"This is the sparring grounds of the Thunder Legion." Gestured Axus, as he threw Kellen into the center of a dirt square behind the barracks.
Kellen rubbed his back as he got up from the hard ground.
'This bastard really doesn't care about anything other than fighting, does he?' He thought in annoyance.
Ever since he had returned to the continent from the void, Kellen had come across all sorts of strange people. But, many of them seemed to have something in common. That being, they were mostly comprised of battle hungry lunatics. Especially those who were in the Empire.
Before Kellen could complain or say anything about the situation, he was tossed a blunt metal sword.
"Here, let's see what type of difference that stone makes." Said Axus before eagerly rushing towards Kellen the instant he caught the metal sword.
"What the f-"
Kellen's words were cut off as the spear on the legionnaire's back slipped forwards over the small man's shoulder and smacked against the blunt sword.
If Kellen had considered himself to be a monster because of his now inhuman physique, then what did that make Axus? Kellen could feel the strength in his body had increased, but even with the added strength, Axus was still too overpowered for him.
The golden spear of the legionnaire flashed and danced in the light as it was expertly twirled around his small body. The power of Axus's strikes are ridiculous already, but adding on his expert spearmanship and experience on top of that, makes him even more dangerous.
The spear was like a golden snake that bended and slithered around Axus's body, before releasing a hidden strike from within the flashy movements.
Kellen had struggled against the small legionnaire in their previous spars, but the one he was forced to participate in now was on a whole other level.
He was being pushed back at a rapid rate, with almost no leeway to counter, while barely being able to fend off the ferocious attacks of his superior.
"Is that seriously it?" Asked Axus, who almost seemed to be disappointed if not for his stone cold facial expressions.
Kellen clenched his teeth as he tried to summon more strength into his arms to help fend off the persistent legionnaire.
'What are you doing, you fool' Patronized Nergal.
'Can you shut up for even a moment? I'm kind of busy right now!' Barked back Kellen as he became more distracted from his fight due to the interrupting demon.
'Really? With what? Getting your ass kicked?' Mocked Nergal at his peeved inheritor.
'Is that all you wanted to talk about? Seriously?' Replied Kellen as he ducked backwards to dodge the blade of the golden spear that severed a few strands of his trailing hair.
'How many times do I have to explain it to you? Use your demonic energy! You're a demon for crying out loud! Act like one and stop disappointing me!' Ordered Nergal in anger.
'Anything you wish to add, Osiris?' Sarcastically asked Kellen, while wishing he could go in there and strangle the both of them.
'Nope, just what that joker has said.' Lazily answered Osiris, who seemed content to just sit back and enjoy the show.
The anger instigated by Nergal swelled up inside of Kellen making his blood begin to boil. Instead of this being uncomfortable, like it usually had been, Kellen felt more like himself as his body's temperature continued to increase.
The difference between his current self and that of his past, was almost unnoticeable from the outside. However, internally, Kellen had become something that could only be described as a raging beast.
Due to Nergal and Osiris's constant presence in his mind and the ever increasing amount of demonic blood inside of him, Kellen was becoming numb. He was becoming oblivious to his emotions and their power. His self-deprecation, anger, regret, and loathing were amplified in such a state.
Now that he was a demon, it wasn't that he lost his other emotions, only that they had been dampened, while his negative ones were amplified. He was aware of this fact. It was not that he feared it, but disliked their influence over him.
In this exact instance, Kellen was being swallowed by those emotions and thoughts. His strength soared as the demonic energy within his blood began to explode from within him.
The metal sword in his hand was doused in flames. They mixed between that of a crimson red and jet black, much like the color of the blood cores he absorbed.
The fiendish light, radiating from the sword in Kellen's hand, reflected in Axus's eyes with a glistening glare.
Similarly a radiant white glow appeared from the edges of Axus's golden spear, almost as if it was surrounded by a thin halo.
When the two weapons clashed, their impact caused the hard packed ground beneath their feet to shake. Kellen's eyes held a fierce reddish tint, like that of the unquenchable flames dancing on the edge of his sword.
It did not matter that the metal sword was blunt, since the searing flames shimmering on its surface became its lethal edge.
However, the faint white glow surrounding Axus's spear did not budge when in contact with these fierce flames. Every time the two weapons intercepted each other, the calm, unwavering white glow stopped the raging flames from proceeding on to melt the spear.
The two men continued on in this deadlock, with neither being able to gain any ground.
"Interesting." Was all Axus muttered as they continued.
Kellen was now in a state of berserk. On the back of his hand two dark red tallies, that looked like a scar created from the claws of a beast, presented themselves.
The marks glowed with a fierce light similar to Kellen's flames and pulsed with the beating of his enraged heart.
