Arc 2

Chapter 1
To Train At Sunrise

"Even though I made this promise several months ago and I only intended it for that specific class, you are right that I didn't actually say anything about a time limit," Ren began, "After several hundred attempts over time, you have managed to beat me in a duel, and as promised, I will teach you about the ways of fighting with a Nōrium blade."

"Thank you," Lorwen made a slight bow.

"However, this is the first and last time I will let you interpret my words based on what I didn't say, as opposed to what I did say," Ren added.

"Understood," Lorwen replied firmly, "I'm sorry for insisting, but this is something I really want to learn about."

"Yeah, I can see that. Your dedication to improving yourself influenced me to agree to this. You've worked really hard on your technique over … hey, are you yawning?"

"Uh, sorry!" Lorwen quickly closed his mouth, "It's just that it's very early. Is it really necessary to do this at sunrise?"

"It is." Ren placed his hands on his hips, "If we're gonna do this, I want it to feel a bit like home."

"Did you always train at sunrise back on Vorthos too?" Lorwen asked, blinking slowly a few times and rubbing his eyes.

Ren looked at him silently for a few seconds.

"Every single time," he said in a low voice.

"Wow, that's some tenacity," Lorwen remarked. He was a bit surprised as Ren kept looking at him, as if waiting for something, "Oh fuck, yeah. It's always dawn on Vorthos. Sorry."

"It appears elves rapidly lose intelligence when they lack sleep on this planet."

"You can say that again," Lorwen sighed.

"Anyway. I can see you've brought that Nōrium blade of yours. I also have mine with me," Ren continued.

In his left hand was a sheathed blade, which he pushed slightly out of its scabbard with his left thumb before placing his right hand on its handle and drawing it fully, letting the black metal glisten in the rays of the rising sun. Lorwen watched in awe as the beautiful katana emerged. It appeared to be much cleaner and better maintained than his.

"This is the first time I have seen a Nōrium blade other than my own," he remarked.

"I've heard they're not very common on this planet," Ren nodded.

"What about Vorthos? Does every kid have one?" Lorwen asked.

"No. I am unique in that," Ren answered, "Any other questions of curiosity?"

"I'm sorry. How shall we begin?"

"We'll warm up with a couple of blows. No magic," Ren declared, "While I can heal you if things go wrong, let's go slower for now than with the bokkens."

Lorwen nodded and soon the blades clashed. It was immediately obvious that Ren was much more familiar with the weight and balance of an actual Nōrium blade. His defense was even more impenetrable than with the wooden practice swords. He was truly one with his weapon. He didn't even attack, just let Lorwen get a feel of things while parrying and deflecting his attacks. After a few minutes Ren motioned to stop.

"I'm glad to see that our training translates to your skill with real swords as well," he smiled.

"Thank you," Lorwen replied, "Should we move into the practice arena now?"

"Yeah."

The two elven boys made their way to the arena that was most often used for training fights against Kagemono. Ren motioned with his hand and the protective magical barriers flashed a few times before being fully established.

"As you already know, Nōrium is naturally attuned to the Mana Field. As such, it can manipulate reality, or as we call it, cast spells. I've already seen you perform a few basic ones," Ren began the lesson.

"Yeah. I can use it to teleport, and charge it with a blue energy to amplify the force of my strike," Lorwen nodded.

"Right. About the first one, we call that a Blink. It's not a teleport as it can't go through objects. Basically, it's the blade that moves with magical speed, and carries the wielder with it."

Ren held his blade forward and demonstrated Blink by closing the gap between him and Lorwen, quickly dashing to his side ready to strike, then lowering his blade. He left a similar blueish trailing afterimage that Lorwen was already used to.

"Wow cool!" Lorwen exclaimed, "I've never seen anyone else do that before."

"There's a lot you haven't seen yet."

"How can I learn more spells?"

"Your blade will teach you eventually. When you hold a Nōrium sword, if you concentrate you can feel the pulsating of the Mana Field around the metal core. Focus on it, and you will learn ways to distort reality with it."

"Feel as the Mana Field pulsates around the metal core?" Lorwen repeated in awe, "I'll be sure to concentrate on it from now on."

"Good. This is the purest form of Nōrium mastery. Learning in other ways is possible, but results in a flawed understanding and a lack of harmony. This is what's so beautiful about Nōrium. With introspection and inner peace, anyone can learn to harness its power."

"Amazing!" Lorwen whispered, "So what's the second spell called? When you charge your blade with blue energy?"

"Nothing," Ren said promptly, "It's just charging your blade with magical vibration. We don't do that often. It's usually a waste of attunement."

"What? Really?" Lorwen was surprised, and also felt a hint of disappointment. He thought he had figured a spell out.

"Managing attunement is at the core of fighting with a Nōrium blade. This is something you'll have to learn," Ren said, "Nōrium is similar to elves in a way. When it manipulates reality it expends attunement. In time it regains it, just like elves do when sleeping. The only difference is that with Nōrium the whole process is much faster. A few spells can drain the whole reserve, but it replenishes in seconds or minutes. A lot depends on the craftsmanship and the quality of the metal."

"I see," Lorwen nodded, "Although, my blade has never run out before."

"We'll have to make it a first then," Ren smiled.

With that, he made a hand motion towards the arena's magical control, and three dozen black pillars emerged in the arena made of the same synthetic magical material that Kagemono are made of. A timer also appeared on the surface of one of the magical barriers, showing half a minute left.

"This is a lot of matter to cut through, representing a large group of enemies," Ren said, "Only with careful attunement management is it possible to go through them in the amount of time I have set. Let me show you."

Ren blinked to the first pillar and sliced it in half in the same motion. Then he seemed to use some kind of spell to speed himself up. His slashes blended into one another in a whirlwind of cuts, until the final pillar shattered with several seconds left on the clock. Ren exhaled and sheathed his sword, then walked back to Lorwen.

"Want to give it a try? I'm curious how many pillars you can take in the given time. I've reset the clock."

"I think … I think I can do all of them," Lorwen said sheepishly. He didn't want to appear arrogant, but this seemed like it would be easy to him.

"Really?" Ren raised an eyebrow, "I've used several advanced techniques to accomplish this. What do you have up your sleeve that you haven't mentioned yet?"

"Ahm, … charging the blade?"

"You'll run out."

"No, I just have to let it warm up. After the third or fourth charged strike it becomes extremely powerful. It has done stuff like this before."

"Was that also early in the morning when you didn't get enough sleep?" Ren asked sarcastically.

"Hey! Don't make fun of me!" Lorwen shot back, "I'll try to show it to you, but only if you promise not to laugh!"

"Alright, I promise," Ren nodded, "You seem to have a few misconceptions in regards to Nōrium and it's best to tackle them head on. Please go ahead."

The three dozen pillars re-emerged and Lorwen grasped his blade firmly. As he often did, he put two fingers on the flat of the blade and swiped along the length of it from hilt to tip. The familiar glow emerged from the black metal. Lorwen readied himself and raised the blade to his shoulder, pointing it forward. Then he blinked and sliced. These were the only two spells he knew, but he was determined.

The pillar shattered into hundreds of tiny fragments as the blade made contact. Lorwen blinked again to the nearest pillar, striking with even more force. He put all his might into it. He was going to show Ren what he could really do. This time he sliced through two pillars at the same time, with debris flying with even more force. Only blinking away saved him from being cut by the sharp pieces.

With the third blow the length of his blade was literally extended by the blue glow, slashing through at least a dozen pillars. It's working! It's charging up! Lorwen felt an intoxicating rush of power emanating from the Noroiken. It was so overwhelming, to hold it all in his hands! So much power, and he wasn't going to hold back! This time he actually blinked backwards so that all pillars were in front of him. He simply knew he couldn do it.

He gathered all his strength and made one final slash with the Noroiken. The actual metal was far away from even the nearest pillar but it didn't matter. The wave of blue energy that was released swept across the arena, evaporating the remaining two dozen pillars.

Lorwen was almost ready to declare victory when the deafening sound of the blue wave of power crashing against the protective barrier hit him, and he watched with dread as the wall of energy that in the past protected the audience from even the highest level spells of the most talented students broke into splinters along with the timer projected onto it.

The blue wave continued towards the sky, evaporating the clouds in its path. Ren quickly rushed to shut off the alarm which was triggered by the shattered barrier. Looking down at the blade in his right hand, Lorwen could see it was still vibrating with so much power that it distorted the background behind it. And he could almost hear the energy say "Wield me! I am at your side! Nothing will stand in your way!"

"What, the FUCK was that?" Ren shouted, panting from his run to shut off the alarm.

Lorwen turned to him, his eyes filled with dread at what he just did.

"I… charged the blade," he said.

"This. Is not. Possible," Ren said as he walked back to Lorwen, "What is that in your hand?"

"A Nōrium blade? I think..?" Lorwen was now frightened of both Ren and what happened.

"Really? Let me see. Give it to me."

"I can't!" Lorwen said desperately.

"Why not? Because you think only you should hold this much power? Is that it?" Ren shouted.

