"You've been riding my ass for hours Alex," Thomas complained, letting his sword lower towards the ground. "Can't we take a break?" 

"Sure, let's all just take a break, have tea shall we? The Flara are trying to kill you Thomas. They don't care how long you have been practicing. This would be the best time for them to strike. You are worn out, and you dropped your guard! You would be dead by now if I was a Cantorian!" Alex lunged forward, blade in hand aiming for Thomas's heart. "Never drop your guard!" He cried out as Thomas stumbled backwards. Trying to avoid the attack. "Come now Thomas, show me that young man youth! I've hardly broken a sweat!"

Rolling to the side to avoid the fatal slash, Thomas glared at him. His sword hand had gone numb from the extra weight hours ago. "You have some inhuman level of stamina! It's not normal!" 

"Oh stop it, you're making me blush!" Alex replied sarcastically, as he took a menacing step towards him closing in the gap between the two. "Swordplay isn't the only thing I have inhuman levels of stamina in you know!" 

Thomas's cheeks began to burn. "You dirty old man, lay off with the sex stuff okay!" 

A subtle laugh made Thomas look over to Alex confused. "You just assumed I meant sex, I said nothing of the sort. I see it's on your mind though, good to know!" Thomas's cheeks burned even hotter than they had before. "Hey, if you want to share a bed with me I'd be happy to!"

"No thank you!" Thomas replied lifting his sword back to the ready as Alex lunged at him again. Their blades began to dance once more as their bodies moved almost synchronously to counter each other. 

Parrying each of Thomas's attacks with the flick of his wrists Alex noticed Thomas was slowly going to the point of exhaustion. His attacks were becoming sluggish, and his counters were barely quick enough to stop the attacks. "Where's that magic flare I saw burn off my good hand Thomas? You've got a robe now, so you can fight without fear of being disrobed!" He threw another trio of slashes at Thomas disarming him. The blade fell to the floor beside Thomas as he fell to his knee's. "Aww, is play time over already?" 

"I tried to forfeit an hour ago, again a few minutes ago. You won't let me catch my breath!" Thomas said in a defeated tone. "I have no chance of beating you with swordplay alone." 

"Well then I shall claim you as my reward." Alex replied, a cocky grin growing wide. "I've been meaning to do this for a while anyway, now might as well beat the dead horse and all that." He squatted down in front of Thomas and began leaning forward to kiss him. A determined smile formed on Thomas's lips as Alex drew closer. Their lips only inches away, Thomas sprang forward shoving Alex backwards with all of his strength. "Wha-" Was all he had time to say before he was flat on his back with a sword pointed against his throat. 

"You will never claim me you old pervert!" Thomas replied with a confident gleam in his eyes. "I said I had no chance at beating you with swordplay alone. That doesn't mean I plan on giving you my body! I just had to change tactics. Adapting and changing to the surroundings is how I survive, that's what I'm good at!" Alex lay there stunned, looking up at Thomas with a mixture of surprise and joy. 

Rolling away from the blade Alex stood back up, holding his hands up in a defensive posture. "You definitely got me there, I thought I was finally going to get to kiss you. Thomas rolled his eyes, but before he had a chance to respond Alex was in front of him. His hand on Thomas's blade handle, and his stump was under Thomas's neck. "Never let your guard down! Rule number one!" He leaned forward quickly kissing Thomas on the cheek. "Let's take a break, you've been practicing a good deal of time today. You've made progress though! I'm proud of you!"

Thomas stood there stunned, Alex had just kissed him. There was no aggression, or bitterness from the change of tactics from swordplay to manipulation. Alex even said he was proud of him. A whirl of emotions began swimming through his head as his fingers began shaking. Dropping the sword, his fingers continued to vibrate as the blade clanged against the packed dirt floor. Why am I not mad at him for kissing me? That was totally uncalled for! He thought annoyed at himself by the fact he wasn't annoyed by Alex's kiss. His hand soon began to vibrate more furiously until it felt as if it was going to explode. Bending down to get the sword, his fingers touched the cold steel. Light immediately blasted from the sword sending a large wave of white-hot light towards Alex's back. "Look out!" Thomas screamed out as the bolt of energy connected with Alex's back. 

The bolt of energy ripped through Alex's robe and burned into his back before dissipating.  "What the hell was that?" He managed to say as he fell to the floor. 

