We stood in motionless silence for some time; Merkell's words were like a warm breeze that settled over you and soaked into your skin. I believed every word he said without question, which was a new experience for me. His eyes roamed over the five of us but stopped when they reached Kayle and we looked down the line.
"I wondered when this would become relevant to me, sir" Kayle said with a light smirk, I could tell the words had hit him too though.
"Kayle, you are no exception to my words, you may not have magic but you are every bit a part of this as the others. You must also learn to understand magic, you must know how it works and how to help in the event that things go wrong and your Slingers will be of no use. Come closer, all of you, I need to tell you something very crucial to your position, that only a handful of people in the whole of Nentarli know."
We grouped around Merkell and he waved a hand around us, suddenly a translucent blue bubble appeared around us and I raised a brow at the others.
Blaike gestured towards the bubble, "It is a magical bubble, nobody can see or hear us, it does not last very long however."
Emy and I nodded our understanding, we were to be quiet and let Merkell explain what he needed to say before the bubble popped.
"If time was not of the essence I would not be telling you this yet, but Kayle must know his full role before we can proceed. Kayle, do you know what a vessel is?"
Kayle tilted his head like Emy did sometimes, "You mean like a ship?"
"Or something that can hold, water for example?" I asked out loud without meaning to, I think I knew where Merkell was going with his words.
"Almost, yes but have you ever heard of a human vessel?" The others shook their heads but I knew my thoughts were going in the right direction and Merkell smiled at me. "I think you have the idea, don't you, Cassandra? Yes, Kayle could become a vessel to any one of you and your magic if the occasion demanded it. This is a very closely kept secret because it can be fatal to the vessel themselves."
I frowned at him while the others tried to soak it all in, "But a vessel isn't supposed to be harmed by whatever it's holding. That's the whole point of it being a vessel for something."
Merkell nodded, "Yes that is true, please let me finish, it is fatal in those who do not know what they are doing. Imagine if Riltresik's forces knew this was possible? They could give magic to any person they wished and once they tried to use it they would kill themselves in the process. It cleans up their mess quite nicely and leaves very little evidence. However, with the proper training, Kayle could become a successful vessel to the four of you and help whenever you will need it."
"I still do not understand how that would work, and not kill me in the process? I know magic users can give strength and magic to each other willingly but how is it going to help the others if they can give me magic to hold onto?" Kayle was frowning deeply, and I could understand why he'd be worried.
Unlike when Kaleb gave Blaike strength against Merkell back in our world, they were both magic users and Kayle isn't. I wouldn't do something that could potentially kill him just so he could help us magically, he had much better skills he could utilise that wouldn't kill him.
"It will not kill you once I have instructed you, it is only deadly to the untrained or those who purposely wish another harm. Do you trust, myself, Kaleb, Blaike, Emily and Cassandra?" Merkell asked in a serious tone, eyeing Kayle closely.
"Yes, with my life but-"
"Then there is no question it will work, we will start small with just a little magic at a time. Once they have learned more and once you understand magic to its fullest, you will see how it will help to give some of their magic to you. In due time, but you must know that I would not put you in such a predicament if I did not believe you could handle it."
Kayle still didn't seem convinced and neither did the others, but the bubble decided to pop at that precise moment and Merkell changed the subject very quickly. We were made to stand in a wide circle while Merkell stood in the centre, the paper and pencil were floating outside of the circle and the pencil didn't stop writing while we were out there.
"We shall start with a basic lesson in magic, as I said before you must know how your mind and body work when magic is being used. It is not an ever flowing supply but it is not limited to one certain amount either. When you first begin using it, you will be able to perform little bursts of magic that will leave you feeling tired and depleted. The more you practice and progress, the more the bursts will increase in strength as well as duration. Over time you will be able to do more powerful things without getting tired so easily."
"Like working out or jogging everyday, you can do more and more once you've conditioned your body?" Emy asked with her head tilted slightly to the side.
"Yes, Emily, it is just the same with any exertion of the body, or in fact the mind."
"Like learning at school and progressing over the years," I said with a little too much eagerness, earning a smirk from Emy.
Merkell however was nodding, "Yes that is also quite accurate. And once the magic leaves your body it becomes its own energy, doing or going wherever you wanted it to. Spells are a little different, they take much more time and effort. They stay tethered to you and take a little of your energy everyday. But we do not need to get into that right now, you understand the fundamentals of magic and that is what we need to begin.
"In the following days you will be learning how to perform magic and then stretching your abilities to see how much you can manage each day without becoming exhausted, Blaike and Kaleb this also applies to you. From what I have gleaned from Nenny, you will progress more quickly and strongly than anyone ever has."
"You've spoken with Nenny?" I asked in shock, which was shared in equal measure with the others.
Merkell nodded again, "I have, she came to me yesterday and we had a lengthy discussion, it was... informative to say the least."
From the look on his face I could tell that it was much more than that.
"What did you talk about?" Emy asked curiously.
