First Apprentice

Chapter 7 Part 1

"Seriously, let go."

Joel's hand fell away. "What's wrong?"

"Has anyone mentioned my other," I paused. Would he understand if I explained or would he be just like everyone else? Learn better control, Alannah. Focus on your eyes, Alannah. People aren't purple, Alannah. Everyone acted like it was something I should fix. I couldn't. I tried. I practiced constantly, but never managed more than a minute. "I see auras, not skin. Always. It's not something I can turn off. It just is."

"Let me guess. Your vision changes when you shift, right?" When I nodded, Joel sighed. In three steps, he crossed the clearing and picked up my cloak. With my cloak slung over one arm, he gestured towards my rock. "What you described is a rare and highly coveted trait found within select Dracon lines. Ask Diane during your physical. After running a dozen tests and poking you with everything short of a sword, she'll tell you the same thing. We should talk to her before sparring again."

Joel flicked the corners of my cloak. It billowed up then settled over the rock. He seated himself and patted a spot beside him. Wary, I sat down. "My magic increased," he said, answering my unspoken question. "The Marstow liken power levels to a lake. A child is like a lake before a flood. The level may increase a little, but generally stays about the same. At puberty, the flood starts. You start piling on sandbags, but a little water always spills over. The first transformation blows out the dam and builds a new one twice as deep. The new lake never floods and always has the same amount of water. My magic shouldn't increase. Ever. Judging by your reaction, we both felt whatever happened, which means we need to speak with Diane and figure it out. As you'll be Terry's apprentice, I doubt we'll ever take the field together, but it's always a possibility. Surprises kill."

"Don't put words in my mouth. I haven't agreed to the apprenticeship, yet."

"Let's hear it, then."

"I will not sign the standard contract. Non-negotiable."

"Why not?"

Head tilted, I studied the patterns in his aura. Faint yellows dominated by a chestnut brown almost as nice as his eyes. Recalling his human form, my face heated. A nice specimen as Endellion would say. Excitement and approval. Maybe he'd understand. "How did you sleep last night?"

"Well enough. The bed's a little too soft."

"I slept about two hours. I tell Grandfather I hear the Dracon Gate screaming, but that's not entirely true. They're torturing the over soul herself, not just the gate." Blood red sparks danced around his head. Joel grabbed my knee. His fingers dug into my flesh, bruising. Foreign magic invaded my core. Heat enveloped us as my magic fought back.

"Don't," he whispered. Don't fight back when he attacked me or tell the truth? "What's her name?"

"Whose?"

"Don't play dumb, Alannah. The over soul's."

"Melantha."

"How do you know they're targeting her as opposed to breaking the primary seal?"

My breath caught in my throat. So that's why they hadn't acted. They thought the Dracon were merely stripping off the primary seal so they could rearrange their existing territories, not destroying their gate altogether. "I don't hear her in my dreams. I am her. Last night, my kinsmen repeatedly stabbed me in the stomach, waited until I was almost dead, healed me, and did it again. I woke up with bruises around my neck from someone choking me. It's not the first time."

Cursing under his breath, Joel released my leg and dropped his head into his hands. "Can you shield your mind at all?"

"When I'm awake. Sometimes, Selim or the Ancient Gate will shield me so I can sleep. He says it's because my ancestors either willingly gave their souls to her or serve her as guardians. It's unpleasant, but not dangerous."

"He?"

"The Ancient Gate. He won't tell me his name."

Silence stretched between us. Joel's aura settled back into its usual pattern. His anger was controlled, but not forgotten. "Over time, gates deteriorate. A number of factors influence how long a gate will stand. The over soul's initial strength, number of souls consumed – "

"Donated blood, the maintaining sealer's magical strength. Give me some credit. I started summoning at six. I know the various construction methods and their flaws."

"– The Dracon prefer quantity over quality. We knew the gate was weakening, but thought the problem lay with their sealers. By treaty, we can't interfere with a clan gate unless it's in danger of immediate failure. Even with your information, all I can do is have the gate summoned for an evaluation. So you want an heir contract," he said, changing the subject. "You realize the clans will begin digging into your background."

"An unknown dae from a world ravaged by red fever taking an apprentice seat will raise questions regardless. I am Iver. My line holds a monopoly granted by Rainer-dae himself, the only such monopoly to survive into the present day. Our name is older than the gates themselves and I'm it, the sole surviving main line Iver with all the rights and duties that entails. The pipes the Border Guard depends on for safe drinking water come from my factories and are made with magically inert copper from my mines. That relationship alone necessitates an heir contract." His answering growl sent tingles down my spine. Wholly inappropriate.

"You expect me to believe the heiress to Iver Copper works in a brothel for spare change?"

"Grandfather holds the purse strings and will until my majority. Two years ago, I presented my plan for surviving my transformation with my body, mind, current family, and mating rights intact. Grandfather ordered me to stop working on my transformation seal. When I refused, he cut my allowance. I suppose he thought my disobedience mattered little when I couldn't afford the materials for my experiments. I started busking the next morning. Six months later, Pell hired me off the street. The pay's good."

Joel fixed his gaze on me like a hawk fixated on a rodent. He grabbed my chin and lifted it until our eyes met. "How long before you ran?"