LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 276: Zach
Time and Skills
“What is Skill? What is willpower?” The voice said, booming. Echoing in the cavern.
Zach grimaced, trying to tune it out, to focus on the task at hand—unsuccessfully. Harkon was yelling, using his skill for a reason. To distract him, to push him.
“They say that every focus that the Framework allows us is different,” Harkon, the Skill Master of the Empire, said. “They are wrong. All of them do the same thing, they give power. All is Essence, and so all is the same. You are a Soul, your body is made out of Essence that your soul can control and move, it acts in a way that makes you feel like it is more than that, but it is not. Following that logic, what is willpower then, if not an extension of the Soul?”
Zach calmed his breathing, keeping his eyes on his opponent. The Spirit of Miyamoto Musashi standing across from him, his sword held in front of him the point turned toward Zach’s eyes.
“Some souls are stronger than others, it is only natural. Some are more defiant and can push themselves further than even they can imagine in times of stress and in times of need. Others are focused and calm, overcoming through precision. There two types of Skill users, the evolvers are the Skill users that evolve their skills in battle, when they need it, by raging against the chains dropped on top of them. Their willpower is wild and vast, uncontrollable. Their skills evolutions are therefore what they need in the moment, to throw back the shackles that bind them. It is something that can save their life. In the end, such evolutions will always be something powerful, but they will always lack in comparison to a skill that you chose. The second type of Skill users are the planners, those who evolved Skills through planning and pushing themselves outside of such tense situations. Those who attain the calm and focus, who can narrow their willpower into a sharp instrument to execute what they want it to.”
Zach heard footsteps as Harkon walked behind him, his hooves echoing against the stone floor of the cavern.
“I cannot help you evolve your skills, only you can do that. What I can do is teach you how to sharpen your will.”
“This would go a lot easier if you didn’t speak,” Zach muttered.
Zach grimaced, but tried to focus nevertheless. His arm was in his Time Blade form, the color of tin, his hand extended into the blade allowing him some movement of the wrist. He held that above his head with the tip pointed in the direction of Musashi’s eyes. In his other hand he held another sword with a straight blade, reminiscent of a spatha, held in front of him with the tip pointed in the same direction. He wore his full armor, light and flexible.
He tried to tune out Harkon, but his footsteps were starting to intrude on his focus. He tried to push him away, and steeled his mind. He triggered his technique, {Charged Focus}. Then he held the two skills in his mind, then moved.
He leaned forward and dipped lower, then made the first step. Right leg to the side, opening up his hips. His right hand, started coming down, the Time Blade going behind his head and then to the side coming down at a ninety degree angle. He pulled his left hand down and back rolling the shoulder. He pushed his willpower, putting everything he had in his skills. He felt them tremble as he leaned forward, put his weight on his forward leg and twisted his hips to cut down with his right hand. He triggered his Slow Time as it fell, finishing the first step. Musashi moved before Zach’s attack finished, even with slow time he could see that the old master had positioned his body perfectly to block even with a disadvantage. His |Perfect Rending Strikes: My Strikes, Rend Time|activated as the blade came down, three strikes blurring in the space of one.
Musashi’s blade blocked them all. His Time Blade ended on his left hip, his sword behind his back. Time resumed its normal flow, and Zach started the second step. He pushed from his right leg forward and followed after retreating Musashi. He stepped out with his left leg at the moment he began attacking with his right hand. The Time Blade swung toward Musashi’s head in an arc from his left toward the right just as Zach twisted his hips again, whirling around. He triggered Time Stop and the blade reached for Musashi’s head. The old master had anticipated it, of course, he had seen this pattern before. Zach’s blade passed just over the spirit’s head, and time resumed. His sword came around as he swung, following the blade. Musashi deflected the blade upward and Zach let it curve through the air and carry him to the right.
He began the third step. He pushed off his left leg, throwing himself in the air and twisting, whirling in the air as his blade came down from above. It landed on Musashi’s sword and he triggered Rewind, his mind went back, his willpower trembling around him as he cut down, adjusting the trajectory as his blade fell. Musashi compensated, instead of blocking he pushed his blade to the side parrying. Zach spun bringing his sword down after his blade, out of position there was little that Musashi could do to bring his sword back in range, and he didn’t need to. He dropped to the ground in a move that he would’ve never survived in life on Earth, he bought himself time by going in the same direction as Zach’s sword, enough time that he brought the blade up just in time.
Zach felt his willpower shatter, what he was trying to build fall apart. He landed and closed his eyes, bowing his head in frustration.
“You know why it failed again?” Harkon asked.
“I’m sure that you are about to tell me,” Zach couldn’t help but say.
