Sunlight glowed behind thick satin curtains as a familiar pattern of steps approached his door. Dominant wasn’t ready to get up, so he rolled over in bed, pulling the covers over his face and pretending to sleep.
Mila opened the door and called, “Good morning, I’ve got breakfast.” She waited a moment, watching him, then said, “I know you’re awake, get up or we’ll be late for your lessons with Talent.”
Dominant groaned and rolled over to face her. “I’d rather just skip today.”
She grinned, “I’m sure Talent would love that, but Lord Kastin wants you to learn, and I don’t think he’d like it if you slacked off.”
Dominant huffed. He didn’t care what Lord Kastin liked, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he sat up in the bed and asked, “What’s the point of all this training? What does he want from me?”
Mila shrugged. “Only he knows for certain, but I wouldn’t assume he’s doing it for charity.” Dominant agreed. He had not known him for long, but the high lord didn’t seem like the benevolent type. Whatever the man was planning, it must have something to do with his rivalry against the other lords. The problem was, there was no way for Dominant to know what that plan might be or how he might factor into it.
Whatever the case the things he was learning benefited him as well. If nothing else, he needed the strength to protect himself. So, Dominant sighed and accepted that his life was now in the hands of a man he didn’t know or understand. He could only hope to gain enough strength to take his life into his own hands again.
He got dressed, ate the toast and fluffy eggs Mila brought, then hurried out to the courtyard, where he saw Talent standing with a smile on his face, waiting for him.
As he approached, Dominant was surprised to see his demeanor had changed. His posture was more relaxed and his eyes seemed to have lost their malice. Even his smile seemed genuine, not the arrogant grin of the spoiled prince that Dominant was used to. He couldn’t help wondering what the man might be up to, but he decided to assume it was a positive change. He greeted Talent, “Good morning.”
Talent grinned. “I’ve been given leave from your training for a time. Today you’ll actually be helping me, under the tutelage of Magistrate Sandra.”
“Uhm, and what exactly does that mean?” Dominant asked.
Talent shrugged. “Well, I’m not entirely sure yet, but Sandrs had been helping training me in combat before you came along and my lessons had to be suspended. Now, we have to make up for that. She should be here any minute, and then we can get started.”
“Your lessons were suspended for me?” Dominant asked, confused by what sounded like jealousy in Talent’s voice.
The boy waved it off. “It was necessary for you to learn, and now you can repay that debt so it evens out.” He sounded annoyed and Dominant couldn’t understand why, but he didn’t get a chance to ask before Sandra appeared.
“Alright you two,” she said, “Today, we’ll be starting with a simple game of tag, but we’ll be using magic and the only rules are you must tag with you right palm and you can’t intentionally injure your opponent.”
“What’s the point of that?” Dominant asked, feeling a bit lost.
Sandra smiled. “Think of it like a warm up before the real training, but don’t take it lightly. This training also serves as a gauge of your progress.”
Dominant nodded, accepting that explanation. It made some sense, though he was still unsure why it was called tag.
Sandra explained the rules to him, but they were very simple, each of them would take turns playing ‘it’ and the goal of the person playing it was to catch the other. It sounded simple enough.
“I think you’ve forgotten a rule,” Talent said, drawing their attention. “If you can’t catch me within five minutes, the round ends and it’s a point for me. The same goes in reverse.”
Sandra nodded. “Yes, I did forget, thank you.” Then she turned to face Dominant and said, “Any questions?”
Dominant shook his head. He didn’t have any questions about how the game worked but he was still unsure about its purpose. Regardless he was ready to get started. “Who goes first?” he asked, not really caring who started. He was eager to get the game over and get back to real training.
“Let’s see, you go first.” Sandra said, pointing at Dominant, “You have a five-minute limit to catch Talent.”
He nodded, unsure if he start now or wait for some signal.
Sandra turned to Talent, instructing, “You have ten seconds to—”
“I know,” he said, already hurrying away. Dominant wasn’t sure, but he thought he heard Talent mumble, “This will be easy.”
Dominant watched the boy for a few moments, but Talent didn’t seem to be trying to hide or create significant distance.Instead he stopped at the edge of the courtyard, just before the gate leading out to the rear gardens. He stood, waving his hand and taunting Dominant, a smug grin plastered on his face.
