Arvey moved farther from the green barrier and picked the tallest tree he could find. He climbed fast, used the thickest branches, and kept his weight close to the trunk. When he reached the upper limbs, he stopped and locked his boots against the bark.

  Arvey stood on the highest limb and looked down through the canopy. He kept one hand on the trunk behind him and tested the branch with his boot before shifting his weight. “I should be a few hundred meters up,” he said in a low voice.

  He leaned forward and looked toward the barrier. “It looks endless into the sky,” he muttered. The barrier ran upward without a visible top, and the green glow stayed steady no matter where he looked. Arvey narrowed his eyes and scanned for any break.

  He shifted his gaze left, then right, and forced himself to trace the line where the glow met the trees. He caught a slight curve at the far edge of his sight and held it there. “Just like I thought." he said. "Not endless sideways, it wraps something."

  He turned away from the barrier and looked out in every other direction. It was forest in every direction. The view didn’t give him a single landmark that looked human.

  Kozlo stood on a twig above him and pointed with one wing. “Kozlo and Arvey there,” the owl said, voice proud and certain. Arvey followed the direction and squinted. “Yeah,” Arvey said. “Black water.” From this height it was a thin line, but the color stood out from the rest of the forest.

  Arvey kept watching the black line for a few breaths, then looked back to Kozlo. “Not many flying monsters here, right?” he asked. He shifted into a cross-legged seat.

  Kozlo hopped down to sit across from him. The owl tilted his head, then answered like it was obvious. “Many monster,” Kozlo said.

  Arvey leaned forward and looked down through the canopy gaps. “This high, none of the monsters we’ve met should find us,” he said.

  Kozlo blinked once, then repeated it like a warning. “Many monster,” he said again. Arvey nodded and accepted it, then looked back at the distance.

  “But none that fly,” Arvey said. He paused and kept his eyes on the treetops below. “At least none we’ve seen.” Thinking about the Tier four beast leaving the ground only when Marec forced it into the air. "At least, not on purpose," Arvey added.

  Kozlo spread his wings a little and straightened up. “Kozlo can fly,” he said. “Kozlo fight for Arvey.”

  Arvey’s mouth pulled into a grin. “Of course,” he said. "We can’t forget Kozlo, ruler of the skies.”

  Kozlo spread his wings wide and held them there, making himself look as big as he could on the branch. His eyes stayed bright, and he held the pose like it was a ceremony. Arvey shook his head once and let the grin fade.

  He leaned his back against the trunk and let his shoulders drop. “Vokán said mana flows through every being,” he said. “Same way blood does.”

  “Vokán?” Kozlo asked, head tilted toward Arvey. Arvey glanced at him and answered without changing his posture. “My uncle,” he said, then closed his eyes and focused on the warmth in his chest.

  “The question is how to make it circulate faster,” Arvey said, thinking of Semir and Rovan standing their ground while their mana moved in controlled flows. He remembered the way it felt in the air near them. “It made them stronger,” he muttered.

  Kozlo leaned closer and stared at Arvey’s chest like he expected to see the mana through cloth. “Arvey try,” Kozlo said. He tapped one claw on the bark.

  Arvey looked at him and let out a slow breath. “Yeah,” he said. “Why not.”

  He stared forward for a beat, "Alright, first try." He said, closing his eyes.

  “Vokán always said breathing matters,” Arvey said. He opened one eye and looked at Kozlo. “But what is correct breathing.”

  Kozlo blinked, then tilted his head with a sharp angle. “Arvey stupid,” he said. “Arvey breathe wrong?” His tone carried confidence.

  Arvey laughed and shook his head once. “Let’s see,” he said. “Maybe you’re right.” He closed his eyes and forced his shoulders to loosen.

  He inhaled through his nose and counted the air in his chest. He exhaled slow and kept the rhythm even. He refused to let his mind jump to the fight, the barrier, or anything else.

  Minutes passed without change, and his legs went numb where they folded. His back started to ache against the trunk, and he adjusted his posture once to keep blood moving. Then he returned to the same rhythm.

  More time passed, and the forest below stayed quiet. The barrier in the distance didn’t change, and nothing moved in the air above it. Arvey kept breathing and kept his eyes closed.

