71 A Test of Power

Will

Looking down upon the many weilders, Will felt a tinge of excitement. They can see me! Happiness boiled up within him, yet he kept his calm demeanor.

Maya was the first to react. She launched herself into the air and held onto him for dear life. "When did you get back?" She asked as she touched his face, making sure he was actually there.

"I woke up only a minute ago." He held her close and smoothed out her dark brown hair. "I'm sorry it took so long to get back." He said in a hushed voice in her ear.

Maya only shook her head as she planted her forehead against his chest, tears flowing freely. Will waited for a time while Maya sorted out her emotions. The entire field was silent while waiting for the right time to ask their questions.

Ten minutes past while Will cradled Maya in the air before he gently released his grip. "I haven't forgotten my promise." He said to her before she let go. "Let me take care of things here, then we will head to New York. I'm sure you've been waiting for some time."

Will descended into the crowd of aura weilders. He cracked his knuckles excitedly while a grin plastered to his face. "I've been asleep a long time everyone," he looked from Jacob to Ben, then his gaze fell upon Jake. "Try not to get carried away, huh?" He winked at his brother as the familiar silver and gold one handed sword burst forth in his hand.

Jake smiled savagely as he readied his black blade. Ben and Jacob also stood ready for anything Will could throw at them.

The three young weilders charged Will with a force to match a hurricane. Their auras propelled them forward as the dashed around the training ground, much faster than what Maya had dealt with.

Will stood still in what looked the eye of the storm. His white t-shirt didn't so much as lift from the pressure of the wind. To the onlookers of the battle, it seemed as though he simply wasn't affected by the three.

Though will seemed unaffected, if someone were to look closely, they would see small sparks forming where his blade met the blades of the three combatants.

While most of the group couldn't follow the moves Will was making, Maya was able to make out blur like movements of Will's arm, parrying each attack.

Jake moved forward through the twister of power, deciding to attack his brother head on. His obsidian black sword slashing in fast powerful archs. "Seems as though you've gotten stronger while you've been asleep." He smiled as he went all out.

Will was able to keep up with his brother's advances easily, but small cuts started appearing on his shirt from Jacob and his brother's attacks. "You guys haven't been sitting still either I see." He leaped backwards through the air, landing safely away from the twister of sheer power. "You are going to make me take this seriously." He smiled while he held his free hand out in a ready position. A wisp of energy parted from his sword, forming a duplicate sword with an opal instead of a ruby. A glint of pride could be seen in his eyes as he launched himself back into the fray.

Maya watched as a blur of white and blue landed in the center of the storm. "Just how strong do you need to be?" She muttered to herself as she saw a twister of crimson flame ignite from the center.

As the inferno grew, everyone watching the fight could feel A pressure growing. They had seen the crimson twister many times while following their prince. The first time Maya had laid eyes on Will, he was in the center of such an attack.

Suddenly, the attack shrank in size, yet anyone could see the flames glowing brighter as they condensed themselves. "I would get back if I were you." Jake and the two brothers heard from the condensed ball of flame. "I don't exactly know how strong this will be."

The wind felt like it was being sucked into the flame at a rapid pace. Maya was the first to realise what was about to happen. "Everyone get back!" She yelled as she took to the sky. "He's going to blow!"

Jake sensed what was coming and grabbed both Jacob and Ben by the collars of their shirts, dragging them upward and hopefully out of the blast radius.

The earth crumbled under Will's feet at the immense pressure the compressed flame was giving off. Unable to contain it any longer, he let out a roar from within the flame while surrendering his control over it.

Bright red flame turned to gold as beams of raw power shot upward and out from the blast. Onlookers felt as if they were looking at a second sun as it expanded outward, consuming everything it touched.

In a bright flash of light, the training ground became a crater twenty feet deep and thirty feet wide with a lone figure floating above it.

The crowd of weilders uncovered their shielded eyes to see Will covered in ribbons of a shirt. He brandished two blades in his hands as he looked up to the sky. As they looked closer, they could tell that even though he wore a tattered shirt, not one bead of blood stained the pure white fabric.

"What kind of training did you go through?" Jake muttered to himself as he saw what his brother had done.

It wasn't out of the realm of possibility for Will to have made such an attack before his long sleep, but his brother knew that he would have needed all of the Crusade's strength to pull off such a massive attack, yet it was as if Will didn't break a sweat as he tore the training field apart with his own strength.

Jake looked out to the crater while letting go of the collars of the two brothers shirts. His eyes were wide from the amount of power he had witnessed.

