Walking With You

by Aylatha

"And how have you been, Sonea?", Lorlen asked. "Well." "Well, she says", Akkarin huffed, covering his face with one hand. "I'm still alive, aren't I?" Lorlen's eyebrows rose. Rothen's knees buckled. "What?", he yelped, colour draining from his face.

3. Heralds of Change

A/N:

I guess I'm writing longer chapters now…

Oh, I've also been working lots of references to other media into this story. Can you spot some?

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Biting back a curse his mother would be shocked to know he knew, Regin hurried down the corridor as fast as he could without outright running, as that would be unseemly. He'd been about to get started on his alchemy assignment when, much to his consternation, he'd realised that he'd forgotten his notes in Lord Elben's classroom. Now, he had to hope that the classroom would be unlocked, or that someone with a key would be nearby, or he'd be in trouble. Garrel, his uncle and guardian, wouldn't take kindly to it if Regin failed an assignment simply because his thoughts had been elsewhere.

Regin breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the door was open, and quickened his pace – he'd just slip inside, grab his notes, and be on his way without anyone ever finding out.

Or rather, that had been the plan, for, upon entering the classroom, Regin realised, much to his horror, that the room wasn't empty. Sonea was there, bent over a workbench, her back to him, working on something.

Regin stopped dead. The two of them hadn't interacted without the company of others, had barely spoken to one another except the bare minimum, for over a year. Not that Regin had made a habit of conversing with her before that, but after his rather humiliating loss in the Arena, he'd taken care to stay out of her way as best as he could.

Sonea was terrifying. Regin had, of course, known that she was powerful – more powerful than the average novice, maybe even the average magician – due to her being a Natural. Magical powers had to be considerable in order to surface on their own – and Regin had no idea how long it'd been since the last Natural had made an entrance like Sonea. Children of the Houses were tested at a young age, and joined the Guild before there was a chance for their powers to manifest themselves, even if they were powerful enough. Sonea, however, had been older than Regin and the other children from that year's Summer Intake. And, clearly, something had happened that had triggered the awakening of her powers.

By now, people were whispering that Sonea had surpassed most of her teachers, and that she would continue to grow even stronger. Some even compared her power level to that of the High Lord himself, whose power was said to be fearsome.

Akkarin was yet another reason Regin had decided to stay away from Sonea – before the Formal Battle, Regin had assumed that he'd been unaware of what he and the others had been doing – he had discovered soon after Sonea had become Akkarin's novice that she feared him, and had mercilessly used this to his advantage, certain of the knowledge that she wouldn't tell him. Certain of the knowledge that, if he didn't push things too far, he'd be able to get away with it.

Well, following Sonea's challenge, the High Lord had found out, which had put Garrel in an uncomfortable position – something Akkarin seemed to have enjoyed. Following the Formal Battle, Garrel had made it very clear to Regin that he was not willing to enter into an open conflict with the High Lord, and Regin had agreed that that would be most unwise.

The Formal Battle had also forced him to re-assess the situation. Despite all the power she wielded, Sonea had never, not even once, tried to fight back whenever Regin had accosted her. She'd just taken whatever he had dealt out, and had kept quiet about it. As far as he knew, she'd never told anyone – and even when they'd been caught by Lord Yikmo, Sonea's tutor, there had been no consequences. Sure, Yikmo had started to keep an eye on Regin, but he hadn't done anything. It had become more and more apparent that Sonea didn't have the backbone to stand up for herself. If that wasn't a sign of weakness, Regin didn't know what was.

And then, she had gone and challenged him to what was essentially a duel – although not to the death. He'd been unable to refuse due to numerous witnesses being present, but had assumed that he'd be able to beat her easily – he'd always won against her in mock battles before, after all – especially since Lord Balkan, the Head of Warriors, had agreed to tutor him.

Balkan had warned him that Sonea would be able to brute-force her way to victory, but had also amended that it was unlikely that she was going to do that, as it wouldn't endear her to anyone. Certain unspoken rules and customs existed around these battles, and he was certain that Yikmo would make Sonea aware of them, too.

And, indeed, Sonea had played by these rules – and managed to score two victories. Something that had come as a shock to Regin. Sonea was terrible at Warrior Skills. She should have been easy to defeat.

Regin himself had scored two victories – the second and fourth bout, respectively – and the fifth and final bout would have been the decider. It had been then that Sonea had decided that she was done – that playtime was over.

Unlike in previous fights, Sonea's powers hadn't been restricted during the Formal Battle. When she'd lifted her arms, Regin had sensed danger – they'd been taught to avoid gesticulating as to not give away their intentions. The fact that Sonea had decided to ignore this had been a warning. And when she'd let her magic loose – when Regin had realised what was coming for him – he'd panicked. The entire Arena had suddenly been filled with her magic – Strikes radiating out from her in a beautiful, deadly pattern – curving around the Arena, headed straight toward him. He'd tried to run, but there had been nowhere to run to – when the first wave of her strikes had hit him, they had shattered his shield. The second wave had battered Garrel's inner shield, and when the final wave had hit, Regin had, for one terrifying moment, been certain that his uncle's shield would fail, that he'd die. He'd fainted moments later.

When he'd come to, some time later, Sonea had been crouched next to him, Healing him. Regin had thought that he must be dreaming or something – it was utterly baffling that she still had magic left to spare after all that, and that she was willing to Heal him. He'd been unable to make sense of it.

He couldn't remember everything that had happened very well, but he must have communicated his confusion somehow, for Sonea had given him a wry smile. When Garrel had arrived moments later, demanding to know what she was doing, she'd simply left, her stride confident, not a single trace of exhaustion to be seen.

Garrel had provided Regin with some more Healing magic and had tried to get him to rise, but Regin had stubbornly refused, preferring to stay right where he was for several more minutes, trying to make sense of Sonea's confusing behaviour. However, he'd been too exhausted to think properly, and had eventually given up. Garrel had herded him back to his room in the Novice's Quarters. He hadn't seen Sonea any more that day.

Unfortunately, his exhaustion had been so severe, he'd been unable to attend classes the following day. Though, while that had certainly been annoying, it had also afforded him time to think. He'd come to the startling realisation that Sonea had almost killed him – by accident. And the apparent ease which with she had shattered his shield had been frightening. Sonea hadn't meant to kill him – and yet, if it hadn't been for his inner shield, he would have died. With startling clarity, he had realised that she must have been aware of this – or, at the very least, thought it to be possible – that she could, very easily, inflict serious injuries, or even kill with her powers. Regin then began to suspect that what had held her back had not been weakness – but kindness. In a way, she'd been looking out for them.

That realisation had sent his mind spinning. Sonea could have effortlessly put an end to their bullying by firmly putting them in their place, but she hadn't done so because she had been worried that she might hurt them.

Sonea was terrifying.

Which brought Regin back to his current predicament. He hadn't expected to find himself alone with her, and he felt a sudden surge of panic. He knew that, if she wanted to get back at him for what he'd done to her, that he'd be unable to stop her. She could probably beat him several times over without breaking a sweat. The only good thing about this situation was that she hadn't noticed him yet, too engrossed in whatever she was doing. If he was very, very quiet, and moved very, very slowly, he might be able to grab his notes and beat a hasty retreat while avoiding detection.

A tactical retreat, mind you. He would not be running away like some kind of coward.

Regin took a cautious step in the direction of his desk, and froze when Sonea spoke.

"I probably shouldn't test these in here, the servants would kill me – if the stench didn't do me in first", she mused, and Regin realised, with a start, that she was thinking out loud. "But I can test those."

She picked something up with her right hand, spun around – and froze when she spotted Regin, who immediately held his breath. Sonea blinked rapidly several times, as though she wasn't quite sure what she was seeing, before seeming to accept that he was, in fact, actually there. Several emotions flitted across her face, each of them gone before Regin had a chance to properly grasp them.

"Regin", she said, her voice completely devoid of any emotion. "Did you need something?"

"Uh, no, that is – yes, but – I had no idea that you'd be here. I just forgot something."

Her look told him very plainly that she didn't believe him, not that he could blame her. He probably wouldn't believe himself, either, if he were in her shoes. Boots.

"I forgot my notes!", he blurted out, desperate to convince her that he hadn't come after her to bully her again, or ruin another one of her experiments. "And if I fail this assignment because I forgot my notes, my uncle is going to kill me!"

Sonea arched a brow and was about to say something, when the vial she was holding let out a hiss. She frowned, and narrowed her eyes at it.

"Shut up."

As Regin took a closer look, he saw, to his surprise, that the vial that Sonea was holding contained a smaller one, both of them sealed. Regin assumed that they must contain some kind of gas. The outer vial was filled with some colourful particles, besides.

"Does Lord Elben know you're in here?", he asked before he could stop himself.

"I have the High Lord's permission to be here."

That was certainly surprising – Sonea had never before invoked the name of her powerful guardian, even though it could have made her life a lot easier.

"Ah", said Regin, since he couldn't think of anything better to say.

Sonea regarded him in silence, as if trying to figure him out. Thankfully, her overall stance wasn't hostile, which put him somewhat at ease.

Sonea seems to dislike violence. Surely, she wouldn't attack me unprovoked.

"Tell me something", he blurted out before he could think better of it. "Why did you never fight back? I mean, I'm guessing it's because you were worried that you'd hurt us, but – you could have used Stunstrike against us, like - "

… like we did.

Sonea shifted her weight, the expression on her face changing minutely. Her grip on the vial tightened in an alarming manner, which she seemed to realise. Letting out a gusty sigh, she carefully placed the vial in a stand on her desk before turning toward the window.

"Tell me, Regin, have you ever seen a man die?", she asked, her voice detached, her gaze distant.

He felt like he'd been doused with cold water, and stared at her, aghast – both because of what she'd just asked, and the eery calm she was emanating.

"N-no, I haven't", he replied in a low voice, unsure why she was asking him such a thing.

"I have. Three times. Though I'm not entirely sure one of them counts, as I was unconscious by the time he was finally done in. But I was part of the fight, and was at least physically present when it happened.
"One of them was killed with magic. He was just a boy, younger than I was. He'd done nothing – he just happened to be standing right next to me, and the magicians thought that he'd have been more likely to have attacked them. The next moment, he was dead – a burning, smouldering corpse on the ground."

Sonea sucked in a ragged breath, and Regin felt sick.

"The crowd panicked, naturally – we'd all seen the magicians use their magic before, to scare us into running, but they'd never before aimed it at one of us. I was certain they were going to kill me if they realised it'd been me who threw the stone. I managed to disappear into the fleeing crowd, and get away. I didn't understand what had happened, back then, although Rothen later explained it to me."

She fell silent after that, her face carefully blank. Regin had a sneaking suspicion that she didn't want to let on just how much this had affected her.

