Chapter 3: Awakening On a rocky patch in the forest Northwest of Red City, a young boy could be seen, with his hands on his knees while in a standing position panting heavily. Sweat dripped from his chin as he bent exhausted. When he raised his face, a stunningly handsome face could be seen. He had short black hair and an inverted triangular-shaped face, he had bow-shaped lips with beautiful black eyes. His skin was toned, from being in the sun for too long each day. He measured 5 ‘7’ in height and has a slender body, adding his chiseled-like muscles, further made physique just amazing. Any girl will fall heads over heels for him. Grey stood up and looked at his hands which looked rough for someone his age. It has been 3 years since the day of the test. After wallowing in sadness for some time, he was able to pick himself up. One day during dinner, Martha suggested he should start training his body since there was no way he could hone it using the element which would in turn keep him healthy. At first, he rejected the idea, but after multiple convincing from Martha, he finally decided to try it out. Grey took up the idea and started training ever since, it has been 3 years already. He had forgotten just how many times he had trained himself so hard he couldn’t stand up. He has always been a determined person, so he decided, if he couldn’t cultivate, he will pour all his energy into honing his body. Besides, spending his time here helps him escape from the reality of what happened to him. “Well, that should be it for today. I better get back before it gets dark” Grey immediately rushed home before his body would give up on him after the rigorous training. He always tries to surpass himself every day he heads out to train. ************ Red City “Mom I’m home” Grey shouted as he opened the door and walked into the house. Grey immediately smelled a great aroma coming from the kitchen as he walked in. “Okay dear, go freshen up. Dinner will be done shortly” Martha’s voice came from the kitchen. “Okay mom” Grey replied as he went to take a warm bath. He always baths warm water after training as it helps wear down the fatigue. But nothing beats a good night’s sleep. Ten minutes later, Grey came downstairs and saw a wonderful sight on the table. Martha prepared his favorite food. “How was your training today?” Martha asked while inviting Grey over to have his meal. “It was okay, I was able to go 30 minutes more than my usual time” Grey stated proudly “Did anything strange happen today?” Martha asked Grey curiously. “No mom, you always ask me this question every time I tell you I surpassed my previous records in training” Grey couldn’t help but ask. Martha has asked him this question frequently lately, and it was sort of making him worried. ‘Will something happen to me if I hone my body too hard?’ Grey was starting to get scared. Elementalists don’t hone their body, the elements do it for them. But the result is different from honing the body. His body is stronger than most Elementalists of his age, because of how much he had honed it. “Nothing dear” Martha replied. ‘Why isn’t it happening yet, could it be that he hasn’t met the requirements. He said it should awaken after he clocks 15 years old, it has already been 5 months now’ Martha couldn’t help but begin to worry about her son’s future. She hid it to herself though and didn’t show any visible reactions. Grey looked at her suspiciously, before focusing back on his meal. After dinner, he spoke with Martha for some time before he went to his room to rest. Grey didn’t have any friends anymore since the test. He was abandoned by everyone, and they all avoided him like he was a plague. Whenever he experiences this, he felt hurt. He was still young, so this definitely had a huge impact on him. Martha has been his support, she makes sure she accompanies him as much as she could and always encourages him. Grey grew as time went on and was able to put everything behind him. His situation made him find comfort in reading when he’s alone. Grey continued his daily routine and quickly another month went by without any major thing happening. On a particular day, Grey was in the forest doing his usual training routine. He suddenly started feeling hot and sweating more than usual. He felt maybe it was because of his training and decided to take a short rest to calm his temperature. He got hotter as time went on and also sweated more. “What’s happening to me” Grey started panicking because of what was taking place. He immediately packed his things and ran home as fast as he could. Grey is faster than most people because of his training, only some Wind and Lightning Elementalists will have an edge over him in terms of speed. And his stamina was also high, so he had no problem sprinting a long distance. When he got home, he immediately pulled all his clothes and jumped into cold water. The hotness in his body continued getting hotter, and it got to the point he couldn’t bear it anymore, he screamed in pain for some time before passing out. Huge changes were currently going on in his body, and his body began automatically absorbing the elemental particles in the surrounding. His body was like a black hole as it absorbed the elements greedily. His toned skin started reverting to his usual fairness and his rough palm also turned as smooth as a baby’s palm. By the time he woke up, it was already late in the evening, and he noticed he was fully dressed in his bed. ‘Who dressed me up’ That was the first question that entered his mind on seeing his condition. He looked around confused by everything that happened, he managed to sit up. He walked downstairs after some time and saw Martha sitting quietly on a chair, she raised her head and looked at Grey with a big smile when she noticed him coming down. “Mom were you the one who dressed me up,” Grey asked the most important question on his mind after seeing her. Grey felt embarrassed because he remembered being fully naked when he passed out. Martha was taken aback by the question, she couldn’t believe the first thing Grey said after waking up was who dressed him up. “I have no idea” Martha replied as she looked at Grey with eyes saying ‘Do you live in this house with someone else, try asking that question again, and I’ll beat you up’. ‘He is actually embarrassed because I dressed him up, I’m his mother. This kid’ Martha thought wryly. When Grey heard her reply, he wanted to talk more but when he saw the look in Martha’s eyes, he quickly swallowed his words. He knew just how scary she could be if she got angry. “Grey, what happened to you?, why were you unconscious when I came back?” Martha asked worriedly. “I don’t know mom, I suddenly started feeling hot during training. I rushed home and took a cold bath, but the hot feeling didn’t stop, instead, it increased. I passed out shortly after” Grey recounted everything that happened before he passed out, omitting the part where he screamed like a baby. He still wanted to keep his pride in front of his mother. Martha immediately fell into deep thoughts when she heard this, she glanced at Grey before getting up and walking towards the kitchen to get dinner for him. As she walked past him, she froze in the spot and looked at him again from head to toe. Grey was surprised by his mother’s abrupt behavior and started feeling scared thinking his mother was angry. “Grey, did you notice the changes in your skin?” Martha asked. She clearly remembered how he looked in the morning. Grey didn’t really take notie of the change in his skin and looked at it. He was dumbstruck by what he saw, ‘How is this possible’ He looked at his skin and his eyes drifted to his palm. Martha looked at him more shocked. How can his skin color change so suddenly? (PS: the book will have a medieval setting, as some might think it’s modern)