Whispers of a Dead Empire

Chapter 135

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"Mother, what are you wearing?" Nyx busted into my room without a care in the world. She stood there, with her hands on her hips and eyes wide as she stared at me. She wore a pair of workout pants and an entire tank top. Her raven black hair was tied up above her head in a loose imitation of mine, though she still had a few loose strands.

"Oh, This?" I grabbed some of the fabric from my sports bra and tugged on it. I knew what she was talking about; I just wanted to see what she thought of it.

"Yes, that. It looks so indecent!" She stammered as she rushed over to me and grabbed one of the cloaks I had lying around.

If I had to guess, that was Alessia's influence. "I think it's perfectly acceptable." I replied as I shrugged away the cloak she was trying to wrap around me. I swear I'll never understand why Alessia believes in that stuff and why she was slowly converting Nyx to that cause.

"But look at all that skin! Are you not embarrassed?" She exclaimed once more.

"Not really, no, I have nothing to hide. But there is also a fine line between completely indecent and dressing for the occasion." I smiled at her, squatted down, and patted her head. "And I'll happily teach you what that line is." I don't exactly disagree with the train of thought that she is having, but I also don't entirely agree. But I'll teach her what I think is best and let her take her own train of thought afterward.

She nodded her head. My words taking precedence over whatever else she may have heard. "I see, mother; I think I understand." Her face screwed up slightly as she processed what I said. While she was doing that, I figured I might get everything I needed for the training today.

Let's see; I have my clothes. Now all I need is just my notebook and a few pens so I can keep track of everything. "Do you have everything that you will need today, Nyx?" I asked as I rummaged through and grabbed my sports bag.

My words pulled her from her thoughts, and she glanced at me. "Oh yes! One moment." She rushed out of my room once more like a bat out of hell, and I heard the sound of papers rustling on her desk. "Okay, ready!" She came rushing back into the room with her backpack in tow and a determined look on her face."

"Good, good, come along, Nyx; I made a place just for us."

A few moments later:

The training room was decently sized, and for the most part, it was barren. There were a few racks with weapons resting in them, along with mannequins wearing various armor, including the first iteration of armor that I made for the legionaries and the current. It was rather quaint, but that's all I wanted.

"Okay, Nyx, here we are going to work on a few things. Do you have any idea about what weapon you want to be working with?" I asked as I strolled in, set down my bag onto one of the nearby bleachers, and started rummaging through it to grab my pen and notebook.

"Not really. I have my wand, but I'm not a fan of swords." She replied as she walked in behind me and copied my movements almost exactly.

"Well, you need more than just a wand. When things get hairy in a fight, sometimes you need to have more than just that on hand." I explained to her as I took a seat on the bleachers. I understood she was working on being a full-time mage, but a wand in a fistfight won't work out well for her. So I want to ensure she can take care of herself if I wasn't around.

"But mother, I'm not sure what I like. I don't use swords, and spears aren't fun to use. But I enjoy using my fists and magic." She replied as she sat down. She was short enough to jump to get up to the seat, and her feet dangled a short way from the ground.

"Well, there are more weapons than just those. I can make you a mace or an ax. Even a warhammer if you are inclined to use one of those." I replied as I sat next to her and doodled out pictures for her, since I was almost sure she hadn't encountered some of these weapons.

She scooted over to me and looked over my arms as I carefully drew an example. For the first, it was a rough example of what Alessia had, though I don't know what she did with hers. The next was a simple hatchet; finally, the last was a rough semblance of what I thought a war hammer would look like. But naturally, I would change the design to better suit her needs if she decided she liked it.

"Hmm, I'm not sure yet, what I like. Mother, can you make some of them so I can try them out?" She kicked her feet and hummed while I nodded my head. I could do that, but I also needed to design my weapon. It was time that I focused on myself while waiting for them to spawn. But the question was, what did I want to use as a weapon?

I spent more time in close combat than I did anything else. Hell, I rarely used my sword, and mostly my fist. So, how about I design a gauntlet? I glanced at my hands for a second. I would only need one since my other was clad in its own metal.

My eyes lingered on the dark metal for a few seconds longer than I had planned. I was used to it by now, but some of me couldn't get over how majestic it was. I pulled my hand away, and my gaze drifted back to my notebook. Now, what did I want for a fist weapon?

Maybe something that matched my medium. It would be sleek and elegant, but above all else, it would need to be light, yet something that wouldn't fall apart as I used it. Carefully I drew out the design that I was trying to envision.

I carefully drew out the joints on the fingers to allow me to move them as well as I could. The gauntlet itself would travel the length of my arm and end just short of my elbow, with enough room for me to move and not have it scratch or chafe my arm. But what color did I want the metal to be? What metal would work? There were a lot of questions that needed to be answered, but it would take up too much time at the moment.

"Well, Nyx, I'm going to work on ki circulation and try to work on creating new skills. Would you like to join me?" I asked as I set down my notebook and glanced to my side. I've spent so long considering her my daughter that I forgot the most important thing. At the end of the day, she is still my familiar.

"Okay!" She jumped off of the bleacher and ran across the flood. "I'm ready when you are."

"How far did you get with Flint?" I asked as I walked across the sparing area.

"Not far, sadly, but he taught me how to throw a punch!" She jumped around like a little boxer and threw a few quick jabs that split the air.

So she was strong, that was good. "Did he teach you how to use Ki?" I asked as I crossed my arms and studied her form. While I was not a master, I could still pick out some flaws in her form.

"No, but I have the basic idea." She stopped jumping for a second as a familiar orange light sparked across her body. Well, it was more like it seeped and ebbed through her body.

I nodded as I looked it over. Good, from the looks of things, she had basic Ki, while I had the lightning aspect. So I would be faster than she was. But she would have better defensive skills than me, which didn't bother me. They can't hurt what they can't hit, after all.

"Treat your Ki more like an arc. If that makes sense, just direct it to where you need to go instead of letting it explode into one place. That way, you can control how much gets used at once." As a quick demonstration, I fired off a rapid burst of Ki through my body, which I then focused down and turned into an oscillating pattern.

She hummed thoughtfully as she watched me. Her eyes were locked onto me for a few seconds, and her body seemed to glow. At first, she looked like a blazing star before it dimmed and pulsed. "I think I understand, but it's a little difficult."

"That's okay. It took me a bit to understand how to do it myself. But we will get there. Once you meditate, it should get a little easier." I smiled at her as I crossed my arms once more. At least I suffered through it, so she doesn't have to. That way, it's smooth sailing for her.

"Meditating is horrid." Her face scrunched up in disgust at the thought of it. But I couldn't help to laugh at it. I couldn't help but agree with her in that regard. Meditating sucks.

"It is, but if we want to get stronger, then that is something we must learn to love."

She groaned at me in response. "Mother, I don't want to. Sitting for hours sucks. It's so hard to focus."

"I know, I hate it too, but it's something we have to do." I could only send her a soft smile since I shared her pain. "But anyway, I'm going to give you some exercises to practice while I work on my own, okay?" We can start with something small, like proper jabs, kicks, and whatnot. It would take up enough of her time, so I could turn my attention to myself for once.

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