Author note:
Hello sorry it took so long to update I was a little more occupied with my other stories, anyway please enjoy the chapter.
--XX--
Miracle Pov
I let out a yawn as I sat up from the thick I'd fallen asleep on, stretching slightly before jumping to the ground but the cold air immediately stabbed through my clothes.
"Ah hell no." I instantly wrapped the blanket tighter around myself and sat by the tree. I swear this place gets colder every damn night.
The weak yellow dawn light filtered through the endless trees of the forest, lighting up the drifting fog rolling across the river nearby. Everything looked damp. The bark. The rocks. Even the air itself felt wet.
And quiet.
Too quiet.
No birds.
No distant animal calls.
No rustling apart from the wind brushing through the ancient trees.
It was peaceful, sure… but just wrong enough to make my skin crawl.
Sylvia was still asleep nearby wrapped in vines and moss like the forest itself tucked her in for bed. Tiny white flowers bloomed from her orange hair while her breathing stayed soft and steady.
James was sprawled across one of Sylvia's moss beds with one arm over his face. Faint heat rolled off his body in waves, melting the frost around him.
Lucky bastard didn't have to worry about freezing to death with that dragon physiology.
My radar suddenly picked up something strange nearby.
I narrowed my eyes and looked upward.
A raven sat perched on one of the branches above us.
Still.
Watching.
The thing tilted its head slightly and something about it made my stomach tighten.
"Hey Tinashe… am I tripping off the cold or is that the same weird raven from yesterday?"
"No mwana wanga, you are not tripping as you put it." Tinashe answered calmly. "That is definitely the same bird. It carries the exact same unique signature."
The raven stared at me a few more seconds before taking off into the foggy forest with a rough caw.
For some reason that unsettled me even more.
'Nah… I don't like that.'
"Neither do I," Tinashe admitted. "Though I did manage to inspect it more carefully this time. It carried traces of divine energy."
That made me sit up straighter immediately.
'Divine as in god divine?'
"Possibly connected to one. Though I do not believe it is a deity itself. More likely a familiar. Or perhaps a messenger."
Great.
Absolutely fantastic.
I already had enough problems dealing with supernatural otter murder monsters and now there was apparently some forest god spying on us through birds.
"You could have used your abilities to inspect it more closely," Tinashe added.
'Yeah no. I've read enough stories where messing with mysterious animals gets people cursed for like seven generations.'
Her soft amused hum echoed in my head."Well I cannot fault your caution."
I leaned back against the tree trunk and rubbed my face.
At least monsters are somewhat more straight-forward .
But deities?
Nah.
I'd read enough mythology to know gods were usually powerful weirdos with mood swings.
And considering this was DxD? Some of them might probably be worse..
My thoughts drifted for a moment before something clicked in my mind.
'Hey Tinashe… I've been meaning to ask you something.'
"Hm?"
'Just what exactly is your deal?'
She paused briefly. "Please specify Miracle."
'Well from what I know, Sacred Gears were made by the Biblical God of this world right? And sentient ones usually have souls inside them or some legendary entity sealed away. So how exactly did you become one?'
"Hm~. I'm surprised it took you this long to ask." Her voice carried slight amusement. "Like you mwana, I am not originally from this world. I was created through the same system which granted you power and transported you here."
'Okay… that explains why you're weird compared to normal Sacred Gears.'
"Eish. What a rude way to describe me."
'You know what I mean.'
"I do." She sounded smug now. "As for my sentience… when you first awakened me, your mind was under extreme psychological distress. Fear. Isolation. Desperation. Your psychic abilities and sacred gear reacted to those emotions and shaped me accordingly."
I blinked. 'Wait… so you're basically my imaginary friend brought to life?'
"Miracle."
'Am I wrong though?'
"…Not entirely." She sighed dramatically. "I was shaped into a form your subconscious mind would instinctively trust. Familiar. Protective. Gentle enough to comfort you."
A pause.
"And yes, attractive too considering your actual mental age."
"Whatever."
Her quiet laugh echoed through my head.
Then her tone softened slightly.
"But I am real, Miracle. I was born from your psyche, yes… but I am no mere illusion. I exist because your soul and abilities needed someone to help carry the burden you could not handle alone."
For a moment I just stared at the pale morning sky.
Weirdly enough… I believed her completely.
'You know what? I'll just accept it before my brain starts hurting.'
"A wise decision mwana wanga."
I rolled my shoulders before standing up.
"Anyway. Enough existential revelations. You got my training schedule ready?"
