KASSIE FROWNED WHILE she attempted to blow the leaves of the bush in front of her. It frustrated the heck out of her. Just when she’d felt she’d started to master the energy raising technique Elena had taught them, now she was back at square one. She sighed and watched as her breath moved the leaves.
Urrgghh. Look how easy that is! It should be that easy. Rolling her shoulders then her head, she drew in a deep breath and let it out slow. Relax. Try again.
LOI SAT ON the dirt near a tree. Her hands pressed to the ground, eyes closed, she allowed her energy to move down her arms into the earth. Strands of her long hair tickled the back of her hands and her eyes snapped open in irritation. Thrusting the hair back over her shoulders she relaxed back into her original position, closed her eyes and took several deep, slow breaths. Her energy moved through the ground, brushing past tree roots, rocks, even a skeleton (not human, although she suspected it wouldn’t matter here). The earth beneath her felt alive and the sensation thrilled her. With her eyes closed she knew the precise location of all the trees and plants in the vicinity. She knew which ones needed more water and which were fine. As she brushed past their roots with her mind she suddenly realized she could hear them. Her eyes snapped open in shock when the delicate and resonate voices touched her mind in response to her energy.
ELENA COULD HEAR the murmur of the trees around them and she spun, looking. There sat Loi with an astonished expression, hands pressed to the ground and her head cocked to one side while she listened.
'Well done, Loi,' she breathed, not wanting to break her attention. Loi gave her an absentminded smile as she continued to listen.
I’D MANAGED TO get the tips of my fingers to flame and I worked at creating a ball of fire, like I had with my energy. Even though it was really the same thing it felt so much harder to do. I went back to my meditative breathing and practiced forming the ball in my mind. Extending my hands, eyes closed, I followed the energy down my arms and pushed the sphere out between my palms. FLARE! I shouted the word in my mind. Heat burst from my palms and I opened my eyes to see a sphere of fire, fed from fire that flowed from my palms.
ELENA WATCHED, PLEASED with Cat’s progress. The redhead’s eyes were wide while she watched the flaming ball she’d created. It was nearly time for them to leave and with reluctance, Elena spoke up. 'Please draw your energy back into yourselves. It will be time to leave shortly.' The expressions of surprise on the girls' faces amused her.
'Has it really been that long?' Kassie sounded bewildered.
'It has. You’ve all done exceptionally well for a day’s work. I am sure you must be tired and hungry by now.'
The women drew their energy back and the humming noise finally left Elena’s mind. It was only audible to those who were gifted. She sighed in relief at its absence, after a while it gave her a headache. Elena released them from the circle she’d cast to drown out the noise while they practiced. Then they relaxed while they waited for Loushka and Tomiar.
LATER THAT EVENING, while l lay in bed, I extended my hand and stared at it for a moment. At a thought my fingertips lit, the flames dancing like tapers. Kassie murmured in her sleep so I extinguished them, but a sense of wonder and delight swirled through me. Now this, I could see being useful in a fight. If I could learn to control it, it would be one hell of a weapon.
By the second week of our new training regime, improvements could be seen everywhere. The Majors became quite skilled at both throws and falls and they learned to adapt the throws to their own fighting styles. They looked forward to showing the members of the General Guard in their areas. We improved heaps at sword fighting, which meant the siesta we had after the sword fighting sessions was most appreciated.
SIAN WOKE INSTANTLY from a deep sleep and realized Nnelg had leapt in. She rolled over quietly and spied the blue dragon sneaking toward the windowsill, his usual perch for when he woke them. She closed her eyes for a moment, focusing her energy and then drew her arm out from under the covers.
NNELG PREENED HIS tail for a moment then gazed mischievously over the sleeping girls. This was his favorite task of the day. Of course it did mean he’d get told off by Yakov and Elena again, but he didn’t think they minded that much. Otherwise they’d send someone else to do it. He shuffled his feet a little and rolled his shoulders back. He wanted to be able to get a good deep breath. Inhaling, Nnelg opened his mouth and—
Jets of fire and water shot straight at the little blue dragon and he screeched in fright. Diving off the windowsill, he leapt through space to his nest, tucked safe in one of the castles turrets.
