Chapter 45
"Focus Nick, draw them all in." It had been four months since the start of the second part of the school year. Over that time, Nick had managed to warm his relation with the first years, even Trent. What's more, his relationship with Naomi was amazing, and he cherished every day with her. Keith had continued helping him train and master advanced physical techniques, which helped him lead his scatterball team to victory every match. The only area Nick wasn't improving rapidly, was Alana's training.
"I'm trying." His teeth were clenched, and he felt as if his body was being torn apart. After two months of strict training from Alana, they were still unable to bring Dagr's physical form into their world. As such, Alana had decided to train Nick in holding all of his powers at the same time, and began training him in their different uses. Nick had thought holding two powers at once was bad, but now, trying to harness all four at once, was nearly impossible.
"They are your powers, bend them to your will." He could see the colors swirling around his form, felt each distinct power, and focused on harnessing each one. Nick had learned that each power reacted differently to his touch, and so he had to focus on manipulating and wielding each one differently. Off to the side, he could see Fenris, a paw on Dagr. The moment they moved to two powers, Alana had stopped Dagr from helping Nick if he lost control. Instead, Fenrir would cut him completely off, and he would have to start over.
"Why would I ever need to hold all four at once again?" Drawing in his physical power made sense. And Nick had discovered using spiritual energy at the same time to make portals had great potential in a fight. However, when it came to intellectual and mystical powers, he couldn't see an immediate use for them. Alana assured him that the more power he gained, the more he would be able to do with them, but currently they seemed rather useless. His intellectual power only heightened his mental ability, but it came with whispers of others thoughts. He wasn't a high enough level in intellectual to sort through the thoughts, so it was merely a distraction, not an aid. As for the mystical energy, it was the most volatile, and while being able to fire a lightning bolt or summon a fire ball seemed cool, the amount of strain it placed on Nick hardly seemed worth it. Besides, Dagr could handle those powers for him.
"Because in the event you summon Dagr in a fight, you will need to be able to control all of your powers on your own, while he draws his own powers and fights as well." She had explained that once Dagr entered their world in his full form, he would have access to his own energies. This gave companions like Fenrir impossibly high power levels, but also meant he would no longer have him as a crutch if he lost control. And one thing Nick was sure of, the past four months had shown him that losing control would be devastating for those around him.
Concentrating on his powers, he managed to finally wrestle them, so that the energy swirling around him became calm, no longer erratic. However, he was only able to hold all for four a few moments, before he felt the struggle begin, and he let them completely go.
"Hmm, it seems your power levels have grown significantly since we started." Alana had been monitoring what his levels were. She was trying to gauge just how much power Nick would need to bring Dagr into their world.
"What are they now?" He had been ordered to only draw on his other powers when he was with Alana, so he hadn't been able to measure any of his power levels other than his physical, which was at a 47. Training on the other planet had helped him and Dagr to draw in even more power than he had expected.
"You already know your physical levels." She was in his head again. "Spiritual is a 32, Intellectual 15, mystical 6." Alana looked at him, smiling. "Overall Nick, your numbers are impressive for a first year. I wish I could stay another year to watch you grow."
She, and the other fourth years, would be leaving in a little over a month, including Naomi.
"Any idea how close we are to summoning Dagr?"
I told you I require a lot of energy.
"We must be getting close. The highest I've encountered is Fen here, he required a level 60 to summon." Her wolf grinned. "So, unless Dagr is an ancient, you should be getting close."
"You aren't an ancient, are you?"
Not that I can recall...my past gets hazy...it's strange. Something had happened in Dagr's past, they knew that much. After all their time talking, Dagr had realized he couldn't remember specifics of his past. Nick knew this bugged his friend, so he tried not to pry.
"Well, we have to be getting close."
Agreed.
"Are you finished?" Alana was smiling at him, and Nick knew she had been eavesdropping. He hated intellectual abilities.
"Sorry."
"It is alright Nick. I feel if you cannot summon Dagr by the time I leave, the President will assign you a new trainer, who will help you reach that level. I have heard Beth will be staying behind as an instructor."
"I don't want to let you down, I know you want to see him."
"Do not worry about me Nick. Just continue to grow, and perhaps our paths will cross again after I've left the Academy. When that day comes, show me how strong you've become." She smiled, and opened a portal.
"But for now, our training is done for today, and I believe you have a match to get ready for." She was right again, he had his final scatterball match today.
Excuse me. Fenrir still had Dagr pinned under one of his massive paws.
"Fen" Alana smiled lovingly at her wolf, and the giant beast grinned, letting Dagr go.
"Good luck Nick." He nodded and Dagr took up his spot on Nick's shoulder. He could feel excitement flowing through his body as he walked towards the portal. Naomi had promised him a big surprise if he won today's match. And if there was one thing he had learned the past four months, it was that he loved surprises from Naomi.