Author's Preface
They breezed through the trees and underbrush of the forest. Although Casimir had better control of his Lightstep after his long hike with Professor Deadeye, the mist added a new obstacle. He nearly plodded into a narrow birch that seemed to appear out of nowhere. He only saved himself from embarrassment and injury by leaping and cushioning the collision with his feet. The impact caused his soles to sting. He gritted his teeth and landed on his back. Drat, I still can’t control my speed with this pattern.
He sensed Aetherseeker slow down and turn around. Casimir hopped to his feet and dusted the snow off his pants.
“Are you okay, my boy?” Aetherseeker asked with a chuckle.
Casimir brushed off his concern. “Yes, keep going, I’ll catch up.”
After he gave Casimir a once-over, the wind carried Aetherseeker through the trees again. Casimir gave Lightstep another go, this time combating the lack of visibility by matching the steps of Aetherseeker and sensing the man’s Aether as he propelled forward. Aetherseeker braked at a clearing blanketed with fresh snow, and Casimir skidded to a stop. His feet dug deep into the snow, and he fell backward into it. While he lay there, he caught his breath. He was not lying. I don’t feel cold anymore.
Aetherseeker came over to Casimir and offered him his hand. “You still need to work on your landings.”
“Thanks.” Casimir accepted it and was pulled out of the snow. Now upright, he took in his new surroundings. They were in a white snowfield, in the middle of it was a stone platform surrounded by columns, and behind that was an artificial frozen pond.
Casimir’s attention returned to Aetherseeker when he heard the man speak, “Alright, let’s begin. Is there anything you would like to learn from me? ”
It has to be something practical… “Is there a way I can hide my Aether from people?”
“Aether Suppression?” Aetherseeker stared at him blankly and laughed. “Why do you want to learn that at your current level? It is usually used by Master Weavers who don’t want to scare their students. Or—” He narrowed his eyes and looked at Casimir suspiciously. “Those with nefarious purposes.”
“No, it just seems like a useful skill to learn.”
Aetherseeker rubbed his chin. “Well, it could be an effective way to practice Aether control.” He smiled and slapped Casimir on the back. “Just don’t use it to sneak into the girls’ dorm to meet up with your girlfriend.”
“I had no intentions to.”
“The easy way to suppress your Aether is to compress it into a tiny ball deep within your Aether heart. Observe.”
Aetherseeker remained still, and Casimir watched the Aether that filled his massive frame shrink into itself and seemingly disappear.
“It is all a matter of being able to control the Aether in every inch of your body. I can’t teach you how to move your hand to grip a pencil and write. You will just have to try it yourself and practice.”
“Alright.” First, I need to gather all my Aether into one point. All the Aether from his extremities rushed into his core. His eyes blurred, and his mind numbed when Aether drained from his head and joined the collection.
Now I need to form it into a ball. He tried to shape it, but the Aether would twist and fight against him to expand. It was like forcing down a spring.
Sweat rolled down his face, and he found himself clenching his teeth and fists. Almost there. Aether formed into a soccer-sized ball. He squeezed down on it further, and it pulsed outward. Come on…
“Casimir!” Aetherseeker’s words snapped him out of his concentration.
His Aether twisted again, and Casimir no longer had the energy to hold down his Aether, and it erupted outward.
“Arrugh!” Casimir’s arms flung outwards, and his legs went rigid when all his Aether rushed back into his limbs. He collapsed into the snow again, this time with a nasty headache. Casimir slowly sat up. Something warm trickled down his nose and ran over his lip, and it tasted of blood. Casimir wiped it from his nose, and it stained his sheepskin glove. Drat. I overexerted myself.
Aetherseeker frowned. “Nice effort, but as I said before, this is beyond your level.”
Casimir massaged his forehead. “R–right. What do you recommend I should learn?”
Aetherseeker smiled. “You should perfect what you already have. When you recover, we should have a friendly sparring match.”
Casimir stood up and slapped his cheeks to psych himself up. When he composed himself, he cracked a determined smile. “I’m ready.”
Aetherseeker returned his grin and, without any warning, took an Aether-enforced swing at him.
Casimir dodged, and the pressure from the Aether clipped his cheek. That blow could have caused damage.
He quickly weaved a square pattern and generated a thin layer of Aether over his body, while Aetherseeker was still in the follow-through of his attack.
Aetherseeker spun on his heels and engaged with Casimir with a series of bone-crushing strikes. His cool demeanor remained the same while the Aether within him flared every time Casimir evaded one of his attacks.
Casimir caught one of Aetherseeker’s punches by the wrist and twisted it behind his opponent’s back.
Aetherseeker laughed. “Good show. Good show. I can tell you’ve been in more scrapes than most novice Weavers.”
Casimir gritted his teeth. “I thought this was a friendly match.”
“It is.”Aetherseeker smiled. “But I did not say I was going to go easy on you.” The Aether around his arm electrified into a violent blue current that cut through Casimir’s Aether barrier.
The effect came immediately. Casimir’s body seized, and his grip on Aetherseeker loosened.
Aetherseeker then broke free, grasped Casimir’s face, and with his full weight, plowed him into the ground. “Focus, my boy!”
Casimir’s body pierced through the snow and the frozen soil, while the stream of electrified Aether assaulted his nerves. This blighter is trying to kill me.
Casimir’s Aether heart went into overdrive, and he moved more of the Aether within his body to reinforce the barrier. His body stopped sinking when he was two feet deep into the ground. Casimir grabbed hold of his wrists, hooked his left leg around his neck, and trapped his arm between his legs in an arm bar.