They had been inside this time chamber, a cavern the size of a large barn, for over a month. He had improved a few of his skills over that time and had learned two new ones. He was also close to evolving another perfect skill. He had improved his |Enhanced Clear Mind| to |Sharpened Mind|.
“You can have as many techniques and perks that make your mind focused and sharpened, it doesn’t matter. Willpower is all that matters, your soul. You are definitely a planner type Skill user, you only need to learn how to focus properly, leverage your willpower on your skills.”
Zach took a deep breath. “I’ve evolved my skills in times of stress and need before.”
The minotaur snorted and then waved his hand. “Sometimes such circumstances can trigger evolutions even in planner types. Regardless, back to the topic. You are not focusing enough, you're not calm enough, you are relying too much on your time powers to get what you want. And you are letting your willpower carry you forward when it is you that needs to wield it.”
“How can I get what I want without using my other powers? I need to flavor the skill evolution.”
Harkon shook his head and walked over. “No, you don’t need to activate abilities for that,” he reached over and tapped Zach over the heart. “That Essence is a part of you, through your arm, through your perks. It is in there, you only need to focus on what you want them to do. Flavoring with abilities and perks is for amateurs fumbling in the dark, those who hope that they would get something similar to their abilities. I say, why? We don’t want the same thing, you already have those powers, we want more, better, faster, stronger. Push your mind and your soul, harness your will and force it to do what you want it to do!”
Zach took a deep breath and then nodded.
“Good, try again,” Harkon said and then walked away, heading toward the other side of the cavern where Naha was sitting in a meditative pose.
Zach turned around and sighed. “Even with all those powers I can’t hit you.”
Musashi nodded. “You are stronger and faster, but mastery of movement, of body, it means much. You are still using that body of yours like… like it isn’t truly yours. Either you let us channel our mastery through you or you rely on its power to carry you in battle.”
Zach grimaced. “I am trying,” he said.
“You need to learn to use us as an addition not the core. Let our mastery inform what you do, but not guide it. That might make you as masterful as all of us together, but it slows you down, there is a disconnect between yourself and us, we’ve noticed it. You have learned much from us, by now, you are just as masterful as any of us, better than some had been at the moments of our death. Don’t doubt, let yourself be.”
Zach blinked, that was… a lot more elaborate than Musashi usually bothered.
“What I’m saying is fuck everyone else, do what you want.”
And there it was. Zach chuckled at Musashi then readied himself for another try.
“Again?”
Musashi rolled his shoulders and placed his katana in front of him, taking a defensive stance. “Come.”
Zach kept his weapons up, waiting for the attack. He looked around at the shadows surrounding him, trying to see even a glimmer of his opponent. Of course, there was nothing to be seen. He focused on his |Flaw Perception| trying to use it to glean any sign of her. Even |Darkness Sight| was useless, it was like he was peering into an endless dark.
And then his sense caught something behind him. He twisted away with |Perfect Spatial Evade| turning around and blocking the attack. Naha’s body was shrouded in shadows, making it hard to see her attacks. They came from all sides, two daggers held in her clawed hands. He felt her use a skill and he focused on his |Greater Parry|, her lacerate hit him, her will pushing his back. He deflected the attack, but not all of it. A gash opened up on his forearm and he cursed.
He took a step back, then focused his will again and slashed forward with |Greater Sealing Crescent Slash|. An Ethereal crescent left his sword, cutting through the air. Naha stepped away, avoiding it and entering back into the shadows, and disappearing from his vision and senses.
Zach grimaced, but returned to trying to find her again. And then he felt something cold on his neck.
“Got you,” she whispered in his ear.
“Damn,” Zach said. “You could’ve done that from the start.”
“Where is the fun in that?”
He could hear the smile in her voice.
“Yeah, fun.”
She liked to play with her food, sometimes. At least doing it to him was most that she felt pushed to do these days.
“A skill,” Harkon’s voice interrupted them. “Can help overcome a lot of things, make up for the difference in stats or mastery. But when two skill users fight, it becomes a lot harder. Opposing wills interfere, make everything… messy.”
Zach and Naha turned and looked at the minotaur. It had been another two weeks inside the cavern, all of it spent training. Harkon had them fight each other with skills only for a lot of that time, and Zach could admit that he had learned a lot about how to control his willpower. He could admit that he had been fumbling in the dark a bit before. His will had worked for him, but only in a wild manner, uncontrolled and untamed.
“And how does one overcome that?” Zach asked.
“By controlling your willpower better. A wild will can overwhelm, but a trained one perseveres and cuts through,” Harkon explained.