"No! It disappears if I'm not holding it. That's what it is!" Lorwen screamed back, then threw the Noroiken away.

Seconds later it turned into whirling black streaks which reassembled into the the mark on his wrist, which he held up for Ren to see.

"It lives in this mark. In my body," he said quietly, "It's not even a real blade, it's an echo. It used to be real, but it isn't anymore."

"I've heard of echos before," Ren replied after a few moments of silence, "But I've never heard of a Nōrium blade with this much power."

"Here on Nalma Tyr, there was once a blade of legend. They say it absorbed the power of those it killed," Lorwen said quietly, "Is that… is that possible with Nōrium?"

Ren's red eyes filled with horror and his vertical pupils tightened into a narrow slit.

"That is something I will not talk about," he said, "This… training session is over."

"Right," Lorwen said. Then he sheepishly looked up, "Do you want me to quit the Kenjutsu group?"

"That is not my decision to make," Ren sighed, "Anyway, how did you acquire this … echo?"

"It's a long story. And I'm not sure you'd believe it."

"I see. If you don't want to tell, you don't have to. But learn to control that power, and restrain it," Ren answered, now with a calmer voice, "I can't help you with that though. That thing is not only an echo, but we can't be sure what kind of Nōrium blade it was to begin with. It's definitely not normal. You should seek help."

"I will, and, and I already have. We're working on it with my history professor!"

"That's good," Ren said as he packed up his things.

"So… do we continue later with just regular bokkens and Kenjutsu?"

Ren hesitated for a moment.

"Yes, I think that's fine," he said eventually.

"Can't you examine it? While I'm holding it out," Lorwen asked after a short while.

"I did that the first time we met. It looked like a regular Nōrium blade, slightly old and with a few cracks. It definitely has seen some real action. But the fact that I failed to recognize the power it holds shows that I have no business examining it any further."

"Well… alright then. See you later."

"Take care," with that Ren picked up his sword and gear and left, leaving Lorwen alone in the middle of the powered down arena.

Chapter 2
The Secret Circle

With the coming of the mid-decade school break the Academy as per tradition organized an event to inspire and entertain its young students. This time around the Field Mages had been invited to present their line work to the children and amaze them with their rock solid mastery of the practical branches of magic, which had and continued to ensure the safety of the island nation.

The event included some presentations about the structure of the organization but it was mostly all about the show. Field Mages had been dueling each other on stage as well as setting records on the hardest tracks of the Kagemono practice arena, facing even custom challenges that the students put together. When not on stage, the kids were welcome to talk to them and satisfy their curiosity about one of the most iconic groups of elven mages.

"The arena's barriers look fine now," Aenwey said while he poured himself some drink from one of the tables. Lorwen was next to him with a cup of his own.

"Yeah, there was no damage to the generators or anything. It just broke through the barrier itself," he said dreamily.

"It's kinda hard to believe."

"I know. I did it and I can barely believe it."

"What about Ren? Are you two okay?"

"He freaked out a little," Lorwen said looking down, "Not too much though. That wouldn't be his style. He was like as if nothing happened by the next Kenjutsu class."

"Well at least it's good to know you can continue training with him. I'm sure that will help you contain whatever power this is."

"Do you think we should ask the Field Mages about it?"

"I dunno," Aenwey shrugged, "Don't think they would know much more than a history professor but it's your call. Anyway, there's gonna be this talk now about combat strategies and Nalanté absolutely insisted that I go with him. He didn't mention you though, so you're free."

"You're not excited?" Lorwen asked.

Aenwey leaned closer and whispered into his ear after looking around.

"It's gonna be soooo boring. But I didn't tell you that!"

"Okay, got it," Lorwen chuckled.

With that Aenwey left for the Auditorium and Lorwen decided to go look for some Field Mages to talk to. He had discussed it with Aenwey and it looked like the mid-decade break was going to be the best time for their trip to the Jūyama region, and some info could come in handy. His eyes quickly settled on a mage just leaving the arena after a successful round against a tough batch of Kagemono.

"Some good moves there," he said as he walked up to him.

"Thanks" the Field Mage said as he sat down at one of the tables, "It wasn't actually that long ago that I practiced here as a student, so I still know these particular types of Kagemono pretty well."

"Ah, well that's kinda cheating then isn't it?" Lorwen laughed.

"Well it was still a top difficulty team challenge and I did it alone," the mage smiled.

"It's okay to ask questions, right?"

"Sure, that's why we're here. And for the show of course. But questions too. What's a little boy like you curious about?"

"A bunch of us are planning a trip to the Jūyama region. Rich history and all that. How dangerous is it?"

"Not at all, so long as you stick to the trains and cities," the mage seemed a little surprised, "The Internal Conflicts ended a long time ago you know. Tourist locations are completely safe."

"And what if we weren't going to a tourist location," Lorwen asked with a slightly overplayed hypothetical tone.

The mage raised an eyebrow.

"Like where in particular?"

"Old shrine to the Botoke-Sama maybe," Lorwen shrugged, "It's kinda in the middle of nowhere, not in a city."

"Well it's officially not recommended then," the mage smiled.

"I know, but what's it like non-officially? Is it really that bad?"

"It's manageable, though it can be dangerous. We are called in every once in a while to clean up the Jūyama countryside. Thing is, it's one of the places that was hit by Dwarven nukes, and it appears some Kagemono have mutated."

"None of them were a challenge to the mighty Field Mages though, right?" Lorwen asked mischievously.

"No, of course not," the mage laughed, "But I probably wouldn't go there if I was a first decade little boy either. What's so interesting about it anyway?"

"I'm a history geek. It was a really famous shrine in the past, and I'd like to see it." Lorwen wasn't entirely lying.

"Fans of the Rōnin, are we?" the Field Mage chuckled.

"What?" Lorwen was caught totally off guard. His tone was far more defensive then he would have liked, "What makes you think that?"

"That little tattoo on your right hand," the Field Mage pointed at his arm.

"Ah this one. You know it?" Lorwen eased up a little. At the same time, it never crossed his mind the mark might mean something.

"It looks like the family crest of the Yamaken clan. They were Daimyō of the region for quite a while, the last of whom was Yamaken Tiilnaryth. The crest depicts two mountains and a blade between them, symbolizing the weapons made of the region's steel. The Rōnin was known to use the crest without the mountains, saying that the blade is all that remained. Your tattoo looks just like the blade from the Yamaken family crest without the mountains. But if you're really a history geek I'm sure you knew all that."

"Yeah, of course I did!" Lorwen nodded hastily, "That's why I got the tattoo, right? Yeah."

"Well if you go to the Jūyama region you might want to cover that up with a bracelet or glove. Not everyone's a fan of the Rōnin there, you know."

"Okay, thanks for the tip," Lorwen said, "I normally like being the center of attention, but yeah, not like that."

"In what way then?"

Lorwen didn't expect that question. He looked up and the mage seemed as if he was somewhat surprised himself that he had asked it.

"You said you studied here at the Academy. What's your guess?"

"I don't know, it could be a million things. You could play an instrument and like to perform on stage or whatever," he definitely sounded defensive.

"Perform on a stage…" Lorwen looked in front of himself, "That does actually sounds pretty exciting."

"Well, pick up an instrument then," the mage said in a tone that clearly indicated that he wanted to conclude this topic.

"Oh I already have an instrument," Lorwen grinned.

"Okay look," the mage sighed, "I can see you wanna play that game, but I can't do that with you. Our society doesn't accept the possibility of kids like you and adults like me talking about these topics."

"Yeah I know. I'm just not sure why."

"You know full well that our society believes that sex between kids is sacred and should only be between them."

"I meant I'm not sure why they believe that. Cause that means no stage for me, which could be a lot of fun, even if it's not sacred."

"So you're more open minded about this then the rest of society?"

"I guess. As I said, I love to be the center of attention. I would probably show off a lot more if it wasn't for this sacredness."

The mage looked around then leaned a little closer.

"Okay look. There are elves who… do not outgrow their appreciation of youthful beauty. Even among the Field Mages. There is a circle that enjoys the company of boys just like you. If you feel like it, you could join us on one of our evenings."

"Ooh, a secret club," Lorwen whispered, "That's so naughty."

"As are the boys who come, and we all like it that way," the mage replied, still whispering, "Think about it and make your choice."

"I wanna come," Lorwen crossed his arms.

"That… was quick. Sure you don't need more time?"

"For what? If I get to show off on a stage I'm in."

"Okay then," the mage chuckled, "I'll arrange for a jet to pick you up at sunset."

When the time came a black private jet took Lorwen from the Academy's rooftop to one of the skyscrapers of the capital. He was a little surprised that it didn't have a Field Mage's logo on it, given how it looked like military stuff but he quickly realized why that would be.

Inside the building, which appeared to be some kind of hotel, they quickly made their way to a fancy suite of rooms. Upon entering, Lorwen immediately recognized the traditional trench coat of Field Mages on most elves in the room, but he didn't see any other children yet. A slightly older elf quickly walked up to them.

"Hey, Kyrion!" he greeted the young Field Mage that had invited Lorwen, "And welcome to you as well, little boy," he said in a warm tone.