"I just – I hope this doesn't sound insensitive or anything, but – this doesn't really make a lot of sense to me", Regin said after a while. "You made it sound like he got hit by Heatstrike. That's not how we're trained to react in such a scenario – what we should use is Stun - "

"Stunstrike, yes. Which is what they did use, according to Rothen. However, some of those combined to form Heatstrikes, and that's what got that poor boy. A simple mistake. A life lost. Just like that." She snapped her fingers for emphasis. "They believed to be under attack by a rogue magician, someone who had been trained, and were expecting the attacker to be able to create a shield – why else risk attacking? They didn't realise I'd just awakened my powers. The thing is – if they'd hit me instead, my uncontrolled magic would have blown up the entire North Square."

Regin shuddered at the thought.

"It's so bizarre, when you think about it", Sonea said with a sad smile. "Destroying something, killing people – it's so laughably easy. But healing? That takes time, and effort, and, if you mess up, you might even make it worse." She turned to face him, the expression on her face grave. "Regin, do you realise just how fragile you are? All it would have taken was one mistake – one single mistake – and you would have been dead. I couldn't take that risk, not when I knew just how quickly things could go wrong. For all I knew, me trying to stun all of you might have resulted in the events from the North Square repeating themselves." She wrung her hands, a pained expression on my face. "You, me, everybody else here – we all wield this immense power, and, while we're able to Heal most injuries and illnesses, there are some things we can't Heal, some things we can't fix. We're not gods, Regin, we're just humans with too much power. And I feel like I'm the only one who's aware of this."

Her words sent a chill down his spine. He hadn't even considered that possibility, and now, he was feeling a little sick. Desperate to distract himself, he latched onto something else she'd said earlier.

"I heard about that boy – it caused quite a stir among the nobles, who didn't like the fact that it seemed like the King didn't have the Guild under control – I heard that the boy's family was compensated."

"Compensated!", Sonea exclaimed, her eyes flashing. "Compensated! How do you compensate parents for the loss of a child? Did you think money would fix that? How would your parents react, if someone from the Guild had shown up to tell them that you'd died in the Arean? 'It was an accident. Here, have some money.'"

Her sudden shift in mood was alarming, and Regin backed away – not that this would do him much good if she did decide to attack him – unless she wanted to strangle him. In that case, he might be able to get away.

Sonea took a deep breath, and managed to calm herself somewhat.

"We're talking about lives here, Regin. I get that you don't care about us Dwells, but I assure you that we care about our families, and that losing someone, especially a child, is always hard. It happens far too often, too."

"Oh", he said, feeling like that sounded idiotic. "Um. Why did you mention my parents, of all things?"

"Because I feared that you were dead, that I'd killed you, that day", she replied in a whisper, her gaze distant once more. "You weren't moving, and I couldn't tell if you were still breathing – I was too far away. However, the moment I started moving toward you, Lord Balkan stopped me – I didn't realise why, at first, but he probably thought I was going to do something bad. That's what they always think, after all." She sounded defeated. "And then, you made a sound – and everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief. So. As you can see, for a moment, I had to entertain the thought that you were, in fact, dead, and that your parents wouldn't be pleased about it."

"I didn't know about that."

"Well, you were unconscious", she pointed out.

"No, I mean, yes, but my uncle could have told me. I guess that part wasn't relevant enough in his opinion."

"He might have been preoccupied with other thoughts", Sonea pointed out.

"Fair enough. But still. I didn't ask him to tell me what had happened so he'd leave out part of it."

Sonea hummed, but made no further comment.

Regin realised that this, just now, had been the first proper conversation they'd ever had, and it hadn't been unpleasant, exactly, although some of her reactions had put him on edge. And she'd revealed a surprising amount of information about herself, whether knowingly or not. Regin had never bothered to find out who she was, as a person, content to believe that his preconceived notions were correct. Sonea had just given him a lot to process.

"Lady Sonea?"

Both Regin and Sonea started at the unexpected voice, and turned to face the door. A servant had appeared in the doorway, holding a box.

Regin stared at the man. He was certain he'd never seen him before – his looks were rather memorable, after all. He was shorter than the typical Kyralian, but stockier. While he had dark hair and eyes, like them, his skin was bronze-coloured, and his eyes almond-shaped. And, much to his annoyance, Regin found that he had no idea what country he was from.

"Takan!", Sonea exclaimed, surprised, but not unpleasantly so. "What brings you here?"

"I've heard that you were working on some kind of special assignment, and came to see if you've eaten anything for midbreak."

"Um", Sonea said. "I might have forgotten."

Takan clicked his tongue in disapproval.

"I got carried away!", Sonea tried to defend herself. "I know, I know, moderation and all that…"

"You are terrible at it, my lady", Takan told her bluntly. "Which is why I brought you something to eat."

He held out the box, and Sonea let out something that sounded suspiciously like a squeal.

"Takan, you're the absolute best!"

She took the box and placed it on her desk, a good distance away from her chemicals.

"It's nothing too filling, but we can push back the evening meal by an hour or so, so that you'll have enough room", Takan suggested.

"Oh, ah, I was – that is, I was planning - " Sonea broke off and bit her lip, looking like she was thinking very fast. "That sounds like a great idea, thank you."

Takan gave her a very direct look, not having missed her floundering, but didn't comment on it.

"I also got this for you, my lady", he said instead, removing an envelope from the inside of his jacket.

"A letter from Aunt Jonna!", Sonea exulted.

"Your aunt knows how to write?", Regin asked, surprised.

"Of course not", Sonea replied absently. "We have scribes for that."

She tucked the letter into her robes, probably intending to read it later.

"That thing over there just hissed", Takan observed, pointing at the vial.

"It does that, sometimes", Sonea replied. "The mixture is still a bit unstable, but I'm working on – No! Takan, get out! Don't look!"

"W-what? But why?"

Sonea seized him and propelled him toward the door, much to Regin's amusement.

"Because you are a walking information leak!", Sonea hissed.

"I don't even know what I'm looking at!", the poor man protested.

"That's not the point! He'll probably know, and I can't take that risk! Thanks for the food, but you have to go, now! I'll be there for the evening meal, and I promise to take breaks, and drink enough. Don't worry!"

As soon as the servant was gone, Regin was unable to contain his mirth, and let out a laugh. Sonea turned around to face him, an annoyed look on her face.

"This is not funny", she groused. "If he figures out what I'm up to, all of this will have been for nothing."

"You mean the High Lord? How exactly is he supposed to find out, if the servant - "

"His name is Takan!"

"… doesn't even understand what he's seen?"

Sonea paused, then gave him a very direct look.

"Have you ever heard the rumour that the High Lord can read people's minds without touching them?"

"I have", Regin admitted.

"Well, I am thrilled to tell you that it's not a rumour. He can read surface thoughts at a distance. If Takan happens to think about what he's seen in here, there is a chance that he might notice."

"Oh", Regin replied, his eyes widening. "I'd been hoping that this rumour would turn out to be just an exaggeration, that he was just really intuitive or something."

"I'm afraid not", Sonea replied with a grimace.

"What is it that you are working on, anyway?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, and Regin felt another surge of panic.

Why did you have to ask her? It's not like we're friends, we don't even like each other, now she'll probably think we're up to something again -

"If you want to know, you'll have to come to the Arena in two days."

Regin blinked, not sure if he'd just heard her correctly.

"Pardon?"

"The Arena, Regin", she repeated in a patient tone, as though speaking to an idiot. Regin felt a blush creeping up his neck. "That's where I'll be fighting my guardian. In two days' time. Although – I suppose it won't be much of a fight."

Something was flickering in her eyes, something akin to worry. Regin could understand why she'd feel that way – Akkarin was one of the few magicians in the Guild who was stronger than her, which had to be a daunting prospect.

Regin frowned. "Did you just invite me to come watch?"

"Invite you? It doesn't matter to me whether you come, or not. But you want to join the Warriors after graduation, don't you? I thought you might enjoy that kind of thing." She shrugged.

"I suppose seeing the High Lord in action would be rather tempting", Regin mused.

"Hah, knew it. Although, like I said just now, I don't think the whole thing will last very long."

"It'll still be worth it, probably."

The vial let out another hiss. Sonea made an angry sound.

"I told you to shut up!", she snapped, rounding on the thing.

Regin chuckled. "I'll leave you to disciplining your unruly experiment."

Sonea said something nonsensical in return, and Regin realised that she was too focused on her work to hear him any longer. Shaking his head in amusement, Regin retrieved his notes, and left the classroom.

As he made his way back toward the university entrance, Regin contemplated whether he wanted to analyse the conversation he'd just had with Sonea – but part of him was hesitant to do so. He was, he had to admit, afraid to consider the fact that he might have been wrong about her – that he might have been wrong to treat her the way he had. He was afraid to go down that road, was afraid of what revelations might wait at the end. He didn't have the courage to face these things, not now.

He wasn't sure if he'd ever find it.

Regin rounded a corner and let out an undignified sound as he found his path blocked by Akkarin, who stood there, arms crossed over his chest, for all intents and purposes looking like he'd been waiting for him.

Regin gulped, and hurried to bow to the High Lord. He'd heard that Akkarin had a habit of popping up unexpectedly in the oddest places, and nobody seemed to know how he did that.

"High Lord", he said, pleased to find that his voice wasn't trembling.

"Regin. I hope you weren't harassing my novice again."

"No! I wasn't – I swear on the good name of my family, and my house! And anything else you'd like me to! I just – I forgot my notes, and went to fetch them – I didn't know she'd be there. I swear."

Akkarin's dark eyes bore into his with an intensity that made him squirm, but Regin didn't dare look away. Suddenly, he understood why Sonea had been so terrified of him – this man was frightening.

"Your honesty is appreciated", Akkarin stated as he blinked, much to Regin's relief.

Only to feel a fresh wave of terror when he remembered Sonea's words from earlier, and realised that Akkarin had just read his mind.

"You are an awful human being, Regin of Winar", Akkarin mused. "But we may yet be able to make something out of you, in time."

Regin sputtered, and started protesting -

"Don't play innocent. I know perfectly well what you've done. I may not have seen all of it, but don't think that I don't have other means to gather information."

Regin paled. "You – you knew? All along?"

"Did you honestly believe that I wasn't keeping an eye on my novice, or that I wouldn't have stepped in, had you taken things too far? You certainly toed the line, but were smart enough never to cross it."

"But – why? Why didn't you stop me? If that had been my novice - "

"The reason I permitted this was simply because you were the best teacher Sonea could have ever asked for."

"Wh-what do you mean?"

"You challenged her in ways her teachers could not, forced her to come up with new ideas, new plans to evade you, to escape you. Every time you cornered her, she stretched herself further. Can you imagine the pride I felt, every time she managed to get away?" There was a strange glint in his eyes. "It was all thanks to your efforts that she continued to grow, that, in the end, she found the strength to stand up to you, to stand up for herself. In a way, you gave her the power to defeat you, ultimately." The next moment, his eyes turned cold, and hard. "Let me make one thing perfectly clear, though: If you try anything like this again, I will personally make sure you regret it."

"I won't, I promise", Regin whispered, now thoroughly terrified. "She could just go and challenge me again – I don't fancy getting humiliated in front of the entire Guild for a second time."

Akkarin let out a huff. "I suppose that's the best answer I could expect from someone like you."

Regin was certain he should feel insulted, though he wasn't quite sure why.

