Domrik decided the next lesson for Evan and Marvain would be more advanced. They were quick learners. If they had been official students of his class, they would have moved up to Level Three already. The best students were those with a reason to learn. Evan and Marvain needed no pushing after their encounters with Zandith.

He started them off with a recap of the previous lesson to warm up their neural pathways for new instruction. He had to skip any form of teaching them traditional self-defense in the interest of advancing their Aetheric capabilities as quickly as possible. In his mind, that made them lopsided fighters, but he couldn’t help it at the moment. The best physical technique wouldn’t withstand one Aether bolt.

Marvain was more enthusiastic than Evan. On an energetic level, Domrik could tell Evan’s energy was denser than normal. His focus seemed to be split between the lesson and something else tugging at his mind. Domrik didn’t want to intrude on his privacy, but he couldn’t help but feel compassion for the kid.

Perhaps Evan’s ruminations were related to his attempts at concealing his newly-acquired limp. He couldn’t fool Domrik’s keen eye for the subtleties of movement. He also failed to completely conceal the nasty bruise on the back of his hand.

“Have you gotten enough sleep lately?” Domrik asked after a particularly lazy shot from Evan almost missed the target.

“Yeah,” Evan said.

Nope, Domrik thought as he felt a slight contortion rippling through the Aetheric field. Lies betrayed their intentions through Aetheric bodies if one was sensitive enough. It was one of the many abilities granted by an active Vision Ember. They left feelings similar to those after hearing an out-of-tune note. Something just wasn’t right.

Domrik tilted his head. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” Evan insisted. “I went riding on my hoverboard today. It took a lot out of me.”

A half-truth. Those were more difficult to detect due to the subtler disturbances. What was he trying to hide?

Domrik looked at Marvain. She narrowed her eyes at Evan. “You’ve ridden for hours in the past without breaking a sweat. What was different this time?”

“Nothing,” Evan murmured as he flung another bolt at the target. It hit closer to the center.

She folded her arms, scowling. “It doesn’t sound like nothing.”

Evan hesitated with his fist aimed at the target. His eyes closed and his head lowered. He sighed. “I fell.”

“You what!?” Marvain shouted, moving in front of him. Domrik backed away to give them space, but paid closer attention. Evan still wasn’t telling the full truth, and he hoped Marvain would extract it for him.

“It doesn’t matter,” Evan replied, refocusing on the target and firing into the bullseye. “I’m fine, see?”

“Yes, it absolutely does matter,” she said, standing between Evan and the target. “You fell and you didn’t tell me? You could have been hurt!”

Evan raised his arms in frustration. “But I’m fine! Look, the armor saved me. Only a bruise on my arm.”

Domrik almost called him out on his injured leg, but thought better of it.

Marvain stared him down. “How fast were you going?”

He looked away. “Within the speed limit.”

“Be more specific.”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t remember.”

“Guess.”

“Ugh, a hundred?”

“A hundred! What happened, did someone push you?”

Evan squirmed under her gaze. “No.”

Domrik tilted his head imperceptibly. The truth was deeper yet, and Evan was running out of lies.

Her hands went to her hips. “Well?”

He shrugged. “The board’s a work-in-progress. Stabilization issues.”

A truth and a lie, Domrik thought. I can’t just call him out on it.

“Didn’t you brag to me last time that you had fixed them?”

“They weren’t as fixed as I’d hoped.”

“Well, fix them before you do anything else reckless. We can’t have Dad come home to a son with broken legs.” Her features drooped at the mention of her missing spouse. Domrik sensed a contraction of her energy as her expression darkened. “Any more lies about things I need to know, and you’re grounded for a month from riding.”

“Come on, mom, I’m almost an adult.”

Marvain moved out from between Evan and the target. “Almost is the key word. And if it were up to me, nobody would be allowed to ride those damned hoverboards. There’s a reason why nearby hoverlanes lower property values.”

Domrik smirked at her. “You mean you don’t enjoy being startled by Aetheric bursts in the middle of the night?”

“We moved years ago for that reason alone. It was one of the few things Brandon and I could agree on.”

Evan fired another shot, then winced and shook his hand. “Sorry, I don’t think I can do this today. Hurts my arm too much.”

Domrik wanted to tell him to use the other arm, but a better idea came to him. “Oh? Let me see.”

Evan pulled back his sleeve to reveal a purple streak starting at the back of his hand and ending near his elbow. Domrik supported it gently with one hand while grazing the darkened skin with the fingers of the other. “Does this hurt?”

“A little,” Evan admitted. Marvain moved closer, curious.

Domrik eyed both of them for a moment. “Change of plans. We’ll set aside the combat training for now. I think I have a more relevant lesson. For both of you.”

