[Aster]
Cold. It got so, so much colder the further into winter they went, the kind of chill that seeps into your bones and refuses to leave. First, a slight nip in the air, barely noticeable, but turning more unpleasant by the day. And as the weeks dragged on, it worsened; the nip turned into a sharp, painful bite, creeping into their little home with no mercy. The walls started to feel freezing to the touch, and even ice began to form in the corners, spreading across the black stone like a plague and threatening to turn their cozy cave into a frozen tomb.
Going outside into the tunnels felt like a death sentence now, even for Aster with his fiery mana coursing through his veins. It was as if the cold was alive, constantly breathing upon their little sanctuary, scratching and clawing at the entrance. Perhaps it was the strange mana in the air that caused it, but it felt even worse than those winter days when he had to go fishing in the river to feed his family, back when they were hiding from the goblins.
Fortunately, the hot spring stood as their ally against the harsh winter chill, keeping things just about warm enough. Steam continuously rose from the water's surface, swirling through the air and clinging to everything it touched. The bare floor was damp and slippery wherever one walked, with moss struggling to grow and spread across it. Countless little crystals hanging from their ceiling had a hard time illuminating their home through all the fog,
"Ahchoo!" Silvia sneezed and sniffled, wiping her slightly red nose with the back of her hand as she sat by the edge of the hot spring, her feet dangling in the warm water. "Ugh, I hate winter," she mumbled, rubbing her pale, naked thighs with her hands, fighting goosebumps that refused to go away no matter what. Her long, silver hair clung to delicate shoulders and flat chest in a damp tangle, her pink nipples peeking through it. "Maybe... we skip practice today? I would rather just go to bed, honestly..." she then quietly suggested, her golden eyes locking on Aster's naked body, watching him as he washed himself.
Scooping some water into his hands, Aster poured it over his shoulders, letting it flow down his skinny back and soft buttocks, before repeating the action a few times. His wrinkled, pink member gently jiggled from up and down with his movements, not yet big enough for it to turn into swaying, just barely visible through the thick steam.
"I told you it would be good to do some exercises with me. It would have warmed you up alright," Aster replied, looking back at her over his shoulder, his wet hair clinging to his forehead. "Pushups do wonders, I tell you. Look at these babies!" he then exclaimed with pride, flexing his skinny arms and showing off two tiny lumps of muscles there, visible only because the light of their crystals illuminated his skin from above, making shadows appear. "Impressive, right?"
Silvia rolled her eyes in reply, looking at her brother with a bored expression. "Very. Took you only... what... three months to grow that?" she teased, a playful smirk tugging at her lips as she watched him flex in front of her, posing this way and that.
His body was just as soft and delicate as hers, except for his hands, of course, the scars covering them were anything but. Despite all his efforts to build some strength, he remained just as skinny and frail as before, all thanks to his elven heritage and the lack of sunlight and healthy food in their diet. However, he refused to give up and continued training every evening, which was why he was taking a bath at that moment. "Oh, shush. I'm getting there," he replied with a soft chuckle, splashing some water her way in retaliation. "You lazy butt."
The girl yelped in surprise, shielding herself from the warm droplets with her arms. "Hey!" Silvia squealed before splashing him back with her small, bare feet, fighting back against her giggling brother. "There's no way I'm doing magical practice AND your silly pushups in a single day!" she said, shaking her head firmly. "Nuh-uh."
— "That's what I said. Lazy butt," he said with a laugh, jumping at her with a playful roar. His arms went straight for her armpits to give her some nice, loving tickles.
"No, stop! Haha— Stop!" Silvia screamed between bouts of laughter as her body squirmed all over the wet floor, trying to protect her sensitive spots from his merciless fingers. It escalated rather quickly, and they both ended up rolling around on the slippery surface, giggling like little kids, completely naked and not giving a single care about it.
Stopping chewing the partially frozen meat, Nivalis looked up at the siblings, watching them both from the comfort of their bed with a smile tugging at the corner of her lips. "You two need to hurry up with your practice," she reminded them, her voice slightly muffled by the food in her mouth. "Silvia and I still have a lesson afterward." Nivalis pointed at a small strip of cloth that had once been Aster's bandage and an old bone needle lying beside it, the one they had found in a small pouch taken from two corpses.
Silvia let out a loud groan upon seeing the items, rolling her eyes at her mother as she sat on top of her brother, both panting slightly from their play; her soft buttocks pressed snugly against his hips, each breath from him moving his manhood against her. "Ugh... again?! Mom, my fingers are going to fall off!" she whined, looking at Nivalis with a look of despair. "It's not for me! I just... I can't do it," she then said, pouting a little at the boy beneath her, who just shrugged in reply. "Why is he not doing it too?"