"Hi!" Lorwen waved at him.

"Aren't you adorable!" the mage laughed, "Well I hope you'll have a fantastic time with us. I'm Spark, and I'm the leader of this little squad."

"That's not his real name of course," Kyrion clarified, "We either use nicknames here or given names, but never family names. Spark's particularly skilled with the Electromagnetic Branch, hence his nickname."

"I'm Lorwen. No nickname, but I don't really care. Lorwen's fine," the young elf boy introduced himself, "Are you all really a squad?"

"No," Spark promptly answered, "Though it did start out as one. Most guys here are still under my leadership, but plenty of others have joined since we started."

"Nice. Glad to know I'll be entertaining the protectors of our country," Lorwen grinned.

"While we are very grateful to every boy who decides to share a night with us, you should make sure to enjoy yourself first and foremost. Also remember that you're free to leave any time you wish."

"Thanks, but you're not getting rid of me just yet." Lorwen shot a naughty grin, "Where can I change into something a bit more… revealing?"

He didn't need to ask that twice. He was quickly guided to a room where he could change into some pretty lewd clothing. Finally that shopping session with Aenwey was really going to pay off. He choose a skimpy thong which left his bubble butt naked and made his package form a nice little bulge in the front. It also had its waistband split into two strings. Other than that he put on some sexy black footwraps that left his toes and heels exposed, some cool straps on his thighs, a soft fabric belt, a cute silk rope around his neck and a fingerless glove on his right hand, partly to cover up the mark.

By the time all the doors leading to the corridor were locked tight he was ready for the stage he so desired. It appeared he had takenk his time getting into his gear after all, since many other kids were already out there, with one blond elf particularly enjoying his time with one of the poles set up in the middle of the room. It was clearly not his first time doing this.

"I saved one for you," Kyrion appeared next to him and pointed towards an empty pole, "Show us what you can do, hm?"

"You got it!" Lorwen grinned.

Lorwen walked up to the pole and reached out to touch the steel. Grasping it with his hand felt empowering. This was something he had really wanted to do for quite a while. He looked around. There were other kids dancing too, so he didn't have all that much pressure on him, but a few eyes were already locked onto him, eagerly awaiting to see what he would do.

Waves of lust pulsed through his body as he grabbed the pole with both hands and leaned against it. He decided to begin by showing off what he considered his sexiest part – his cute rounded bubble butt, cheeks nicely separated by the tight thong that he tented with his small, hard dick.

He widened his feet and lowered his hips, sticking out his cute firm bubble butt. Then he sensually started swaying it left and right making sure that his little dick tenting his underwear was visible just under it. When he started feeling more comfortable with the pole he leaned in and rested his chest against it as he grabbed it with his hands as high as he could. He kept swaying his ass around, but in this position he was also close enough to occasionally poke the pole with his dick.

He began to really enjoy playing with the pole with his cock. More and more often he put his hard little boyhood next to it as he turned his hips so that the pole would hold it back but only until it finally slipped past it and bounced around before being steadied by his tight underwear. This seemed to be really popular with the audience as well.

As he gained more eyes on himself he continued with his rounded ass, sticking it out and reaching back with a hand to give himself a firm grasp and a light smack. While still swaying around he continued by placing a finger on the tip of his bulge and tracing it upwards right along the crack between his bubbly cheeks. Overwhelmed with lust he began fingering himself while leaning against the pole with one hand.

The thought that so many elves were watching him was an overwhelming rush of lust, as was the thought that the pole itself was there for the specific purpose of allowing him to show himself off. It felt like for a short time his sexy little body was the center of the whole universe.

He couldn't bear it much longer, and so he pulled his finger out, gave himself a few smacks on his bubble butt then slipped around the pole to face his audience and gently grabbed the part of his underwear covering his little boy package. Satisfied by the amount of elven eyes on him he slowly pulled it aside, allowing his boy stuff to dangle freely around.

Lorwen wouldn't let it run out of momentum though, as he quickly began swaying his hips to give his dick some gentle motion while he hung his head low and moved his hands up as high as possible on the pole. The feeling of actually showing off his genitals was completely intoxicating. He wondered if he ever felt this horny in his life, despite nobody touching him.

He started alternating between showing his bubble butt and his boy stuff swaying side to side, but more and more only one hand was touching the pole. At first he just ran his fingers next to his balls at the top of his inner thighs but soon he was flat out stroking his little cock, pushing it to one side and allowing it bounce back as well as occasionally pulling the foreskin up and down.

He realized that touching his own body was extremely arousing, he enjoyed tracing his own curves, grasping his own firm bubble butt and playing around with his own hard little cock. Drunk on the sexiness of his own boyish shape he didn't last much longer before he was flat out giving himself a handjob right next to the pole and with all the other elves watching, letting out a loud high pitched boyish moan as he experienced one of the strongest orgasms of his life.

What he did not expect was the huge round of applause and clapping from the audience as he dry-cummed next to the pole. He felt a burst of pride seeing the satisfaction of his audience. He bowed deeply, with his dick still out, then with a huge smile jumped off the platform and headed to one of the sofas as he tugged his boy stuff back into his tight underwear to watch some of the other dancers. He found a seat next to Kyrion.

"That was great!" the mage said, "You seem to have really enjoyed that."

"Yeah, I did," Lorwen purred.

"You've got some beautiful curves," the mage said as he put a hand on Lorwen's supple waist and stroked him a little, "You don't mind, do you?"

"Not at all," Lorwen seemed quite happy with the attention.

After watching some of the other kids dance his attention was eventually drawn to a small dildo on a nearby stool, the size that was typically sold to children. He grabbed it and climbed onto Kyrion's lap, shoving the dildo against his chest.

"You want me to…?" the young mage laughed.

"Mhm."

While laying across his knees Lorwen felt fingers exploring his butt, giving his cheeks and eventually his hole a little massage before the dildo was pressed against him and slowly pushed in.

"Feeling good?" the mage asked.

"Yeah keep going."

The little dildo soon started moving in and out with a steady pace as Lorwen arched his back and spread his legs a bit. Hands on the sofa he started grinding himself against the mage's lap. After a while another Field Mage sat down next to them.

"Is he the boy from the Academy?" he asked.

"Yeah. Isn't he a cutie!" Kyrion remarked. The dildo did not stop slipping in and out.

"He's so beautiful!" the other mage agreed, then turned to Lorwen, "Hey, so what do you plan on doing with your skills of magic."

"Dunno. Haven't thought yet," Lorwen replied as his butt continued to be fucked with the toy, "Why ask?"

"You know, if you ever decided that you wanted to become a Field Mage we'd be more than happy to help. The exams can be tough and there are a few things that are really good to know that they don't mention."

"Hah, do you try to enlist all the boys that come to these evenings?" Lorwen laughed.

"I think you're the first one from the Academy," the other mage replied, "The other boys here, none of them knows spellcasting."

"Ah," Lorwen was more focused on his ass now, as Kyrion started massaging his butt and thighs while pushing the dildo deeper and deeper in with every turn.

"Could you cast a spell then?" the other mage asked.

"Like, right now…?" Lorwen was a bit surprised, as he was visibly busy with grinding his cock against someone's lap while his ass was being fucked.

"Well, Field Mages have to be able to use magic even when distracted," the other mage laughed, "But it's okay if you don't want to."

Lorwen had an idea though for a small trick. He closed his eyes and focused on the sensation of his butt being filled up, with his legs spread wide. He channeled the feeling into a bit of energy in his hands and produced an illusion of a small pink male symbol on his palm.

"Aww, that's just adorable!" the other mage was delighted.

"Really nice, buddy," Kyrion also complimented him, giving his back and shoulders a few good rubs.

At this point another elven kid showed up in front of them and tapped Lorwen on the shoulder.

"Hey, I liked your show earlier. The poles are now replaced with beds, wanna come?"

Lorwen looked up and indeed, in the middle of the room there were now a few soft beds and the poles had disappeared. This could mean only one thing.

"Yeah sure!" he said enthusiastically.

Kyrion pulled the dildo out of his butt and gave his round cheeks a light slap.

"Off you go then," he said.

The other boy smiled at him and held out his hand, helping him up from the sofa. He didn't let go of his hand even when Lorwen was back on his feet though. He walked him over to the nearest bed holding hands until they climbed on. He was a really cute blonde elf boy with slightly long ruffled hair. Was he the kid Lorwen noticed earlier?

"It's your first time in the club, isn't it?" the kid asked in a sweet voice.

"I wish I had found out about this earlier," Lorwen sighed.

"Wouldn't be this special if everyone knew about it," the blond elf whispered as he gently pushed Lorwen on to his back.

He started kissing his neck then moved down and licked his chest and nipples, while holding him in place by his hips. He soon moved lower and licked his belly and once the thin little thong got in his way he didn't give Lorwen any chances to object before promptly removing it. He must have been pretty horny himself because it took him less than a minute to get started with sucking Lorwen off. He had his butt high in the air, swaying from side to side while doing so.