"ALEX!" Thomas cried out rushing to his side. "Alex talk to me, please I'm so sorry I don't know what happened, I just picked up the blade and then the light, I'm so sorry!" He looked at the wound and gasped. It had torn through Alex's back, blood was seeping into his robe top from his wound staining the white robe crimson. 

"Get to the lab..." Alex mumbled out weakly. 

"No, I'm not leaving you!" Thomas replied, his eyes watering. 

Alex lifted his stubby hand forward towards the corridor. "Potion, beside golems. Sparkles!" 

Nodding his head, Thomas sprinted towards the lab his eyes wide in terror. I somehow fired a blast that might have killed Alex! He thought as he turned the corridor leading to the alchemy room his heart racing. Running down the pathway with almost inhuman speed, he jumped over the trip wire and turned left searching desperately for the golem jar. Where is it, where is it! He thought, shoving bottles and containers out of the way. A bright lit bottle that seemed to shimmer as his eyes passed over it caught his attention. "That one!" He cried out as he grabbed it, before starting back down the hall jumping back over the wire again as he raced to Alex in hopes of saving his life. How did I do that? I don't have magic! He thought as he ran down the corridor. A thought froze him dead in his tracks. That bolt of light looked like the one that killed the spy! The image of the small green ball of light. Did I have the same power as that Cantorian? He wondered as he looked down at the bottle. 

Shaking his head, Thomas resumed his sprint towards the training room. Seeing Alex's body laying limp sent a shiver down his spine. Slowing to a halt before kneeling down beside Alex. Thomas checked for a pulse, It was weak, but it was still there. "I brought it, I got your healing potion! Don't be dead, please don't be dead!" He unstopped the bottle tossing the cork over his shoulder before propping Alex up on his side. "Just take a nice long drink of this, and you'll be fine!" 

Pouring some of the sparkling liquid into Alex's mouth, he watched in horror as nothing happened. Pouring more in, the liquid dribbled passed his lips, then down his cheek towards the floor. "No, no no no!" Thomas whimpered out, rolling Alex onto his back. Ignoring the pain that he just forced on Alex before pouring all but the last bit of liquid into Alex's mouth reserving the last few drops for one last chance. "Come on, swallow damn it!" Thomas cried out rubbing his fingers against Alex's throat. "Please!" A weak cough followed by the sound of gagging made Thomas's stomach flip until Alex spit all the remaining liquid out as he gagged in agony. 

"NO!" He screamed out as the sparkling liquid soaked into the earth beside him. Looking at the last few drops of the liquid in the vial he tipped it back into his own mouth and forced his lips to Alex's before letting the liquid dribble down out of his mouth into Alex's. Breathing out he pushed air into Alex, making sure the liquid went down.  Thomas heard a swallowing sound and relief washed over him. Pulling back, he looked down and saw Alex's eyes open.

"If I knew..." Alex tried, but Thomas covered his lips trying to silence him. 

"Don't speak. You need to let the potion take effect..." 

Alex slowly lifted his arm, pulling Thomas's hand away from his lips, beckoning for him to come closer. Thomas begrudgingly brought his head next to Alex's lips and waited, his eyes watering. "Best... Kiss... Of my... life..." His voice faded until his raspy breath was no longer audible. 

looking over at Alex's face, Thomas saw a big grin on his face even though his eyes were closed. "No, no no!" Thomas choked out as he tried to find a pulse. Beginning CPR, Thomas began pushing against Alex's body. Pressing against his chest in a repetitive motion before forcing air into Alex's lungs. "One, two, three-" He froze as Alex's body began to wiggle. The skin began bubbling like boiling water across his whole body. The hair slowly falling away, Thomas looked away in horror as the old man that had saved his life began melting away. The sound of liquid began seeping into the ground, and Thomas didn't have the heart to look back. "I'm so sorry..." He mumbled to himself, distraught at the thought of killing his teacher.  When the sound of bubbling flesh finally subsided, Thomas looked back over and saw nothing but the clothing he had been wearing. 

A tear fell from his chin hitting his hand surprising him. Numbly reaching for the clothing, Thomas took the spare robe that Alex had acquired folding it in his hands before lifting it up and looking at the bottle with rage. "DAMN IT!" He screamed out. The small jar exploded beside him into a small pile of crystal dust as Thomas began to cry. Standing up he quickly started walking towards nowhere. I killed the only man to ever care about me! He thought as tears streamed down his face. Turning down a corridor he leaned against the wall, his grief took over forcing him to stay still. Slumping down against the wall he broke down sobbing. Burying his head into the robe, he took a deep breath of Alex's scent. "I'm so sorry... Alex, I'm so sorry..." He sobbed out, his body shaking as he cried. His tears leaking into the robe as Thomas wept. 

