Flashback [Training] Whatever the Cost

[Elias Caldera]

40th Day of Spring
508 AV

“I don’t give a flying petch what you ‘thought’ initiate, now drop it and get your ass over here!”

The speck of rage filled spittle that hit him on the cheek as madam Sylvari screamed from across the training pit was enough to immediately convince the boy he was wrong and she was right. He abandoned the sword and shield in his hand as hastily as he could and came bounding hesitantly towards the imposing woman. He had upset her, obviously but he figured that perhaps he would escape the little confusion about whether or no he was meant to be training with his weapons today without so much as another curse thrown at him if he was lucky. When Sylvari’s fist smashed into his jaw, the petitioner realized he had been wrong for a second time now.

------

When Elias had awoken that morning, his body still ached. His hands stung as he shifted them, the raw skin of blistered callouses brushing against an uncaringly stiff mattress sent more pain shooting up through his arms than any man deserved to feel as soon as they woke up. It elicited a wince as he pulled his hands away and cradled them as if they were his babes. It didn’t help matters that then was the moment the bruises on his ribs and stomach decided it was time to remind him that the day before had not left him unmarked. Easing into a uncomfortable seated position, Elias blinked in the darkness of the barracks, taking mental account of his seemingly endless list of injuries and finding they were not so severe he couldn't get up and get dressed. The morning horns hadn’t sounded yet, but he had become so accustomed to waking up at this time unbidden by any screeching instructor, that he was certain they would be sounding any chime now. Getting up in the dark however, did not translate into being all that adept at maneuvering in it, and even after falling into something resembling ease and familiarity with his new humble abode, Elias was still as cautious as possible as he stumbled over his own sheets and the bunks of his fellow petitioners during the early morning hours.

Sliding on his shirt and pants as gently as he could, Elias moved on with a yawn to the chest at the foot of his bed and assembled the rest of his gear stored within. It was going to be another long and painful day, and where once the anger of humiliation and the sometimes literal torture his overseers put him through drove the young man through resentment alone, these days that rage had transformed into a determination to not fail. For a while now, that alone had guided him up and out of bed each and every grueling morning. He refused to prove them right. He refused to give up and go skulking back home like they wanted.

Once his clothes and armor were on, Elias gently padded through the flickering streams of early morning light cutting through the rows of tiny windows spread throughout the barracks. Having woken of his own volition, his mind was not nearly as groggy as it could have been, and he saw that few other recruits were stirring, let alone up and about as he was. By the time he had reached the door leading into the courtyard, the morning horns had roared to life.

Elias had made his way to the main hall with surprisingly not even a word from the line of instructors that were marching into the barracks to begin their hallowed morning ritual of beatings and yelling to rouse the recruits. He didn’t look at any of them as they passed, and not because he didn’t care for their less than pleased reactions to him being awake before they could get to him in his bunk, but more so because he dreaded the idea of garnering any more unwanted attention from the monsters than he had to. As he stepped through the towering doors of the main training hall however, the apprentice to be found madam Sylvari already inside. He shivered uncontrollably as her beady eyes fell upon him sneaking into her territory. The stocky, muscled instructor stood in the sands of a fighting pit alone, adorned in a plain vest and equally dull pair leather trousers to accompany an aura of hostility that the boy could feel even from the other side of the hall. She pointed at him, Elias squinting to make sure of it, and then with the same finger, silently motioned him over.

Elias didn’t waste any time dawdling. He doubled timed it over to Sylvari’s pit, the sword and the shield he had taken earlier from the weapon racks bouncing in tandem with him as he ran. His mind was awash with fears of what was about to happen. He had heard rumors of this woman before, and by the sound of it, he had been spared a cruel fate by not ever having to train under her before. He dearly hoped that wasn't going to change now. As Elias neared, he couldn’t help but noticing her breathing was leaving her in short but controlled bursts, and a thin sheen of sweat covered her exposed arms and face. It was as if she had just raced across the entirety of the training hall on someone else's whim herself. She must have been warming up Elias decided as he came to a stop and bowed his head in respect. “Madam Sylvari, I-“

"Disrobe, prospect. I’m going to teach you how to use those fists of yours today." Elias lifted his brows and frowned. That wasn’t right. He had weapons training today. Hell, he had nothing but weapons training all week as far he was spitefully promised. He let Sylvari know as much in the most degradingly respectful and polite manner he could. Well needless to say, what followed was some yelling, a punch to the head, and then another unscheduled meeting between his face and the floor on behalf of an displeased instructor.

