Much like he had stated would happen, Rinn had currently found himself making the rounds of the Frozen Docks within the Pale City of Frost Gale. It was here that he was supposed to meet with another individual for training. A supposed up and coming adventurer that went by the name of Azazel. Not even a full day ago, the pair had met within these very lands. They both had found themselves working to clear up the ice that had trapped several sea faring vessels within the docks, only to end things with a promise to undergo a sort of training. Or more aptly, this Azazel fellow was supposed to train Rinn in a few things. Thanks to that, the Moon Elf had awoken at six in the morning and had been waiting here ever since.

Given how overwhelmingly cold it had been within this area, Rinn had to try and find several ways to keep himself warm. He didn't quite know how to properly start a fire so instead of undertaking such a task, he would instead opt to start a fire within himself! Since he had arrived at this location, Rinn had spent his time idly training this new body of his. By this point, his bone marrow treatment had taken its full effect. Rather than the standard arms and legs that an individual might have, Rinn had currently found that these limbs had been replaced with an exceedingly durable bone. Thanks to the procedure that he had underwent, his bones had grown to match this state, even going as far as to push away the flesh that previously surrounded them. It was quite the painful process but one that he willingly put himself through. As such, he held no real complaints on the matter.

To make things even more interesting, before he had gone to bed the night before, after having finally secured room and board, Rinn had managed to obtain another unique procedure of sorts. Rather than the thick and durable bones of his arms remaining as they were, they would soon find themselves coated in a thick layer of silver! This was something that had hurt almost as much as his previous procedure.. The biggest different was their use. With this silver coating, his attacks should be more effective against monsters and those that hold a monstrous nature. In Rinn's mind, this was enough of an advantage to make up for his lack of skill in combat. For now anyways.

At present, Rinn could be found sitting upon a pile of solidified snow. He had gotten done with a round of exercises about twenty or so minutes ago and had been taking his time to rest before Azazel had arrived. There was no previously noted time in which the pair would meet, and no guarantee that Azazel would arrive at all, so all Rinn could really do to pass the time was this much. Training his new body and pushing it to its limits, hoping to find just where these limits lie.

Quite at odds with his subservient wrath demon always raring to go with energy to maim and kill, Azazel was quite languorous. In was nearing noontime when he finally roused, and even then, only due to Arteron's insistent, buzzing energy. The manipulation demon directed his vessel to wipe the sleep from his eyes, disentangling himself from the bodies of the prior night's partners as he did so. It was too easy. With his vessel's dashing good looks, and Azazel's devilish charm, mortals were unable to resist him. He'd justified the previous night's activities to the stoic and dour Arteron in a pragmatic sense: friction created heat, and their mortal vessel was by no means immune to the harsh cold of this region. In truth, these nightly activities stroked the manipulation demon's ego, but meant little else besides.

Fraternizing with mortals is disgusting.
Aw, sounds like someone woke up in a bad mood.
We can be using our time for much more important things than carnal pleasures. Like training. Didn't you promise that elf we would spar?
I most certainly did not. I stated that we WOULDN'T spar. He is a naïve of the lowest caliber. Not worth the effort of a duel.
But you DID offer to train him. Hapless mortals like that one are usually all too eager to get stronger. He's probably been vibrating with excitement all night.
You don't think the boy is already waiting?
I would be, if I needed to get stronger. If I didn't off myself for such pitiful weakness beforehand.

Azazel sighed, commanding his clothing to become lean winter attire ^{[Morph Suit]} before leaving the room of sleeping bodies and heading out into the frigid exterior. The demon walked the nearly empty streets, despite the late hour. It seemed that even the mortals native to this place didn't brave the cold unless they had to. 

Before long, he came to the bridge, and, sure enough, Rinn was already there, 'practicing'. Even to Azazel's fairly novice eye, the elf footwork and center of balance were all wrong. Arteron had... less charitable criticisms of the elf, raging inside their shared mind. If only to shut the wrath demon up, Azazel headed down to talk with Rinn.

"You know, there was no guarantee I'd even come out here today." Noting the elf's clothing, certainly not suited for the icy climate, Azazel raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "Aren't you freezing?"

Up until this point, Rinn had indeed nearly frozen over. Even with his extensive training of the body, there was no guarantee that things would work out for him. Not in such a frozen climate. Thankfully, as Azazel had begun to approach the poor Moon Elf, another of Rinn's grafts would finally start to kick in. While he had managed to get this one around the same time he had his Durabone treatments were done, it had taken until now for his body to adapt to the grafted organ. In the moment that Azazel had questioned Rinn as to whether or not he had been cold, Rinn's body would actually become incredibly warm to the touch. Not only that but a small aura of heat would burst into being around him.