Dominant wasn’t sure he would be able to catch him, especially since he knew Talent could fly, and he could not.Regardless, he was not about to let the challenge go unanswered. He ran toward Talent, determined to at least try to catch him. Talent laughed and jumped, his body rising in the air and out of reach of Dominant’s hand.
Dominant tried to reach out, stretching his hand as far as he could to make up for the distance, but it was pointless. He wasn’t going to catch him like this.
Magic was allowed, so Dominant could either try to fly as well, or he could try to force Talent back to the ground.
Magic was allowed, so Dominant could either try to fly as well, or he could try to force Talent back to the ground. The latter seemed easier.
He focused, calling forth his mana, and sharpening his will. Turbulent wind seemed a great way to force the boy down. Dominant reached up, envisioning a brutal storm that would fling Talent from the sky.
He felt a surge of power build up inside him, but as it released, there was some distortion and he lost control of the mana.A whirling blaze erupted from his palm, and he watched, confused, as the spinning fire disk rose through the air and exploded in a burst of light.
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Talent shouted, but Dominant could not make out his words over the noise of the blast. As the light receded, Talent was still floating, his body protecting inside a water bubble.
Dominant was not sure what to do now. His first attempt was somehow altered by Talent into something easy for him to defend against. If Talent could do that, then how was Dominant supposed to win.
Shaking away his doubts, he tried again. This time using a spell Talent had used against him before. Dominant drew on his mana again, willing it to become hard as earth and sharp as steel. One projectile would be easily dodged or blocked, but Talent might struggle against a multidirectional assault. Dominant extended his focus, setting a point to Talents left and another on his right where bullets would fire from once he released the magic. Satisfied that his spell's potency was sufficient, he released the magic.
A dozen stone bullets fired from his hand and the two points, cutting into Talent’s water bubble but they weren’t enough to destabilize it. Dominant kept the spell going, but a moment later he felt another distortion. Instead of earth bullets, he fired water bullets that reinforced Talent’s barrier. He couldn’t keep trying this tactic. Dominant knew he was playing right into Talent’s hand. The boy was a master of water and had already proven that he could manipulate other forms of magic.
Dominant could not win by attacking Talent with magic. He needed to fly.
It didn’t look hard, it seemed only to require a propulsion force, which could be accomplished with a variety of elements. Air was the obvious choice, but fire or earth might work as well.
Dominant tried with air first, forming a cushion of air beneath him, then supplying it with a constant flow of wind mana. That was enough to lift him, but the flight was not stable. As soon as his feet were off the ground the air began to blow him away. He fell, but the ground was only inches away so he wasn’t hurt. He stood, dusting himself off, then he tried again.
This time, he focused on stabilizing his position before trying to gain any height. As he did before, he created a cushion of wind, but this time he stretched it around his body like another layer of skin, then added another cushion beneath his feet. As he began channeling mana to lift himself, something felt off. Dominant felt another distortion. The wind cushions exploded with electrical energy, ripping into Dominant’s flesh with fangs of lightning.
Dominant screamed, his heart racing, his mind reeling as pain overtook him. There was no time to think of the source of the attack, no time to consider why his spell distorted into something so deadly. His body convulsed and his mind went blank. He was only vaguely aware as Talent and Sandra rushed over to him.
Talent kneeled beside him and asked, “What the hell was that? Why would he—”
“He needs healing before he bleeds out.” Sandra cut Talent off as she knelt on Dominant’s other side.
Talent shook his head. “He can heal himself.”
Sandra scoffed. “From what I’ve seen, he can’t even cast a proper spell, how could he possibly…”
Her face scrunched up in confusion as Dominant’s flesh began to repair itself. Still, the pain burned through his brain,clouding his mind and making it difficult to think. Dominant tried to focus, but the pain made it impossible.
There was shouting, more people arrived but Dominant couldn’t make out who. He was lifted, or rolled, or moved somehow, then the light faded to dim glow before brightening slightly a few minutes later. Eventually Dominant was placed somewhere cushy and warm. His mind was overwhelmed, but he was comfortable; sleep seemed inevitable and he did not fight it. There were still voices, but the words were mumbled and he couldn’t quite make out what they were saying. It wasn’t long before darkness took him.
