It was dusk, and three shadows walked through a vast forest with seemingly no end. The ember light peeked through the vast canopy and flickered down on their pathway.

  Eclipse wore a grey tunic and black trousers, whereas Chael was wearing a beige tunic and brown trousers. These weren’t particularly luxurious, but very comfortable and fitting, a combination that was rare for clothes worn by the children of the Bloodmoon Region.

  Eclipse was slightly behind the other two, mainly because he was half asleep and only occasionally zoned in and out of consciousness. Chael, on the other hand, was a couple of steps ahead of him, curiously looking around. He only seemed a little tired, but it was obvious that his stamina had improved a great deal.

  Only Celestia was ahead by a few hundred metres and wasn’t fazed in the slightest. She seemed to be in her own world when Eclipse's voice broke her chain of thoughts, "Are we there yet?"

  "Almost!" She shouted back at her students, who she had left in the dust.

  “Ugh… I can’t be asked with this…” Eclipse groaned lazily.

  "C-can you...at least tell us... where you're taking us?" Chael asked. It was obvious that this walk was longer than the distance they had to sprint from the cottage and Celestia’s humble abode.

  "Kaha," Celestia chuckled, "Keeping things a mystery is more alluring, dontcha’ think?"

  A frustrated vein popped in Eclipse’s head, and he muttered under his breath, "Mystery, my ass."

  "Sure, granny. But aren’t you supposed to be insanely strong?” Chael mused, “Surely you can take us there in an instant, right?"

  Celestia laughed in pride, "Kahaha, of course, if I wanted to, I could take you there before you can close your eyes, but consider this as a part of your trai- Wait, what did you call me?!"

  "Oh no. Chael, you made the granny mad." Eclipse said dryly and diverged from the main road that they were following after sensing Celestia's exaggerated anger. Chael followed along with a goofy grin on his face.

  "C'mere, you stinking brats!"

  After another half an hour or so, they finally heard the sound of swashing water. Celestia led the duo through an opening in the forest, and when they finally went through, their eyes widened. Surrounded by countless trees and exotic plants was a large circular pond. It was so clean and clear that they could see everything that lay under it, including the rocks and minerals, around twenty feet deep.

  "So beautiful..." Chael said, his eyes sparkling.

  Eclipse looked dazed. He was instantly hit with a wave of nostalgia. This lake made him reminisce about the stream in the nature garden, as well as the large ocean behind the woods where his house used to reside.

  "Kaha, right? This is… uhhh…. Lake of Wrathful Riptide." Celestia smiled as the wind gusted past her, sending her raven black hair fluttering to the side, right onto Chael’s face.

  "Ehhh…" Chael struggled to get Celestia's strands of hair off his mouth. "You made that name up just now, didn’t you, old hag?"

  Eclipse's eyes gained a faint lustre for the first time in months. "It's beautiful..."

  Celestia watched his change in expression from the corner of her eyes as she stood with her arms crossed. She then took her gaze back to the lake, only this time her expression was fairly stern, "This is where your third training will happen!"

  The moment she mentioned 'training', the two snapped back into reality and looked up at her.

  “Huh, what type of training are we doing here?” Chael asked, clearly confused.

  “Well, you guys have now finished the main physical exercises, so your strength and stamina should be amazing, kahaha.” Celestia placed a hand on her hips and grinned menacingly, the air around her growing dark, “It's time we take it a notch further!”

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  A sweat ran down Chael's head, “We're fucked, aren't we?”

  Eclipse swallowed.

  Celestia's eyes were fixated on the pool, and she wore a flickering smirk. Eclipse followed her line of sight, "Don’t tell me..."

  "Kehe." Celestia laughed, "That’s right! You two will do some underwater training, which will not only enhance your physical prowess but also your breathing."

  Chael laughed nervously, "Ahaha, w-what does that even mean?"

  "I think... she wants to kill us.." Eclipse muttered and immediately regretted calling her a granny earlier.

  "Kahaha, not just staying underwater. But you two will also be sparring there!"

  "Wait, wait, wait, what?" Chael smiled bitterly. "How are we supposed to fight underwater? This lake reaches well over fifty feet deep. We’d struggle to even move!" Chael complained.

