CHAPTER 3

Birds chirped on a pristine stone windowsill as rays of sunshine spilled into a large decorated room, the light shining on a potted flower and illuminating a small star chart hung next to a royal blue and white uniform upon the wall. Felicia felt the sunlight hit her and rolled away from it with a groan. She curled up tightly, pulling the silk bed sheets close to her face. The birds kept chirping and footsteps fell outside her door in the hallway. How long did she sleep for? What time was it? She yawned and stretched her arms upwards, grabbing onto the ornate wooden backboard behind her to do so. Slowly opening her eyes, she looked up at the chandelier to the side of her, its crystals sparkling in the beautiful sunlight that now bathed her room.

She sat upright, rubbing her face and pushing her long platinum blonde hair out of her sight. A slight breeze whistled through, causing her to grab her arms and shiver. She crawled off of her giant bed to make her way to a wardrobe on the wall.

She opened the closet in front of her, revealing sets of clothes. It ranged from the casual clothing- which she loved the feel of- to dresses that she wore on special occasions, or rather when she was told to. She picked out a waist long blouse to put over her silk corset along with thin black pants.

What were we doing today?

Felicia racked her mind, trying to remember the schedule that she was told yesterday. Then it hit her; It was history, wasn't it. She briskly walked over to her desk, picking up a comb and looking into the mirror. How long ago was she supposed to be up? She rubbed her face, nervously tapping her foot. Her hair fortunately wasn’t too entangled, but it still was a pain to comb out. She shook her head, realizing it was taking too long to perfect each part as she let it fall down past her shoulders. Grabbing her thin silk jacket and swinging it on, she opened the entrance to her room. A worried groan escaped her mouth as she looked at the sunlight, realizing how late it must be. Her heart raced as she ran down the hallways, pushing past a group of servants idly walking through the carpeted corridors.

The sun blinded her as she proceeded down a set of stairs and into one of the many gardens, brushing her hand along a fountain and apologizing to a caretaker as she slipped past them. The greenery looked so inviting, but she didn’t have extra time to spend. She slowed her run as she reached a pathway in the middle of a courtyard, the sides of the aisle lined with pillars shading the stones below. Leaning on one of those marble pillars was a man, tall and well built with focused brown eyes glancing over to her as Felicia tried to speak through her exasperated breaths.

"I'm so sorry, I slept for too long."

Ray just nodded and turned, his short muddy gold braid of hair flicking behind his shoulder.

"It's alright, we can make up for it."

Felicia fiddled with her sleeves, falling in step with him. He was wearing his battle standards, but no armour underneath, at least from what she could tell.

"Um, Ray?"

"Yes?"

"What exactly are we doing this morning?"

"Afternoon."

Felicia blushed and looked down at the ground as he continued.

"You missed out on history, so we're going into training."

He glanced back, his eyes falling onto her. She nervously looked up, head still low.

"What kind of training?"

He looked forward.

"Defensive, you need to work on your footwork."

They kept walking through the now open hallways, greenery spilling from the gardens. Felicia smiled, the flowers were in full bloom. She stopped to admire a rose, it's vibrant red and magenta hues filled with a faint blue glow from the ether that permeated the ground.

"Felicia?"

"Yes, sorry!"

She hurried over to him, a small smile still on her face.

"You know, the ether-blossoms are always in bloom, you can always look at them."

"Well, it's nice to see some variety, isn't it?"

He smirked and turned back forwards.

"Sure, I suppose so."

Felicia grinned and stuck close by him, his face was so gentle when he smiled.

They walked on the delicately carved pathway, marble pillars standing tall beside them adjacent to lush greenery. Finally, they reached the terrace. Felicia raced ahead, taking in the mesmerizing view of the Divine City. The beauty stretched down far below to the bustling streets, vibrant colours complementing the pure white structures all around. The floating pathways looked even better than they did normally when the sun shot through the crystal blue waterfalls.

Felicia looked up at the floating islands, the green trees and vines spilling off the side with a breathtaking vivid glow. Ray stopped beside her, letting the view sink in. A small swallow chirped beside them, causing Felicia to jump slightly at the sudden noise. Ray glanced over at her, the bushes behind them rustling in the breeze.

"It won't do if you're scared by a bird."

Felicia let out an embarrassed giggle.

"It didn't scare me, it just... surprised me."

