The Test Part 2

I snapped back to awareness where I was in the arena. The Dummy was there, where I left it, staring at me waiting for me to make the next move. When I looked out at the others however they were all very startled and looking around trying to find out what happened. All, except for two people. Frank and Humphrey were both looking at me wide eyed, with shock in there eyes, there swords half drawn.

I realized that standing besides me was that man that I saw in the vision of what I could only assume was the past.

"Oh, my. It seems that someone has bound your memories my child, and my spell and that of this... Aalondor, who was the caster of the spell, have become intertwined. Now that you have broken my spell, you have torn a hole in the other spell. It appears that your memories will slowly come back now, though the memories will only come back either when something triggers them, or when you gain enough power to unravel a part of the spell."

At the name Aalondor I remembered a man, standing over me as a baby dotingly and wiggling a finger in my face.

'My father? No, that strangely doesn't sound right.... uugh, I think he was my uncle, but not by blood?'

Standing strait I realized that the the royal knights could also see the man, Khorne, while everyone else seemed to be totally oblivious to what was happening.

"Oh, them? don't worry, they have no power against me, and would not dare cross me."

At that both knights dropped to there knees like pheasants in front of there king.

"Khorne, We would not dare to cross you, you are one of the 4 great body cultivation god, the god of blood after all. Every single knight in our realm desires to have you gaze upon them because it is said to give them the stamina of a mountain horse."

Turning back to me Khorne spoke once more.

"So, I promised you a boon once you were at the point in your life when you called upon my power. My gift to you, my child, will be the bower to grow and cultivate your blood essence seed that you have ben carrying dormant inside your heart all these years."

A piercing pain followed his words, as I could feel something taking root inside my body, drying up what small pool of mana that I had in my body. When I opened my eyes to see through my teary eyes, I realized that he was gone, and I was left once again facing the dummy. Not only that but it seemed that the two royal knights didn't remember what just happened.

Standing up through the pain I looked inside to where my mana should be. There was absolutely nothing but a barren lake bottom. As I watched my inner world however (and yes this really is an inner world, and an actual lake) I could see blood red vines breaking through the bottom the lake bed. In the northernmost corner of the empty pool, a large fissure opened up, causing me to gasp in pain. When I looked again I saw that the fissure was leaking a blood red liquid into my pool, but as the red mana settled into the bottom, it turned back into its usual clear color that my mana had, except that it had a faint red gloss to it. all the sudden the fissure widened again as vines grew up and out of it, pulling at the corners and forcefully widening it. the trickle of mana became a stream, then a flood as I could feel all my mana channels widening past the point that they had been previously. The pool of mana that I had easily surpassed what I had and continued to grow, till it doubled in size. Once that happened the flow slowed back down to a trickle and a blood red plant grew out of the fissure that was now in my manascape.

A final parting word from Khorne flowed through me.

"This is but the beginning, a trickle of the power that the seed of blood can grant you. nurture your power and use it to make it grow. after ascending to a new rank, the plant will grow and evolve, and so will your mana.

Snapping back to focus on the dummy I decided that this was the best time to try out my newfound powers. completely forgetting about the previously mortal would I moved my hand off of my sternum. When I remembered I looked down in horror, only to see that the wound had healed, leaving but a scar on my body.

Grinning to myself I charged at the dummy, swinging the staff at its head. In response the dummy raised its sword, deflecting the blow. What it didn't expect however was the copy of the sword that followed the first one. With a loud clang, the sword smashed into the head of the dummy, sending it crumbling to the ground in a heap. Backing off I waited for the next rank...

20 minutes later I was on the ground, face down, knocked out of the ring. I ended on Copper AAA.

"Well, then. That I will have to say, was quite impressive." Frank spoke from above me.

"On to round three now!" Humphrey roared over the mumbling of the crowd of to-be students.

Standing up with a grown someone approached our group. It quickly because apparent that they were also with the royal knights, but this person was smaller in frame, and instead of wearing the traditional armor of the knights, they wore robes.

"Aaah, Seleste, come say hi!" Frank said.