"I hope you realise just how lucky you are", Akkarin observed. "If it weren't for Sonea's seemingly boundless kindness, things could have ended very differently for you."

"I'm aware", Regin sighed. "I just – I didn't realise it was kindness that held her back."

"People often mistake kindness for weakness. You are not the first to do so, and will certainly not be the last."

"Right."

Akkarin's attention was, suddenly, diverted by something, and a moment later, Regin heard the sound of footsteps. He turned, just in time to see Sonea round the bend, licking her fingers, which seemed to be covered in icing or something similar. She stopped when she noticed them, and clasped her hands behind her back, a somewhat mortified expression on her face.

Regin didn't know if he should feel horrified, or entertained.

"Sonea", Akkarin said, arching a brow. "I do hope Lord Elben had the sense to warn you not to lick chemicals off your fingers."

"High Lord", Sonea replied, bowing, hands still clasped behind her back. "I'm very well aware of the safety regulations. Takan brought me some food earlier."

"And persuaded you to take a break?"

"Sort of. He reminded me to do things in moderation."

"I should give him a raise."

Sonea made a frustrated sound. "Honestly, I don't know which one of you is worse."

"As your elders, it is our duty to help you better yourself."

Regin watched the exchange with mounting surprise. Had Akkarin just made a joke? Was Sonea really bantering with him? He'd been absolutely convinced that she disliked, even feared her guardian, but there was no trace of either left in her expression. Rather, she seemed strangely at ease around him, a lot more than Regin currently was.

Clearly, something had changed between them – which, Regin supposed, was a good thing in itself – a novice shouldn't be scared of her own guardian – and he had, moreover, no way of knowing whether this was a recent change or not. The High Lord was known to be an exceedingly elusive and private man, and most novices were lucky to catch as much as a glimpse of him occasionally. Garrel had told Regin that Akkarin hardly ever came to the Night Room – where magicians gathered every evening to socialise. Whenever he did bother to show up, it was usually to make a statement.

"Did you come to spy on me yourself, after I kicked Takan out?", Sonea asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Hardly", Akkarin replied, sounding amused. "I was on my way to a meeting."

And decided to waylay me on the way there, I suppose, Regin thought.

Sonea arched a brow.

"You do not seem to believe me", Akkarin observed, very much unbothered by her reaction. "Come along, then, and see for yourself. My guest is bound to arrive momentarily, and I would hate to be tardy."

He turned, his robes flaring dramatically as he did so, and proceeded to stride down the hallway. Sonea fell into step behind him, much to Regin's surprise, and he hurried to catch up with them. They were headed in the same direction, anyway, and neither had paid him much attention, so Regin supposed that it would be fine if he tagged along.

Akkarin slowed his steps and turned his head to look back at Sonea.

"Don't you have a handkerchief?", he asked her in a low voice.

"I do, but – it seemed like a waste", she replied a little sheepishly.

"Ah, I see."

Regin was a bit surprised that he didn't reprimand her for her lack of etiquette, didn't even seem bothered by it. Regin certainly wouldn't have allowed his novice to act in such a crude way.

A handkerchief came darting out of a pocket hidden inside Sonea's robes. She caught it, and proceeded to wipe her hands clean.

They emerged from the university building to spot a young man, who was pacing in front of the main entrance. Regin regarded him with a frown. Even though his clothing was simple, the fabrics appeared to be of good quality, and he carried himself with a certain air of authority. He seemed tiny for a Kyralian, though – and Regin couldn't shake the feeling that he'd seen him somewhere before.

Sonea stopped dead at the sight of him, and let out a squeal, causing him to look up.

"Cery!"

The next moment, she all but launched herself at the young man, who, Regin noted to his amusement, was even shorter than she was.

"Oof! Sonea! Careful, or you're gonna topple me!"

Laughing, Sonea somehow managed to keep them both upright as she hugged Cery tightly, causing him to wince.

"Look, I'm glad you're happy to see me, but could you try not to suffocate me, please?", he wheezed.

"Sorry, I got carried away." She stepped back and looked him over. "You look well."

"Same to you."

Akkarin, who had observed the reunion in silence, now started down the stairs at a measured pace. Regin, who wasn't sure he was still supposed to be here, started edging toward the right, intending to take the path that led past the Arena to the Novice's Quarters. He decided to take his time, though, as he was rather curious as to what was going on – and the High Lord hadn't dismissed him yet. If he just left, that'd be rude.

"High Lord! You look as radiant as ever!", Cery exclaimed with a bright grin.

Regin blinked, sure he must have misheard. Sonea shot her friend a quizzical look.

"Cerinyi", Akkarin replied smoothly. "You ought to know by now that flattery won't get you anywhere with me."

"Aw, it was worth a try."

Regin felt like he was in the wrong play. Friend of Sonea's or not, he would've never expected a commoner to treat the High Lord in such a brazen manner. Or for the latter to put up with it.

Maybe he got used to impertinent treatment from having Sonea around for so long.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet with me on such short notice", Akkarin said.

"No rub. You are my best client, and I do try my utmost to keep my clients happy", Cery replied with a chuckle. "So, what's up?"

"I need to ask a favour of you."

"Mh, that's gonna cost you, my favours don't come cheap."

"That won't be an issue."

"Great! I'm all ears, then. That is, once we've relocated to a better location. I don't do business out in the open."

"Understandable."

"Wait", Sonea interjected. "You're meeting with Cery? On business?"

"Indeed", Akkarin replied, tilting his head to the side. "Surprised?"

"Well, yes. I didn't take you to be – oh, wait, no, forget everything I just said. I shouldn't be surprised, really."

Akkarin looked thoroughly amused. Cery looked like he wanted to say something when his eyes fell on Regin – and narrowed.

"You look kinda familiar", he observed with a slight frown. "Have me met before?"

"Oh, ah – possibly? Your face seems familiar to me, as well, although I can't place it."

Cerinyi shot Sonea a questioning look.

"You've seen each other before, in passing, but this would be your first proper meeting." She hesitated for a moment before visibly steeling herself. "Cery – Cerinyi – is a childhood friend of mine. Cery, this is Regin."

It was hard to tell who was more surprised – while Regin had instantly recognised him as a commoner, he wouldn't have pegged Cery for a Dwell – and Cery clearly seemed to recognise his name, if the dark look that crossed his face was any indication.

"Ah", he said softly. "You're that brat who bullied Sonea."

Regin felt a sudden sense of dread – which was ridiculous, really, he was a magician – well, not yet, technically, but he had magical powers – and this tiny excuse of a man didn't. And yet – despite his diminutive stature, something about him was very unsettling.

"Heard she gave you a good beating, she did", Cery continued, taking a measured step toward Regin, his eyes glinting. "You're lucky, really, that she got to you before I did. I had such plans. Care to hear them?"

Regin resisted the urge to back away – he was not going to be intimidated by a Dwell – but Cery wouldn't stop advancing, his gait very clearly threatening.

"Stop! Don't come any closer!", Regin warned.

"Or what? We both know you're not allowed to use your powers against me. There's absolutely nothing you can do to stop me. I suppose you could try and call the guards – that is, if you could live with the shame. But don't worry – Sonea was very much against me doing anything to hurt you. Wouldn't let me drop a house on you, or maroon you at sea." He let out a sigh. "Disappointing, really. It would have been such fun."

"Cery, stop!", Sonea demanded.

Cerinyi halted just a few paces away from Regin and ran a finger along the blade of a dagger – where had that come from?! – and gave Regin a threatening smile. "I had more ideas, though – I could have - "

"Cery, that's enough!"

Sonea, who had moved closer as things had begun to escalate, grabbed Cery by the scruff of his clothing, and yanked. He stumbled backwards, and she used the momentum to haul him away from Regin. As soon as there was some space between them, she darted around Cery, effectively shielding Regin.

"I don't appreciate it if my wishes are ignored, and I most certainly don't need you to fight my battles for me!", she growled as she towered over Cery, who now looked a tad uncertain.

Well, it's clear who's wearing the trousers in this relationship.

"Sonea, your kindness is wasted on this piece of reber dung. He doesn't deserve it."

"I challenged him, and beat him, and ever since, he's left me alone – which is all I wanted."

"Did he apologise?"

"No. And I don't expect him to. Besides, an apology given out of obligation is meaningless. I'd rather be faced with sincere dislike than with insincere politeness. Now. Sheathe your dagger, and behave yourself", she seethed, poking him in the chest with a finger. "Do you have any idea how this might reflect on me, or the High Lord, if word of this gets out? Even if Regin doesn't blab, there's a chance that someone saw this."

"Do the people here object to justice? Or do they think that what he did to you was fine?"

"We've sorted this", Sonea snapped. "It's done and over. Stay out of it."

"If you insist."

"I do."

"Very well."

He stepped back and sheathed his weapon. Regin allowed himself a small breath of relief. This was not shaping up to be his day – first Akkarin, now Cery… Would Sonea's father pop up next, to seek vengeance on her behalf? Wait, did she even have a father? Regin seemed to remember that she'd been raised by her aunt and uncle. Maybe he'd show up instead.

"Sonea, you are too good for this world", Cerinyi said with a sigh.

"While I am inclined to agree", Akkarin said, speaking up for the first time since things had begun to escalate, "I do believe that world needs more people like Sonea."

Both Cery and Sonea turned to regard him with identical looks of surprise on their faces. Cery let out a chuckle.

"I guess you're right. The world'd certainly be a better place."

Sonea looked distinctively uncomfortable. And Regin felt a sudden flare of anger when he realised that Akkarin had just watched all of this unfold without doing anything. As the Guild's leader, he was responsible for all the magicians in the Guild, and letting a magician be accosted by a Dwell didn't match Regin's understanding of responsibility.

"Oh, Cery, before you leave, I have a favour to ask of you, too. Shouldn't take long."

"Sure, spill. I'll even give you a discount."

Sonea gave him a brief smile, and threw up a barrier around them to block out sound. She herded Cery away from Regin, standing with her back to him. Regin could see them gesticulate, but had no idea what it was about.

Akkarin, who was still positioned in a way he could see what was going on, pointedly turned to look the other way.

Cerinyi and Sonea quickly wrapped up their little talk, and Sonea dispelled the barrier.

"Neat", Cery observed. "Those shields of yours sure are versatile."

"They do have their uses, yes", Sonea replied with a chuckle.

"Cerinyi, are you ready to depart?", Akkarin asked.

"Sure thing. Lead the way."

"As though you'd need me to", the High Lord replied, arching a brow.

Cery let out a chuckle. "Saw that part, too, did you? Fine, I know where you live. Haven't been inside yet, though."

"Wait!", Sonea called as they were about to leave. "Cery – did you get a promotion?"

"A promotion? I run my own business now!", he replied with an ear-splitting grin, spreading his arms wide.

Sonea gaped at him. "And how long has this been going on?"

"Hm, a couple of years, I'd say?"

"And you never told me?"

"Sonea, you may be my friend, but I can't just go and tell you about my clients, that'd be highly unprofessional", Cerinyi sighed.

