AETHER BEASTS

Zirani was right when she'd said we were close to getting to the third level of infusion as the next, an hour into our training, Misty's aether began to move and shift, signaling her imminent change. Unlike the moving up from the first to the second level, the jump to the third wasn't as quick, and Zirani had to stay by her side to make sure that everything went smoothly. The chances of something happening were low, as the process of moving up a level of infusion wasn't that risky or dangerous unless someone disturbed you, or you already had an existing problem with your aether.

Overall it took around ten minutes and like the previous jump from the first level to the second, there weren't any visible changes, though a quick test showed that she was far stronger and quicker now, more so than I'd expected. It seemed the Jump from the second level to the third granted more power and enhancements than the first to the second, which was definitely a good thing and while Misty sent off to do a little hunting in the nearby area, Sandra and I pushed ourselves harder, both wanting to get to the third level.

By the time Misty had returned we'd done just that, and both Sandra and I were celebrating, our jump, and while Zirani looked pleased, she gave the two girls a firm look. "You two still have to move a density stage before the end of this day, so I suggest you get back to training."

She turned to me. "As for you Aiden, well you can take over for Misty. We need a stockpile of cores just in case the next floor doesn't have any beasts matching to your affinities. Do you think you can handle it?"

I smiled, energy and excitement coursing through me. I was eager to test my new limits. "Of course, I won't venture far."

"Good, and don't get into any fights you're not positive you can win," She said in a serious tone. "I don't want to have to come to your rescue?"

"You do that," I said with a fake look of shock.

She rolled her eyes and waved a hand. "Go on. I'll send you a message through our bond when should you come back."

"Good luck ladies," I shouted to Misty and Sandra then I chose a direction and took off.

My legs pumped fast and hard, and I could practically feel my aether begging to be pulled and used for something. Unlike the previous times, I don't need to keep much of a close eye on the ground to make sure I didn't trip, or in front of myself so I didn't run into any tree or bush. My reflexes were much greater and even if I did, my body could easily take such a hit. In fact, now that I was at the third stage, my regeneration would be much greater, not to mention the fact I didn't need to eat food or drink water anymore. My body could survive on the ambient aether around me, and the aether zirani core produces, not that I was going to stop eating food. I had too many favorite dishes I liked and I was sure as hell going to gorge myself when I visited my aunt after I left this tower. There was no way I'd ever reject any of her food.

The vivid and bright colors of the floor seemed to stand out even more and in sharper detail, most likely due to my enchanted vision. It was that enchanted vision that allied me to spot a beast sleeping in a bush, its dark green body blending in. It was a hobgoblin, and I wouldn't have been able to sense it before with just my eyesight alone, but now I could clearly see the difference between the color of the bush and its darker skin.

Goblins were some of the most common beasts out there at the same level as grendels, they even had many different kinds. The hobgoblin was just a stronger variant of the normal goblin, which were usually three-foot-tall green-skinned humanoids. The normal goblins were all as dumb as dirt, but the other variants were not. The fact this goblin had chosen to sleep in a bush to camouflage itself proved that. Too bad for it, though, as before it could even make a move, I was upon it, a bark spike driving down into its head.

Its eyes shot open, only to fall lifeless seconds later, its body convulsing for a few moments as its life faded away. I might have felt sorry for it if I wasn't familiar with how their kind acted. Hobgoblins were one of few types of aether beasts in the plains that didn't always kill their prey. They regularly took human women with at least one core, and the reason was both simple and foul. Hobgoblins would breed with human women to spawn the lesser goblins or try to. It was very very rare that a human woman could actually give birth to a goblin but on rare occasions, it did happen, and it was this reason that had led to them being completely hunted down. There were probably few left in the northern plains, and wherever sight of one was caught, hunters and arcanists alike would flock to take care of it. That particular lesson back at the academy had been one of the more disturbing lessons we'd learned. Even I who loved learning about the arcane and aether beasts had wanted to skip the lesson once it had begun, though now that I had learned from Zirnai that the ambient aether in the plains was so bad, perhaps that was the reason human women rarely gave birth to goblins. If so then the trash aether in the plains wasn't completely bad.

The next few beasts went down with no trouble as my enhanced physical abilities proved too much for them, though I did skirt around a large pack of murwogs. I could take a few, maybe half dozen at my current strength, but fifteen was far too much. I'd never seen that many in one place, and the sight made me glad we were leaving soon. However slim, the thought of being woken up one night or disturbed while we were training by such a large group would be a problem. I problem we could deal with, but a problem nonetheless.

"Why are we even down here?" A male voice sounded from just up ahead and I froze in place.

"Ivan said we needed more cores, and this floor has the most beasts," another voice, gruffer than the first, replied. "So stop complaining and start collecting. I didn't bring you along to stand and watch while I did all the work."

"Whatever," the first voice said with a scoff. "This better be worth it."

I crouched and slowly crept closer and closer as I tried to puzzle out what I'd heard. The only other people besides myself and the girls that would be in this tower were the twin horn, and from the sounds of it, they'd come here from an upper floor to collect cores.

"Zirani," I said urgently. "Twin core arcanists to the south."

Her attention snapped to me as a flash of worry passed through our bond. "Are you ok? How many?"

"I'm fine," I replied as I drew close enough to make out two figures crouched over the bodies of a few murwogs. "There's two of them, and they're both second level, should I take them out?"

A pause. "You're at the third level and have an iron core so yes you should, but if you can keep one alive. We can question him."

"Got it."

I slowly and carefully pulled aether from my core, forming my bark armor around myself along with three impact seeds on both hands. If I wanted to take one alive then the best shot I had was to kill one as quickly as possible and then knock the other out. I had just the idea, though it was risky. Impact seeds were powerful but I was sure that a second-level arcanist could survive three if they hit nearby.

I spread my feet and got into a sprinting stance, ready to bolt towards them. I would need to aim carefully and make sure the impact seeds hit close enough that the arcanist to the left was stunned, but not dead, while the other to the right was hit with all three, sending him to the ground.

I took a steadying breath and sprung forward, using the aether burst technique to increase my speed as I shot my impact seeds. They struck the arcanist to the left closer than I wanted, but it did the job, and he was sent sprawling while the other was launched straight into a tree, further away from me. I should have guessed that would happen, but I had a solution. I formed a lashing vine and sent it to wrap around his leg. I pulled him towards me at the same time forming a bark spike on my left gantlet. He must have been dazed as he didn't react until my spike drove through his throat. He gurgled and his eyes cleared enough for me to see the shock and confusion there.

"What the fuck!"

I sense a burst of aether to my left incoming, and I ducked just in time to dodge a ball of solid earth.

"Who the hell are you!" The arcanist, an older-looking teen, shouted. "You killed Paul!"

He gathered aether around his hand, but I didn't let him finish his technique. With the difference in our speed, and skill, he stood little chance. My lashing vine wrapped around his throat, and I pulled him forwards, sending him stumbling, straight into my rising right knee which hit him square in the face. There was a crack as his nose was broken, but he couldn't scream as my vine was choking him. His face quickly grew purple but I didn't let up until he'd passed out.

"Done?" Zirani asked.

I let out a breath. "Done. I'm heading back now, what should I do with the other's body?"

"Leave it," Zirnai answered. "The beats will smell it and come to clean up."

I walked over and slung the passed-out arcanist over my shoulder. He felt light thanks to my enhanced strength, and I avoided any fights as I made my way back to the others, prisoner in tow.. This guy would be our ticket to finding out what the twin horn was doing, and hopefully, meant we wouldn't be walking in blind when we ran into them.