The sand in his mouth was a new twist however.

He coughed.

He wasn't a fan.

[Elias Caldera]

“You don’t want to find out what I’ll do the next time you decide to not obey, boy.”

Elias spat out the sand staining his teeth and nodded as best he could. The ground was still a bit hazy as he struggled to find his footing again, but Sylvari’s words had been hot and loud in his ears regardless. It went without saying, he believed her. Finally making it to his feet, Elias bowed, apologized, and gingerly removed his armor. His shirt followed next and he folded them all together and placed them off to the side. Sylvari never took her eyes off him the entire time. Staring him down, her dreadful eyes flicked over the redness of his hands and the darkened bruises on his side. "Scrawny." She spat. Elias stepped onto the sand without a word, the smooth grain pressing against the bare skin of his feet. All he could think about was how much blood had been spilled in what he was standing in right now, and how to keep his own from joining it. "Take your stance." Elias took a stance similar to the one he often saw others using off and on. Fists near his chin and elbows down low. Sylvari took her own, her body pouring into the pose as easily as if she were standing. "Ready?"

"I’m not sure wh-" Sylvari's hand moved forward at a speed just patient enough for Elias to duck his head out of the way and avoid. A follow up strike came in the form of another clenched set of knuckles flying at him, but despite how uncomfortably aware Elias was of it, his momentum kept him from getting out of the way in time. Her fist connected with a solid hit, though the contact was more surprising than it was truly painful.

"It never fails to amaze me how incompetent you petitioners are. Haven’t you ever been a fight before…" A darkness burned in her gaze as she regarded him and waited.

“Elias, madam.” He replied, finally getting the hint. Its Elias Caldera, you bitch… He thought to himself, biting back the frustration building in his throat. “I get the feeling you haven’t shown me everything yet. Come again, prospect.” Elias nodded, putting his hands back into their proper position. Instead of waiting for her to take the first move, he lunged forward, the pain in his ribs uttering small protests but largely ignored. Darting forward, Elias unleashed a strike, using the extent of his quite noticeably lacking abilities, as he figured the other woman was well versed enough in her chosen form of combat to be able to handle the totality of his effort. He was right, unfortunately. She knocked his arm aside, using his momentum to step out of the way to let him pass before smacking him on the back of the head. He stumbled forward a few paces, but wasted no time in whirling around in an attempt to follow up with a left hook. His arcing arm was stopped by her forearm, bouncing off of hers and sending a shiver of pain across his entire body. She followed up with a quick step in, wrapping her fingers around his throat like she had practiced it a million times before. The sudden contact caused him to freeze in sheer surprise, a trickle of doubt creeping into his thoughts as he judged whether or not she was going to chalk this up to just another part of their impromptu lesson, or rip his throat out and move on the next unlucky bastard. With a distinctly grateful gulp of breath, Sylvari released her prey.

Things clearly weren’t over however, as the women was still bouncing on her feet while Elias gingerly rubbed at his throat. Shyke, she’s fast… Unwilling to let himself be bested so easily, Elias pressed on again. This time he jabbed, but restrained his anger and his own instinct and decided against fully committing. Instead he let his first fist fly and then and instant later began to pull back, readying himself to follow through with another. "At least you’ve got your stance close enough to acceptable." Sylvari stepped towards him, a jab of her own directed at the bridge of his nose. He didn’t need a broken nose to add to his already unbearable list of injuries, so the petitioner, though never would he say as much out loud, was thankful of how she moved at a clearly mitigated speed, allowing him time to both see what she was doing and adjust himself to handle it. He chose to step back, which she followed by stepping through with a shot of the other hand. Attempting to mimic what she had done to him before, Elias lashed out at the incoming fist, knocking it to the side but wincing as the bone beneath his skin cracked against Sylvari's. If the witch had felt anything from that like he had, she didn’t give him the satisfaction of showing it. She took a step back. "Quick to learn… or you were underestimating me before. Shall I show you what I do to fools who underestimate me, Elias?"

"My progress is simply a testament to your skill as-"

“Spare me your groveling, worm.”

