[@KuramaaaZ]

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Tossed bodily away with nothing left in him, and the big man was losing himself to his element with every swing. Every crunch of his fist on flesh only seemed to drive the behemoth on further and further until he was stopped. The man under the mountain had not intervened and let them both learn a lesson. Vlad had been overpowered by a bigger opponent and learned what it meant to be challenged. To grasp at fleeting straws and learn, if only a little, to think his attacks in advance instead of mindlessly attacking. Gus had to see what he was capable of and see where his element could take him if ever the giant lost control. Bloody and burned, both students were now at wits end. The fight was over but still Gus raged on.

Gus roared as he rushed in to finish what he had started, to end the source of his pain, his mind on instinct even as he smiled. It was not rage that made him aggressive, it was his boiling blood. You could only block out so much pain before even the strongest mind lost itself. 

The master under the mountain approached casually as the world simply.. stopped. His was not the power to stop time but to move at a rate so quick it might as well have. A gift he had mastered over thousands of lifetimes. The soft sound of steel sliding on oiled leather filled his ears as he drew out the [url=https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/20/18/47/2018470a93341b876fbe9f558430421f.jpg]dagger.[/url] The blade had been made by his own hands deep below the mountain when it was a tenth the size it was today. The wooden handle was a branch from the tree of his home that had survived the centuries. Even without maintaining it, the blade was as sharp as the day it had been created.

Vlad was on the ground now, eyes lost to the sky. It was likely that the boy felt ashamed of his defeat. How wrong he could be.

The nameless master sat upon the ground next to him with the blade resting across his own lap, hand on the blades edge and the other resting on the hilt. 

[color=007236]"So you have been challenged. In defeat, you learn. In victory you stagnate. Learn from this moment and better yourself for the next obstacle." [/color]

The masters voice was a soothing summer breeze and carried the weight of centuries. Though the boy would not hear him speak it, those words would be in his head now. Interpreted as his own or not, he hoped this one would listen. Grasping the blade, the master stood and turned to the lumbering monster that was Augustus. 

[color=007236]"All you wanted was to prove yourself. To show him you were strong enough to help. If only you could see yourself."[/color]

The cut was precise and shallow as the nameless master went to work. The first two cuts severed the boys hamstring, two more cut the muscle function from his thighs. Not a drop of blood spilled at the blades passing. One more slash, this one deeper, took the strength from the boys arms. The master positioned himself to stare into the boys eyes even as time began to return to normal around him. Blade still in hand it would seem to both boys as if he had simply appeared. Simultaneously the wounds he had inflicted burst into a light dribble of blood and Gus collapsed like a falling tree into the dirt with a stifled scream of agony. The red hue draining from his body as his energy faded and the pain returned. 

The master only stared down at him before returning to Vlads side. Gus would regenerate, his body was already trying to heal the burn wounds. But Vlad would have no such luck or aid. Not by the time he needed it. The masters hand laid upon Vlads chest. Upon contact it seemed he was merely measuring the boys heartbeat. No effects occured. But as the minutes rolled on he would feel new life sprouting inside of his body, a fire inside his soul that that burned like the sun. It was a feeling of power as the calming waves of the masters energy channeled into a new host, revitalizing him and mending his pain. The broken bones mended back to the way they had been before the fight, his bruises disappeared along with the soreness of his arms. New fire sprouted over every inch of his body but did not burn, but instead they seemed to cool him down. 

The nameless returned to his seated position and closed his eyes, the blade again resting across his lap with both hands to either side, and focused his energies into the ground. The flames died down in the grove in an instant and the birds returned to their happy chirping. The land would heal from this and return to normal with time and a little guidance.