Onyx rose with a yawn, satisfying cracks filling the dark cabin as he stretched his sore arms. Few things beat the satisfaction of a long night of sleep in a house after a much longer journey. Bonus points if he saw plenty of new things and got in some good battles, both of which he was hoping for a repeat of the next time he set out.
Until then, he had a few things to do.
Shifting into a cross legged sit, he bent, cracks coming from his back.
These furs were nice and all but putting together a proper bed was near the top of that list. Or rather beds, plural.
In the corner opposite him Melina was sound asleep in the bed of furs he'd set up for her the day before. On her back with both eyes closed, hands interlocked atop her abdomen, she was near motionless except for the faintest rise and fall of her chest. The robotic, soldier like way of sleeping fit the reserved way she held herself while awake.
If nothing else she was the picture perfect definition of peace, her slightly parted lips carrying none of the unnatural restraint he'd come to associate with her. Sleeping beauty might've been a phrase that fit just as well, one unlikely to connect the chaotic state of this world as she was now.
Standing up, he stretched away some of the tightness of his legs before heading towards the corner Torrent slept in, grabbing his longsword from the wall beside him and stepping outside, little in the way of noise made.
It was early, the moon still out but the sun soon to rise and illuminate the island alongside the glow of the overgrown tree.
"Thank you, Father." As he descended the few steps of the front porch, his gaze was drawn towards Edgar's and Irina's nearby campsite. The former had just started a fresh fire to fend of the early morning chill, both quietly settling around the growing flame.
He'd expected the two to be talkative on account of the lengths Irina went for him but knew better than to put any hard expectations on another's familial relationships. There was often a certain strength to them that could influence even the strongest of wills.
"Morning." Onyx said as he neared them, doing more light stretches.
Irina perked up, lowering the hands she'd been rubbing together. "Good morning." She said with a smile, Edgar only nodding. "You aren't planning on running, are you?" She asked, acquainted with his routine already.
"That I am."
"But…" Irina fell quiet, the furrowing of her brow doing the speaking for her.
"Don't worry. My shoulder's good. Mostly." A flair of pain as he stretched the arm of said shoulder forced him to correct himself. "Want to join me?"
Edgar raised his attention from the fire he was stoking up, looking his way. There was a moment of consideration before he returned to the flame. "I must watch over Irina."
"I meant both of you." That surprised both, Edgar quickly turning to face him while Irina's brow jumped up.
"Me as well?" Irina questioned.
"Why not? A little blindness is no reason not to get in some exercise." Onyx said with a shrug. Last time, though she'd picked up on his usual routines, he'd never bothered to invite her along given how sick she was. "And who knows, you might find it fun."
"Can I really?" Edgar, a breath away from shutting down the idea, fell quiet in the face of Irina's hopeful question. He looked upon his daughter silently for a time. Then his shoulders lowered, nothing said to go against the idea.
"As long as you want to." Onyx said.
"Father?"
Edgar stood, looked between them, before a silent sigh Irina had no way of picking up on left him. "I will go as well."
With the reluctant approval of her father, Irina was quick to take up the offer, coming to a stand. An uncertain smile of excitement broke out across her face as Onyx came to her side, looping arms with her.
He wouldn't exactly be able to get a workout out of this while matching her pace but, if Edgar was open to his idea, there might be an even better one waiting on him afterwards.
XOXO
Onyx stepped forward, ducking beneath a punch and delivering one of his own. His fist, aimed for his opponent's expose side, hit home, sinking into pure muscle. He was forced to backstep, narrowly avoiding a grab for his shoulders. A grab that would've been more than a little difficult to escape.
Onyx took slow deep breaths, eyes locked with Edgar's own, the grass between them fluttering about as they gauged one another. They were just outside the cabin, Irina listening from the steps.
Strength and endurance. They hadn't been going at it long, Edgar having agreed to an unarmed spar after their run, but he'd quickly proven that he outclassed him in both categories. None of Edgar's punches had struck true yet but the numbing pain in Onyx's forearms, brought about by a few blocked blows, was telling of the difference in power between them. And, unlike him, Edgar's breaths were calm, sweat only beginning to build along the line of his dark hair.
Just as he'd been doing with all his opponents since coming here, relying on speed, technique, and experience was the only way to etch out a victory.
Onyx stepped forward, quickly moving to close the distance between them. Edgar didn't miss a beat, lashing out with a punch. Onyx grunted, catching the fist rather than avoiding it, and sending his own fist flying. His own act mirrored, Edgar caught it, the two of them coming face to face as they strained against each other.
But his primary goal wasn't a victory. The best way to give this body the workout it sorely needed was to consistently go up against a much greater force that required the use of every muscle just to keep up.
What better way to do just that than this? Plus, overcoming the man this way, however small the chance was, would be far more entertaining.
