Prince of The Abyss

Aether was lying on the floor, staring at the ceiling. He was bored, that is to say the least. Maybe that’s what he got for being a coward.

Really, he couldn’t stop thinking about it, about that damn cursed waterfall, and the cave inside of it. He wanted to learn more, to know the truth. After all, he hated being in the dark; he wanted knowledge, and when he knew, there was a mystery he could learn it lingers in his mind.

Even those he can’t do anything about at the moment, like the Abyss’s past, which he didn’t have anywhere to get a clue from. It was still stuck inside his mind, and he just pushed it away, knowing that he had to have patience for it.

He needed a way to get his mind off things, for his mind not to wander back to the cave. But what was he supposed to do? I mean, Kael refused to give him a job, saying that in his eyes his still hadn’t recovered.

Which annoyed him, since what was he expected to do all day?

He could go out and hunt.

”And to be humiliated again by a deer? Yeah, no thank you.”

There was fishing, he could go and find a lake and pierce the ice with Voidpiercer to get a hole to fish through...

’Yeah, no, I was never into fishing.’ But that was already known since Frozen Crown. But even more now, since his patience was at an all-time low these trying days, so he would definitely not be able to catch anything, plus, Voidpiercer would probably also scare the fish away, so that was out of the question.

So then what?

He groaned, getting back up on his feet and walking around the dojo. He wasn’t allowed to train with his blade, so he couldn’t even do that to cure his boredom.

Though there was something interesting, that being that while Kael was the master of the Rapier, he had a lot of weapons at his disposal, a lot of swords that were different from each other.

It did make him feel a bit weak, since if Kael knew how to use all of them, he outclassed him by a lot.

I mean, he used a rapier, and he hardly even knew how to use it that well; he just got past most of his enemies because of the blade’s sheer power and abilities. If it wasn’t for that, and Voidpiercer was a normal reader blade, he would be long gone.

He also used an arming blade... the most simple of all swords, it’s the classic sword everyone thinks about when they hear the word, and it’s not like it’s a weak blade, heck, most people use it for a reason.

He didn’t want to say he knew how to use it, after all, he didn’t, but his master had taught him her ways.

”Rest in peace.” He said, sighing and looking at a blade just like the one she used to train him.

And Clarisse had been an amazing teacher, the best he could have, after all, he didn’t know at the time, but she had been the one to train the royal family of the Blue Rose; she had trained the Prince of the Blue Rose.

It made him wonder if he had stayed true to her style, since he hadn’t.

Well, he has stayed true to it slightly, but more changed it more to his own that he used with Voidpiercer.

Clarisse’s sword style worked around parrying the enemy, but with a rapier, that was harder to do, well, not entirely, it was more that it was a lot more dangerous.

The rapier didn’t have the surface to catch attacks, since the blade was narrower, it was more that you had to reflect the attacks, or to not get hit at all, to dodge, but it didn’t really work.

Even more since Clarisse’s style, while he never got there, was really aggressive when it came to them. To the point she wanted to parry each time, and even forced it sometimes.

But that wasn’t all, her style wasn’t just limited to the blade, she used cheap tricks, parries that make people lose balance, perfect to sweep them off their feet, or to push them. Things like that, unhonorable things inside a battle of metal. That, he did steal from her, and put inside his style.

Either way, what he was trying to say was that he had only wielded two types of blades in his life, and wasn’t a master at any of them, so when he compared himself to Kael, the difference only got wider.

”How does he even use some of these?”

Aether grabbed one of the blades, but the moment he took it off the wall, he realized he couldn’t wield it with one of his hands, but it was too late, as it already hit the ground.

’Damn, this is heavy...’ He took a deep breath, putting both of his hands on the hilt and lifting it with all his strength.

Maybe it was because he normally used a rapier, which was a lot lighter than this one, but he could hardly hold it.

The blade scraped as he lifted it, the weight resisting him the entire way. When it finally left the floor, the tip still sagged, pulled down by its own mass.

Aether frowned.

It was huge. Longer than any sword he had ever wielded, its blade was wide enough that the flat felt closer to a slab of iron than a refined edge. The metal was dull and unpolished, light refusing to cling to it. Near the hilt, the blade thickened instead of thinning, reinforced to catch blows rather than avoid them. Hooks curved from either side, brutal and purposeful.

This wasn’t a sword meant for precision.

It was meant to dominate space.

The grip was long, worn smooth by hands stronger than his. He adjusted his stance, spreading his feet, but even then, the weight dragged at his arms, demanding balance and commitment.

He lowered the blade, letting the tip touch the floor with a muted thud.

”...Right,” Aether muttered. ”That figures.”

Now the question was, however, how was he supposed to put it back up?

I mean, he definitely couldn’t lift it.

...

”You want me to help with that?”

Aether turned his head to see Kael, who seemed quite amused by what he was seeing. He was embarrassed... but I feel like that was easy to tell.

...

”Yea-” ... He stopped, taking a good second. ”No, I can do it myself.”

But even with him declining his help, Kael still helped him put the blade back up. It was really impressive, after all, this guy’s hands were all burnt up, so how was he able to do this? How could he handle the pain of holding such a heavy blade in his hands?

After the blade was back on the stand, Aether exhales deeply.

”How do you even wield that?”

Kael looked at the blade and back at him, his cheek a little red. ”Well, I don’t think I’m fit to answer that question, since I don’t consider myself good with that blade. It’s a lot different from the rapier, but I’m sure you know that, since you also use one. But I do have a friend who is really good with it.”

Aether squinted his eyes at him.

”And is your friend the master of this blade or something... and what is it even called?”

Kael nodded. ”Thats right, I know the master of the Zweihander, the name of this blade. And I must say, she is a lot more build then me, so it definitely fits her.”

Aether looked at the blade again. Wondering how it would have been if instead of Voidpiercer being a rapier, it were a Zweihander, how would things have played out, if he was able to carry it, that is. Since he couldn’t even wield it now that he had reached enlightenment and had ranked up. But in Frozen Crown, he was much weaker.

Could he even summon it without breaking his arm?

Not something you think about every day.

He was actually relieved that Voidpiercer was a light blade, since if he thought about it, if it had been a heavy blade, it would be a lot harder to summon it from his marks. But since it’s light as a feather, he could do it instantly, a very good quality to have.

He can catch people by surprise with it, which was exactly what he had done to the Two from Frozen Crown.

”Either way, why are you here? Do you have a job for me or something?” Aether said, his gaze returning to the old man.

...

Kael smiled.

”I do, it’s one that I think would help you with your anger... and if you think about it, it’s your first training session.”

...

”There is a waterfall in the forest. I think that if you meditate there, it could help with your anger.”

...

...