"Hold still, or I'll slice your throat," Daniela warned, the knife poised steadily in her hand. She glided the blade along Jasper's jawline, carefully removing the unsightly beard he had allowed to grow over the last six months.
She kneeled between his legs as they sat atop the obsidian sand. With one hand, she tilted his chin upward, keeping his neck exposed while the other hand glided across his skin, trimming away the hair she had come to hate with a passion.
"Don't be a sore loser," she grinned, her eyes flashing with mischief.
Jasper smiled, his gaze drifting toward the dark, vast sky. He noted how much she had grown in these last couple of months; her abilities were now fully within her control, devoid of the outbursts or unrefined surges that once plagued her. She was fast becoming a truly capable conjurer.
"This already looks so much better." Daniela was hyper-focused, intent on removing every stray hair without nicking him. Grabbing a damp cloth, she wiped away the remnants of the hair before planting a soft, lingering kiss against his clean, smooth skin.
"Mmm." The sound left Jasper's throat—a low, primal vibration of pleasure. Dropping his chin, he leaned in and pressed his lips firmly against hers. His hands, which had been resting lightly on her waist, gripped her tighter, pulling her flush against his form.
The heat inside him grew exponentially, a thin line of reason being the only thing stopping him from tearing her clothes away. He shifted his weight, sliding his hands upward, tracing the curve of her ribs until his palms landed on her breasts. Through the fabric, he found the peaks of her nipples and pinched them firmly. Daniela let out a sharp, sudden gasp of pain as his nails bit into her flesh, her body jolting against his. Instead of pulling away, she pressed herself closer, her chest heaving against his palms. Jasper smirked against her lips, savoring the sound of her breath catching before deepening the kiss once more.
Daniela wrapped her arms around his neck, the sting only fueling the intensity as her fingers tangled in his long, curly hair. The silky obsidian locks now cascaded past his shoulders, slipping through her grip as she pulled him closer. She nipped at his lower lip, a sharp spark of playfulness that made him groan into her mouth.
When she finally pulled away, her breath was ragged. The magic coursing inside her hummed to life the way it always did the moment they connected. Her skin radiated a soft light as their powers entwined; onyx met emerald, the two energies dancing around them with sparks of raw intensity.
"Why does that happen?" Daniela asked, her eyes shifting to the way their magic created its own harmony. It released from their physical bodies without command, as if the energies themselves couldn't help but play with one another.
Jasper's hungry eyes remained fixed on her lips. He had never found much enjoyment in kissing before—to him, it had always been a ritualistic form of bonding that lacked real substance. But with her, he saw the merit. Every time his lips met hers, it was enough to quell the ever-present hunger gnawing at his soul.
He reached a hand into the rhythmic tide of power dancing between them. The energy hummed against his skin—not just his own, but hers. It grew into a swirl of momentum, weaving through his fingers with a joyful, sentient delight.
"I'm not sure. Could be the oath," Jasper mused. "Most oath-takers aren't lovers."
As fascinating as it was to watch, he disliked anything he couldn't fully understand, and this was not a display he wanted other eyes to see. Reining in his wayward power, Jasper commanded his black mist to dissipate. It returned to his body instantly, leaving the green emerald light looking suddenly listless. The moment his black smoke was gone, the swirling movements stopped; like a child being scolded, the green light retreated into Daniela's skin, her glow easily hidden once more.
"Let's eat, then sleep," Jasper said, his voice returning to its usual clipped tone. "We travel deeper tomorrow. One last big fight before we start hunting."
"Haven't we been hunting this whole time?" Daniela asked in confusion. To her, every day was a hunt—tracking and killing beasts in a repetitive cycle. Since she had gained a handle on her magic, they had been slaughtering everything in sight. She couldn't see what would make tomorrow any different.
"A piece of your magic is running rampant in this realm," Jasper said coolly. "This is going to be the last part of your training. When you send your magic out and give it a will, you need to know how to recall it."
"I don't make clones like you. You've taught me this," Daniela replied, feeling a bit defensive. She had listened well and followed every instruction. She always recalled her magic; most of the time, it felt instinctual.
Jasper sighed as he looked at her, realizing she still needed so much more time. "You should be able to feel it. At least two 'wills' are not with you. You should be able to locate your will at any time. I use my soul's fragments as spies, but I know where they all are. I can feel them, and I can recall them at any moment."
He stepped closer, his expression darkening with gravity. "Daniela, if someone destroys them, you will be injured. The backlash could kill you if you do not know how much power you have released."
Jasper knew exactly where one of her wills was. He had it safely hidden, stored away for the optimal time to return it—considering the immense power it had gathered after devouring an entire town.
