Ruthless Practise

It had been a minute since Oisin's right palm was glittering.

'How bizarre. My palm really became a light...' Oisin sat on the stone opposite to Aiden. Both were keeping quiet.

Aiden was meditating again, as though he enjoyed staying lost in thoughts. Oisin was not getting bored however. To keep the flow ongoing, he had to keep his mind in constant focus. If even some of the runic energy went offtrack, he would most likely lose control of the entire flow, and be internally hurt. Not to mention how he was gradually feeling weak and weaker too.

As Aiden said, he would eventually get so damn weak that he might start bleeding...

'How tiresome...'

He concentrated on his rune core. In one minute he took out nearly half of his basic rune energy which was far faster than he expected. In fact, he was getting better at this every passing moment.

'I should be able to do this within another two minutes right?' he beamed, 'Oh, so the pain is about to start any moment now...' he didn't beam anymore.

And sadly, his thought was true.

His heart felt heavy and closing. The blood inside him started behaving unnaturally. But Oisin bore it with pure patience.

'Only two minutes, or so. I can do it.'

Aiden opened his eyes then. Looking at Oisin he grinned, "Is it beginning yet?"

"Oh, yes." said Oisin, sighing lightly.

Oisin could feel that the runic energy was emptying from his rune core. Strangely, it felt like his heart was emptying itself, although things were right in place. What really changed was a mysterious unseen force, which he discovered to be staying inside him for two whole years... only yesterday.

Oisin's body started to hurt more.

He could see his veins showing outside from the skin. In parts, his skin became totally red indicating that blood was clotting in those places. He felt infinitely vulnerable, really.

As he felt his throat could stop working as well, he said what he needed to before that happens.

"Aiden, am I going to die?"

"Do you want to? If not, maybe no." he replied.

That was a rather exquisite reply but Oisin couldn't focus on that quote. What he feared, happened.

Blood was cloting in his head as well.

'How bizarre...' he thought, helplessly.

Different parts of his organ felt completely numb while other parts made him rupture in pain. Strangely, he didn't scream. In truth, he couldn't scream.

Oisin had his mouth open. He wanted to scream, but no voice would come out.

'One minute? I don't know... Time... go faster...' he sighed in his thoughts.

Two third of his runic core was empty, so he would need to feel the pain only a bit longer. Although, he might die, as it seemed.

'Why am I killing myself this casually...?' he thought, still groaning in pain.

Even to his surprise, he suddenly fell off his stone, causing him an immense harm in the already clotted skin. As he was about to scream, a small stream of blood came out.

'Sh**...' he sighed, in pain.

Even amidst this all, he maintained the runic flow. As though for a few seconds it happened on its own, Oisin shocked himself.

He was in pain, utter pain. In fact, he had never suffered from such physical pain before. But he kept gifting scenes of pure patience and utter conviction to Aiden, who only watched him suffering like that, without a single word.

Oisin's vision was even getting blurry a little, but he looked at Aiden, and felt as though he was... smiling.

Eventually, his sense of hearing and smell seemed to vanish. He couldn't feel alot of things too, but wherver he felt anything, he felt utter pain.

Just like that finally, after an eternity to Oisin, two minutes passed. He was dead asleep on the crimson red ground of the main hall. And Aiden smiled.

In fact, he laughed.

'Insane... No... What do I call him...? Saint..?'

Aiden descended from his seat and appeared before Oisin who lied unsconscious.

And then with a laughing stare at the body, magic or not, he made Oisin's body float...

---

"Aster is with Hains. He said he will come after finishing his training for the day."

"Ah. What is the time by the way?"

"3:15 AM..."

"Oh. I should be sleeping right now. See how hard I work for you people... even at midnight!" Nahn joked but Esya didn't look any impressed.

Rather, she looked a bit angry, even.

"Nahn, could I ask you something?"

"Yes?"

"Can I use my ability on you... for that?"

"What if you then ask me some embrassing questions?"

"That I wouldn't, I promise."

"Well, so do I promise, to not lie."

Esya looked down and didn't press him any further.

"Nahn, for how long do you want stay in this camp?"

Nahn always tried to avoid this question. But for how long? For how long would he avoid it?