Ray stood back up to full height, his hair ruffled by the breeze.

"We should get going."

He started to move away, beckoning Felicia to follow him down the spiralling staircase to their left. She followed him, still gazing at floating bridges that spanned across the distance. The light filled the steps which led below, reflecting off their smooth surface. She hopped down the steps after Ray, shielding her eyes from the sunlight. They reached the bottom, entering a large shaded courtyard with clean stone tiles. Ray briskly walked over, grabbing a wooden sword and a stick. He motioned for Felicia to come over.

"We're doing defensive drills, I'll be attacking and you'll need to defend."

Felicia grabbed the sword from Ray, holding it by her hip.

"Is there anything specific I should do?"

He shook his head and walked to the opposite end of the grounds.

"No, just don't get hit for as long as you can."

She nodded, hands fumbling on the sword handle. Ray turned around and spun the spear around into a battle stance, back arm poised upwards, the tip of the stick pointed at her. Felicia adjusted her grip, pulling it upwards, blade pointed at him, handle by her cheek and blade resting on her elbow. She nervously glanced over to the people moving on the walkway above, hoping they wouldn’t watch her.

Are my feet too close? Too wide?

She tried to rack her mind for what Ray had taught her a few days ago. Before she had finished her thought, he launched himself at her. She blocked his first stab and barely dodged the second. As she tried to regain her bearings, he had the stick pressed against her stomach. He waited for her to recognize she had lost and pulled it away.

"Again."

Felicia shook her head and planted her feet on the ground, waiting for his next attack. The rounds continued, always ending up with a similar result to the first. The frustration of losing again and again worsened as she counted the mistakes that were made on her behalf. Her arms began to tire after the 15th time, but Ray didn’t stop.

A shock ran through her hand, causing her to lose grip on her sword which hit the ground with a dull thud. Felicia saw the spear hurtling towards her out of the corner of her eye. She fell back, hitting the ground with her elbow. Ray stood there, wooden stick stopped midair. He frowned and looked down as she dusted her shirt off.

"Are you okay?"

Felicia let out a huff.

"I'm alright, let's continue."

He tucked the stick under his arm and scanned her up and down.

"It's not a matter of being inept, it's just concentration. Take a deep breath and focus."

She nodded as she got back up, hands on her sword once again.

"Felicia, I'm serious, take a breath."

She lowered the sword, taking a moment, closing her eyes. In, and out. Regaining her posture, she kept her weight even between her feet.

Ray moved forwards, the same thrust coming towards her again. The blow deflected off her blade as she stepped forwards to limit his ability to swing. He spun the spear around himself, keeping his body out of reach of her sword. An overhead swing came in Felicia's direction, which she ducked under, keeping her eyes on the stick's movements. A short stab was followed by another, both of which Felicia backed away from. Ray wound up for an overhead swing, moving the entire weight of his body into it. She held the sword upwards, preparing to block the incoming blur of motion. A sharp gust of wind hit the side of her neck, and she felt the stick laying underneath her chin. When did he feint that? What did she miss? Ray quickly removed the stick and placed a hand on his hip.

"Better, but you still need to work on your positioning and footwork."

Felicia nodded, slowly lowering the guard she had put up as he continued.

"That should be good for today, we'll reconvene in an hour for that history lesson."

He placed the stick back on the rack he took it from and took a look at Felicia.

"Don't worry, you did well. It'll take a while to master this."

"Yeah, alright..."

Ray walked over to her, gently taking the sword from her hands.

"Go get some rest, or something to eat, you haven't had anything, have you?"

"I'm not hungry, it's fine."

He took a glance at her as he placed the sword on the rack.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'll be okay."

He nodded, turning away and going back up the stairs they came from. Hesitation crossed Felicia's mind. Maybe she shouldn't have brushed him off like that, she was being too bitter. She sat down and placed her hands on her cheeks, letting out a deep sigh. It was too late to go chase him now, he had better things to do than spend time with her anyways.

Felicia pushed herself up and walked away. Why did she feel so... dejected? No, something else. She moved the thought from her mind and made her way further into the courtyard. She needed to do something to relax, or something similar to relaxing at least. Wandering aimlessly, Felicia considered her options. Maybe the study? Or the chapel? There might be too many people there though, she didn't want to be a bother.