Aetherseeker’s ocean of Aether spiked again, battering against Casimir’s concrete defence. But Casimir tightened his hold and gathered more Aether and reinforced his shield when Aetherseeker’s Aether tried to pierce through his barrier.
Aetherseeker grunted. “Ah, a battle of endurance. I wonder who will win.”
Casimir looked up at Aetherseeker, who resisted his hold with a thrilled expression. Blazes, I’m just a lone crow swooping at a cat. I need to get out of this unfavorable position, but I only have a narrow window.
Casimir feigned innocence. “I thought it was considered excessive bullying for a master to go all out on a novice.”
“Bullying?” Aetherseeker laughed. “Casimir, my boy, you have more experience than most students here. It is my duty to push you harder.”
Aetherseeker broke out of Casimir’s grab and came down at him with a punch that would have done more than knock his lights out.
Swiftly, Casimir weaved Shadowstep and teleported away before Aetherseeker realized that his blow only struck the ground.
While keeping a healthy distance away from Aetherseeker, Casimir watched the hulking man slowly rise and roll out a crick in his neck. The Assistant Chancellor turned around to face Casimir and smirked.
“Tsk.” He isn’t giving up yet. Casimir fell into a stance.
Aetherseeker relaxed his posture and called out to someone in the treeline. “Ah, you are here. Did the Chancellor send you?”
“Yes, he wants to see Casimir now.” Sully’s voice entered the glade along with his footsteps crunching against the snow.
Casimir sighed with relief but refused to remove his gaze from Aetherseeker. Thank God, Sully is here.
Sully looked over Casimir and the upturned dirt and debris from their recent battle. He placed a hand on Casimir’s shoulder. “Wow, it is a shame that I had to interrupt such a thrilling fight, and are you usually this passionate with your students?” His voice sounded friendly, but Casimir knew better.
Aetherseeker smiled. “No, only the ones who show promise. Mindrattler has exceptional prowess, but that is expected of someone of his pedigree. ”
“Thank you, Assistant Chancellor.” Casimir gave him a polite nod.
“Anytime, Mindrattler. It was my pleasure. If you weren’t the Chancellor’s apprentice, I’d swipe you for myself.”
***
They returned to the admission floor and parted ways. Sully gave a curious glance at Aetherseeker’s back when the man split from them and headed back to his office.
Sully waited for the door to be shut before he leaned over to Casimir and whispered, “I would pick someone with more restraint and skill.”
Casimir rubbed his sore arm muscles. “I guess his struggling to crush me was not hard to notice.”
Sully frowned. “Let’s hope that your professors are held to a higher standard.”
Back in Salamander’s office, Casimir found the chancellor’s desk empty.
“Pull up a chair and come join me.” The Chancellor’s head poked out from the side of the large chair in front of the fireplace.
“Yes, Chancellor.” Casimir collected the chair across from the desk. His coat was right where he left it, draped across the back of the chair. He lifted the chair by its arms and carried it to a spot next to Chancellor Salamander.
Casimir sat down, taking in the warmth from the fireplace and enjoying a well-earned break. He looked over at Salamander. The light from the fireplace created dark shadows underneath the Chancellor's wrinkles and placed an overlay of red on his face. His expression was one of mild satisfaction after a long day’s work. I guess that conversation with Tristan went well.
Salamander’s gaze drifted to Casimir, and he gave him an amicable smile. “Casimir, how are you faring? Are you enjoying your stay here?”
“I can’t complain.”
“Are you getting along with Cornelius?”
“Yes, I’m fortunate to have him as a roommate and friend. Thank you for arranging it.”
“Good. A union between our two families will work for both of our benefits.” Salamander beamed proudly. “How was your time assisting Mr. Aetherseeker?”
“He said he had it covered and decided to train me instead.”
“That sounds like him.” Salamander chuckled. “What did he teach you?”
“I wanted to learn Aether Suppression, but it was beyond my depth, so we sparred until Sully showed up to get me. ”
“Aether Suppression?” Salamander hummed. “Yes, it is a little early for you to learn that. You must develop a full understanding and control of your Aether before attempting it correctly. Or else you’ll throw your entire system out of sync and hurt yourself. ”
Casimir winced, “Yes, I learned that the hard way.”
Salamander pondered for a moment, rose from his seat, and went over to a bookshelf on the interior wall. After thumbing through the books on the shelves, he selected a thick tome and returned to his seat.
Casimir caught a glimpse of the cover of the black leather-bound book with gold trim. Attitus Salamander’s Guide to Practical Patterns.
Chancellor Salamander flipped through the pages. “It should be…here.” He handed the book to Casimir and pointed to a section called Quell. “I want you to learn this.”
Casimir studied the simple triangular pattern drawn on the grid. A pattern that snuffs out flames. I could have learned this with Whitley. He frowned. “It looks… very simple.”
“Hmph, you want more of a challenge?” Salamander snatched the book away.
“No…I…”
“There. The perfect pattern for an overachiever.” Salamander pointed to a section titled Searing Hand. “This pattern requires near-perfect Aether control. Memorize both by next Friday. Hopefully, there won’t be any incidents between now and then, and I will be able to dedicate more time to mentor you.”
Casimir started at the triangular pattern drawn on the grid. It looks like it has the same complexity as Lightning Bolt. This seems doable.
“You may leave.” Salamander’s voice snapped him out of his fixation.
“Yes, of course.” Casimir rose from his seat and gave him a polite nod. “Thank you.”
After returning his chair and putting on his coat, Casimir left Salamander's office. He checked his watch. It’s five past two. I should go get something to eat and get ready for Awldriver’s assignment tomorrow.