When Felix and Arisa arrived at the training yard, Sebastian was already waiting. To Felix’s surprise, so was Kendra.
“You’re watching us, too?” Arisa asked.
Felix looked around the courtyard as he set his bag and Helena’s sword on the ground. It was big enough to hold a few tennis courts, but the ground was nothing but dirt. Castle windows peered down at them on all sides, and he wondered what the chances were anyone else was watching.
“Yes,” Kendra told Arisa. “Although I’m more concerned about Seb and Archer than you two.” She shot Sebastian a sideways glance as she rested a hand on her hip.
Sebastian held up his hands. “I’m pretty sure I’m not the problem here.”
The door behind him swung open, and Archer entered the yard, adjusting his mask as he walked. His hair was pulled up the same way it had been yesterday.
Sebastian turned around and waved. “Hey, Archie!”
“It’s like you want to be stabbed,” Archer said. His hand dropped to his side as he joined the group. “Now, what do you have planned?”
“Felix is going to awaken the rest of his family,” Sebastian said. “Then, I’m going to have him and Arisa run through a practice fight.”
Archer folded his arms. “They’re banned from combat.”
Sebastian held up a finger. “They’re banned from combat with non-probationary students.* They can train with each other.”
“Is that true?” Felix glanced at Kendra.
Kendra shrugged. “I don’t see why not. It’s Archer’s call, though.”
Archer sighed. “I suppose the practice would be good,” he said. “Even if they won’t be going out in the field anytime soon.”
“Ah, they won’t be going on missions anytime soon,” Sebastian corrected.
“I don’t like where this is going.”
“We can discuss it later.” Sebastian clapped his hands together. “Felix. Your family?”
“Right. The only ones I haven’t talked to yet are the twins.” Felix turned his thoughts to May and Ezra. For a moment, he thought he could hear Ezra running through a dozen panicked what-if scenarios, and May calling him a dumbass.
No, wait, that was actually May. What took you so long, dumbass? I’ve been half-conscious for what feels like hours.
“Sorry, May,” Felix said. “This whole thing is still kind of confusing.”
A second presence joined. What happened? How long has it been? Even Ezra’s mental voice had a tremor to it.
Hey, it’s okay, Felix assured him. It hasn’t even been a day. Wow. It really had been less than a day, hadn’t it? So much had happened.
Hang on, Helena’s yelling at me, May said.
“Yeah, okay, you two can leave, for now,” Felix said aloud. “I’m just trying to learn how to use your abilities.”
Archer watched with a cold expression that made Felix feel like he was already doing something wrong. Thankfully, Sebastian was the first to speak. “Great! Sounds like we’re ready to start.”
“I think so.” Felix shook out his hands.
“I don’t want you to overwhelm yourself by trying too much at once, so we’ll start with what you already know. Your lightning and fire both require metal, anyway.”
Felix spent the next five minutes alternating between summoning electricity and flames. It turned out the hardest part wasn’t making them appear, but rather keeping them where he wanted them. The fire kept to his palm when first created, but when Felix tried to wrap it around his entire fist at Sebastian’s instruction, it tried to spread up his arm. The lightning was worse, eager to run off in every direction it could.
“You feel the pull of the ability, right?” Sebastian asked.
Felix nodded.
“Don’t just let it out. You have to keep it on a leash.”
Felix opened his hand and brought back the fire. Instead of letting it burn on its own, he concentrated on holding onto the spark in his chest.
“Now, try again. Surround your hand with it and make a fist,” Sebastian directed.
Felix only let the fire expand a few inches at a time, stopping it whenever he feared he might lose control. Finally, his entire hand was enveloped in blue. He closed his fist.
Sebastian held up an open hand. “All right, punch me.”
“But—”
“I promise you won’t hurt me.”
Felix took a few steps forward and pulled his arm back. After a moment’s hesitation, he threw his fist. He hit something much more firm than a hand. A thin layer of bright light had shielded Sebastian’s palm. Solid light.
“Not bad,” Sebastian said. “You’ve still got the fire under control.”
“Maybe you should teach him how to throw a punch, first,” Archer called from the sideline.
“We’ll get there.”
Felix held up his hand and watched the flames dance. “Yeah, I think I’m getting the hang of it.”