"The current situation... which we should get back to at once. We should begin with simply tapping into your magic, Cassandra has already managed this so it should be easier for her to do again. Emily, I'm afraid this may take you a little longer but I know you will get it. Your magic is buried deep inside you, dormant for the moment but you must wake it up, find a way to bring it out."
"What, do I have to strain or something?" Emy asked a little too seriously and I couldn't help but laugh at her. She gave me a small smile but looked back to Merkell with the same seriousness. "I don't know how to wake up a magic inside of me that I didn't even know I had."
Someone sounded like they were suppressing a chuckle, but Merkell wasn't in a laughing mood.
"You must focus and marshal your thoughts, it should feel as though you have clenched muscles deep inside of you. You have to release those metaphorical muscles and the magic will flow."
Emy snorted, "You want me to get rid of cramp? If I could do that I'd be rich."
Emy appeared to have brushed it off with humour but I could tell she was trying.
"How do you test for magical potential in kids?" I asked to take the attention off of Emy for a moment.
Merkell turned to look at me, "We use a training exercise which releases their magic, but it is much simpler in children as they have not been holding onto it for so long. Being in the other world for the length of time you were, it weakened your connection to anything magical and so. Your magic was buried deeper than any other Nentarlian in history."
I frowned as I watched Emy try and fail again, I was strangely glad that mine had already been unlocked. I did not want to be where Emy was right now. If she couldn't do it, I wasn't sure how I would have been able to if I'd had to.
I sighed when she tried again, "Isn't there some way to bring it out? Like I did with mine but with less pain..."
The guys laughed under their breath but Merkell ignored it as he turned to look at Emy, eyeing her for a moment.
"There may be, I am starting to see a pattern... but, it must be different. Kayle, Blaike and Kaleb, will you step over here for a moment?"
He gestured towards the edge of the garden, leaving quite a distance between us and Merkell led them away. He turned when he reached his desired spot, suddenly his hands clenched and Kayle, Kaleb and Blaike were pushed to the ground. They struggled but it didn't seem to help.
"You must use magic to free yourselves." Merkell stated to the guys then faced Emy and I.
All of a sudden a line of fire sprang up between us and them before either of us could make a move, it stretched out to either side of the garden. Even though there was no smoke, I knew that it was real and it would burn me if I got too close.
"This time you must defend yourselves, let us see how you fare on your own."
At first I thought he had actually lost his marbles, the guys were on the ground somewhere behind the fire and he was about to do something that we would usually be protected from. I side glanced at Emy but the moment we both took our attention away from Merkell, he struck.
An object came flying towards us at breakneck speed, it was big enough to make out and I wondered where he had managed to get the boulder from without us noticing. I dived aside just as Emy did and the boulder missed us by an inch, it hurtled away but it didn't stop, instead it came around for another attempt at knocking us out.
This time it aimed closer to Emy and, although I knew it wouldn't kill her, it could do some serious damage. I tried to pull at the muscles deep inside, the same way I would reach into the depths for some courage to do something I hated. I was surprised it came from a similar place but I didn't have much time to marvel at that fact.
I mimicked what Blaike had done with his hands every time I'd watched him use magic and watched as the boulder veered off in a different direction and struck the ground. Everything happened in just a few seconds but it felt like a lifetime. I suddenly felt a wave of tiredness, it wasn't too bad and I smiled widely when I heard a round of applause.
Merkell was clapping, "Well done, Cassandra, you have found your magic once again and successfully used it to your advantage. Emily, now it is your turn."
I watched and waited for the next object to fly out at her, she could do it she just had to concentrate. An object came out of nowhere, a small wooden chair this time and it was rocking from side to side, there was no way she would be able to dive away from this one.
It advanced with speed and I waited for Emy to use some kind of magic, she looked like she was trying but it wasn't coming. The chair came within arms reach when she tried to kick it away with a roundhouse kick. She only managed to get herself tangled up in the wooden legs, falling to the floor in a heap.
I ran to help her up and she groaned in agitation. "Throwing random objects at me isn't gonna help anything, I don't need magic to save myself."
I felt both sorry and proud of her, Merkell seemed to take it as a challenge, however. He scratched at his chin for a moment and then smiled, something that worried me with his current way of thinking. I knew I was right to be scared when I was suddenly pulled off of my feet by an invisible force, which then began to drag me across the ground towards the roaring line of fire.
"Merkell! Are you crazy?!" I yelled as I realised what he was trying to do.
I reached out for something to hold onto and Emy was there to grab me. She attempted to pull me back but she was dragged along with me towards the fire.
"He wouldn't let you get burnt, he just wouldn't," Emy gasped out between tugs on my arms.
"This is magical fire, it will not burn Cassandra but it will hurt, a lot and you are the only one that can stop that pain. Nothing else will help, you must use magic to save your best friend from agony!"