  Minutes turned into hours, hunger scratched at his stomach. Thirst pulled at the back of his throat, his lips dried. But he ignored everything and focused on the warmth in his chest.

  At first the warmth stayed small and steady. After a while it started to move, and he noticed it when his shoulders felt heavy for a moment and then eased. Arvey held the breath rhythm and stayed still.

  The warmth spread from his chest into his shoulders and upper arms. It slid into his forearms and fingers, slow and controlled. His hands tingled and then steadied.

  His legs tingled next, and he didn’t change his posture even when it got uncomfortable. The warmth moved down his thighs into his knees, then along his calves. It reached his toes and settled there on its own.

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  “It’s the warmth,” Arvey whispered without opening his eyes. “It’s mana.”

  He concentrated on the sensation instead of the word. He pictured the warmth moving through him in a loop that never stopped. He kept his breathing even and refused to clench his jaw.

  Kozlo watched him with wide eyes and held still. The owl’s claws gripped the branch, and his wings stayed tucked tight. After a while Kozlo couldn’t stay quiet.

  “Arvey mana,” Kozlo whispered, excitement creeping into his voice. Arvey didn’t answer and didn’t open his eyes. He kept the warmth moving.

  The mana stopped feeling like a spread and started feeling like a path. It moved from chest to arms, then back again, then down into legs and up again. The loop was slow, but it was a loop.

  Arvey’s heartbeat sped up when he realized it was working. His breathing tried to speed up too, and he forced it back down. The warmth grew stronger for a few breaths, then steadied.

  Pain hit him without warning.

  It started in his chest and shot outward at the same time. His arms seized for a moment, and his legs locked so hard his toes curled. Arvey gasped and threw himself on the branch, spine hitting bark.

  He lay flat and stared up through gaps in the canopy. The sky above was deep purple and dark blue, and his vision shook for a second. His lungs dragged in air too fast, and he fought to slow it.

  The pain eased in waves instead of leaving at once. Arvey clenched his jaw and waited for control to return to his hands. When it did, he rolled his shoulders and pushed himself back upright.

  Kozlo leaned close with his beak slightly open. The owl’s eyes were bright and waiting. Arvey stared at him for a beat and let his breath settle.

  “First try successful,” Arvey said, and the grin returned. He shook his hands once to ease his fingers. Kozlo threw both wings up and bounced along the branch.

  “Kozlo knew,” Kozlo said, voice high with victory. He hopped twice more and then froze when the limb dipped under his weight.

  Arvey grinned and looked down through the canopy again. He kept his thoughts clean and forced himself to stay practical. “Three things left,” he said.

  “Figuring out the soul part my uncle always talked about,” Arvey said, and he held up one finger. He lifted a second finger. “Finding out how someone tracks mana the way Marec tracked that beast.”

  He lifted a third finger and lowered his hand again. “And last, the skills,” he said. The warmth in his chest answered in a quiet pull as he stared into the forest below.

  A thought hit him and he acted on it right away. He reached into his pouch and pulled out the core he had taken from the goblins. The object still felt warm against his palm.

  Arvey held it closer and tried to pull the mana inside it in with the same breathing rhythm. Nothing moved, and the core stayed warm in his hand. Arvey frowned and turned it once.

  He felt a faint resistance in his mind, something like a boundary. "No time for experiments," he muttered. He put the core away and watched the forest stretch in all directions.

  “So we have one thing left,” Arvey said. He turned his head toward Kozlo. “We fight. We get stronger.”

  The owl’s wings stayed half-raised, and his posture looked ready. “Fight,” Kozlo echoed, and his eyes stayed bright.

  Arvey grabbed the bark with both hands and swung his legs under the limb. He climbed down fast, keeping his boots quiet against the trunk. Kozlo pushed off the branch and flew down ahead of him.

  Arvey reached the lower limbs and didn’t bother climbing the last few branches. He dropped, caught one branch with his boot, then dropped again and landed on the ground with bent knees. As he steadied himself, he still felt the mana in his chest.

  Arvey looked toward the deeper forest and tightened his cloak. “Let’s go grind those tiers,” he said in a low voice. “And let’s figure out this freakin mana.”