The sound of the birds chirping caught her attention, drawing her sight to the garden. With nothing better to do, she walked into it. Everything was as pretty as she remembered it from the last time she was here, although it would be weird if things changed since yesterday. Nonetheless, the consistency pleased her. No matter what, the flowers and bushes always remained somewhat the same around this area. Felicia slowly followed the winding stones laid in the grass.

Greens, blues, reds, purples, and yellows, all sorts of colours interlaced with each other, amalgamating into one flowing backdrop. She rounded the corner, hand tracing the petals of a violet as she went. She stopped short of her destination. In front of her, a tall woman sat with long mahogany hair like ribbons falling over her slender shoulders. She was tall and had pale skin which bore dark marks and blemishes. She held a small book, a leather-bound journal she was scrawling in. Their gazes met and she spoke, her deeper than average but calming tone washing over Felicia.

"Hello, Felicia."

"Oh, um, hello Lady Maria, sorry, I was just passing by."

The woman smiled at her, eyes gaining some warmth to them.

"There's no need to apologize. Please, don't let me intrude."

She motioned to the empty spot on the bench she sat on, beckoning for her to sit down. Felicia took the seat gingerly, grasping her hands together. She nervously spoke up.

"What are you doing out here Lady Maria?"

"Please, just Maria."

Felicia ducked her head down.

"Oh, sorry, um... Maria."

Maria glanced over at Felicia's small posture.

"As I said before, there's no need to be sorry."

She closed her journal, turning her full attention towards Felicia.

"You were training with Raynauld for a while, weren't you?"

"Hm? Oh, yes."

Maria sat back, stretching her shoulders back.

"How was it?"

Felicia fidgeted with her hands.

"It went well, what were you doing here?"

She scanned Maria, she was wearing casual clothing. It was a bit surprising, Felicia rarely saw Maria, much less without her armour on. The hair was unusual too, she always had it tied back, at least she did for the past couple of years. She sat back up straight, her shirt loosely fitting on her shoulders.

"Not much, just writing in this."

She held up the journal, its worn leather and yellow pages absorbing the light.

"What's in it?"

Maria set it down on her leg, gently opening it to the page she was just on.

"A little bit of writing and a few sketches here and there."

A rough-edged flower filled the page, an anemone with rough dark petals.

"It looks pretty."

Felicia scanned the drawing, her eyes falling onto Maria's hands.

"Oh, it's really nothing special, just a hobby."

Her hands had scars running up them, all the way into her arm They were old, at least they looked old. There were some smaller ones on the underside of her forearms, crawling and fading into her skin.

"They're not as bad as they look."

Felicia glanced up at Maria and shrank into her seat.

"Sorry, that was rude of me."

She shook her head and lifted her hand to her neck.

"It's alright, the scars are merely a consequence of battles, you're lucky that you won't have any of yours show. Ether is funny like that."

Felicia ducked her head down.

"I... yeah."

"I apologize, I didn't mean anything by that."

Her hands traced one that ran from the base of her neck down through her collarbone. The rigid trench of roughly sewn together skin curved it's way downwards, the wound perforated into her body.

"Everyone has a few scars, whether they show them or not."

Maria looked back at Felicia, her eyes warm but tired with a slight sheen to them. A silver locket reflected the sun as it hung heavily from a thin chain on her neck. Maria tucked the locket into her shirt and rested her hands on the journal. She spoke back up, tone much lighter.

"You should ask Raynauld to show you some of his scars."

"W-what?"

Maria let out a small chuckle as she rose from her seat, not bothering to explain the statement.

If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

"Well, I won't intrude further. Enjoy the garden."

Felicia sat on the bench as Maria left, leaving the birds to chirp in the distance as the wind blew past. She frowned, whenever she met Maria she left with more questions. There was always weight to her words, a weight Felicia couldn't quite put her finger on. Letting out a sigh, she watched the anemones and the tulips in front of her slowly dance apart.

~

Raynauld made his way through the candlelit corridors, moving up to the upper northern armoury. Just a routine check, maybe he could spare some time to sharpen his glaive and polish his armour. The white pathways transitioned into subtle grey stones, blue shadows contrasting the yellow sunlight. He brushed past it, making his way to a sturdy wooden door reinforced with iron. It opened smoothly, its weight swinging inwards to reveal the lines of closets.

"Raynauld." Someone greeted him from further in the room.

