*Gavin*

"S-stop!" I screamed as electricity coursed through my body. 

"Hmm, it seems that he still hasn't grown numb to pain," a woman said as she stepped forward. She placed a hand on the glass and sighed. "If only I had a stronger kid." 

I would've cried if I had any tears left in me. 

 *** 

I opened my eyes and found myself in a dark cell not too different from the lab.

My arms wrapped around my pillow. They trembled. Flashes of scenes from my childhood went by. My screams of agony still echoed in my mind's ear.

I placed a hand on my head and took several deep breaths. It took a while for me to stop shaking like a frightened little kid.

Why had I dreamt about that? Was it due to the similar lighting of this place? Or maybe it was due to being locked up in a small, damp room.

I shook my head and sat up in the bed. I couldn't let it bother me. That was in the past. All those 'exercises' were over. I was a different person now. One that my mother could be proud of.

 My gaze drifted toward the cell bars. Or perhaps, I hadn't changed at all. I did get myself captured.

I stared at my handcuffed hands. The black-metal cuffs tampered with energy flow, preventing one from using their powers. In the case of abysmals, it messed with even their biology, preventing them from turning into goo and reshaping their bodies. Even their famed regeneration was slowed.

Escaping from here would be difficult. If I had access to my magic, I would have innumerable escape methods. But, I did have one way; using the thick cuffs as a hammer to bend the rails wide open. Although, I'd yet to try it due to the time required. Usually, Isabel would come to talk to me or send someone to do so. She had tried to get info from me by playing good cop, but that wasn't going to work on me. Neither would torture. No amount of pain could compare with what I'd gone through as a child.

Mom prepared me for a moment like this and the war.

"You're finally up," a voice rang. I turned and saw Isabel.

"So, you didn't quit after all," I said, smiling slightly.

"I actually came to bring you some food." She reached into the sleeve of her robe and pulled out something wrapped in aluminum. "Here, eat up."

My hands shook. Why did she come all this way just to feed me? It had to be a ploy.

"I rather not," I said, pulling my hands back.

"It's safe to eat. No poison. Not that we would resort to that. You're still too valuable for Uncle to kill."

I turned away. "I know, and that's exactly why I haven't spoken."

"That said, I did manage to convince him not to either way."

I gasped and looked back at her. "Why?"

"Because it's immoral. You're already captured. Killing you serves no purpose. Now, if we were on the battlefield..."

I laughed. "You seem nice, but there's a sting to your words. Frankly, it's kind of creepy."

She smiled. "Sometimes, I can be too blunt." The princess knelt down and put the aluminum-covered food on the floor. "I'll leave this here for you should you want to eat it later." She waved and turned around.

What a strange woman... Why would she aid me? Wait, could it be that she liked me? Perhaps, I could try to seduce her to escape from here...

My cheeks flushed at the thought. I could flirt, but even doing that felt like too much. Especially given how lively and kind she seemed.

I sighed. I just had to do what was needed. Mother had taught me how to disassociate. In theory, I could go as far as killing Bernard if that's what the mission called for. If not for disassociating, I would probably be a mess from the experiments. Well, a bigger mess, given that dreams of them still occurred.

People claimed that dreams were a peek into the subconscious. I was inclined to agree. Now, about the claims that it gave insight into the future, those I was less certain about.

I knelt on the ground and picked up what Isabel had left behind. The scent of steamed dough and meat tickled my nose as soon as I opened it. She'd wrapped it so well that it had maintained its heat. That girl, she predicted that I would've refused it.

I sat down on my bed and bit into it. It was spicy but delicious. If Bern were here, he would be begging for half of it. The guy adored spice, unlike Delphine, who would drink an entire ocean if she could whenever she tasted something spicy.

How were the two doing? Hopefully, they weren't plotting to come all the way here to free me. I didn't need them to take the risk. It would be safer to get out of this place on my own. Not only for their security but mine as well.

Right now, I had two plans. Break the bars and try to outrun the guards and everyone else while lacking magic, or get close to Isabel, convincing her to remove the cuffs from my wrists. The latter would require me to befriend her at least, and to seduce her at most. But would that girl really be that simple to fool? For all I knew, she could already have a lover. Friendship still had a chance to work.

After finishing my meat bun, I decided to do some exercise. I wasn't physically weak, but I wasn't dumb either to think I could take on the plethora of magic-wielding knights on my own. I had to become faster and stronger for my first option to succeed.

Like Dad said, we don't come from an established family nor one coveted for its genes. As such, we had to work harder.

Bernard really was amazing. Working his butt off despite being from a renowned family. Others like Delphine and her cousin tended to coast on their genetic fortunes.

Thankfully, I joined Bernard on his jogs and at the weight lifting room. So my workout was akin to a warm-up.

I sighed. Could I really get stronger like this? Of course, I could. I simply had to pick up the pace! Although, I also had to beware of overexerting myself.

"Hard at work, I see," a voice called out. I looked up and saw Isabel. Why had she returned?

"That said, you have no chance of escaping through brute force." She tugged on the bars. "Even your ogre companion would have a hard time with these."

So, even Ethan would have a hard time...

I wiped the sweat from my head with my shirt. Despite how she acts, she can anticipate my actions. Would the second option even work?

"Uh, here. I brought you a drink. Realized while doing the dishes that you might need it to wash down the bun," she said, holding out a bottle of water.

I blinked. She blushed as she talked. I looked down and noticed that I was still showing off my abdomen.

"Thanks," I said, quickly letting go of my shirt and taking the bottle from her. "Wait, you wash dishes? Did your little military adventure in Sera hurt you that bad that you had to fire your servants?"

