22 Chapter 22- Quality is more Important than Quantity (1/2)

Hours passed, and Dubs continuously attempted to gain control over the magical particles he had gathered.

Unable to gather any more than the 6 particles he had initially gathered, he instead began trying to manipulate their orbitals around the central point

Little by little, he was able to shift the courses of each different particle. He eventually became so good at it that he was able to completely freeze the particle in space, and even reverse its direction if he wanted to.

”Hoh? I'm impressed, Dubs. You may not be able to control a large amount of particles yet, but you have complete control over the few you can gather after just a small amount of practice.”, Dubs other self proclaimed.

Dubs silently nodded, and continued practicing.

”The interesting part is the fact that you can control each element evenly. As you heard from Peter when he was evaluating Drodus, it is rare for a given person to be able to control even 2 classes of magic. To control all 6 is beyond imagination!”, Dubs other self exclaimed.

Dubs frowned in disagreement, and stated ”No, that will only make me a jack of all trades, and a master of none. I must strive to master at least one of the classes. If possible, I should try to master all of them!”

”Always so serious Dubs. Never willing to give yourself any credit. That's fine by me, it will motivate you to work harder. Don't disappoint me, Dubs...” The voice became quieter and quieter until it no longer spoke.

Dubs continued to practice for the rest of the day. After a few hours had passed, he had trained to the point where he could freely move the particles around the room at range.

Standing 30 feet away, Dubs approached the straw test dummies. After hours of practice, he only needed one hand to gather the 6 particles. With the upwards flick of his hand, they appeared in their orbitals and Dubs sent them all spiraling towards the dummy.

The particles formed a circle, and Dubs extended the 5 fingers on his hand to form an open palm. The radius of the circular path the particles rotated about increased at a constant rate, until Dubs retracted his fingers.

The rotating circle of particles translated over to above the head of the dummy, and Dubs lowered his hand. The ring descended on the dummy like a necklace being placed on someones head, and Dubs lifted his hand back to the original position.

Dubs then closed his fingers into the shape of a fist, and the radius of the swirling circle decreased, slowly approaching the neck of the dummy, as if trying to strangle it.

When the particles reached the neck of the dummy, they began to saw away at the wooden neck like a chainsaw, until they all converged on the central point.

The head of the dummy was sent flying, and hit the back wall with a ”pshh” as the straw fluffed and then fell to the ground. The wooden neck hit the ground with a ”clank!”, and Dubs smiled.

Dubs eyes turned slightly bloodthirsty, and he began giggling to himself in silent.

When Dubs had finished his laughing fit, Drodus approached him quietly.

Drodus had seen Dubs laughing like this a few times now, and was no longer as phased by it. Instead, he simply waited patiently for Dubs to finish before he went near him.

”Dubs... what on earth was that? How did you sent that dummy's head flying just now? I couldn't even see anything. Were you using air magic, so that the particles were clear, or some sort of stealth technique that left an afterimage?”

Dubs eyes remained bloodshot as they darted over towards Drodus. In an instant, Dubs had put his hand around Drodus and began speaking like a madman,

”Drodus, my good friend. There are some things that you don't need to know. Just know that I am training hard, and reaping the benefits of my training.”, Dubs crackled.

Coming to his senses, Dubs eyes once again became normal, and his memory became hazy. His other self had not taken over him- if that were the case then his eyes would have rolled back into his head.

”Ah! It seems I've figured out how to control a small amount of magic!” Dubs peacefully exclaimed, taking his arm off Drodus, who's face was filled with fear.

”Take a look, my friend!”

Dubs then held up his hand and the six particles flew around in circles, and Drodus calmed himself.

Drodus began to think to himself. ”I don't know whats going on with Dubs, but I don't feel that he is a bad person. He probably is just bad at communication. However, I cant believe it! These magical particles are so small that I can't even see them from a distance, and yet he used them to decapitate the head of that dummy, from range too!”

Drodus, surprised, congratulated Dubs. ”Great job, Dubs! You probably have already surpassed me in attack power, despite the fact that I am able to control a ball of magic many times greater than what you can control!”

Dubs flicked his hand down and the particles dissipated.

Drodus walked away, and continued his own practices.

The day was nearing its end, and Peter began to call up all the recruits.