A soft bout of laughter would escape from the elf's lips at this, his eyes revving up with an innate interest in the gland that was within himself. "Up until this point, I most assuredly had been. Now that we can finally get started on our training though? Not at all..!" It was evident that Rinn had been aware of the results of his heated gland and yet he continued to play it off as though it was nothing more than excitement to begin training. Both events had technically been true so he only needed to vocalize one of them. Or so he had thought anyways.

"So what's the plan, friend? It's been about.." Taking a moment to look up into the sky, Rinn would calculate how many hours had passed since his arrival here. This would normally have been a bit more difficult for the Moon Elf but thankfully, given the position of the sun in the sky, it was evident what time it had been. "..six hours or so? I've managed to get relatively warmed up in that time so we can definitely just launch into whatever you have planned out."

Although he said this, Rinn had decided in that moment to perform a few precursory stretches. These weren't exactly all that useful to him, given that his limbs had been replaced with Durabone and currently lacked muscle of any kind, but that hadn't even occurred to the Moon Elf. If anything, this was more muscle memory than anything else. Metaphorically speaking.

Azazel blinked a few times in surprise at the elf's eagerness to learn, a bit of a switch from the confidence he displayed yesterday. Teaching had never been the manipulation demon's forte: he was more accustomed to misleading and directing.

Ugh, it's too early for enthusiasm.
It's only early for lazy louts like you.
Whatever, Arteron, take over. Be... well, I won't waste time trying to convince you to act within the bounds of propriety. That's a pointless endeavor. Just be less... you. I have plans for this mortal.

Arteron skipped the customary barbed retort at the prospect of taking the mantle of control. Azazel kept him on such a short leash that the wrath demon relished any chance he got to take the reins. Even if it meant wasting his time with this weakling.

To Rinn's eyes, the man before him stood up straighter, even impossibly getting a bit taller and more muscular ^{[Astral Soul, One with the Cosmos]}. The glittering green of his eyes took on a hard, darker edge as he regarded the elf with none of the previous mirth and charisma.

"Your stance is wrong. Anyone who's not an idiot would take advantage of that, knock you off you feet and kill you. Fix it." Arteron growled in frustration, realizing the mortal would not instinctually know the basic combat forms like him. He brought his dual-bladed sword to his hands with a wave of beckoning ^{[Summon: Possession]} and demonstrated the proper standing: low and balanced. With taunting eyes, he dared the mortal to mess up such basic instructions.

The change that had overtaken Azazel had been a relatively surprising one. Not only had he seemingly grown a few inches all around but his eyes had taken on a darker edge. One could chalk this up to Azazel standing more proudly, commanding authority in a way that seemingly boosted his physique, but Rinn had felt as though there were more to it. Despite having grown up with various individuals that were either a part of the Moonglade City Guard or hoping to join in their ranks, he had never seen an individual change to such a degree. It begged the question as to whether or not this had been the true Azazel or if this was a persona that he had donned in order to train others. Truly an interesting individual.

Of course the words that had been thrown his way had left him feeling a bit annoyed. They were factual and to the point. Something that Rinn could understand, given his background, but that didn't mean that it hadn't bothered him. Just who was Azazel to speak to him in such a manner? If he hadn't already displayed his overwhelming strength to the Moon Elf, Rinn would likely have retorted in some way or another. While he had wanted to spar with the man, he wasn't about to go out of his way to obtain it in such a roundabout way.

Rather than complain and pick a fight with his newfound instructor, Rinn would simply fall into a similar stance to the one that Azazel had taken. He was certain that their stances would be different moving forward, considering one had fought with a dual-bladed sword and the other had fought with his hands, but this was still a form of training that he was willing to undertake. All that he would have to do, moving forward, is adjust the stance that Azazel had shown him to benefit himself somehow.

He would start by standing with his feet shoulder width apart, his toes pointed slightly outward at a forty five degree angle. From there he would attempt to maintain a sense of weight distribution by shifting his weight slightly forward onto the balls of his feet, all while keeping his heels firmly planted. His knees would bend slightly to create a relaxed yet grounded foundation. His spine would remain straightened while keeping it aligned with his neck and head. Quite honestly, he wasn't even sure if he was doing any of this right. All that he could hope was to replicate what was being shown to him.

