Garden Of The Abyss

"Fifteen…!"

Following his fifteenth extension, the reinforcement dissipated before he let out an exhausted breath of air from his lungs.

"I…"

"Good job! You held it for over a minute that time!"

"I still messed it up…!" He huffed, wiping the sweat from his forehead, "that time it was perfect. I was in total control, and even then…"

"Come on, kid, let's take a break."

He looked down for a minute before nodding his head, lifting his shirt to wipe his face, drenched with sweat. A smooth rock sat under the shade of trees, a perfect spot for a quick rest as he sat his rear down against it. He watched as Brahmi reached up, snatching a pair of purple-skinned fruits from the tree branches.

"Catch."

He reacted just in time as the fruit landed in the palm of his hand. The hard texture and shape resembled that of an apple, but the smell it gave off was more tartish.

"What's this, Miss Brahmi?"

He asked, bringing his nose close to the fruit, scrunching his smelling organ as the scent came off too strong.

"Drop the "Miss". It's food. Eat it."

As wanting as his stomach was to be filled, eating random fruit from a forest in a magical world wasn't exactly on the top of his list for things to do.

"Here goes nothing…!"

Tearing the flesh of the inanimate fruit off with his front teeth, he found himself pleasantly surprised by the delicate sweetness of the fruit. No longer holding a fear of the unknown, he tore away at the fruit as did Brahmi with her own.

"Have you chilled out?"

"Yeah...sorry for that earlier. I'm fine now."

He bowed his head slightly, ruffling his own tufts of dark hair with a slight chuckle of shame.

"Save your apologies, just thank me once I turn you into a badass!"

"Right!"

The push from one benchmark to another, one after another in succession--the feeling that came with it was almost euphoric, yet at the same time, wavering subtly behind the total concentration he felt.

"This guy", Brahmi thought to herself as she watched him.

Before another hour, he had reached the apex of his goal. Whether something in him had sparked, or this was the workings of talent--it was an inspiring sight nonetheless.

"twenty-four! twenty-five!!"

Not only did he manage to maintain his reinforcement, his form was impeccable. As his twenty-ninth repetition launched, the reinforcement once more, dispersed into nothingness.

"Gh…!"

A sharp jolt caused him to wince, watching as his fingers twitched before leading into a short-lived cramp.

"Ren!"

"I'm sorry--I guess I lost concentration for a second--"

"No, ya' idiot! That was amazing!"

Her overjoyed smile instantly fixed his perception. For a moment, the sudden praise felt almost as if he was being mocked, but the genuine smile she presented was anything but false.

"It...was?"

Between desperate breaths, attempting to refill his lungs, he looked up at her.

"Ya' went from one to twenty-nine on your first day! Seriously, this phase was supposed to last a week, but ya' might even be able to ace this thing before the end of the night! You've got real guts, kid!" She slapped his back with a wide smile.

He would be lying if he said he even kept track of how many repetitions he did. At some point, he just stopped counting, while his mouth just seemed to instinctually speak the count for him.

"I did...wow, am I actually the main character here?"

"Just like that, I regret complimenting ya'."

In-between short breaks, he continued his relentless training until the starry night replaced the pale blue skies. Every muscle in his body began to ache, his strength fading from his body as his vision swayed side to side.

"Uu…"

"Ya' okay-- oh, crap!"

With her cat-like reflexes, she managed to catch him by the back of his tunic's collar before he fell over, helping him stand up straight.

"Sorry...guess I'm just spent."

"That's on me, kid. When you're in this world long enough, ya' kind of forget what normal people are like...I pushed ya' too hard."

Choosing, or rather, having Brahmi choose for him to retire for the night, she brought him back to the Outlander base swiftly. Everytime he watched one of the Outlanders scale the Grandfather tree as if it was but a simple hop, he felt true envy.

"Ren...Brahmi?"

Iris was there to greet the two of them at the front door, sitting on the steps as she had been watching the skies.

"You two...out at this time of night--showing up together?"

Iris looked at them with wide eyes, holding her hand in front of her mouth as if utterly shocked at the sight.

"I appreciate the fact you think I can just score girls like this, but you've got the wrong idea here!" Ren responded.

Brahmi didn't seem to pay her any mind, walking past the girl and into the house with full intention of sleeping.

"So…"

Ren scratched his head, manifesting a personal storm of snowballs that rained from his hair. During his two months there, he saw her and spoke to her everyday--yet being alone with her, on a night clouded with stars, was still an awkward position to be in.

"You worked hard again today, didn't you?"

Iris looked him up and down with her comely peepers, holding both of her hands behind her back.

"Mm…"

He nodded his head slightly before sitting down on the natural floor of green. The refreshing air soothed his skin, cooling down his exhausted body.

"Don't you want to come inside the house?"

"And waste a nice night like this?"

Ren responded with a slight smile. The truth was, he didn't want to embarrass himself in front of her. If he stood up any longer, or dared to take another step--he would've fallen over like a helpless toddler.

"You're a dork, you know that?"

"I do, but thanks for reminding me, it totally doesn't hurt."

Ren responded jokingly, feigning a pain to the heart as he grasped his chest. For a good ten seconds, silence filled the gentle air between them as they met each other's gaze.

"Well, just make sure to come in soon--you'll catch a cold out here."

Iris shut the door behind her as she went into the house. Somehow, that did not go according to plan. He expected her to join him on his nightly gander, but--as he thought, he wasn't as suave as he believed. Feeling his lingering drowsiness compromise his eyelids, he blinked.