Several singulars and aurators are in the Spark Lion's reach but only Tara has broken through its defenses. The Spark Lion growls in annoyance at this but pays no real attention to her. It instead swats at a nearby warrior, sending them flying through the air. Tara quickly strolls to this person and catches them before laying them on the ground gently. Then she dashes towards the lion and closes the gap with her solar body energy.
Tara slashes out as she arrives before the towering beast five times her height. As the solar blade makes contact with its aura and Tara's strength behind it, there's the screeching sound of energy colliding. The blade finally meets skin and fur with a bang! Blood goes gushing from the wound as muscle underneath is revealed.
The tiger howls in pain but the sound is cut short when the second dagger hits the same spot. Lunar energy rushes through its body and collides with its brain. It freezes in place as its mind is stalled! This was why Tara had gone after the lion.
Using her knowledge of the Twin Sphere energies, she guesses that it would not have any defenses against a lunar mind attack! This twofold attack would break down its body and wear out its mind. Tara's already planned ahead the moment she had sensed the two beasts' energies.
Shuyren already had a strong mental defense among aurators and now with her solar body, she'd be able to take on the Bubble Tiger without too much worry. Like this, the two biggest threats were locked down.
Tara uses Moonlight Prowl to dodge the Spark Lion's earth cracking strikes before attacking wherever she reappears.
Gatse's forces made quick work to aid the youngest of them all! The one to deal the final blow, in the end, happens to be the young warrior girl named Niven that Tara had rescued earlier!
Niven plunges her spear into the lion's right eye, its aura as weak as glass thanks to Tara draining its aural energies. With one massive threat defeated there was only one left.
Nobody could get close to the two dueling beings, however. Seeing the combined efforts finish off its ally, especially the effort from that terrifying child, the Bubble Tiger had used its powerful psychic energies to create a bubble around it.
Shuyren is locked within and forced to fight one on one, however she doesn't seem too concerned about this in the slightest as she finally pulls out twin hook swords.
A sound of thunder echoes from her body as suddenly her green aura surges around her and causes the air to crackle with lightning.
"That's impossible! She broke into Marrow Sparking?!" An older aurator breathes.
His claim seems to reverberate into the ears of everyone in Gatse's defense force. Murmurs turn to whispers into eventual shouts and cheers! They had witnessed something miraculous! Only rumors came outside of a Martial Academy about the stage beyond Vein Plating, lightning's Marrow Sparking. It was a legendary existence to these Skin Igniting and Blood Directing combatants.
The aurators who had planned to lie about their kill count suddenly felt fear in their hearts. With the ability well beyond their wildest dreams, Shuyren must have told the truth about keeping the numbers. They all watch without blinking as Shuyren engages the Bubble Tiger alone and with her full strength, hoping for insight for themselves and victory.
Shuyren follows a similar tactic to Tara, using her solar body and formidable mental prowess to shave away the Bubble Tiger's defenses. Every stroke of her sword carries a resounding clang. If someone had been close enough, they could hear crystallized bones pop as they adjusted to the strength she was exerting.
In a few short exchanges, the tiger is felled, its corpse ending up in Shuyren's ring.
[Heart Guardian + Mind Protector Events Cleared! Processing Rewards...]
With the psychic energy barrier fading silently, the surrounding crowd encircles Shuyren before kneeling in front of her.
Tara pulls Niven up before holding her hand and guiding the fifteen-year-old to her grandmother. Shuyren gives Niven a proud smile as she inspects her internal energies. Her soul was strong and her body well-tempered. It was her mind that was weak but luckily for this young woman, between the Twin Sphere technique and Shuyren's teachings, she could break the boundaries of singularity.
"Everyone let us collect the spoils from and then return to Gatse to rest! Tomorrow is ours!" She beckons and everyone cheers again as they stand up and punch towards the sky. Amazingly, the group only has a few gashes and minor wounds with nothing life-threatening. They hadn't lost a single person in the conflict!
"Stop!" Everyone was about to go off and collect the bodies of the fallen Aural Beasts when someone cried out! All eyes turn to Jangi who looks absolutely furious as he points at Tara. "I demand a battle! I refuse to believe a child could actually be so powerful! She must have someone aiding her!"
"Boy, you dare--!" Shuyren starts before Tara approaches him. A circle is formed and the two stand in the middle.
Tara puts away her daggers with crossed arms and back straight. Jangi senses that she hasn't even engaged her aura. Seeing Tara isn't taking him seriously, he yells as he charges at her. His attacks were so sloppy and predictable that she couldn't help but wonder how he had survived.
Tara's steps to avoid him are simple and effortless. With his weak constitution, Jangi's aural energy can't keep up with his blind rage. Tara hits him with a simple palm strike to the center of his chest without a hint of aural or Twin Sphere energy. Jangi's sent flying backward into the crowd, people moving out of the way as he flies in their direction before he hits the ground.
