The next several days continued to blur by for Eiron. Although, the passing of each one brought with it a growing lucidity. They say, 'time heals all wounds'. It did hold true for his forearm, but the damage ran far deeper than the physical. Perhaps 'time fades all wounds' is more accurate, if much more awkward to say. Speaking of his wound, it was recovering faster than he expected. In fact, after that night in the river, it was just a red line, slightly raised. Was there something different about this cut that healed faster? Had more days passed than he realized?

Eiron considered this, and many other musings, as he habitually went about his routines. He longed to sit somewhere isolated and process all of the life-altering revelations from the past week, but there was no time. Harvest was approaching at a rapid pace, and the periodic lessons with Linoh had caused his field to suffer.

There weren't plants dying, maybe a couple were, but more generally, the Sulcar just looked a bit dimmer compared to the adjacent fields. If he was honest with himself, his lack of focus was also playing a major role. What was he supposed to do? Just pretend that his arm hadn't carved itself up? Or ignore the hours he lost sitting inside while the Elder droned on and on? Not to mention, Ortus had cost him a full day! It was horribly unfair.

He tossed aside a weed with much more force than necessary, how long had he been holding it? Did it matter? Probably. His family was relying on him, at least in part. He resolved to be diligent and tend this half of the field by the end of the day. What day was it again? Oh, lesson day...again. It was fascinating to be sure, but he had enough to deal with already. Well, no use in delaying the inevitable.

With a sigh, he slapped the dust off his pants. It billowed away in great clouds, possibly leaving him more disheveled than before. He shrugged, waved apathetically to Coras, and marched to the gallows. Along the way, he returned a few cheerful greetings halfheartedly, primarily focused on putting one foot in front of the other. It would be so easy to find some secluded corner to rest. Life was truly never easy.

Outside the hall were the rest of the students. Oren and a couple of the others looked almost as miserable as he was, but the rest of them were quite exuberant. As a whole, the group had shrunk noticeably since Ortus. From the rumors he had heard, some families couldn't spare them, even for a few hours. Should he envy them or did they deserve pity instead? How wonderful, another impossible question to answer.

Linoh strode around the corner, his staff bumping along the cobble road. They all stood a little straighter at his presence and hushed in expectation. Those near the door moved aside to let him enter, but he strode right by. Though they were improving, predicting Linoh was nigh impossible. He was moving quickly too. Before he could disappear, they charged after him, hurrying to catch up.

It burned much more willpower to follow along than Eiron cared to admit. He was the last one to catch up to Linoh's rapid pace. Once he had, silence was still maintained. To be honest, the silence was welcome despite the small crowd. Where exactly were they headed? They were following an all too familiar path but it couldn't be. Anywhere but the fields. He longed to ask for their destination, beg that it not be to the rows of Sulcar if he had to, but he knew better. They all did.

Silence held firm, supported by all. Through streets, across the bridge, along those horrible, disgusting, cursed fields. At last, Linoh turned. Not into a field, at least something went right, but instead, to the river. Walking alongside it, they headed farther from the village, towards the edge of their universe. The Wilds grew nearer.

Despite being within sight, the forest was far enough away that Eiron's trepidation was manageable. In fact, it cleanly cut through his mental fog. Strange how grateful he could be to simply feel a different fear.

"Today will be a bit different. We've sat inside for far too long and I'm beginning to be concerned with the lack of enthusiasm being shown."

Linoh shortened his stride, allowing them to bunch up behind him. His steady steps never entirely stopped, but the change of pace was welcome for all.

"I intend to remedy that. Our topic for this lesson will be, 'So what?'. It is an inelegant way to phrase things, but it is a suitable one. I'm sure you've all asked yourselves this very question. Why bother with collecting Essence in the first place? While I would argue that it is interesting, in it's own sake, it carries a greater impact than I have explained thus far."

Wasn't it obvious? Eiron certainly thought so. As the Elder had demonstrated before, you could hover off the ground, push things, maybe even move faster. Besides, from his experiment, access to water essence provided instant relief from the summer heat. And you could take it anywhere!

"To start, there are three main types of essence. Air, water, and light. They all have different properties and uses but today we will only focus on air." Abruptly, he spun around and fixed a stern gaze on them all. "And remember, do not practice anything relating to essence without supervision! You are all far too young and inexperienced."

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Eiron shrunk back at the harsh words. Did the Elder know? Was it actually that dangerous? But wait, he had said both water and light! He glanced up, mind ablaze. With his mental fog fully gone, at least for now, he felt like himself for the first time in ages. No practice or experimenting? How could he not? He was obviously behind many of the others in talent. Could he make up the difference in knowledge or experience?

