The Married Life Of Immortals

Bane and Lysia headed over to Dorlidia's Astral Emporium, and this time, the shop was open. The two of them walked in, and Madam Dory came over to greet them both in an oversized purple robe and a matching hat. She looked them both up and down, and then adjusted her glasses, and offered a hand to Lysia while gesturing to the set of stairs that led up to the second floor.

"It is good so see you again, Lysia. I have tea ready for us upstairs, so you can go on up," Madam Dory said, and Lysia frowned, but did as she was instructed.

Madam Dory turned her gaze on Bane, and her eyes narrowed. "You are here to see Borat?"

Bane nodded. "Yes. I would like to do some training, and maybe a little chatting? I also need a storage ring for this sword. I want to talk about getting a lot more storage items in the future as well."

The woman sighed, and tossed Bane a ring after digging in one of her sleeves. "This will hold that item for you for now. You know where the basement is, but keep in mind that Borat might seem jolly, but don't push him if he doesn't want to talk."

"If he doesn't talk, then will you? Or is there even a point in my trying? Not to be rude, but I am making an effort to learn more about these souls that chose me, yet everyone is making it difficult. Is the point just to have Nina stay angry at me so I keep getting the crap beat out of me?" Bane asked, but then put up a hand to stop Dory from replying. "Not that I am against it. This sadistic training actually makes me a lot stronger in more than one way. It also looks like the woman has some built up rage. So, if anything, I want to let her get it out, but I also don't think it is healthy."

Dory nodded. "You are a perceptive person, so you probably can tell she has not been herself lately. That being said, it isn't my place to tell you her story. While you are different, you are still a Heavens Blessed to her. The fact that you also herald the same destruction that killed all of us does not help either."

"I understand. That was not my intention when asking," Bane assured her, and Dory waved her hand dismissively.

"You didn't offend me, I was just telling you the way things are. Horrible things happened, but you didn't commit the acts, and then people that did are gone. Borat might tell you his story, but that is up to him. Just try not to make a mess of the basement, alright?"

"No promises," Bane said with a chuckle, and headed downstairs.

When he reached the basement, Borat was not in his usual spot. Bane waited, but after five minutes, the rat man did not show, and the room was empty.

"Hey! Borat! Where are you?" Bane shouted, and a rat finally came out, but it wasn't Borat. Bane didn't even think the thing in front of him was ever a rat rat any more.

Standing on two feet, the rat stood 6 feet tall, and wore a white vest and loose pants. The rat's long ears drooped over his shoulders, and he had a thick tail that was currently wrapped around his waist. The rat had a small knife and a club strapped to his belt, and a wide smile showed off his pointed teeth.

"So you are the boy my master has told me about?"

"And you are? Where is Borat?" Bane asked, summoning Kyōka and Yume to each of his hands, holding each shortened katana at the ready. He had come for a fight to train, so even if it wasn't Borat, Bane was willing to entertain this strange looking rat.

"I am Ratkin, and my master, Borat, will not be coming today," the rat explained. "Instead, I am here to test your mettle. So, come. Fight me."

The rat unsheathed his blade and took a stance. Bane smiled, and burst forward to unleash a flurry of strikes, but every one of them was deflected with minimal effort and ease. Not willing to give up, Bane tried to increase the strength of his swings, but Ratkin was always two steps ahead, blocking each strike, and redirecting Bane's attacks.

Bane had no idea how this thing was moving so fast, and he could only imagine that he had some sort of special ability. After about an hour, Bane pulled back, and Ratkin stepped back. Bane flopped on his butt, unsummoning his weapons.

"You are quite the master. You must be even stronger than Lysia," Bane said after catching his breath, but the rat shook his head.

"I would need to get a sneak attack off, but that is impossible with her. She has an ability that gives her 100% awareness of everything around her within 150 feet. I don't know what it is called, but she can stop projectiles, and use many different kinds of magic."

"Yeah, that sounds like her. But why did you not come out last time? Did Borat not want to fight me? Am I not worthy?"

Ratkin sat down, and smiled. "Master knows that you want to ask him about his leader, but Master is not ready yet, nor are you. If you can't beat me who has no magic or skills, then you stand no chance against Master. I am not the only brother or sister that you will have to face, but I am the weakest."

"So there are others? I assume they are rats as well?" Bane asked, and Ratkin nodded.

"There are many others, but they all have varying levels of strength. If you can progress through them all over the next two and a half years, the master is willing to challenge you. Only then will you be ready to understand. I can't say more than that, so don't ask."

Bane nodded, and then stood up. "Fine. So I can come and train, and I am welcome, but no information is available. Got it. Better than a kick between the legs with pointy shoes. Any tips you give me? Or is this about using the right tool for the job?"

Ratkin laughed, and shook his head. "I don't think changing your weapon will make you stronger if you plan on using Agarta."

Bane shook his head and then focused on the little ring on his finger Dory had given him. Suddenly, a massive greatsword with a red blade appeared before Bane, and he only caught it just before it hit the stone flooring. Bane was forced to slam his foot forward to stabilize himself, and the impact of his foot cracked the stone. This was not lost on Ratkin, whose eyes widened at the sight of the strange blade.

While he had been able to deflect all of Bane's attacks, their weapons were matched in weight and size. The monstrous thing in the boy's hands was far too large for him, and even if Bane was able to swing it, the sword would be hard to control.

"How can you use that thing?" Ratkin asked, and Bane just laughed.

"This is my new toy, and since you don't think changing weapons will change things, you don't mind if I use this, right?" Bane asked with a grin.

Ratkin felt uneasy about this, but he couldn't back down. "Sure. I am curious to see how you use such a huge weapon. Can you really use it with one hand?"

"I want to see how long I can go like this. Get ready," Bane warned, and Ratkin took his stance.

"Bring it on," Ratkin taunted, and Bane burst forward with the same speed as before.

The first strike was a cleave, but when Ratkin tried to deflect it, he was blown back. The rat man did a double flip, and landed, bursting back at Bane. Ratkin was about to counter when he saw Bane's face, and then his eyes widened as he leapt to the side.

The massive sword that was almost as tall as Bane slammed into the floor where Ratkin had been, cutting a massive rift 6 feet deep in the ground. Ratkin rolled to his feet, and watched as the blade was slowly extracted from the stone, and Bane pulled it free.

"I give up," Ratkin said with a bow, and then vanished into the shadows.