Lorwen didn't let him go on for too long though, since he would have quickly cum again. At the same time, it was because of this boy that he no longer had anything up his butt, and he felt it was only right that he should be the one to fix that for him. So he grabbed him by his waist and rolled him over, giving him a kiss on the lips before he could say anything. The blonde elf boy was already rock hard, so Lorwen only gave him a few licks to make sure he wass nice and wet, then knelt above him and wasted no time guiding his smooth little cock up his butt.

An adorable little moan escaped the cute blonde and Lorwen was satisfied to once again have something to ride on. He again concluded that while dildos are nice, actual little boys are far better to ride. His young partner quickly caught on to the rhythm, grasping him by the ass and hips with his hands. Lorwen gave him a kiss on the neck then arched his back to better enjoy the penetration. Doing so he looked up, and realized how he was being fucked in front of an audience, on a bed that pretty much served as a stage. He was touching himself at the moment but he had to immediately let go, otherwise he would have cum right away from the powerful feeling. It was almost too sexy to think about how he was being fucked for show.

"Come on, let's switch!" the other boy moaned softly, bringing his attention back to him.

Lorwen put his weight on the little cutie's hips one last time, letting the full length of his small dick slip inside once more, then got up. The other elf boy quickly rolled over and slipped out from under him, positioning himself on all fours with his ass pushed high up. Lorwen didn't need to be told what to do, he grabbed him by his hips and dived right in between his cute cheeks with his tongue, licking the crack from the bottom up, making sure that each time he stopped at the hole and gave it a little licking massage. The other boy probably did not expect such foreplay, based on the cute surprised gasps Lorwen heard, but the audience definitely loved the action.

Just like with the blonde boy's kissing and licking, Lorwen didn't make it last too long either. He was way too excited to draw it out. He moved closer and placed his smooth cock right on top of the other boy's hole then gently applied a bit of force to push it in. It slipped inside almost effortlessly thanks to all the lubrication, but that's not to say the little elf boy wasn't tight. Every time Lorwen fucked another kid he realized again and again just how good it felt to be inside a boy's butt. He pushed deeper in, then started moving back and forth.

His young partner was clearly experienced, he quickly caught on to the rhythm and moved against him when he pushed in. While fucking his ass Lorwen ran his hands all over the smooth little body, enjoying the blonde elf's young graceful curves and soft, smooth skin. It was amazing that he was fucking such a little cutie on a bed in the middle of a room, with elves watching from all directions. And he had him all to himself. Not to mention that he was naked himself, and being on top, his own arched back and firm bubble butt still earned a few gazes as it moved back and forth along with his dick penetrating his partner.

The feeling became more and more powerful until it overwhelmed him, and he exploded inside the blonde little elf boy. It seemed the kid was so experienced that he synced up his own orgasm and they came together, young voices moaning in pleasure as the two children collapsed next to each other on the bed.

"That was a great ride!" the blonde elf whispered over to Lorwen as they lay on their backs, watched by all the spectators.

"Yeah," was all that Lorwen managed to say in response.

They lay there for several minutes, enjoying the softness of the sheets. Lorwen looked around to see other pairs of kids having a go at it on some of the other beds, the audience now focused on them.

"You come here often?" Lorwen asked quietly, his voice tired but immensely satisfied.

"As much as I can," the other boy answered, "You? Gonna come again?"

"Definitely," Lorwen sighed, "There's just something about having an audience that really blows it through the roof."

"So true," the other elf boy laughed.

After a few more minutes of lazing around Lorwen finally got up to find something to drink. Kyrion seemed to notice as he was already there for him with a cup of sweet juice. Then the wall to their right exploded and the flying pieces of concrete shattered on the barrier Kyrion raised.

"We're being attacked" the young Field Mage shouted as black vials were thrown through the smoke and dust.

Once shattered, enormous Kagemono emerged from the black mist that escaped from them. The first dozen were eliminated in less then a second in the most amazing barrage of spells that Lorwen has ever seen.

"Protect the children!" Spark shouted as he rushed to the front.

Kyrion quickly picked Lorwen up and carried him in his arms, rushing towards the black jet they came with.

"Grab their stuff!" he shouted over to another Field Mage, who then disappeared into the chaos.

It was only a few seconds until all the children with half a dozen Field Mages were on the jet. Lorwen barely even remembered being placed in one of the seats. The first time he truly realized they were no longer in the room is when he heard Kyrion's voice.

"Your clothes are on the seat next to you. You should probably get dressed."

It was amazing how quickly and efficiently the evacuation was handled. They really were soldiers after all. No, more like special forces.

"Who were they?" Lorwen asked once he fully caught up with everything that happened.

"A human hate group," Kyrion answered, looking to the side, "We've been dealing with them for years now."

"Why?" Lorwen slowly started getting his clothes on.

"Because of what we're doing at nights like these. They say we're abusing children, and apparently they've sworn to kill us."

"Why would they do that? It's not even their business, we're not their children."

"You haven't seen much of the world yet have you?" Kyrion smiled, "Humans think differently. They don't follow the same logic elves do. Sometimes they do things just to feel righteous, which in their terms means forcing the world to work in the way they desire it to."

"Still, how are they stupid enough to attack a bunch of Field Mages? Don't they know better?"

"I think they didn't. I mean they didn't know we were a group of Field Mages. From what we know they thought they were just pursuing a "child sex ring" as they put it."

"What will happen now? Was this the last club night then?"

"In the Capital, for sure," Kyrion sighed, "Spark and the others will clean up the situation of course. None of them will survive to testify and it will officially be a human terrorist attack against the Field Mages. But the building was badly damaged too, and we can't have this much attention on us. So I imagine, if the club continues we'll have to find somewhere else, outside of the Capital."

"That's a shame," Lorwen said quietly. Nobody said anything to that.

Now that he was dressed he moved closer to one of the large windows of the jet and looked out into the night. The lights of the city truly were a sight to behold. From the distance, even the skyscraper they came from looked peaceful and untouched. If only everything in the world was as calm and peaceful as night-time cities looked from a distance.

After dropping off a few kids along the way the jet finally arrived at the Academy. Lorwen said his goodbyes to the others and hopped off. Returning to his room he found Aenwey already sleeping. He suddenly felt very tired, realizing how late he had stayed up. Without changing he let himself fall face first onto the soft futon.

"I love orgies," he mumbled to himself, "Even if they're crashed at the end."

Chapter 3
Setting Sail

Lorwen looked back at the arena, now all quiet and abandoned as the mid-decade break had set in. He imagined the thrill of combat and victory he could have experienced as the crowd cheered him on. With so much power… it wouldn't have been a challenge. But in the end he did not regret his decision. It was the right thing to do.

Eyes forward, he continued his way to the Academy's wing where the exchange students stayed. He knew that Ren's final lesson ended a few hours ago and he would be packing his stuff in his room. Arriving at the door he gently knocked on it. Even those few seconds before it opened were full of anxiety. Lorwen wasn't sure why he was doing this.

"Hi," Ren said softly as he opened the door.

"Hi," Lorwen replied looking at the floor.

"So what is it?" Ren asked after a few moments.

"I… just wanted to tell you that I quit the first-decade prodigy tournament. I was only allowed in because of the blade, and it has become clear that it is neither my power nor is it appropriate to use it for such purposes."

"I see," Ren said softly. He continued after a moment of silence, "I'm a bit surprised. You didn't seem like the responsible kind."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Lorwen laughed nervously.

"You did the right thing," Ren smiled.

"So anyway, me and two of my friends, we're going to go to the place where we suspect the blade gained it's power. To learn more about it. Just wanted to say that if you feel like it…"

"No thanks," Ren's voice remained soft, even as he interrupted.

"Yeah I thought you'd say that," Lorwen smiled.

"Then why ask?"

"Just wanted to leave it open to you. And also because we could have used your knowledge. But it is not your responsibility."

"You said you were working on it with your history professor," Ren tilted his head.

"Yeah, but he's not from Vorthos. There are things even he wouldn't know."

"What you have is not a Nōrium blade. Not one that I'd know anything about anyway."

"I think… that's not true," Lorwen raised his head, "We believe it is likely that the blade somehow absorbed power from the enemies it defeated. You seem to know about this effect, just not willing to talk about it. However, it could be the key to understanding its power."

"I see," Ren sighed, "Look, this is something that Dawn Elves don't often talk about. I'd rather it remained that way."

"Why is that?"

"I'll tell you this much. The technique seems to exist, but we believe it is against the will of Vorthos."

"The will of… Vorthos? It has a will?"

"You wouldn't understand."

"Then explain it to me please. I'd like to understand what's going on."

"No," Ren said quietly, "I'm sorry."

"Well… fine. Okay," Lorwen nodded, "There's nothing else I wanted to say, so… yeah."

"I wish you the best of luck with uncovering the mystery of your blade. Take care on the long road," Ren said softly.

Lorwen felt a surge of warmth fill his chest.

"Thanks. I wish you all the best as well," he replied with a smile, "Actually, where will you spend the break?"

"My ship to Vorthos leaves in a week. I'll be here at the Academy until then."

"But you're coming back for the second half of the decade, right?" the thought only now crossed Lorwen's mind.

