The air in Traverse Town's Second District still carried the lingering heat of battle. The stone ground was scorched, and faint remnants of light and ice magic shimmered in the aftermath of their duel.
Aqua sat down on the destroyed floor still catching her breath. The last two sparring sessions had been one of the most intense she'd ever fought especially this one that just ended.
She looked at Helios, who sat on a broken fountain's edge, his spear had returned back to its keyblade form which was planted in the ground beside him. His body was covered in bruises and light burn marks, and trails of dried blood ran from his lips.
She had won.
But… barely.
She crossed her arms, exhaling.
"You're fast althought not as fast as Skuld," Aqua admitted. "And too adaptable."
Helios let out a short chuckle, shaking his head.
"No," he corrected. "I only came close to winning because I capitalized on your weaknesses."
Aqua raised an eyebrow. "Weaknesses?"
Helios leaned forward slightly, his golden eyes sharp.
"Oh, you haven't figured it out yet? You're a battlefield controller," he explained. " Which means you thrive when you dictate the pace of the fight. But when someone disrupts that control, you have a harder time adjusting. You can adapt, but not as fast as someone who thrives on chaotic fighting, like me."
Aqua's brows furrowed. "Go on."
"Your second weakness would be close-quarters combat."
Aqua's breath hitched slightly. "You're deadliest at mid-to-long range since you rely heavily on magic, but in melee range, you tend to rely on magic shields, counters, or defensive spacing rather than physical combat. You can hold your own, but if someone keeps the pressure on, you're forced on the defensive."
Aqua slowly nodded, absorbing his words.
"And lastly," Helios continued, "your weapons consume too much magical energy. Of course, I'm not saying it's inefficient. Your staff and bow strengthen your magic and allow you to control them better making it easier for you to fight. However, as a downside, you have to win fast or risk running out of magic."
Aqua exhaled, considering his words. They reminded her of the lesson she used to receive from Master Eraqus. "…How would I fix that?" she asked.
Helios smirked. "Increase your magical capacity and learn how to use the magic in the air to supplement your own. That'll reduce your energy cost."
Aqua was genuinely surprised. "You're good at this," she admitted. "Pointing out weaknesses and analyzing combat styles."
Helios laughed. "Of course. I've been helping Skuld and others. And understanding your own weaknesses is the only way to get stronger."
Aqua nodded slowly. She had never met anyone like him before.
He wasn't a teacher like Eraqus.
He wasn't an overwhelming force like Terra.
He wasn't a reckless prodigy like Ventus.
He was someone who had slowly built his strength on trial and error. She wondered how many failures and defeats did he suffer to reach such a point. Even after losing to her, he showed no negative emotions and simply helped her grow stronger. Looking back at it maybe she and Terra had been too childish as they competed.
This young man was a warrior who thrived on adapting, who learned from every fight, and who refined techniques mid-battle. And that made him dangerous. As a person who relies on darkness, she couldn't be sure when it might change him and turn him into an enemy. So while it hadn't happened yet she should take the opportunity to learn as much as she could from him and in exchange she would stop him should he fall to darkness.
Helios didn't say it out loud, but he knew his own weaknesses just as well as he had analyzed Aqua's.
His Light Spear transformation, Bríon na Lú, was powerful—but could only last two minutes.
He needed to push past that time limit.
And more than that—
He needed to refine his techniques further.
He ran a hand over the silver part of his keyblade, muttering the name to himself.
"Bríon na Lú… The Thorn of Radiance."
Aqua gave him a curious look. "What's that?"
Helios smiled faintly. "A name based on a spear from an old myth."
He didn't elaborate.
Aqua shrugged. "Well, I'm heading back. If you can transform your Keyblade into a weapon, I assume you've already mastered the vehicle transformation?"
Helios grinned. "Obviously."
Aqua gave a small smile. "Good. I'll see you later."
And with that, she turned and walked away.
Helios watched her go before standing up and rolling his shoulders as he picked up his keyblade. He wondered to him, 'I wonder if a similar transformation would occur if I filled it with only darkness? It's a shame I can't test it for a while.'
He had work to do.
Standing alone in the now-quiet Second District, Helios summoned Bríon na Lú once more.
He twirled the spear in his hand, analyzing its weight and movement.
Something felt off.
He was too used to the sword-like nature of the keyblade.
His muscle memory wanted him to swing, not thrust.
That was a problem.
He needed to rework his entire approach to this weapon.
Additionally, some of the techniques he had used in the fight worked better than expected while others were useless and needed to be scrapped or reworked.
He exhaled.
This was going to take a lot of work.
Aqua walked into Merlin's house, only to find something unexpected.
Skuld was standing in the center of the room, her keyblade raised.
Merlin was floating nearby, arms crossed, watching intently.
Aqua felt a surge of magic.
Then—
Flames erupted from Skuld's Keyblade.
But they weren't normal flames.
They were Firaga—the third level of Fire magic.
Aqua's eyes widened.
Skuld was already casting third-tier spells? Just this morning she was capped at the second-tier spells.
Merlin smiled. "She's quite gifted," he said. "In just a day and a half, she's learned Firaga, Blizzaga, Thundaga, Curaga, and even Aeroaga."
Aqua was genuinely stunned.
That was… unbelievable.
Even she hadn't learned magic this quickly.
Skuld grinned, noticing Aqua's reaction. "I'm a magical master now!"
Aqua chuckled, shaking her head. "Not quite yet but you're very close to it."
But inside she was genuinely impressed.
Skuld was unlocking something powerful.
And Aqua had a feeling—
They had only scratched the surface of what this girl could do.