[Flashback]Unexpected Students(Hex)

[Hatot]

Hatot laid on his back, still breathing a little hard as the pain throbbed in his shoulder and leg. His good hand slowly rose, covering his face as his jaw clenched and his lips pressed together tight. Almost as if recalling it was more painful than the wounds that now hindered his very movement. A sharp exhale was then released, as golden eyes stared up into the sky that was now slowly turning from black to blue with the steadily rising sun. “It’s not so much that he controls me,” Hatot said, remaining still as his voice cracked just slightly, “it’s more that he simply takes my place. Controls the body. In a technical point of view, it’s his body as well. I just try to keep him from using it as much as possible, for fear of what he might do.”

There was a somber look that crossed his face then as he let out another sharp exhale over the pain. “My body houses two souls, Hex. Every Akalak does.” Hatot continued to explain, shaking his head slightly over the fact. “The two souls are essentially opposite in nature. Imagine this, if you would? To have another soul, one which essentially spits and tramples on everything you hold in regard when it comes to morals and ethics. Then imagine this soul doing things, and your trapped in a cage of fire, unable to prevent it. Forced to watch every act of pure violence, of depravity while you’re helplessly held at bay.”

Hatot then slowly looked over to Hex, that regret that was in his eyes when he first resurfaced still there. “That’s what it’s like for me every time.” Hatot then said, his voice almost falling to a soft whisper. “I’ll understand if you want to leave. To move on for your own safety. For what he did, there is no way I can truly apologize enough.”

[Hex]

"I will not leave,"Hex said plainly "And I have no desire to shy away from your other half, I don't fear him." What she said was only half true, much like her culture, her skin, her race; much like Hatot even. To him, the comment may have been arrogant, naive, childish, foolish; but Hex knew what she was doing, and she in no way feared death, as death was merely a single chapter in life. As for feeling used or tainted, Hex's desire for Radris burned more fiercely than any hurt he could inflict on her, she was drugged by his essence, in the most toxic and insidious of ways. Hex had to put away her thoughts of passion, as first and foremost, she cared for the well being of Hatot. He had been deeply shamed by his other half's behaviour, even when Hex herself did not hold him to blame. She paced thinking, brushing dirt and grass away with her feet as she walked back and forth across the camp. She was pondering how being adept in auristics could help Hatot dampen the aura of Radris more often. "His aura is strong, red! And burning like the sun. But it is flawed, too emotional and open. So open, there are cracks" Hex nodded and smirked, speaking her words with expression and patient excitement. "I will teach you" she said then, more serious and matter of fact. She was a flippant mix of bewilderment and focus, a probably entertaining but confusing personality to follow for most people that weren't Hatot. He had the capacity to relate to her, understand her because she too was split in so many ways. She had even experienced what it was like to have her body controlled against her will, a ghost once, long ago.

[Hatot]

Hatot slowly looked up to Hex as she paced back and forth in front oh, almost in contemplation or plotting. She then went on to speak of Radris’ aura, a sort of fascination in her tone when she did. Hatot could only imagine, seeing things the way she did while using Auristics, to see things in fields other than normal vision and infravision. It must have been like an entirely different world.

Hatot’s brow then frowned slightly, confused for a moment as Hex stated she would teach him. “Teach me? You mean Auristics?” Hatot asked, as if to confirm what he thought.

His gaze rose back to the sky for a moment as he contemplated the possibility. Then doubts began to rise as he looked back to Hex. “If I have this ability, and lose control to Radris, this will also me he’ll have the ability as well.” Hatot pointed out, letting out a tone of concern. He then fell silent for a moment, imagining the other possibilities that would come with Auristics. He then looked Hex directly in the eye, an expression of determination appearing on his face. “Still, it’s worth the risks. Consider me in your capable hands.”

[Hex]

Hex paced for several chimes, pondering and thinking over her days of first learning Auristics. A time when Hex didn't have the ability seemed to merely be a fuzzy occurence in her mind, she had lived and breathed auristics for as long as she could remember. Before long Hex sat before Hatot, looked into his face intensely, searching his eyes and features, his body language, and eventually upon closing her eyes - his aura. Sure that Radris was slumbered inside of Hatot, Hex forced her eyes open once more and breathed deeply while straightening up into a seated position with her legs crossed. "The first step is awareness" her voice was a hushed lull of bewilderment, as if recalling the basics of her experience with auristics was pleasurable. "Open the mind past what you see with your eyes. Every grain of sand, stalk of grass, every insect, even the wind!" her arms flew up excitedly, and she panted as her heart raced; she was truly enamoured with the universe and found utter solace in communicating with it. "Everything that lives and breathes and exists is made of energy, at the most basic level. You must open your mind to these energies before you can ever read, let alone control auras." "First you must be introduced to the language of auristic energy. We must meditate and strip ourselves of our thoughts to be able to see the world's energies." Hex rested her hands on her folded knees and took a deep breath, closing her eyes and allowing mangled thoughts to melt away and untie themselves with ease.