"Of course I am. How else would I do the exams?" Ren laughed, "Don't worry, you'll know the basics of Kenjutsu by the time I leave for good."

"I… I already know the basics…" Lorwen grumbled to himself.

It seemed Ren found that really cute, based on the way he smiled. He gave Lorwen a pat on the shoulder.

"Well, see you around then."

"Yeah, see you."

The sun was already high up in the late summer morning when the sky train arrived in the station the boys were waiting at. The weather was already getting cold enough that they had to pack hoodies and jackets. The leaves on the trees were still green but autumn's wind could already be felt roaming the skies.

"So, ready to set sail, guys?" Lorwen asked his two companions, Aenwey and Nalanté, who had offered to accompany him on his journey.

"You bet!" Aenwey nodded enthusiastically.

"Jūyama, here we come," Nalanté added.

With that the three of them boarded the sky train, which would later transition to rails on the ground after leaving the Capital. In a few minutes they were able to find an empty corner and make themselves comfortable, placing their luggage above them on the rack. The train soon continued its journey and the city turned into a blur through the windows.

"So, how should we go about this, Lorwen?" Aenwey asked, "We'll likely arrive at 古地 (Kochi, Ancient Land) sometime late afternoon. The palace of the Daimyō is not far from there."

"Sounds good. We'll start with the palace and spend the night there. Then we take the local train to the nearest stop to the old shrine," Lorwen nodded.

"Shrine's pretty far away though. We'd have to leave before sunrise if we want to explore it in daylight," Aenwey pointed out.

"Yeah, guys, we're definitely not hiking during the night," Nalanté chimed in, "As a safety precaution."

"I agree," Aenwey added, "The old shrine is in a locked down area. We can get through the fence but we should be in and out as soon as possible, all in daylight."

"Right," Lorwen agreed, "We're getting up early then. Well, at least it's only one time."

"We can sleep on the train on the way back," Aenwey said.

"You guys really expect something… special to actually happen during this trip?" Nalanté asked.

"We're hoping for it," Lorwen replied, "Special stuff happened the first time I fought in the arena as well. The blade is supposed to be connected to both the region and Tiilnaryth, so it's entirely possible."

"And you'll get a kick out of it, seeing historical stuff with your own eyes."

"Can't deny that one," Lorwen grinned.

"Thanks for coming along, Nalanté." Aenwey gave the brunette elf boy a rub on his shoulder, "It'll be fun whether we find anything or not."

"Yeah… you two just want me as your bodyguard," Nalanté joked.

"As if I needed one," Lorwen boasted.

"Wow, look at him, what a brave little boy," Nalanté shot back, laughing.

"You can cover my back while I deal with the big ones," Lorwen crossed his arms with a grin.

"Let's try not to run into any big ones instead," Aenwey suggested.

"The only place where we could actually run into trouble is the old shrine," Nalanté noted, "Lorwen, what if we simply skipped that? That way we wouldn't actually be doing anything stupid."

"We can't. It is said that the Rōnin talked to the Botoke-Sama in person by that shrine. Maybe that's where he decided to destroy the Noroiken before he moved on. We have to check it out."

"Well if we must. I guess I already signed up," Nalanté sighed.

"If you're scared, you can still turn back," Lorwen grinned again.

"Stop that already," Nalanté threw the sweater he just took off in Lorwen's face, which he deflected with his elbow.

"Hey look guys!" Aenwey called out with an excited tone, "We're transitioning to the land rails!"

As the other two elf boys looked out the window, a series of small bumps indicated that the train had detached from the sky rail and continued its journey on wheels at a considerably slower speed. The scenery was already a lot more green and open, but there were still plenty of buildings around.

"Right. We're on our way then," Lorwen said firmly.

Chapter 4
The Castle of the Daimyō

The train ride turned out to be way more tiring than the boys expected. Roughly six hours on the rails would drain anyone, but especially children. When they arrived the sun was just starting to go down, though they still had a good several hours before darkness would set in.

"Damn, I think I forgot how to walk…" Lorwen complained as they got off the train.

"And we still have to take the bus to the palace… apparently it's not in the city itself," Aenwey added with a similarly exhausted tone.

"Get yourselves together boys," Nalanté seemed to be in good shape, "How are you supposed to fight off Kagemono on the way to the shrine if all it takes is a few hours on the train to knock you down."

"Easy for you to say, you've been fighting in the arena for years now," Lorwen shot back.

"Yeah. Our life in the Capital with all those super fast sky trains did not prepare us for this," Aenwey sighed.

"Well I'm a country boy," Lorwen pointed out.

"Not for the past five years," came the quick reply.

Once out of the station the sight of a small but bustling city greeted them. They decided to keep their backpacks on and visit the castle first, and only check in to the hotel later. On the way to the bus stop Lorwen kept looking around with amazement.

"I've never seen so many different species in the same place before," he said quietly to his friends.

"It really does feel different, doesn't it," Aenwey agreed, "Would you buy stuff from a Dwarf's shop, Nalanté?"

"If it's tech or tools, sure. That's their expertise after all."

"There are lots of human too," Lorwen whispered.

"They're kinda ugly," Aenwey screwed up his mouth.

"Never seen one before?" Nalanté asked.

"Only in pictures."

"There were a few in my town," Lorwen said, "Never really got to know them, never really bothered."

"You can really see that this place has history."

"Yeah," Lorwen nodded, "It's in a central location but it's pretty easy to get here from the eastern ports. Or was, when they were still open. This was the first big city for a lot of travelers, plus an important point for soldiers to defend. All in all, a lot of folks gathered here."

"Hey I think that's our bus!" Aenwey pointed in the distance, "Is it gonna leave?"

"Run!" Lorwen shouted, "I'm not gonna miss out on precious sleep time because of a damn bus leaving without us!"

After a quick sprint the boys were catching their breath on the bus in the back row of seats.

"It leaves in 20 minutes," Lorwen grumbled, his face red from running.

"I think the sprint did both of you good. You seem more awake now," Nalanté laughed.

"Aenwey, what made you think it was gonna leave?" Lorwen asked between two breaths.

"I dunno. It was there, and it's a bus. It could roll out any second."

"We're totally checking the schedule on the way back."

"Well, I can see why you quit the prodigy tournament now," Nalanté grinned.

Lorwen took a deep breath.

"That's totally different. I did the right thing. The blade was too powerful to be used in the arena," he said, remembering how Ren praised him for that decision. The good feeling the memory brought back made him forget about the little tease.

"If you say so," Nalanté shrugged, "Gotta admit your technique has improved a lot though."

"I had a good teacher," Lorwen smiled.

Half an hour later the bus was well on its way towards the old Daimyō's castle. Since this was specifically a tourist bus there was an elven woman serving as a guide at the front of the bus talking about notable things along the way. There were a surprising amount of Dwarven passengers and the guide actually repeated some of the more important sentences in a Dwarven language.

"During the era of the Internal Conflicts the Daimyō did not live in the city of their citizens," the guide explained, "Instead their castles were build nearby, usually on higher ground than the city itself to symbolize their rule."

While she was talking the bus headed into a tunnel that led right through the middle of a mountain. The sunlight soon got blocked out and was replaced by the orange lamps on the side of the tunnel illuminating the path.

"This tunnel that we're going through right now ties in directly to the legend of the Rōnin," the guide began her explanation.

"Hey listen, she mentioned the Rōnin."

Lorwen gently pushed Aenwey with his elbow, who seemed like he was about to fall asleep.

"After the death of Yamaken Tiilnaryth and the massacre of the Dwarven Interim Rule, the elf known as the Rōnin declared before leaving the region that if anyone other than Tiilnaryth's advisors were to seize power he would come back and kill them too. The old circle of the Daimyō's advisors returned to their positions. A few months later, however, the region's local deity, the Titan Of The Mountains descended to the city and declared itself the new ruler of the region."

Lorwen gasped silently.

"No way… could this be…?" he whispered.

"As a demonstration of its power, the Titan sat down on the path towards the castle and stopped anyone trying to claim the Daimyō's seat. Since the Titan did not exercise any rule over the region other than claiming offerings, the people of Jūyama had to govern themselves, which they achieved through a council that consisted of the old Elven advisors along with notable members of the Dwarven population. This period is now referred to as the Year of the Council."

"Yeah, notable members my ass," Lorwen scoffed silently, "More like those that were in league with the traitors that murdered Tiilnaryth. Essentially the Dwarves took control, just outside the castle. I'm pretty sure the advisors got sidelined."

"The Council's rule ended when the Rōnin returned to the region," the guide continued, and Lorwen's eyes lit up, "The Rōnin confronted the Titan Of The Mountains, saying that the promise he made before leaving applied even to the gods. According to legend, the Rōnin slew the Titan before it could move from its place which blocked the path to the castle. Years later a tunnel was completed so that the Daimyō's residence could be visited again. That is the tunnel we're currently heading through right now."

"Amazing…" Aenwey exclaimed.

"That Rōnin really was something," Nalanté nodded.

Then they noticed Lorwen staring out the window, an expression of dread and amazement on his face.

