Chapter 245: The Art of the Frozen Sword (Patent Pending)
Chapter 245: The Art of the Frozen Sword (Patent Pending)
[Billion’s PoV]
I woke up before the first light touched the treetops.
The air was still, the forest quiet—just the occasional rustle of leaves or distant Abominations breaking the silence. I sat up slowly, rubbing the sleep from my eyes, and glanced around. Ana was curled up on her side, her injured wing tucked in tightly. Steve was flat on his back, drooling slightly, one arm flung over his face like the sun personally offended him.
Silver stood a few paces away, completely still. His wings twitched once in acknowledgment, but he didn’t look at me. Always alert. Always watching.
I pushed myself up, rotating my shoulders to loosen the stiffness, then started stretching. Slow at first. Deep breaths. Then the squats began.
Fast. Focused. Efficient.
Each one dropped me to the forest floor and sprang me back up with precision. I controlled my breathing, cleared my mind, and let my muscles fall into rhythm. Five hundred passed in ten minutes. A thousand by the fifteenth. By the time the horizon started to glow, I had hit six thousand.
Sweat glistened off my back, steam curling from my skin in the cold morning air.
I stood up, exhaled, then raised my right hand and bent the surrounding moisture to my will. With my new Psynapse and control of Essence, I formed a small pool near a cluster of roots—clear, clean, and comfortably warm.
The moment it settled, I stepped in.
The water welcomed me instantly, drawing out the fatigue, rinsing away sweat and dirt. I dipped under, scrubbing my hair thoroughly, then surfaced and sighed.