His shaky arms were pushed back, his strength soon giving out on him and Edgar pushing him back. A punch, right to the gut, followed, the air forced out of him. Another sent him back, but he regained his footing quickly, wrestling his breaths back under control and retaking his guard.
"You are resilient." Edgar complimented, prepping himself as well.
Onyx grinned before rushing once more, heedless of the pain.
"Please be careful." Irina called out to the both of them, far more concerned about the arrangement than either of them. She wasn't the only one. Boc watched from a distance, still too skittish around the others to put any trust in them.
Just how careful could two people swinging their fists at each other be?
XOXO
Two buckets sat on the steps of his cabin.
The one on the left had solid integrity, able to hold the liquid within without any issue. The one on the right didn't just look bad, its rim uneven and wood splintered in different places, but it failed to do it's one purpose, water leaking out of it from almost every angle.
"A shit attempt." Onyx said.
Edgar, standing beside him, grunted.
"I'm sure it isn't that bad father." Irina said, slowly making her way towards the steps and kneeling down to feel them out. She didn't have any trouble distinguishing between their creations. "It may not be perfect but I'm sure it-" As she took hold of leaking bucket and began to pick it up, the thing collapsed beneath her meager strength, what little water remained splashing the steps. "-has it uses." Irina finished slowly, unsure of what to do with the wood that remained in her hands.
A truly shitty attempt at carpentry but that's where most started.
"An old mentor of mine used to force me to run an obstacle course over and over. He wasn't the type to bother with praise, not even when my times began to improve." Onyx said. "When I got the best time out of all who ran it the only thing he had to say was that it wasn't hard to improve on garbage."
"Wise words." Edgar said.
"Indeed. Ready to try again?"
More buckets like that to retrieve water. Sizable wooden tubs that they could bathe in rather than heading down to the shore. Chairs and tables. Maybe even dressers and plenty in between all of that. There was much he wanted to build and he was going to use that opportunity to give Edgar here some hands on experience before they got started on something as big as a house.
He wanted the man to do the heavy lifting himself after all.
XOXO
The temptation was there. Stronger than ever now that he was back before that dragon corpse.
With mana so much would be trivialized.
The knights? Their plains weaponry would be hard pressed to pierce or bruise him, let alone kill. Predators? Their primal instincts would lead to them steering clear of him so long as he wasn't actively trying to hide himself. Travel? Unless Torrent was holding onto some other abilities than those mid-air leaps of his, their speeds would be leagues apart.
One little push and he could skip the next week or so of meditation and get all that power back at his fingertips.
Onyx cracked open his eyes as Melina's presence brushed against his senses, the woman in question quietly stepping into the crumbling stone of the ruins. She stopped across from him, one eye staring down.
And staring.
Andddd staring.
It was a little endearing how shot her social ques were.
"You realize that if it weren't for your looks, this would come off as creepy, right?" Onyx asked as he shifted, arm placed on the corner of his cross legs, and head lowered on his curled fist. "Want something?"
She blinked as if only just realizing what she'd been doing before kneeling down so that they were eyelevel. "…That world…" She whispered, soft voice trailing off into silence.
"Mmm, it wasn't something I ever thought another would see, but that ship has sailed." He said. After going so long without mentioning it, he was a little surprised she was bringing it up now. What spurred this on? "There isn't much more to it than what I already told you while you were there. In a way you got exactly what you asked for."
There the truth had been laid bare. Both his and hers. And she'd been something special. Far more special than that tree and the intrusive energy it infested these lands with. He had no idea why she wanted to go to it, but he was sure whatever goal she had in mind could reshape the entire land.
She was dangerous. Intriguingly so.
What he was most curious about was whether or not she realized that.
"It was…" She trailed off once more, the thoughts she was putting together interrupted by faint clicking this time.
"Onyx? Are you there?" Irina called out as she carefully stepped her way into the ruins.
"We're over here." He said while Melina moved, positioning herself beside him.
"Oh? I wanted to invite you to dinner again. Sir Boc and your maiden are welcome to join us as well." Irina said, stopping near the crumbled entranceway.
"Sounds good." Onyx said, standing up and looking at Melina. She picked up on the silent question, slowly shaking her head as she stood. Her steps were dead silent as she left, Irina not even registering her walking past.
Like Boc, Melina was content to observe those he interacted with from a distance though for starkly different reasons, no fear keeping her back. Right up until the very end of their stay with Sellen she'd made certain to never truly insert herself into things, little different than a prop in the background.
She spent much of her time watching and thinking about the actions of others so why not satisfy that curiosity with firsthand experience?
Another peculiarity about her that he may or may not figure out in their time together.
XOXO
(A/N: Building, training, talking. Going to be earning that slice of life tag in the next few chapters before the intro is wrapped up. Then some really big important stuff. Then a little of that R-18 tag sprinkled in for good measure. That's the general plan at the moment anyways. I've written ahead but still in the process of editing. You wouldn't believe how many scenes get cut or completely changed before publishing.)