Kael's muscles burned as he swept low, dodging Varin's next attack, his instincts sharper than they had ever been. Every movement felt calculated, deliberate—a rhythm he was finally starting to master. The quiet underground chamber echoed with the sound of their training, the only light coming from faintly glowing runes lining the walls.
"Good," Varin muttered, parrying Kael's strike effortlessly with the back of his blade. His face remained impassive, though a flicker of approval glinted in his eyes. "But you're still too slow."
Still too slow? Kael thought, gritting his teeth. For days now, Varin had been driving him to the brink. His once sloppy, unrefined combat style had evolved, blending void energy and shadows into something lethal. And yet, it never seemed enough for Varin.
Kael rolled out of the way of a counterstrike, barely avoiding the sting of Varin's blade. The older man didn't relent. His moves were fluid, a blur of shadow and precision that seemed impossible to match. But Kael had gotten used to it. He could read the faintest shifts in Varin's posture now—the small tensing of a muscle, the way his foot angled before a swing.
For the first time, Kael countered instinctively, slipping into the shadows at his feet. His form dissolved into darkness just as Varin's blade sliced through empty air. Reappearing behind him, Kael thrust forward with a surge of void energy, aiming for the exposed flank.
Varin smirked.
With a sudden twist, he sidestepped Kael's strike, his hand shooting out to grab Kael's wrist in an iron grip. In one smooth motion, Varin slammed him to the ground, the breath knocked out of him in a painful rush.
Kael wheezed, his head spinning from the impact. "Damn it, I thought I had you…"
Varin crouched beside him, his voice low but calm. "You did. But thinking isn't enough. You have to know when to strike. Feel the void, let it guide you, not your mind."
There was always a lesson in the defeat. Every time Kael thought he was getting closer, Varin would shut him down, reveal another gap in his technique, another flaw in his thinking. And yet, Kael could sense it—the subtle tension between them. Varin wasn't just a teacher. He was waiting for something, testing him for reasons he never quite voiced.
Why does he care? Kael wondered, staring up at the cavernous ceiling as he caught his breath. Why is he going this far for me?
They hadn't spoken much beyond the lessons. Varin remained as enigmatic as ever, his eyes dark and unreadable. He knew too much about the void, about things no one else should have known. It gnawed at Kael's mind every time Varin corrected him in combat or dropped a cryptic hint about the Darkspawn.
Standing up, Kael rubbed his sore shoulder, his thoughts swirling. "You've been awfully generous with your time," he ventured, keeping his tone light. "Most mentors don't just show up out of nowhere offering training like this."
Varin's gaze flicked to him, sharp as a blade. For a moment, Kael thought he saw a shadow of something—regret, maybe? No, it was gone too quickly.
"I've seen your type before, Kael," Varin said, his voice cool. "You're like a wildfire. Uncontrolled, dangerous... but full of potential. I don't offer training to those I don't believe in."
The words hung in the air between them, heavier than they should have been. Kael narrowed his eyes, the suspicion that had been gnawing at him bubbling to the surface.
"And what exactly do you believe in, Varin? What's your angle?"
For the first time in days, Varin's composed mask cracked. It was subtle—just a tightening of his jaw, a shift in the air around him—but Kael caught it.
"My angle?" Varin echoed, his voice quieter now, more dangerous. He took a slow step forward, his presence looming. "The Darkspawn aren't just creatures in the shadows, Kael. They're not just your enemies. They're something much worse. And if you don't learn to harness your power, they will consume you like they consumed others before you."
Kael's heart raced. "What do you mean 'consume' me?"
Varin turned his back to him, staring at the faintly glowing runes on the walls as if lost in thought. "It's something ancient, something tied to the very heart of this world. You've felt it, haven't you? The pull every time you level up. The way the void responds to you."
He paused, his voice lowering even further. "The Darkspawn are drawn to that power because they need it. And so far, you've just been feeding them."
Kael stiffened. His pulse quickened, a sudden chill creeping down his spine. "What are you saying, Varin?"
The older man faced him again, his expression unreadable, but there was a new intensity in his eyes. "Every time you grow stronger, every time you push past a limit, you're attracting them. They want your power, Kael. And they'll stop at nothing to take it."
Kael swallowed, the weight of Varin's words settling in like a cold stone in his gut. He had felt the Darkspawn closing in on him every time he ascended, but he had thought it was just the nature of the game, part of the challenge.
But this is different...
The silence that followed was suffocating. Kael felt like the ground had just been pulled from beneath him. He had known there was more to the Rebirth Core than he understood, but this—this was far worse than he'd imagined.
Finally, Varin broke the silence, his voice flat. "That's why I'm training you. Because if you fail... there won't be anyone left to stop what's coming."
Kael's mind raced. Everything was starting to click into place—the cryptic warnings, the relentless training, even Varin's mysterious knowledge. He wasn't just a mentor. He was preparing Kael for something much larger, something terrifying.
What had he gotten himself into?
For the next several days, Kael trained with Varin, pushing his limits in ways he hadn't thought possible. Varin taught him advanced combat techniques, strategies that relied on precision and timing rather than brute strength. Kael's movements became sharper, his strikes more deliberate.
But even as Kael grew stronger, his suspicions about Varin deepened. The man knew too much, dropped too many subtle hints about the nature of the game, the Darkspawn, and even the Rebirth Core. And yet, Varin never pressed him for answers, never asked outright about his abilities.
One evening, after a particularly grueling training session, Varin sheathed his blade and turned to Kael, his expression unreadable.
"You've come a long way, Kael," Varin said, his voice softer than usual. "But remember what I told you—strength without control is a weakness."
Kael nodded, though his mind was elsewhere. "Varin… why are you helping me? Really?"
Varin paused, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Let's just say I see something in you. Something I haven't seen in a long time."
Kael's heart pounded in his chest. "What do you mean?"
Varin's lips curled into a small, cryptic smile. "You'll find out soon enough."
Before Kael could ask more, Varin turned and walked away, disappearing into the shadows.
Kael stood there, watching him go, the weight of Varin's words hanging heavy in the air. The more he learned, the more questions he had. But one thing was clear—Varin knew far more than he was letting on. And somehow, Kael had a feeling that this was only the beginning.