Chapter 108

[ 652 words ]

You’re a sadist

108: 108.

You’re a sadist Aria

Heat licks across my skin, wild and hungry.

I stand in the center of the arena, sweat sliding down my spine as flames coil around my arms like vipers.

I spent the last hour pushing my control to my limits.

But my fire answers me in a way it hasn’t before.

It takes less concentration to release it.

To mold it, well, that’s a different story.

The loose orb I make unravels like a ball of yarn dropping from a basket.

“Fuck,” I shout.

“Don’t fixate. Try it again,” Felix barks from ten feet away, arms crossed over his chest.

I grit my teeth.

“My hands are starting to feel numb.”

“Shake it off. I don’t have to tell you how long battles can last. You have to be ready to push past empty.”

My wolf huffs irritably inside me.

He enjoys this too much.

“Don’t take your dry spell out on me,” I snark, just to piss him off.

Felix lifts his hand, holding out his middle finger and waving it like a flag.

“Trying to distract me won’t work. Keep your arms up and do it again.”

I exhale hard through my nose.

Fine.

Flames erupt from my palms, curling upward in bright ribbons before I start bending them into a sphere.

They dance violently in the air, unstable for half a second before I force control over them.

It tightens until it becomes a solid ball of fire.

“Attack,” Felix says.

I thrust my hand forward.

The fire ball holds its shape but my aim sucks so it burns the side of the target instead of the center.

“Nice progress. I guess we have to tell barric to work on your hand eye cooordinartion though.”

He grabs one of the wooden training spears and hurls it at me.

Instinct snaps through me.

Fire surges.

A wall of flames bursts upward, swallowing the spear before it can touch me.

The wood blackens instantly and clatters uselessly to the ground.

“Woo, now that’s what I’m talking about,” Felix says.

“Let’s see if you can do that while moving.”

Before I can reset, he throws another spear.

And another.

Like a damn machine he keeps launching attacks and I keep dodging, ducking and burning.

A spear whistles toward my ribs.

I twist.

Too slow.

The tip catches my side hard enough to sting.

Pain flashes.

My wolf snarls.

We have to be faster.

Something shifts in my memory.

My mother.

They way she used her power to a deadly advantage.

I wonder for a moment if I can replicate it.

I swallow hard, setting my jaw.

I have to try.

Another spear flies.

This time, I don’t throw a fireball.

I shape the flames thinking of my favorite video game character and the oversized blade she held.

The flames gather in my hand, forming a handle and I smile when it’s sold against my hand.

The long end carves itself into a wide arching point.

I slash it through the air and cut the spear down.

Felix pauses and stares at the Dao in my grip.

It flickers violently.

Sweat beads down my forehead as I struggle to hold the shape.”

“Now that’s interesting,” Felix whistles.

“I like it.”

The glimmer of pride in his eye fuel me to work harder.

To test the limits of my imagenation and how I can use my will to make my power both weapon and sheild.

The next twenty minutes blur together into pain and focus.

I practice shaping weapons instead of simply throwing destruction.

Blades.

Whips.

Shields.

Nets.

By the end, my arms shake.

My shirt sticks to my skin in that way that makes me feel like I have to fight for breath.

Felix finally lowers his stance.

“That’s enough.”

I nearly collapse from relief.

“You’re a sadist.”

“I’m effective.”

“You’re annoying.”

“That too.”

A laugh escapes me despite everything.

Hazel scent of sunshine and warm spice enters the room and I turn to watch her storm into the area.

Liam follows behind her like an enormous shadow, and I purse my lips when I notice the irritated look on his face.

His wolf prowls close beneath the surface.

“I think I figured out how to even the playing field,” she says when she’s close.

My wolf rises instantly, fire sparking beneath my skin.

I like the sound of that.

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