Arteron frowned and bared his teeth as Rinn approximated the perfect stance he had demonstrated. It was a poor facsimile of the genuine article and rendered all the more offensive as a novice might think it a direct copy. Arteron lashed out in quick slaps to the offending areas with the flat of his blade.

"Wrong. Wrong. Wrong," came the harsh voice, each new criticism prompting another smack. "Can't you do anything right? It's like you want to die on the battlefield. Why do you even want to fight? You'd live a longer life if you left battle to those born to it."

Arteron's harsh words tested the boundaries of the stipulations Azazel put in place. The wrath demon cursed and measured his tone, not wanting to rouse his captor. Times of freedom were few and far between, and he didn't need that control freak waking up because he was correcting a mortal.

"Answer, boy. You won't be worth the effort if you don't have a good reason to motivate you." Underneath his harsh exterior, Arteron was an honorable combatant. He may bathe in the entrails of those he fought against, but killing those so far beneath him always rubbed the demon the wrong way.

Rinn would sharply intake his breath the moment that Azazel had slapped out at his limbs with his blade. If it wasn't for the fact that Rinn's limbs were formed of Durabone, he likely could have found himself hurt to some degree. Perhaps not in any serious manner but still.. It would seem as though he was still going to need to get used to these limbs. The fact that he could still feel pain, despite having solely bones and no muscles, had thrown him off a bit. Something for him to consider in the future, when he intended on using these limbs to block blows.

As Azazel had begun to berate him on his form and to question his reasoning for wanting to fight, Rinn's eyes would begin to squint in the direction of the man before him. He wasn't one to tolerate this kind of behavior, more often than not. If he was back in Moonglade, he would have come to blows with his instructor already. The only reason that didn't happen here was because Azazel was strong enough to inspire him. Despite his rough demeanor, if Azazel could truly help him reach such heights, than he was more than willing to subject himself to this kind of behavior. For now that is.

"What better reason is there for me to fight aside from the thrill that accompanies it?" Although he had done his best to suppress it, a soft smirk had still crept upon the Moon Elf's lips. This was truly what he had believed when it came down to it. There wasn't any sort of ongoing war that he was apart of and the area surrounding his homeland had been relatively well off in terms of safety. Especially within the last year or so. If he had truly desired to stay back in Moonglade, he could have lived a relatively well off life by now. The only reasons that he had stepped outside of those gates were to both find himself and to enjoy himself. As for the thing that brought him the greatest sense of enjoyment? Well it was that feeling that he got when he put everything on the line.

"I might not be the best of fighters at the moment but I'm doing what I can to expand upon that. Even if the two of us were to never meet, I would have continued to focus on obtaining the mastery that I need to come out on top. That feeling that washes over me when everything is on the line.. The way that my blood boils and my body reaches out, as though it is one with the world.. That is why I fight. What point is there in living if it is a life without enjoyment?"

Arteron grimaced and grunted as he unceremoniously plopped himself onto the ground. "If you want a thrill, there are plenty of gambling halls or brothels to set your ilk ablaze. Better to waste your life in them. 'Least you'll get some enjoyment out of it that way."

The wrath demon groaned in exasperation, rubbing his temples and wishing for once that Azazel was awake to guide this tiresome exchange as he seemed to love. The boy's reason was too flippant, too easily changed. Such motivation was something approaching why Arteron fought, but the things that were satisfactory for a demon wouldn't sustain a mortal. Feeling uncharacteristically charitable as he looked up at this boy, full of life, and soon to be full of holes without a rude awakening, Arteron spoke once more.

"Combat is a grueling mistress. She doesn't brook weaklings, partial practitioners, or slackers. One bad step, and you're dead. You need something more than enjoyment, or you'll be dead by Black Harvest. Combat is a means of power, and power is not an end in and of itself. If you don't direct it towards something, even on the slim chance you scrape survival through luck's teeth, you'll be as empty and worthless at the end as you are now."

Rather than grow irritable at the mans words this time around, Rinn had simply shrugged off bits and pieces of what Azazel had said. While there were parts that he had accepted, and even considered working on in the future, there were additional bits that simply hadn't meant anything to him. Who was Azazel to question his resolve and reasoning behind fighting? Regardless of whom he had been, or who anyone had been for that matter, Rinn's opinion had been one of his own. There was a pureness within it that hadn't been tainted. A pureness that he would maintain until he found himself truly beaten down at the end of another's fists. Until such a fate had befallen him though? He would simply stick with what he knew.