"Is everything alright, buddy?" Aenwey asked.

"This is a tunnel… through the corpse of a god," Lorwen whispered, "This is the true power of the Noroiken."

Lorwen touched the place on his wrist where the mark was covered by his fingerless glove with his other hand while looking out the window.

"Yeah, if you actually think about it, it's pretty scary. Having a tourist guide say it just sounded like distant lore from a history book," Aenwey said.

"I suppose quitting the tournament really was the right thing to do," Nalanté added after a moment of silence.

"Following the death of the Titan, the Rōnin proceeded to kill all Dwarven councilors as well, accusing them of seizing power while disregarding the votes of Elven councilors."

"I knew it!" Lorwen exclaimed quietly, "Serves them right."

"Hey you mind keeping your bloody mouth shut?" Nalanté jumped at him, "There are a ton of Dwarves on this bus!"

"The Rōnin once again restored power to the circle of advisors, who after the construction of this tunnel ruled from the Daimyō's castle. Even to this day their descendants make up a considerable part of the Regional Government, though the seat has since been moved from the castle to the region's new capital."

By the time the guide finished telling about every renovation the castle had gone through since then the bus finally arrived. The castle was slightly smaller than Lorwen had expected. It was a structure of a few large pagoda towers with hallways connecting them and some small houses in the front. The castle offered no guided tours but visitors could receive an audio playback device that had recordings for every room.

"There's so much history here," Lorwen whispered as they walked through the halls of the castle, "And the Rōnin protected all of it."

"Lorwen, I also think that you shouldn't say such stuff here loudly," Aenwey carefully noted.

"Why? Afraid the Dwarves would attack me?" Lorwen was unapologetic.

"Probably not, but we should avoid any chance."

"Yeah. Wouldn't want history repeating itself," Lorwen said while touching his mark with a dark shadow in his eye.

"The fuck's with you?" Nalanté exclaimed.

"Maybe this is the effect of the palace," Aenwey said enthusiastically, "In that case, some memory or vision must come soon!"

"Is that what this is about?" Nalanté turned to Lorwen.

"No, it's just how I feel," Lorwen replied promptly.

"Come on, let's move!" Aenwey said, "I think that's the Daimyō's bedroom up ahead."

The room was richly furnished, like the rest of the castle, and there was a particularly large bed in the middle of one of the walls.

"懐かしい (natsukashii, nostalgic)" Lorwen whispered as he looked around.

There was also a painting in the room, depicting a dark-haired boy in traditional elven clothing standing gracefully next to a table.

"Is he…?" Nalanté asked.

"Yamaken Tiilnaryth. That's what the text says under the frame," Aenwey finished.

"So that's him."

"What's it like, Lorwen? To actually see him?" Aenwey asked.

"He's so unbelievably… attractive," Lorwen sighed, "Graceful, innocent, beautiful and strong at the same time."

"Sounds like you're in love" Nalanté said softly.

"He most likely is. Or was at least," Aenwey replied.

"In that case, that bed right there might have been where you had all the fun," Nalanté added.

"Ah yeah, probably," Lorwen said as he looked at the piece of furniture, "It wasn't for all that long though. Just a few short decades between when he found me and his murder."

"You said me!" Aenwey jumped on it.

"I did not!" Lorwen snapped out of his daze.

"Yes you did! You totally did! Did you remember anything? Any visions?" Aenwey was excited.

"No… and I didn't say me," Lorwen was flustered. He looked at Nalanté.

"I hate to say it buddy, but you really said that."

"What's the reaction for anyway?" Aenwey asked, "I thought you already believed that you were the Rōnin in the past?"

"I said it was a likely possibility."

"Overwhelmingly likely at this point," Aenwey countered.

"I dunno." Lorwen sighed, "I'm feeling a bit weird. But no, no visions. Definitely no visions."

"You wanna continue?" Nalanté asked, "We could always call it a day and head to our hotel room."

"Thanks," Lorwen said, "I think it's fine if we just quickly get through the rest of it. We did buy a ticket after all."

"It's getting chilly out here," Lorwen said, rubbing his shoulders.

The boys were taking the bus back to the city on their way to the hotel after finishing up at the castle.

"The sun has gone down by now," Nalanté noted.

"I think that's the one, over there," Aenwey pointed to a building.

He turned out to be correct, and the boys arrived at the hotel where they had booked a small room. It was a somewhat rundown building, but the prices were cheap.

"You boys are from the Capital, right?" the receptionist noted as they checked in.

"It's… that obvious?" Aenwey looked up.

"Don't worry, I see a lot of travelers and I can tell a lot just from the look by now."

"I guess we don't look much like the locals," Nalanté agreed.

"You're also kids running around without a guardian. That's stuff they like to do in the Capital."

"And lots of other regions too," Lorwen added.

"Here's your key," the receptionist seemed to ignore the comment.

"Thanks," Nalanté said.

"I guess it's more dangerous around here," Aenwey said while they headed to the stairs, "After all, there are still locked down areas in the region."

"Yeah. Like the one we're gonna go to," Lorwen said with a serious tone.

"I guess the region you're from is safe?" Nalanté asked.

"Yeah, pretty much completely," Lorwen replied, "Admittedly though it's kinda rare. But we have the protection of the Sacred Lake."

Their room was on the third floor. It barely had anything in it, aside from the three futons, as per the boys' order.

"Ahh, I'm cold but my back is all sweaty from the backpack," Lorwen shivered, "I hate that so much."

"Here we go again…" Nalanté laughed.

"Ugh, same here," Aenwey joined in, "I think I'll get a new shirt for the night."

"Good idea," Lorwen held up his thumb.

As they were un packing their stuff the receptionist appeared by the door with a tray which had three small bowls of rice and chicken on it.

"It was cooked at noon, but I warmed it up for you."

"Thanks," Aenwey took the tray.

"Enjoy yourselves now," the receptionist said before leaving.

"I ordered it along with the room," Aenwey explained, "It was actually cheaper than if we were to go out shopping here."

As there was no table in the room they placed the tray on the floor and gathered around it.

"Hey guys…" Lorwen said between two spoonfuls, "Thanks for coming here with me."

"Of course. You can count on us." Aenwey smiled, "It's a shame we didn't find what we were looking for though."

"You mean visions?" Lorwen shot a tired smile.

"Yeah, what exactly are we looking for?" Nalanté asked between two bites.

"Proof," Aenwey promptly answered, "Anything to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the theory that Lorwen is the Rōnin reborn is correct."

"Isn't the Noroiken proof enough? I mean not the historical one, but the one coming out of Lorwen's mark," Nalanté asked.

"I guess it's starting to be," Lorwen said, "It's been getting more powerful lately, and it matches the description of the legend."

"Yeah but it's still not conclusive," Aenwey said.

"We might not get anything conclusive ever," Nalanté replied.

"That's what we're here to find out, I guess," Lorwen said.

"Yeah," Aenwey agreed, "And while the Rōnin received his blade from Tiilnaryth, Lorwen actually got his version from the Botoke-Sama. So I'd say tomorrow is gonna be the big day."

"Aren't you the little optimist," Nalanté laughed.

"We're in the middle of uncovering a legend!" Aenwey exclaimed, "It's exciting, admit it."

"It's definitely not part of the average elven childhood," Nalanté nodded, "But hiking is, and it comes with getting up bright and early. So we should all get as much sleep as we can. That means no funny business tonight."

"I'm not in the mood anyway," Lorwen said quietly.

"Yeah, we can celebrate once we're back in the Capital," Aenwey agreed.

Once done with their food the boys quickly said goodnight to each other and tucked themselves in. The next day was going to be even more challenging than the one already behind them.

"This is where you'll live from now on," Tiilnaryth presents the bedroom as they enter, "It's a little bigger than your old room. But, you'll have to share it with me."

He laughs and shoots a beautiful smile to the elf boy at his side. They both have black hair, and while Tiilnaryth has turquoise blue eyes the other boy's are a deep dark blue that almost seem to glow in the dark.

"Thanks for having me," he replies.

"You're welcome!" Tiilnaryth says with a warm tone, "I'm glad that you're here… oh, even after all the times we've met I still don't know your name."

He looks at the boy awaiting a response but he remains silent.

"You're not telling me?" he asks playfully.

"I don't want to," the other boy says.

"Okay. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. If it's not my business then I don't need to know. Still, I have to call you something."

"I want Tiilnaryth-Sama to give me a new name," the boy replies, "For my new life here."

"Alright then," Tiilnaryth laughs, "I'll give you one, but only if you finally stop using Sama when saying my name. Deal?"

"Deal," the boy smiles.

"I'll need to think about it though, so give me a day, okay?"

Seeing the uncertainty on the other elf boy's face he turns to him and puts his hands on his shoulders.

"Don't worry, I won't abandon you. I will be with you from now on, always. No one can take you away from me, or me away from you. You'll never be alone again. Okay? Hm?"

"Yeah. Thank you, Tiilnaryth!"

Chapter 5
The Crystalline Compass

"I swear this train is so slow it feels like we'd get there faster on foot." Lorwen was staring out the window, looking at the trees slowly going by with frustration.