Isa huffed. "No, we're financially fine! Our kingdom has the best accountant in the world! That said, I like doing work around the house. While I struggled with it initially in Velspira, I am now so used to it that it feels wrong not to do chores."

Velspira? She lived on another planet?

"Didn't that world get destroyed months ago?" I asked.

Her blush receded like the water of an unplugged sink. "Yes. A global mega-sandstorm has engulfed it. My friends and I barely managed to survive it. Well, a couple of others did too. Such as Ryan's town."

"Seems you've been through a lot."

She nodded. "Yeah." The young woman smiled. "But, I can't let it get me down. Have to be strong for my friends and Iah!"

"Your cousin? I overheard you asking someone on the phone if they've found him yet. Did he get lost during the war?"

She sighed. "More like he got taken away. We're trying to find where he is. Hopefully, nothing bad happened to him."

Taken away by who? Wait, could it have been Jianguo or one of the Barragan Three?

I grunted at Avril rushed at me, delivering a one-two kick. She wouldn't even give me respite to transform into my qilin form.

"Is that all you got? I expected a lot more from you based on how Dyl described you!"

What exactly had he told her about me? Better yet, how much did that guy know? He did say that he was partially responsible for Jianguo's interest in recruiting me.

"I'm not done!" I said through gritted teeth. I took a deep breath and spat out rocks at her.

She slapped them away and crouched down. Her fist flung into my abdomen, propelling me into the air.

I kicked my feet against the ceiling and rained down rocks at her. Avril wasn't even using magic, yet I couldn't do a thing to her. How much longer until I bottomed out? I couldn't stay like this forever.

'You can always draw upon my power," Ratmir's voice echoed in my head.

"Shut up! I don't need it!"

'Suit yourself. You will eventually beg for it sooner than you think.'

Why did I get the impression that wasn't a simple taunt?

I gasped as Avril send a fireball at me.

"Terra Draco!" I yelled. My earth dragon formed and devoured the flames, but not without having its jaw turned into boiling lava.

"About time that you do something other than throw those rocks," Avril said, appearing behind me.

"Lóng De Hūxī!" I turned around and stopped her fist with my now scaled-covered hand. With a spin, I threw her toward the ground. Magic wasn't all that I had going for me! I didn't spent all those years studying martial arts to lose in fisticuffs.

I raised my hand, causing arcs of stone to rise from the dusty floor and grip her arms, legs, abdomen, neck, and torso.

"Ha! Weak magic, but not bad," Avril said as she flexed her arms, breaking through the stone cuffs on them.

I took a deep breath. Felt like lashing out, but I had to keep a cool head. Else, Ratmir could seep into my conscious again and take me over.

Extending my hands out, I formed several stone needles and threw them at her.

She swatted them away with her arms, but a couple struck her hard enough to disrupt her pressure points.

Her eyes widened as she realized what I'd aimed for. She smirked and jumped into the air as she finished breaking the last of the earth binds.

"Tiānshàng De Dǎodàn!" I yelled, holding both hands out at her.

She crossed her arms in front of her and gathered the prana that she could muster forth to create a fire barrier. A shockwave tore through the battlefield, flinging me back into the ceiling.

A plume of dust flew up as Avril struck the ground.

I gripped my side and flew down. Had I won?

No.

I moved aside, avoiding a fireball.

Closing my hand, I contracted the dust around her as I'd done again Yen.

"Ha. Seems that you only had to warm up."

My hand trembled as she broke through my sandy grip. I had to finish this now.

I took a deep breath. "Lóng Zhī Tǔxī!" I yelled, sending out a blast of blue and yellow draconic prana straight at her.

Avril winced as her body stopped moving. "Ugh..."

I landed on the ground and slammed it with both hands, sending a wave of stone at her. She cupped her hands and formed a fire dog. The beast roared, sending a stream of fire before vanishing. The stones melted into place.

I tightened my grip on the side. The pain from earlier became more acute.

"You were more trouble than I expected," Avril said as flames spun around her.

I chuckled. "What's with that? You make it sound as if it's over." I formed a wall of stone and jumped into the air, raining down more needles at her.

Avril jumped back, only to get gripped my earth dragon.

"You forgot about this spell, huh?" I asked, grinning.

She grumbled and melted it with her spinning flames. "Yes, but that won't save you."

Her breathing, it was heavy. Lóng Zhī Tǔxī wasn't an easy spell for a Novus Magus Secundus to shake off. Or at least I assumed she was one. Her magic wasn't weak, but it wasn't anything to write home about either. Then again, I did nerf her with my needles.

"Looks like we're both at our limit," I said, smiling.

She lowered her head and fell to the ground. "I-I can't believe that I lost to someone with diminished magic."

I laughed and formed a pair of needles. "Well, I did diminish yours in my own way."

"I shouldn't have let it happen in the first place."

I shrugged. "It's what you get for underestimating me, sweetheart!"

Robert laughed as he joined us in the ring. "Indeed. Avril, you need to learn not to play with your opponents. If you took every battle seriously, you would have a better win-to-loss ratio."

She sighed. "I get it. I don't need you to lecture me."

I smiled as I remembered the various times Kun and Lei were lectured by Yen and Nyima. It would be nice to see such moments again. My magic still wasn't back to normal, but this match had reminded me just how good my 'tricks' were at evening the playing field. It was something worth keeping in mind for my rematch with Lei. 

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed the chapter ^^. I changed the series name from Emperor of the Celestial Sun Mist to Aspiration to the Heavens: Becoming the Supreme Mage. The old series title was originally meant to be a place holder, plus, I feel that this new one gives readers a better idea of what the series is about.**