Page 95 of A Whisper of Cinders

“I am not scared.”

He nods towards Aramis who winks at me before he leaves the mat and stands to the side. “Why don’t you try to hit me first.”

Ignoring his shirtless chest is a challenge on its own, but I try to focus on finding my balance instead. He waits, arms crossed, not at all intimidated by me. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t be either, but he at least should give me a fair chance.

I strike, quick as a viper. Or at least, I thought I did, but he easily steps away, arms still crossed. The moment I get too close, he blocks my strike. I try to come up with a new way to attack, to surprise him, but it seems futile. We go on like that for a couple of minutes, the outcome remains the same every single time.

I’m sweating and my breathing is a little more laboured than I like. Yet, Conláed seems as relaxed as he did before we started this little session, not a hair out of place. “Come on, feather, stop toying with me. I’m getting bored over here.”

Bored? Did he just say bored? I take my words back. He’s an asshole and by the smirk on his face, he knows it too. I relax my stance and close my eyes. I know how to hit and the technique behind it, but I’m overthinking it. Maybe I should just…move?

I open my eyes and see the colours vividly, notice the pulsing aura around Conláed, the fire burning in his eyes. “There she is.”

And without hesitating, I strike, my mind completely blank for once. It seems to work, because Conláed starts to defend himself. I manage to push him back, but I’m too focused to be impressed by that. Surprise flickers across Conláed’s features, but it’s gone with my next hit.

A tingling sensation in the back of my neck warns me, before I block the hand that was coming at me and I kick at Conláed’s chest, making him fall to his knees.

I turn to my new opponent, surprised to see Aramis, the challenge clear in his eyes and something like pride maybe. “Come on, gorgeous, show me what you got.”

He doesn’t have to repeat himself. Our movements lock together until the world fades away and the fight no longer feels like two opponents clashing, but two instincts colliding in the same deadly rhythm. It feels as natural as breathing.

Conláed joins the battle once more, but even with both of them coming at me, I handle them with unsettling ease. Every dodge, strike and turn of my body flows instinctively into the next. Their attacks feel predictable somehow, and I slip between them effortlessly.

But in a blink of an eye, something shifts and the heat in my veins becomes unbearable. My breath catches as flames erupt from within me. Fire races up my arms in bright, violent ribbons, shattering the trance I was in instantly.

“Stop.”

My hands shake and I try to pull the flames towards me, but no matter how hard I try, they only grow bigger. “No, please…”

Panic is like a fist around my throat and I back up until I bump into something. The scent of smoke and fire fills my nostrils. Hands land on my arms and I startle, but watch as the flames stop spreading and eventually grow smaller.

Aramis walks towards me and cups my cheek, his cool touch sizzling against my burning skin. “Are you alright?”

Only when the flames have completely disappeared, I can speak again. “I’m so sorry…”

Only then I realise that the hands on my arms weren't Aramis’ and I didn’t bump into a wall, but into Conláed.

“No need to apologise, Mai. Your powers are new, it will take some time to control them. They might appear more often now that you realise what you are and that magic exists around you.”

Conláed gives me a glass of water that I empty in a couple of seconds. “You did good back there.”

“Good? She was incredible, Con, even you can’t deny that.”

I was?

“Fine, you did more than average.”

We both look at Conláed, surprise clearly visible on both our faces. Huh. So he can be kind today.

“I managed, barely.”

“You realise you fought both of us at the same time, right? And you stood your ground. You’re very skilled for someone who received the amount of training you have here.” Aramis’ eyes twinkle with admiration, yet his words tug on something inside of me. It did feel like muscle memory, but where did I learn and from whom? “Did you receive any training before?”

“No. Or…I don’t think so? I can’t…remember. Maybe when I was younger?” I try to think about my past, maybe my mom taught me? I sigh. “I… I don’t know, I’m sorry.”

“It’s of no importance, you are ready to train with the others.”

And with that, Conláed walks away.