He recognized that slightly muffled voice.

"Kashire."

He walked further into the room and walked around the corner to see Kashire sitting on the floor, multiple pieces of metal, wood, and feathers neatly scattered around him. His shoulder-length grey hair fell to his shoulders. Raynauld approached him, examining the work laid out on the ground.

"We have arrows already you know."

He didn't look up, his seamless bronze mask covering his whole face.

"They're not good enough."

Raynauld raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms.

"You can make better ones?"

"Armour piercing ones."

Raynauld smiled a bit.

"The ones you used against me didn't pierce armour."

He placed a finished arrow into a small pile behind him, still without turning his head.

"I had literal sticks and stones to work with back then, besides, you should be happy you aren't dead."

Raynauld shrugged and leaned back on the bench that Kashire neglected.

"Nevermind, let's not get into that argument again."

"Because you know I'm right?"

"Because it leads nowhere."

"Because you know I'm right."

Raynauld sighed and moved to his equipment closet, pulling the ornate handles open. He gazed at his armour, the pristine metal glistening. Everything looked to be fine, the arm braces were polished, the brigandine chestplate didn't have any tears in it, and the greaves were clear of mud. His glaive stood upright, just a few centimetres from the top of the cabinet.

"Are you really that bored?"

Raynauld pulled out the polearm and sat down on the bench.

"What do you mean?"

"You've already polished those today, you must have something more productive to do."

Raynauld shook his head, pulling out a cloth and buffer.

"Equipment needs to be maintained, regular attention and care is necessary."

Kashire let out a groan.

"Please, I'm not Felicia, don't lecture me."

"You might need to be, how many bows have you gone through?"

"It's because the shortbows you people make are terrible."

"It may just be how you use them."

"Which is why I made my own things now, arrows included."

Raynauld sighed.

"If you would just specify what you wanted, the smiths would be able to produce it."

"Yeah, like they would listen to me."

"They would."

Kashire moved his head towards Raynauld, with what he knew was a doubtful raised eyebrow behind the smoothed metal.

"Really?"

"They would listen to me then."

Kashire returned to his work, delicately crafting another reinforced arrow. Raynauld examined his glaive, it's ornate engravings near the shaft reflecting lantern light. It was intricately crafted with specific design specifications. The whole blade was bathed in basilisk blood, and the edges were tempered with oni essence. There were always bits of soot left on it after long battles where he used it, no matter how hard he tried to keep the flames he created off the blade itself. The shaft of the glaive was braced with steel which he also cleaned attentively.

"How's Felicia doing?"

Raynauld paused his work, turning to Kashire who still sat faced away from him on the floor.

"She's doing well."

"She got up quite late today."

Raynauld resumed polishing the metal.

"How do you know?"

"I sensed it."

"There's a difference when people are awake and asleep?"

"A big one."

Raynauld shrugged, not bothering to ask for an explanation. A moment of silence followed before Kashire spoke again.

"Really though, how is she doing?"

Raynauld put the spear back in the closet, satisfied with his work.

"What do you mean?"

Kashire put another arrow behind him, adding to the increasingly large stack.

"She seemed... off."

Raynauld crossed his arms, racking his brain for any notion of what Kashire was talking about.

"I don't know, what do you mean by off?"

Kashire sighed.

"I'm not sure how to explain it, you didn't notice anything?"

Raynauld shook his head.

"Not from what I could tell, I'll check up on her later."

He frowned and glanced back at Kashire as he closed the closet.

"Why are you asking?"

"I'm bored."

Raynauld let out an amused snort as he started to leave the room. Typical.

"I'll be going now."

Kashire placed another arrow down.

"Later High Seraph." He mocked.

"I don't get why you hate that title so much."

"It's pretentious."

Raynauld shook his head with a smirk on his face as he left the room. Talks with Kashire were always refreshing, if not a bit annoying at times. He stretched his arms out as he walked into the hallways. He needed to get a book for the lesson later in the day. Briskly walking down the hallway, Raynauld contemplated his plans for the lesson. In all honesty, he wasn't sure what to teach. There was so much that he could talk about, the little known about progenitors, historical combat techniques, maybe the architecture of the city.