Barely suppressing a snarl, Elias darted forward, trying an uppercut with his right. For a second he feared she would notice the blatant fury behind his blow and take offense. Instead of dodging it and murdering him for his rash attack, Sylvari simply moved about like she had done prior and gave the back of his head a second wallop.

"Is this so unfamiliar to you that you’ve forgotten all the basics of combat, maggot. You’re still alive, so I assume you’ve been here long enough to have been taught as much."

The strike had disoriented him and removed what power and poor judgment he was using to guide himself. Retracting his hand as fast as he could, he slipped it into place under his chin and took a step back. He needed to think this through, because gods be damned, her words were ringing true of wisdom. His eyes scanned Sylvari's movements and the woman herself more closely now. She was barely any taller than him, and even being as big as he was for his age that was slightly surprising none the less. She practically danced on his toes and heels as well, which was something he had assumed was obvious, but now that he dared to glance down at her footwork, he saw the instructor was in constant motion, though sometimes it wasn’t as clear at times than he thought. She must have trained a long time to become what she was now. Her body swirled with coiling muscles, much more so than his own. He wasn’t a fan of her short cropped hair though, and the fact that her jaw was bigger and stronger than his own was unnerving now that he thought about it… Wait. Why in Dira’s hell was he thinking about it?!

His wandering inner dialogue was cut short split tick later as Sylvari began to advance. It was unsettling to be so uncertain of what she was going to do now that she went on the attack, which made doing anything more than retreating a risk he wasn't sure he wanted to take. It was then however, that he realized what had changed to make his mind wander so. Somehow, without his noticing, Sylvari had undone the taut laces that secured her dark vest. Where before there was nothing to distract, now there stared back at him an impressive amount of cleavage the likes of which the prospect had been utterly unprepared for. Damnit, stop thinking about and get back in this fight. She’s going to punch you in the face!

[Elias Caldera]

Sylvari attacked, a long reaching roundhouse aimed directly at her target. Being that said target was him, Elias rose an arm to defend, unable to escape in time. The blow connected thankfully, but he found that as his arm barely shook under the light impact. Sylvari had moved her other arm in an uppercut even as she recoiled from her first strike. Foolishly thinking he had managed to get lucky before and now helpless to do anything but brace himself, Elias moved his free hand to protect his face as the woman’s knuckles pressed into his forearm. This time, she struck him without holding back. Staggered, Elias struggled to right himself and find his stance while Sylvari choice to back off some. The apprentice shook his arms, the sting of his previous training sessions partially forgotten as the fight at hand became more serious.

Sinking back into his pose, Elias cautiously shuffled forward. He was beginning to notice an odd lack of shouting and swearing on her part, or as the instructors liked t call it ‘guidance.’ Did she not respect him enough to offer the same lessons she did with others? The sheer outrage at the idea infuriated him, and where words would be of no use, the Ebonstryfe initiate made several jabs aimed to let her know what he thought of her disrespect instead. They were all knocked aside like annoying bugs, forcing him to step back and out of range of her immediate ability to respond. He was mad, but not stupid. He wasn’t going to give her anymore free shots while he could help it. "Stop being such coward and commit to an assault.” Sylvari barked, and in a burst of speed, surprised Elias as she dashed up to him, her hands moving too quickly to stop her from striking him on either side of his head in quick succession before she drew back. Her retreat had been unnecessary truth be told. The punches had left him stunned, if not terribly hurt, meaning he would have still been pathetically harmless had she remained. The fact that she didn't simply went on to prove how much better she was at this than he. She was thinking ahead, and despite his best efforts, Elias couldn't keep up.

"Perhaps you’re just not ready for this. Perhaps the others have been going easy on you, Petitioner. I think maybe you’d do best to leave while you still can. Is that what you want to do, poor little Elias, run home and give up?” Putting on an air that he was still ready to go was not in the least bit easy, and his profuse attempts to blink away the daze she had inflicted on him wasn't helping to sell his ruse, but even in the state he was in, Elias already had an answer for the wicked woman. Trying to imitate Sylvari's charge, Elias pushed himself forward, a geyser of sand flung up by his admittedly reckless approach. He swung at her, his fist brushing off of her damn deflecting arm as she smashed him on the head again. He barely caught himself before falling over. He didn't want to taste that sand again, and was desperate to avoid it at all cost now. Spinning around to face his opponent once more, Elias shook his head replied.

