Quinn and Aaron were both in one of the fighting areas near to the enterance of the facility, ready to face off and measure the strength each other. Aaron had complied without a word spoken to spar with Quinn; in fact, he had been looking forward to do so: to fight his student that happened to train under the same master as himself.
'This'll be fun,' Quinn grinned. "Is the thought of meeting an inevitable defeat to me such an exciting thought?" taunted Aaron.
Without replying or caring about what Aaron just said, Quinn dashed towards him, appearing right in front of Aaron's face. Surprised, Aaron bled out some of his Ki and detatched it from his body, and lauched it towards Quinn.
However, for Aaron, something completely unexpected had occurred. Quinn had not only sensed the Ki without any himself, but also completely negated it with the slightest swing of his arm. This was because of Quinn's high Sense stat that granted him the [Clairvoyance] Passive Skill which can see though illusions and Universal Deceptions, and negate them.
And, so it turns out, Ki was a Universal Deception. It wasn't any Energy that Quinn knew of, and furthermore, it definitely was not of Primordial origins. Thus, it was completely and utterly useless against Quinn.
Up until a while back, Aaron was only aware of one other fellow disciple under his master. But then, Quinn appeared; claiming to be greatly involved with the person he calls master, and possesses some kind of power to negate Ki. Needless to say, he was beyond shook.
'To think that there would be an existence that my Ki could not work on,' Aaron mused, 'He did not merely overpower it; he has no trace of Ki. But, he completely erased it: I cannot sense it anymore! Is this the power of the Shadow Ki...? I hope master will not regret this.'
As Aaron was still flabbergasted, Quinn wasted no more time and kicked off his left foot, launching himself above Aaron's head level. Spinning around with great speed, he kicked the latter, aimed at his head, but Aaron blocked, just in time; although, he still felt the hit through the layer of defensive Ki around his arm and slid to the side.
He could feel great pain in his hand. After all, Quinn's kick completely ignored his Ki and continued on to hit him. With no other option than to go on the offensive, Aaron got a grip on himself, and tried to counterattack. But, alas, Quinn did not let up and continued his assualt: kicking Aaron with the two of his legs without tounching the ground even once, and supporting himself up with the power of the kicks.
As Aaron finally predicted Quinn's movement, he blocked the kick and pushed off of it with Quinn's own power, creating distance between the two, making some room for him to breathe.
"I bet I could have finished the duel right off the bat if I used even half of my powers, but I see that even you haven't used your ability," Quinn taunted as he used his Authority over Shadows to make it cover his entire body, creating a kind of armour that pulsated with a mysterious purple energy. His head was also covered in flickering Shadows that shaped themselves like a helmet with a flame-like Shadow for a plume; his eyes: slits of a purple glow.
"I'd advise you use everything you got," he smirked and he drew his two bladed from his sides. 'He said that his Ability was weak on the first day, and I had no way to confirm that. But now... I can see it: it's not weak at all. I've never seen an Ability of such a high rank before...' Quinn mused.
———
[Aaron Burnedead]
[Ability: Transformation[S-Rank] ]
———
'I've done my research and asked Sen about it too... no wonder he's one of the strongest humans alive. But, what can a Transformation Ability of such a high rank achieve...? How different is it?'
"Very well," Aaron activated his Ability, "I cannot possibly assess you when I'm weak. So, I shall use my Ability. No use keeping such secrets from you."
Aaron's body grew in size: as opposed to his already tall and great physique of a man well over 6 feet tall, he grew even larger; now standing at over 7 feet tall. His muscles bulged as red and white fur grew on them. His head started to morph until it eventually changed completely from a human's to that of a thing that resembled a wolf, with a large snout, and unruly and dangerous fangs revealed themselves.
Quinn noticed another notification pop up from the Shadow Heart. It read:
———
[Aaron Burnedead]
[Ability: Soul Release[S-Rank] ]
[Race: Werewolf]
———
'Wait, what?!' Quinn was taken by surprise and unknowingly, released a wave of intense Energy by instinct, 'That definitely was not there before! Is it because he's using his powers and has undone his transformation? But how did he even transform if he has another ability... unless?!'
"Calm down, Quinn," Aaron spoke with a snarl and a voice deeper than usual. Despite his menacing stature, he was the one that was unable to move due to Quinn's oppressing Energy. "Could you lay off with that deadly aura of yours? It's hard to breathe, really," He sighed a breathe of relief as the other complied, "I know what you must be thinking; since not a lot of people get to encounter a Werewolf in their lifetime.
"But, trust that you and I are comrades now. We have trained under the same master after all. And, remember: I was also originally from the Vampires' Planet. No matter how strange it may seem."
'Void. He isn't another Ring Bearer, is he? It's showing only one Ability, but I'm certain that it was showing the Transformation Ability before,' Quinn asked the voice in his head, 'What is going on?'
'No, boy,' Void replied, once again, as if he had expected the question, 'The Werewolves, much like us, are able to Transform into any other being that they have eaten at will. Their Transformation is almost flawless: mimicking every possible aspect of the victim race's body. There is a reason why all the races—apart from us Shadows, of course—fear them.'
'Eat...' Quinn wondered, 'So, he's eaten one? A human?'
Void's silence spoke for itself. Still, Quinn was not bothered by this, as Aaron was still an important character to the both of them.
"Hah, let's stop here, Quinn," Aaron raised his hands as he transformed back into his human form and laughed, "You're already far stronger than me. I can see why master would have you hidden: as the shadow of a successor to his teachings, and to become the next heir to the seat of the strongest human, I suppose. Indeed, if the other found out, he would certainly not stay put.
"I can tell that you are on guard with me. But, if you cannot trust me, trust our master. I am on your side. I offer my allegiance to you, and I will do whatever I can to help you as long as it is within my power," Aaron knelt on one knee as he explained further.
"I shall accompany you wherever you wish my presence, but I shall first tell you of my origins, I suppose. As I said, I am originally from Nyxterra. Master said that he picked me up in the great dark forest of death, alongside hundreds of massacred beasts; and that is all I know. It may or may not be the whole truth, but since master said so, I could not care less.
"As you should already know—since you are the shadow heir—that our master... the one who took us in and trained us, is a God. He promised us all, and I am sure you too, that we shall all have a place in the Highest Plane."