I walked alongside Agnes to the dining hall for breakfast.

  I wasn’t looking forward to facing the mages I had harmed—but after two days of eating in my room, Agnes insisted normalcy was necessary. Isolation, she said, only rots the soul.

  When we entered, the room went quiet. Some stared openly. Others lowered their eyes. A few gathered their trays and left without finishing their meals.

  I saw Sylvia among the ones leaving. Her bald head made her look much more younger. I wouldn’t have recognized her without the pigtails if her face hadn’t been haunting my thoughts.

  She didn’t look back at me.

  “How can I fix this?” I asked, watching her retreating back.

  Agnes continued eating calmly, seemingly unbothered by my inner turmoil.

  “Only time can,” she said. “And Hair will regrow.”

  “I need to do something.”

  She swallowed and wiped her mouth carefully.

  “There are restorative tonics that accelerate hair follicular growth. Expensive and unnecessary but….they do exist”

  “Please teach me.”

  She finally looked at me.

  “Why?”

  “I told you. I have to fix this. Somehow.”

  “You can’t fix everything,” she replied evenly. “Focus on learning precision so there are no regrets.”

  “I can learn both.” I had to insist. If magic could help—it was my duty to do so.

  She studied my face for a long moment.

  “I never focused on cosmetics but I can get us some books. It’s not an easy task.”

  “I will work hard.”

  “We shall see.”

  We walked to Master’s laboratory after breakfast.

  I was strangely looking forward to the draining. It was the only time I was forced into stillness. Having no option but to focus on sensations, only made me more observant.

  Agnes opened the heavy doors quietly today. Maybe she was now ashamed to kick and announce my unwelcomed arrival.

  We were stopped just inside by Keiran’s authoritative sharp tone.

  “Binding her is not under consideration.”

  Master’s back was to us.

  “I live to serve the glory of the Crown,” Master replied.

  “And I am the Crown’s authority”

  Silence stretched between them.

  “She is unstable and will cause greater suffering than she can prevent,” Master said.

  “We have tools to prevent the worst and we will use them from now.”

  Their tone was calm and their words clear. Yet it felt l only grasped them half way.

  Master bristled, and his voice edged lower.

  “And if she loses control again?”

  Kieran’s eyes flashed with power.

  “Then, you better teach her not to.”

  I stood motionless. Thankful Agnes didn’t announce us today.

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  I saw Master subtly nod and turn back to his desk. Did that man ever move from that spot?

  Kieran turned to me. He gave me a small, tight smile. He no longer looked as intimidating although the edge didn’t soften.

  I smiled back. Glad at least someone advocated for me.

  The draining session started as usual. I touched the hollow pipe and the magic flowed.

  Just for fun, I narrowed it significantly. I had lowered my output by more than half before but today I played with it like it was an instrument. I made the readings fluctuate for other reason than I could. Every time I did Master would note down the new output and how long I held it.

  I kept my overall output same as usual so there was no justification to question my game. It was enough to prove to myself I had learned something over the month, I had at learned enough to control how I allowed this shield to take from me.

  At the end of the session instead of reprimand I expected, I received two thick books:

  “Basic Magical Control.”

  “Introduction to Air Manipulation.”

  “Study,” he said. “And practice outside the tower. I will test you in a week.”

  That was all. He still refused to train me but at least he had come around to giving me the tools so I could train myself.

  Agnes packed a picnic basket while I devoured the first chapter of Basic Magical Control.

  Apparently, magic was continuously circulating throughout the body through these pathways. There was an organ known as the core located just below the navel almost at the edge of the spine which was responsible for regenerating it. Higher magical capacity corresponded to a more larger and tightly woven core. Whilst higher control corresponded to large open pathways that allowed magic to circulate more easily.

  My belly looked flat and tiny but it was seemingly hiding a massive core.

  We had to arrange a proper clearance slip to leave the tower. I felt a surge of happiness and freedom the moment I stepped beyond those cold stone walls.

  The purple sky felt wider despite the golden hexagonal shield shimmered overhead. It absorbed another impact with a deep hum that rolled across the air like distant thunder.

