I try the connection to Ten again, the fear mounting, but there’s a faint hum of energy as I concentrate. Relief grasps the air from my lungs. It’s not broken. Just… well, I don’t know, but that’s tomorrow’s problem. There’s still so much I’ve not shared with him, and after the revelations Kalan shared, I don’t want tobe in a position where we can’t. We’re in enough trouble without a stupid attempt at sharing memories without the bridge of our touch to help us.
Clare doesn’t say a word as she leads me through to the trees, to where I was brought when I first arrived. There are about a dozen or more people around the tented areas, tending to fires, preparing food, and busying themselves with life. A normal life, perhaps.
We walk farther than I would have thought, all the way through to a clearing, ploughed and planted for crops, next to a small stream. The looming shadow of the mountains remains, a permanent reminder of the terrain. A long wooden hut is perched on one side of the stream, and Clare indicates the building.
Inside, I’m surprised to see several bathing chambers, almost set out like stable stalls. I don’t question and happily utilise the first free one.
After washing and relieving myself, I exit and look for Clare.
She nods and then walks me back to camp. We don’t see anyone on the return journey, and she takes me towards the tent where the Usher met me last time.
He’s there again, cloaked and waiting, with my brother, Selina, and the man I recognise from my kidnapping, the mysterious Marius.
There’s a plate of food waiting, and I look at Clare, who walks off into the woods without uttering a word and disappears. Makes me wonder about how many people are here. I’ve only seen twenty, maybe a few more. That’s hardly the army Fenix and Micah bragged about, so where is everyone?
“Sit. Eat. We have a busy day,” Fenix encourages. I look at the food and happily take what’s on offer, too hungry to be petty.
“What will training look like with you? What can you teach me?” I ask the Usher directly as I take a bite of the warm bread.
“For one, how to wield your gift. It’s clear that you’re still learning, figuring out your power, and still relying on touch too much. I’ll enjoy seeing how you might break the bonds of Aslendrix, and if you can embrace Novandia. We’ll need you to work with your brother for that and see what might be possible together.”
My eyes flash to Fenix, and a foreboding creeps over my skin at the thought of working with him. I don’t trust them. Any of them. I’m doing this to buy time, nothing more, and I’ll wear that mistrust like a shield and do whatever it takes to keep myself safe. The knowledge I’ve done this before—being kept in the dark—is now the sword I’ll aim at them.
“You’ll need your strength. Training isn’t just a game. It takes mental stamina and physical strength, too. But we have time.” The patronising tone adds to the annoyance his voice brings out in me.
“They made us do that in Kirrasia. We had to be fit. Strong. And practice. You interrupted all of that,” I point out, glad to take any kind of win from him.
“Did I now?” He ruffles his cloak.
While I might be defending my training, it’s only a half-truth, and he knows it. “Please, Ever, demonstrate what you can do with your magic abilities for us. Here. Now?” The Usher’s voice snakes through the trees. He waves his arm in front of him, as if beckoning me to the stage, and the small win shrivels.
I don’t accept his invitation and choose to ignore him and finish up the final scraps of food I’ve been given.
“I see. Very well. I want you to visualise your magic. Your power. What does it look like? Is it heavy? Light? Does it speak to you?”
Everything in me revolts at sharing these details with him. But something tells me he isn’t going to take silence as acooperative answer. I’m here to help my friends and keep them out of danger.
My lips purse, and I clench my fist as I speak.
“Water. It’s like water. Sitting in my chest.” I remember what Calix told me about the different strands of colour from others I touch, and the mixing of those colours to create something new, but I keep that to myself.
“Good. And how do you wield that?”
“I don’t. It just… happens.”
“Wrong. It responds to your will. You just need to have the strength to recognise and command it. To overrule and dominate.” His voice rises to new levels of irritation, despite the words making sense. I know my power responds to my emotion, it’s just fickle. Thinking back, I find myself wishing for Rowan and his drills. “Tell it to obey. Tell it to answer.” His voice grows stronger, more insistent, and he pulls back his hood, revealing his face, and lifts it to the sky, letting the sun’s rays speckle his face.
His arms lift towards the sky, and with his palms pressed together, he whips them apart, and the light around us scatters, splitting with the will of his hands, like he just carved a section of darkness into the world.
I scramble backwards as the darkness encroaches toward me. Everyone else is still basked in light. In the sun. Novandia’s light.
“Touch is only necessary becauseShedoesn’t want any of you to feel the full potential of your power. However, we know that can change.” He nods to Fenix and then Selina before bringing his hands back together. As he closes his hands, the darkness knits back together, as if the seam in the blanket of the sky is somehow now mended, and he didn’t just split the sky apart.
“Your turn.”
“I can’t,” I protest.
“You can, Ever. You’ve done it with me already, but don’t worry. We’ll find the right motivation for you to work on your skills. Besides, we have physical training, too.” I sneer at my brother’s taunt.