"Never!"

Spurred on by his hissed defiance, Sylvari pressed him then, a rapid succession of strikes at his head and arms as she flowed into his meager defenses, forcing him farther back until the idea of actually being thrown out of the ring was becoming more than just a remote possibility. He saw no opening, and truth be told, barely anything else as he hid behind his arms like a shield while she battered him into submission. When the beast finally drew back, Elias’s reprieve came at last. Much to his dismay however, he noticed that while her breaths came at a steady rate, his own were teetering on become haggard. He advanced, in dire need of a victory now, regardless of how small or insignificant. Swinging his arms at her with all he had, the young man found his attacks brushed aside with ease yet again. This time however, he managed to duck away from the resulting smack intended for the side of his head. He clenched his jaw in frustration, It didn’t mean anything that he could avoid that when he still was worse than helpless to actually land a hit of his own.

Sylvari allowed no time for inner thought and moved to strike him again. This time Elias ducked and jabbed at the woman's stomach, hoping a new tactic would prove more fruitful than the last. His fist was knocked aside once more, but now that he was attuned to the fight, he had had at least been able to save himself from yet another increasingly frustrating strike to his head. He drew back, arms raised and eyes calculating.

If she wasn’t going to help him solve this puzzle, he was going to have to do it on his own. Sylvari however, gave him a short nod, a venomous smile playing at her lips. "Better." Her tone had changed, and he noticed how her dark eyes were softening, but to say they had lost any of their cold fire would have been a blatant lie. She took a few steps towards him but his retreat wasn't fast enough this time.

[Elias Caldera]

"You’re weak, prospect"

Even if Elias had not been able to see the grin that curved to woman's lips, he would have heard it in her tone. With a furious grunt of effort, he swung again, expecting her to block. Instead, she did what he had done, ducking beneath it and jabbing at his stomach with enough force to send him lumbering back a few steps. His eyes leveled with hers while he labored for breath, heated brown orbs matched against the mocking glint of her own.

He attacked again.

Sylvari's rapid side step away from his punch was followed up by several strikes and smacks that sent him tumbling forward, thoroughly interrupting any idea of gaining the upper hand. Wobbling to keep his balance as he turned, Elias clenched his fists as he regarded her. His ribs ached from panting with the effort to keep up with his teacher, but it was dulled by his focus and the bubbling fury building within his chest. He wanted to hit her. He wanted to hit her at least once, and he was sure one was all she would need to realize he was no coward, or weakling, or whatever the petch else she had taunted him as. Another charge and several more evasions later and Elias was left wheezing on the other side of the sand pit, no where close to gaining victory. This was getting not only becoming embarrassing, it was tedious. Unwilling to voice complaint, Elias tried to set his mind on speed for a change, getting in the fast jabs he was starting to get a hand of in as quick a succession as he could muster. What seemed like an exceptional plan in his head however, turned to flailing interrupted only by the sound of Sylvari smacking him time and time again.

“It’s like I’m beating up a baby.” She sighed. Elias raged in return. Instead of speaking, he lunged forward, fists and teeth clenched. As he moved, however, his anticipation to block moved his hands directly in front of his face where the figured they would be more ready to deflect or subdue one of Sylvari's attacks. Instead, she held up an anchored forearm, allowing him to crash into it, sending both fists crashing back into his own face.The shift in momentum knocked him from his feet and he hit the ground with a defeated thud. Sylvari stood above him, a challenging curl of her lips as she placed a foot on his chest. "But then again, I think a baby would stand a better chance than you.”

Elias coughed and cursed openly for the first time. His everything hurt, and he wasn’t sure what he could do anymore. For the few chimes they'd been fighting, if one could even call it that, he'd been unable to land a single hit - and he was fully aware Sylvari had been going easy on him. Ideas and plots ran through his head as he glared up at her in barely hidden despair. In the end, nothing he could think of would ever work, and they both knew it by then. Finally, to a bitter shame than churned his stomach, Elias relented. “Will… will, you please teach me how to fight like you do, madam Sylvari?”

Sylvari didn't say anything for a chime or so as she studied him with an appraising gaze. She eventually lifted her foot off of him, but when she did speak, there was no scorn or pity in her tone, only certainty. “As if you had a choice.”

