Nathan sat on the edge of a cliff, legs dangling over the side.
The valley stretched out below, sun-kissed and silent, dotted with green hills and winding rivers. He had trained down there once — sprinted through forests, wrestled stone beasts in the mud, collapsed in the grass too many times to count.
Now he just sat.
Breathing.
It wasn't often he had time to think. Not in this place. Not under Garrick, Jynn, or Kaela. But today… there was a pause. A rare moment of stillness before everything changed.
Behind him, the wind carried faint voices — Garrick grumbling about chopping wood, Jynn muttering over spellbooks, Kaela sharpening her blades with that rhythmic shhkk, shhkk, shhkk of steel over whetstone.
Nathan closed his eyes.
Four year.
A whole year of blood, bruises, burned skin, broken bones, and silent lessons delivered through pain.
He'd earned their respect. Garrick didn't insult him as much anymore. Jynn had started handing him books without laughing first. Kaela… well, Kaela didn't call him hopeless anymore. That was progress.
His fingers brushed the worn hilt of his training blade. Soon he'd leave this place. Face a city he hadn't seen in over a year. The world beyond felt almost unreal now — distant, like a dream he barely remembered.
He stood, the wind carrying his breath as he turned toward the familiar clearing behind him.
Kaela was already waiting.
She tossed a small stone into the air and caught it. "Thought you'd sit up there all day."
Nathan shrugged. "Thought about it."
She nodded once. "Good. That means you're nervous."
He smiled faintly. "You nervous?"
She didn't answer. Just cracked her knuckles and rolled her shoulders.
Jynn appeared from behind a tree, book under one arm, eyes sparkling with mischief. "He's all yours. I'd say don't break him, but I know you're going to anyway."
Garrick showed up last, dropping a log on the ground and dusting off his hands. "Make it count," he said. "Last lesson before he leaves."
Nathan's smile faded.
This was the last one.
Kaela stepped forward, eyes sharp. "Let's see what you've really learned."
"We've got one last lesson," Kaela said. "You're ready. But before you leave, we're going to make sure."
Jynn stepped forward first. "You've learned speed, magic, Nova, and how to harness your Threadstone. But today, it's about control. Precision. Intuition."
Kaela nodded. "Every power you hold means nothing if it isn't guided."
Garrick stepped in. "So we're fighting."
Nathan blinked. "All of you?"
"All of us," Jynn replied. "Together. You're going to show us if the last four years were worth it."
He barely had time to react.
Garrick struck first—fast, brutal. Nathan blocked, but the blow shook him. Kaela came from the side, sweeping his legs. He flipped midair, landing just in time to deflect a barrage of elemental shards from Jynn.
They were testing everything—his reflexes, his defense, his decisions.
He wove between their attacks like a current of wind, drawing on Nova to sharpen his perception, using Threadstone threads to predict movement. Every punch he threw held weight, every dodge was deliberate.
Jynn vanished and reappeared behind him—Nathan didn't hesitate. He spun, drove a kick into his ribs, and sent the mage skidding across the field.
"Not bad," Jynn said as his clone disappeared.
Garrick came next. A punch that could crack mountains. Nathan met it head-on. Nova surged through his body, and at the moment of impact—he redirected it, using Kaela's own redirection technique.
Kaela rushed him.
He met her with a flurry of feints, absorbing her counters, then blinked behind her with Phantom Step. Before she could recover, he landed a soft tap on her shoulder. A hit—clean.
She froze, but within a split second she countered.
The three backed away.
Nathan stood in the middle of the field, panting. But it wasn't fatigue—it was adrenaline. Satisfaction. Victory.
Jynn straightened up and said, "You've mastered Nova. Threadstone. Combat. Magic. Control."
Garrick nodded slowly. "You're ready."
Nathan looked at them—at the people who had beaten him down and built him up again.
Kaela walked to him and placed something in his hand. A small silver pendant. "This will help you blend in with normal folk. Mask your aura. Don't lose it."
He gripped it tightly. "Thanks."
Jynn clapped him on the shoulder. "Go make the world remember your name."
Was he really going to leave?
Garrick. Jynn. Kaela.
They weren't just mentors anymore.
They had become family.
His hands curled at his sides. He didn't dare look back. If he did, the weight of everything he was leaving behind might crush him.
But he couldn't stay.
Not anymore.
The city loomed in the distance, full of danger, opportunity, and unknown answers. It was time.
The world was calling.
And Nathan… Nathan was finally ready to answer.