"Because you're a girl and need to learn how to be a proper young lady. Every elven woman must know the art of embroidery. It's just how it is," Nivalis explained calmly. Her blue eyes squinted slightly at them, a hint of disapproval flashing across them. "Now get off your brother before I smack both your butts. You know it's forbidden to sit on him like that," Nivalis warned her, a slight frown creasing her beautiful face, her silver hair cascading down her shoulders like a waterfall, covering the gentle curve of her breasts.
Silvia huffed in annoyance and climbed off him, letting the boy go free. "It's stupid..." she muttered under her breath.
Aster sat up across from Silvia on the cold stone floor beside the pool, facing the pouty girl. "Come on, don't make that face. It'll be over before you know it," he tried to cheer her up, patting her knee gently with his scarred hand. Her hairless slit peeked out from between her slender thighs, but he didn't give it much attention beyond a glance. "At least it's not dancing..." he added in a whisper so only she could hear.
A tiny smile appeared on the girl's lips at his words. "Yeah... I guess you're right..." she whispered in reply. Noticing his little glance at her princess parts, she returned the favor, looking down at his wrinkled manhood for a moment. "Magic practice?" Silvia then asked, meeting his golden gaze once more.
He nodded firmly. "Yep. A short one," Aster replied, settling into a comfortable cross-legged position, with Silvia doing the same. Their knees touched as they faced each other, their eyes locked on one another. "Which exercise should we start with?" he asked, watching her face scrunch up in thought, the faint glow of the crystals above casting a soft, shimmering halo around her silver head.
"Hmm..." she hummed softly, tapping her lips with her index finger. "Two spells," she finally said, referring to the exercise where they had to cast two completely different spells at the same time, trying to control them both at once. It was challenging, incredibly so, requiring immense focus and concentration to maintain two separate spells at the same time. But because of the complexity, their minds were growing used to the strain, and normal spells became much easier to cast as a result. "I'm getting much better at it now," Silvia added, determination gracing her youthful features.
— "Alright. Two spells it is then..." Aster agreed with a deep breath, mentally preparing himself for the task ahead. His ribs expanded as he inhaled, then retracted as he exhaled, his hands resting on his knees with his palms facing upwards. "Let's go."
Closing their eyes, they both took another deep, calming breath as they let the raw mana be ignited inside their hearts, changed by their affinities into fire and ice, and then guided it through their bodies. After a few short seconds, a warm, flickering flame appeared in the palm of Aster's right hand, slowly moving up and down, while his left remained empty.
The mental image of it kept repeating inside his mind, a loop playing on repeat, guiding his mana on how to manifest the spell into what he wanted. Every little detail mattered, from how mana traveled within his body and through his arm to the exact shape the fire must take upon leaving his skin; even the slightest mistake or distraction could mess things up.
And this is why they needed so much practice, hours upon hours of it every day. Their minds needed to learn how to do all of that without even thinking about it, to make spellcasting a reflex rather than a conscious effort. If one day, they find themselves in danger—or rather, when that day inevitably comes—they won't have the luxury of calmly thinking things through.
Everything must happen in a single moment with perfect execution. If it doesn't... well, it would be their corpses decorating the tunnels, just like the two they found. 'Not happening...' Aster promised himself once again, his brow furrowing as he focused on the flame in his palm, letting it consume his thoughts.
Meanwhile, in Silvia's right hand, a white mist began to swirl around her fingers lazily. Her eyes were shut tightly as she tried to keep her focus, her lips pressed into a thin line in concentration. Slowly, the mist began to gather into one spot and form into a small orb, much like a cloud, hovering just above her palm. A few heartbeats later, an ice crystal no bigger than the tip of her pinky formed within the center, shimmering faintly in the dim light of the cave.
'Alright, the first spell is perfect. Now, to the hard part,' Aster thought, taking a few more deep breaths to concentrate even harder. He could feel his head starting to throb from the effort the moment he began to picture his second spell in the empty palm of his left hand, a slightly bigger flame, slowly circling instead of moving up and down. It took him a long moment to make it appear, his mana pulsating from the effort, the veins on his arms briefly becoming visible beneath his pale skin.
'Good, now... don't forget about the other one...' he kept reminding himself, sweat trickling down the boy's forehead as he tried to keep his concentration and control of both flames, now burning hot in each of his hands. Slowly, one moved up and down, while the other circled clockwise around his scarred palm, both following his mental commands with some difficulty, but not failing. Yet.
