carefully. After consideration, he finally decided to pass the place where the mist was most concentrated.
As he walked, he heard a sound from his front.
Lucen smiled. Those should be whisperers, masters of illusions through words. They are the worst for newbie bonded.
{Lucen, you let your sister die}
{You are such a useless son}
{Brroother}
"For a moment, he flinched, but then he gritted his teeth. That won't work on me," he muttered to himself as he regained his footing.
"Your only weakness is a person with a strong will, once your illusions are broken, you are nothing more than lambs waiting to be slaughtered," he said calmly while remembering the academy's teachings.
He looked up to see the tall thin humanoid with no face. Only a swirling mix of dark and white where his head should be. Its mouth was impossibly opened wide, with a smaller face inside.
He moved back slightly from the figure, fear evident in his steps.
No, I can't keep getting scared. I either kill it, or it kills me.
He stretched out his arm, and a shining sword materialized.
"This is my first fight, I must not mess it up," he thought as he raised the sword to strike at the whisperers.
As the sword swung down, a loud chime was emitted from its blade, making the whisperers look stunned.
With a clean cut, its head fell to the floor.
"I did it! I killed my first voidbeing," he screamed in excitement.
"Growl," a loud roar was heard behind him.
As he turned back, a panther-like being, with thin limbs and claws made of shimmering void glass was approaching him.
Is this a fadeclaw? How am I seeing one so soon? Lucen thought in fear.
Don't tell me you got scared just because of something this weak, Azarith said in his head.
Shouldn't I be, a fadeclaw is stronger than what newbie bonded can face, he replied, the tension evident in his tone.
It seems you don't know the full extent of my power. Try activating the combat form.
Lucen nodded calmly, and mentally commanded his sigil to activate tier 1 combat form.
Instantly, his hazel eyes blanked out, and it was replaced by a black and white pair on each side.
"This feeling is different, it feels like things have slowed down for me," Lucen thought.
He looked back at the panther, and saw that its terrifying speed from before had been slowed, and he could see every one of its movements perfectly now.
As it got closer, the glowing sword shimmered, and transformed to a dagger.
The dagger pulsed with golden light.
Is this the best weapon I can use? I am not really good with a dagger, good thing weapon mastery was compulsory in the academy.
A true warrior is one that can face any situation, there is no such thing as I can't, there is only the urge to push forward and surpass the limit.
I understand what you are saying, I would try to get better with other weapons when I leave the tower, Lucen replied.
While they were busy with their conversation, Lucen failed to notice the panther merging with the mist.
"Where did it go?" Lucen asked with worry.
Then suddenly, the golden light on the dagger flared brighter, clearing the mist around him slightly.
As he looked, he saw the panther mid-swipe, aiming at his neck.
He side-stepped cleanly, and managed to thrust his dagger into its body.
The panther growled in pain, and leapt back in time to avoid another attack.
The panther balanced its body, and glared at Lucen with hostility, blood still dripping from its side.
"You attacked me with the intention to kill me, don't blame me." As he spoke, he held his dagger tightly, and dashed towards the panther.
As he moved towards it, the mist in the area began to converge, obstructing his view, and entering his pores slowly.
Hey, what you are doing is dangerous, it might get you killed, Azarith screamed directly in his mind.
Lucen did not answer, and continued to run towards the panther.
As Lucen got closer, his dagger transformed again, this time taking the form of a gauntlets.
A crimson gauntlet materialized on each of his hands.
As he closed in, he delivered a terrifying punch to the jaw of the panther, sending it skidding backward.
Lucen grabbed it by the legs, and smashed it's body back into the ground, causing a deep crater to form beneath him.
As the beast lay on the ground, it released a loud howl that shook the place.
Lucen didn't care, and saw it as a cry of desperation. He delivered a finishing blow to its head, bursting it into gore and brain matter that splattered over the place.
See, I killed it myself, Lucen said to Azarith.
You don't need to see me as a child, or an unworthy vessel.
As he spoke, his body fell to the ground with a thud, and he lost consciousness.
This boy is crazy, he forfeited my warnings and charged in, Azarith shouted in anger.
I would tell him to increase the void cores he owes me when he wakes up.
I need to help him deal with this.
Lucen's body shook slightly, then he stood up.
Error pulse, that was the only word that came out of his mouth.