"You might think that this is a waste of time, or that I'm wasting my life, but at the end of the day, I'm doing what I believe in. This is how I wish to live my life and until someone gives me a good enough reason to do otherwise, I'll be sure to stick with it. You know why?" Without even pausing for Azazel to get a word in, Rinn would bulldoze on. "It's because this is the only way for me to grow. Even if I get beaten down a dozen times over, left on the brink of death by those that challenge me, I'll find a way to grow from the experience. And if my life is truly taken in the act? Well at least I died doing something that I enjoyed rather than being too damned scared to do anything at all."

Rather than fight with the man, Rinn would work to improve upon his initial stance. While he had felt as though it was similar to what had needed to be displayed, Azazel had already denied him of this much. He wasn't one to give up this easily. Instead of getting into it with this supposed instructor of his, Rinn would instead opt to continue on with what he himself had wanted. The only way that he was going to grow stronger was through practice and practical training. All that was left was for Azazel to do his job and teach him. And if the man grew tired of him? Well he would continue on on his own. It hadn't mattered to this ridiculously stubborn Mood Elf.

Far too quickly, the man rose from his loose sitting position to loom over the elf, seemingly growing impossibly taller. He jabbed out a harsh finger as he began to speak in a low, threatening tone.

"Look here, boy, I don't give two shits about you or any other weakling on this godsforsaken rock. You wanna kill yourself? Be my guest. I don't have time to waste on anyone but the strong and those with potential." The man turned and seemed to address no one as he continued speaking.

"Azazel! I'm done being a tutor for a cocky brat. Come out and let me sleep in peace!" 

Roused quickly from his vague state of unconsciousness, the reins to the vessel were placed firmly back in the manipulation demon's hands. Thankfully, given the closeness with which Arteron nearly broke the deal, Azazel had a vague understanding of what had transpired, but he still required time to formulate a strategy to climb out of this hole that the wrath demon had dug.

Without turning back, Azazel froze in his motion, listening to hear the elf's reaction and chart a course forward.

A singular eyebrow of Rinn's would find itself quirked as Azazel had started to speak to him in a rather hostile and strange manner. Not only had he claimed that he hadn't cared for him but he had essentially claimed that Rinn held no potential. This wasn't something that the Moon Elf had believed in the slightest. With enough time, he had even believed himself capable of besting the man before him. At the very least, in terms of martial combat. His overwhelming stubbornness had allowed for him to look past the mans claims, initially, but he had certainly found Azazel's following words to be strange.

Not only was he shouting for himself but he was claiming that he wanted to sleep? Just what in the hell was he going on about? "Just what the hell are you going on about?" In the moment that Rinn had held such a thought, he simply couldn't hold himself back from opening his mouth and saying those exact words. The mans behavior had been too odd.. Was this supposed to mean that the Azazel before him had been an imposter? "Look man, if you don't want to sit around and train me than you don't really have to. While I appreciate the lessons that you could be teaching me, it's not like I'm forcing you to be here. And besides.. I'm not quite certain you understand what cocky is if you believe these words to make me cocky. I mean, seriously, I'm just sticking to my convictions. Isn't that like the bare minimum that you need to make yourself happy?"

It would appear as though he hadn't quite cared about the whole odd display that the man had just put on. In truth though, that was all that it had been. A display. Figuring that there was another individual somewhere around here, the man that was likely the true Azazel that he had met, Rinn would allow for his gaze to peer around the area. From outside perspective, he might come across as annoyed and looking around for any sort of individual that might get in his way of a fight. Internally, however, he was simply trying to locate this other Azazel. Besides.. If this guy wasn't Azazel than who the hell was he?

Azazel brought his fist to his mouth and cleared his throat. Godsdamn you, Arteron. This is why I keep you on such a short leash. Your carelessness will cost us everything. The demon slowly turned around with a wry smirk on his face.

"Congratulations, Rinn! You've passed the test! There will be many who doubt your ability going forward. It will be a hard road unless you are doggedly determined to puruse it through adversity. I wanted to see if you were resilient even against the doubt of your teachers. Well done!"

Now we pray he bought that. Hells, Arteron you're such an ass.

"Anyway, let's get back to working on that stance, alright? Firstly, as you have a different fighting style than myself, you'll need to adapt what I'm to show you through some trial and error, but this should give you an idea of the basics. Bend the knees slightly, radiate your center of gravity between your front and back leg, so that you may advance or dodge as the situation calls for it, and twist your frame to provide as small a target as possible. That's the way."

