The only thing that kept me from losing my mind for the rest of the week was the promise of a sparring lesson with Gavon. Every free moment I had, I was scouring the primer, looking for something that could help me be ready for whatever he had planned. But the primer was, for once, unhelpful. There was one line in the preface about attack spells, but the only thing I could find about a duel was one section:
In the Magical communities, it is oft the nature of Man to have disagreements. While most Magicals may settle disputes of business or trade through mediation by the Clan- or Guildmaster, on the occasion of accounts that may not be settled with words, Magic may be used in the form of a Duel. The rules of the Match will be set by the participants, or, in such cases where it is merited, by the respective Clan- or Guildmasters.
It is recommended, however, that words be used before magic.
I couldn't argue with that logic, but at the same time, I couldn't stop thinking about how the spell had felt and how much I wanted to feel it again. Sometimes, I wanted it so bad that my hands began to spark, and I had to quickly divert my thoughts to something less magical.
I wasn't surprised that Marie left me at school, but the ominous black clouds in the sky were a different story. And I hadn't gotten two steps before the deluge began.
I cursed and ran back to the school, standing under the awning and wiping rain out of my eyes. Carefully, I tested a bit of a magic to dry my clothes, and to my delight, the wetness disappeared without any adverse effects.
I looked at my hands, considering how…well, un-eventful the past few days had been. The magical hum was there, but I didn't feel like my magic was bursting at the seams to get out. Only when I was thinking about sparring did things get a bit purple.
I wondered if it had anything to do with the spell I'd used on Marie, but I couldn't ask anyone about it. Not when I was almost back on Jeanie's good side.
So, instead, I sat down on a bench and found the notebook that I'd been using to jot down questions for Gavon. I squinted out at the parking lot, barely visible in the rain, and wondered how long the storm was going to take and if it meant a cancellation on our sparring plans. A quick check on my phone told me it would pass within the hour.
But that still meant I was stuck here until it passed.
Unless…
I summoned my primer from the space under my bed where I'd hidden it and flipped the pages until I found what I was looking for.
One of the most helpful aspects of Magic is the ability to transport oneself from one place to another. The effort is very similar to the Summoning Spell, but care must be taken, as physical harm or death can come to the untrained Magical.
A Magical must take great care to Transport to an unknown place, and the longer the distance of the Transport, the more magic is required. This is why Transport across the Atlantic is ill-advised.
The TRANSPORT spell occurs in three acts;
ONE, the identification of the Magical to be transported;
TWO, the discovery of the location to which the Magical shall be transported;
THREE, the use of Magic to transport the Magical to the location.
It is recommended that a Magical first practice their Transport with the help of a Master until a comprehensive understanding is achieved.
I chewed my lip. I knew the distance between my school and my house like the back of my hand, but something about the warning in the book made me nervous to try it without help. And the rain had stopped, as was the case in the weird weather capital of the world, so it was time for another three-mile walk back to my house.
I wasn't sure what time Gavon would be meeting me, but I made sure that every single piece of my homework was finished before I came downstairs.
Jeanie was in the living room, staring at her phone. She hadn't said two words to me since the mishap with Marie, which was better than her yelling at me. But I still wasn't sure if I was in trouble or not.
"H-hey, Jeanie," I said slowly.
She glanced up from her phone then back down. "Yes?"
"Can I go take a walk?"
Another glance. "Why?"
"Um…" I shrugged. "Clear my head?"
She stared at her phone for almost too long then heaved out a loud sigh. "Fine. Take your phone."
I pulled the device from my back pocket and waved it. "Got it."
She didn't say anything else, so I inched toward the door, scurrying out before she changed her mind. The storms of the afternoon were a long-gone memory, and the sunset cast a pretty orange glow over the houses. Gavon was already waiting for me at the park, his face lighting up when he saw me approach.
"How's your sister?" he asked.
"My s… Oh, she's fine," I said with a wave of my hand. "Nicole made her a healing potion."
Something like amusement crossed his face. "How bad was it?"
"What? The potion? It smelled for days."
He laughed. "No, your punishment."
"Oh, it actually wasn't that bad," I said, rubbing my hands along my arms. "Weirdly."
"So maybe you should give your aunt a little more credit, hm?" His eyes twinkled.
I pursed my lips at him. "Aren't you supposed to be on my side?" He laughed, a genuine sound that dissolved whatever annoyance I'd had. "I've done my homework and I've been a good girl, so…sparring lesson?"
"I suppose you won't stop asking until we have one, hm?"
"Nope."
Another smile from him. "We can't spar here, though. Too many people, and I'm not quite sure that we should be throwing attack spells around where the nonmagicals can see us. So we'll practice a transport spell."
"A transport spell?" I asked, excited. "I read about them today, but I didn't want to attempt one—"
"As well you shouldn't without supervision." He held out his arm to me. "Hold on, and I'll walk you through it."
I placed my hands on his forearm and waited.
"Now, do you remember the three steps?"
"Figure out where you want to go, use your magic to find it, then go."
"Good girl. But since you don't know where we're going, we're going to do things a little differently. Close your eyes." I did so. "Now, can you find my magic?"