  Celestia laughed, "And that’s why this will be the toughest training yet! Now get in, dumbasses!"

  Chael swallowed and looked down at the lake. It was so clear, yet that’s what made it so scary. His lips twitched, and he turned to Eclipse, who looked a little drowsy as if he was just about to fall asleep, "Eclipse, if anything happens, just know-"

  "Go~" Celestia shouted loudly as she shoved Chael down towards the vast pool.

  "Damn you, graaaaaaannyyyy!" Chael shouted as he rocketed downward. Soon, Eclipse followed, his face contorted weirdly due to the air pressure.

  By the time their cries reached Celestia, the two had plunged into the pool face-first. Chael held his breath, and his face puffed up with air. He struggled desperately for a second with no sense of direction until the bubble cleared out and he promptly swam up.

  Chael’s head broke through the water, then he rubbed his eyes to look for Eclipse, and before long, his back surfaced up... but his head was still in the water.

  Chael looked at him, dumbfounded for a second, "Hey? Eclipse? Everything alright?"

  No response.

  Chael gulped nervously and swam next to him and shook his body, "Hey, now’s not the time to be messing around."

  Still no response.

  Chael was shuddering as all sorts of scenarios crossed his mind. He then grasped Eclipse's body and shouted up to Celestia, "You killed him, you stupid old hag!"

  Eclipse's head suddenly sprang up and hit Chael right in the chin, which toppled him back into the water, where he struggled to get back up, "Huh? Is it time for breakfast?"

  Chael finally regained composure and floated back up. Eclipse took notice of him and said monotonously, "Hey, get up. Now’s not the time to be messing around."

  "Listen here, you stinking brats!" Celestia's voice suddenly thundered from behind them. Both of their eyes widened in astonishment. Not because of how fast she got here, but because she was standing in the middle of the lake as though she was standing on land. Under her feet, the pool rippled, but her feet didn’t as much cause a dent in the body of water.

  Eclipse's jaw dropped, and Chael looked as though he was seeing a ghost.

  "H-huuuuuuh?!" Both of them shouted simultaneously. Even Eclipse, who wasn't easily surprised, and Chael, who had seen a lot of things up until now, had never encountered or even heard of something as bizarre as walking on water.

  “H-how are you able to do that?”

  Eclipse pointed at her and looked back at Chael, "I told you, Chael. She’s a witch-"

  Before he could finish his sentence, a vein popped in Celestia's forehead, and she kicked at the water, sending a small wave crashing onto Eclipse’s face. “What kinda things did you brats talk about me, huh?”

  Eclipse’s head sank into the water as though the wave had killed him.

  "Now, as I said, swim to the bottom of the lake. It would be difficult, but considering the training you two have been through the past couple of months, this shouldn’t be much!"

  Chael looked down into the crystal clear water and just about saw how deep the water was. A determined look finally crossed his face, "Well, alright, this whole thing sounds pretty fun, anyway."

  "If anything happens to you brats, I'll come to get you before you let out another bubble!" Celestia smiled brightly.

  Seeing her bright smile, a strange sense of motivation and warmth filled up inside Chael.

  Eclipse, on the other hand, was already a few metres down and going deeper and several bubbles floated up from his mouth.

  "Now get going~"

  Chael gulped, then gathered his breath, dipped his head underwater, and began swimming to the bottom. Along the way, he grabbed Eclipse and pulled him along.

  Eclipse finally opened his eyes. The calm yet cold water made him feel very comfortable and refreshed. He spread his arms and felt the countless waves of cool currents pour into his body, allowing his body to freely sink. Right ahead of him, Chael was advancing at a fast rate, dragging his body along.

  Eclipse picked up pace.

  As he glided down freely, something caught his eye. Why were the fish getting fewer and fewer the further down he went? From what he had learned in the past, deep water contained more fish, so sea life should be increasing the further down he went... not decreasing.

  As he thought more about this, a realisation struck him. This lake was so calm... yet Celestia had decided to call it Lake of Wrathful Riptides.

  From above the water, a faint smile formed across Celestia's face, "I did say this is going to be the hardest training you'll do thus far..."

  Suddenly, a violent current bombarded Eclipse from both sides, almost winding him. His pupils shrank as he thrashed against the sudden incline in the water pressure.