The flames engulfing his sword seemed to waver back and forth insync with this pulsing as the weapons continued to clash. As the spar went on, the flames on the blunt sword began to creep up its hilt and ignite on Kellen's hand. The hungry flames did not stop there as they crawled up to Kellen's elbow before halting their advance.
Axus felt a single bead of sweat drip down his cheek as the temperature radiating off of Kellen and the sword increased.
"Excellent!" The legionnaire exclaimed as he felt the force of Kellen's sword strengthen against his spear.
Compared to their other spars, the strength this recruit had shown grew at least two levels since then.
Axus was infatuated by the new strength, which caused him to accidentally release more of his power from sheer exhilaration.
For a few seconds, Kellen pushed the legionnaire back across the grounds of the sparring area, but that soon ended as a faint white light in Axus's eyes flashed. The movement of the spear in the small man's hands sped up with Kellen being unable to match the increased pace.
Muffled sounds of thunder boomed in the sparring area after every impact against the golden spear.
The match was beginning to come to an end. The sword Kellen wielded finally gave out under the stress of his power. Its metal had begun to glow with an eerie red light before turning yellow like a molten sword in a forge.
Against the stronger attacks produced by its opponent, the sword began to bend as the heat and impacts twisted its original shape.
With a final assault, Axus rendered the sword unusable by twirling his golden spear and cleaving it straight through the bent sword.
The searing red tip of the sword flew from the blade after it was cleanly cut off by Axus. It flipped through the air before embedding itself into the hard packed dirt floor. Its sweltering temperature caused the blade tip to sink through the tough dirt like butter.
"And that's that." Said Axus as he carefully smacked the top of Kellen's head with the butt of the spear.
The sudden shock produced from the spear brought Kellen back to his senses.
He was soaked in sweat that dripped from his huffing body onto the dirt floor beneath him. Kellen groaned while plopping down onto the ground to rest his sore body. The strain from the intense heat and energy had completely tired him out. After absorbing the first blood core he had yet to test its strength, and now after absorbing this second one, he had finally utilized their power.
However, without properly being able to adjust to the first core, and jumping straight into combat after absorbing the second, it had been a little too much.Let alone being able to control his strength so that he would not break his weapon, Kellen struggled just to rein in the energy that fiercely circulated in his body now.
'Looks like I need to take time to adapt to their power.' Thought Kellen as he massaged his sore muscles. It wasn't that he did not become any stronger, but without proper control over his new strength, Kellen was nothing more than a child with a flaming stick.
'Stop being a weakass already, will you.' Complained Nergal, who was unsatisfied by the small increase in power.
'I'm trying my best, alright. If I got stronger at the speed you expected then I would have died multiple times already!' Shot back Kellen.
Nergal could only mumble angrily in response but said nothing more. He had only hoped that the power contained in the cores had been more bountiful.
"Looks like you still have a lot of growing to do." Stated Axus, who remounted his spear on his back before offering Kellen a hand.
Kellen sighed in agreement and took the legionnaire's hand to help stand himself back up.
"Yes, sir. It just feels like no matter how much power I gain, I can never seem to properly use it." Complained Kellen while looking down at the two marks on his hand, which were beginning to fade away.
"It just takes time and experience. When I was your age, I was still trying to master my divinity as well. But you know what I've learned?"
"What?" Asked Kellen.
"Nothing beats the experience gained from a real battle." Enthusiastically said the battle crazed legionnaire with hunger in his eyes.
Kellen felt the need to slap the legionnaire too now. After interacting with the legionnaire for a while at the academy, and the small amount of time he had spent with him outside, Kellen knew that this man only had one thought on his mind at all times.
'Fighting…'
He did not refute the words of the legionnaire, since what the man said was technically true. Only with experience in combat, and by using his demonic powers more, would Kellen get closer to the strength he needed.
There were countless times in the past when he had been too weak to make any difference, and his enemies in this world just seemed to continue to grow in number. When it was compared to the Descendant Order, the laboratory Romans he had yet to locate, or the despicable Goddess that condemned him, Kellen knew that this increase in strength was miniscule. It was actually pitiful, now that he thought about it.
He lamented at this fact. But deep down inside, he knew that this was true. A cub did not become a lion in a day, and neither would he gain enough power that he could oppose even his godly foes at such a rate. However, with the help from his new comrades he had met on his journey through this hellhole, Kellen felt like this feat would eventually be possible.
The ridiculous power of the legionnaire standing before him was a testament to this. If a man like Axus, with strength rivaling an entire army was on his side and mentoring him, then Kellen believed this obstacle in front of him was surmountable.
'Hell, I survived that hellish training under Osiris in the mindspace. As long as I keep pushing forward, I can do this too.' Decided Kellen.
"I know I said I wanted to see where you were at, but why don't we try something else while we're at it." Said Axus while eying Kellen's current condition.
"What do you have in mind?" Replied Kellen while sensing a familiar feeling coming from the legionnaire.