Zeph Malston: The Aether Mage

Bianca was looking at her young disciple. She thought about how much he struggled at first. His skill level rose pretty quickly in the last three weeks. Zeph, on the other hand, was lying on the ground.

The last exercise was pretty tough, and the boy needed a moment to recover. He knew it would be faster if he transformed his part of himself into aether. That wouldn't help him in the long run though.

His humanoid form grew a little stronger, and he became more skilled with every training session. Most of all, it still felt too weird when he transformed his internal organs. He wasn't there yet. It was taking some time, but his soul was starting to accept that it wasn't in a human body anymore.

Shapeshifting into another humanoid form didn't bother him as much as it used to.

Hopefully, he could get good enough at transforming to customize his body any way he liked. It would be pretty cool to keep his five senses while not needing to eat breath and all that other stuff. Right now, he had to rely on his magic sense when he turned into aether. He tried going full metal last week. Bianca's training had him worn out, and he thought he could recuperate faster if he melted down and reformed. It worked, but it was also as scary as hell. The transformation felt like being trapped in limbo with only his magic sense to perceive the world around him. Maybe when his magic sense got better, it wouldn't be as bad.

He also made a few more discoveries about his aether. Bernard was wrong when he said that Zeph disconnected his soul from the aether he separated from his body and transformed. The boy noticed that he was always connected to it. The connection was only suppressed, and he could choose to perceive things from the separated aether. When he told his grandfather that, the old man had to run some new tests. They were trying to come up with a working theory of how his aether boy worked, but it was proving to be an uphill battle. Instead, they decided that they would try again after Zeph was able to master his abilities.

"Hey, you okay down there." Bianca was bending down and looking at the worn out kid.

"Yeah, just remembering when you used to worry about me getting hurt when I was out hunting monsters." Zeph got up. He had to admit, training could be worse. At least his coach was a beautiful fox woman.

"Don't be silly. I still worry about you. I'm just not so s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e about it anymore. Besides, after I toughen you up, I won't have to worry as much."

"Okay, but I've been wondering about something." Zeph dusted himself off.

"What about?" Bianca's ears tilted.

"Why didn't anyone use healing magic on me when I was training in the forest? For that matter, why don't you use healing magic on me when we practice?"

"Oh, that's easy. None of us can use healing magic. We always thought Bernard gave you some medicine or used his medi-gel to treat your injuries. That's why I was so surprised when I found out you had a regenerative healing factor."

"Wait, you guys can't use healing magic?" Zeph thought that something like first aid magic wouldn't be that difficult if someone as young as Lili could use it.

"Nope. The majority of people don't have an affinity for healing magic. The Phillips family is one of the few that do. They're not the best, but they do have quite the reputation as combat medics." Bianca walked back a few steps.

"Well shoot, I was going to ask and see if you could teach some first aid magic."

"Sorry, no can do. But Kavelia knows some healing magic. She could probably teach you some when she gets back, or you could ask Lord Phillips." She sent him an angelic smile. That brightened the boy's mood. "Now back into the starting position, we're going to run that form one more time. This time, I expect you to land a hit." That angelic smile was a big fat lie.

Zeph looked at the corner. "Rin, aren't you going to try and help your master?" He was joking of course. The boy just wanted to buy a few more moments of rest before he had to struggle again.

The kitten was sitting on a nearby pillow, eating from a bowl. Bianca bribed her again. Rin looked at Zeph for a second. He heard the voice in his head say, ~Yummy.~ Then she went back to eating.

"Traitor." Zeph sighed. He looked back at Bianca. "Did Eli catch whoever started that fiance rumor yet?"

"He's working on it. Now less stalling more fighting." Bianca charged at him.

___________________________________

"Mr. Alex, where's my grandpa?" Liliana was leaving her room. She had just finished washing up and getting changed after the morning training session with Ronan.

"You may just call me Alex, Miss Phillips. Lord Phillips is in the laboratory with Master Malston. They await your company. Allow me to guide you there." He guided the young girl toward her grandfather.

"Alex, why do you keep using proper etiquette when Uncle Bernard and Zeph say we don't have to?" Liliana had been wondering about it for the last three weeks.

