It was shortly after sunset when Erik returned to his cave with the third and last of his kills slung over his shoulder. His appetite was lower than it had been, but not because he had managed a meal yet. Onyx had not only directed him in stalking and taking down three deer but had also insisted on using the corpses as tutorial materials for his survival training.

As the least among royal princes, Erik had been insulated from the mundane cruelties of life. Yes, he was well aware of the consequences of a misstep in a family such as his, but the visceral nature of death was something kept far away from his isolated apartment in the palace. No hunting expeditions or harsh training for him. The assignment to the border fort had been his first exposure to life outside the capital.

The prince had a cultivation base that commoners and soldiers could only envy, but that was only a matter of having the right sire. He was a pile of wealth, just enough to not embarrass the name of House Arvelt, but his knowledge of technique was virtually nonexistent.

"Onyx," Erik called to the rod of metal stuffed through his belt as he deposited the cleaned carcass outside the hidden cave door, "I thought there were some skills other than emptying the guts of some deer you were going to teach me."

"Yes, that was a possibility, master," the metallic of the voice rang in the prince's mind in reply, "but my initial assessment showed a lack of foundation to build on. It is clear you have lived a sheltered existence before now, and dealing with your mentality comes first. Thus the survivalist battery has taken precedence."

Erik nodded, grudgingly having to agree. "I can't help it, Onyx. This is very different from what shows up at a dinner table."

"Yes, we will be handling much remediation to bring your capabilities in line with your cultivation and potential. If you would bring the carcass inside, master, I will make preparations for your next lesson while you recuperate. This one will also resolve your need to eat."

"Oh, good," Erik replied as he opened the hidden door. He lifted the deer carcass and entered the carved tunnel.

"If you would keep the door open this time, I will keep watch for anything that might approach while I perform my next task set, master," the Godweapon called out as it flared with blue runes to illuminate the passage. "Replenish your internal essence store, you will need it."

Erik nodded and deposited the carcass next to the previous two on the cave floor. "If you're doing something, won't I need to be supplying you?"

"Not currently, master. That was required during the initial excavation because I was recently reactivated, but I do have an internal store that has been recharging since. Some additional future repairs will increase my independent capabilities further."

The prince pulled the glowing Godweapon out from his belt. "Repairs? You mean you aren't fully functional?"

"Correct," Onyx affirmed in its metallic voice. "For example, while my educational library is intact, my memory store has some corruption and I am lacking some records." The Godweapon left the prince's hand and floated before his face. "You may begin your meditation now, master. I will inform you when your attention is necessary."

Erik watched Onyx ignite a small blue blade and hover over to the cave's wall and begin carving into the stone. The prince sat down and crossed his legs, closing his eyes and breathing as he had learned, descending into that state of reverie where he would naturally absorb essence from the air and refill the store in his plexus. The sound of stone grinding faded as his senses retreated inside himself.

It was a few hours later when Erik's eyes shot open to see the Godweapon floating in front of him, its blade extinguished and the runes glowing on it dimmer than they had been. "All finished, Onyx?"

"Correct, master. I finished half an hour ago and saw that you needed more time to recuperate so I did not interrupt."

Erik nodded. "Are you okay? You're looking a bit dim."

"My store is running low so I reduced expenditure," Onyx explained. "The crystalline lattice that handles my storage was more fatigued than I initially calculated, but it's nothing that can't be repaired in time. But that is a matter for later; if you would, please stand up and I will summarize my work and begin your next lesson."

The prince stood and stretched his limbs as he took a look around the dimly-lit cave. Where Onyx had been carving there was now an opening larger than an adult man's head, flat on the bottom and curved on the top. The curve ran down the back of the opening, where a small tunnel opened. Runic patterns were carved into the rock around the large opening.

Onyx rose to match Erik's eye level, floating to the side of his view. "This is a basic cave oven. The inscription restricts the flow of smoke and heat so that it is funneled to the rear, where it runs through a tunnel to the outside. Its exit is concealed, but it is advisable to consider cleaner fuels. For today's lessons, we are not able to be so discerning but with improvements in your skill more solutions will become available. If you would now retrieve me and exit the cave, you will need to gather some fallen branches from the trees outside."

Erik grabbed the floating weapon and made his way out of the cave. Onyx's light disappeared as he passed through the entrance, leaving the prince squinting at dark surroundings lit only by moonlight. "Oh, here, let me supply you some essence so we can see."