"Don't try to slither your way out of this, either of you! This is going to have consequences!", she exclaimed, putting her hands on her hips.

She looked like a mother – or wife – scolding unruly family members. A rather hilarious thought, Regin found.

Cery let out a chuckle. "Looks like you're in trouble", he said to Akkarin.

"I am under the impression that she is cross with the both of us."

"Sure, but I don't live with her. She'll chew me out, and that'll be the end of it. You, however – if you're unlucky, she'll be mad at you for days. Have fun with that!"

"I'm sure I'll live."

"If you say so."

"Now, come along. I would like to conclude our business by a reasonable hour."

"Sure, sure. I hope you have raka stocked."

"I live with Sonea and a Sachakan. Of course I have raka stocked."

"Great! Can't wait to sample it."

The two of them took their leave, Cery low-key bouncing with excitement. Sonea let out a sigh, and let her hands drop to her sides.

"I don't understand how you can drink that dreadful brew", Regin observed, wrinkling his nose.

"I think sumi is absolutely disgusting", she shot back.

"You've tried it?"

"Sure. Rothen loves the stuff, and tried very hard to make me like it, too. Gave up eventually." She shrugged.

"Ah, I see. Oh, also, um, thanks. For just now. You didn't have to - "

"I know. But if I tell Cery 'no', he has to respect that. I get that he wants to help me, or maybe avenge me, in this case – but he can't act on my behalf without my consent. He can't just go and disrespect my wishes. And I could - " She broke off and looked away. "Never mind. It just felt like the right thing to do, for several reasons. I – I had been hoping that he wouldn't recognise you. But, unfortunately, Cery has a good memory."

"I see. So, Takan is from Sachaka, then?"

"Hm? Yes, he is."

"What is a Sachakan doing here in Imardin?"

"Working."

"I know that!"

"Then why did you ask?"

"What I meant is why? Why come here?"

"He's found a better life. Which is what most people try to do. At least those at the bottom. Not sure you could go up any more."

"Probably not."

"Figures."

"I'm a bit surprised, to be honest, to see that the High Lord has connections with a Dwell – they seemed quite familiar with each other. And your friend wasn't the least bit intimidated, either. How did that happen?"

Sonea gave him another penetrating look, and for a moment, Regin was worried that the question had somehow offended her.

"Do you know about Lord Fergun?"

"He's a distant cousin of mine, why?"

She stared at him in horror. "Of course he's a distant cousin of yours, how could it be otherwise?", she groaned. "All you nobles are just one big family, and everyone is related to everyone somehow."

"We've never been close, if that's what you're worried about", Regin said with a huff. "He's my mother's third cousin four times removed or something. Besides, he was sent away before I joined the Guild – I don't know the details, but I heard that he broke some kind of Guild law, and was exiled to the Sachakan border for it."

Sonea frowned at hearing him explain how he and Fergun were related, looking like she was trying – and failing – to figure this out.

"Let's just leave it at 'distant cousin'", she huffed. "This is doing my head in. Anyway, what you heard was correct. Thing is – what he did was capture Cery, and lock him up in a hidden room underneath the university, so he could blackmail me."

"What? Why?!"

"Revenge", Sonea replied quietly. "You see, he was the one I knocked unconscious with that stone I threw, on the day I awakened my magic. He'd made a derogatory remark about us Dwells, and I saw red. I wanted that stone to hit him. And hit him it did.
"Fergun never forgot that. After I'd been taken to the Guild, he approached me under the guise of a friend, offering me a way out – I didn't recognise him. He proposed a plan that would allow me to escape from the Guild without my powers getting blocked, so that I could help the people in the slums – a tempting offer, I'll admit. However, at the time, I didn't want to join the Guild at all - "

"Wait, what? You'd have gone back, with your powers blocked, just like that?!"

"Yes", Sonea replied quietly. "Magicians aren't exactly well-liked by the Dwells, and I felt that I'd betray everyone if I joined the Guild. Cery later told me that was stupid of me, and that everybody else back home would do anything to be offered a chance like this. Anyway, Fergun's plan was that he would try and claim my guardianship, for which he needed my testimony, then, he'd help me escape. He provided me with information about what guardianship was, and tried to make it sound like Rothen had been keeping secrets from me. Fergun promised that, once he was my guardian, he'd help me escape. As an incentive to trust him, he told me that he'd never wanted to become a magician, but when his potential was discovered, his family forced him to. He pretended to sympathise with me, said he wanted to prevent the same thing from happening to me. I was moved, but not yet convinced.
"I managed to verify some of the things he'd told me by carefully questioning Rothen. When Fergun came back to ask for my answer, I expressed my reluctance to go along with his plan, saying that I needed more time. I already knew that I'd be breaking my vows and several laws by fleeing, and I wasn't comfortable with that, especially since I could just leave without learning magic. Fergun then revealed that he had Cery locked up, and promised that, unless I co-operated, no-one would ever find him."

Regin sucked in a startled breath. This was vile, even in his eyes, and he hadn't exactly been a paragon, either.

"But what was his goal? Surely, allowing you to become a rogue magician can't have been his master plan."

"No", Sonea replied quietly. "He wanted me to do something – he didn't specify what – but it was supposed to convince the Guild to never take in people from the lower classes again. It wasn't just revenge against me – but against all the others like me, people whose potential is being overlooked because they were born into the wrong families."

"Oh", Regin said.

He felt that it would be wrong to condemn Fergun outright since he, himself, might have done something similar – although he couldn't see himself taking a hostage to have his way, ever. He wasn't some kind of criminal.

"I wasn't foolish enough to believe that Fergun had Cery without proof. The fact that he had his knives and tools was alarming, but he could have acquired them through other means, and I refused to go along with anything without getting irrefutable proof that Fergun had Cery, and that he was still alive.
"Much to my dismay, this prompted Fergun to take me to see Cery. I told Cery what was going on, and that I was going to find a way to get him out of there. Unfortunately, I didn't dare tell Rothen – I'd been blindfolded on my way there, I wouldn't have been able to find Cery myself, and I had no idea if anyone was familiar enough with these passages to be able to find him in time.
"During the Hearing, I told the Higher Magicians that it had been Fergun who had noticed my magic first, giving him the stronger claim. Rothen, he – I'll never forget the look on his face." She shuddered at the memory. "He demanded to speak with me, but I couldn't tell him, could only make excuses, and stick to the story Fergun had forced me to tell. Fergun then demanded to be allowed to speak with me, as well, dragging out the proceedings even more. The Hearing was just about to wrap up when the High Lord showed up, voicing his objections to Fergun claiming my guardianship, saying that he had evidence of deception, and that I had been forced to lie. Cery was with him, and I immediately accused Fergun of having imprisoned Cery, saying that he would have killed him if I didn't do as he told me.
"The High Lord had found Cery pretty much accidentally, and let him out. On their way to the Guildhall, Cery offered to repay him for saving his life. The High Lord replied that he might get back to him on that."

Sonea fell silent after that, and Regin used the time to process all that.

"I'd obviously known that they'd met that day, but I only found out the whole story recently", she said after a moment. "The High Lord seemed to know who Cery was when I mentioned him, which surprised me. He only told me that Cery had left quite the lasting impression – and no, it hadn't because of how awful he smelled after having been locked up for so long. I didn't suspect, though, that they'd somehow stayed in contact."

"It's certainly an odd thing for the High Lord to do", Regin mused. "I mean, what would he get out of the arrangement? What does your friend do, exactly?"

"I'm – not sure. I have a vague idea, but – I can't really give you a precise answer. I do know one thing, though – the High Lord likes to be well-informed about what's going on. It's possible that Cery provides him with information of what's happening in the slums."

"Why would he be interested in that?"

"Why don't you ask him yourself?"

"No, thanks, I think I'll pass", Regin replied with a nervous laugh.

Sonea let out a chuckle. "Understandable."

"Oh, good grief, look at the time", Regin groaned. "This took much, much longer than I thought it would – I need to get on with my assignments, or my uncle will kill me."

"Don't let me keep you – I should get back, too. This break should have been long enough to satisfy them. Oh, and Regin? Talking to you was surprisingly not unpleasant."

He gaped at her as she turned and made her way back up the stairs. Had Sonea just complimented him? It had been a bit of a backhanded compliment, to be sure, but a compliment nevertheless.

Regin shook his head and decided to head back to his room – he didn't want to risk still being out in the open when Cerinyi would, inadvertently, return from his meeting.

It was strange, really. Neither he nor Sonea were physically imposing – and yet, both of them still managed to be utterly and completely terrifying, if in different ways.

Regin fervently prayed that all the stressful things that had happened today wouldn't give him nightmares.

---

It was late when Lorlen finally arrived at the Night Room. He tried to make his way to the chairs usually occupied by the Higher Magicians – except Akkarin, who rarely showed his face – but couldn't make much progress without people constantly stopping him to talk to them. When he finally approached his destination, he spotted his fellow Guild leaders already seated. Lord Balkan, the Head of Warriors, was talking animatedly to Lord Sarrin, Head of Alchemists. Lady Vinara, Head of Healers, was watching them with a slightly pained expression.

She spotted Lorlen, and beckoned, an exasperated look on her face.

"Lorlen, come join us in our misery, Balkan has been exhausting tonight", she sighed as Lorlen took his seat.

"Lorlen! How good of you to join us, I have such news to share! It's finally happened!", Balkan rumbled, clearly excited about something.

"Balkan, it is good to see you in such high spirits", Lorlen replied, greeting Sarrin with a nod. "So, what is this good news you speak of?"

"I received a message from Akkarin today, he asked me to clear out the Arena for an hour before sunset in two days' time, since he wants to train his novice", Balkan replied, his eyes alight, rubbing his hands together.

Lorlen felt chilled to the core.

"And why is that good?"

"Oh, come now, Lorlen, don't be like that. Everyone has been expecting him to take a hand in her training eventually, and he's taken his sweet time with that. Doesn't it excite you?"

"Not really, no."

"Healers! You're no fun at all. Vinara didn't understand my enthusiasm, either."

"For the record, neither do I", Sarrin interjected drily. "Must be a Warrior thing. I'd be much more interested to find out what kind of things Sonea's been concocting by herself in Elben's classroom."

"You need to get your priorities straight! Just think about it – Akkarin is one of the strongest magicians the Guild has ever seen, and Sonea is shaping up to be just like him – don't you want to see these two go up against each other? It'll be such a sight."

Vinara, Loren and Sarrin exchanged a look that spoke volumes.

"I'll amend my previous statement: Healers and Alchemists are no fun", Balkan grumbled.

"Who gets to patch you up if you get injured while playing war, Balkan?", Vinara asked snidely.

"We don't get that many injuries, as you well know. Our safety procedures are rather effective."

"What was that about Sonea conducting experiments?", Lorlen asked as he accepted a glass of wine from a passing servant.

"Oh, that was another one of Akkarin's requests – although it was addressed at Elben, specifically", Sarrin replied. "Sonea is allowed to use his classroom for some kind of special assignment, although I don't know what it is. Neither does Elben, I believe."

"Wait, she's been working by herself?", Balkan asked, alarmed.

