Thained watched him calmly as the vapor slowly dissolved into the air, as if it had never been there.
—Now, try to do the same —he ordered, with an almost indifferent calm.
Fares looked at him with determination and replicated his movements.
In truth, he had no idea what the man had done.
He improvised.
He raised his hand and exerted force; his muscles tensed, as if physical pressure could tear out that invisible thing he was trying to release.
Nothing happened.
The air remained unchanged.
He could only feel the tension building in his own arm.
Thained did not intervene. He waited.
Seconds began to turn into minutes.
Fares's arm trembled. Not from power. Not from contained energy.
From effort.
He clenched his teeth and forced the movement even more.
The surroundings remained indifferent.Only his body reacted.
And it was starting to fail him.
The silence grew dense.
Thained's stillness did not calm him; it exposed him.
He explained nothing.
So... was it supposed to be obvious?
He tried to copy him again. Same gesture. More concentration.
More force.
Something was wrong.
He closed his eyes and tried to recall the vapor surrounding Thained's body, moving naturally.
If it didn't need an explanation...if it was that simple...
Then the mistake wasn't in the air.
It was in him.
Until a soft voice sounded beside his ear. A faint warmth brushed against it.
—Fares... he is here to guide you. Why don't you ask him?
Fares pulled away abruptly, startled. He opened his eyes and saw her beside him.
Lyrastrid stood upright, with the same serene expression as always. She was barely smiling.
She took a step back, as if she had not interrupted anything important.
—Well... you'll know.
She turned naturally and began to head toward the exit.
Before crossing the door, she raised her hand in a light farewell and left the place without adding anything more.
Fares remained in silence, looking at the door of the enclosure.
His face felt hot. He didn't know if it was frustration, embarrassment… or both. He didn't know how to name it. But the idea was already there.
He sighed, as if that gesture cost him more than the previous attempt.
He lowered his gaze.
—Sir… could you explain to me how to do that?
Thained watched him.
To Fares's surprise, there was no reproach in his gaze.
Only a deep calm.
—You're doing it wrong —he said, without changing his tone.
The statement landed directly.
Fares felt his jaw tighten and lowered his eyes.
—I was just… imitating it.
—I wasn't doing that. At no point did I tense my muscles.
Silence returned, but it no longer weighed the same way.
—Boy, lift your head.
Fares obeyed instantly and held his gaze, waiting.
For a moment, something changed in Thained's eyes. It wasn't mockery. Nor impatience.
It was genuine attention.
—The key is not strength. Calm is the key.
The word lingered between them.
Calm.
It echoed in his mind. The same one Aida had spoken when they first met.
Thained moved his hands again, this time without tension, with an almost lazy naturalness.
—Close your eyes. Silence your senses. Listen to your heart.
Fares inhaled carefully and exhaled slowly.
At first, his pulse remained irregular. But, second by second, it began to steady.
His heartbeat stabilized.
The air stopped pressing against his chest.
Thained's presence, the grass beneath his feet, the entire surroundings began to blur in his perception.
It didn't disappear.
It simply stopped imposing itself.
And, for the first time since he had raised his arm, he wasn't trying anything.
At that precise moment, he felt it.
A warmth was born in his torso.
It wasn't a fever.
It was different.
The boy frowned.
Thained noticed the change in his expression and continued firmly:
—Since you can feel it, try to release it. Guide that warmth toward your skin with your will.
The man's voice sounded distant, but clear.
Fares understood.
He didn't have to force it.
He didn't have to push it as if it were something physical.
He felt it.
The warmth wasn't moving through his body…
it was there.
Present.
Waiting.
He frowned slightly.
He tried to bring it out.
Not direct it.
Not shape it.
Release it.
But he didn't know how.
There was no way, no path, no structure.
Only the sensation…
and his own intention.
He tried.
And the warmth did not respond.
It remained there.
Dense. Contained.
As if it did not obey his will…
but something else he still did not understand.
The temperature began to rise little by little.
First in his chest.
Then it spread to his arms, his back, his neck.
It felt as if thin, burning lines were running through his insides.
Thained spoke again to guide him:
—It will burn you, but do not lose your calm.
Fares nodded.
He continued.
But the burning began to grow.
Beneath the skin.
In the muscles.
As if that heat were seeking an escape from anywhere.
But the burning intensified.
His skin began to burn.
Sweat formed on his fingers, and the heat kept spreading, more and more fiercely.
His skin turned red, first on his hands, then on his arms. The pain ran through him, as if his own body were burning.