Sebastian backed up. “Good. Now hit this with a bolt of your lightning.” He kicked a small rock toward Felix.
Felix focused on the rock, took aim, and drew out Helena’s ability. His first attempt missed the rock by ten feet. He grimaced.
“Try again,” Sebastian encouraged.
Felix concentrated harder, trying to visualize the lightning striking the rock. He released another bolt, letting it jump from his fingers. It hit the ground even farther from the rock.
“You’re too focused on where you want the lightning to go, rather than the lightning itself,” Sebastian said. “Keep control of it as it moves. You can’t just give it a destination. You have to guide it through the air.”
Felix turned his head. Arisa sat in the dirt a few feet from where Kendra and Archer stood, making animated stones roll around in circles. Kendra was unreadable, but she offered a small smile when Felix looked at her. Archer didn’t react to Felix’s gaze.
“Okay.” Felix returned his attention forward, took a deep breath, and unleashed another arc of lightning. Still not a hit, but much closer. He only missed the rock by about a foot this time.
“Much better,” Sebastian said. “Give it a few more tries, and we’ll start the practice fight.”
Three more tries later, Felix finally struck the rock. But while his subsequent attempts were close, he only managed the one hit. His jaw clenched as he readied more electricity.
Sebastian walked forward and picked up the rock. “That’s enough. You’re getting impatient. We’ll give it another try later.”
“But I was so close to hitting it again!”
“Your frustration is making you slip. You need to switch gears.” Sebastian turned his head. “Arisa!”
Arisa jumped to her feet. “Finally!”
“Are you sure it’s safe for us to fight?” Felix asked. “What if I hurt her?”
“I’ll be fine,” Arisa assured him with a smirk.
“If you keep your lightning and fire at the same level you’ve been practicing at, it won’t hurt much if you hit her,” Sebastian said. “Guardians are naturally more resistant to each other’s magic than an ordinary human or monster would be.”
“Okay.” Felix lifted his hands.
“Hold on.” Sebastian pointed at the ground. A line of white light cut across the dirt, spreading into a rectangle around Felix and Arisa. “The goal is to get your opponent out of the rectangle without stepping out yourself,” he explained.
Felix closed his hands into fists and let them catch fire. “Wait,” he said, looking at Arisa. “How are you going to attack—?”
Clementine jumped from Arisa’s shoulder and launched herself at Felix. His fire flickered out as he jumped to the right to dodge.
Felix glanced at Sebastian. “She can use the bear to fight?”
“The bear’s a product of her magic, so yes,” Sebastian replied.
Felix whirled around as Clementine straightened up. She raised her arms and walked toward him. Two tiny blades emerged from slits in her paws.
Felix yelped in surprise. “There are knives in the bear’s hands!?”
Clementine jumped into the air and swung at him. He leaned back. The blade sliced through the air inches from his face. He lifted a hand and unleashed a bolt of lightning that flung Clementine to the ground a few inches from the edge of the rectangle.
“Remember, you need to get Arisa out of the box,” Sebastian said.
Felix turned and charged at Arisa, hands blazing. Her palms were pressed together in front of her. Before he could swing, she opened them. A dozen pieces of paper fluttered into the air, taking on the form of paper planes. One by one, they flew at Felix’s face.
He attempted to torch them before they could reach him. He had a success rate of about one in three. The ones he missed either flew past him or grazed the skin on the sides of his face, leaving him with a few stinging paper cuts.
“Hope you have more of those sparkly bandages,” Arisa said.
Felix pressed a hand to his forehead. He’d all but forgotten the bandage he’d put on last night. “I sure do,” he shot back.
The planes returned to circle his head. He reached out with a fiery hand to grab one out of the air. Before he could reach it, the paper refolded itself, transforming from a plane into a crane. With a push of its wings, it dodged Felix’s grasp and launched itself at his face.
Felix ducked. Something crashed into him, knocking him flat on his back. When he looked up, he found Clementine standing over him, pointing a knife at his face.
“How are you so strong?” he asked through gritted teeth.
“Careful how much energy you channel into her, Arisa,” Sebastian warned.
Felix knocked Clementine off of him with a jolt of electricity. As he jumped to his feet, she swung at his ankles with her knives. He kicked her aside, and then actually felt a twinge of guilt. “Sorry!” he exclaimed.