[Hatot]

Hatot stared strangely at Hex as she explained the necessities of Auristics. He noticed the exuberance in her voice and body language as if she were experiencing a type of euphoria in recollection. It confounded him to a certain extent, not being able to fully comprehend her splendor without having seen it through the gaze of Auristics himself.

He then gave a nod when Hex mentioned first loosing himself in meditation, falling into that state herself. Hatot, unable to sit up himself at the moment, simply turned his head facing the sky once again. His eyes slowly as he slowed his breathing, focusing his wits. “Meditation is something I can do.” Hatot said softly.

Hatot then began to slow his breathing again even more, first focusing on pushing the pain aside, letting it fade away. While he was partially successful, most of it boiled down to him ignoring it and concentrating on the beating of his own heart. Sounds such as the wind whispering through the blades of grass or insects chirping in the waning darkness soon began to fade next, any further instructions from Hex being taken in before her voice would fade after.

Still his breathing slowed as the darkness of his closed eyes soon began to shift with colors and sensations, as the scenery of the great waterfall near his home city began to appear. Haton soon found himself kneeling near the edge, concentrating on the meditative world he had formed in his head. Radris screamed behind him, rattling the door of a cage as his hands gripped the bars. Eventually, the scene he always came to, faded away as well as darkness then formed around him and there was just him, in the void as all other distractions were set aside for now.

[Hex]

They shared a space together, a wavelength in time and space that connected them to the cosmic afterthought of life - the ever expanding universe that multiplied itself in all directions conceivable. One could get lost and nauseas wandering the energy plains, as comets of djed raced and boiled over every living thing that spanned across the horizon, up into the heavens, and into the very fleshy ground beneath them. "As you let go of those energies that weigh your spirit down, you will find yourself vulnerable. You will feel so entirely rested that you will feel as if you are turning into grains of sand. You will become one with nature. For now, simply notice its existence Hatot." Hex breathed the last few words as if she herself was being broken down into thousands of tiny spheres of djed, that in turn could communicate on the level of cosmic power that auristics existed. And before any training of manipulating or reading auras could begin, it was imperative that Hatot realize the vast existence and potential of the spiritual universe around them. It was from this ocean of energy that he could fish for the right lessons and opportunities to guide his future - to strengthen his control over Radris. But first he had to open his heart, his mind, his soul, his body; he had to surrender and invest every molecule of his being into the universal web of life, death, and all other shades of existence. To accomplish this, Hex needn't say anything and even if she had tried to she would not be able to communicate it in a way that Hatot would understand. The reason for this was that expanding and connecting oneself to auristic energies was dependent on the individual person letting go of the emotional inhibitions that stifle proper energy flow in the body. When the person being awoken to auristics is confronted with this phase of the initiation, their most vulnerable secrets are revealed and the festering tank of harboured emotion is unplugged by the seeking of ultimate truth. It was in finding and expressing the truth about himself that Hatot could effectively connect himself to the universe's energies. And he would know all of this naturally, because the universe was filled with information, most of which floated by frequently under the noses of the oblivious. It was in opening his eyes to this information that he would be able to reap their meanings and instruction. All Hex could do to help Hatot understand how to connect to this world was by directing him into meditation, a private place to reach groundbreaking revelations.

[Hatot]

Hatot remained kneeling in the void of his meditative world, his eyes closed as he breathed in and out slowly. For what seemed like bells, time passed where he felt no change. “Become one with nature?” Hatot said idly, his voice echoing through the world. “How am I supposed to feel like I‘m becoming one with sand?”

“I’ll tell you how!” a voice suddenly growled behind Hatot as his eye’s opened wide, feeling a tight grip along his shoulder. His head turned quickly, looking behind him to see Radris standing there, still very much a part of his meditative world, and now out of his cage. “I’ll pound you into dust! That’s how.”

Hatot’s arms flailed out, grasping at empty air as his body was suddenly lifted through the air, Radris’ strength, fueled by rage, seeming incomprehensible. Hatot let out a loud exhale as his body was slammed along what he could only describe as a hard surface black of the void. Inky black jetted up, sliding along his body when he slammed down, almost grasping at Hatot’s sides before sliding back down. Hatot’s gaze rose to see Radris raising both of his fists over him. He quickly rolled to the side as Radris brought them thundering down along the black, causing another splash of ink.

“Radris!” Hatot almost growled as he got to his feet, raising his hands in his stance. “What are you doing here? You shouldn’t be here!”