She offered him her hand, and Elias took it.

[Elias Caldera]

She prowled around his figure, tapping elbows and smacking hands when they rose or fell too high for her liking. He flinched against her touch, and he was starting to realize she never missed an opportunity to keep the contact between them as long or as painful as she could. After chimes of holding still according to Sylvari's directions, Elias's arms began to ache from more than just the wounds from the days gone by. The meticulous bending of his knees had begun to wear on him as well, and worse yet, his legs were beginning to shake and threatened to buckle. Having no indication that he was released and no further tasks given, Elias set his jaw and stared straight ahead, focusing on nothing in particular except not failing. "Go on, I dare to start slouching." He felt a pressure under his right elbow, pushing it up from where it had dropped some. He grumbled something under his breath. He could feel almost every muscle screaming out in protest as time went on, struggling for freedom under his skin as he made them toil and labor painfully to keep his pose exactly as it was.

Elias tried his hardest to calm his breathing, inhaling and exhaling with as much control as his aching body would allow. Sylvari continued to circle him, her eyes steady and hawkish in her search for any mistakes. "Hands up." Elias made the adjustment. He could feel the sweat from earlier beginning anew, and found the idea that holding a single pose for an elongated amount of time might cause him such distress was a poor testament to his lack of fitness. He tried to keep his mind on his own body though, ignoring even the sound of the other apprentices and petitioners filing into the great hall having all just been woken up and marched in together. Their noise filled the place like the prayers of the great temple at mass, bouncing off every nook and cranny and filling his ears to bursting.

He ignored it.

"I noticed something in you early on, you know." A sharp rap on his shoulders forced him to relax out of the shrug he'd slowly been adopting without thinking. "Something more innate in you than most others." She pushed against one of his arms until it fell into place, then she pushed some more forcing Elias push back while retaining his stance. Again, he wasn’t sure what her true purpose behind touching him so much was, and the sudden intimacy was beginning to become alarming, but Elias's determination to remain in control kept him steady, even against the rush of goosebumps across his flesh. "What do you know about the Flux, petitioner?" She pushed again, this time with her foot against his leg. Having watched her carefully, Elias thought he was prepared and remained resolute against the added force, gritting his teeth against the feeling of her skin against his own. Her question however, nearly made him falter. "Or of the djed that burns brightly in your veins?" She placed a hand on his shoulder, and the soft sensation only added to his agitation and confusion. Fingers danced and traced across his straining muscles as they lay curled and twisted, just as she had shaped them. Magic? What is she talking about? Elias stared ahead with a perplexed knit of his brow, not daring to tear his gaze away from the nothing he had so dutifully focused on ahead lest they fall in the murky depths of Sylvari’s.

"I-… Nothing, madam Sylvari. I know nothing.”

He could almost feel her grimacing. "How disappointing."

[Elias Caldera]

As time passed and hall continued to swell with warriors of all degrees, Sylvari began to give names to the different positions his body should and would become acclimated to. For one, bent knees and high hands allowed for easy fluidity when it came to blocking and dodging. It took time to memorize them all completely, and even still he would make a mistake here or there that the woman was eager to set him straight on as harshly or as uncomfortably handsy as she could. He wasn’t sure which was worse. "Switch." The word signaled he had to move to a new stance. At the moment, Elias stooped in a crouch, a quick duck for slow moving, sweeping attacks. Once Sylvari had him change, he popped up again, shifting into a stance with his right shoulder forward and his body turned to the side to minimize his exposure. Many of these were reminiscent of his sword forms, and every chance he could Elias tried to put himself in a similar mindset. His sword was just an extension of his arm after all, that’s what everyone kept insisting anyway. Well he was pretty sure his hands were even more of an extension of his arms that any sword...

Sylvari came at him then, but only after a warning click of her tongue. Elias shoved his forward arm slightly to his left, blocking the limb she pelted at him. "Good, switch." He hesitated, unsure of where to move to. Sylvari took up a stance with the left foot forward, which Elias was quick to copy. He held it for a while before Sylvari nodded, letting him drop his aching arms and straightened his straining legs.