"It's funny that you ask Miss Phillips. When Master Malston was young, he had the same question." Alex smiled at the young girl. "My answer left him confounded."

"What was it?" She scooted closer to Alex as the old dwarf leaned to whisper into her ear.

"It makes me feel fancy." He chuckled and stood up straight.

"Whaaaat?" Just like Bernard, the little girl was confounded.

"It's a simple reason, I know. But, it's the truth. When I was a young man, I always admired the calm, cool demeanor that Butler's had. Back then, times weren't as peaceful as they are now. Butler's were not merely servants. They were protectors, and confidants. I act the way I do because it makes me feel noble and confident. In those days, a stalwart butler was a sign of respect and standing among the nobility. I carry on their proud tradition." Alex explained to the confused child.

Liliana thought about it, and then her eyes brightened. Alex could see respect and admiration in her gaze. "That's amazing Mr. Alex. I didn't know butler's used to be so cool. Does that mean you're a bodyguard too?"

"Yes, I have been guarding the Malston family for over three centuries. Many many years ago, the head of the Malston family saved my family's life. If not for him, I would have lost my parents, siblings, and everyone else I held dear. In return, I pledged my loyalty to them and became a butler, just like I had dreamed when I was a child."

Lili was enthralled by Alex's story. "Wow." It was all she could think of saying.

Alex stopped at the door to the lab. It was different from the lab/training room she was used to. The room was much larger, and there were more machines and monitoring devices. "Here you go, Miss Phillips. Just call if you require my services." The old dwarf gave a slight bow.

"Thank you, Alex." She waved as he walked away. Then she entered the lab.

Ronan and Bernard were discussing new magic programming language. Lili didn't really understand what they were saying. They were using really big words and terms she didn't understand. It seemed like the two could talk about it all day. Uncle Bernard started lecturing the underlying principles of his new theories to Ronan. Zeph called this grandpa's 'teacher mode.' After a few minutes of waiting, Lili decided to interrupt them.

"I'm heeere." She sang her introduction. The two old men stopped to look at her.

"Hello my dear, took you long enough." Ronan bent down and gave her a hug.

"Hello Lili, I suspect you're wondering why we're using a different laboratory today." Bernard started to adjust some monitoring equipment.

"I was curious." She was looking watched Bernard flip a few switches.

Bernard looked at Ronan, expecting his friend to talk to her. Ronan saw that and sighed. Turning to his granddaughter, he started to explain. "Bernard and I created a barrier that would let you transform without freezing everything around you. The equipment here is more s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e than what we were using in the other room. We want you to try activating your fey nature and deactivating it several times while we study over there." Ronan pointed to the monitors Bernard was standing in front of.

Bernard joined the conversation after making sure the equipment was ready. "I believe that many of your problems with control stem from the fact that your body is unable to meet the needs of your frost nymph bloodline. That's why you have that transformation. I've noticed that your body changes and adapts every time you use that transformation."

"Does that mean that if I transform enough, I won't change back?" Liliana was listening carefully.

Bernard nodded. "Yes, it does. After you've transformed enough, your body will mutate to accommodate your fey heritage. Once that mutation is complete, your transformed body will just be your normal body."

"Then you and grandpa are setting up the barrier and monitoring equipment because this process can be dangerous." Liliana was a little scared.

"Don't be afraid my dear. It's not dangerous for you, just Bernard's furniture. We're just using this test to find the best way for your body to adapt as efficiently as possible. When we're done, we'll know how long and how often you'll need to transform before you finish changing." Ronan hugged his granddaughter

"Will I still be me?" Her eyes were starting to tear up.

"Of course you will. Your moods better, and you're already less impulsive. Do you feel like someone different right now?" Ronan watched her shake her head. "See, you've already changed a little, but your still my little snow princess. The only thing that'll be different is that you'll have white hair and your magic will get stronger. You just inherited more traits from our ancestor than anyone else in the family has before."

Ronan and Bernard continued to assure Lili that everything would be alright. After she calmed down, she went to the designated area and they conducted the tests. As the old men said, it didn't hurt. She didn't feel any different. The only change she noticed was that her skin was slightly lighter in color.