Tara returns, taking Niven's hand, and turning to her grandmother.
"Can we take them and go home?" Tara asks in a small, shaking voice with tears in her eyes. A hush fell over the crowd as they realized something: this had been her first true battle. Luck had been on her side that she hadn't witnessed any death on the humans' side.
Shuyren went to hug her but Tara shook her head, only holding Niven's hand tighter. Shuyren inwardly sighs at the rejection but understands. Battles like this one were usually for older aurators who had experience. For this to be her debut as a low tier Skin Igniting was probably too much.
'We will go collect our family before returning home right away.' Shuyren softly replied as she gathered the Spark Lion corpse. Afterwards, she turns to the warriors who were collecting their trophies.
"In a week's time, a festival shall be held! I will seek the Merchant's Guild within the capitol to assist in selling your spoils. Your individual efforts have been recorded and payment will arrive but for now, rejoice with your victory with your loved ones!"
As Shuyren gathers Zuwen and Chun with her mothers, Niven joins them on the way back. Sadly Niven was an orphan without even a last name. This made Shuyren all the more impressed with her progress. As they arrive back at the mansion that evening, Shuyren has already offered to have her marry into the family.
Niven declines, saying that she should earn her name and for now would like to guard Tara whom she views as her savior.
"Niven, you deem yourself worthy of the name Hufang on your own terms. Tara will likely be beyond your reach sooner, so the gap you would need to cross would be enormous to become equal-footed with her. But from now on you will study under me in the ways of psychic energy after Tara imparts you with what will one day be called our family's greatest secret." Shuyren declares from her throne with Tara, Ashne, and Kohra present.
The aunts are shocked because their Matriarch had never directly taken a student before, only given advice and guidance. Niven is in tears, bowing on the floor with gratitude. To have a teacher who was a Marrow Sparking aurator was more than she could have ever hoped for.
Tara falls asleep that night well into late morning, her energies fully exhausted from her first true combat. This time, in a forgettable dream, she witnesses an oak brown wolf walking slowly across an expansive ocean. It crosses her path and glances at her before sprinting away.
When Tara rises the next morning, she feels revitalized. Instead of spending the day sitting in her room, she decides to meditate outside. Shuyren's courtyard is a garden with the center point a strip of land surrounded by a creek. On this land is a massive tree that holds apples and pears.
As Tara crosses one of the small bridges to get to this tree, she takes out the two daggers from the other day and places them at the base of the tree. Hesif had let her keep the daggers she had borrowed. They were to do more good in her hands than in his collection.
Yesterday her body hadn't moved of its own accord. The ancient physical energy used her body as a medium to create an amazing display.
Every move allows Tara to have a better understanding of Twin Sphere Body Arts, but if she can't control her actions nor make it her own, such comprehension was useless. Tara needs to make her own insights otherwise she'd have to rely on the ancient energy all the time.
Tara inhales and exhales as she takes a starting pose. She slowly executes a series of punches and kicks. Her Twin Sphere energy quietly runs alongside her physical energy as her body remembers the sensations of the technique used.
Tara's already thought of names for them, Ember Gather and Rain Scatter. If she can use them without her aura first then maybe they'll be even stronger! Tara punches out with her left hand, recalling with clarity the explosive force of Ember Gather that's able to tear through auras and break crystal bones.
She spins around on her heel, punching with the same fist, but using Rain Scatter's gentle but invasive strike that cuts into minds. Tara has not forgotten her goal, to see what happens if she can use eclipse light, as she alternates between the two strikes.
An hour passes, Niven arrives watching Tara's moves intensely. Zuwen and Chun appear soon after, sleepy at first, but immediately awaken at Tara's concentration. They cross over to the bridge and attempt to copy Tara's motions.
In watching the two young girls follow her for the next two hours, Tara's able to fix her own mistakes. The three spin in tandem for a roundhouse kick but only Tara's met the air with an audible pop as a small amber flame appears at the tip of her foot! This was the physical manifestation of Ember Gather without aura! Tara grins before hugging her two little students, dashing off as she pulls her weapons back to her with her lunar psychic energy.
Tara heads to the main hall in order to borrow one of her aunts to practice Rain Scatter when she senses a familiar aura. Oh! A better practice partner has returned.
More excited now she prowls into the room and masks her aura as best she can. A tiny amount of aqua blue foam strikes out from a shadowed area. The woman kneeling before Shuyren slices through the attack with her finger, much stronger and faster than Tara is.
Di has returned! Her aura, even when restrained, is much more oppressive than before. Though Tara couldn't see her mother's internal energies, she's certain Di is low tier Vein Plating!
"Your mother comes home with treasure and you attack her? Who raised such a child." Di laughs as Tara emerges into her arms. Di was only a little surprised that Tara had become a Skin Igniting aurator so soon.