Chapter 17

Beras stepped into the bright morning sun, breathing in the fresh air. The wind tasted different here, more dusty and dry than back home in Cyrodiil. Nevertheless, it felt wonderful to have clean oxygen in his lungs.

Around him were oddly shaped rocky pillars, thinner at the bottom than at the top, as though their bases were slowly dissolving into the sand and dust that coated the earth. Sparse patches of spiky-looking plants dotted the ground, and the sun on the horizon cast shadows like stripes across all that was visible.

Snapped out of his awe for the landscape, Beras looked up to see Sabona gesturing for him to follow.

"I need you to sit there, with your legs crossed," the argonian said, pointing at the ground next to one of the rock columns.

Without question, Beras obliged. He tried not to feel uncomfortable with someone towering over him.

"Close your eyes," Sabona commanded.

Once Beras had shut them, he felt the smooth scales of his mentor's fingers pressing gently against his temples, with the thumbs wrapped under his jaw. Suddenly, he felt as though someone were pouring warm water onto him. His eyes flickered open, expecting to see someone with a bucket, but as soon as the light flooded his vision, the sensation vanished.

"What did you just do?" he asked, slightly panicked.

"I scanned your magicka system," Sabona explained. "To see how much magical potential you have."

Beras furrowed his brow. "My friend Annel did that to me once," he said. "It didn't feel like that." He wondered whether or not the argonian was telling the truth. It was impossible to read him, and his intentions were unclear.

"Obviously," Sabona groaned as he stood up. "She did it wrong. What did she say your results were?"

"Nothing," Beras said, thinking back. He was shocked that he didn't even ask what she had found out.

Sabona raised an eyebrow, or what would have been an eyebrow if he had hair. "Unusual. Anyway, you seem to have a fairly average amount of magicka, and nothing that might prevent you from becoming a mage. Nothing to help you become magnificent or anything, though."

Beras nodded, completely satisfied with the results. Average was fantastic for him, seeing how horrible he was at most things he attempted. If he could become an average mage, he would already have exceeded his expectations by a long shot.

"Regardless of that, I should teach you your first spell." Without another word, Sabona whipped a curved knife out of his robes and made a slash in Beras' cheek. It happened so fast that it took a moment for him to even realize he had been cut.

Grabbing at the slit in his face, he scrambled backwards. At the sight of blood on his fingers, he began to feel light headed. "What are you- why would-?"

"Your first spell," said Sabona as he slid the knife across his own palm. "Is a basic healing spell." He shook out his hand, scattering a few drops of blood on the ground. He held out his other hand and a ball of golden light appeared. Spirals of the light flew out of the orb and into his other palm. When the light faded, he held up his hand. The wound had vanished.

Beras glared at the ground. Did his face have to be cut in order to learn the spell? Couldn't he have at least learned the theory first? Then maybe he wouldn't be in so much pain. Beras almost vomited. This tiny cut hurt so much, yet his friends had experienced much worse wounds just before death. The pain a wound strong enough to kill someone must have been unimaginable.

"This is to prevent that," Sabona said, as if he had read Beras' mind. "Healing the cut will take away the pain as well." He cracked his knuckles, and gestured for Beras to stand up. "Remember how you felt as though water was being poured over you while I scanned your magicka system? To channel magicka into your hand to cast a spell, imagine that water, and direct it down your arm and to your fingertips. Try it now."

Beras did as he asked, though it was difficult. The imagined water kept getting stuck at his shoulders. Eventually though, he was able to create a constant flow. Of course he did not actually feel anything, but the imagined sensation was oddly consistent

"Good," said Sabona. Beras wasn't exactly sure how he knew that he had completed his task, but he didn't ask. "Now, the water that is at the tip of your fingers and the water that is pooling in your palms; Imagine it leaping out of your hand and onto your wound. Imagine a sort of stitching motion along the edges."

If it was difficult to imagine a motion that made sense, it was impossible to get the motion of something that he couldn't actually see to defy the laws of physics. Sure, he could move his eyes along the path that he needed to visualize, but that was different from actually having a mental picture. Whenever Beras tried to actually see the movement, it just went haywire.

He glanced up at his teacher briefly, only to be met with a scowl and a glare. "Try harder," Sabona said bluntly. "The first time is the hardest."

Gritting his teeth, Beras stared furiously at his hand, trying to get the stupid invisible water to leap up to his cheek. This would be a lot easier, he thought, if I could just use a spell tome. A book would be much easier to learn from than this rigid lizard.

"Alas," Sabona muttered. "We don't have spell tomes, as many of our techniques are kept secret. Books would just make them easy to steal."

Beras let his arm go limp at his side, staring at the argonian in shock. Could it be that he was actually capable of reading minds? Maybe his own expressions were too readable, or Sabona was just good at reading subtle expressions. Or was he just getting lucky? Whichever way it went, it was disconcerting.

Sabona took a few steps towards Beras and grabbed him gently by the wrist. With his other arm, he rolled up Beras' sleeve to the shoulder.

Beras furrowed his eyebrows. "What are you-"

"Feel it," Sabona interrupted. "Feel the path." Starting at the tip of his shoulder blade, the argonian ran his finger slowly down to Beras' palm. "Now keep feeling it," he whispered as he lifted his touch from the hand.

Oddly enough, this worked. Somehow, Beras could now feel the path, even though it was no longer touching him. Picturing it as a river or a pipe of some sorts, he let the water flow down his arm, and up. The moment it touched the cut on his face, a golden light erupted in his palm. It was warm and made a sound like tiny wind chimes in a storm. Moments later, the cut was gone, replaced by a soothing sensation.

The light flickered out, and Beras touched his cheek, hardly able to believe what he had done. He had actually used magic. He had used magic and not failed, or blown anything up, or made anyone mad.

He looked up, unable to suppress a smile, and was surprised to see Sabona smiling back at him. It was strange how expressive his face could be after seeing how stoic he acted. "You should take a break," Sabona said, clearly pleased with Beras' work. "You'll feel exhausted soon. You always do after using magicka for the first time."

Beras nodded and looked around. He wasn't really sure what he would do in the meantime. He supposed he could poke around the area, but he didn't know what he would find. All he really wanted was to keep learning magic. For the first time in his life he felt confident that he wasn't a total failure.

He wondered what he would be taught next. Another healing spell? Maybe how to kill the undead? He would certainly need that skill if he were to do what Meridia wanted of him. That guardian circle thing seemed pretty nifty, but he figured that was a bit too complex for him.

Trying to leap up onto one of the stones, he failed miserably. Tumbling to the ground, he cut his knee on one of the spiky plants. Wincing in pain, his face of anguish quickly transformed into one of giddiness.

Lifting his hand, he imagined the water again, this time zipping to his knee. The golden light once again appeared and mended all damage.

He laughed and climbed up the rock more carefully this time. Sitting on top, he gazed fondly at his surroundings. He was finally ready for the world.

Without another thought, Beras was overcome with a sudden wave of overwhelming exhaustion. The last thing he remembered before passing out was the sensation of his stomach leaping into his lungs as he plummeted towards the ground.