Ronan called to her when they were done. "Come here Lili, I want you to look at the recording." Lili looked at recordings of herself when she transformed before, but this one was different. She watched as several transformations were played back to back. The chaotic aura of magic that surrounded her was taking less time to stabilize after each transformation. Ronan saw that she noticed the change. "See that my dear, you're getting better."

"He's right," Bernard added. "The stability of your transformation is stabilizing over time. Soon, I'll be able to come up with a training schedule for you. It will tell you how long you'll need to stay transformed, and how many times a day that you'll need to do it. So far, you've only been using this transformation in fights. That's no longer the case. You'll have to keep it active when you're resting or just going about your business."

"What about the stuff around me, won't I freeze it?" Liliana was worried about breaking Bernard's furniture.

"I'll enchant a bracelet that will contain your icy aura. You can use it until you're able to control your power on your own." Bernard smiled at her. "It's all going to be fine. Soon you'll be walking around with white hair and confidence, just like us." Bernard ruffled Ronan's hair.

"What do you mean us? I'll have you know I'm still a distinguished grey. You're the one with hair as white as the clouds." Ronan denied his friend's claim.

"Don't be so embarrassed. Having white hair isn't worse than having grey hair. You're still an old fuddy-duddy either way." Bernard laughed. The two old men started arguing again. It made Lili giggle.

__________________________

Zeph was finished training for the day. He took a relaxing bath, made his aether clothes into something comfortable, and was ready to watch something fun on CV. He picked up his gluttonous little kitten off the bed and headed to the living room. The only one there was Lili and she seemed to be thinking about something.

"Hey, what's up Lil?" He tried to get her attention.

Liliana looked over and saw Zeph dressed in a pair of dark pants and a loose blue t-shirt. "Nothing, just thinking about something. How was training?"

Zeph fell into a recliner and stretched. "Pretty good. I'm not deadbeat tired all the time, and I managed to hit Coach Fox twice today. How about you?"

"Grandpa and Uncle Bernard are creating a new training program for me. It's supposed to help me with my transformation issue. They said that my other form will become permanent." Lili's voice was a little quieter than usual.

Zeph picked up on that. "Are you worried?" He had a suspicion that the little girl was worried about her white-haired form.

Liliana confirmed it by nodding. "I'm just a little scared that I won't be myself after I change. Grandpa and Uncle Bernard said that I shouldn't be worried, but I can't help myself."

"I get where you're coming from. I freaked out when I started changing too. I mean, check this out." Zeph showed her his arm and he turned it metallic. "That's a pretty freaky thing to see right?"

Liliana stared, unblinking and surprised at Zeph's metal arm. After an awkward silence, she finally spoke. "Does it hurt?" Bernard said that Zeph's changeling traits were stronger than most. Still, that shiny arm was unexpected.

"No, it just feels weird. That's all. I'm still me. The arms still mine, and I don't think any differently. It just feels different. I'm sure it will be the same for you. You were still the same when you transformed in our fight, just a bit colder." His arm went back to normal.

She thought about what he said and gave him a small smile. "Thanks for trying to cheer me up Zeph."

"No problem. Hey, do you want to hold Rin for a little bit? I bet that'll make you feel better." He held out the kitten.

"Really!" Excited, Lili ran up to Zeph and received the sleeping kitten. Then she took her to the couch next to Zeph's chair and began to pet her.

"Nyew?" Rin didn't know what just happened. She was sleeping peacefully in Zeph's arms a moment ago, but somehow she woke up being stroked by Lili. The kitten was about to get up and leave, but she heard her master's voice in her head. ~Stay there and let the poor girl pet you. She's not that bad.~

Zeph watched Rin's face as she resigned herself. No one knew why she didn't like Lili. Even bribing her with food didn't work. 'Take that ya little traitor,' Zeph thought to himself. He made sure Rin didn't hear it through their bond.

"Hey Zeph, I think she's purring. Maybe she's finally starting to like me!" Liliana was looking at the boy with the biggest smile he'd seen all day. He didn't have the heart to tell her that Rin was just quietly growling in frustration.