Martin stood straight, applying force on his legs to keep him steady, he brought his right hand backward, and punched the rock fist that was heading for him.
The momentum of the fist had made his feet that was already implanted into the ground slid back a little before it came to a stop.
Rob was shocked, his hand was held forward trying to push the rock more but it wasn't possible, it was stuck. Then his eyes widened when he saw what was happening.
Cracks began to appear on the surface of the rock, and soon it broke into pieces and dust rose into the air covering up Martin's figure.
Martin walked out of the dust, he shook the hand that had broken the fist and relaxed his shoulders, after seeing what his strength could do, he was eager to test it out more and his eyes gleamed with a mysterious glint.
Jin subconsciously took a step back.
"Bill! Do something and Use your fucking qrune!" Jin yelled at his friend, he was still trying to charge up his own element.
Bill moved back, he didn't want to be involved in anything, something was definitely was not right with Axton.
"Bill, the hell is with you!? Blast this guy out of here." Jill looked to his right when he realized that Bill was not doing as he had said.
Suddenly the hairs on his neck rose up, and he faced his front just to see Axton in front of him, those cold red eyes were staring into his soul and his hand was already pulled back.
_How did..._
Before Jin could form a line of thought, Martin's voice interrupted him.
"Hi."
And the hand that was pulled back instantly shot forward like a cannonball, creating ripples in the air due to the sheer amount of raw power. A low whistling sound echoed in the atmosphere as the clenched fist sliced through the air and connected straight into Jin's face.
Martin's punch sent a shockwave through Jin's body as he flew backwards and skidded across the ground, his face a bleeding mess.
_What… How? _
Jin couldn't think straight as he lay writhing on the ground, his hand on his face while he cried in pain.
Rob stood straight with his hand forward, he had felt the disturbance in the air as Axton moved past him but he couldn't even catch a glimpse of the boy's image.
He had also pushed his mana supply to the limits and he was already weak.
Rob had only one option, he had to run.
"I have to leave here."
Just as the thought of running passed through his head, he had a chilling crack and he found himself collapsing to the floor with a terrible pain shooting from his right leg.
His scream rang out, disturbing the silence in the air, he looked at his leg while tears flowed profusely down his face, and he realised that his knee had been shifted to an abnormal angle causing his leg to be in a mangled form, basically it was broken.
Martin appeared from behind him and crouched down so he could look at him fully.
Rob's face was covered with snot and tears. He now understood the type of person they had crossed.
_Who is this boy? _
Rob hadn't realized that he spoke out loud, as he was still in a daze when Martin had moved to him.
"I'm the boy you bullied some years back. I'm not done with you. Don't start shedding tears. I have
n't even done half of what you did to Axton."
Martin said, the cold tone was almost enough to freeze up Rob's tears.
"Please… sniffs" Rob begged, he was weak and powerless in front of Axton, he also couldn't understand why the boy referred to himself in the third person.
Martin had blocked his brain from registering their pleas, he had his mind held straight, they had to pay. He needed to uproot the roots now before they grew into a thorn in his side.
He grabbed Rob's hand and dislocated his shoulder joint and the elbow, he also contemplated breaking his fingers, but right now he didn't have the time.
Ignoring the boy's yells, he did the same thing to the second arm.
"Annoying." Martin didn't like hearing his screams so with a punch, he knocked the boy out cold.
He stood up, and he saw two wind blades heading for him, but they were slow so it was easy to move out of their path.
Jin spat out blood on the floor and got ready to send forth another set of blades.
His eyes was filled with anger and hatred, his nose had been twisted to the left and it was bleeding. His eyes were swollen and they were also bleeding also but he didn't care even as the pain coursed through his body. He was just focused on killing Axton.
Jin started sending blades after blades towards Martin, one after the other, yet Martin dodged them.
Martin soon realized that the blades' speed were increasing as they whooshed passed him and it wasn't also that, he saw that he could see them a bit clearer now, they were getting bigger.
"Jin. You have to stop this madness." Bill stood by the corner trying to make his dear friend cease what he was doing, he wasn't scared of what Jin would do to Axton because he knew that those blades would not be able to stop Axton, he was scared that Jin was just pushing himself for nothing.
"Shut the fuck up you traitor! Once I get out of this, you are next!" Jin roared yet his eyes was on Axton
But would he really be able to get out of it?
Jin could feel himself on the brink of mana exhaustion as more blood started to flow from his nose, and his ears started to ring but he still wouldn't stop.
He looked straight at Axton and wondered why he was just standing there and not moving, then his eyes widened making him realize that what he was seeing was just an afterimage of the boy.
"Where was he?" His eyes searched around but he couldn't find him, his head hurt him and his knees buckled.
"Where the fuck are you?!"
"Come out so I can kill you!"
Jin screamed to no one in particular as be turned around trying to find him, then his pupils shrank when he saw Axton in front of him with a smile.
_Yes! My chance. I can dissect this bastard with a wind blade at this range_
He was mad with anger and he just couldn't reason straight, he just wanted to see Axton beg for mercy so he cracked a smile and decide to try out his plan.