Forming a second icicle while maintaining the first proved to be a difficult feat, one that required immense mental fortitude. Silvia could feel her temples pulsating from the effort as the icy mist began to emanate from the fingertips of her left hand; her face scrunched up from all the tension in her head. "This... is... hard..." she managed to say through gritted teeth, feeling the cold seeping into her bones as the second crystal started to form within the small cloud, slowly growing in size.
— "You... can do it..." Aster encouraged her, feeling the same struggle; his fire was becoming increasingly unstable, despite being much simpler than her spells. He didn't have to worry about mist and how it forms ice. Only let out mana at a constant rate and hold its shape and movements, as easy as that. But for him, it was not so easy.
The five-year gap between them was apparent in moments like this, her control being simply better. 'Don't lose it. Keep it...' Aster continued to tell himself, but just like every other time for the past months, his flames began to flicker erratically and shrink, almost as if a sudden wind was blowing against them.
Minutes dragged on painfully slowly, each passing second feeling like an eternity as both siblings fought their battles. Their spells were always dangerously close to failing, but they kept pushing through, not allowing it to happen. Silvia continued to grow her two icicles, adding more mist to one of them until it became bigger than the other. Then, she switched and added more to the smaller one, until they were the same size again. Left and right, ice grew to the size of her fists, their shiny blue surfaces reflecting the warm glow from Aster's flames. A few droplets of sweat started to appear on her pale forehead despite the coldness of her mana.
"Alright... I think we did well," Silvia said at last, breaking her concentration with an exhausted sigh, catching both shards of ice in her small, delicate hands. Her eyes fluttering open, a faint white mist escaped her lips as she exhaled. "Phew! That was hard," she smiled proudly, looking at her little brother.
The fire in Aster's palms died down immediately as he opened his eyes to look back at her, his heart pounding against his ribcage. A long exhale escaped his lips as he tried to calm down, his chest rising and falling with every breath. "Yeah... it wasn't bad," he said, looking down at the ice she kept in her hands. "You're so much better at this. It's insane."
Silvia gave him a smug grin in response, her chin tilting upward slightly in pride. "Well, it's easier for you. All of your magic is pretty straightforward, just releasing all your mana and hoping it will burn whatever is in front of you," she shrugged, tossing one icicle into the water, where it quickly began to melt. "I have to think about how mana moves through my body, how it forms into mist, and then how that mist turns into ice. How it floats, and then I also need to launch it. It's way more complex, even when doing only one spell," she explained, letting go of the second shard as well.
— "True..." Aster nodded, rubbing his sore temples with his fingers. "Maybe try practicing creating that mist of yours instead, without forming ice? Just make a lot of it and let it freeze things, or something. That way, instead of doing the complex stuff that requires a lot of time, you could simply spray your enemy with it, like I do," he suggested, meeting her gaze. "Will that work?"
The girl gave it some thought, but shook her head after a moment. "I've tried that before, but it takes forever to freeze anything with it. Plus, my hands get too cold..." she sighed, her shoulders slumping slightly. "No one is going to just stand there in front of me for half a minute while I freeze them."
Aster nodded slowly. "Hmm... yeah," he mumbled quietly and then added, "Maybe try again? You really need something quick and easy to use, like my fire. I just let my mana go, and it's there." He shrugged, pointing at the black stone wall behind her. "Try spraying some of that mist over there, and see how it goes. Keep it simple."
With a soft hum of agreement, Silvia stood up and stretched her small body, her ribs protruding from beneath her delicate skin as she raised her arms high above her head, yawning softly. She then turned to face the wall behind her, her buttocks pointed back at Aster. "Well... here goes nothing," she muttered, closing her eyes to focus once more. Her right arm stretched out in front of her, her fingers spread wide, as a small cloud of mist formed before her. Some of it floated down to the ground, pooling around her small feet, hiding them from view.
A moment later, much more of it started to escape from her fingertips and palm, swirling rapidly towards the black stone wall. It hit its surface soundlessly, the most unremarkable thing one could imagine, lazily falling to the ground the moment its momentum was lost. As the last of her mana left Silvia's hand, she sighed loudly and looked over her shoulder to meet Aster's eyes. "Well, that was lame..."
Aster had to agree, watching the mist disappear into nothingness. The stone was barely any different from what it was moments ago. "Yeah, it was," he replied with a sad sigh, just as his hands pressed against the floor, and he pushed himself onto his feet with a grunt. Standing next to Silvia, he shook his head. Conjuring the most helpful advice in existence, he whispered, "Just... try harder."
Silvia glared at him in response, her golden eyes narrowing. "Wow. Thank you, oh, wise one," she grumbled sarcastically, looking at the wall once more. Raising her palm to the air again, she took a deep breath, her brow furrowing in concentration. Mana ignited within her heart, coursing through her body, ready to be used once more. Her mind imagined a thick, freezing mist escaping from her hand, and so her mana obeyed, sending a thick wave of white, cold air towards the wall.
