Soul Bound

Chapter 27

Arkon flew in from the ocean and perched awkwardly on a large boulder nearby; his tail and back legs dangled in the water, while his front legs clung to the boulder he'd chosen to roost on. "How did it go?"

Sasha had asked him to keep his distance from me while I trained with her. She didn't want me to be reliant on having him around and using the magic in his aura as my source. Being Bound to him, I naturally wanted to draw out my power from him, but the whole point in the storm was for me to use another source, one that I could create at a moment's notice. It made sense. I couldn't always be by Arkon's side in my line of work, but I still might need to use magic; this way I wouldn't be defenseless. Once I've mastered the art of wielding lightning, of course. 

"I'm cooling off," I answered calmly him, trying hard not to let my failure bother me. It wasn't working in the slightest, and seemed to further remind me that I wasn't where I wanted to be at this point in my lessons. 

"Not well, then." His sympathy nudged its way into our Bond and eased my frustration a little bit. "You've made an impressive storm this month," he pointed out on a positive note. 

"I guess," I murmured, not ready to remind myself how far I had truly come in my training since being here. I wanted to stew and ruminate a little longer. It was difficult to do when you had an encouraging and supportive dragon as a partner.

You have overcome much, Little One, do not forget that.

The first part of my training was to help Sasha make a storm. Today, she let me do it on my own, and it was one of the biggest storms so far. Almost too big, Sasha said, mentioning some people had flooding issues in the Under City, but I didn't let that get in the way of my mood; I was able to contain the storm within the edge of the cove without too much difficulty.

After my success today, Sasha deemed me ready to proceed to the next part of my training, which was learning to control the lightning I summoned. She said it would be easier for me to start melding it around a pre-existing object, in this case my dagger. Later down the road, I'll be able to form a lightning dagger, or any shape.

Considering how well my attempt today went, I wouldn't be making shapes any time soon.

"Eva," Arkon scorned, sensing my turn in mood. "Do not let this deter you. Given time, you will overcome this, as you overcame every other obstacle thus far."

I ground my teeth. He was right. I knew he was, but I wasn't making progress as quickly as I wanted. People were counting on me. Abroia was counting on me. How many people have died because I was taking too long to learn how my magic worked?

The storm over the cove fizzled out while I seethed on my rock, because I'd completely let it slip from my mind. Static still clung to the air. I was tempted to keep going, just one more time--maybe I'd get it right this time--but practice this morning had almost drained me dry and the sun was sapping what energy I had left out of me. 

There would be no more magic today. 

Taking a deep breath, I inhaled the cool, salty air, allowing its calming trance to wash over me. Now was not the time to be thinking of what I couldn't do; it would only frustrate me further. I wouldn't be able to do any of the things I wanted to do if I couldn't control myself. 

I let the sounds of the waves to take me away, the splatter of water against my skin seep into my bones as the waves hit my rock. There was nothing but the clouds, the water, and me sitting in between. My heart slowed down, my muscles relaxing. I was so in tune with the world around me, I moved with the wind, feeling it take my hair away. . . .

"Very good control, Eva," Arkon praised.

Sensing someone approaching, I opened my eyes. Bruce was standing at the base of my rock, covering his face as a wave crashed against the shore. "Let's go, Eva."