Jasper set to work on their meal, his movements a fluid blend of mundane survival and arcane mastery. He had placed a flat slab of volcanic stone over the roaring fire, the rock glowing a dull, angry red as it absorbed the heat.
With a casual flick of his wrist, the shadows at his feet detached themselves. Wisps of living darkness coiled around the raw steaks like spectral fingers, lifting the heavy cuts of meat and placing them onto the searing stone. The sizzle was instantaneous, a sharp hiss that sent a savory aroma into the cool night air. When it came time to flip them, the darkness beneath the meat surged upward in a rhythmic, liquid motion, tossing the steaks into the air with a weightless grace before settling them back down on their opposite sides.
To his left stood a clone of Jasper, a fragment of his soul created by his power that served as a perfect carbon copy of his physical form. It crouched over the carcass of a fallen beast, moving with mechanical precision. Jasper watched his double peel back a layer of sinew and signaled for more. The clone carved a fresh slab with a single, effortless swipe and tossed it through the air. Jasper caught the trajectory with his mind, his black essence manifesting as a tether that snagged the meat mid-flight and lowered it gently onto the fire.
Turning his gaze away from the cooking, Jasper watched Daniela. She sat several paces away, her legs crossed in deep meditation. She was a beacon in the dark; tiny sparks of emerald power drifted around her like displaced fireflies, pulsing in time with her heartbeat.
Daniela leaned into the silence of her mind, trying to focus on the "God's Gift" seated deep within her chest. She pushed her consciousness outward, attempting to thread her magic into the obsidian sands, searching for the severed pieces of her own will. She reached out with invisible hands, grasping at the horizon of her perception, but there was nothing. No echo, no tether. The void where her power should have been felt like a missing limb.
A low growl of frustration escaped her. She snapped her eyes open, casting a sharp glare at Jasper, who remained infuriatingly calm. Gritting her teeth, she forced her eyes shut again.
This time, the manifestation of her effort was violent and beautiful. A sudden gale of emerald light erupted around her, a swirling nebula of magic that turned the sand beneath her into a glass-like shimmer. She threw her senses further than before, desperate to find the wayward fragments.
Then, for a heartbeat, she felt it—a sharp, electric tug from somewhere in the distance. It was a pull, a faint magnetic scream that resonated in her soul. But before she could even determine the direction, the sensation vanished.
Giving up for the evening, she let out a long, weary sigh and opened her eyes. Jasper was already looking at her, a knowing, condescending grin playing on his lips.
"Did you feel it?" he asked.
"Barely," Daniela sighed, pushing herself up to sit beside him. "I can feel it now—the fact that something is missing. But it's so faint. And I didn't feel multiple wills. Just one."
"That's enough," Jasper replied.
"You said there's two!" Daniela groaned, staring into the flames. The scent of the meat was making her stomach begin to growl.
"Focus on what you can feel," he shrugged.
"Do you know where it is? My power... the will I created?"
Jasper gave a slow nod. He extended his hand, and the shadows responded with a flourish. The black essence rose up like a tidal wave in miniature, flowing over the meat and flipping the steaks once more with a flourish of dark, weaving ribbons that looked like liquid silk.
Daniela smiled, bumping her shoulder against his. "So just point me in its direction."
"No. Shortcuts," he told her for what felt like the hundredth time.
She frowned, taking a piece of the tender meat as he offered it. "Why do you have to be so vague all the time? Especially when you're supposed to be teaching me. It's like you're speaking in riddles on purpose."
Jasper chewed slowly, his dark eyes reflecting the flickering fire. "You need to get better at interpretation and creativity, Daniela. I'm not trying to teach you how to be a carbon copy of myself. If I give you every answer, you'll never learn how to think on your feet."
He gestured to the swirling shadows around the fire. "Creation is all about having your own vision. Right now, you're just using mine—following my steps, mimicking my rhythm. You will never find those wayward wills if you're looking for them the way I would. You have to find them the way only you can."
The two ate the rest of their meal in peace, enjoying the silence of each other's company. The meat of the beast was surprisingly tender—something Daniela found she wouldn't mind eating again even after their desert excursion was over.
"Keep watch," Jasper said to his double.
He closed his eyes and allowed his influence to bleed outward. Thick, heavy waves of black smoke rippled from his skin, coating the obsidian sands with a thick shadowy blanket. It was his own personal kill-zone; any beasts that managed to get past his clone would be eviscerated the second they touched this barrier.
Author's note:
Y'all I'm late. But I am here. If you're reading my other book. I already mentioned. We got 60 cm of snow. It's been a very long tiring day. I am super exhausted. But here is the chapter for the people. Please enjoy. Lol