“I’m always here, weakling!” Radris said as he began rushing towards Hatot, unrelenting in his attack as balled up fists were swung at thrust at Hatot, the movements so similar to the attacks Hatot regularly used. Only they were more raw in nature, designed to inflict pain more than disable. “It’s what you never seem to GET!”

Hatot backed away from Radris’ onslaught, his body betraying his training to move forward under Radris’ raging onslaught as he ducked and leaned back, narrowly avoiding the strikes. “You’re a bane, a curse on my soul. One which I’ll expunge soon enough!” Hatot said as he suddenly stopped his backward movement, ducking down while thrusting his hand into Hatot’s knee, the other one quickly flying upward into his elbow joint.

Radris growled, looking down at Hatot, who only looked back up at him in defiance. His eyes soon slammed shut in pain as Radris dropped his fist down along the top of Hatot’s head. Radris’ knee then went flying into Hatot’s chin quickly after as Hatot went flying back, rolling along the ground as the black ink pulled and stuck along his body like taffy before loosing it’s grip and snapping back into the void it was part of. Hatot struggled to his knees, his head and chin feeling the sting so badly as he looked up to Radris. Radris seemed almost unaffected by Hatot’s attacks, his leg barely carrying any sign of a limp, his arm shook about as if the strike to his elbow only left a tingle. “If I wanted a kiss, I would have taken one from your little pupil. What’s her name again? Hex?” Radris said as an evil grin spread across his lips. “Know what that rhymes with? I think she‘ll be getting a more personal lesson from me, after I‘ve kicked your delicate blue ass here.”

Hatot growled, forcing himself past the pain as he rushed forward. His hands then thrust forward at Radris, who in turned dodged much like Hatot had during his onslaught. Radris’ smile broadened, seeming to revel in the combat as he began throwing back attacks of his own. Both of them stood head to head, their bodies twisting and turning in a flurry of attacks and evasions. Hatot’s hand suddenly struck the side of Radris’ neck, only to be answered as Radris’ fist flew into his rib cage. Another strike was deliver to the side of Radris’ leg, his answer coming in the form of knuckles along the bridge of Hatot’s nose. Hatot reached out, his fingers breaking Radris’ collar bone. Radris answered by grabbing Hatot’s fingers as they drew back, breaking three of them. Hatot’s other hand snatched down, his finger and thumb pressing hard along Radris’ wrist joint as bones began to grind together. Radris answered by simply lunging forward, and biting into Hatot’s arm.

Hatot screamed out in pain before his other hand suddenly swung down with great force, striking heavily along Radris’ chin, hearing a slight crunch echo out. Radris’ head thrust back from the blow, tearing out a chunk of Hatot’s arm with it as they both stumbled back. Hatot grabbed his arm, breathing heavily as he glared at Radris, who lazily opened his mouth letting Hatot’s flesh drop out of it. “That all you have?” Radris said, his speech garbled from the rattle of broken bone in his jaw.

“I’m going to kill you!” Hatot hissed, his eyes narrowing as he looked at Radris with hate. “I hate you!”

“HA!” Radris echoed out, his mouth opening wide despite the pain. “You can’t kill me! Not any more than I can you! You're weak and stupid to boot and your hate is nothing compared to mine!”

Hatot and Radris then charged at each other at the same time. Their hands reached out as both of them grasped each other by the throat, squeezing with all their might as teeth were bared and growls and screams echoed out. In that moment, something began to happen as colors began to slowly spark out from their bodies, unnoticed by either one of them. Those sparks soon began to grow, the color emitting from Radris’ body blood red and roaring like a fire. The color emitting from Hatot was as blue as the ocean waters, and flowed like waves crashing along a rocky cliff. The auras collided and clashed, furious in their attempt at dominance. The black of the void slowly began to crack away, blinding light seeping through as Hatot and Radris continued their stranglehold on one another. Then, like a mold to a piece of art being broken, the black shattered away as a vibrant display of colors and energy, as if looking towards the sun through a stained glass window, blinded both of them, breaking them apart.

Hatot’s eyes suddenly shot open, his meditation broken as he let out a quick yelp in surprise. A slow exhale was then given in further surprise as his field of vision began to clear. It did not, however, clear from darkness, but a lingering trace of radiant glows and hues that had replaced all the things he normally saw in the sea of grass. “What was that?” Hatot almost whispered, confusion and awe in his voice.

