Beta-read by written-tragedies.

She starts, "Since you don't seem to have any visible injuries I'm going to use a first class Tib* spell to scan your internal organs and Riaf circulation." She explains as blue smoke slips from her lips. I nod slowly as Riaf accumulates around her hands, looking like a pair of dark blue gloves. My face twists worriedly. That looks like a really concentrated amount of Riaf.

Raja motions for me to lie down on my back. "It might hurt a bit." She adds and I swallow.

That would be the understatement of the century.

I close my eyes and take in a deep breath to prepare for the pain when Raja says suddenly, "You're not planning on telling me what really happened in the forest, are you?" I stare up at her unsure and the Tabib sighs. "You know, that no matter what you can trust me with-"

"-I know!" I cut her off, my mind already buzzing, searching for another lie to tell her, something that will put her at ease.

"Stop it." The dark haired woman snaps and I gawk at her, "If you're going to lie, shut up instead." she grumbles.

I glance away from her dark piercing gaze and stare up at the low ceiling guiltily. Raja sighs after a long silence and says, "This is going to hurt a lot."

She then clasps my abdominis with her hand. The pain is immediate, a suffocating weight that settles on my abdominis, travels up to my chest and scatters through my body. My mouth snaps open into a silent scream, the air knocked out of my lungs. Just when I think it can't get any worse, Raja purses her lips in concentration and the pain doubles in intensity. This time I scream and my voice is hoarse and deafening. I close my eyes and-

-I close my eyes and concentrate on calling out my Riaf. I could feel it circling through my veins, swirling into my core and expanding to my whole body. With a deep breath, I reach out to it. I will the Riaf to accumulate into my chest and then up. My teeth grind and I tighten my jaw. Please work.

Power churns under my skin and I cheer internally. My lips widen into a giddy smile and my confidence grows. I part my lips and breathe out, the air turns blue as concentrated Riaf oozes out of me. I can do this.

"Come on Khaled!" Jahith cheers me on.

I reach my right hand out and the blue cloud covers my fingers, looking like a glove. Without any hesitation I slap my hands on the edge of the summoning ritual. The Riaf immediately seeps into the ground. The inscripted circles delve deeper into the ground, the earth quivering slightly. I push more Riaf to my hands and the runes glow a blinding gold. If the ritual is working, then the color has to change in a few second now according to the element the caster has most affinity to: Red for fire, blue for water, white for air and green for earth.

But instead, the golden glow dims. I panic. No. I need this to work. I snap around to the Riaf augmenting crystal on my sides and activate them. They light up and the summoning ritual runes glow brighter.

The wind picks up and a buzzing hum filled the air. My chest tightens and I will more concentrated Riaf to flow out. I need a strong Rafik*. My eyes are fixed on the runes' light. I don't care about the element, please let it be a strong Rafik*. I watch, heart erratically beating in my chest, as the golden hue seeps away, only remaining as at the runes' edges.

"Is that...supposed to be black?" Jahith mutter.

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I frown and quickly turn to look at my comrade. My best friend shrugs and we exchange confused glances.

"This never happened in my or Samad's ritual." he says.

Just then, Samad explodes in an unexpected fit of rage.

"The ritual failed, that's the only explanation!" the blonde yells, "After everything we went through. Even though we put up and checked everything together. Our summons didn't take this long to prepare and we got it on the first try!

"How are we supposed to enroll our team in the tournament, if one of us can't get a Rafik*!" The blonde continues, heat rising to his cheeks.

Jahith sends Samad a warning look, and I flush in both shame and anger, but before I can interject, Jahith sighs and turns to me.

He starts, "Maybe you should've just bought an already summoned Rafik. We only have a week till the Yearly Riaf Tournament starts, and we can't get all the ritual necessities again that fast. At least we'll be able to enter the tournament if you buy one."

"I'm pretty sure they made a Rafik necessary to join the tournament, in the first place, for a good reason. If someone doesn't have at least that level of Riaf control and mastery, they shouldn't be joining a tournament." Samad interjects and I grind my teeth together.

He is right. No matter how much I can't stand Samad, I knew he was right about this.

My gaze sweeps over my comrades'' respective Rafiks bitterly. Samad's, two-foot-tall chameleon, naps against a random tree trunk while Jahith's Rafik stands straight right beside it, the humanoid creature with a gazelle's head always alert.

If only I didn't suffer from a restricted Riaf, this wouldn't have been a problem. I turn back to the runes circles in front of me and snap my eyes shut. We need to take part in the Yearly Riaf Tournament in order to get noticed by a state Hami and guarantee our apprenticeships after we graduate from the Hami academy. If we win, which we had planned to, the tournament will even work as a stepping stone for our Hami careers.

I need to summon a Rafik. I need a strong one. I jump in to pour more Riaf into it again. I can't fail this. The light lining the runes grows stronger and I shut my eyes tightly in concentration.

"It's still black." Jahith sighs from behind me but I ignore him. I need this to work.

Suddenly the ground quivers and I snap my eyes open. I hear the unmistakable sound of exploding shards, and I snap around to find splattered pieces of the Riaf augmenting crystals covering the ground. Samad's Rafik startles up from its nap in horror and Jahith's half gazelle takes a defensive stance. The concentrated circles flare suddenly and the inner two expand, a space of only inches left between them. Harsh carvings appear in the empty space inside them in the shape of a hendecagram.

Before I could process what was happening, the ground on which the summoning ritual is inscripted seems to open up like a portal. A putrid smell fills the air. I stand frozen with shock as a horrifying creature rises from the ground. Its red slits stare back at me.

The humanoid creature's lips stretch in something akin a twisted smile and my blood turns cold in fear. The protective barrier we put around us before sizzles out. Frozen and standing feet away from the creature, I can't hear the panicked screams of Jahith and Samad. It nears me, and my heartbeat ricochets up. What the heck is that?

Jahith's Rafik suddenly jumps at the beast. But before the half-gazelle can do anything, the horrifying creature smashes its head to the ground. The beast's hand is big enough to cover the half gazelle's upper body. Long claws dig into my best friend's Rafik and Jahith screams beside me, dispelling his Rafik's corporal form.

I don't hear Samad yelling for me to get away and step away too late. I don't even recognize which spell Jahith hits me with. The pain flares in my abdomen and digs into my guts. The monster screeches and extends its claws. Samad curses and spells a Shallal* spell at the beast—

—Raja grumbles something under her breath and the concentrated Riaf around her hand dissipates. I gasp for air and fall back into the mattress, my head spinning.

"You surprisingly endured it." The Tabib mutters quietly, "Good news is, you were right. You are perfectly healthy. Bad news is, your limbs might hurt for a couple days."

I stare wide eyed at the Tabib and the dark haired woman stares back at me with black eyes. "Rest for a bit." She says softly. "You can go home later."

I try to shake my head. I will my body to move, to get up, but the pain is unbearable. Raja leans away from me and makes her way towards the stairs leading up to storage room. My eyes feel heavy and I fall asleep without realising it.

A/N:

*Inter-Bab: Teleportation portal connecting small neighboring cities and villages together.

*Tabib: healer.

*Founoun: banned arts.

*Riaf: the core of all living things, and what Hamis use to move the elements at their disposal.

*Rafik: familiar.