It was strange to feel his body grow weary from something other than combat or the usual, endless exercise regiments forced upon everyone at the Vitrax, young and old. In an odd way though, Elias enjoyed it. Something about strenuous and taxing physical activities gave him a bit of a rush. He would often feel a fire stir within him when he pushed himself beyond a certain point, like a damned river deep under his skin brought to its limits as the waters rose and rose until eventually, the barriers gave way and power flooded over everything. Was that what Sylvari had hinted at earlier, this flux and djed nonsense? He knew Torian, his father, was skilled in some art of the arcane, but in practice, so were all Paladins. It was a right and an obligation many underwent when they took the black armor. Elias had never broached Torian on the subject before, but then again, he never really talked to his father at all it seemed.

Elias’s solemn musings were interrupted when he was commanded to put up his fists at the behest of his teacher. "It’s more than just your arm you’re using when you punch. Remember, the power comes from the legs and the hips. Twist and use the whole of you to drive your arm forward." He did so, wrenching his entire frame as he had been shown as he plowed through an imaginary target with his hand. He heard the woman make what he assumed was a complimentary ‘hmmm’ in response. Elias withdrew, satisfied that she was finally satisfied with something he’d managed. He'd followed her instructions to the letter, and as she rounded on him, scrutinizing beady eyes scouring his entire form from top to bottom, she seemed finally unable to find fault for which to punish him for.

“Your weight is centered. Good. Feet apart, knees bent, good, good. Now, we’ll spar again and see if you can keep that pretty little face of yours from getting beaten to a pulp.” Elias smiled for the first time that day, as odd as it was. Praise was rare, and appreciation even rarer still. He would take his from wherever he could find it, even if it was from the likes of madam Sylvari. As they both took their positions once more, Elias readied himself to do more than just mimic what he had been taught. Sylvari would demand more of him than that, he was sure. He needed to understand, utilize and master if he ever intended to prove himself to her, so that was what he intended to do.

With a motion of her finger, the mock battle began anew. Elias launched himself forward.

Hands and elbows flew wildly between the two of them, strikes blocked, diverted, and countered in a frenzy of increasingly furious movements. Eventually, Elias managed to connect, not just once, but several times with Sylvari's body. By that time however, the apprentice to be was panting from his repeated botches, and once he was able to comprehend the intricacies behind each strike, Sylvari had him repeat it until just the thought of it made him sore. When his punches, despite his desire to improve, became even weaker than they had been at the beginning, Sylvari finally permitted him to rest.

A water skin was thrown his way as he slumped down to take a seat. With what sluggish agility he could amass, Elias managed to catch it out of the air and take a drink. He took to the thing like a babe would a teat.

[Elias Caldera]

The brief respite was sweet at first, but the inaction only served to remind Elias what was hurting in the end. His ribs ached, his face and head still stung, and it felt as if all his muscles were crying out at once whenever he tried to move. His weren’t the only eyes fixed on his bruises however. “You remember what I told you earlier?” Sylvari asked, sitting across from her student on the other side of the pit. Elias nodded unsurely, taking the last swig from the skin before setting it aside. “That I have something inside of me? Something special?”

“Not special.” The stryfer corrected, “Everyone has djed coursing through them, yours just burns with a brightness that tells me it’s... eager to be honed, I think.” He wasn’t sure what made his skin crawl more, the idea that he was infested with this djed thing, or that Sylvari was somehow staring into his soul to see it in the first place. He’d heard that’s what the marshalls could do -the men and woman blessed twice by Rhysol himself- that they could look into your eyes and, just like that, pluck out every secret you’ve ever held unto in an instant. Sylvari still had both of her eyes though, and as dreadful to peer into as they were, they were not white like a chosen’s. “And this is how you move so quickly, you use djed?” His inquiry was innocent enough, but Sylvari’s laugh was obnoxious and might as well have been another slap on the back of his head for all intents and purposes. “No, boy, I wouldn’t need the flux to best the likes of you.” Elias suppressed a frown. "Djed is an energy inside all of us, you know. It moves around from place to place. Most of the time with no direction, no purpose, like a solider without a commander. Useless. But when you give it purpose and guidance, that power is magnificent to behold. As is the price. You go too far, you push too much –and you will, I assure you- and then it'll start to push back. Restraint, willpower, conditioning. You’ll need all of that, to even begin to think about controlling it."