[Hex]

"You have broken free of the constraints of the human eye Hatot." Hex responded to his question before slowly opening her eyes and coming back from her own meditation. She had no recollection of what had transpired inside his soul, but she recognized the look of awe on his face as she had worn it herself some time ago. When she had been first introduced to Auristics she had been exposed to seeing the truer nature of all things, a highly stimulating, frightening, and dumbfounding experience. When one opened their inner eye to the djed of their surroundings, it was like seeing the anatomy of every insect, plant and animal in sight. But for a beginner Aurist, it was impossible to look upon all these details at once; one had to begin practice by focusing on a single aura at one time. "That world you got a glimpse of is the plain where all auristic energy is connected and alive. At first you will only be able to look upon one aura at a time, at the cost of your physical and emotional energy. But with practice and time, you will be able to read more into the details of each aura, and eventually multiple auras at one time. What did you see? And I don't mean with your eyes" Hex smiled curiously at him, enjoying the perplexity in his face.

[Hatot]

Hatot’s uninjured hand rose slowly, as a sense of slight fatigue washed over his senses. His eyes were heavier, his muscle feeling like it had just had a hard bell of physical training, his lungs feeling a slight burn like after a short run. It wasn’t the injuries either, though most of the soreness. He began slowing his breathing, bringing it back into normal pace first, instead of the sharp quick breaths he had just been taking. He then lowered his arm to the ground, resting his whole body for a moment. “I don’t know what it is I saw over all.” Hatot then said with an exhaled breath. “Radris and I were fighting before a blinding plethora of colors broke it up and I was shook from my meditative state. I can hardly begin to describe it. Suffice to say, Radris will not likely be suppressed by this ability, and I now see that trying to do so will only further heighten his rage when he does get out. Still, one does not simply glimpse and experience this without desiring to see more. I will continue training under your guidance.”

Hatot slowly turned his head, looking up to Hex. “There is one thing I did see with clarity.” Hatot said as the light of day was now beginning to finally chase away the last remnants of night. “That was your training, continuing.”

Radris then pressed his hand along the ground, pushing himself up as heavy grunts and contorted face revealed the pain of doing so. It was a short moment before he finally made it to his foot, keeping the majority of his weight on one leg. He began moving towards camp, limping heavily as he practically took steps in short hops along his good leg, the arm of his damaged shoulder held firmly by his good arm to restrict it’s movements. “You’ll start with defensive moves today. Practice your Bending Reed and Whipping Vine evasions.” Hatot said as he came up to the edge of camp. “After about of bell of practicing them, grab the bowl and begin your finger and wrist strengthening exercises.” Hatot said as he came near the front of his tent, crouching down along one leg before supporting his upper body with his good arm as he came into a seated position. “After that, I will teach you a new strike aside from the Spear’s Thrust that you have been using.”

“I will just be here,” Hatot said grunting slightly one more time before releasing a sigh. “observing.”

[Hex]

A look of silent curiosity flattened Hex's face. She could see the struggle Hatot was maintaining; the way he simple withstood his emotional turmoil. Even as her teacher experienced pain and diffifculty she could not understand, she felt a strong importance of such a personal battle. A small clearing a few feet from Hatot was littered with rocks and sand that kicked up into the air as Hex checked the area for venemous creatures. When satisfied with her training grounds, she sank into a defensive stance before the practice dummy, raising her hands up close to her face and spacing her feet out under bent kneeds to stabilize herself. The first step was a lunge forward towards the opponent, but in the last moment she slid to the outside of the arm and twisted her body to grab the arm and plant several painful strikes into the elbow, shoulder and wrist. Even the hand was wrenched upside down during the movements, disarming the enemy of the sword that fit snug in the dummy's grasp so threateningly. She jabbed at the elbow joint with the tips of her fingers, pushing and turning the arm past breaking point. Successful execution of this evasive offensive skill could crack the shoulder joint and send the elbow out of its socket with a pop, possibly also breaking the thinner bones of the forearm. As she learned, Hex bumbled around in a mess, tripping over her own feet, twisting her body too hard or too light which caused her to tumble to the ground in a pile of shaking limbs and sweaty skin. When she felt comfortable with the bending reed, she would switch to practicing the whipping vine technique. As if the attacker was striking at her arm, Hex threw herself towards the weapon to mimic an incoming attack towards her arm and then turned her body ever so slightly to dodge the blow, pushing the wrist away with a block while punching spots with her fingers along the exposed flesh of the inner arm. A similar move was executed if the opponent struck at her leg, to which she responded by raising the leg while leaning to the side and then maneuvering her thigh up until she caught the elbow with her foot, slamming the arm to the ground and bending the dummy against its wood foundation. With a wheezing sigh, Hex stumbled in place before collapsing onto one knee exhausted. But the training would resume and she crawled on hands and knees over to the bowl, filling it with sand and then groaning as she beat at the earth in the bowl with her fingers and knuckles. Every fiber and nerve in her body ached, but she pushed past the pain and concentrated on the bowl below her, hunching her shoulders as she pounded her hands over and over, sending clumps of sand in different directions. As the training went on, she settled into a comfortable rhythm and trance, slipping into a meditation as the vibrations of her movements hummed through her body parts.