"Can't believe we had to wake up at sunrise because of this. With a proper sky train we could have slept in until noon and still be there faster."

"At least it seems like we got some time now," Nalanté noted, "Wanna talk about that dream now, Lorwen?"

"There's not much to say," Lorwen shrugged, "There wasn't anything in it that I couldn't have come up with myself. I've dreamed of fictional worlds I've read about in books before too."

"So you're saying it's not noteworthy?" Aenwey asked.

"It's definitely not conclusive," Lorwen replied with a smile.

After several more hours the train finally stopped at a small station. It wasn't even a town, just a few shops and hotels along with the buildings for servicing the train itself. Buses carried people from here to several small villages in the region. There was also a restaurant with tables outside, and since the weather was good with clear skies and somewhat warmer temperatures the boys decided to fill up before the journey to the shrine.

It was a few hours past noon when they were finally ready to set out, with almost half a dozen hours until sunset. The station was an hour's walking distance from the fence that surrounded the locked down area. It was a refreshing hike through small hills and large meadows in the warm late summer wind.

The fence was obviously not prepared for any sort of magical attack, it was there more as a warning than anything else, though it would stop at least young children who lost their parents from getting past it. Not kids from the Academy though. With the use of a bit of magic the boys cut a small hole through the fence but large enough to be able to climb through then patched the piece back. They couldn't get it to be like it was before but at least it wasn't completely open and they didn't want to waste too much time on it.

The weather turned a bit more cloudy as they continued on, and the wind got colder. While the sun was definitely still high up in the sky its light seemed to have gotten a little dimmer. The chatter between the kids soon died down so they continued on in silence, listening to the noises of the environment. There was decidedly something in the air, a feeling that the place did not want any visitors. At the same time, they hadn't encountered a single Kagemono. Lorwen was ready to summon the Noroiken at all times but there was barely any movement around, excluding some strange shadows that seemed to appear behind trees sometimes, but on closer inspection it always turned out that their placement aligned with the position of the sun.

Eventually their destination appeared on the horizon, emerging from behind a small hill. It turned out that the shrine did have a road leading to it, but coming from a completely different direction. It was a small pagoda, and it had clearly been abandoned for a long time. The walls were crumbling and the floor had cracked up all over. Rain and wind had visibly also done their work on the building.

"So, we're here," Aenwey said.

"It's not much to look at," Nalanté added, "Lorwen, we'll stand guard while you check it out. Then we're getting out of here as fast as we can. There's something about this place…"

"Yeah, I felt it too on the way," Lorwen nodded.

"It's okay if you don't get any visions," Aenwey assured him, "Just try your best and if nothing comes up we're outta here."

"Okay," Lorwen said as he turned towards the shrine.

He entered the remains of the building, stepping over the rubble and continuing to the small inner sanctum. Inside he found a pedestal with a small wooden carving of the Botoke-Sama placed on it. He walked closer, and carefully took the statue in his right hand. Lowering his head while holding the statue in front of him he raised his left palm to a vertical position next to the statue then closed his eyes and let the emerging vortex engulf him.

When he opened his eyes the shrine around him was clean and beautiful. The rays of the morning sun shone through the windows with unnatural brightness and created an atmosphere of shimmering haze. There were two figures in the shrine not far from him, one bald and in orange robes, the other in black with sharp deep blue eyes and messy dark hair. They were both at least half a millennia old, with the black-haired one taller than the other.

"I see you've come to possess a lot of power," the elf in the orange robes said warmly.

"Indeed," the black-haired elf answered, looking down, his hand grasping the sword at his side.

"And has it served its purpose?"

"In a way," the other answered, "I've been able to accomplish many things. Things that others could not have. Some of those I regret, but most I do not."

"I hope these accomplishments were able to bring you the peace you seek," the elf in orange robes said as they walked towards the shrine's beautiful garden.

"I have avenged Tiilnaryth," the black-haired elf said, "I have amassed an incredible amount of power to be able to defend his heritage. Make sure the region is in the hands of those he trusted. But all that vengeance, and even protecting the future, it will never bring him back."

"That is indeed true. He has returned to the great flow, and will someday be reborn once again. You should not grieve him, as his existence in this world is far from over."

"Botoke-Sama. Tell me, how is it possible not to grieve the death of our loved ones? Even if they are reborn, they will never be the same."

"Are you the same person you were back then? Are you even the same person you were a hundred years ago? Or twenty years ago? Since we live intertwined with the force of time, nothing ever stays the same. To accept that, is to accept both death and birth."

"Thank you for your guidance, Botoke-Sama," the Rōnin bowed, "My journey has taught me a lot, but I couldn't have walked the path without your teachings."

"And are you ready to draw your conclusions?"

"I think, after all these years, I'm finally able to forgive myself. For not being able to save him. I have amassed all this power as compensation for the weakness I showed back then. But it is all too late. All for nothing. The power I have now will not affect the past. And in that past I was only a child. A child that could not have been expected to repel hoards of murderers and traitors. As such, there is no reason to fight anymore. To amass any more power. I have nothing left to accomplish here. I will move on, and follow Tiilnaryth to the next life."

"And what will happen to the power you've gathered?"

"It should be destroyed," the Rōnin said quietly, "I have mastered it and learned to contain it. But others would not be able to. However, the vessel that holds it was a gift from Tiilnaryth himself. It is something that I cannot destroy. At least, not in this life."

"And what do you think now, after all these thousands of years?" the Botoke-Sama turned to Lorwen, "I have given you the memories of your weapon so that you may learn of its nature and experience its power. What you decide to do with it is up to you now. Is there some great purpose you would use its power to fulfil? Or are you still resolute in your decision to destroy it?"

For a moment Lorwen even forgot to breathe. But then he suddenly experienced an overwhelming feeling that he knew the answer to the question.

"The life that I've lived…" he answered with a shaking voice, "Was not what Tiilnaryth meant for me. For us. He gave me the blade as a sign of his love and friendship, but the sword is only a symbol of something that transcends it. The blade had served its purpose, and its power should now be released."

"I think this is it then," the Botoke-Sama turned back to the Rōnin.

The tall black-haired elf walked up to Lorwen and knelt before him, so their heads were at the same level. His piercing deep blue eyes stared into Lorwen's sky blue eyes. From a pouch on his belt the Rōnin pulled out a small glass orb with pieces of a shattered crystal inside it. He gently took hold of Lorwen's hand and put the glass orb into it.

The vision of the shrine around them shattered to pieces and the Botoke-Sama turned into mist. Looking at the glass orb in his hand Lorwen saw the pieces of the broken crystal being drawn towards each other by some mysterious force and assemble into a cone pointing towards the sky. As Lorwen looked up he spotted Nalanté standing in front of Aenwey as they were backed into a corner of the shrine by something, and they both had a terrified look on their faces. He turned his head to realize that neither the hills nor the grass or sun could be seen from the vast horde of Kagemono that approached them.

They were completely surrounded by an ocean of monsters the likes of which they had never seen before. Twisted and warped, these Kagemono were not like the ones from the arena. Their glowing eyes and brutal claws and weapons projected an air of death that engulfed the entire shrine. They appeared to be the very incarnation of evil, and they covered the land as far as the eye could see.

Lorwen looked up to the Rōnin in front of him, who placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled down on him as he stood up. Then he placed his palm on Lorwen's chest and gently pushed him behind himself as he drew his blade. Lorwen ran back to the shrine and hid behind the pedestal, only peeking out to see if the Rōnin was truly going to save them.

In a blue flash the Rōnin disappeared, and the air filled with the sound of slashes, shattering and horrifying screams of otherworldly creatures. It only lasted a few seconds before the rays of the sun filled up the dilapidated shrine again.

Once the sounds stopped Lorwen carefully came forward to look around. He saw nothing but a sea of corpses, slowly dissipating into the air as Kagemono do when they die.

"It's safe!" he shouted over to his friends, "You can come out."

The other two boys hesitated for a few moments, but then decided to run up to him.

"I thought we were going to die!" Aenwey screamed, his eyes filled with tears.

"Shh, it's okay now. They're all gone." Nalanté hugged him tight and stroked his head, "Lorwen killed all of them."

"What, me?" Lorwen was shocked, "It was the Rōnin who defeated them."

"Lorwen, there was no one else here but you!" Aenwey said, still crying.

"No, I was hiding behind the pedestal! I swear, I was there. For real!" Lorwen gasped.

"Did you see the Rōnin appear?" Nalanté asked.

"Yeah, and he even gave me this," Lorwen revealed the small glass orb in his hand.

"Buddy I think we got what we wanted. He had a vision," Nalanté said to Aenwey, who was still sobbing in his embrace.

"I don't care! I just wanna go home!" he cried.

"I'm… I'm so sorry," Lorwen whispered, "I never meant to…"

"Come on, we're leaving!" Nalanté interrupted him with a firm tone, "We'll get on the next train and we won't stop until the Capital. We should arrive shortly after dawn."

"You want to travel through the whole night?" Lorwen asked.