"I believe Sonea is sensible enough not to blow herself up", Vinara said with a huff.

"I feel inclined to agree", Lorlen added. "She's got a good head on her shoulders." He frowned as a thought occurred to him. "Is anyone assisting with the training? Or will it be just them?"

"Akkarin requested that I provide him with a powerful Warrior to shield Sonea", Balkan replied. "Since I won't be able to attend, I've asked for volunteers. Most people weren't too keen on being potentially at the receiving end of Akkarin's magic, but one was quite eager – a young man named Donevin."

"He volunteered", Lorlen repeated in a toneless voice.

He must have a death-wish, or be insane.

"He's only just graduated, hasn't he?", Vinara asked with a frown.

"Yes, but he is quite skilled – and powerful. And very eager to see Akkarin demonstrate his abilities."

"Warriors", Sarrin muttered, shaking his head.

Vinara nodded in agreement.

The fact that Akkarin had requested someone to shield Sonea was a small comfort to Lorlen, but he still didn't like this one bit. What was the High Lord up to now? It certainly couldn't be anything good.

Now that Balkan had finally shared his news with everyone, the conversation soon turned to other topics, and Lorlen realised that neither Balkan nor Sarrin would be able to give him any more insight as to what was going on with Sonea and Akkarin. Lorlen was immensely frustrated by this, but did his best to hide it.

A couple of hours later, he deemed that it would be socially acceptable for him to extract himself. As soon as he'd left the room, he reached for the link with Akkarin.

— Akkarin!

His "friend" took a while to respond, and by the time he finally did, Lorlen was thoroughly annoyed.

— Lorlen? Do you have any idea what time it is?

— Oh, ah – did I wake you?

— This may come as a shock to you, but there are some people who like to go to bed at a reasonable hour. Now. I hope this is important, or I'll be extremely cross with you.

With a start, Lorlen remembered that Akkarin hadn't been feeling well the previous day, and felt a twinge of concern. However, he resolutely pushed the emotion away. Akkarin didn't deserve his concern, not after what he'd done.

— Balkan was very excited to share that you'll be fighting Sonea in the Arena two days from now.

A beat of silence. Then –

— And this is how rumours are born. I will not be fighting Sonea, I will be training her. That's a fundamental difference.

Lorlen wasn't sure how this should serve to reassure him – it didn't matter what Akkarin wanted to call it. If he wanted to use this as an opportunity to rid himself of Sonea, she would die either way.

— Lorlen, just how stupid do you think I am? There are better ways to "rid myself" of her than fighting her in the Arena, in front of witnesses, and pretending that it was an accident.

— Well, if that isn't reassuring.

— Feel free to come watch if that makes you feel better.

— I might.

— Was that all you wished to talk about?

— Yes. And – I'm sorry for waking you. I didn't mean to.

— Apology accepted. Now go to sleep.

— Yes, mother, Lorlen huffed.

Akkarin let out a chuckle, but said nothing in response. Not wanting to risk him finding out that Lorlen had stayed up after that, he decided to go to his room and actually sleep.

---

Something in Tania's expression alerted Rothen to the fact that something was up. There was a certain way her lips curved whenever she was worried about something.

"Tania, is something bothering you?"

"Oh, you noticed, my lord?"

"Of course. I know you. Is it something I should be aware of?"

"I'm not sure", she replied, biting her lip. "It was odd, for sure, but I wasn't certain whether it was worth bringing up. And then I clean forgot – I only just remembered."

"Go on."

"I was, very unexpectedly, approached by Takan - "

"Who is that?"

"The High Lord's servant."

Rothen frowned. He'd never met the man himself, but guessed he had to be the servant he had seen in Sonea's memory, the night she had discovered that Akkarin practised black magic. Akkarin had taken magical strength from him.

"What is he like?"

"Well, I don't really know – he mostly keeps to himself, and he doesn't live in the servants' quarters, like the rest of us – he has a room somewhere inside the residence. Anyway, I always thought that the reason he kept his distance was that, being from Sachaka, he had a hard time fitting in, but – his Kyralian is flawless, and he was very polite and well-mannered. I can't imagine why he's so reclusive – unless he doesn't like people."

"He might not like Kyralians", Rothen pointed out.

"If that were the case, I can't imagine him working here", Tania replied with a huff.

"Fair point. What did he want?"

"He asked me two things – he wanted to know Lady Sonea's favourite dish, and what kinds of books she'd liked to read."

Rothen blinked, surprised. This was not what he had expected.

"Do you know why he wanted to know these things?"

"He wasn't very specific, but hinted that he wanted to do something nice for her. It made me wonder if something's happened – if she needed cheering up, maybe."

"I have no idea. Though it's certainly possible."

Especially considering the company she's forced to keep.

"I'll see if I can find something out from her teachers", Rothen muttered. "Could you - ?"

"I'll speak to Viola next time I see her."

"Thank you, Tania."

Rothen wondered, not for the first time, if Takan was another one of Akkarin's victims – if Akkarin was holding him prisoner. While you saw the occasional Sachakan in Imardin, they never stayed long, and none of them had ever had dealings with the Houses, or the Guild, as far as Rothen was aware. How, then, had one of them managed to become the High Lord's servant? Rothen had no idea how that had happened, and it bothered him.

Perhaps he'd be able to speak to Takan himself, see if he could figure something out. He couldn't imagine that Takan was a willing participant – who in the world would allow themselves to be used as a power source by an evil magician? Perhaps he would be able to help Takan – and weaken Akkarin in the process.

However, before Rothen had time to come up with a concrete plan, he was, very unexpectedly, hailed by another magician.

— Rothen!

— Yaldin?

— Come to the Arena, quick, or you're going to miss it!, Yaldin sent, sounding excited – Rothen could see him rubbing his hands, something he often did when he got fired up about something.

— Miss what?

— Akkarin and Sonea are about to fight!

— What?!, Rothen yelped.

— I'll try and stall for time, but you'd better hurry if you want to see it, which I know you do.

Before Rothen had time to give a reply, Yaldin's presence faded away. Biting back a curse, Rothen rose to his feet.

"Tania, I have to go. Something urgent's come up."

"Of course. I'll have the evening meal prepared when you return."

"Thank you, Tania."

Rothen hurried out of his rooms and toward the staircase. Instead of taking the stairs, he just stepped off the staircase at the top and let himself fall, catching himself with magic just before he hit the ground. It'd been a while since he'd last used magic like this, and for a moment, he was worried that he'd mess up.

He all but ran out of the building, and across the yard. Finally, the Arena came into view. Rothen increased his pace.

This was bad. What on earth was Akkarin up to now? Had they done something to displease him? Was Sonea going to pay the price for whatever the High Lord thought they'd done? Rothen had complied with every single one of Akkarin's commands – he barely interacted with Sonea unless circumstances demanded it – it wouldn't do for the rest of the Guild to start suspecting that something was wrong, after all – and he had likewise kept away from Lorlen.

Perhaps it wasn't because of him at all – maybe Lorlen had done something thoughtless. If Akkarin wanted to punish Rothen by beating Sonea up in the Arena, he would have demanded that he be in attendance. But Rothen only knew this was happening because Yaldin had, somehow, found out about it, and decided to mention it to Rothen.

What on earth had Lorlen done?

As Rothen spotted colourful robes through the trees, he slowed his steps, and used some Healing magic to get his breathing and heart rate back under control – he didn't want to cause Sonea reason to worry – or the other magicians to think that something was up.

Rothen turned onto the path leading to the Arena, and saw that a gaggle of magicians had gathered – apparently, word of what was about to happen had spread, and a few people had gathered to watch.

Akkarin was talking to a young Warrior who looked like he'd only recently graduated. Sonea stood nearby, a detached look on her face. Rothen could detect faint signs of nervousness and trepidation. He wanted nothing more than to rush over and wrap her in his arms, and assure her that everything would be fine – but he couldn't do that because Akkarin was there.

Rothen caught sight of blue robes, and locked eyes with Lorlen, who was watching Akkarin with a slight frown. He spotted Rothen, and gave him a tight smile and a nod as a way of greeting.

"There you are, Rothen!", Yaldin exclaimed, appearing by his side. "Took you long enough."

"Yaldin, do you know what's going on here?", Rothen asked, glad to be able to use him as an excuse – it would certainly be better if Akkarin didn't suspect that he'd come to stick his nose into his business.

"I already told you", Yaldin huffed. "But I can repeat myself, if you insist."

Rothen was about to reply when he heard quick footsteps behind him. Turning around, he saw Regin, of all people, hurrying toward them. He stopped dead when he recognised Rothen, and sketched a quick bow.

"Lord Rothen."

"Regin."

Rothen tried very hard to keep the distaste out of his voice, but wasn't sure if he'd succeeded. However, the exchange had caught Sonea's attention, whose face brightened considerably when she spotted Rothen. The look she shot Regin was hard to decipher.

"Hello, Rothen", she said with a smile, moving toward them. "And Regin."

"Looks like I made it", Regin huffed. "I got held up, and was worried you'd already started."

"Those two are still chatting like old washer's wives", Sonea replied, nodding in the direction of Akkarin and the Warrior. "I wonder if they'll finish some time today…"

Regin chuckled. "Knowing Donevin, they won't. Once he starts talking, there's no shutting him up."

"You know him?", Sonea asked with a frown.

However, before Regin had time to respond, Akkarin became aware of their small cluster. He held up a hand to silence Donevin, and came striding over to join them. Donevin paused for a moment before following.

"Regin. What a – surprise", Akkarin said in what was probably the driest voice he could manage as he stopped behind Sonea.

Who, strangely enough, didn't seem bothered by the fact that he was basically looming over her.

"High Lord", Regin all but squeaked as he hurried to bow.

Donevin chuckled.

Regin straightened and shot him a glare.

"Dear uncle, do stop glaring."

"You are trying my patience, Lord Donevin", Regin shot back.

Donevin let out a cackle. Sonea looked from one to the other, her expression caught somewhere between shock and surprise.

"You're related to him, as well?", she asked Regin.

"Well, you weren't quite wrong when you said that us nobles were all related somehow", Regin replied with a shrug.

"And – you're his uncle. Even though he's older than you."

She shot Donevin a perplexed look.

"Well spotted, Sonea", Donevin chuckled. "Although I would like to point out that, unlike my little uncle, I know how to behave myself properly."

Sonea blinked, obviously not having expected a comment like that, while Regin looked mortified.

Akkarin was smirking.

"I'm not sure I understand how this works", Sonea muttered. "Nephews are supposed to be younger than their uncles."

"My mother is Regin's eldest sister", Donevin explained. "She was already married by the time Regin was born. And had me, obviously."

"Ah", said Sonea. "All this family tree stuff is definitely not my thing. I tried to visualise how Regin and Fergun were related, and my head almost imploded."

"I'd recommend not thinking about Fergun, if you can help it at all", Donevin replied, all traces of humour gone in an instant. "If he ever shows his face around here again, I'll kick his – bottom."

This announcement was followed by a beat of silence, as none of the people present seemed to know what to say. Akkarin shifted his weight slightly and fixed his attention on Sonea.