  And I remembered why I was struck inside.

  We walked to a secluded clearing near a shallow stream. The water was clear enough to see bright fish weaving between stones. Dragonflies skimmed the surface. The forest surrounded us on all sides.

  The faint rhythm of intercepted missiles didn’t allow me to fully relax.

  “Can I learn magic to dampen the sound?” I asked pointing at the sky.

  “It is technique in advanced air manipulation…” she answered while laying down our picnic. The blanket had a cheque pattern: yellow and white. The yellow matching the blonde in her hair.

  I took out Introduction to Air Manipulation instead of bothering with a reply. I was glad I had learned to read. Literacy was the biggest unlock in any world.

  Agnes helped me with any words I didn’t know but otherwise let me read at my own pace. I was starting to love her quiet company.

  Air magic requires understanding the invisible force which sustains us. It requires forming a mutually beneficial bond with the element. Although, air is all around us. It can be made to be devastating through force and precision. Practically, it is used by most mages for levitation adjacent tasks only.

  I took a deep breath to take in the air around me. The air here was fresh because it could expand and circulate continuously.

  For the first time since coming to this military outpost, I felt like I could just be. I stretched across the blanket tucking the textbook over me.

  Kieran appeared without warning.

  Agnes only noticed him when he was already standing above us. The filtered sunlight had a way of making anyone relax.

  “How goes your Air magic study?” he asked.

  “I finished the first section,” I replied. “But I am afraid to practice without a foci again.”

  This was true. And also not.

  He studied me carefully.

  “It’s good to be cautious.”

  “I learned from my mistakes.” I smiled.

  He didn’t smile back.

  Instead, he reached into his coat and withdrew a velvet pouch. From this, he produced a ruby-studded golden armlet.

  The rubies weren’t bright like how they should be but dark and dare I say it dull?

  “This will serve as your foci.”

  He knelt and fastened it around my upper arm himself. His fingers were steady and precise. There was no fumbling around as he clasped it.

  “It’s beautiful,” I said.

  “It is a utility,” he clarified. “This will stabilize excess output and cluster your magic.”

  Now that he mentioned it, I did feel that. Instead of circulating my magic was gathering around the band. It was concentrating.

  Kieran plucked a small white flower and held it in his palm.

  “Try levitating it.”

  I nodded and opened my palm in the same gesture as him.

  I took a slow breath to form a deeper bond with the air around me.

  “O rise, grain of Vayu.”

  The flower trembled and lifted. In a smooth and controlled operation it drifted from his hand to mine.

  I squealed as soon as it was above my palm and caught it. I could not stop myself.

  Agnes did not scold me. Ever the quiet attendant.

  Kieran’s gaze flicked briefly to the armlet before returning to my face.

  “Good,” he said softly. “You did great.”

  We practiced until the sunset. I didn’t want to leave but Agnes promised we would come everyday to practice more.

  I had made a lot of progress. I could bend blades of grass through a gust. I could skip a stone over the river without even moving my arms.

  It was liberating to work with an element and not have it try to consume me.

  When we returned to my room in the tower, I placed the armlet carefully on my bedside table and wished Agnes good night.

  I felt in control and powerful using my magic and not just have it taken from me. This was the stepping stone I could use to gain control over my life.

  That night I slept deeply.

  I woke to a faint clicking sound. The sound of metal against metal.

  Through half-open eyes, I saw Agnes standing near my table.

  Moonlight silver pools across the floor lit up her face ominously.

  She held my armlet in her hand. One by one, she removed the rubies which were now a bright blood red color so much more vibrant from what I remembered putting on.

  Each gem clicked quietly into a small velvet-lined case. Her movements were careful and surgical.

  She replaced them with the dull ones I had seen before and set the armlet back exactly where it had been.

  She stood there for a moment, looking at me.

  My breathing remained slow.

  Even.

  Asleep.

  Then she left.

  The armlet gleamed in the moonlight.

  Unchanged.

  Except now I knew—this was no simple gift.