A twinge of pain ran through Rion as the being approached.
"ERU!?" he called out… no answer.
He looked around to see where he could run, but just like in Eru's domain, there was only a stretch of emptiness—only now darker than a starless night.
The robed figure was no less than a stride away from Rion. Its face was covered in shadow.
"W-who are you!?" Rion managed to get out.
The figure remained silent, then shouted, "IT'S YOU!" Its voice was similar to Eru's, neither distinctly man nor woman, but leaning more toward a man's. It echoed as well, which didn't help Rion pin it down, it did sound surprisingly friendly however.
The robed figure floated around him like a shark, staring at him before stopping and looking at its own hands. "AND WHAT AM I!?"
The figure turned to Rion once more and flew straight at him. Rion flinched but was left surprised when the figure floated right through him, a strange sensation accompanying it.
Rion turned to the figure once more. "You don't know either!?"
The robed figure went silent, thinking for a moment. "You can call me… let's see… Ghost… no, Specter. Yeah, call me Specter."
Rion had no choice but to except the situation as is. "O-okay… Specter. Are you the same as Eru?"
Specter shook his head. "No… I'm different, that I do know." He looked at his robed hands again, then tried to fling off the hood. It flopped against his back, and something was revealed, not a head, but a fog of white, misty smoke.
"What's the matter?" Specter asked, catching Rion's reaction.
"N-nothing… it's just… your face looks like a bunch of smoke."
"Does it!? Well, that's something." Specter plunged his "arm" into the smoky face while laughing. "How interesting!"
"So, uh… Specter," Rion said, "do you know if I can get out of here orrr…?"
Specter rested his "finger" on his "chin." Neither were actually there, but you got the picture. "Yeah, probably. Here, try blasting me with magic!"
"Magic!? No way I can use it here… this is like a dream… wait, is it just a dream?" Rion punched himself, but he still felt the pain. "Huh…"
"Stop hitting yourself and just shoot me already, idiot!" Specter shouted.
Rion sighed, then nodded and lifted his hand, ready to form a water ball. "You ready?" he asked Specter.
Specter went silent.
"What's the matter—"
"Your form is off."
"Huh?" Rion asked.
"I said your form is off." Specter flew over. "When casting water magic, your hands should be tilted to the side, not straight up."
"Like this?" Rion tilted his hand.
Specter seemed to nod. "Yes, just like that. Also, lick your lips before firing. Any extra moisture helps."
Rion turned to him. "I can't imagine that—"
"Just do it," Specter commanded.
Rion sighed. "Alright, alright… float over there." He pointed back.
Specter did just that. Rion readied his next shot, then… he licked his lips. BLAST!
The water rushed out from his hand. It felt slicker than usual… it felt more right. The water flew through the air and cut right through Specter.
"Ah, didn't work," Specter said.
There was a moment of silence as Rion looked down at his hand as if something was wrong with it.
"W-wow!" Rion exclaimed. "You weren't lying!"
If Specter had a face, he might have been beaming. "Ha! I told you so. While we're here, how about I give you some more pointers?"
Rion smiled. "Please do!"
"Okay, then… let's see…"
The two continued to train. They quickly lost track of time in the dark. Rion learned plenty of things: how to stand correctly, how to breathe, how to fire with more power. All in all, it was some great practice.
"Yes, just like that," Specter said, instructing Rion as he went to fire off another ball of water.
Rion prepared himself, then—he jolted awake.
Erza was standing over him. "Morning, Rion. Ready to go?"
Rion looked at him blankly, then at his hand. It still ached from casting, it wasn't a dream. He looked back at Erza still a bit awed then and smiled. "Yeah… yeah uh, let's go."
(And thus, Rion's adventure continues…)