Broken Kingdom

16

- Thomas -

I was preparing to be delved under the freezing water of the lake. I kept my eyes closed, hoping it would come soon. When it didn't I carefully opened one of my eyes, staring below. The water wasn't frozen, but it was moving away, a wind blowing steadily. I looked up in surprise. That wind came from me. I felt my bones singing, energy releasing, like a chain had been released from them. I looked towards my feet where Eira's shadows kept me from falling completely. I managed to let out a relieved sigh before that feeling of being alive faltered and slumbered again, drowning my arms and hair in the water of the lake. I heard Eira chuckle before I was janked back to shore by those same shadows. She dropped me on the stones, and crossed her arms.

I hurried to my feet, which was a mistake. My hair was soaking, water dripping down my back because of it. "You are cruel, Eira," I snarled as I took of my vest and shirt, looking through the packs for something dry. She kept quiet, unmoving, like the statue she could be from time to time. "Did you enjoy it? Torturing me like that?" I called again, looking in her eyes. Those silvery grey eyes that could look right through me. There was no joy in them, no disappointment either. Just curiosity.
"Maybe a little. Though you are way too comfortable using wind. The weather has many elements you can use. Right now for example," she explained in that almost uninterested tone she always used. Such calm, the same lethal calm she always had.
"Right now? When I'm soaking wet? Want me to call in rain?"
"Raise the temperature, Storm. You might find it to your liking." I froze and blinked. Oh. She must've seen my realization, because the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

"What if I scorch everything because of the heat?" I ask, more a cynical response than a genuine question.
"Then I'll knock you out before you can. Same with the freezing." I chuckled and looked at her.
"You wouldn't."
"You doubt me?" A challenging look in her eyes as she adjusted her posture. A warrior, that's what she was. I caved and shook my head.
"No. I don't." She simply nodded knowingly.
"Raise the temperature, Storm. Feel that tingling energy that courses through your veins. That burning sensation you know you don't have to fear. Feel it, then feel the cold outside your skin." I closed my eyes and followed her words.

The humming in my veins started vibrating more as I reached for it. I calmed my breath, something I had practiced on and on during the day, and the vibrating calmed. It stayed there, inside me, more controlled now. "Good. You feel the control? Guide it, don't let it guide you. Now feel the cold." Eira's voice was firm but reassuring. A steady guide. I felt a cold breeze graze my skin. "Now warm it. Just around your skin." A clear command. I once again steadied the humming in my veins before I let it grow, sending warmth around me. I could control the warmth, the air. I felt the warmth on my skin, that cold breeze nowhere near.

"Good. Keep it steady. Just around yourself." I felt my hair drying and was no longer shivering from the water running down my back. The water itself disappeared sooner too. The vibrations caught up again. "Keep breathing Thomas. Don't strain yourself. Breathe, like you've been practicing." How did she know that? How did she know so much without me ever telling her, or anybody for that matter? I pushed the thoughts aside and listened. When I went for a breath, I noticed how labored my breathing had become. The breathing was hard, but worked. The vibrations stayed, but I felt in control. I was controlling the temperature around me.

"Do you feel steady?" I gave a nod. "Good. Now, let it slowly simmer down. Contain it." I did what she asked. That became harder than I thought. The vibrations, though in my control, wanted to keep raising. Wanted me to use stronger magic. I kept breathing. Painfully slow, that cold breeze returned. And kept getting colder. My breath hitched in my throat. This was too much. Too cold. "Thomas, listen. You're doing great. Keep breathing. I'm here. Nothing can happen. Don't focus on the cold, and steady your magic. Let go after that." I breathed, again, and again, and again, until I steadied the vibrations once again. The humming went down, and I let go, opening my eyes. Nothing had changed. The lake was still water, the sun dancing off the waves. The fallen leaves were still brown, no frost or fire visible.