She tried to count them in her head. “I’m not really sure, it all happened so fast and I don’t even know how I did it. It’s like my body just knew, but it didn’t always work or happen the way I wanted it to. I didn’t really have much time to think when The Brotherhood showed up and after that, I barely had time to do anything other than react.” She pushed the memories that knocked against the back of her mind further back, willing them to stay in the darkest corners of her mind. Far away.
Magnus paced faster, mumbling something to himself that she didn’t understand. It didn’t even sound like a real language, but she did catch one word—‘dragon’. While she was gone, her mentor’s cheeks had become gaunt and his eyes bore the marks of little sleep. He wore his emerald robe with the elegance of a Grand Mage but his shoulders hung lower than they usually did. Whatever had been on his mind in her absence was clearly taking its toll.
“What is it?” Ambrose asked, concern sliding across her face.
Magnus had always been such a source of grace and inspiration for her, lifting her mood whenever she needed it. It hurt to see her mentor become such a shadow of himself.
Magnus continued pacing but lifted his head and gave her a look that was only reserved for when he was thinking about something important. “I believe I understand how your magick works.”
“Really?” Ambrose jumped out of the chair. “What is it?”
“Every time you channel, you’ve been in a high stress or life of death situation, or at least your body perceives that you are, thus your magick perceives that you are.” He stopped in front of the fire and stared into the crackling flames. “There’s no doubt about it at this point, you’ve been called by the Elements. I believe byallof the Elements. Your magick and instincts have synced up, allowing you to use Magick you have no formal training in. Your body is reacting so your magick is reacting. But lacking the formal training necessary, it comes out uncontrolled, powerful and when you’re body is thinking more than your mind is.”
“Then why couldn’t I save Antony?” Frustration clawed at her chest.
“I believe that was your own mental block. Your magick has reacted to you when you inherently needed to save yourself, however, when it came to directly saving someone else, it didn’t come because of what you believe about yourself. It responds to your emotions. You don’t truly believe you could save another person, so your magick didn’t either,” he replied calmly, lifting his head to meet her in the eye. “I know that’s hard to take in, and it’s just a theory. Either way, I think with some formal training, you could use your magick unparalleled. I believe you could learn to use any Elementyou want with enough focus and training.”
“Really?” Could that really be possible?
Magnus reached an aged hand into the fire and pulled a handful of it away. “How far you get is up to you. For many mages, it takes them years or a lifetime to master their Element.” The ball of fire in his hand began to spin in a condensed circle, sparks flying off the edges. “You’d have to work harder than any other mage in the empire, but yes, I think it can be done.” He closed his fist and the flames extinguished. “I will teach you.”
Ambrose sank back into his chair, now deep in her own thoughts.
Was it really possible? Could she truly learn enough control to master any Element she wanted? Could it really be possible just because it was…possible?
“I don’t understand how this happened?” She let out an exasperated sigh. “Why me? Why now? No one has ever been able to fully wield more than one Element. Why all of the sudden can I do it?”
Magnus turned to face her, his eyes twinkling against the firelight.
The Grand Mage was excited.
“There’s many things we can’t understand about Magick, it’s more ancient than the gods themselves.” He pressed his hands together, intertwining his fingers.
“How is that possible?” She rubbed a hand over her temples. Gods, she had a headache. “I thought we had Magickbecauseof the gods?”
“Yes, it’s true that the gods are carriers of Magick in this world and are the reason it’s in all Almurians.” His eyes danced as he spoke. “But the existence of Divine Law would suggest it even surpasses the gods as even they must follow it, would it not? They created the Divine Contract many years ago, but not even they can go against it and are as subject to it as any of us. That would lead me to believe they’re not the reason for its existence as a whole. Wouldn’t you agree?”
Ambrose’s eyes widened and her head shot up. She’d never considered that, but it did make sense.
Not even the gods could interfere with Divine Law or she could’ve easily been executed just for attempting to make the pledge. The royals and godswere bound to the same rules and terms they all were. A shiver crawled its way up her spine, even though there was no draft in the room and the fire did an excellent job of keeping them warm.
The implications of such a theory were massive.
It was taught that Magick began and ended with the gods but… What if that wasn’t true?
“Magnus…” Did she dare to ask? “Can the gods be killed?”
His brows scrunched into a worried expression as he rushed towards her, dipping his head close to hers as he viciously whispered, “Be careful of the things you say, even to me. The palace has eyes and ears everywhere. They’ll find a way to execute you just for thinking such a thing.”
“But, I’m a Trial Champion, they can’t interfere with that,” she murmured, shocked by her mentor’s abrasiveness. “They can’t touch me until the trials are over. Even if they wanted to. We all know the punishment for breaking Divine Law.” It was a terrible concept. Anyone caught breaking it, Magick punished more severely than even the gods could dream up.
“Don’t be so ignorant to assume they can’t find ways around it. They may not be able to directly harm you themselves, there are other ways to accomplish a goal than being the one to execute it yourself.” He spun around and resumed pacing in front of the fireplace, the heels of his shoes tapping in a steady rhythm. With a twist of his hand, the fire roared and surged as tall as he was, filling the fireplace and twinkling against the gold finish. He didn’t stop until it was crackling loud enough to drown out their conversation from any eavesdroppers that could be lurking.
“The tournament is only four days away, what could they do to me?” she asked in a hushed whisper.
Magnus shot her a look. “The possibilities are endless if one is determined enough. Your magick alone makes you a target, the gods won’t take too kindly to you entering. I would stay prepared for anything. No matter what, you cannot let your guard down. The tournament is only the first trial. If you can get through that, we can worry about the next one when it comes.”
“Do you think I can learn enough by then to actuallysurvive the tournament?” she asked in a hushed tone as her reality came crashing down on her. What if the godsdiddecide to intervene? How would she even know? Could she stand any chance at all?