Will watched his brother descend from the sky. He took no pleasure in the look of utter astonishment that he saw on Jake's face. Instead, he remained calm in his crater. "Sorry about that." He said with a small grin. "I've done that attack once or twice, but it was within my subconscious."

As Jake neared his brother, he took notice of the two blades in his hands. "Is that also a result of your training?"

Will shrugged as he put both of the swords together. They instantly shrank into the usual cross shaped pendant which he hung around his neck. "I just learned what this really was." He looked at the pendant with a bit of affection.

Jake looked at his own pendant for a moment. The design was like a shadow of Will's own cross. "I suppose you will share with the class later?"

Will nodded. "Thank you for sparring with me." He raised an eyebrow wittingly. "Not the same result as last time, huh?" He lightly elbowed his brother's arm.

"I would say that." Will heard a familiar voice from behind him.

Jonathan walked towards the crater from the city gate. "That was cutting it a little close, don't you think?"

Will looked over to his dad and wore a sheepish grin. "I didn't know what the damage would look like outside of my own mind."

Will took in his dad's features. He had only seen him for a brief time during the war with Aremesis. Though he had seen Jonathan from time to time giving advice and orders in the king's stead, it was the first time he could actually talk to him since that moment.

Jonathan wore the usual brown leather duster and cowboy hat he had since Will had first seen him in Ebonhart. He had seen that same outfit countless times hanging up in his dad's study. He had always thought it was just inspiration for his novels. If he ever wore it in public, Will may have denied they knew each other.

"Good to see you again, dad." Will said as he patted Jake on the shoulder and flew down to meet Jonathan. "Glad to see you in a leadership position, like you were meant to be." He said as he landed.

Jonathan was surprised for a moment. "How did you know about that?" It wasn't a secret that he had taken over the training of the Crimson Knights, yet he didn't think Will had enough time since waking up to do the research.

Will waved his hand dismissively. "I may have been asleep, but I've been keeping up to date with what's been going on." He smiled slightly. "You did well with the rioting citizens, I wouldn't have done anything differently."

Jonathan had known Will was special since an early age, but he never would have guessed astral projection was one of his techniques. "I guess there isn't much to catch you up on then." He chuckled. He then knelt to the crater and put both hands on the edge.

Will watched with interest as his dad's hands glowed green. In moments, the green aura blanketed the crater. Dirt which flung itself over the training field from the blast came flying back to the crater. He filled the hole in a matter of moments, then grimaced as he poured more energy from his fingertips, restoring the lush green grass of the field. "I'd appreciate it if next time you think before blowing a hole in the kingdom." Jonathan said as he stood from the newly restored patch of earth.

"Right." Will scratched his head sheepishly. It had been a while since he was scolded by his dad. "I suppose you didn't just come to see the fight?"

Jonathan smiled slightly. "I can't just come out to see how strong my son has become?" As he said the words, his smile dropped.

Jonathan looked at Will as if he were contemplating his next words. A pensive look appeared on his face.

"Dad," Will said as he looked at the new patch of earth. "It's okay, you know." He too seemed to be trying to find the right words.

Walking to the earth sage, Will placed his hand on the brown duster clad shoulder.

"You should probably call me Jonathan now." Jonathan said with a pained expression on his face. "You know who your true father is now. My work is done."

Will's expression softened at Jonathan's words. "It's true." He nodded his head. "I am Prince William Ragnos the Second. The true heir to the throne of Ebonhart. The Crimson Prince." His eyes bore into Jonathan's as he spoke his title. "My father is the King of Ebonhart, Crown Capital of Crystallia."

Will allowed the silence to sink in. No one dared speak out until he was finished.

Will saw a look of resignation within Jonathan's eyes. He was prepared for Will to announce what he had. It was only normal for royalty to return to the throne.

Will felt a tug on the jacket as Jonathan tried to turn and leave, but Will's hand kept him in place.

"You taught me to tie my shoes." He said simply. "You showed me the perfect cast. You brought me to my football games." His grip tightened on Jonathan's shoulder. "You were there for every birthday, and you were there for every heartbreak."

Will saw his dad's eyes light with pride as he turned them back to him. "It's true that King Ragnos is my father. He and my mother gave me life." Will nodded as he spoke. "But you are the one who taught me how to live life. You showed me the path to become the man I am today."

Will embraced Jonathan for the first time in almost two years. "It's easy to be a father, but much harder to be a dad."

Jonathan felt tears welling up as his fears crumbled at his son's words.

"You will always be my dad." Will released Jonathan and looked into his eyes. The same eyes that smiled upon him, scolded him and taught him almost his entire life.

"You will always be my son." The earth sage rustled Will's hair. His face beamed with pride. "And what a son you have turned out to be."