Elias wasn’t sure if Sylvari was trying to warn him off or taunt him further. Whatever this was, it seemed too good to be true, and in a place like Ravok, that was often the case. What purpose though would she have to stare him wrong? “You want it don’t you?” She cooed, elbows on her knees as she studied him. Cynicism aside, Elias nodded. The Caldera had offered his life to the ebonstryfe the moment he walked through the doors of the Vitrax and laid eyes on the towering statue of Gru’tral. Whatever the price to be paid, it was nothing he wasn’t willing to give. “Yes.” The boy breathed, but the instructor merely lifted an eyebrow expectantly. This was her pleasure, he realized, breaking her students down and making them beg and squirm. She enjoyed it, and the petitioner, like the good dog that he was meant to be, had to fall to his knees and plead for her entertainment. Elias would do what he had to, whatever the cost. “Yes, madam Sylvari. Teach me this, I beg you. I want it.” As the words slithered off his tongue, a revolting smile crept unto the woman's thin lips. It was like watching a predator catching its prey. “Good boy. Now close your eyes and clear your thoughts.”

Elias did as he was told. Whatever the cost… He kept repeating over and over again as he felt her looming over him even behind the darkness of his eyelids. Whatever the cost

"Just like the blood that flows within you, djed is a like maze of rivers and streams circulating all underneath your skin. Feel the burn of your muscles, let the sting and pain paint a picture of what’s happening beneath. Was this why she had made him suffer such grueling training, to inflict enough pain that he could feel everything more clearly. "Feel the flow, know that you are more than a spectator to its comings and goings. More than just a host, you are its master. Cup your hands in the river, and you can carry the water anywhere you wish it. Dam the river here,” She said, a hard finger pressing into his right arm. “And the water overflows here.” Another poke, this time on his left arm. “Everything is calm within you, everything is orderly and placid and as it should be. Change that.” She paused, the only sound she made now was the quiet shifting of the sands beneath her feet as she circled him. Elias had to wonder if she had planned on this before they ever met, or if it was merely coincidence that brought the pair of them together as it had.

The noise of the hall had died away to him at that point. There was only Sylvari’s voice and the thud of his heart. It seemed a good a place as any to start his search from. This djed was like his blood after all, so what better place to find his hidden power than from the source itself. "Fluid and shapeless, it will fight you at every turn. One wrong step and it will all fall seap out of your grasp and back into place. Constantly maintain your grip, and always be aware. Picture that energy with your mind, guide it into your arm. It's not going to be comfortable at first, the other parts of your body will suffer as they are staved.” His muscles began to quiver and tremble. He thought he was feeling more than just the strain now, but how could he possibly be sure it wasn't just a hopeful phantom he had forged for himself. The Caldera followed the thunderous beatings of his heart regardless, picturing it as it struggled to pump blood through his tired body. There was something underneath that though he was certain, something deeper, something more primal than physical. He plucked at it at first, like trying to pinch a worm only to have it wiggle free in an instant. He wrapped his hand around it next, squeezing desperately as he carried it away. “The spasms are natural. Your muscles rejoice and gorge themselves.” There was a warmth flooding over him that Elias could not recognize, but he was feeling something, it was undeniable now, and he could no longer shy away from it, even if he wanted to. “Never let your grip or guidance be too strict or too tight. To warp the flow is dangerous, but to stop it altogether is deadly. It must always be allowed to carry on its path, your task is convincing it to go where you want it. Once you’ve learned you are the master, the Flux isn't about constant control, it becomes a game of subtlety and quickness. The blade strikes in an instant, the fist even quicker, and an instant is all the time you’ll ever need. Timing, focus, control."

Was this magic? Was this what it was like to wield something more than just steel and faith? Some prospects had a knack or natural talent for warfare and the lessons they were meant to learn here, but some weren’t as fortunate. If all Elias needed was to become comfortable with how he felt with what lay inside of him, then such a demand was all too easily accepted if it meant he could become better than all those he ever competed with. He would feel differently from now on however, and not just physically he realized, as he tapped into the new found source of energy. This thing was right before him and ripe for the taking, unfamiliar or as unsure with it as he was, he couldn’t just turn away. He had to embrace this wholeheartedly.

Elias slammed his arm down against the floor and the impact boomed across the entire hall.

