Aldric stared down the training dummy intently. He cleared his head and focused his breathing. The sparring bot lunged toward him with its bladed arm raised. Aldric fumbled his hand signs and was unsuccessful in casting shadow walk. The machine's arm swung toward his face.
He ducked with a soft scream and narrowly avoided a significant gash. The bot followed up quickly with another swipe with the other arm. When Aldric saw the blades glint in the light, he lunged backward.
"Focus boy!" The architect shouted, watching Aldric flail across the floor. The young boy put space between him and the robot and attempted again to focus his energy. He tried the hand signs again, but the bot quickly made its attack. It's metal elbow smashed into the boys chest, eliminating the burning sensation altogether.
He fell to the ground with a loud wheeze. The dummy reset itself and lined up for another attack. Aldric's eyes raised, welled with tears, and he breathed deeply. His anger raged in his chest, and again he placed his palms together.
Swiftly, he successfully followed the sequence, and just like the architect, he sank into the stone. He felt a sense of calming as he was finally able to relax and breathe. He focused on fueling his life force while he was in the shadow.
He couldn't see inside the void, but he could feel his surroundings. He could feel vibrations of things as they entered his space. A tingle when he'd brushed against a wall, or a soft warmth when he was near the architect.
He felt his power surging through him like an electric current as the heat in his chest grew larger. He waited and bided his time, waiting for his chance to strike. Then, an odd cooling sensation rushed across his back, and he knew.
His time had come. He bent his knees and thrusted upward, like he was kicking off the bottom of a pool. Just like he had seen in the demonstration, he flew across the room like a super hero and landed a heavy blow to the dummy's head.
"Yes!" He exclaimed excitedly. He lost his focus, and when he made contact with the opposing wall, he collided with a heavy thud. He slid down the wall and landed upside down behind the training dummy. The architect sighed loudly as the machine regained its balance.
It whipped around quickly and faced Aldric again, before making another attempt. Aldric, refocusing his anger, met the machine's gaze as it lunged for him. He dodged an overhead strike and ducked a hooking blow before rolling behind the machine and retrying his hand signs.
Again, he successfully cast the charm and sunk into the floor. He found himself once again in the dark calming bliss of the void. He felt his energy surge after a few moments and knew he was ready for another attack. He waited just like before, feeling each entity that entered his space.
The architect's warmth seared his back while the hum of metal rang around him. Then, another cold chill, this time down his chest. This was it; he bent and leapt with all of his force. He burst through the wall and collided with the machine again.
This time, he remained focused and found himself inside the opposite wall. He had done it, and now he just had to finish the combo. Another bend at the knees, and a centralized breath, and he was ready.
His fists stayed balled, but his mind was sharp. He focused on his energy and his strength. He knew he'd need to finish the fight soon if he didn't want to break a hand. Again, he felt the cold air brush his face and launched up. He thrust through the floor and slammed his fit into the machines chin.
The static feeling encapsulated his entire body still as he faded through the ceiling. His hand throbbed and swelled, but he was determined. He had one more punch in him, and if he lined it up just right, he knew he could make it a killing blow.
He waited patiently, gripping his battered hand firmly. Then he thought about it: the hardening charm. If he could cast it right before colliding with the machine, it could give his punch enough force to take it down. His focus deepened, and he remembered how to manipulate his anger.
He just had to utilize it correctly once. He breathed deeply, refilling his energy and dispersing it. He focused all of the power he could into his fist directly, and the rest of it focused on keeping him in the void.
The air went stale as the architect's warmth seemed to disperse, and Aldric felt alone. Nonetheless, he maintained his focus and waited. The cold rush brushed past him quickly and disappeared quickly. He waited still.
He felt the cold across his back, but still he waited. Then, he felt a straight, cold dagger in his chest, and knew it was his turn to finish it. He leapt through his shadow pool with a rageful scream. Time slowed around him as his fist grew stone scales.
The scales fluttered up half of his arm, wrapping it in a protective layer. The training bot turned to face the boy, launching at it, and found itself in peril. Aldric thrust his fist with all the energy he had left, and it met the machine's chest directly.
The metal of the bot's chest folded inward on itself as Aldric's fist pierced through its back. Springs, gears, bolts, and nuts trickled to the floor loudly, and the machine whirred and twitched before collapsing to the floor.
Aldric panted heavily and fell to his knees exhausted. He felt limp and numb, unable to fully stand up. He'd never used so much energy in his life, and now he felt like he had fully used his life force. His vision went fuzzy briefly, prompting him to blink rapidly.
Then he felt a heavy palm rest on his shoulder.
"You've done well, son. Let me take care of you now," the architect said, scooping the boy up and off the floor.