Chapter 245: A Burden Lifted
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Einar rushed to follow Nolan out of the city. No one was holding the two back. Nolan WAS using his powers to glide through the forest. No need to hold back now that he found his destination.

“Old man!,” Einar said. “Where are you taking me?”

“Sparring.”

Nolan thrust his arms out to provide power to his glide. He strafes the air and shadowed over trees before arriving on a clearing not that far from the city. Einar followed with a thud. His body flickering ghostly smoke. He took a stride to the center of the clearing.

“You should teach me that.”

“My memories should be inside your head.”

“Yes. It doesn’t mean that I know anything about how metal birds fly. Aerodynamics and all those things confuse me. So many formulas and numbers.”

“So?” Einar added. “What are we here for, Old Man?”

“Should have figured it out already. Draw, Einar. Let’s see.” Nolan rolled his sleeves.

A skull manifested around Einar. It shaped around his head, giving him a ghostly form. Instead of obsidian what appeared was that of stone.

“Stone-skin,” Einar said. “It takes a lot of energy, but it is a handful. You're stronger than ever, Old Man. What happened to you?”

“A lot has happened,” Obsidian flesh grew out of his skin, covering Nolan’s limbs. A mask shaped like a skull, made of obsidian, wrapped around his skull.

“Your eyes didn’t glow red. Old Man, are you free from the Bleak Walker’s curse?”

“Who knows?” More Obsidian flesh covered his skin. It acted like armor and is now wrapped around him. Shadowy smoke came pouring out of Nolan, an energy that made the air tremble.

“That is cheating,” Einar readied. “First, you can glide the air, and now this? That is a lot of improvement, Old Man.”

“Perks of being experienced,” Nolan clenched his left hand. The veins on his body started to glow with a red light.

“Runes, huh,” Einar nodded, taking a stance. “You have improved a lot.”

“Not enough to take the step!”

Nolan blurred. He arrived above of Einar, manifesting a giant hand of obsidian. Plunging it towards

Einar phased out of the way. He drew his sword, wiped the flat with his fingers, carving up a rune that coated the sword with jet-water. He sliced upward.

Nolan took his hand back. He conjured Tania out of the depths of his soul and turned her into a sword, lashing towards Einar. Einar parried deftly, letting the sword slide on the flat, countering with a diagonal riposte.

Spikes grew out of Nolan’s arms, rushing towards Einar. The young man phased out, his skin grew transparent, avoiding the spikes that suddenly stabbed on the ground, producing devastating spikes that rooted out of the ground.

Einar calmly navigated out of the spikes, his stone-like skin not hindering his movements. Nolan rushed in. Storms grew out of his body, lashing out lasso around Einar’s waist, with a great pull, he heaved Einar into the ground, his body creating a crater.

“Distract the target,” said Nolan. “The first rule is to find an opening. It would work on me if I wasn’t recently powered. You have any excess memories?”

“Yes,” said Einar. “In this world, Rubina and I grew up in the same village. We were bonded in that village - before she recovered her memories, she was a sweet gal. Well, she’s still here.”

“Must have been quite a story.”

“It sure is,” Einar snorted. “Before the world suddenly changed. I was dragging her around in hopes to save the Tower. Then things happened and now we are double-bonded. Double-bonded. Which means that she’s sharing her dam of power with me, hence I can do so much these days. Whatever happened to you, Old Man? Did your new memories kindle something that allowed you to be this strong? Look at my stone-skin. Never been damaged once, but broke when it comes to you.”

“It clicked to me that I’ve been doing rune-casting ever since. Well, I have greater control and I can say that I am a master of it now.”

“Well, you are ancient. A master of combat and magic - kinda deserved it, knowing who your enemies are, Old Man.”

“I was holding back you know. I don’t want to kill my boy.”

“Bah,” said Einar. “You are too much of a softy, Old Man. See, this is why you get played by-”

The name he spoke was like a radio chatter. “Anyway, she-” He spoke the name again yet he did not heart the word. It was the same as not being able to recognize the language that Einar was speaking. Einar started talking about his experiences and along the way - Nolan grew increasingly confused. He couldn’t understand any longer. As if there was a huge chunk of his memories that were gone. As if somebody cut out all of the relevant memories of the holder of that name. He couldn’t remember.

“Who are you talking about?” Nolan asked. Strangely, he felt his body and soul light. The boulder that burden his shoulders was lifted. “I don’t get it - but who in the heavens are you talking about, my boy?”

“Come on now-” He spoke the same name.

“I don’t understand the name. It doesn’t click to me. I assume that the person you are speaking about is a woman.”

“What the hell are you-”

Einar noticed Tania manifest behind Nolan. Tania shook her head and gestured for Einar to follow him.

“Ah, Old Man, mind if I follow Tania around? I think she wants to say something to me. Ah, probably help me improve my ability to phase? I can’t seem to understand the ability despite overcoming its previous problems.”

“Sure,” Nolan agreed. “I don’t know what is happening to me - but I feel light as a feather, Einar. It must be the energy being unleashed that made me like this. Never felt so light and free of worry.”

The tension that hung around Nolan vanished. Einar had a face of disbelief as he follows Tania. She slumped on the tree stump and folded her arms - she was looking at Nolan with worry in her eyes.

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