Athan looked at Mark with a glint of excitement in his eyes.
"I find it amazing that aether is so versatile and can be utilized in so many ways," Athan said, his fascination with aether growing with each passing moment. He was deeply intrigued and wanted to learn everything there was to know about it.
"Yes, aether can be used in countless ways, which means that every individual's path in the realm of aether will be unique. However, as you become stronger, the pressure will mount as others possessing similar characteristics to you will emerge."
"In the pursuit of power only one can live to recount the tale" said Mark with brutality flashing in his gaze, Athan was surprised by the atmosphere that was heavy with killing intent, as he couldn't comprehend what was it that made Mark to become so angry.
"Athan, in the pursuit of power, I'll give you some advice. The rest you'll learn by yourself. Don't take my words as the final say in your life. They may hold a certain weight to you, but remember that your survival always comes first," Mark said while gazing solemnly at Athan.
"Please promise me that you'll always put your survival first," to which Athan could only nod in response to Mark's words.
Today, Athan made a promise that he'll always regret.
The happy atmosphere had faded away as they both retreated into their thoughts, before Athan stood up and continued training while Mark watched over him to see whether Athan made any mistakes during his practice.
Athan got into a new stance which was taught to him by Mark, he outstretched his left arm while keeping his palm opened, his right hand was bauled into a fist which was kept at chest height, as his feet were spread shoulder width apart with knees bent forward.
The stance was a basic stance known by everyone in laxarria, as it was popularized by the A.E.G it was well known for its simple structure which made it well known within the beginner ranks as it could be used to build a strong starting foundation or could be used as reference to create an art.
Aether could be seen gathering around Athan as he started taking in deep breaths, for each breath he took his pores could be seen expanding as his body took in large amounts of atmospheric aether, the aether that went into his body washed over his cells causing changes that made them more in tune with aether, as the aether made a cycle in his body starting from his limbs and ending at the place where his heart was, as each cycle was made his cells could be seen slowly losing their organic form and becoming more crystalline as his cells were becoming glazed, although changes were occurring in his body his breathing was stable as he maintained the stance with utmost focus.
The phenomenon occurring in his cells was known as the mortal shedding, something experienced by all first-rank aether users before they could continue their journey, a major threshold that defined the future potential of aether users irrespective of their paths.
Mark could be seen leaning on a tree while observing Athan's training.
"He's progressing fast" he thought as he contemplated other matters such as how to report this whole incident to his guild and their response to Athan's existence.
As he remembered the vague silhouette of a figure as his gaze turned grin
"Is him that's my major concern" a worried look evident in his gaze as Mark kept staring at Athan.
**Present day**
As Mark's gaze roamed over Athan, the little child could be seen putting in all his efforts to sit up but he couldn't as all his efforts were rewarded with disappointment as he was still laying sprawled on the purplish leaves.
Mark could be seen stifling his laughter while looking at the child's failed attempts.
"You can stop already" as he uttered those words all earlier insistence shown by the child disappeared as the child relaxed his body while his chest kept heaving, after Mark saw this he burst into laughter while looking at the child who had a smile on his face. As Mark was laughing so unrestrainedly he sat down on the ground before flicking an imaginary tear off his eyes.
"You've done well, I can't believe you actually crystalized your cells this early.
Congratulations as you now are an official aether user not really official but you now have the qualifications to be called an aether user, so congratulations" as Mark said those words Athan could be seen trying to stand up again which he later accomplished before proceeding to crawl to Mark's side and then hugging him which left Mark wide eyed and shocked.
"You shouldn't have been able to sit up before even crawling after accomplishing the formation of your glazed cells even with your physical traits, there's a period of weakness that almost every one experiences after the formation of their glazed cells, but it only happens during the first formation as it's the first process a normal mortal will need to go through before being able to make use of aether" to which Athan responded with a questioning gaze.
"But I could make use of aether before I formed my glazed cells" Athan muttered before his head was knocked by Mark.
"What was that for" Athan asked in a raised pitch as he couldn't raise his hand to rub the spot as his body was still weak.
"Not everyone is like you, only a few are known to have accomplished such feats but they all had special traits that made them different from most, so don't be surprised if your progress through the ranks is slower or faster than others as most traits have such penalties" Mark said in desperation while gazing at the grieving Athan.
"But what are penalties" said Athan.
Mark gazed at the purplish skies before he responded with the words "that's a lesson for another day" as he laid on the sparse leaves on the floor while still holding his gaze on the purplish skies.