"Exactly."

"Understood," Lorwen answered with resolve, "Let's get moving and get out of here as quickly as possible!"

On the train back to the Capital Nalanté stayed close to Aenwey while Lorwen stared out the window at the opposite end of the carriage. Holding the glass orb in his hand he studied the little crystalline cone inside it that pointed to somewhere in the sky. He also noticed that if he put it down the cone fell apart into the shattered crystal pieces it was made up of, but when he picked it up, it reassembled again. He heard Nalanté walk up to him.

"Lorwen I have something to ask of you," he said with a low but serious tone.

"Yes, what is it?" Lorwen replied.

"Please, promise me that you'll never put Aenwey in such danger ever again. No matter your powers or your issues with the past. Promise me."

"I promise you, and I'm very sorry. I wish I could undo it," Lorwen said looking down.

"Aenwey is feeling better now." Nalanté looked to the side, "I think in time he'll want to hear about your vision."

"Of course," Lorwen nodded hastily, "I will explain everything to him in as much detail as I can."

"Yeah that's fine," Nalanté sighed, "But I also want to ask that from now on you keep him out of anything to do with the Rōnin. You might have the Noroiken, but there are clearly powers involved here that are beyond normal schoolchildren."

"I never wanted to put Aenwey through something like that. I'm so terribly sorry," Lorwen said, fighting back his tears, "You have my word that I will not involve him in anything else. I know how much he means to you."

"Thank you," Nalanté said. Then after a few moments of silence he added, "You should still take care of yourself too. You're also Aenwey's friend and I'm sure it would hurt him to lose you. Be careful with this thing, with your past."

Lorwen stared in front of himself for several seconds, brow furrowed, before he quietly said:

"I think… Tiilnaryth would have felt horrible letting himself be killed, and leaving his friend alone. He would have felt that he broke his promise. And maybe he would never befriend anyone again."

"What are you getting at?"

"I'm not sure. It was just a thought, forget about it."

"Well, okay. I'm going back to Aenwey," Nalanté said.

"Thanks for taking care of him," Lorwen replied.

"He'll soon be back on his feet, just like before. Don't worry, I know him well," Nalanté said as he turned around, ready to return to Aenwey.

Chapter 6
Tiilnaryth

"So what was this important thing you wanted to talk about?" Ren asked.

Lorwen still couldn't quite believe that Ren let him into his room. It was lightly furnished, but there was something peaceful and heart-warming in its simplicity.

"We've been to Jūyama, and we were able to uncover additional information about the blade. And there's something I need your help with. But first, please allow me to tell you everything I know about the echo in my possession, and the history behind it."

"Alright, I can see that this means a lot to you. I'm listening."

Lorwen started with the beginning, describing the strange experience of the dream many years ago when he first received the Noroiken from the Botoke-Sama. He continued with the story of Tiilnaryth and the Rōnin, finishing with what happened in the Jūyama region just a few days ago. Ren listened carefully throughout the whole time, he did not interrupt, did not ask questions and did not show any signs of emotion.

"So please, can you help me by telling me if this crystal in the glass orb is pointing towards Vorthos?" Lorwen finished showing the item he received from the Rōnin.

"Of course," Ren said softly, "It's a crystalline compass, commonly used in Vorthos. It can be tuned to point to any desired location, and is then usually handed over to someone else. Give it to me."

Lorwen handed him the glass orb. Ren took it in his hand and closed his eyes. The crystal pieces from the cone moved apart and started circling around the center of the sphere. Moments later they reassembled, then fell apart as Ren put it down next to him.

"It's pointing to the Floating Passage, a very special place on Vorthos," he said.

"You can tell?" Lorwen was amazed.

"Yes. The compass shows the way, but it also contains the name of the destination it is tuned to. You just have to know how to use it."

"Thank you!" Lorwen smiled as he picked up the compass.

"I'm glad I could help," Ren smiled back.

"That's not all though," Lorwen said sheepishly.

"You have more questions?"

"There is something… something that I suspect, and I'd like to test it on you," Lorwen replied.

"What's this theory?" Ren seemed intrigued.

"About Tiilnaryth, the Daimyō I've told you about. He made a promise to his friend but then got killed, leaving his friend alone."

"Yeah. Arrogant, irresponsible and stupid," Ren said, "He didn't understand the responsibilities of friendship. What about him?"

"Well I think… I think if he was alive today and heard his own story… I think that's exactly what he would say," Lorwen said quietly, "I think he would feel terribly guilty, as did the Rōnin."

"Are you suggesting…?" Ren tilted his head and narrowed his eyes.

"Tell me please, when you said you didn't want to befriend me, was that truly a philosophical decision, or did you feel something, deep inside your chest, that you shouldn't? Please be honest about it."

"Well I…" Ren looked down, "I had a feeling that I shouldn't. But that's because of who I am and what I believe. That is what my philosophy dictates."

"In my dream when I saw Tiilnaryth, when the Rōnin as a child didn't want to tell him his name, just like you he didn't pry, he told him if he didn't want to tell him he didn't have to."

"That is meaningless. It's common courtesy," Ren replied.

"Alright then."

Lorwen stood up and knelt before Ren, holding out his right hand he summoned the Noroiken and raised it up on his open palms once it materialized.

"I have received this blade from Yamaken Tiilnaryth. In its current form it is an echo, resonating from within my own memories. If I let go of it, it disappears, as it is cut off from the memory that sustains it. But I think you also remember this blade, and it won't disappear in your hands. Please, take it, and help me find the truth."

Ren's eyes widened and he visibly blushed as the blade was held out to him. He hesitated for a while but then slowly regained his resolve. Staring at the sword he gently reached out and put his hand on the metal. Then he ran his fingers over it until they reached the handle, which he slowly embraced in a firm grasp. Then he lifted the blade from Lorwen's hand and held it into the rays of the afternoon sun seeping through the windows of the room. The metal glistened beautifully with the light dancing on the edge.

"It looks… so much cleaner now," his voice was quiet and slightly shaking, "Almost as if it was new."

"It was new when Tiilnaryth gave it to me," Lorwen answered with his head bowed down, "He never saw it used in combat."

"It's supposed to be sustained by my memories now?" Ren asked.

"I believe so."

"That means if I drop it…" Ren allowed the blade to gently fall on his bed.

Immediately it turned into whirling streaks of dark mist and returned to Lorwen's wrist, forming the black mark resembling a sword.

"I'm so glad the blade didn't disappear in your hand," Lorwen said softly.

"I've never seen anything like it," Ren whispered. Then he seemed to quickly collect himself, "You may believe whatever you wish. But I will decide on my own if I accept this as evidence of a previous incarnation that I've had."

"Of course. I respect your right to do that," Lorwen said warmly, "I wouldn't want to force any identity upon you."

"I assume you will think of me as your long lost friend though," he said, looking to the side at Lorwen, as he still faced forward.

"To me, the blade proved that you were once Yamaken Tiilnaryth. But that doesn't mean you have any responsibilities towards me now, as Ren Eiyl-Wynn."

"Thank you for understanding that," Ren nodded, "Even if our pasts were intertwined, I wouldn't think much of it. I've never been one to live in the past."

"But in the present Vorthos is important to you, isn't it?" Lorwen said as he sat back up.

"That's right," Ren nodded.

"As I've said, we've learned that the Rōnin did not actually destroy the Noroiken. This compass almost certainly leads to its current location. You've said it points to a place on Vorthos, which means the sword too, is on Vorthos. And it is more than likely a Nōrium blade which was charged with the absorbed power of its defeated foes, something you said is against the will of Vorthos."

"What are you getting at?"

"Please, lend me your strength." Lorwen held out his hand, "Help me destroy this weapon so that none may abuse its power and the will of Vorthos can return to peace."

Ren was taken aback by both the request and the sincerity with which Lorwen asked him. His cheeks turned all red as he stared at the hand in front of him. Then he looked up at Lorwen's smiling face, pressed his lips together for a moment and did what he felt he should do.

"I will help you," he said as he reached out and grabbed Lorwen's hand, "You can count on my aid in destroying the aberrant weapon."

"Thank you," Lorwen said as they both smiled at each other.

"But I have conditions," Ren added.

"I'm listening."

"We leave only at the end of the decade. Until then, you prove your dedication by mastering the basics of Kenjutsu. In your current state you are not fit to travel the lands of Vorthos. This is because of my second condition. You may not use the echo anymore to cast spells. Not here, and most definitely not on Vorthos."

"I understand and I accept," Lorwen nodded, "We do not know what could happen if I keep using the power of the Noroiken."

"Then you can count on me," Ren smiled.

"May I use it simply as a blade, though?" Lorwen asked.

"Unless it becomes a problem later on, yeah I think that should be fine."

"Alright. I'll let you get packed then. Your ship leaves in a few hours."

"It's been quite an interesting story that you've told me today. I will meditate and introspect on the roots of my philosophy. It should be much easier once I'm back on Vorthos."

Lorwen nodded with a smile.

"Even though we're not friends, I'm really glad you decided to help me."

"Who knows, we might even become friends one day."

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