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Kana focused on the wood and sent the fire into it. It started with a little motion of a particle so small she could barely imagine it. She bounced two of the particles together and then waited. The tiny pieces of fire moved around and collided with others. It was something that she could sense rather than see.
“How does it feel, Kana?”
“Warm. It is getting hot.” Kana was smiling as things gathered, then there was a whoosh, and flames shot upward. “Whoa!”
Kana stepped back, and Kabyl clapped her hands. “Wonderful.” Her mentor spoke from her vantage point. “Very well done, Kana. Can you pull it in?”
Kana nodded. “I can try.”
She walked toward the roaring flames and pulled the heat into herself. This was the hard part. She tried to focus on the heat and lock it down as it coursed into her. The blaze was too strong and burst out. Kana tried to send the fire back into the bonfire pile. Flames shot out of her hands and spilled over onto the dark, silty surface.
Fire tumbled over the ground in sluggish waves. It spread out in a widening puddle, and Kana looked at it in horror. “What is going on?”
Her mentor chuckled. “It is a cascade effect. You took in the fire, and it recharged you. Now, you are back at your starting power and a bit more.”
Kana looked at the fire that was surging out of her. “How do I stop it?”
“You just do. Keep what you need, and let the rest dissipate.”
She focused on herself and gauged what she needed. She held her feeling of warmth and brought the rest to her skin, letting it flare and disappear. “Oh, my. It’s working.”
“Now, extinguish the bonfire and the spillage.” Kabyl’s voice was calm.
Instead of extinguishing the fire, Kana gathered it up and threw it at the stone that had been the target of her destructive efforts for the last week.
The fire splatted against the rock, continued to glow, and the rock began to change shape.
Kabyl chuckled. “There it is. I did wonder if that was your true talent. There is just too much energy for standard fire.”
Kana turned, and her friend was wrapped in a column of ice crystals for protection. “Safety shield?”
“Sure. I need to be able to fly us home, and rolling around in snow to drop my temperature enough to summon my dragon isn’t really what I wanted to spend the afternoon doing.”
Kana chuckled and looked at her hands. The glow had stopped, and she smiled. “So, that is what it is supposed to feel like. I think I want to do it on purpose next time.”
“It will feel more natural the more you practice. I think that we will take tomorrow as a rest day and do something fun. Well, fun for me. I think you will like it.”
Kana was hopeful. “Does it involve the dogs?”
Kabyl grinned. “It definitely does.”
The goofy, furry, happy creatures were always delighted to see her when she went to feed them with Kabyl or Elioth. The amount of meat they consumed was astonishing, but it was another example of fuel burning that Kana had found useful. She learned how to watch what was consumed and how it translated into energy.
It was that energy that she needed to focus on. How to control it, and how to set it off. Trin and Eltrinia bringing her here made more sense with every passing day.
Peacekeeper Elioth was an excellent tutor. His library grew with every incoming delivery of books and supplies. Kabyl had already read everything in their library, and she was a master of the data machine that was similar to the one Eltrinia had mentioned. Kana had learning how to use it on her list for the following week.
Learning how to mimic the behaviours of those around her was easier when there were a limited number of people to copy.
The people in the village were curious about her, and a few were envious of her ability to run around without layers of clothing. It took a lot of energy, but it literally helped her work off some steam. At the urging of the local council, she took to running laps on the main street to melt the snow off the boardwalks and the paths to the homes of the elderly. They got clear walkways, and she got exercise.
Kana smiled as Kabyl walked to the field and changed into her frost dragon form. Kana muttered to herself happily, “Dogs, dogs, dogs, dogs.” As she got into the dragon’s grip and the dragon took off, she kept thinking about playing with the dogs. Having someone else fly her was equal parts exhilarating and terrifying.
The short days were also difficult to manage. She hadn’t walked the world that long, but in the southern reaches, there was far more daylight during the day. Here, everyone had to move from point to point in the short spans of daylight. Being able to kindle a flame for illumination was a desirable skill in this environment.
Kabyl set her down near the house and changed back into her uniform, and they were almost to the house when Elioth came out. “Kabyl, we have a call. There is a missing hiker on Dayeni Peak.”
Kana blinked. “A hiker? People go out into the snow for fun?”