"Sonea, are you ready to begin?"

She took a deep breath and turned to face him.

"No", she said, her voice quavering a bit. Then, she squared her shoulders. "Let's get this over with."

He nodded, his dark eyes glittering. The look on his face gave Rothen chills.

"If you'd honour me with your hand, fair Sonea", Donevin said with a lopsided grin.

Sonea rolled her eyes, but held out her hand. Donevin touched the tips of his fingers to it, and a shield flared into existence around her.

"There you go. Don't worry, I'll keep you safe."

The look on Akkarin's face was stony, like he was suppressing some kind of reaction. Instead, he turned and stalked toward the entrance of the Arena. Sonea took another fortifying breath, and followed.

"Donevin, you might want to be careful", Regin muttered. "The High Lord looked about ready to commit a murder there."

"Huh? Why? I thought he wanted me to protect her?"

"Never mind."

"Could you young ones stop holding us all up? I want to see the show!", Yaldin complained. "Administrator! Don't just stand there, come join us!"

Lorlen let out a sigh, but accepted the invitation. As they approached the tired seats around the Arena, Rothen moved closer to Lorlen.

"Do you have any idea why he's doing this, all of a sudden?", Rothen asked in a low voice.

"No", Lorlen replied. "All I know is what Balkan told me – Akkarin made an official request to have the Arena to himself, and to be provided with a powerful Warrior to shield Sonea."

"I see", Rothen replied with a frown.

Donevin stepped onto the portal, like Balkan had done when he'd overseen the duel between Sonea and Regin. Below, Akkarin and Sonea had emerged from the portal. Akkarin stopped in the centre of the Arena, while Sonea continued on to the far side.

"I do wonder what, exactly, she's been working on", Regin muttered. "Can't wait to find out."

Rothen was about to ask what this was all about when Donevin's amplified voice rang out across the arena.

"I'll go over the rules one last time so that everyone's on the same page. The goal of this exercise is for Sonea to escape from the Arena. The High Lord will be attempting to stop her. If she makes it outside with her shield intact, she wins. There are no restrictions, both combatants are allowed to use whatever means to achieve their goal. Are the rules clear to you both?"

Akkarin and Sonea replied in the affirmative.

"All right! Begin!"

Donevin placed his hand on the barrier, and sent a ripple of power across it.

Sonea threw up a shield, and hurled something at Akkarin, which smashed into an invisible barrier – and exploded in a colourful cloud.

Akkarin threw his head back and laughed.

Sonea took off across the Arena, kicking up sand as she went.

Lorlen made a chocked sound. "I don't remember the last time I've seen him laugh."

This earned him confused looks from everyone except Donevin, who was focused on the fight.

However, they had no time to dwell on Lorlen's words, for Akkarin retaliated. He sent out a spray of Forcestrikes in a fan-shaped pattern. Sonea saw them coming and threw herself forward in a somersault, evading the strikes by shrinking her shield. However, it looked almost as though Akkarin had expected her to do that, for he sent a pulse of power into the ground, causing a massive shock-wave to radiate out from where he was. Sonea, who had just regained her footing, had no chance to evade the small earthquake, and stumbled. However, she managed to create a disc of magic beneath her feet, and levitated for a short while until the wave had passed. Akkarin's power slammed into the barrier surrounding the Arena, causing the whole structure to vibrate as a tingling sound rang out.

Sonea flung another missile at Akkarin – this time, there was no explosion, and no colourful dust, but Akkarin immediately started coughing. He covered his face with one sleeve as he sent out another blast of magic to clear away whatever it was that had caused this reaction. Sonea continued running, drawing closer to the exit.

Akkarin turned on the spot to keep her within his field of vision. The next moment, Sonea staggered, her face scrunched up as if in pain.

"What's happening?", Rothen asked, alarmed.

"Mindstrike, I'd say", Donevin replied with a grimace.

"What?! But that's forbidden!"

"Not in this fight. There are no restrictions, remember?"

Rothen was at a loss for words. Mindstrike was considered pretty awful manners, and bad form.

I guess someone like him wouldn't care…

Sonea recovered, and continued running. Akkarin sent more Forcestrikes after her, which she barely managed to evade, although she had to get more and more creative, as Akkarin had started anticipating her movements. She flung another one of the colourful dust vials at him, but it seemed to hardly bother him.

Seeing as how he wouldn't be able to catch her with standard attacks, Akkarin copied Sonea's finishing move from her fight against Regin, and sent out Forcestrikes that curved around the arena – though, in his case, it was only two, which he sent out consecutively. They overtook Sonea, who let out a startled yelp when she noticed. She tried to change her trajectory, but had only made it a few steps when the first strike smashed into her shield – and obliterated it.

Sonea let out a shout and stumbled. The second strike had almost reached her, and Regin made a frightened sound. At the last moment, the strike changed direction by 90°, and slammed into the barrier above. The impact was worse than it had been earlier.

Rothen and Lorlen exchanged a grim look.

Sonea tumbled to the ground, the strike that shattered her shield having thrown her off-balance.

"Halt!", Donevin called. "The exercise is over."

He dispelled the barrier around Sonea. She stayed where she was, looking winded, and brushed a few strands that had come loose from her braid out of her face. Akkarin started forward and approached her at a measured pace. Much to Rothen's surprise, he offered her a hand, and hauled her to her feet. They exchanged a few words, but Rothen couldn't hear them.

They turned and headed for the portal. Regin watched them with a frown.

"He was holding back, I think. He could have ended this in the first minute, if he'd shortened the interval between strikes, or if he'd used less predictable patterns."

"My dear uncle", Donevin replied, turning away from the barrier, "the point of this exercise was for Sonea to learn something, not for him to show off how powerful he is. Sure, he could have beaten her right at the start, but if he'd just pounded her into the dust, she wouldn't have learned anything."

Regin opened his mouth, and closed it again.

"It was very similar to your duel last year, you know", Donevin added in a softer voice. "Sonea could have ended it in the first bout. But that was not the point."

Regin frowned, but didn't argue.

Akkarin and Sonea emerged from the portal, Sonea looking slightly exhausted. Rothen assumed that, since she had, apparently, not intended to strike back with magic, she had poured most of her strength into her shield. In the end, this had not worked to her advantage, and all that magic was now gone.

The magicians and Regin moved to meet them, and clustered around them. The sudden attention seemed to make Sonea nervous, and for a moment, she looked as though she wanted to hide behind Akkarin.

No, surely not. I must be imagining things.

"Well, then, Lord Donevin, what is your assessment?", Akkarin asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Colour me impressed", the Warrior replied, rubbing his hands together. "I had not expected anything like this. And, to be honest, I hadn't expected Sonea to last as long as she did, even with you going easy on her. I heard you were bad at Warrior Skills", he added, looking at Sonea. "I feel like I've been lied to."

Sonea blinked, looking utterly flabbergasted, but Donevin allowed her no time to say anything.

"I am glad, though, that your second strike didn't hit my shield, High Lord – I'm not confident that I would have been able to stop it."

"Which is why I made sure not to hit you", Akkarin replied smoothly.

"Hm. Having a novice die in the Arena would be a hassle."

"Indeed. I much prefer her alive."

Sonea watched the exchange with open-mouthed surprise. With a huff, she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Is this what goes for humour among Warriors?"

"It is", Donevin replied with a chuckle. "We have to distract ourselves from the grim reality somehow."

"Can't say I approve of this particular kind of humour."

"Really? Have you heard the stuff the Healers say? They're infinitely worse."

"I don't believe you."

"Have you heard some of the things they say?"

They immediately got into a heated discussion about whose favourite faction had the more disturbing sense of humour. Sonea left Akkarin's side and went straight up into Donevin's face, which didn't seem to bother the Warrior.

Rothen shot Akkarin a quick glance, not sure how he would react to that. He had not expected the look of utter surprise on Akkarin's face – the High Lord usually took great care not to show what he thought or felt, after all. Not today – Akkarin let out an amused huff, shifted his weight onto his left leg and crossed his arms over his chest. He proceeded to watch the argument unfold with obvious delight.

"You're enjoying yourself, aren't you", Lorlen muttered as he drifted over to Akkarin's side.

"I haven't had this much fun in years."

"You consider chasing your novice across the Arena like some little harrel to be fun?"

"Oh, absolutely. It seems she isn't yet done surprising me. Although I didn't enjoy that stink bomb she concocted – I had not planned on washing my hair tonight."

Rothen watched them with no small amount of confusion, while also trying to listen in on the discussion between Sonea and Donevin. He wasn't sure if Lorlen's curiosity was genuine, or if he was just acting the part. He knew, of course, as did everyone else, that Akkarin and Lorlen had known each other since they'd been young, had been best friends during their time at the university. This friendship had endured over the years – until the point where Akkarin had discovered that Lorlen – and, by extension, Sonea and himself – knew his secret. He didn't know what their friendship had looked like before that fateful day, and didn't know how it had changed after – for it had to have changed. Maybe this was Lorlen's attachment to Akkarin rearing its head?

"Why did you use Mindstrike on her, of all things? Was this some kind of punishment?", Lorlen whispered, an accusatory undertone in his voice.

"No. I had intended to do that from the beginning, I was just waiting for her to escalate things. Enemies trying to kill you will not play by the rules. If she doesn't know what Mindstrike feels like, it might catch her off-guard at the worst time. Sonea was certainly not happy that I did this to her, but agreed that my reasoning was sound."

"But – who would want to kill Sonea?"

"I'll remind you that people like Regin and Fergun exist. And, who knows – there might be worse people out there."

"But who on earth could pose a threat to someone as powerful as her?"

"Who, indeed?"

Meanwhile, the argument between Sonea and Donevin had become more heated. It seemed that they were completely unaware of the conversation that had just taken place between Akkarin and Lorlen, for which Rothen was grateful.

"Sonea", Akkarin said, demanding her attention.

Sonea, who had been about to make a scathing retort to something Donevin had said, a finger raised, paused, closed her mouth, and turned to face Akkarin. She seemed to realise that her hand was still raised, and dropped it to her side.

"Have I ever told you that you would make a terrific Warrior?"

Sonea blinked, evidently surprised.

"No, you haven't. And I honestly can't imagine why you would think that. I'm terrible at Warrior Skills."

"Through no shortcoming of your own", he replied, stepping closer to her and uncrossing his arms.

"You know what's holding me back, and why!", she exclaimed, her voice trembling. "I know you gave Lord Garrel some of your magic back during the Formal Battle, right after I'd smashed Regin's shield. If you hadn't, I'd have smashed his shield as well, and I wasn't even trying to do that!"

She looked like she was on the verge of a mental breakdown. Rothen only realised he'd started forward when Lorlen's hand closed around his upper arm. The Administrator shot him a warning look before sliding his hand down Rothen's arm, so he could touch his wrist.

— Don't. We can't help her.

— This is unbearable to watch! She's suffering!

— I know. But Akkarin wouldn't take kindly to your interference, especially if you undermine him in front of other magicians. And Sonea would surely have to pay the price. I'm afraid she'll have to face this alone, as much as I hate it.