"Now then, I showed you the basics of air on Ortus but the possibilities are endless. What are some you can think of?"

The silence stretched on until finally, with a collective start, they realized he wasn't speaking rhetorically. Nervous answers were quickly thrown out.

"To breathe underwater?"

"For sweeping the street."

"To...fly?"

"Could I run faster?"

Eiron also joined in, with some trepidation.

"To hold back an Arcleum from charging?"

Linoh came to a stop between two trees and turned to face them, eyes smiling with mischief.

"All that and more than you can dream. Well, I haven't seen anyone actually fly before. But if you want to jump really high and float back down, it's simple enough. Think broader though. I'll give you a few examples."

Clapping his hands together, a wave of air shot out and enveloped them. It didn't blow past like wind normally does, but instead, it hung in place around their heads. It still had the pressure of a breeze blowing by but without the movement. The elder's mouth continued to move but they heard no words. Eiron strained his senses and picked up a very faint rumble. The muffled noise was indistinct though it did have the rhythm of words.

Linoh clapped again and the breeze unfroze and whistled past their ears, bringing with it a plethora of sounds.

"I doubt that one needs explaining. Now stand back, this could be dangerous."

They all hurried to comply. Two steps back, three…finally he stepped over next to the tree and carefully aligned his hands. Both were extended fully, as flat as possible. He held them together, offset, with a thin gap between them. A shrill shriek shot out, followed instantly by a sharp crack. The elder moved back from the trunk, a smug smile appearing at the sight of his shocked audience.

There, across the base of the tree, was a straight line cut into the wood. It was a perfectly even cut, about an inch deep into the trunk. Eiron was stunned by the display but his mind quickly caught up. Maybe the haze had been resistance training. He hated his first thought. This would make cutting out weeds so simple! Although, he would have to take great care to avoid the Sulcar stems. The weeds were so tiny, it did seem like overdoing it. Imagine what that could do to an Arcleum! "Or to me," he whispered.

"As you can see, the uses, while not actually limitless, are practically so. The lumberjacks use essence when lifting a heavy log or to push a tree in a specific direction. Travelers use it to speed them on their way. Guards, to trip a criminal, or slow a creature.” He paused and scanned the enraptured faces. “Dream vaster dreams, consider unique ideas, but also be cautious. It's just as easy to chop into a tree as it is to rip your hands to shreds."

Wait...could it be? Had he done this to himself? But he hadn't been using essence when the wound formed...was he? Was he so weak that he couldn't control it? His pulse spiked, he could feel the sweat on his palms. He had to know. But how could he ask? Would he be thrown out of the lessons if he explained what happened? Might that be worth it to know the truth? A risk to be sure, but could he continue blindly on? Would his sanity hold?

The question formed, died on his lips, and formed again. He warred within himself, dare he ask? He had to! But shouldn't, couldn't. How could he phrase it without revealing what happened? He jumped off the cliff...metaphorically.

"Elder..." A word was out now, there was no turning back. Oh no...had he...had the Elder been speaking?

A severe frown was turned his way.

"I will not abide interruptions. However, I will overlook it in this case. I understand this has been an unusual experience for all of you." His eyes flashed with anger. "Do not let it happen again." The anger was wiped away and the serene, old man had returned. "Now then, what did you wish to know, Eiron?"

A word was indeed already out, but how he wished it were possible to pull it back. For better or worse, it was too late now. Far too late.

"I...I'm sorry Elder. I wanted to know...to..to understand the dangers you were talking about. If I'm not focused, could the air essence flow out and cut me like you cut that tree?"

"An interesting question. I will answer it, but again, save your future questions until the appropriate time." He studied Eiron intently, searching his face for...something. "Carelessness and a lack of focus can, and does, cause many accidents. Some as deadly as that line in the tree. Take it as a warning, but do not be overly frightened. Any essence you hold within you is yours. While it's true that you are only borrowing it, that which you hold can not be stolen from you. It can also not leave unless you allow it. There are cases where that differs, but I'm getting ahead of myself. To directly answer your question, harm can only occur when you lack focus while actively guiding essence."

Relief! But also, more confusion and panic. If it wasn't from essence...had he actually dreamed it? Was it just an errant corner of his bedframe? The Elder had continued speaking but Eiron heard nothing. He didn't hear any of the rest of the lesson for that matter. There was too much to think, to feel. He was lost amidst a sea of undefined depth. Each possible explanation he could imagine was more horrifying than the last. Thankfully, his reliable feet carried him along.

They copied the others nearby, standing, walking, and standing again in turn. One resounding question shouting in his mind...

WHY?