He sighed.

"Aiden has been pegging for this question for a while as well..."

"Well, you know how contagious he is."

"That's true." Nahn had a rather somber expression all of a sudden.

He didn't want to answer, obviously.

But he can't avoid the question for too long, as well.

"How would you feel if I tell you a lie and send you back?"

"I would be satisfied with it." replied Esya.

"How honest. In fact, I believe that you would..." gloomy as he turned, he continued then, "First of all, we have no idea where any other habitable land might be. We don't know where phantoms are living or perhaps horing. Even if all of us don't die outside, many will."

"Should you live in a prison in fear of the criminals outside?" said Esya, instantly refuting him.

"Aha, that's the strange analogy Aiden told me a few days ago..." he smiled, somehow, "Yes, I say. Live in the prison."

Esya didn't resond for a while.

What was she even supposed to say?

Something like 'but I want to explore the world!' and go off and never come back like the Hawk's party last year?

Esya knew Nahn's objective was rather rational but, she, too... wanted to 'but I want to explore the world!' as comical it may sound...

'Am I not foolish?' said Esya, to herself before proceeding to say something... outrageous.

"You are a coward."

And turned and left Nahn's room. She didn't really mean to say it, rather it just came out instinctively. She can't control her rage very well afterall.

Nahn though, only watched her go. Indeed he was still afraid of... what he saw that day...

---

Oisin woke up.

He does three things after he wakes up. First, he looks at his sorroundings, to be sure that another apocalypse didn't hit. Second, he looks at his sorroundings again and try to remember if he knows the place. Third, if he doesn't know the place.... ask someone nearby that why would you kill me?

"Why would you kill me...?"

"You killed yourself, don't blame me." Aiden replied from a chair beside him. He was sitting with a pile of those... edible grass and slowly chewing them.

Oisin remembered how he became unconscious and tried to focus at his rune core again.

He succeed, even. How easy it had become, to his surprise.

The rune core, as he saw, was empty, totally. Perhaps it took time for the unique runic energy to regenerate. In any case, theoretically he would unlock his abilities any moment now. So he sat up and leaned on his bed, instead of doing anything crazy again.

He relaxed.

'How bizarre, did I never relax before?' he thought and looked at Aiden.

"What do you people call that grass?"

"Edible and Grass. Egrass."

"Creative."

"I named it, afterall." he smiled, and continued, "We don't have any official name for the things that came to be after the apocalypse yet. Some people call the same things differently even in this camp. Like before you termed them as 'phantom', we used to call them aliens, beasts, monsters and what not... In fact, phantom is the most suitable term to use, it seems. "

Oisin was shocked by this reply. "A direct and elaborate answer from you, isn't that rare?"

"It is, but you are my brother afterall."

Oisin titled his head.

'He is so bizarre...'

"And where do you people get water?"

"Well, two of the rune users among us can produce water. Nobody knows if they are same though..."

"That's... impressive." said Oisin, sighing. Actually disappointed, to be more precise.

He expected there to be a pond or something nearby. As there was a full one litre bottle in front of him at the moment. In his days outside, he would use this much water to survive weeks. In his most dire days, months even.

And there they are, literally producing water for themselves.

"Ah.. and how long would it take to regenerate that unique rune...? Or does it differ from person to person?"

"It took me a minute, at best."

'He is so bad at boasting... At least make it believable...'

"That's amazing. I don't seem to have grown anything yet." said Oisin.

As a few moments of silence passed, he decided to check the rune core again. Who knows, perhaps something did come by this time?

He focused, closing his eyes. The basic rune energy didn't really disappear from his body after what he did, in fact it seemed to be growing from the skins again. Oisin reached a theory that perhaps his body could consume the basic runes.

But his real focus was elsewhere. His rune core.

There was, in fact, a new, entirely unique piece of runic energy dwelling there. Although it seemed too much small to even correctly feel it at the moment, so he snapped back... and decided to wait until the time comes.

'I hope the regeneration time can increase...' he sighed.

"Even if its a seed of unique energy, you can control it by the way. Because its your own energy, not a borrowed one." said Aiden, as he opened his clenched eyes.

'Huh...?'