"Oh I certainly do." Her tone immediately became far too pleased with itself. "Come inside and I shall present it properly."
Closing my eyes, I concentrated and entered my inner world.
The usual city rooftops vanished.
Instead I found myself inside an enormous lecture hall.
Rows upon rows of dark wooden seats curved downward in massive arcs like some giant university auditorium straight out of a movie. Above us, the ceiling resembled outer space itself, galaxies swirling slowly across purple cosmic clouds while distant stars shimmered overhead.
At the center floated a massive translucent screen glowing violet.
And standing near it was Tinashe.
Instead of her usual flowing robes, she wore a fitted dark purple turtleneck beneath a long black coat with gold-lined cuffs. Slim black trousers tucked neatly into heeled boots.
"Good for you to finally join the class mwana wanga," she said with fake haughtiness making me blush.
"Whatever."I sat beside her and the chair adjusted itself automatically beneath me.
Okay that was actually cool.
"But you went kinda overboard with this place didn't you think?" I commented.
"Well you asked for your training schedule," she replied smoothly. "And this environment felt appropriate to show it to you."
Her lips curled slightly.
"And I wanted to show off a little."
"Yeah, well mission accomplished."
Weirdly enough though… despite how massive the lecture hall was, it didn't feel empty.
It felt calm.
Safe.
Like somewhere my mind could finally breathe without somebody yelling at me.
Tinashe pointed her cane toward the glowing screen and the schedule expanded outward.
"I have constructed the most efficient routine possible for your current physical and mental condition."
I scanned through it before pausing. "…Wait. What about the gravity increase?"
"Well since your body has mostly adapted to 1.7Gs, I can safely raise it to approximately 2.3."
Back in the real world
My eyes snapped open.
No time had passed at all.
James and Sylvia were still asleep.
I quickly carved a message into the nearby tree telling them not to panic if I disappeared for training, then floated deeper into the forest until I found a relatively open area.
The fog clung low to the ground while towering trees stretched endlessly above me.
"Alright Tinashe," I muttered while stretching. "Hit me."
I regretted those words instantly.
The gravity slammed onto me like an invisible building.
My knees smashed into the dirt.
"Ghk—!"
Everything suddenly felt impossibly heavy.
My arms.
My spine.
Even breathing.
It felt like my organs themselves were being crushed downward.
Sweat instantly broke across my skin while my heartbeat pounded violently in my ears.
That safety line was a load of bullshit.
"Miracle!" Tinashe's voice sharpened. "Relax your breathing!"
'I-I'm fine!'
I absolutely was not fine.
My fingers trembled violently as I forced myself upright inch by inch.
Every movement felt wrong.
Like my body suddenly weighed three times more than it should.
'Why the fuck is this so much worse than before?'
"Because your body is reaching the point where gravity amplification stops being simple resistance and begins affecting your entire biological efficiency." She explained
"…English please. My brain is busy processing this to translate that!"
She let out a sigh. "At lower levels your muscles simply worked harder. Now your joints, cardiovascular system, nervous system, breathing, balance, blood circulation, and organ strain are all being severely affected."
Ah.
So basically my entire body was getting jumped simultaneously.
Wonderful.
I spat onto the ground.
"Well screw it."
Then I started running.
Or at least what counted as running under 2.3Gs.
Every step sent pain through my legs.
Push-ups felt like trying to lift a car.
Sit-ups made my lungs burn.
By the time I started lifting a fallen log over my shoulders my arms were shaking uncontrollably.
But I kept going determined to finish each of the exercises on the before breakfast routine.
Tinashe counted everything calmly while correcting my posture whenever I started getting sloppy.
Eventually I collapsed flat onto the forest floor drenched in sweat.
"O-Okay nah… your routine is evil."
"Oh don't start blaming me now boy. You specifically requested improvement." She countered
'Yeah what was I thinking? You are not Goku my guy.'
"I can lower the gravity if it is too much."
That immediately annoyed me.
"I'm not lowering it."
"Miracle—"
"I said I'm fine."
Silence lingered briefly before her voice softened."I am merely worried mwana wanga. You are still physically a child. Pushing too far could permanently damage your body."
I clicked my tongue irritably.
'You don't need to coddle me, I'm not an actual kid remember.'
"Your argument falls flat, Miracle. Sixteen is still a child."
"…Touche."
Slowly I pushed myself back onto my feet.
Everything hurt like hell. I made a mental note to invest more practice in psionic self healing.