Clementine flew over the edge of the rectangle. “The bear’s out of the box,” Sebastian said, shooting Arisa a look. She nodded.
Felix felt a presence enter his mind. No, a few. His family was watching. He didn’t have time to focus on them, though. He let electricity run across his fists and threw a punch. Arisa dodged and retaliated with a blow of her own. Her fist met his chest and sent him staggering backward. He tried again, and this time, she caught his fist with her hand.
The electricity transformed into fire. Arisa’s jaw clenched, but she kept her hold and swung her other arm. Felix jerked his head back to avoid the blow. It was an easy one to dodge. In fact, Arisa’s punch missed him by a foot or so.
Then her foot swept his ankle, and he was falling.
Felix hit his back hard enough to knock the air from his lungs. It took him a moment to suck in a new breath. As he regained his senses, he realized his hand was burning.
“Ow.” Felix shook the last of his flames off his hand as he sat up.
Arisa was holding her hand, too. Felix jumped to his feet when he saw her grimace. “I’m so sorry, did I burn you?” he asked.
“It’s not that bad,” Arisa insisted. “I can keep going.”
Sebastian glanced at Felix. “How about you? Are you okay?”
Felix inspected his skin. “My burn’s not bad, either,” he said. “But how did I burn myself? It’s my magic!”
Archer spoke up. “You’re only immune to the fire as long as you’re in control. For the most part, you’ll prevent it from hurting you on instinct. But you could slip up if you lose focus.”
Another thing to worry about. Great. Felix turned to Arisa. “Want to keep going?”
“Ready when you are,” Arisa answered.
Felix dropped into a fighting stance. Before he could make a move, Arisa’s paper planes returned with a vengeance. He flung up his hands to shield his face. Instead of reaching for his fire or lightning, Felix found himself drawn to the pull of a new ability.
Anyone in here want to help me out? Felix asked his family. The planes switched directions and began circling him with alarming speed. The circle tightened with each passing second.
Hm. Ezra was quiet for a moment, and Felix got the sense that he was thinking. Finally, he said, I don’t like this dirt.
Felix lowered his arms, ducked out of the circle of planes, and took a step back. What’s wrong with the dirt?
It’s not good. Ezra sighed. But it’ll do. Okay, ready?
“Ready for what?” The words slipped out of Felix’s mouth as he jumped out of the way of another onslaught of paper. The new pull in his chest strengthened. Ezra wouldn’t encourage him to use something as dangerous as fire or lightning, right?
After a moment’s hesitation, Felix unleashed Ezra’s magic.
A vine burst from the ground beneath Arisa and knocked her off her feet. The planes shifted direction again. Felix raised his hand, ready to hit them with fire, but another vine shot up from the earth to knock the first plane out of the air. Then, it twisted to hit the next. One by one, the planes went down.
Fire and lightning are powerful, but they’re soulless, Ezra said. The plants will work with you. With that, his presence slipped away.
Something moved behind Felix. Arisa had crept up on him. Before he could react, she grabbed his arm and twisted it. Felix yelped in pain and took a step back in an attempt to escape her hold. Arisa lifted her foot and shoved it into his chest. He stumbled out of the rectangle.
“Ow!” Felix exclaimed as he hit the dirt.
Sebastian clapped. “Good job, Felix!”
Frowning, Felix replied, “But I lost.”
“So? You used three abilities in combat, including one you’ve never touched before. That was impressive,” Sebastian said. “The plants were your brother, right? Ezra?”
“Yeah, that was Ezra.”
Arisa walked over to Felix and extended a hand to help him up. “Sebastian’s right, that was good.” As he rose to his feet, she added, “I’m used to those matches lasting longer, though.”
Sebastian slammed a fist into his open palm. “Wanna see a real fight, Felix?”
“Uh, sure,” Felix said.
“Archer, you in?”
“Sure.” Archer strolled forward, pulling his mask down as he moved. He slid off his gloves and tossed them onto the dirt before taking the last step into the rectangle.
Sebastian entered the rectangle from the other side. “Kendra, count us down.” He unzipped his jacket and shrugged it off, revealing a tight long-sleeved shirt underneath in a vibrant shade of blue that matched his eyes.
Kendra rolled her eyes as Felix and Arisa moved to stand next to her. “All right,” she said. “Three, two, one, start.”