I released the grip on my magic and it smashed into his. He chuckled. "Bit excessive."
"You could feel that?"
"Indeed. You've still got a lot of pent-up energy, it seems." As he spoke, I felt his magic grab hold of mine as if he were taking my hand. Then his magic and mine zoomed through time and space to a dark spot where there was sand, and water, and the smell of the ocean and—
And I opened my eyes and I was standing on the white sands next to a rolling ocean.
"Holy crap!" I said, releasing him and spinning around. "How did we do that? What just happened? Where are we? What—"
He held up his hands. "One question at a time, Alexis."
"Where are we?" I asked. "I mean, I know this is the beach, but—"
"This is a training ground for a local Air Force base about fifty miles east of you. There are no people, no roads. Plenty of space to practice. Any…mess we make can be attributed to their munitions testing."
"Mess?"
"Mess." A purple glow surrounded his hand, illuminating his face. "Are you absolutely sure you want to do this, Alexis?"
"Yes," I said. "I—"
The magical orb hurled toward me with the rushing sound of a freight train. I squealed and dove out of the way faster than I'd thought possible.
"What the hell?" I screamed at him. "You could have killed me!"
"You would've gotten a bad sting, but I wouldn't have killed you," Gavon said, with another deep purple spell ready in his hand. "Besides, as I said, sparring is based on instinct, not thought. The best way is to just react when you're being attacked."
I stood and brushed the sand off of my pants. "Yeah, but a little—Gack!" I fell backward, the purple spell landing square in my solar plexus and my butt landing hard on the white sand.
"Warnings mean you think about it. Instinct is acting."
"But I don't even know what to do?"
His eyebrow quirked. "Is that true? What about what happened with your sister?"
"That was…an accident."
"That was instinct. You know what to do, you're just overthinking things."
I pushed myself off the ground just in time for another spell to knock me back down. I cried out in frustration and glared at him. "Stop doing that!"
"Make me."
I would've laughed, except he was serious.
I was able to get to my feet again before another spell zoomed toward me, but I ducked out of the way. It exploded into the sand behind me, showering me with fine grit. I swerved left then right then another hit me square in the chest and I found myself face up, staring at the darkening sky.
I looked over at Gavon. The son of a bitch was smiling.
"Ready to quit?" he asked.
"Not on your life," I grunted, coming to stand. "Let's—"
Another attack spell had me scrambling, but this time I felt the growing power in my own hand. It was the same calmness, the same knowing that I was in control. That this spell would do what I wanted it to do. And when he struck again, I would be ready.
He didn't keep me waiting long, and once I'd dodged his spell, I released the power from my hand, the release washing over me and filling me with excitement and something else I couldn't place. I readied another spell in my hand, taking in the swirling, pulsing purple that cracked and sparked. It looked dangerous, and yet, it was part of me. I didn't fear it—I reveled in it.
"What is it?" Gavon asked.
"Just…I've never looked at my magic like this before," I said, mesmerized by the power I held in my hand. "It's beautiful."
Gavon had a strange look on his face, one I couldn't pinpoint in the fading light. My magic whispered to take advantage of his distraction, and I released a purple orb of my own toward him. He sidestepped it with ease, and I earned a small chuckle.
Then the world tilted and I fell to my knees, feeling very much like I was going to empty my stomach on the ground.
"Yes, I forgot to mention that," Gavon said, sounding like he hadn't forgotten it at all. "Attack spells use a lot of magic. So when your magic is very quickly depleted, you will feel pretty awful."
"I'm…" I swallowed through my dizziness. "I'm low on magic?"
"Not dangerously so," Gavon said, kneeling in front of me. "And it will replenish with rest."
"How come you aren't…aren't on the ground?"
"I've been doing this a very long time," he said. "With practice, you'll be able to build your tolerance and stamina. But I think that's it for tonight, hm?"
All of that, for just one minute of sparring? "No," I said, struggling to my feet. "I'm fine. We can continue."
"Are you sure?" Gavon asked. "You shouldn't push yourself if—"
"I'm fine." I pushed myself out of the sand, only to topple back over. "I promise. Just need a second. One second."
His face filled my vision. "I think that's enough for tonight, Alexis."
I blew air out between my lips. "Can we try again tomorrow?"
"That's inadvisable. May take you a few days to fully recover."
"But if it feels so…why?" I apparently also lacked the ability to form coherent sentences.
"Because you've had your magic for less than a week, if you'll recall." He held out his hand and I took it, carefully rising to stand. "Now I'll send you back home. Go get some rest, all right?"
Before I could respond, his magic surrounded me and I found myself standing in my bedroom. A thousand questions circled in my head, but my body fell back into bed and I was asleep in seconds.
The man before me was menacing, his eyes borderline insane. He stood in the threshold of my house, as if drinking in this moment and this night. Behind him a bolt of lightning split the sky, and thunder echoed.
"He's not coming, you know."
My voice answered, "He'll come. But I don't need him."
But that wasn't my voice.
"Oh? You've been practicing?"
My magic gathered in my hands, almost by instinct. I had been practicing. We'd been practicing for months. But not for this, never for this. Not with my girls sleeping upstairs.
Where was he?