A keen observer would note that the stance that the demon presented, while refined and effective, was a far cry from the aggressive grounded stance the man instructed just moments earlier. This was the light, defensive stance of a fencer, whereas the previous iteration was more akin to a berserker. 

Although Rinn hadn't been sure as to whether or not he had believed Azazel's words, he had chosen in this moment to laugh it off and put on a front. While he might internally be conflicted on what had just happened, from an outward appearance, he would play it off as if he had believed the man. Of course, as he had been laughing away at the supposed joke, Rinn would attempt to playfully hit Azazel's shoulder. Something that was far more dangerous for the man beside him than he had known, given the silver that had coated his skeletal fists.

"Ahh, you got me..!" Another round of laughter would peel forth from the mans lips before dying down and allowing for the Moon Elf to return to the lesson at hand. Without really reacting in any other way, Rinn would fall back into the stance that had been shown to him. After settling down into this stance, his knees bent slightly and his center of gravity having been balanced, Rinn would take the time to try and adjust it to something that felt more comfortable for him. The stance that he had taken had been far more akin to the stance that Azazel had shown him earlier as opposed to the one that he was being shown now.

Rinn's left foot would be positioned forward whilst pointing slightly outward, while his right foot would find itself turned sideways, providing a solid base for stability and power. His weight would be evenly distributed between both legs, allowing quick movement in any direction. The majority of his weight would be placed on the balls of his feet, promoting agility and swift footwork. His torso is slightly inclined forward, offering a smaller target for opponents while his  left shoulder is raised to protect the chin, with his right hand covering the right side of the face. All in all, when compared to his previous stance, there had been an explosive degree of difference. One that might have surprised Arteron had he not given up on the Moon Elf so early on. "So what's next?"

For the briefest instant before the punch landed, Azazel's instincts of self-preservation flared as the elf leaned over. What's with that, surely this mortal couldn't do anything that would-HOLY HELLS! As the lazy strike connected with his flesh, then demon could feel his shoulder sizzle, branded by the boy's fist. Azazel bared his teeth in the vague approximation of a smile as he edged away from the boy, holding his shoulder and reforming his flesh to hide the brand ^{[Astral Soul, One with the Cosmos]}.

There was a lingering feeling of unease as Azazel watched the boy's stance, but the demon was interested to see a well-defined fighting frame now, albeit different than what he demonstrated. It seems the boy responds better to positive reinforcement. But hells, he must have had some type of holy infusion into the bones of his graft. If he had meant harm in that hit, the vessel would have been seriously injured. Arteron, you really underestimated this one.

"Very good. You know how to stand in a fight. Now let's see if you can weave attacks. You don't wear armor, so any blow is potentially fatal. You must learn to evade." The demon conjured an orb of fire over her outstretched palm before suddenly launching it at the boy. Some sadistic part of Azazel wished it hit, in retribution for his own wound ^{[Chromatic Blast]}.

Completely unaware of the reaction that Azazel had to his own playful actions, Rinn had continued to push on with the rest of his lesson. From what he could tell, based off of Azazel's words, he was going to need to evade some form of incoming attack. Curiosity had begun to overtake the Moon Elf as he pondered over what kind of attack the man was going to throw at him. Would it have been a blow from his fists? While it was true that Rinn had unbreakable limbs, he quite honestly wasn't sure how many blows he could take from the man. Especially not after the feat of strength that he had witnessed Azazel perform.

Knowing that he would have to work on his evasion, Rinn had become a measure more serious. A battle thrilled gaze of focus would overtake his eyes, leaving him surveying the immediate area for any source of movement that Azazel might take. What he hadn't expected, however, was that Azazel would simply thrust his palm in his direction, pushing forth an orb of fire. This orb would then come flying towards the Moon Elf, leaving him temporarily caught off guard. This would only last for a fraction of a moment though, Rinn soon dropping to the ground to evade the beam that the orb had provided.

"Well damn.. I can't say that I was expecting you to know this type of magic." A sharp laugh would escape the Moon Elf's lips as he found that he moved just a tad too slow. Before he could drop out of the way of the beam, the beam had closed in on him, threatening to press into his chest. Hoping to lighten the blow though, Rinn would proceed to throw his arms up before him chest, his unbreakable skeletal limbs taking the blow for him. Pain had ran amok throughout these arms of his and yet not a single crack had formed upon these bones of his.