Raynauld arrived at an embroidered door with silver engravings. He pushed it open, revealing towering shelves filled with neatly organized books. Dark red carpets lined the many corridors formed by the shelves, and stained glass windows let multicoloured light into the cavernous room. Bright lanterns and chandeliers gave enough light to see the book's titles. It was always a bit intimidating, especially when he was younger. The sheer amount of literature and knowledge stacked into one place was overwhelming, and Raynauld was sure he hadn't even read a fourth of it.

He walked to the curved staircase at the end of the room, climbing up to the second floor. Browsing the spines, he looked through multiple sets of volumes. Raynauld tried to recall the previous lessons, which books he had given Felicia, what he quizzed her on. This really wasn't his strong suit, but it seemed to be working fine when looking at the stellar results she gave.

Turning the corner to look at more shelves with even more texts. He now understood why what the teachers taught him was always a jumbled mess day to day. A book stood out on the shelf, leaning slightly to its side. Pulling it out, he examined it's cover, brushing off bits of dust. It was on ether manipulation and corrupted ether, specifically speculation about its origins. He flipped through it, his eyebrow scrunched. Did she really need to learn about this again? Probably not, but it might lead to further understanding of her own abilities. Raynauld scanned further down the shelves when he spotted a familiar figure sitting on a chair, hand on their forehead.

"Lady Maria?"

She didn't respond, her head still looking downwards, eyes glazed over. He slowly approached, unsure of what to do.

"Maria?"

She snapped upwards, eyes quickly darting around before falling onto Raynauld.

"Oh, my apologies. Hello Raynauld."

She positioned herself upright, back straight and legs parallel. He walked closer to her, closing the book he had in his hands.

"What are you looking for in here?"

She rubbed her eyes, averting her gaze as she did so.

"Nothing in particular." She let out a small smile. "Funny, I just saw Felicia a few minutes ago."

Raynauld sat beside her.

"I'm looking for something for her right now actually. "

Maria sat back, relaxing her posture.

"History lessons again?"

"Yes, I'm not sure exactly what to pick out."

"Why don't you lay off the history and scriptures for a little? Find something else to show her?"

Raynauld set the book down on a nearby table.

"Like what?"

"I don't know, ask her yourself, history can get tiring."

He nodded and stole a glance at her. She was unusually distant, more distant than usual at least.

"I've never seen you in the library before."

She looked upwards, crossing her legs and placing her hands on her knee.

"My quarters can get cramped at times and it's quiet here."

Raynauld put his elbows on his legs, keeping his focus on her out of the corner of his eye. Her eyes started to glaze over once again and her lips parted slightly.

"I used to come here quite often. Some time ago that is."

He waited for her to continue, but she didn't. The air grew heavy, and the silence drearily dragged itself out. Raynauld shifted in his seat, picking the book back up again. Maria let out a sigh, slumping forwards in her seat.

"Excuse my rudeness, I'm just feeling a bit tired."

"It's alright, sorry for bothering you."

She crossed her arms and fell back into the chair.

"No, it's perfectly fine, my mind is... drifting a bit right now."

"Lack of sleep?"

She let her head lull downwards.

"Perhaps."

Raynauld got up from his seat, saving his questions on advice for a later time. Maybe it would be better to not ask them at all.

"Best wishes Maria."

She tilted her head with a small smile.

"You too, Raynauld."

He held onto the book as he walked down the stairs once again, stealing a glance back at Maria who was still sitting in the chair, wistfully staring out the stained glass.

Raynauld pushed his way through the hallways once more, book in hand. There still was a lot of time before the lesson, enough time to break some news. He let out an exhale, coming in front of a small door on the lower floors. Knocking twice, he waited for a response.

"Come in."

It opened, creaking as it slowly swung open. The sound of clicking metal filled the dim room, only lit by a single candle. A figure sat on a bench, hunched over a table. Floyd, presumably tinkering with some mechanism he made up.

"What are you working on?"

Raynauld moved behind him, taking a look at what was on the table. It was a heavily armored gauntlet, too big for Floyd's hand. Raynaud examined the familiar deep scratches and dents.

"Is that Aldrich's?"

"Yup."

He was putting some form of bar onto the top of the glove, the parts where it was linked roughly welded together. Floyd flipped it over to examine the bottom side of it. He scratched the shaved sides of his head, the texture of the burn which covered half of his face reflecting the candlelight.

"I'm making some modifications."

"He let you?"

"I think?"