Merkell's voice was instructive but it held an undertone that said he was curious about what would happen. I was not so curious, there had to be other ways to help Emy release her magic that didn't involve hurting me. I held tightly to her hands but we were just being dragged along the ground like a piece of rope.
I tried to use my own magic but it wasn't working, I assumed Merkell was blocking it somehow. I looked towards my feet and saw that we were getting close to the flames now. I stretched up to see Emy's face beaded with sweat, she was exerting herself to the point that her eyes were almost bloodshot.
"Emy, it's fine, give in and we can try something else." I hoped if she gave in now then Merkell would find a different way before I had any pain to endure.
"No, I can... do this, ugh," she lost her grip on my arms only to recover it with my feet just inches away from the flames.
"Brute strength won't help, you have to use magic or we may as well stop now. If you can't find it yet then we can try again but I'd rather not be barbecued if that's alright, I've had enough pain this month." I chuckled despite the heat I could now feel against my body.
Emy grunted and shook her head, "I can, do it... it's just, hard that's... all."
"It's a shame you don't have any fabric scissors on you now, you could cut the magic rope." I joked, remembering the huge pair of scissors she kept in her suite for cutting materials.
It almost looked like a light had just turned on in Emy's mind and she let go of me, leaving me in shock. She was catching her breath but instead of going to find something to help me, she ran towards the flames, standing between them and me while I moved ever closer. I frowned at the intensity of the heat and tried to watch Emy as she closed her eyes. My faith in her was resolute despite the inferno I was looming towards.
After what felt like an eternity, Emy moved again and brought her hand down in a karate chop motion, the dragging stopped immediately. I slumped on the ground and tried to catch my breath while Emy stood there looking awestruck. A moment later the flames sputtered out and Merkell, Kaleb, Blaike and Kayle were standing on the other side.
I didn't bother to get up as I glared at them.
"Your crazy stupid plan worked then." I spoke to Merkell directly and the guys stared at me in alarm but I didn't care what they thought of the way I spoke to him.
"It did, yes but I would not have called it crazy or stupid," Merkell responded, unfazed.
"You could have found a better way to do it than trying to cause me anymore pain, couldn't you?"
Merkell walked closer and peered down at me, "I could but it would have taken too much time and this was very effective in motivating Emily. I am sorry to tell you but despite the pain you have already been through, it will not be the last, you can be certain of that. This is a war, there will be casualties and pain everywhere."
I hated when I couldn't argue back with him, my annoyance deflated with the severity of the situation and I let Kaleb help me up. Emy was still looking awestruck and my brow raised when she finally looked at me.
"That felt awesome! I don't even feel tired at all, can we do some more?"
I smiled at her, as did the others and Merkell nodded. "We will do more, many more, now that your magic has been unlocked we can work on it without the threat of life or limbs. Not that that means I will be going soft on any of you. Your guard must be up at all times until I dismiss this lesson, are we clear?"
We nodded as a group and continued on with the lesson, now that Emy and I had unlocked our magic we were able to summon it to use more easily. Merkell had the four of us moving and throwing random objects he picked out, while making Kayle take notes on what happened or how we did it. It didn't seem fair that Kayle didn't have magic but by the end of the lesson, I think he was more than relieved. We were tired and aching, I felt like I had been pummelled with a meat tenderiser. I was starting to get a headache and I had a feeling they didn't have painkillers here.
"That was interesting," Kayle stated while folding up his notes, he was smiling too widely to not be a little smug.
"Yeah, interesting and exhausting," Emy said with a yawn, rubbing her shoulders.
"I just want to shower and crawl into bed," I said as a yawn escaped me.
It was getting dark out and I knew it was far too early for bed but I could have slept for a week the way I was feeling.
"You must eat once you have had a little sleep, food will be sent to each of your rooms if you are not feeling up to coming to the dining room." Merkell said.
He walked in behind us, the floating pencil and paper had disappeared and so had his attitude, he was kind and pleasant again.
We nodded at his words and disappeared up to our rooms, I was still wishing for a shower when I placed my hand on the bronze panel to ask for some help with my bath. Mal arrived with another girl I was familiar with now, Carla; she had black hair, green eyes and loved to read as much as I did. Which is exactly what our sporadic conversations had been about.
They helped me run a bath, which took much longer when they disappeared to get some strange bottles. They poured a few drops of each into the water and suddenly the bathroom filled with the scents of many different fruits.
"The ointments will help with your aches, Miss Cassandra," Mal explained with a knowing smile.
I thanked her, and Carla, who placed a towel by the bath. They both left and I attempted to get out of my clothes as quickly as possible. The ointments helped more than Mal said they would and soon I was feeling refreshed. I let my thoughts wander to the magic we had learned while I bathed and changed.
I was thinking about trying some of that magic as I climbed into bed, it felt comfier somehow but that could have been my tiredness. I didn't get to try out any magic however, as soon as my head hit the pillow, sleep took a hold instantly. I managed to wake up long enough to eat something a servant had brought up but no sooner had I finished the last bite than I was falling back to sleep again.