Nezekiri's POV

  As I wander the forests yet again after my protégé left this world, I ponder on what to do. She had been the best company I had had in recent memory. I miss her.

  But she had wanted to go, and I wouldn't constrain her. I had taught my apprentice as well as I could, and now... Now I'm on my own yet again.

  Fuck... You don't know what you have until you lose it... Sigh. But, I do have a few things I could do...

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  Well, step one, I suppose, would be to return my claws to fingers. I want longer fingers this time, though. I sit down, and lay my back to a tree, and began my meditation.

  Time ticks by, and eventually, after months, my fingers are fingers again. Next, I would begin my next thing. I would carve. My sword is sharp enough to carve, so I would use that.

  But what to carve out of... wood is too inpermanent, stone... maybe. But what about crystal? Quartz, diamond... hmmmm. I love that idea... but why limit myself?

  Ya. But... how do I get the stuff to carve? Mine? Oh. I could mine why not? It would kill time.

  I decided to dig in a clearing. I started my hole straight down, and dug. Day turned into night, and the cycle repeated. Time passed and I learned valuable lessons.

  Such as reinforcing the shaft, digging at an angle, and most importantly, creating rooms to drain water. Weeks turned into months, and I hit proper stone.

  Bedrock, I think it is called. But it is a layer of stone, harder then it's surface counterparts. I decided that it would do for practice materials, as soon as I-

  A rumble sounds, and my shaft collapses. "FUCK NOT AGAIN!"