Raynauld folded his arms

"What do you mean 'you think'?"

Floyd shrugged, putting small metal tools into what Raynauld assumed was a functioning mechanism.

"He did his usual look and grunt, and I took it as a yes."

"Let's hope it was a yes."

“Ah, it’ll be fine, I’ve worked on his stuff before, this won’t hurt.”

He set the gauntlet down with a clunk, stretching his arms upwards. He looked over to Raynauld, noticing the book in his hands.

"What's that?"

"A book, for a lesson."

Floyd grabbed the book from Raynauld's hands.

"Lemme see that."

After a quick scan, he let out a laugh.

"I remember this one! It was really, really boring."

He handed the book back and took out a small intricate tool from his heavily padded apron, Placing it near the gauntlet, he concentrated. With the press of a lever, a tiny ping sounded out and a jet of flame came from the tip of it. Small beads formed on the metal, fusing two separate parts together. Floyd put the tool down, shaking his hand from the sting of the ether use.

"Is that a new one?" Raynauld asked as he leaned on the edge of the table.

"Nope, had this one for a while, don't use it much though."

Raynauld nodded and looked at the ground. Floyd put his equipment away and moved his work to the side.

"So, what brings you here Raynauld."

A moment of silence followed as Raynauld let out a deep breath.

"A group of scouts found them."

"How long ago?"

"I found out late last night. They were spotted a few days ago."

Floyd sat back in his seat, crossing his arms.

"Are we..?"

"Yeah, we're heading out soon."

"Exactly how many people is this 'we'."

Raynauld paced around the small room, carefully avoiding the pieces of scrap and what he assumed was machinery.

"Everybody." He paused to look Floyd in the eyes, judging his reaction.

"Are you sure we're ready?"

"Why would we not be?"

He let out a small laugh but returned to his previous expression before continuing.

"Is she ready?"

Raynauld stayed silent for a moment.

"Yes, she is, she's trained enough. If she isn't, then I'll be there."

The air grew heavy, both of the men lost in thought. Floyd got up from his seat and rummaged through the scrap and tools behind him.

"Who else have you told so far?"

"Just you and Kashire."

"You haven't told Maria yet?"

Raynauld tightened his lips.

"No, I'll do it later."

Floyd returned to his seat, hands folded on the table, his short auburn hair glowing in the light.

"When are we heading out exactly?"

"I don't know, there's been no confirmation from the high lords yet."

Raynauld made his way to the exit.

"It would be best to start preparing."

Floyd nodded, staring at the gauntlet on his table.

"Alright, I'll let Aldrich know for you."

"Thanks, take care."

Exiting the small room, Raynauld let out a deep exhale, running through the preparations which needed to be made. Everyone needed to be ready, but she might not be. He looked at the book in his hand and frowned. History could wait for today.

~

Felicia swung the practice sword over her head, breathing heavily as it moved too far, causing her to become off balance. She grunted in frustration and shook her head, going back to an attacking stance. She shifted her feet, feeling the stones grind under her boots. She carefully stepped, making sure not to move onto the bushes beside her. The garden around her whistled with the wind as the sun bore down on her. She swung forwards, attempting to perfect a three hit combination. She groaned angrily as she heard the whistle of the air, realising her edge alignment was off. Letting out a gasp, she let the tip of the sword hit the ground. This wasn’t going to work, there was always something wrong. She wiped the sweat from her brow, looking around the empty garden before her.

Flipping the blade upside down, she shook her head and started to move out of the gardens. It was probably time to go, and she didn’t want to be late again. The flowers brushed past either side of Felicia as she walked. As much as she wanted to admire them again, she was probably keeping Ray waiting, again. Quickening her pace, she exited the garden and ran along the pathway. Sheepish guilt rang out through her chest as she caught sight of Ray sitting on a stone in the courtyard. She slowed her pace and stopped to catch her breath as she put the practice sword in its place.

"I'm sorry I'm late."

Ray looked up at her with a gentle smile.

"You're actually a bit early."

Felicia let a grin come onto her face. She didn't know if that was a lie or not, but was happy to see him in a better mood than she thought he should be in. He set a book down beside him and got up.

"What's that?" Felicia held her hands loosely behind her back, slowly pacing behind Ray.

"It was for the lesson."