"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy," Tinashe reminded gently. "So properly follow the schedule and do not overdo it."
"Yeah yeah. I got it."
I floated back toward camp mostly because walking sounded absolutely terrible right now.
Halfway there my nose twitched.
Smoke.
"…Oh come on."
Using telekinesis, I launched myself forward faster.
The moment I arrived at camp I immediately spotted the problem.
A massive fire.
Burnt fish.
Charred meat.
And James and Sylvia staring proudly at what looked less like breakfast and more like fossilized remains.
"Bad…" Sylvia muttered while chewing painfully. "Miracle's better."
"Why though?" James scratched his head. "I used more fire so it should cook faster and taste better."
"More power… Make plants grow better," Sylvia added confidently. "Thought same for food."
"That is NOT how cooking works!"
I floated beside James causing him to jump and immediately throw a flaming punch at my face.
My barrier blocked it but flickered violently from my exhaustion.
"Seriously dude?"
"Stop sneaking up on me then!"
The flames behind him suddenly got bigger.
"James."
"Hm?"
"Your fire."
He looked behind himself.
"Oh."
The flames exploded upward even harder.
"HOW ARE YOU MAKING IT WORSE!?"
I immediately yanked water from the river and slammed it onto the fire alongside mud, finally smothering the flames.
The smell of burnt fish nearly killed me.
"Zisilu za ana," I muttered while rubbing my forehead.
"Miracle…" Sylvia said while holding up blackened fish. "Why taste bad?"
"Because you overcooked it."
"Why?"
They both stared at me expectantly.
"…I genuinely don't know how to explain cooking science to you two right now."
I dropped onto a nearby log with a tired groan.
The two watched me quietly for a moment.
"Miracle...hurt?" Sylvia asked softly.
"Nah. Just tired."
She immediately tried offering me burnt fish.
I stared at it.
"…Absolutely not."
James crossed his arms. "You're overreacting. We can still eat it."
The fish literally crumbled into black dust in his hands.
Silence.
"…Okay maybe a little burnt."
I sighed heavily and just floated to the river
After washing off, I started preparing actual breakfast while the other two sat nearby watching carefully.
"Alright," I finally said. "About the training."
Both of them immediately stiffened.
"But like I said yesterday, it's not going to be like the lab."
Their bodies relaxed slightly.
At least a little.
"I need to know what those bastards actually had you doing before we figure out where to start." I looked toward James first. "Besides physical training, fighting monsters, and blasting stuff apart."
James' expression darkened.
"Ms. Sandra sometimes helped me practice controlling temperature and moving fire around." He hesitated. "The others mostly just threw me into dangerous places and made me fight stuff."
"…That's it?"
"They also forced me to use my fire underwater for hours."
I blinked.
"Wait, hold up. Shouldn't water weaken your fire?"
"Nope." He shook his head confidently. "Sometimes it even gets stronger."
Guess Tinashe was right, that was definitely not normal fire.
Interesting.
A small smile formed on James' face as teal flames flickered around his fingers.
Guess he got a cool dragon.
I turned toward Sylvia.
"What about you Sylv?"
She hugged her knees quietly.
"They made me grow plants… strange ones too."Her voice got smaller. "If not big enough… they hurt me."
"…What kind of plants?"
She didn't answer.
Instead her body trembled slightly.
I immediately dropped the subject.
"Okay. You told me enough."
Silence settled over the camp briefly while the forest wind moved through the trees above us.
"Kwacha for your thoughts." Tinashe spoke up.
'I can work with James easy enough. Fire powers are everywhere in fiction so there's a lot to draw inspiration from.'
"And Sylvia?"
I rubbed my face.
'That's harder. There are powerful plant users everywhere too but most stories barely explain how the powers actually function.'
"Hm." Tinashe sounded thoughtful. "Perhaps I can assist there. I have been observing the girl's abilities closely these past few days."
'Please do.'
I turned back toward the two.
"Alright. I'm gonna finish breakfast properly and then we'll start figuring out how your training works."
I floated between them and placed my hands on both their heads. Which honestly looked pretty stupid considering I was physically smaller than both of them. But I applied a bit pressure making both freeze in place.
"I still don't know how you two nearly burned down an entire forest making fish. But don't ever do that again am I clear"
Sylvia rapidly nodded her head, while James growled but still nodded
--XX--
Thank you for reading the chapter. Don't be afraid to leave a comment expressing your likes, dislikes, and what you would like to see in the story I should incorporate. Also don't by afraid to drop a review.
Until next time.