Even so, he continued.
His muscles tensed. His breathing grew heavy.
Then Thained's voice cut through the moment.
—Enough.
Fares stopped.
The heat still ran through him, sharp and persistent. He looked up at the man, confused and still trembling.
Thained watched him seriously.
—That is enough. Do not force your body like that. You will harm yourself and you will not be able to continue.
Fares frowned.
He was surprised. Wasn't it that if one pushed through the pain… one would succeed?
The thought left him confused, but he obeyed without arguing.
The man spoke calmly.
—Stand up.
Fares obeyed without thinking. He rose slowly, still sore from the burning that lingered beneath his skin.
—We will start with the physical.
As soon as he finished speaking, vapor began to emerge from his body.
It was not violent.
It was constant.
The gas detached from his skin as if it had always been there, spreading into the air… and then stopping.
It gathered in front of him.
It concentrated.
The mass began to compress slowly, as if an invisible force were forcing it to occupy less space.
Fares frowned.
The vapor stopped dispersing.
It became dense.
Compact.
It took shape.
At first, imprecise.
Then defined.
An elongated structure.
Horizontal.
—…
Fares narrowed his eyes.
A bar…?
Then the change happened.
The surface stopped fluctuating.
The gas collapsed in on itself.
It hardened.
The shine appeared first, faint… then firm.
The vapor had disappeared.
In its place remained a solid bar.
Iron.
Rough. Cold. Real.
Thained did not look at it.
As if it held no merit at all.
—Get up —the man ordered.
Fares did not respond.
His eyes were still fixed on the bar.
Iron.
Solid.
Impossible.
—Get up.
This time it wasn't an order thrown into the air.
It was direct.
Fares reacted.
He approached with some stiffness and, after a brief moment of hesitation, jumped and grabbed the bar.
His hands closed around the metal.
Cold.
Firm.
Real.
The contact ran through his body like an uncomfortable confirmation.
It wasn't an illusion.
He held on.
Thained raised three fingers.
—Three reps.
Fares didn't ask.
He tightened his grip.
He tensed his arms.
He pulled himself up.
The movement was clumsy.
Heavy.
Barely controlled.
His muscles protested immediately.
But it wasn't just that.
The heat.
It was still there.
It moved beneath his skin, disordered, as if reacting to the effort.
It reached his arms.
His hands.
His fingers burned.
His grip became unstable.
His body trembled.
He held on.
One second.
Two.
His breathing broke.
The heat pushed from within.
Three.
When he finally descended, his arms gave out more than he expected.
His feet hit the ground with a dull thud.
The burning did not disappear.
—Do seven more —he ordered.
Fares looked at him.
For a moment, he didn't react.
His arms were still trembling from the previous effort.
—Seven… more?
There was no answer.
Only Thained's steady gaze.
Fares clenched his teeth.
He grabbed the bar again.
One.
The movement was slower.
Two.
The pain came sooner.
Three.
His hands trembled, irritated by the effort.
Four.
He had to let go.
He fell, breathing heavily.
He stayed down for a few seconds.
His chest rose and fell irregularly.
He pulled himself up again.
Five.
His arms were failing.
Six.
His grip trembled.
Seven.
He barely managed to complete the last one.
When he dropped, this time he did not move immediately.
His body felt heavy.
—…
Thained nodded slightly.
Then he stepped away.
Between two trees there were a pair of cloths hanging.
He took one.
Then another.
He approached and tossed one to Fares.
—Imitate me.
Without another word, he placed it over the bar.
He gripped both ends.
And lifted himself.
The movement was clean.
Fluid.
Without apparent effort.
He went up and down as if weight did not exist.
Fares watched him in silence.
The contrast was… uncomfortable.
Thained came down.
—Six reps.
Fares did not respond.
He kept looking at the towel.
Then at his hands.
Reddened.
Trembling.
The burning had not disappeared.
And now…
he had to do it worse.
The boy approached the bar.
He jumped.
He grabbed the towel by both ends.
The moment he held it, he understood.
It wasn't the same.
The grip gave way.
The fabric deformed under his fingers.
His hands began to slip.
He frowned.
He clenched his jaw.
The pain in his fingers returned immediately, sharper than before.
And the rest of his body didn't help.
His arms were already exhausted.
Even so, he pulled.
He tried to lift himself.
His muscles responded late.
Poorly.
But he moved.
Barely.
His body rose a few centimeters.
Then—
The grip failed.
The towel slipped through his fingers.
And disappeared from his hands.
The world tilted.
The bar moved away.