There was silence for a while, and then he heard it.

“Good boy.”

[Elias Caldera]

The first thing he noticed was, of course, how much his hand hurt. He cradled it with a stifled cry, the agony of having just slammed what was already an injured thing into the ground was literally breath taking. “I felt it.” Elias groaned through his clenched jaw. “I felt it.” He exclaimed again, excitement breaching into his tone. Even the fact that Sylvari had draped herself over his shoulder and was petting his head could do little to diminish the feeling of success rolling over him now. “It was more than just me, I shifted something underneath it all and for a tick it was more than just…” Her lips formed a smile, and their faces so suddenly close together brought the prospect out of his jubilation in a heartbeat. “I know.” The instructor murmured into his ear, her breathe hot upon his neck. “I may have helped you, but still initiate, I was right about you after all. Very impressive.”

The serpent coiled around him ever tighter, an arm wrapping around his chest as kneeled behind him. He could feel the beating of her heart through the barely contained breasts straining against his back. Elias could feel his own heart begin to quicken in response. “I can… I can try again, madam. On my own this time?” Her only response was a jovial “You can, but not even you are talented enough to do so alone.” Disappointing, but this was something he would have to practice more, no doubt, but now it was also about escaping the precarious situation he found himself growing ever deeper in with this woman. For the moment, Elias returned to his focus, and the first thing he felt was the weakness in his arm. What had been the problem? Had he held the energy there for too long? Or had he simply taken too much from this alien sensation he was only just becoming to understand? He wasn't sure what the answer was exactly, but now that he had felt the energy, it had to be easier to find again.

He relaxed his breathing and forced himself to be calm again, subduing his elated, and at the same time, apprehensive emotions. He could grow stronger from this, he had felt the energy as clearly as he could feel the rays of the sun. This was a path towards greatness, and it was one he had to pursue, both for himself and the Ebonstryfe. His focus on the ‘djed’ returned slowly at first as his conviction returned in full. Too slow for his liking however, as until he had found it, the murmured musings and playful fingers of Sylvari had tortured him until his mind was torn away from her and thrown unto the task at hand completely. Soon the thudding of his heart was all he could hear or fathom, and the Caldera dove into it without hesitation. He pictured the river within him again, corralling it towards his right arm with less force and aggression than he had adopted last time. He was gentle, like a lover, and at first nothing responded to his touch. For a moment he feared he had spent himself completely with his earlier attempt, or that he had been too placid in his approach.

Then the warmth returned and he could feel the energy stirring. Invigorated like never before, Elias felt like he could punch through stone and tear apart steel. That power was intoxicating, incredible, and all too alluring he quickly realized. He had to let go.

The energy dissipated from his arm with a thought, a tingling feeling the only hint it had ever existed in the first place. Though it was gone again, the potential was…

"Magnificent."

“So it is, initiate.”

Sylvari unwrapped herself from around him without warning, climbing to her feet in one fluid movement and began to move away, much to Elias’s surprise. “Thank you for the warm up, recruit, but now its time for you to be on your way. Go find your taskmaster before he comes looking for you.” Oh sweet Rhysol… The realization abruptly hit him like a horse kick. Elias hadn’t even taken into account how much time he had spent here, with her, and not at all where he was meant to be. His instructor would whip him bloody and near to death when he arrived late. Panic struck as the soon to be corpse struggled hopelessly to find a way out of his predicament. I’ll have to feign injury- no sickness. Tell them I was at the medics all morning with a fever. It’ll have to do, what else can I-

“Oh and prospect, when you're done for the day, come find me in my quarters after dark. I have much still left to teach you. You won’t need your armor or weapons for our next session either, but be sure to bring your sword”

Sylvari smiled and sauntered away, no doubt towards the smell of blood like all sharks did, and left Elias there on the floor, wide eyed and wondering if perhaps the whipping wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

[Nemesis]

Elias Caldera

Skills	*	*
Body Building	*	+2
Endurance	*	+2
Flux	*	+2
Rhetoric	*	+1
Running	*	+1
Unarmed Combat	*	+3

Lores

*Djed: Energy

*Flux: Power in Combat

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Consequences, Injuries, Expenses, and More!

• None

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• Not as much to give here as the other ones, but a nice thread I love how you characterise the NPCs in the Ebonstryfe.