“That is not much of an explanation,” Naha commented.
Harkon shrugged. “Skill use cannot be taught in the traditional way, what works for one might not work for the other. I can only provide examples and general understanding. The rest is on you.”
Zach sighed. It was what he always said. True, Zach had gained a lot more understanding over the last few weeks. This place… it wasn’t just a time chamber, it was also designed to train skills. His willpower regenerated faster, there were arrays in the floor that made skills easier to manifest in the world around them. He had advanced his understanding of skill in this short time more than he had in years before. But he was still unable to achieve a tier eight skill, to merge two of his skills into one.
“Now, go again,” Harkon said, and both Zach and Naha got into positions. The training seemed endless.
Zach stood across from Musashi, in his familiar stance. Zach held his own stance, waiting. Noise was coming from the other side of the cavern, where Naha was fighting Harkon. He tuned them out, focusing his mind into an image of a weapon. His willpower was trembling inside of him as he forced it under his control. It was the same ritual that he repeated every single day, hundreds of times. And he would do it more, again and again, until he succeeded.
He kept his eyes on his opponent. He prepared his Qi, activating his technique. Then, he stopped, he remembered Harkon’s words and stopped his technique. He took a deep breath and focused without any help from his other powers.
He calmed his mind, standing there without movement. He saw the same calm in Musashi’s eyes, the old master was willing to stand there and wait until the end of time, and Zach slowly tried to emulate the same. The calm took over and everything else fell away. The sounds of battle, the sensations of the air on his skin, even his sight blurred at the edges. The only thing in focus was Musashi standing across from him.
He felt his willpower slow too, focus into his body and his weapons. None of it leaked outside, none of it influenced the outside world, only him.
He didn’t know how long they stood there, watching one another. But then Zach was moving.
The First Step, closed the distance. He moved faster than ever before, after thousands of repetitions, his body whirling in a practiced manner. He attacked with his blade from the right and then… his willpower pulsed and he was attacking from the left with his katana at the same time. He saw Musashi’s eyes widen, he twisted his sword trying to block both attacks at once, and failed. His blade pushed his katana away and his sword cut into the spirit’s right arm. Time pulsed around him, two Zach’s at the same time, seconds apart. Somehow both attacks came at the same time. Musashi jumped back, retreating, and Zach followed.
There was no blood, only white mist that leaked out of the wound on his upper arm.
The Second Step, had him close the distance again, fast as if time around him slowed or he speed up. He attacked with his blade heading toward Musashi’s head, he raised his sword and blocked, but at the same time Zach’s sword hit his side, cutting into his side.
Musashi grunted and dashed to the side, having the sword cut through his side and stomach instead of getting all the way through him. Zach followed, a need, a want, echoing inside of himself. He wanted to advance, to move forward, to never stop. To push through anything. He could feel his skill pulling something, trying to latch on to a part of him and he pushed a sentiment on it.
I will always move forward.
The skill accepted, and he felt it seal together.
The Third Step had him throw himself in the air, forward, whirling over his side parallel with the ground. His weapons falling on the spirit. Instead of two attacks, it was as if there were suddenly a dozen of them. Musashi raised his sword and blocked, it didn’t matter. Zach’s attacks got through, cutting up his chest, shoulders, opening up wounds as he came down to the ground.
“Huh,” Musashi said as his form dissipated into white mist that surged back into Zach.
He felt his focus slip and he stumbled forward, his head throbbing and his breathing ragged.
In the corner of his vision he saw notifications. Slowly he pulled them up.
Congratulations!
Your skill has evolved!
Perfect Tempest Dance: My Blades, Whirling Tempest & Perfect Rending Strikes: My Strikes, Rend Time >>
Technique Set: Temporal Tempest, Three Fold Strikes
Temporal Fighting (Skill Perk)
Activating this perk makes your movements happen 0.1 second after they were executed. Drains mental stamina at a rate of 8% per second. Gain +10% to intelligence and +10% to dexterity.
He had done it, merged two skills into one. And he had managed to get a set, a technique.
“Congratulations.”
He raised his head and saw Naha standing above him, smiling. He returned her smile and straightened up.
“So,” Harkon started. “What did you get?”
Zach made his windows visible.
“Hm,” he mused. “We will need to train and test your new perk, a lot. But it has potential.”
Zach nodded his head, and realized just how tired he was when he could barely keep it up.
“Rest,” Harkon told him. “In a few hours we’ll start training again.”
Zach suppressed a groan and leaned into Naha, letting her lead him to the small sleeping area at the edge of the Cavern.
He was one step closer to getting what he needed in order to survive in this world. Power.