A LOUD ANIMAL shriek, followed by hysterical laughter woke Kassie and Loi. They stared in astonishment at Cat and Sian, who rolled with laughter in their beds. 'What happened?' demanded Kassie.
Hiccupping with the effort to stop laughing, Sian explained. 'Nnelg snuck in to wake us up and Cat and I surprised him.'
She began to giggle again so Cat continued. 'We zapped his ass! You should have seen his face.'
That evening at dinner, Nnelg was subjected to plenty of ribbing after being caught out. The dragon put up with most of it, then decided to head out to the courtyard with Audi in tow. The men and women retired to their favorite spots, while the rest of the court stayed up drinking, singing and having a good time.
'WE SHOULD STAY in the Great Hall one evening,' Alek suggested to Cat, curled up in his lap, very like her namesake.
Sleepily she responded, 'Why?'
He smiled down at her tired face. The girls had worked so hard these last couple of weeks. Cat was asleep before noticing the party atmosphere that continued into the evening. They always excused themselves after dessert, so the girls had no idea what went on in the evenings. 'There’s dancing and singing most evenings about an hour after we leave. You would probably enjoy it.'
I TRIED TO clear my head and attempted to pay attention to Alek. The afternoon’s training session with the Majors had been hard work, but they’d progressed so well. We’d decided to pair everyone off and allow them to spend half an hour practicing hand-to-hand combat skills. At the end of the half hour they switched to another partner and so on until nearly dinner time. It had been an effective method and we’d decided to stick with it from now on. We could practice with individuals who weren’t sure, or who wanted to challenge themselves—and us.
'Dancing?' the thought of it wasn’t pleasant. My feet were killing me. Actually, my entire body ached; I’m so glad we’re practicing with our gifts tomorrow. Alek shifted in the seat and I moved to my usual spot, with my head on his chest under his chin and my legs draped over the side of the chair. He wrapped his arms around me and teased me by rubbing his stubble on my neck. I squealed and struggled, trying to turn my head so he couldn’t reach.
ALEK PULLED BACK and grinned down at Cat, all flustered and red. She made the funniest noise when he did that to her. That and the indignant look on her face compelled him to do it. 'Do you mind,' she growled at him, green eyes narrowed with annoyance.
'Not at all, so what do you think? About the dancing?'
She sighed. 'Normally I’d say yes. I love dancing, but I’m so tired from the training that by the evenings I can barely keep my eyes open.'
He thought about it for a bit and stroked Cat’s hair as he mulled over possible solutions. I’ll ask Elena to make it a half day tomorrow and, as it’s the day before the rest day, they’ll have time to catch up on their sleep.
ELENA INFORMED US of the change of plans when we arrived at the training site the next day. 'It’ll give you a chance to meet more of the castle inhabitants,' Elena said. 'You only really get to see them at the table. I have arranged for Ada to meet you at your room before dinner. She will create something suitable for you each to wear.'
'She can create something that quickly?' I asked, astonished.
'Oh she is exceptionally gifted,' Elena said with a smug smile. 'I am so glad to have discovered her before any of the other houses.'
She set to casting the
circle then turned back to us. 'Today I want you to learn even more control over your gifts. We will practice creating an energy ball and moving it away from us. Then, at a selected distance, I want you to expand it suddenly like an explosion. Unlike an explosion, however, I want you to control the energy while it expands so it slips over everything in its path without really touching it.'
We stared at her for a moment. Hmm. That sounds tricky.
'The reason I want you to learn this is because there will likely be a time when you need to use your powers without harming innocents around you. Practicing this exercise should teach you how to do this.'
It was a decent challenge, but the more I worked at it, the more I could feel my energy expand. I began to sense the edges of it. It took a while to stop the heat. The rock I practiced on glowed red at first, but in the end it stayed cool when I blew fire from my palms over it. When we’d reached that stage, Elena called us to her. 'For your last exercise today I want you to practice on each other.' She laughed at the look of shock on our faces.
'It’s the easiest way to test it.'
