He didn't remember much, only that he had screamed the whole fall. His wings had broken free and fluttered wildly and uncoordinated. Inwardly, he said goodbye to everyone he knew and cursed his mate at the same time. About five yards above the surface of the water, Belial caught him. He wrapped his arms around Aleks' upper body and with a sweeping curve they flew back up the cliff.
Once at the top, Belial carefully placed him on the ground. Completely mentally exhausted, he sat there.
"Are you fucking kidding me!?! I thought I'd crash on the ground at full speed!", Aleks shouted at the ground more than Belial. His demon only raised his eyebrows. Stunned, Aleks stared at his mate.
"Calm down, Tsuka."
Calm down? CALM DOWN? I almost kicked the bucket! I wish I had puked on his shirt on the return flight, then he wouldn't have enjoyed it as much as I did.
"I think I should learn to fly," Aleks said after calming down a bit.
"You do."
"Please don't tell me that this was the training."
His demon shrugged his shoulders and replied, "How do you think birds learn to fly?"
Images of small baby birds thrown out of the nest by their mother appeared before his inner eye. Poor babies. But that's how nature worked.
"I have to go through this, huh?" Belial nodded.
"Did you too...?"
"Yes, only that I wasn't caught." Uh oh.
Aleks stood up and loosened his muscles. He briefly stretched his wings and then folded them back together.
"Then let's go, again."
Belial was surprised that Aleks shook off the shock so quickly. He had deliberately not warned him, as Aleks had to learn to fly intuitively. It had to become a part of him, as natural as breathing. They tried more times until Aleks' muscles were too exhausted.
In addition to combat training, flight training was now also added. His mate was a merciless trainer. Aleks now let himself fall off the cliff without fear, opened his wings, and went into a gliding flight. Ok, that worked. The first hurdle has been overcome.
Belial had flown next to him all the time to catch him just in case.
"Well done, Tsuka. Now let's practice a right turn. To do this, pull up the left wing and lean to the side."
Aleks tried to implement the instruction. He slightly lifted the left wing and fell into a slight right turn. His demon followed him.
"Very good, now align your wing back."
When Aleks wanted to withdraw the wing, a small gust caught it. This brought him out of balance, and he began to flutter like wild.
"Bel!" he shouted, and his demon was on the spot. He wrapped his arms around his angel, and they landed. He rewarded his beloved with a kiss.
"Well done. Let's continue." He heard only a groan.
After flight training came combat training again. Aleks was standing with Lao in the training area in front of the house. Lao stretched out her hand. A shadow flowed out of her hand and formed a kind of shield.
"Imagine a shield forming. Draw your magic out of your hand and shape it," she explained.
Aleks concentrated and tried to direct his magic out of his hand. He had learned to strengthen his hands with magic or to create the energy sickles. The light flowed out of his hand like a wobbly mass, but before he could even begin to shape it, his magic dissolved. As if you had simply pulled the plug.
In recent weeks, his combat skills had increased enormously, but he had made little progress in the field of magic. After a few training sessions, he was now able to glide, but he was still miles away from the vertical start.
Aleks sighed.
"I'm sorry Lao. I don't know what the reason is." Lao patted his back.
"Don't put pressure on yourself. Demons learn to deal with magic from birth, it is a part of our lives from the beginning, like breathing. You've never had that experience. You just slipped into this world," she tried to reassure him.
"I have to go now, I still have an important meeting," the warrior said and walked away.
Aleks sat down on the porch and put his head on his knees. What am I doing wrong?
"All right, kid?" a well-known voice asked. He looked up and looked into the face of the demon.
"Lucan?" Aleks shouted in surprise and jumped up. The demon smiled.
"Why so sad? Did your mate annoy you?"
"No, no. I'm okay. I'm just a bit down because I have issues with my magic," Aleks replied.
"Issues?"
Aleks nodded and explained, "I can't really control my magic. It's best to show you."
Aleks repeated the drama. The magic wafted out of his hand and dissolved instantly in the air. Lucan watched the whole thing and remained silent.
"Kid, could it be that you see magic as an object?" Aleks didn't understand what Lucan was getting at.
"Magic is a part of you, like the blood in your body or the breath in your lungs. It belongs to you and cannot be separated. Focus on your breathing."
Aleks followed his instructions and concentrated. He breathed in and out.
"Feel the air fill your lungs and leave them. It flows like the energy in your body. Magic is in your body, pulsating, alive. Look at my hand." Lucan's hand began to flicker. The flicker spread in waves over his arm.
"Close your eyes and try to feel the flow of your magic."
Aleks closed his eyes and took a deep breath, in and out. Concentrated he listened to his heartbeat. Little by little, he felt small waves wandering through his body. There were hundreds of small lines that assembled into a large mesh that ran through his entire body.
"Now send an impulse from your hand to your foot and follow the path."
Aleks clenched his left fist, sent a magic impulse with a small movement, and steered it through the countless paths into his foot. He opened his eyes and saw how both his left hand and left leg had begun to glow. Amazing. Lucan seemed satisfied.
"Magic isn't just energy. Magic is so much more. It's a muscle, a heartbeat, a movement." Then Lucan's arm began to change. White feathers burst out of his skin and grew. Within seconds, his left arm had turned into a wing. With a graceful movement, he moved them up and down.
"Magic is a part of my body and I decide what it should be."
Aleks understood. He had seen magic as an object until now. But it wasn't a tool, but it was like the power of a device. The base, the source.
"Magic is everywhere, not just in your body. It's around you, soaking the air and the ground."
"Commander Lucan, welcome," Juri's voice interrupted them. Juri, Alas, Nero, Samuel, and Cone came out of the building and respectfully bowed to Lucan.
"What makes you visit?" Nero asked him. Lucan changed his arm back and turned to the warriors.
"I need to talk to Belial," he replied briefly. The kindness he had shown to Aleks had given way to an authoritarian attitude.
"Our leader is in the meeting room. He can now welcome you," replied Nero – the diplomat with heart and soul. Lucan nodded. He turned briefly to Aleks and patted his shoulder with a smile.
"Maybe you can demonstrate your skills to me afterwards," Lucan said in a friendly voice.
Cone saw the friendly gesture. How could Belial's mate have a friendly relationship with a commander of Astaroth?
He couldn't help it, he had to ask him. "My Lord, what is your relationship with Belial's Kirash, if I may allow myself the question?" asked Cone to the horror of his comrades.
"Cone," Nero hissed, was interrupted by a movement of Lucan's hand.
"I don't think I'm accountable to you in any way." The other warriors looked at the ground.
"However, since I assume that this question was asked out of concern for your leader, I will answer it." Aleks could feel that the air was getting heavier.
"I owe Aleksander my life, which is why I am loyal to him as far as my position allows."
That seemed to have a deep impact. The warriors didn't seem to be able to believe it – especially Cone.
"Forgive my skepticism, but how could he have been able to save your life?" Because he is weak. This remained unspoken but hung in the air.
What did I actually do to him? Anger rose in Aleks. Slowly, he was tired of Cone's hostile behavior. It wasn't as if he had chosen the situation.
"Are you questioning my integrity right now? Aleksander freed me from my imprisonment and not only that. He put my life above his own. Enough of the questioning is enough, take me to your leader now," Lucan replied in a cold voice.
Nero nodded hastily and accompanied Lucan into the house. The warriors looked at Aleks in disbelief, then followed Nero in silence, leaving Aleks alone.
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An old friend comes to visit.What is the reason for Lucan's visit?Did his explanation help solve Aleks' problem?
Your Mouse Goddess