"What the hell are you crying about? I'm the one that died." Said a deep-voice above Thomas. Looking up, Thomas saw a young man, naked in front of him. His skin was tan, and his voice was soft. 

"Get away from me! Can't you see I'm grieving?" Thomas cried out with disgust at the naked man in front of him. 

"You are such a strange man..." The deep-voiced man replied with a soft chuckle that drew Thomas's attention to him. "First you say you are never going to love me, then you kill me. Then you kiss me for some reason, and now that I'm alive and young you don't want to see me?" 

Looking up from the robe with confusion, Thomas looked up. "A-Alex?" 

"Duh! Don't you recognize my sexy face? You've gotten to enjoy my awesome sense of humor for the last three months! I even went and got a new robe for you!" Reaching down he lifted the robe from Thomas's hands. "Aww, you wept for me! That's not common for a murderer!" Thomas looked at Alex's surprisingly toned body then back up to his face making sure to not to look lower than his six-pack. 

"How are you alive?" Thomas asked in a raspy voice as Alex put the robe over his arm and squatted down beside him. "Y-You died, I saw you melt into nothing!" Alex wiped the stream of tears that had fallen with full sized hands. 

"That potion takes time to take effect. It takes the cells that were strongest at the time of my death and replicates them across my whole body. It restores me to an age in which my cells were the same level across my whole body as whatever cell was strongest at the time!" Alex replied with a sly smile. "By the way, I remember what you did before I died. I wasn't kidding about that kiss. If I had known that all I needed to do was to die for you to kiss me I would have stabbed myself a long time ago!" 

A chuckle escaped Alex's lips as Thomas looked up at him in disgust. "That's not funny! I only did that to put that stupid potion in your mouth since you kept spitting it out!"

"Sure, sure. And you were weeping into my robe because you had dirt in your eyes right? Just admit it Thomas, you have feelings for me!" Alex said simply as he stood up and lifted his arms over his head to slip his robe back over his head. "You like me, hell you might even love me!" 

The tears that were in his eyes seemed to distort the faded light of the room. Looking up, he studied Alex's new face. He looked like he was in his mid to late twenties, and his hair had grown much longer. There was no denying that Alex was attractive, and Thomas felt a small twitch in his pants. Standing up quickly, he started off towards his room. "No I don't, and don't look too far into the potion thing. I thought you were dying, and I was trying to save your life. Nothing more, so don't get the wrong idea!"

"Maybe you could start calling me master some time? I wouldn't mind the extra affection, I mean you did kill me. Maybe that deserves some extra apology? You could come sleep in my room! Make it up to me, all night long!" Alex replied in a deep sensual voice that sent shivers down Thomas's spine.

"Never going to happen. I like the nickname I already gave you, and I'll stick with that one. Pervert fits you just right!" Thomas replied with a smug grin as he began walking away. Suddenly a large hand snaked its way down into his robes taking hold of Thomas's semi-hard erection. "What the fuck, let go of me!" He cried out as he pulled himself free of Alex's hand. 

Alex looked at him with a sly grin taking a step closer as he closed the distance between them. "You called me a pervert right? It's only fair I live up to the title!" 

A strange feeling inside of Thomas began to burn as his cheeks darkened. "Oh go jump off a cliff. You're still nothing more to me than the man who happened to save me from the Cantorian. Now that you have a ripped body and a very tight..." Thomas trailed off when the thought of Alex's naked body grinding against his own entered his mind. A few finger snaps shook Thomas back into reality. "I'm going to take a nap. You worked me over in training, now you want to work me over in other ways that I don't have the energy for!" He began walking off towards his bedroom trying to ignore the shiver that went down his body. The thought of Alex claiming his body made his member twitch again. He blushed heavily and made sure to walk as fast as he could to get away from Alex. Shaking his head, Thomas turned around the corridor ignoring the laughter that emanated from the hallway behind him. I do not like him, and I sure as hell do not love him!" He thought to himself trying to banish the thought of them together, Then why was I so happy when I found out he was alive?"

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Another chapter done! What are your thoughts? I hope you enjoyed the fun turn of events. I was planning on having the revival in the next chapter, but I couldn't think of how to stall the other parts and that took almost half of the chapter. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the story and I can't wait to hear from you! :)

-Asted!