The two materialized in a clearing of an unusually thick forest. Harken was in a daze and knew one thing: They were far from civilization. It was just him and Miranda. This would've been considered something romantic if it didn't happen in the blink of an eye... Or if they weren't in a gloomy forest... Or if Randi didn't slap him in the face for no given reason.
"Ouch! Why'd you do that?" Harken demanded, clenching his fists rather than covering his cheek.
"To test your durability. A good chosen and-or sage knows how to take a hit. You shouldn't have felt that if you were a good magic user... After some more fighting you'll be able to suppress pain and take deadly hits as if they were nothing. But right now you're weak. Like. Really weak."
"You sound like Infel..." Harken mused.
"Well she's right." Infel pipped up, her image appearing in a nearby-puddle.
"Fine, I guess I do need some help on my magic." Harken admitted.
"Yep, even with the Chosens of old lending you their skills, you pretty much don't know how to use them unless you are given times you CAN use them." Infel noted as she brought forth a small book. "Even though you use magic now, you'll eventually just resort to using element-based weapons or just your fists. I'll search for the basics..."
"Fists? Like those Dragon Ball Z guys, right?" Harken was still sort of lost with this magic thing, so trying to relate it to something probably helped him out... Helped him out to appear stupid.
"Yeeeeah... Um, your body will soon reflect that of a true hero's, you know, big, strong and... All that good stuff." Randi mentioned.
"Oh yeah... The pains... Will it hurt?" Harken warily asked.
"Most likely, yeah. After all your body is being stretched in an instant. But it'll all pay off sooner or later, it'll also happen gradually or maybe even instantly. Just use your powers for good and you'll be fine." Randi assured, placing her hand on Harken's shoulder again. She noticed that it was a bit more broader than she last remembered. Chances are his boyish body was now reflecting that of a teenagers, or close to it. "Right now I'm teaching you some spells to protect yourself from status problems and reduce damage done to your being."
"Ah, here's two good ones." Infel piped up from her little watery-window. "Teach him Holy Shield and Esune while you're at it."
"What're those...?"
"Well, just chant them a few times and will it to happen. Holy Shield reduces physical and magical damage to you and even reflects some of it back while Esune protects you from being stunned, poisoned or any other status ailment regardless of how strong a magic user is. More importantly, these supporting magics depends how good you are as a person - at heart."
"So th-" Harken was cut off. Without warning, Randi fired a simple blade of wind at him, making him jump back into a puddle.
"Hey, my face is here you know. Use the spell already!" Infel scolded, using her own magic to force Harken out of her puddle.
"Yeah, it's weak enough. If you're truly a suitable Chosen, then your Dual Guard should make it feel like a small push rather than a sharp slicer. HYAH!"
This time two slicers were fired at him. Harken silently chanted the words and he saw light envelope him just as the two blades hit him. Instead the bounced off of him and dissipated. He blinked a few times before he realized what he did. He didn't even budge from his spot.
"Wow! You deflected the entire attack... Two no less." Randi was obviously impressed.
"Well when you got it you go-ACK" And then Harken was whipped with water from a nearby puddle.
"It means you got potential, it doesn't mean you'll be good at it." Infel curtly said. "You only defeated a drowsy monster and didn't get eaten by a plant that was under Miranda's control."
"What she said." Randi agreed, a more stern looking crossing her face this time.
"Right... Well, can we train a bit more?" Harken seemed to have his flame reignited. His eyes burned with determination. There are few people who have means to help in this world, and even if they did, they would probably ignore it and pretend to be normal... Harken was not one of those people.