LOI STOOD FACING Cat, watching as she extended an energy ball toward her. Flames exploded around her with a whoosh and for a moment Loi couldn’t breathe. She opened her eyes and stared at the flames rushing around her. All her instincts screamed at her to move, but she held strong. It wasn’t like a normal campfire flame; she felt almost tempted to touch the molten, smooth looking flames. They look alive—I guess that makes sense, our energy is part of us.
I SWEATED LIKE mad with the intense concentration I had to keep up. I knew, like all the other exercises, it’d get easier and easier but when there’s the possibility of endangering a loved one it felt a lot harder. I tried to relax a little.
'Warm, Cat. Warm!' Loi yelled, sounding understandably alarmed. I refocused, drawing the energy back slightly and Loi relaxed.
'Okay switch,' called Elena.
I waited patiently while Loi focused, curious to see what her energy felt like. It wasn’t really visible at first. I could just catch a glimpse of green out the corner of my eyes as the energy advanced. Then it began, a slow and very unpleasant sensation of being buried alive. I started to take short, sharp, breaths while I tried to control the panic that built within.
LOI OPENED HER eyes to see if Cat had noticed the energy yet, she could feel it had reached her. Cat’s pale face and wide open eyes suggested she had. Loi frowned, concerned by that look and focused on drawing the energy off her a little, creating a gap between Cat and the energy. Immediately Cat relaxed and her color returned to normal.
ACROSS FROM THEM Sian and Kassie practiced. Kassie stood amongst a strangely silent torrent of water. Sian’s energy felt curiously peaceful, like stepping behind a waterfall. The only noise Kassie could hear was the sound of Sian and Loi using their gifts, although it wasn’t so much a sound as a sensation. It rather felt like when they were on Earth after a power cut; that strange sudden stillness. Kassie had begun to hear it clearer and clearer with each session. Now she could hear it when Elena did something, though her sound was barely audible.
AFTER ELENA HAD closed the circle, Loi questioned her. 'How are we able to throw our energy out like that? Won’t we use it all up?'
Elena gave Loi a thoughtful look and motioned for them to sit. 'No you will not use it up, but there are some things you should be aware of. When you’re required to use your energy in a defensive manner, you must always make sure that you separate the energy you throw from the energy in your chest. If you keep it attached and flowing from the energy in your chest then you could use too much and that will kill you.' The women stared at her aghast.
'Why didn’t you tell us this sooner?' demanded Sian.
'Because it wasn’t necessary, you girls already do it very well. I have been watching you all quite closely to make sure,' Elena said. 'You can be assured there is no way I would let you progress until you had that correct.'
Kerak and Loushka landed just outside the training circle, Alek and Rumal came over to collect them.
Chapter Twenty Eight
ADA STOOD OUTSIDE their room when they arrived and Sian raced into the shower so the fabricer wouldn’t have to wait much longer. The others volunteered her to go first so now she stood in the middle of the room, still damp from the shower and wrapped in a towel, as Ada circled her with a measuring tape, muttering to herself. 'What’s the normal dress for a dance?' Sian asked.
'What? Oh, well for the evenings it isn’t anything too grand, not like what I’m creating for you all for the Prince’s ball,' Ada said with a shy smile. 'Typically it’s something which moves well when you dance. So I’m going to create you a dress with a circular skirt and I think a split on one side,' she looked thoughtful. Ada went to one of the armoires and began to rummage through it. The other three had finished their showers and sat watching. After locating several pieces, she turned and tossed them to Sian. 'Put these on and I’ll go to work.' Sian looked down at the items Ada had given her. A long skirt, a shirt and a belt. The styles all went together well but the color…Sian inwardly shrugged and put the clothes on.
KASSIE, LOI AND I jammed onto Kassie’s bed, watching while Ada circled Sian who stood wearing a long skirt and a slim fitting tunic top with a belt slung low on her hips. All in shades of rose. Loi nudged me and winked and Kassie muffled a giggle at Sian’s slightly pained look.
Ada’s head snapped up. 'What’s wrong?'
'Nothing.' Sian gave the three of us a firm look, so we all assumed straight faces.
'Nope, nothing. Lovely color,' enthused Loi.