  Kozlo bobbed his head once, pleased, and leaned forward like he wanted to lead. Arvey stepped into the trees and didn’t slow.

  -

  Arvey kept moving until the green barrier was far enough behind him that it no longer filled his vision. He didn’t want to train with that glow in front of his face, and he didn’t want to risk the warriors doubling back to the same spot. He took a wide path and listened for anything moving behind them.

  Kozlo stayed on his shoulder and kept his wings tight. The owl’s head turned in small quick angles, scanning trunks and gaps. Arvey didn’t tell him to scout this time, because he wanted Kozlo close while he was still learning to circulate his mana.

  They found a stretch of ground where the trees stood taller and the undergrowth was thinner. Arvey picked another high tree and climbed it, not as high as before, but high enough that ground noise would have to work to reach him. He stopped on a wide limb and sat down without wasting time.

  “Again,” Arvey said. He rolled his shoulders once and felt soreness from the earlier pain. He looked at Kozlo and kept his tone flat. “We do it again.”

  Kozlo blinked and nodded fast. “Arvey mana,” he whispered, and his voice carried excitement. Arvey lifted two fingers for silence and Kozlo froze.

  Arvey closed his eyes and set his breathing rhythm. He kept it slow at first and made each inhale deliberate. He counted each exhale and used the count to keep his mind from jumping.

  At first the warmth did nothing. It stayed in his chest like a small tight knot. He forced his shoulders down and refused to move his hands.

  He held the rhythm and waited. Minutes passed, and his legs started to numb again. The mana responded faster the second time. It slid from chest to shoulders and down his arms. It reached his fingers, then returned, then moved down his legs.

  Arvey kept the loop going, and he tried to speed it up. The first time he had waited for it to happen, but now he wanted control. He pushed breath slightly deeper and held the exhale longer.

  The warmth sped up by a small amount. It moved through his forearms quicker and returned to his chest without stalling. Arvey kept his mouth closed and focused on the path.

  A sharp pain hit again, but it was shorter. Arvey clenched his jaw and didn’t throw himself back this time. He let the pain ride through him and forced the loop to continue.

  The pain faded, and he felt the warmth settle into a steadier flow. It wasn’t fast yet, but it moved without stopping. Arvey opened his eyes and looked at his hands.

  His fingers felt lighter. His joints felt looser. He didn’t feel stronger in a dramatic way, but his body felt more... awake.

  Kozlo leaned in and watched his face. “Arvey okay?” the owl asked.

  Arvey nodded once. "Yeah,” he said. He flexed his fingers again and watched them respond. “It hurts a lot, but it works.”

  He stared at the forest below for a beat and let the thought settle. If he could circulate mana on command, then he could probably push it into something else. “With my Corriph bloodline and whatever aspect I end up awakening, I should be able to shape mana into some nice skills,” Arvey thought. “Marec did it with fire and turned it into a bow in the middle of a fight.” He tightened his jaw. “I need to learn how to do that.”

  But he wasn't going to learn everything in one day. He didn't have a teacher, and he didn't have time to waste. He would have to build skills through repetition and pain.

  “Next ...,” Arvey looked at Kozlo and spoke the next step out loud. “We grind tiers,” he said. “We train mana at night.” He pointed down at the forest. “And pick fights that won’t kill us.”

  Kozlo nodded fast. “Fight,” he whispered, then grinned in his own way by lifting his beak. Arvey reached up and tapped Kozlo’s chest once.

  “And we stay alive,” Arvey said. He climbed down again and started moving.

  He picked a direction they hadn’t taken yet and set his line parallel to the barrier. He didn’t want to drift far from it, because the barrier was their anchor in this part of the forest.

  Kozlo stayed on his shoulder and watched the ground ahead. Arvey kept his pace steady and listened for movement. The warmth of the mana in his chest stayed present, and he tried to keep it circulating in a slow controlled loop while he walked.

  It wasn’t comfortable. The loop pulled at his muscles and made his joints ache. Arvey kept it anyway. He didn’t have a plan beyond getting stronger and staying alive. For now, that was enough.