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When Dominant woke again, he was in his bed in his room and he was not alone. A strange man in a brown robe sat in a wooden chair at the side of his bed, and a magistrate stood in the door, his arms crossed over his chest and a stern expression on his face. Dominant didn’t recognize either man but the one in the robe was the one that worried him.
The robed man was holding a scanning device, attempting to scan Dominant. As had happened before, the holographic result screen flashed on then distorted and returned to a blank screen. The man was focused on it with such intensity that he didn’t seem to notice that Dominant was awake. He kept flicking the device on and off and shaking it, as though there was something wrong with it. The magistrate sighed, the sound of his voice pulling the man’s attention.
“It’s not the device.” He said, and his voice was calm and patient, but his eyes held an intense fury.
The man in the robe shook his head and replied, “Then why does this keep happening? This is the third time today. Every scan of this boy is distorted and I’ve never seen anyone, even a judge, who can’t be scanned.”
The magistrate shrugged. “I’m not sure. Perhaps he is a special kind of judge, or maybe he has some kind of ability that affects the device. Regardless, I don’t think hitting the damned thing is going to make any difference.”
The robed man sighed, leaning back in his chair. Dominant wasn’t sure if now was a good time, but he decided to announce his waking.
He coughed, the sound soft and weak, but loud enough for the men to turn their attention to him.
They both stood, the man in robes moving over to examine him while the magistrate watched silently, his face an emotionless mask. The man in the robe was the first to speak, his voice was soft and his eyes were gentle. He said, “I am a doctor, your wounds are healing but I’d like to run a few tests to make sure you’re going to be okay, can you stand?”
Dominant nodded. He was still weak and the pain in his body was not gone, but he could feel the lingering effects of healing magic. He was certain he could manage a few tests. He rolled over, sitting up in bed, and swinging his legs over the side. His feet hit the cold floor, but as he tried to put weight on his legs, they buckled under him.
The magistrate rushed forward, grabbing his arm and steadying him. Dominant appreciated the help, but he was wary of the man and his intentions.
The man in the robe shook his head and muttered, “You’re probably still healing. Why don’t we try a cognitive test instead.”
The doctor asked a few simple questions, such as his name, his age, and the place where he lived. He answered them all easily except for his age. He’d never been quite sure of it. Even thinking back to first scan, that day in the alley where a kind woman found him. The results were blank or distorted then too. That was how he’d ended up in the mine… but where was he before that?
Piercing pain plunged through Dominant’s head and he fell back against the pillow. His vision was blurred but as his sight cleared, he saw the magistrate and the man in the robe staring down at him with concern in their eyes. He didn’t like being the object of their scrutiny, but he couldn’t bring himself to sit up or roll.
“I…I’m fine,” He mumbled. Then he closed his eyes. He was not fine, not really. He was in pain and he was confused, but he wanted them to leave him. He wanted to be alone. He just needed some time to recover and some space to think. Maybe he could figure out what had happened and how he might avoid it happening again.
The two men stood over him in silence, but he felt them watching, waiting. Eventually the magistrate said, “Let him rest.He’ll be fine, he just needs some time.”
Dominant heard shuffling, the sound of footsteps then a door opening and closing. For a while he laid still, listening to the quiet. He heard the men continue talking outside his door, but he could catch a words, nothing that sounded important or concerning.
Whether they were finished, one man shuffled away, while the other adjusted what sounded like a wooden chair, then sat.
Dominant wasn’t thrilled with the idea of being monitored, but he had not expected either man to leave so soon. He did not know the men, but if he were to guess, the man who stayed was the magistrate.
Dominant’s thoughts were still a bit disorganized, but he remembered his magic blasting him. Talent must have been responsible! He must have used his magic to distort Dominant’s spells. Dominant had known the boy disliked him, but that was the second time he’d nearly been killed in as many days. He needed to say something, or the next time, he might really die.
Dominant was not sure who he should tell, who might actually listen or believe him, or who could actually stop Talent, but he knew that if he didn’t, it was only a matter of time before Talent found some way to kill him.
Dominant’s mind was a whirl of fear and frustration. He knew that if he was going to survive, he would have to do something about Talent. He also knew that Talent was the high lord’s son; who would believe that he was trying to kill Dominant? If he could get proof, or maybe catch him in the act, would the high lord even care? He seemed to care for Talent a great deal more than he did Dominant, but surely he would not allow such an attack to stand. Surely he would do something…