He continued walking to the end of the courtyard, grabbing onto a small piece of wood and some sticks. Felicia looked at the book, still sitting on the stone.

"We're not going to look at it?"

She tried to keep disappointment and confusion out of her voice. Admittedly, she was looking forward to it, whatever it was. Ray had set up a small stand for the wooden disk, leaving it in the middle of the stone floor.

"Change of plans, you're going to practice ether manipulation."

Felicia's eyes widened.

"Wait, why? I don't know if.-"

Her words trailed off and Raynauld moved past her and turned around, arms crossed.

"Just remember what we talked about the other day, you'll be fine."

Felicia shook her head, gulping down her protests. The target stood still about 6 meters away from her. She looked back at Ray, who just stared back at her and nodded towards the target. Taking a deep breath, she raised her hand.

Narrowing her focus on the target, she began to concentrate. Ether started to flow within her, little tingles of cold pricks flooding through her body. She held her hand still, opening the gates a little bit. She waited for the release, but nothing came. Shaking her head, she refocused again, keeping the flow of ether in control. She let a breath out, letting the ether flow free just a little bit more.

It suddenly released, and a sharp snap of wind hit Felicia's ears like a whip along with a deafening boom. She shielded her face from flying splinters of wood coming her way. Tinks and clatters littered the ground as Felicia opened her eyes. She lowered her arms to see the place where the target once stood. The stone beneath it had cracks running along it, with some bits of rubble kicked up and sent flying a few meters away. Then, the pain kicked in. She clenched her teeth and grasped her arm as she felt burning needles of pain slowly crawling through her veins. Taking deep breaths, she waited for it to subside and then turned to look back at Ray.

"I'm sorry..."

He started to walk towards her.

"It's alright, it'll take more practice."

Felicia nodded as she looked back at the destruction on the floor.

"I haven't ever been able to control it though."

"It's still better than it was a few months ago."

She winced at the memory; the repairmen must hate her by now. Ray grabbed onto a stick and held it like a spear.

"Learn it as a habit, or as second nature. Then you'll control it easily."

The tip of the stick burst alight in flames. He swung it through the air leaving an orange trail behind it. The fire extinguished and he set the stick back down, unburnt. Felicia shook her head.

"From what I've heard, others usually have the opposite problem."

Ray moved beside her, looking at her arm which she still clutched onto.

"How so?"

She shrugged and sat down on a nearby bench.

"They can’t get enough energy to use."

Ray sat beside her.

"That's fine, you'll just have to adjust in your own ways to compensate for your own obstacles."

She moved her feet onto the bench, wrapping her arms around her knees.

"My father told me that... that I have a lot of potential."

Raynauld paused for a moment.

"The results confirm that, yes."

She lowered her head downwards, her sight just peeking over her forearms.

"I'm not of any use if I can't use it properly,"

"That's what the training is for."

Felicia nodded.

"I... wish that I could do more."

Ray looked up at the sky, hands clasped together.

"You'll get that chance soon."

"What do you mean?"

He turned to her, face stern, eyebrow furrowed.

"We'll be leaving soon, outside the city."

"On an assignment?"

"Something different, bigger."

"Is it a monster?"

He paused for a moment, eyes darting to the ground.

"No."

Felicia's eyes drifted away from him and pulled her legs in tighter.

"Will we be... hunting them?

Raynauld nodded his head and then looked directly at Felicia.

"You'll have to be well prepared for this, we're heading out in a few days time."

Felicia slowly gave a nod of recognition. Ray turned his whole body to face her.

"This won't be like anything we've done before, and it will be even more dangerous."

She saw the seriousness in his eyes, the cold amber of his irises focused entirely on her. He spoke again.

"Do you understand? You have the choice to not go if you aren't ready."

"...I'm going to come along, I'll be ready."

Raynauld got up from his seat and looked upwards at the bright blue sky.

"Get some rest, but try not to oversleep too much."

Felicia just watched him leave and travel up the stairs. She sat back on the bench, processing Ray's words. A human target, that was unexpected. Getting up, she paced around the splinters on the ground. What did he mean that it was bigger than an assignment? Did she want to know? Her eyes fell on the book that Raynauld left on the bench. He must've forgotten about it. She picked it up, examining the cover. With a small smile, she started to saunter back to her quarters. At least she had something to get her mind off whatever this was for a little bit, no use in worrying just yet.