Chapter 12
Chapter
Twelve
“That’s right. Keep the movement fluid,” Elias instructed. “You’ve spent hours memorising the signs and symbols. Now trust yourself to know them and let them flow.”
A bead of sweat dripped down Colette’s forehead as she shaped her fingers.
“You’re doing well. Keep control. Maintain control. That’s good.”
Her heavy breathing filled her room. Tiny sparks, similar to Elias’s little party tricks, danced between her hands.
“That’s it. Just that amount. Keep all the rest back.”
A torrent of power zapped through her blood, desperate and yearning to be set loose onto the world. It would be so easy for Colette to just let go. Far easier than controlling it like she was.
A vein in Colette’s throat pulsed. Her fingers kept moving, but they trembled, exhaustion pushing her to her limits.
Her fingers spasmed. A flash of lightning burst from her hand, exploding towards the wall in front of her. She cried out.
Elias’s left hand snapped forward. He drew the lightning towards him, circling it into a bright ball that spun and crackled between his palms.
He exhaled and closed his eyes. Slowly, he absorbed the lightning within himself, feeling the energy surge through his body and then dissipate. Breathing heavily, he opened his eyes and dropped his hands.
“I’m so sorry, Elias! I didn’t mean to lose control.” She gripped her skirts.
He shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. It’s part of the learning experience. That’s why I am here. To capture any lightning you lose control of.”
Many young sorcerers died from accidentally unleashing their power. And the vast majority did not hold the sort of power Colette held. That was why it was best to test sorcerers before their ability properly manifested.
Colette sagged, wiping a hand over her sweaty brow. “I’ll get better.”
“You will.” Elias placed a hand on her back. “You did very well for your first time without bracers, Colette.”
Since she had started training at thirteen, she’d constantly worn the engraved bracers that controlled one’s power. Problem was, they also dulled and held back one’s magic. Someone like Elias or Colette could not unleash their full strength whilst wearing such bracers.
So they had to learn to use magic without them. But controlling the magic within took so much energy, strength, and skill. It took years to learn.
Elias walked to a table and poured some water.
Colette wiped her sweaty brow. “Uncle Jules said it would be hard. But I didn’t think it would be that hard!”
He chuckled as he held out the water. She drank it in three large gulps.
She put down the glass and straightened. “I’ll practice. Constantly.”
Elias opened his mouth.
But she got in first, “I won’t practice the magic without the bracers on my own.” She smiled. “But I can practice with the bracers.”
He nodded. “That’s good. And work on your symbols and signs. It is surprising how quickly you can forget them when your whole body is shaking with power and a dragon is diving straight towards you, about to unleash their dragonfire.”
Her eyes widened. “I will keep practicing.”
“Good. Now eat.” He pointed to a plate of bread and sliced meat. “And drink more water. A nap will also help you recover your strength. We’ll go again tomorrow.”
She gave a firm nod.
“And if you’re feeling bored, you can catch up on your reading. You’re up to Uncle Jules’s book on the importance of breathwork, right?”
She cast a glance at said book. “I am.” She sounded less than enthused.
“Good.” With a chuckle, Elias left her room.
Unlike Colette, Elias had always enjoyed the studying and reading side of sorcery. He’d liked to learn about theories, how to better improve his craft, and the history of sorcery and magic. He also liked to learn about wind, nature, and earth magic. And he liked to read about the dragons.
He was also interested in necromancy. But unfortunately, there weren’t many reliable books available to him on the topic.
The necromancers did not like to share their secrets with outsiders.
Most texts on necromancy Elias had managed to get his hands on tended to be written by non-necromancers and were filled with rumour, myths, and fear mongering.
Over the past few years, Colette had learnt the basics from their Great-Uncle Jules, the same man who’d trained Elias.
But Great-Uncle Jules had just celebrated his eighty-fifth birthday.
He had less energy than he once did. So he’d trained Colette in the basics and sent her to Elias for the advanced training.
This would be Elias’s first time training someone.
He strode down the corridor in the direction of his room. He’d requested a room near Colette. But instead his room was practically down the opposite end of the corridor with the rest of the family.
“I thought she’d prefer the room looking out over the water garden. It is so lovely,” his stepmother had said. “And we thought you’d feel more comfortable with a room near us, your family.”
Elias had had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. He was only ever family in her eyes when it inconvenienced Elias and got in the way of what he’d wanted. Still, he’d not made a fuss. That would have pleased her, and she’d have used it against him with his father.
He could imagine what she’d say. “See! He doesn’t accept us as his family. Even after all these years. He wants to be as far away from us as possible. He doesn’t love us.” She’d said variants of the same thing over and over since Elias was nine.
So he’d learnt to pick his battles.
As he strode down the corridor, his thoughts drifted to Prince Gerard. The previous night, he’d approached the man. Prince Gerard had fled. Why?
Maybe the dragon warrior did not like Elias. He supposed that was unsurprising. Such a serious, brave, and noble man would not be attracted to the frivolous and foolish image Elias presented of himself.
He exhaled. Pity.
He passed a doorway. Inside sat his father, stepmother, and half-siblings.
His father smiled when he saw him. “Elias. Excellent! Come in. We are just discussing the marriages.”