This time, however, instead of imagining it as an obedient, controlled mist that she could easily manipulate and condense into crystals, Silvia pictured it as a wild, untamed storm, a whirling frost that swirled and spun in a chaotic dance, defying any attempt to contain it. Inspired by her brother's fire, which was always wild and chaotic, she let her mana take control and do whatever it wanted. And much to her surprise, it did precisely that. A powerful, freezing mist escaped from her hand and rushed forward in a wild, unrestrained fashion, as if a miniature snowstorm was born in their small home.
The cold blast hit the wall with a loud whooshing sound, causing both siblings to jump in surprise. Even Nivalis perked up at the sudden noise, sitting upright in their bed, watching the scene with interest, but remaining quiet.
— "Woah... that's..." Aster muttered, his mouth agape as he looked at the wall in front of them. The entire surface was covered in a thick layer of white frost, and even small icicles hung from its rough surface, their sharp tips glistening in the light. "Damn," was all he could say.
Fluttering her eyes open to look upon her creation, Silvia gasped at the sight. She shook her hand vigorously to get rid of the numbness that had crept into her fingers from the cold, but a proud grin appeared on her lips nonetheless. "Oh! That was amazing!" she giggled, her voice filled with awe. She turned to her brother, her eyes twinkling like stars in the night sky. "It worked! I can't believe it worked! Look at this!" she pointed at the icicles.
Aster nodded in response, a similar grin on his face. "That was incredible. I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of that... that's for sure," he chuckled, looking back at the girl. "But maybe just take it easy; be more careful than I was. You don't want to freeze your hands off like I burned mine," he added with a chuckle, raising his scarred hands to make a point, doing a fist a few times. It hurt, but his face didn't show any pain.
Silvia nodded, still smiling. "Yeah, I'll be careful... but damn it was incredible," she sighed, her eyes full of wonder as she looked back at the frozen wall. "Oh man... Finally, something useful! No wonder you always go with simple spells, it's so much easier," she added, looking at her brother with a grin. "You're a genius, you know? I'll give you a massage in bed later for that," she promised, wrapping her arms around his waist in a hug, pressing her head against his chest. A bunch of happy giggles escaped her lips as she did.
Aster laughed softly, hugging her back, feeling her soft skin against his own. "Hehe, well, I wouldn't say a genius..." he muttered shyly, his cheeks turning a bit rosy. He then added in a cheeky, playful tone, "Compared to you, I mean... I guess. Trying harder, it was kinda obvious."
With a loud, playful gasp, Silvia pushed him away with a laugh. "You dork," she mumbled quietly and gave her cutest pout. "Forget about that massage now," she said, sticking out her tongue at him before turning away and running over to the hot spring, where she quickly slid in with a soft splash.
— "Wait! I was joking! It was a joke!" Aster yelled after her, hurrying to join his sister. His little member bounced up and down between his legs with each hurried step he took. Once he reached the water, he quickly lowered himself onto one of the smooth rocks beneath it. She began splashing water at him immediately, which he returned with just as much enthusiasm.
A deep sigh escaped from Nivalis as she watched the two siblings playing in the water, shaking her head slightly in amusement. She then put the frozen meat aside, which she had been chewing on, and called out, "Have you finished your practice already? I am still waiting, you know." Her voice echoed throughout the cave as her two children stopped in their tracks, turning to face her with slightly sheepish smiles.
"Ugh... we only did the first exercise," Silvia answered, doing one last splash at Aster, knowing that he wouldn't return it now that their mother had interrupted them. Ignoring the glare he gave her, she dunked her head underwater briefly before emerging again, looking at him with a victorious smirk. "Come on, we still need to do the mana igniting thing, and then mana spar," she urged him, referring to two more practices they had come up with.
The first was a simple endurance training where they ignited as much mana as possible and did their best to control it and get used to the pain it caused. The boy was an absolute champion in that one; his pain tolerance allowing him to withstand way more pain than any sane person would be able to.
The second one, however, wasn't as simple. Mana spar was what they called an exercise where they sat facing each other and pushed their mana without turning it into fire or icy mist, simply trying to overpower one another with it. It was something akin to arm wrestling but for mages. Aster wasn't very good at it, losing more often than not. But that was the whole point of the exercises, to improve things you're bad at, after all.
— "Alright, fine... just one more thing," Aster mumbled quietly, before giving her one last splash her way. Silvia yelped in surprise but quickly recovered, her golden eyes narrowing as she splashed him back once more, harder this time. Aster replied with another, and so on, until Nivalis' voice boomed across the room, reminding them once more that it was getting quite late.