Rothen let out a defeated sigh. Lorlen retracted his hand, and Rothen felt a profound sense of relief that Akkarin's back was turned, his attention still focused on Sonea.

"You will have to move past that if you want to reach your full potential."

"What if I don't want to?"

"Sonea, you lack a proper understanding of just how powerful you are compared to other magicians. And the fact that your teachers keep restricting you during Warrior Skills classes doesn't help with that. You will have to learn to gauge how much magic you can safely use without endangering your sparring partner, and what to do if you do accidentally use more power than you meant to. I miscalculated the strength of my last two Strikes – I assumed that I would need both to break through your barrier. When I realised my error, I changed the trajectory of my second Strike. One small miscalculation on my part, but it could have had devastating consequences. You could have done the same thing during your fight with Regin."

"I – I hadn't thought of that", Sonea breathed.

"You are still young, you cannot be expected to know everything. That is why you are here. To learn."

Rothen wasn't sure he approved of Akkarin's way of handling this situation – he would have assured Sonea that all would be well, would have attempted to comfort her, and ease her worries. Akkarin had done none of these things – his approach had been logical, and straightforward. However, Rothen had to admit – grudgingly – that, being much weaker than Sonea – not having been anywhere close to being the strongest novice in his year – he couldn't comprehend her fear of accidentally hurting, maybe even killing others – could not understand this fear she carried. Akkarin, on the other hand, was even more powerful than she was – though Rothen didn't know by what margin, he assumed that Akkarin had, most likely, only used a fraction of his power, or else this training session would have ended in a very different manner.

He wasn't sure if he should feel relieved or annoyed that Akkarin had succeeded when Sonea's expression shifted from one of distress to something more hopeful.

"I still wouldn't feel comfortable using all of my power against others in training, even if the teachers would allow it", she said quietly. "I don't know how I'm supposed to figure out how much power is safe to use. Striking the Arena barrier is certainly fun, but not exactly helpful."

"You could have at me. You could throw all of your magic at me, and it wouldn't be an issue."

Rothen thought he'd misheard. Sonea seemed to share this assessment, for her eyebrows almost disappeared into her hairline.

"You'd offer yourself as a punching bag?"

"If it helps you?"

Sonea let out a startled laugh.

"I – I'll have to think about it. But I appreciate the offer."

He gave her a nod in return.

Sonea frowned, and bit her lip.

"Go on. Speak your mind."

"I remember you telling me that every woman who considered becoming a Warrior in recent years was 'persuaded' to change her mind", Sonea said.

"Yes, I did say that. I also seem to recall asking you if you thought that to be unfair. You never gave me an answer."

"I didn't think my opinion would matter."

"Nevertheless, I would like to hear it."

Sonea took a deep breath, and exploded.

"Of course it's unfair!", she exclaimed, balling her hands into fists. "It's the same as the thing with Lady Tessia all over again! 'Women can't be healers', they said, and then she went and invented magical healing! Just thinking of all the potential that might have been wasted makes my blood boil! One of those women might have revolutionised the way we fight, but we will never know because they were never given the chance!" She took a deep breath, and threw her hands up in frustration. "Excluding someone from a certain task is only valid if they lack the skills or motivation. Every other 'reason' is just an excuse."

Rothen had never seen her so upset before. Her eyes were blazing, and her chest heaving. Rothen himself wasn't the only one wearing a rather dumbfounded expression – the only one who didn't seem surprised by her outburst was, in fact, Akkarin, who was regarding her with a smile, as though he was immensely pleased.

It made Rothen hope that he would not punish Sonea for practically yelling at him – although her rant had probably not been aimed at him, since he didn't get to decide who could become a Warrior – that was Balkan's domain.

"I agree with you", Akkarin said, to everyone's surprise – including Sonea's, judging by the look on her face. "Unfortunately, even I can't make Balkan change his ways, despite being the Guild's leader. However – you could."

"Hardly", she scoffed. "If I went and told him what I told you just now, he'd probably kick me out of his office before I was even finished, and probably punish me for being impertinent, speaking out of turn or some other thing. He would never listen to me."

"That's not what I meant. Balkan has, so far, rebuffed every woman who wanted to become a Warrior – but none of them was the High Lord's favourite. If I were to back you up – and I would – he would have a hard time denying you, as he'd enter into a direct conflict with me. Something most people are usually keen to avoid. You could, with very little effort, turn the entire Guild upside-down – cut a path for other women to follow. Once he let you join the Warriors, Balkan would have a much harder time turning other women away."

Sonea seemed utterly baffled to hear this. Rothen could understand all too well – and Akkarin's declaration that he would throw his support behind her had been unexpected.

Rothen frowned as a thought occurred to him. Why was Akkarin doing this? Why was he personally training Sonea – questionable methods aside – and why was he encouraging her to become a Warrior, of all things? Wasn't he worried that she'd use all that knowledge against him, as soon as she got the chance? Or did he think himself powerful enough that he was certain that she'd never pose a threat to him?

"What you said just now makes sense, in a way", Sonea conceded in a quiet voice once she had recovered. "However, there is one thing you haven't considered – I don't want to be a Warrior. I want to be a Healer."

There was a flicker of uncertainty in her eyes, as though she wasn't sure how Akkarin would respond to that statement. Rothen could wholly understand why she'd feel that way – while a guardian was supposed to guide a novice, and take the novice's interests and strengths into consideration when suggesting a discipline to choose, it was entirely possible that Akkarin would try to superimpose his own wishes, would push her in the direction he thought she should be moving in.

Even if that didn't make any sense. Sonea the Healer would be a lot less dangerous than Sonea the Warrior.

"It was not my intention to persuade you to change your mind", Akkarin said, his voice almost soft. "I do believe that you could become a great Warrior. However, I am aware that your temperament is better suited to being a Healer than a Warrior, and you will have my support, no matter what you choose to do. I just wanted you to be aware of the possibility."

Rothen couldn't even begin to put the amount of relief he was feeling into words. Having made a public statement like this, it would be hard for Akkarin to go back on his word later. Sonea had made it clear that she wanted to be a Healer, and he had accepted that.

"Oh, um. Thank you, High Lord." She looked almost bashful, and lowered her gaze. However, she looked up again soon enough, and fixed Akkarin with a rather quizzical look.

"Might I ask a question?"

"Certainly."

"I still don't understand why you think that I'd be a great Warrior", she said with a frown.

"You possess many traits and abilities a Warrior ought to have", Akkarin replied, clasping his hands behind his back, looking like he was about to launch into a lecture, "such as being able to adapt quickly to new situations and environments, to be able to come up with and discard plans under duress, even in life-threatening situations. You can keep your wits about you, no matter what you are faced with, and you are creative. That, of course, is a trait that is useful for every discipline, but for a Warrior, it is an incredibly useful skill. Moreover, you are dauntless, and will stubbornly plough ahead, no matter what obstacles are thrown in your path. And you are uncommonly brave. But, most importantly – all of that is being tempered by your seemingly boundless compassion, and your strict sense of morality."

Sonea was listening to this assessment of herself with growing surprise.

"You think I'm brave?", she whispered, disbelief colouring her voice.

"You didn't notice?"

"Notice what?"

"You managed to maintain eye-contact with me for several minutes", he told her, sounding thoroughly amused. "I can count on one hand the people who are able to do that, one of them being the King – who, for some reason, staunchly refuses to be intimidated by me."

Sonea opened her mouth, blinked, closed her mouth again, and shook her head.

"I suggest that you add that to the list of today's achievements when you make today's entry – as well as the fact that you made me laugh. I haven't laughed like this in over ten years, I believe."

Sonea made a choked sound. The others gaped at Akkarin, which he didn't appear to notice.

He hasn't laughed in ten years? Just what kind of monster is he?

"You keep a diary, Sonea?", Lorlen asked curiously.

"Ah, well, it's not a typical diary, it's an assignment, really. I'm supposed to write down the day's achievements every night."

"Sonea lacks self-confidence", Akkarin added, turning to face Lorlen. "This should help her understand her own strengths better."

"I never had the impression that she lacked self-confidence", Rothen replied with a frown.

"That's because you never pushed her out of her comfort zone", Akkarin replied smoothly, fixing his dark eyes on Rothen. "People will naturally shy away from something they consider uncomfortable, or something they're not good at. But, depending on what kind of skill we're talking about, the ramifications of that could be severe."

"I only did what I thought was in her best interest!", Rothen protested.

"Certainly, and your methods were effective, at least at first. Without your guidance, she would have had a hard time getting used to this environment. However, Sonea eventually reached a point where your methods proved ineffective – focusing on what someone is good at and neglecting to address weaknesses can only get one so far. You were no longer able to give her the guidance she needed."

Feeling himself getting red in the face, Rothen was about to make a scathing remark, tell Akkarin exactly what he thought of his methods –

"Please don't fight", Sonea all but begged, her eyes wide.

Rothen snapped his mouth shut, and shot her an apologetic look. However, he wasn't certain that Akkarin would just drop the issue because Sonea had asked him to.

He was, therefore, completely unprepared for Akkarin to incline his head in her direction, and turn away. He strolled back over to Sonea's side, turned, and fixed Rothen with an indecipherable look.

"Sonea, why don't you show Rothen what you've been working on these days?"

The look of utter joy on Sonea's face when she realised that she'd just been given permission to talk to him immediately dispelled Rothen's dour mood.

"Look", she exclaimed, her eyes shining.

She dug her hands into her robes and proceeded to pull out small glass vials, each of them able to comfortably fit into her hands. As she kept producing more and more of them, she made them float in front of her.

"Don't overdo it", Akkarin warned. "I'll keep you at the residence tomorrow if you push yourself too far."

"I know my limits!", Sonea protested.

"No. You do not. Or rather, you have a habit of ignoring them."

"You do it, then!", she challenged.

Rothen held his breath as Akkarin arched a brow. The High Lord lifted his right hand and made a jerking motion, like a puppeteer. Sonea made a surprised sound and tensed, probably out of reflex, but relaxed almost instantly before narrowing her eyes.

"You'd better not drop them."

"Not to worry. I have no desire to be exposed to another one of your stink bombs."

Rothen cautiously moved closer, not entirely sure that it was a good idea to approach Akkarin while he was using magic, but his curiosity won. Sonea was still taking more vials out from hidden pockets.

"Where do you store all those?", Regin asked, astonished.

"I expanded my pockets", Sonea replied.

"What, you mean you did this yourself? You know how to sew?"

"Of course I do. What, did you think we had servants at home to do that for us?", she asked, her gaze piercing.

Donevin lightly smacked Regin over the head. "Uncle, please stop saying stupid things."

Regin glared at him.

Rothen tried to ignore their bickering, and inspected Sonea's vials. They were separated into two groups – the ones on the left contained smaller vials within them, as well as differently coloured powder. The ones on the right did not contain a second vial. Rothen assumed that all of them were filled with gas.