"No need, master. Stop using your eyes and open up your spiritual sense. Search for the branches that way."

Erik frowned. "Onyx, I know how to see people and animals through spiritual sense, but picking out something without life force is tough."

"Then it'll be good training. One of your elemental affinities is Darkness, master. As a royal prince living in a palace in the capital, your exposure to environments filled with light at all hours has left you accustomed to it and deadened your sensitivity to your own strength. This is where we will begin fixing that," the Godweapon explained.

The prince took a deep breath and closed his eyes, letting his spiritual sense extend out into the forest around him. The living trees pulsed faintly, their outlines plainly visible in his mind's eye, and the rough outline of the terrain around him could also be sensed, but there was little for him to discern any details. Dirt, rock, or fallen wood, all were the same to him.

This was as much a test as training, Erik felt. His heart pounded as he considered the possibility of failure; how much could he continue to be useless before the exalted Godweapon decided someone else might be a better choice? His own father didn't see him worthy of protection, why would a new acquaintance hesitate to abandon him given a better alternative?

As the pit of the prince's empty stomach churned, an idea hit him. If he couldn't see the sticks for what they were, could he perhaps see them for what they weren't?

Erik's head pulsed with dull pain as he reduced the range of his spiritual sense, using it in overlapping layers. One maintained the image of all that he did know and see, but the second tried to glimpse the rest, to see what made it different. Walking into the forest, his steps quickened as he approached a nearby tree, focusing his attention on the ground.

Focusing intently, he could discern some shapes there on the ground, but the prince knew he shouldn't rely on that alone. Yes, it would allow him to complete the immediate task but he felt that didn't meet the requirement set by Onyx. There had to be something else different about these things that he could use to tell them apart without his other senses. Was there something about Darkness that was different about these things?

That was it! Erik's temples pulsed, droplets of sweat forming on his forehead as he saw a difference. It was difficult to describe, a sense of emptiness that differed between the sticks and the rest of the ground. The rest of the ground and debris were full, but the sticks lacked a bit. The life they held before was gone, a difference from the rocks that ever had life to begin with.

Letting that second layer of spiritual sense guide him, he let out some of his stored essence and made hooks guided by his mind's eye that grabbed at several sticks and then pulled them all up from the ground and into a bundle in front of him. Erik accepted the bundle with his free arm and let out the breath he had not noticed he was holding as his eyes shot open.

"Learn something?" Onyx's metallic voice rang.

"The sticks are lacking life force while the rocks are complete, never having been alive before," Erik explained.

"That's an interesting method of discernment, master. Emptiness... but what would you do if there was something else similar, like animal bones?"

Erik shrugged. "I honestly don't know, Onyx. Is there anything you'd do?"

"A cultivator's interpretation of their spiritual sense is personal. I did notice that you contracted and folded yours, which is a method for resolving different kinds of information. I assume you are untrained in this?

"Yeah. It just made sense to try, but it did hurt at first."

"Yes, the mental strain while you grow accustomed to it will be considerable. You will want to practice until it becomes second nature. The range lost will return in time, and you may discover other data you can see with even more layers. This is a method some immortals in the realms above pursue, and those who succeed do well in adventuring into dangerous places."

"So is this something you have techniques for, Onyx?" Erik asked, eyes shining with hope.

"It isn't something that's been turned into a system that can be taught, master. It's an innate ability. There are some formulas I have for medicines that can alleviate the mental strain and such, but that is the limit. Much like other aspects of cultivation, you will have to forge your own path."

The prince sighed. "Darn. I guess my expectations for what can be handled by techniques and skills are skewed, aren't they?"

"Through little fault of your own, master," Onyx replied, its metallic voice somehow softening in an attempt to be soothing. "Techniques, skills, even affinities establish a foundation to build upon. For example, by the method you used, we can now see that your Darkness affinity predisposes you to sensitivity to emptiness. Your path may involve powers that invoke void or that can be used for devouring. It is through practice and experience that will together learn what is the best for you."

Erik's stomach rumbled. "Speaking of devouring, is this enough wood, Onyx? I think I might eat an entire deer raw if I don't have any alternatives soon."

"This should be sufficient for the next test. You will want to have ample essence stored for that, so spending more right now would not be advised. Let us return to the cave and see to feeding your mind and body both, master."