The sound of chipping echoed through the distortion. Sharp, almost like a wood pecker attacking the same spot over and over again. Ezra stood a few meters away from the tree, arm raised. Slicing the air as if trying to cut something invisible.
Another faint chip fell from the bark.
"Dammit… not deep enough again."
Ezra doubled over, hands on his knees and breathing ragged.
Pedro remained a short distance behind him, watching without comment. Ezra had only learnt to stabilise his cos yesterday, yet he had already reached the first threshold of true sorcery.
Conversion.
The foundation of modern sorcery. Conversion worked on the understanding that cosmic energy exist inside of everything. Anything that held cosmic energy could in theory, be recreated by anyone that understands its flow.
Ezra closed his eyes, replaying Pedros lessons.
First feel the air. Understand the flow it carries.
Finds it cosmic rhythm.
He inhaled deeply.
Then match it.
Hold your own cos steady and mirror ir.
Ezra lifted his arm again, swinging a clean arc.
Don't stop at the surface.
Follow through and…
Condense it.
A sharp crack ripped through the clearing.
The tree split cleanly down the middle. Collapsing into the snow with a heavy thud.
Then the tree behind it cracked.
And the tree behind that.
One after another, trunks parted like paper before the blade that didn't not physically exist.
Pedro smirked. For in that moment, he realised the truth. The self loathing kid he'd met barely a week ago might be far more talented then he let on.
"Nice." Pedro flashing his usual shit-eating grin and giving a thumbs up.
Ezra didn't respond. Instead he was back to folding over, hands on knees, chest heaving. Pedro clapped his hands together once.
"Alright. Time to finally break out of this damn distortion."
Ezra snapped upright, staring at him like he misheard.
"Break out? That was my first clean, there's no way I can hit a moving target."
Pedro stepped closer, lowering his voice.
"To be honest with you kid… we don't have much time."
He pointed to the sky, the clouds were hung unnaturally still.
"This distortion's sinking. If it collapses, we're both ash."
Ezra froze.
"But relax,"
Pedro thumbs pointing towards his chest proudly.
"I'll be fine. I can get out, remember?"
Ezra opened his mouth but Pedro had already decided.
The ashkin would never come out as long as his presence was still around. It was to stabilising, too overwhelming. The creature was hiding because it had to. So he brought both palms together in front of him like he was praying.
A soft snap echoed…
And suddenly he was gone.
Vanished like smoke.
Ezra spun in place, looking around frantically.
"Pedro? This isn't funny."
Damn old man… he said he couldn't use his divine anymore but it's clearly some sort of teleportation.
He pushed deeper into the forest, every step unsteady.
All I have to do is kill it. Kill the ashkin and the distortion breaks… right?
Ashkin born inside distortions have one goal: consume as many souls as possible. If they grow stronger than their assigned layer it can break out of the distortion, slipping into plane 0. Where they can continue feeding.
Or worse…
Possess someone.
And now with Pedro gone, the creature locked fully onto Ezra's scent.
Ezra's chest tightened. He had felt safe with Pedro; grounded, untouchable. But now the memories rushed back, brutal and uninvited.
This was the place they all died.
Suddenly the trees looked taller. The forest looked darker. The ash colder.
Then—
CRASH.
The monster burst out of the snow behind him. Ezra dove instinctively, rolling through the frost.
I felt it…
It came again, lanky arms slicing the air but Ezra lept aside. Only for the ashkin to reappear directly in front of him.
He shut his eyes on reflex, refusing to open. But this time was different. He felt the air shift.
The cosmic flow ripple.
And his body moved naturally. Bouncing back like he'd been pushing the wind itself.
Thats right… I don't need my eyes. Just follow the flow. Follow the energy.
He sucked in a shaky breath, focusing on the sixth sense Pedro drilled into him. He was scared, and fear slows him.
The ashkins massive arm hammered into him. Sending him flying into a tree. The impact knocked the air out of his lungs.
"W i n t e r…" it growled.
But Ezra didn't freeze.
He remembered the fight with supervisor Ann. Everything the monster touched froze solid.
Not this time.
Just before impact, instinct flared. Wind burst from his core, forcing the arm away but the recoil launched him the a ragdoll.
I need to focus.
He inhaled—
But before he could exhale, the ashkin erupted beneath the snow, kicking him skyward.
Ezra barely managed to block it but the burst wind sent him higher.
It's weaker than when it fought Ann…
She really was a great sorcerer.
Ezra gave a faint smile, even as he hung in the air—he closed his eyes again.
Breath steady.
Senses wide.
The ashkin leapt after him—
Ezra swung his arm.
Flow through…
Condense.
A slice of compressed wind carved cleanly through the monster.
The ashkins arm severed mid-air.
Both of them crashed into the snow.
Ezra struggled upright, clutching his ribs, slipping on the ice.
The ashkin screeched, retreating into the forest, burrowing itself beneath the snow.
Ezra forced himself to stand up.
Another breath.
A clear one.
There you are…
He turned, swinging his arm at a strange diagonal.
Condense.
A muffled groan roared beneath the snow.
Then silence.
A heartbeat later, the world around him cracked open—
And the summer sky shone through as the snow dissolved, the distortion finally collapsing. A gust of wind curled around Ezra as he steadied himself, breath burning in his lungs. The last trashes of ash dissolved into the summers air and then a hand tapped his shoulder.
Ezra yelped, spinning.
Pedro stood behind him, grinning like he'd only stepped away for a minute.
"Not bad."
He brushed snow off his coat.
"Bit messy. But hey, alive is alive."
Ezra sighed.
"Where did you go? And how did you even… did you see all that?."
Pedro hummed.
"Maybeeee."
Then shrugged.
"I've got my ways."
He examined Ezra more seriously now, tapping his chin.
"You should be way more broken, by the way. That thing hit hard. But you were reinforcing yourself without noticing."
Pedro poked his ribs lightly.
"Instinctual sorcery. Prettttty rare…" he said slapping Ezra on the back like a proud grandpa.
Ezra looked, flustered.
"I just… moved. I didn't really think."
"That's how geniuses work." Pedro muttered, to himself mostly.
He glanced towards the forest edge.
The SOL tape shimmered faintly, the emblem still marking the area as a no entry zone.
"Of course they didn't bother coming in… So much for 'Safety of lives'."
"They probably assumed the ashkin wouldn't be able to break out. Systems like theirs rarely care about whoever gets trapped inside."
Ezra's jaw tightened, but Pedro continued before the mood could sink. He planted his backpack onto the ground.
"Well… You survived. You learnt to control your cos in a few days. You pulled of wind conversion in your first big fight."
"Plus you didn't die. That's the important part."
Pedro pointed a thumb towards the horizon.
"How about you travel with me for a while? Learn some more sorcery properly. Actually understand what you're doing instead of whatever that freestyle swing and pray style was."
Ezra hesitated for only a second.
Lyla…
"Yeah… I want to learn. And I don't really have anywhere else to go."
Pedros grin widened, warm and genuine.
"Perfect,"
"Then let's go kiddo. Worlds bigger than this little forest."
The pair stepped into the sunlight.