"These are explosive", Sonea explained, pointing to the double vials. "When the vials break, the two gases mix, and cause a reaction, which will blow the powder into the air. Some of these particles are colour pigments, others are spices. The explosions themselves are not very powerful – I wouldn't want to blow myself up by accident – they're meant to confuse and disrupt rather than cause harm.

"The ones on the right are the aforementioned stink bombs, I don't think I need to explain what those do."

"That's remarkable, Sonea", Rothen said, genuinely impressed. "However – aren't you worried that you might break those stink bombs by, say, falling down? If you broke several of them at once, it could have dire consequences."

"I'm aware of that. I've considered a number of solutions, and I think the best one is to add padding to the pockets to minimise the risk. I might also practise falling and creating a shield as close to my body as I can as an additional measure."

"Practice falling?", Donevin asked with a frown.

"Mh. It's an important skill to have when you fight with weapons, or hand-to-hand. Falling in an uncontrolled way can lead to serious injuries – or death, if you hit your head on something."

"I see. Interesting."

"Did you come up with all of this by yourself, Sonea?", Yaldin asked as he tried to peer over Rothen's shoulder.

"Um, well, the stink bombs were my idea, yes, but the other ones – I actually saw someone do something similar once, and used that as inspiration. I'll have to show him the results – and thank him for giving me such a great idea."

Akkarin, who had been examining Sonea's work, trained his eyes on her, and Rothen was surprised to see pride in his gaze – mixed with another emotion he wasn't sure he could identify. It wasn't fierce pride, something he'd have expected to see from someone like Akkarin.

He was rather glad that Sonea was too preoccupied to notice.

"And what was the inspiration for these colourful explosives?", Regin asked, curious.

"I saw someone throw clay pots filled with spices at a magician once", Sonea replied with a wry smile. "Magicians hate it when you do that."

Akkarin made a strange sound and proceeded to try and disguise it as a cough. Rothen shot him a questioning look, but the High Lord's face was about as expressive as a rock.

"I thought that was a good idea on principle, but decided it could be better", Sonea went on. "And that's how I came up with those."

"Impressive", Rothen praised.

Sonea beamed.

"She's been working on them only for a couple of days, as far as I know", Lorlen added, sounding impressed himself. "Sarrin mentioned this the same day Balkan informed us – rather enthusiastically – about the fact that Akkarin wanted to train Sonea."

Sonea looked rather bashful at the impressed looks she now got from everyone present, and Rothen deduced that it was easier for her to accept praise from certain people.

Being done with her explanation, Sonea started plucking the vials out of the air, and slotting them back into her pockets. Akkarin turned, and narrowed his eyes at the horizon.

"Sonea, we need to take our leave now. I promised Takan that we would be back by sundown. He will have our hides if we are late."

"Right. Don't upset the cook."

Akkarin drew the vials closer to her, and she hurried to pocket them all. Once she was done, she bowed to the gathered magicians.

"Good evening", she said softly.

Akkarin gave them all a curt nod and turned away. Sonea hurried to follow, falling into step beside him.

Regin frowned.

"That's new."

"What is?", Donevin asked.

"A couple of days ago, she was walking behind him", Regin replied.

"It's an old habit from her days in the slums", Rothen explained. "It takes a conscious effort on her part not to do it – although I've noticed that she's less likely to keep her distance from women. She would walk next to Tania much sooner than next to me."

Lorlen made an angry sound. "I don't think I want to know the reason for this", he said grimly.

"No. You don't."

They left the Arena, taking the path that would lead them past the Novice's Quarters. Regin looked thoughtful, a crease between his brows.

"I would like to know why people kept telling me that Sonea and the High Lord didn't get along, and that she was bad a Warrior Skills", Donevin griped. "Clearly, both are not true."

"Sonea is awful at Warrior Skills", Regin retorted. "I beat her every single time. Although – the High Lord was probably right when he said that what's holding her back isn't a personal shortcoming of hers.
"And I know for a fact that she used to be terrified of him. Although that seems to have changed – though I don't know when, or why. But she seemed very much at ease around him two or three days ago."

"Is that so?", Rothen asked, trying to hide how much this news alarmed him.

"His behaviour was odd, too", Regin mused. "She did something I'd have reprimanded my own novice for, but he just – let it slide."

"Do go on", Donevin said with a grin. "What horrible thing did she do?"

"Uh, well, you see, she'd been eating something, and - " he took a deep breath as though he were about to confess something very dreadful – "as she walked around the corner, she was licking her fingers."

He sounded absolutely disgusted, and Rothen had to suppress a smile. Regin was lucky he didn't know about some of the other habits she'd had when she'd arrived at the Guild. Teaching her table manners had been a chore.

"The High Lord merely asked her if she was aware of the safety regulations concerning chemicals. She said she was. Later, he asked her if she didn't have a handkerchief – she admitted that she did, but said that it had seemed like a wast to use it. He just – left it at that."

Regin sounded utterly bewildered.

Donevin let out a chuckle. "You need to stop being so stuck-up, little uncle, that can't be fun - "

"Stop calling me that!"

"… I think I'll take you along the next time I go out drinking with my friends. It'll help you unwind."

"I'm not going out for a drink with you, or anyone else, for that matter!", Regin growled. "Besides, you have other things to worry about – I suggest you stop flirting with the High Lord's novice before he murders you."

Donevin blinked. "I wasn't flirting with her."

"Yes, you were!"

"Regin, I'm always like that", the Warrior sighed. "And Sonea is not my type. Amazing and everything, but – no. I could see myself becoming best friends with her, though. I'd be up for that."

Regin looked thunderstruck. Rothen, meanwhile, was still busy processing all the turns this conversation had just taken.

"Although, if you're so worried that the High Lord might go into an overprotective frenzy, I suggest you share your wisdom with all the young men who have been mooning over her recently."

"What?", Rothen yelped. "What young men? I want their names, now!"

It was Donevin's turn to look thunderstruck, and a little bit worried.

"Rothen, calm down, you're overreacting", Yaldin chided.

"No, I don't think I am. I'm too young to be a grandfather!"

"Now you're just being melodramatic", Lorlen interjected.

"Sonea's too young for any of that!", Rothen protested.

"Isn't she almost twenty? Most novices have their first relationship at a younger age."

"Twenty is far too young!"

"If it serves to reassure you, Lord Rothen", Regin interjected in a quiet voice, "Sonea has, so far, rejected every single boy who tried to become too friendly with her. She doesn't mind spending time with them during classes, but has, as far as I know, always rejected invitations to spend time with them outside of classes. I don't think there's anyone she currently has her eye on. Mind you, that's just based on observation. But she hardly ever does anything other than study, so…"

Rothen's mind was spinning. Given how unpopular Sonea had been, he'd never considered that one of the other novices might actually look at her that way. The fact that this had, apparently, changed, worried him, and for more than the reasons he'd just given.

Sonea had enjoyed a brief, yet tender romance with his son Dorrien, who worked as a Healer in a remote village, and seldom visited the Guild. Rothen had been delighted by this development for two reasons – it had done Sonea so much good, and, if anything had come from it, he'd have been able to call her his daughter in an official capacity.

Of course, nothing could stop him from thinking of her as a daughter.

However, when Lorlen had become aware of the attachment between Sonea and Dorrien, he had urged Rothen to separate the two, fearing what Akkarin might do if he became aware of it. Rothen had hated the idea, had tried to protest, but Lorlen had been adamant. Thankfully, Sonea herself had seen the danger, and had gently let Dorrien down. It had been heartbreaking to watch, and had only fuelled the hatred Rothen felt toward the High Lord.

"Lord Donevin, I've been meaning to ask you something", Lorlen said.

"Yes, Administrator?"

"I heard that you volunteered to protect Sonea during this exercise, while most of the others Balkan asked declined. Why?"

"Well, you see, I was curious. To us novices, the High Lord was always this mysterious figure, almost a legend – we hardly ever got to see him, but we'd heard the stories. I knew he was said to be powerful, and skilled, too. However, I'd never seen him practise in the Arena – not to train novices, nor to hone his own skills. Now, I get that, being the High Lord, and not one of the teachers, he was unlikely to teach anyone, but still. So, when Lord Balkan told us that he'd need a volunteer to help with training his novice, I grasped the opportunity. I was eager to see if he'd live up to those rumours."

"And what did you find?"

"What impressed me most was the amount of control he had, both over his magic, and himself. He was very conscious of how much power he was using, and how devastating it could be – even if he claims that he made a miscalculation. His Strikes were far enough apart that he was still able to react in time, and prevent the second Strike from hitting its mark when he realised it wasn't necessary. That being said, I think he should be able to help Sonea overcome her own fear of using her magic against other people."

Lorlen hummed, but said nothing in response.

They had reached the entrance to the Novice's Quarters by now. Regin stopped, and bowed.

"Well then, Administrator, my lords, I bid you a good night."

"Regin, do you think you learned something today?", Donevin asked softly.

"I think I might have", the younger man replied cautiously.

"Good", Donevin replied with a smile. "Sleep well, uncle."

The magicians continued across the yard toward the Magician's Quarters. Yaldin and Donevin immediately started a discussion on Akkarin and Sonea, and what they'd witnessed today. Lorlen and Rothen exchanged a worried glance as they followed them. Rothen couldn't help the feeling that Akkarin was up to something.

---

A/N:

Writing this chapter was fun, especially the fighting choreography – I like writing stuff like that.

I've also decided to let these characters use German idioms, as it wouldn't necessarily make sense for them to use the same ones that "we" do.

"to wear the trousers in a relationship" (die Hosen in einer Beziehung anhaben) – that person is the one in charge

"to feel like you're in the wrong film" (das Gefühl zu haben, man ist im falschen Film) – to feel misplaced, lost (I changed "film" to "play" for obvious reasons)

Glossary:

Donevin – "dark" (Irish)

I've recently started using Nameberry to look for names to fit into a certain "environment", as you can look for very specific requirements. Since most male Kyralian names seem to end in -en or -in, I asked for male three-syllable names ending in -in.

Akkarin is described as "tall" in the books, although I imagine that Dannyl is taller than him. Kyralians are, in general, rather tall. I'd put Akkarin at 180 and Sonea at 165 cm respectively. That makes Akkarin about a head taller than her; Sonea is short for a Kyralian, though still slightly taller than I am. Takan is taller than Sonea, but still shorter than the average Kyralian.

I like Donevin, he's fun to write. He wasn't Regin's nephew originally, but I thought it would be fun to make him (and Fergun) his relatives. Poor Sonea.

Akkarin: * exists *
Regin: Help!

Akkarin: Sonea is licking her fingers. _ This is bad. Better make a bad chemistry joke.
Regin: She has zero manners.
Sonea: This is embarrassing.

Cery: * intimidates Regin *
Sonea: * intimidates Cery *
Regin: Why are all these tiny people so terrifying? Get me out of here!

Akkarin: My novice is making a deal with a Thief? I don't see how that's any of my business.

Regin: My idiot nephew is flirting with the High Lord's favourite, and he looks about ready to kill him!
Akkarin: This guy is annoying.
Sonea: Donevin is weird.
Donevin: * is utterly oblivious *

Rothen: *completely misunderstands everything Akkarin says or does *