_Er why can't I move? _
It was then he realized, he had no mana, he had used it all. He watched slowly as Axton gripped his two arms and did what he had done to Rob to him also.
The pain shot like a burning furnace in his bones but he couldn't scream.
The pain flooded up his nerves along with the effect of mana exhaustion causing his body to shut down and he fell into a state of unconsciousness.
Bill could only watch as Axton picked up his bag and left the trio to their fate.
________
Martin arrived at his home, he dropped his bag and went straight int the bathroom.
He reaked of sweat and blood that wasn't his.
The big runic symbol still laid on his chest and he planned to attend to that very soon.
After taking his bath, he couldn't help but admire himself but he was hungry at the moment so he needed to eat first, he couldn't cultivate mana yet to replenish his energy so food was the only option he had.
He then remembered how he had ransacked the whole place that morning just to get something to eat but he ended up going to a restaurant.
"Well, let's just proceed to the awakening."
Now the awakening was a big step for Martin, it wasn't the first time people had tried it on their own but it was rare for most to make it out alive, that was why someone higher in cultivation was needed.
The job of this person was to take out the energy as soon as the passageways were starting to get filled up.
These meridians had locks, and it was unlocking these passageways that gave birth to the usage of elements abilities.
These locks needed energy to be pushed into them and if the energy was getting too much, that was when the awakeners stepped in to help the young aspiring mage push the excess energy to the next lock till the first four locks were broken and that signified the awakening of the first rune.
Martin sat cross-legged on the floor in the middle of his house, he didn't know how mana felt but following the instructions of the books, he had to empty his mind, and close his eyes, and he would be able to feel his meridians.
"Okay, let's do this. I have to feel my mama first, nothing should go wrong."
Martin took in a deep breath and began the process.
At first he felt nothing, then after a few minutes he realized something was moving in his guts, it was fast like a rushing wind, then it became slow.
It was mana, he smiled, it felt just like the book had described it so now he confirmed that he had mana.
Martin soon felt the lines of his meridians and he realized they were truly connected to his organ system. The system of this new world truly amazed him.
"Okay let's go slowly this time."
He had to move the energy that was calmly moving in his body through this lines.
He focused his mind and cleared his brain from every thoughts, he only had to picture those lines and the energy moving through them.
Hours flew past, Martin suddenly felt a breakthrough, the lock he had been pushing past was getting filled up, he needed to control the flow of energy.
_Slowly. Don't rush._
Controlling mana was like controlling new-born babies, you had to be calm and gentle with them, and sometimes you have to be jumpy and rough to make them happy.
Martin didn't know what to call his mana, it seemed like they were eager to break the lock.
_Fuck, they are rushing in too fast_
His head ached as the channels began to expand due to the massive amount of mana that accumulated causing blood to run down his nose yet he still tried his best to calm down.
_Yes!_
An hour later he had broken the first lock and when he did, the energy immediately rushed through into the next lock strangely it didn't require much stress and by dawn the next day, he had broken through four of his meridians and completed his first awakening.
Martin opened his eyes, and they glowed brightly. He was about to stand up when he felt a intense pain in his chest. The rune on his chest was expanding, Martin had to clench his teeth and take in the pain.
Then two lines from the rune in his chest flowed to his right hand and left hand and after that, the pain subsided.
Martin looked at the symbol on his right hand and a brilliant expression appeared on his face.
"Fuck yeah!! Fire rune! Who said that this body was useless? I have the Fire rune!"
Martin couldn't help but scream in happiness, having the fire rune would change a lot of things in his life. The fire rune was one of the most wanted rune in the city, it was very rare and if a mage had awakened the rune of fire, it was as easy climb to the top of the food chain.
_Why do I have two rune symbols though?_
Martin glanced at the next symbol on his hand as it glowed with a yellow color.
"I have wind element!" Martin exclaimed, he couldn't believe his eyes, he had two elements.
People with fire elements were rare but people with innate abilities were like search for a pin in a stack of hay.
He couldn't stop the smile on his face from widening until a sharp ache radiated from his chest.
The rune on his chest flowed with a dark purplish color.
Martin looked down at the symbol… Please don't tell me I have another rune on my chest? he almost slapped his head from the amount of joy he was feeling.
"Purple rune ehn."
_What kind of rune is this? _
_Purple?_
_Red means fire_
_Brown means Earth_
_Yellow is wind_
_Blue means water_
_Purple is? _
"Wait Purple… Purple??!! I have a purple colored rune!"
"I have the lightning rune, this useless body has a lightning rune! Ha! watch out ladies, I'm coming! The true king has landed!"
No one would believe Martin if he said he had three runes especially when they consisted of the two rarest runes; Fire and Lightning.
The lightning rune was a rune gotten after the second awakening and it was hard to obtain except through artificial engineering.
"I got two primary runes, and a secondary rune."
He couldn't stop himself from laughing till he suddenly collapsed on the floor and slept off.
He had overused his mana when he had completed the opening of the fourth meridian lock.