He fell.
The impact was clumsy.
Heavy.
The air left his lungs as he hit the ground.
He remained seated for a few seconds, motionless.
Pain running through his arms.
His hands burning.
—Damn it…
The word came out low, loaded.
The boy breathed heavily.
He raised his hands.
The skin was reddened.
In some spots, small blisters were beginning to form.
Fares looked at them in silence.
His breathing was still uneven.
For a moment, he hesitated.
He didn't seem capable of continuing.
Even so, he stood up.
He looked at the bar.
Then the towel.
He jumped.
He grabbed it tightly.
He clenched his teeth.
He inhaled.
And pulled.
His body responded violently.
The pain rose from his fingers, ran through his forearms, and drove into his arms.
His muscles trembled.
The grip was giving out.
But he didn't let go.
He tried to go up.
He barely advanced.
A few centimeters.
His body wouldn't follow.
But he insisted.
Then—
—Enough.
Thained's voice cut the movement.
It wasn't louder.
But it was firmer.
Fares let go immediately.
He fell.
This time, he didn't try to get up.
He remained standing, motionless, his gaze lowered.
He was still short of breath.
—If you continue like this, you'll get injured.
There was no harshness in the tone.
Only certainty.
Fares did not respond.
—You must know when to stop.
Silence fell between them.
Fares pressed his lips slightly.
He nodded.
Thained turned around.
—We'll continue.
He began to walk without looking back.
Fares took a second.
Then he followed him.
The training did not stop.
Pull.
Push.
Hold.
The body began to divide into parts.
The hands failed first.
The grip gave out too soon.
Then the arms.
Heavy.
Slow.
Useless.
The legs trembled while holding his own weight.
Each descent was more clumsy than the last.
Balance broke easily.
His core no longer responded.
His body did not stay firm.
But he kept going.
The heat didn't disappear either.
It moved with him.
To his arms.
To his legs.
To his torso.
Pressing.
Building up.
Becoming more intense.
More unstable.
His breathing was irregular.
—Stop.
Thained's voice was not louder.
But this time… it wasn't a correction.
It was an end.
Fares did not react immediately.
His body took a moment to understand that it no longer had to move.
When he finally stopped, the silence fell all at once.
Heavy.
Thained watched him for a few seconds.
Then he spoke.
—Now, release it.
He did not explain.
He did not point.
He did not repeat.
Fares raised his head slightly.
He understood what he wanted; he had already tried it before.
He had not succeeded.
He didn't question it.
Not anymore.
He swallowed.
He let himself fall to the ground. He closed his eyes.
He tried to remember the man's words.
Calm.
Silence.
Breathe.
He tried.
He truly tried.
But his body was not calm.
It hurt.
It trembled.
It was failing from the previous effort.
His pulse was still fast, his breathing breaking.
The heat did not appear.
It was already there.
It had always been there.
But now… he could feel it.
Not like before.
Not like a diffuse or uncomfortable sensation.
It was clear. Present.
And even so… it did not respond.
It did not flow.
It grew dense.
It tightened beneath his skin, as if it were being forcibly contained.
Unstable.
…
Stopping… changed nothing.
His fingers tensed.
Despite the pain.
Despite the trembling.
He inhaled.
And decided.
To release it.
—…
Nothing happened.
Fares frowned.
He tried again.
But he wasn't guiding it.
He didn't understand it.
He just wanted it out.
Then—
the balance broke.
The Zau responded.
Not to his control…
but to his desperation.
It overflowed.
It wasn't coming out… it was escaping.
It wasn't release.
It was escape.
The air in front of him distorted.The vapor appeared.
Violent.Unstable.
Without form.
It tried to hold itself… and failed.
Fares opened his eyes.
But it was already too late.
He had released it.
But he was not controlling it. The flow did not respond. It just came out.
And the cost came immediately.
The burning intensified beyond normal.
The pain concentrated in his fingers.
It climbed up his arms.
Blisters began to form.
Burns.
His body was not prepared to sustain that release.
Balance disappeared.
The world tilted.
Sound grew distant.
And then—
the light began to fade.
Fares's body fell without resistance to the ground.
The vapor dissolved into the air.
As if it had never been there.
Silence.
His skin reddened.
Marked.
Still warm.
Thained did not move immediately.
He observed.
One second.
Two.
—You felt the flow…
—You released it… without understanding it.
—What you do not understand, you do not control.
—And what you force… breaks.
The boy did not respond.
He couldn't.
The heat… was still there.
Faint.
But very present.