Sian narrowed her eyes at Loi. Ada ignored us and focused her energy. That odd noise I’d heard while we trained was audible again, a strange, almost dead tone. I realized it must be the sound of someone using their gift and watched to see what she did next. The skirt began to shimmer then blur and the hem started to rise, fanning out, creating a more circular shape. A split opened over Sian’s right leg up to mid thigh and the waist line reshaped so it curved to sit on the hips. It was like watching an artist draw, all the decisions she made were precise and intent, her lips moving as she worked. I had to see this and climbed off the bed for a closer look, taking care to stay out of the way. At this distance I could see the fabric re-weaving and re-melding itself and watched in fascination.
When Ada finished Sian wore a dress with floaty, kimono-like short sleeves and a slim fitted bodice that led into a circular skirt with the split over one thigh. The three of us circled Sian and studied her outfit. All the seams had vanished and if you stared close enough you could see how the weaving of the fabric moved in several directions instead of the usual two. Loi dashed off to one of the armoires and began to search through it for the items Ada could use to create her piece.
SIAN STUDIED HER reflection in the mirror. A perfect fit, a very pretty dress, she frowned at herself, just not quite her. Noticing her frown, Cat touched her shoulder and arched an eyebrow.
'It’s beautiful… But not quite me,' Sian said apologetically, with a glance to Ada.
Ada beamed at her, surprising them. 'That’s fine. It’s much more fun if you have an idea of what you want. What shall we change?'
Frowning at her reflection Sian chewed on her lower lip while she considered some options. 'What about racer-back shoulders?' suggested Cat. 'Or a halter neck?'
Sian smiled. 'Ada, can you make it one shoulder? I want it to taper to a thin strap on the left and then remove the back of the top and have the strap follow over my left shoulder, across my back to my right hip.'
The fabricer’s eyes went wide and she hesitated. 'That’s rather daring. Can we make the skirt a little longer then?'
'Yes.' Sian said, glad she’d suggested it. 'Bring it down to mid calf and keep the split.'
THE END RESULT looked much more Sian. Kassie loved the open back and wished she could wear it. Unfortunately her breasts were really too big for her to pull it off and look decent. Sian was quite small in the bust, but
had nice hips, so the whole effect looked delicately sexy.
'CAN YOU ADJUST the color?' Sian turned to Ada after admiring her dress in the mirror. Across the room from the pile of clothes she sorted through, Loi snorted and looked up at Kassie, giving her a wink. Sian glared at Loi and turned back to Ada with a questioningly look. 'So?'
She shrugged. 'If you like. What color are you thinking?'
Sian considered her idea again. 'Let’s make the strap light rose, slowly darkening the color to deep rose, then black, when it reaches my waist. Then start to lighten it down the skirt until the bottom of the skirt is white, like it’s being dipped in dye.'
Ada’s eyebrows arched high, but she smiled while she set to work again. Kassie, Cat and Loi froze from rummaging through clothes to watch as Ada’s gift shimmered and slid over the fabric. They could feel the fabric respond to her coaxing. The completed dress left them spellbound. Sian spun and preened in front of the mirror. She hated to admit it but this dress, with its delicate style and striking coloring, was fast becoming her favorite piece of clothing. She couldn’t wait to see Daron’s face.
SIAN’S FACE BEGAN to look a little mischievous and she started to glow blue, just a hint. 'What are you thinking, Siany?' Loi asked curiously.
We laughed when she flushed at being caught out, pressing both hands to her red cheeks. 'Oh God, this is going to be embarrassing if I glow at every errrr… naughty thought.' We chuckled at that, then set to work with Ada, creating our outfits.
Dinner seemed to last forever. The four of us sat on the edge of our seats while we waited to go back and change. I looked forward to seeing their style of dancing. Everyone chatted away so I let my mind drift, thinking about my outfit for this evening. Ada had transformed a beautiful violet robe into a cowl necked, sleeveless dress. It finished on a diagonal and fit like a dream. I felt a pang of envy at Ada’s gift and it made me wonder what other gifts you could have. Dinner finally ended and we hurried to our suite.
The Arrival Page 29