Evan looked at him with wonder. “Is it about healing?”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Domrik scrunched his eyebrows together. “How would you know that?”

“I was there when you healed Hector,” Evan said, catching the gaze of his mother.

Her quizzical look betrayed all she knew on the subject. “What are you talking about?”

“Right,” Domrik said, “I’d forgotten you were watching. I hope nobody else saw that.”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Evan said. “Not even Lorey believed me when I told her.”

Domrik put a hand on his shoulder. “Evan, there’s a reason why Hector didn’t tell her. He knows never to tell anyone.”

“Why not? If healing is a real ability, people should know!”

“I agree,” Domrik said compassionately, “but there is tremendous nuance that must be understood in order for it to work. Come. The library is more appropriate for this discussion.”

They followed him into the library and sat on both ends of the long couch. He sat in the armchair closest to Evan. “I normally reserve this knowledge for Level Six of my class, but again, I am making an exception for you two. The sooner you know, the better, given your circumstances.”

Marvain shook her head. “Why do you reserve this for the advanced classes? If this is real, it ought to be the first thing you teach.”

“I agree yet again, but…” He frowned. “It’s a long story. I’ll try to shorten it. During our last session, I introduced you to the Ember system as the main backbone to the Aetheric body. It is a theory of mine that an Ember system in balance promotes greater flow of Aetheric energy within the Aetheric body, and that greater flow leads to greater health for the physical body.”

“Don’t you mean hypothesis?” Evan asked.

“For me, it was never a hypothesis. Years ago, shortly after I became aware of my Aetheric body, I noticed any wounds I got from training would heal quicker. Then I came across a series of ancient Sylgan texts describing the process of Aetheric healing. The translations were rough, so I didn’t know exactly how it was done at first, but after some experimentation, and lots of meditation, I found that my body healed at an unbelievable pace. Faster than any nanotech procedure invented to-date.”

Evan raised an eyebrow. “That’s hard to believe, honestly. Can you show us?”

“Sure.” He got a piece of paper from the coffee table and slashed his palm. It was a clean cut. Just before the bleeding began, he channeled a current of energy down his arm and into his hand. The pain increased in sharpness and intensity, but the wound began sealing itself at the ends. The cut disappeared within the span of ten seconds, leaving only a faint line of blood. Evan and Marvain were speechless.

Domrik closed and opened his hand several times. “No hidden nanotech, I promise. We have all the nanotech we need within our own biology.”

They looked at each other with uncertain gazes. Domrik could both see and feel Evan’s mind racing. His thoughts weren’t apparent, but he was in more turmoil than before. He rolled back his sleeve. “Can you heal this?”

Domrik put his elbows on his knees. “I know what you mean, but technically, the answer is no. I cannot heal you, or anyone else, for that matter. It is your Aetheric body that must do the work. The function I can provide is that of amplification or multiplication. The translation isn’t exact. The Sylgan word for it is Kon’juka. I would be called a Kon’jukan.” He took Evan’s arm and laid a hand over his. He focused for several seconds on Evan’s Aetheric body. The flow of energy was a trickle. “How much of your Aetheric body can you feel?”

Evan frowned. “None.”

“That’s fine. Just relax.” Domrik focused more, trying to hone in on that trickle of energy and draw it into Evan’s arm. There was a small response from that trickle, and Evan’s face twitched at the same moment. “Now my hand aches a bit.”

“Good, that means it’s working,” Domrik said.

Evan pulled his arm away. “Healing is supposed to hurt?”

“In a sense, yes. Remember, it’s actually the Aetheric body that registers pain, so when it focused more energy at a damaged site, the sensitivity increases. That cut on my hand earlier? That pain was incredibly sharp.”

Evan was silent for a few seconds. “Is this why you reserve the healing lessons for the later classes?”

“Not exactly,” Domrik said. “All my students learn pain tolerance early on. That’s not the issue. The issue is with people’s ignorance of their own Aetheric bodies. If someone sees me assist in another’s healing, they’ll think I’m some sort of healer unless I explain to them what I explained to you. Not everyone will understand or believe me, and then they will get angry when I apologize for my inability to heal them.”

He took a breath and aroused memories he’d have rather kept dormant. His own energy drooped a bit as he prepared the story.

“The first student I taught this to, Norwin, was enthralled by the concept. After I helped him heal his broken arm, we explored the possibilities together. He was my first-ever Level Six student. It was with him I refined my understanding of the Ember system. And it was with him I discovered the depth of my own naivete.

“I had no secret-keeping policy back then. He told many people about his healing abilities, and even managed to help others heal, but the more he spread his revelations, the more disgruntled people became. He didn’t know at the time that it was the healee’s Aetheric body that mattered, not the healer’s.

“Then Norwin disappeared. After a week of searching, the police found his body on the bank of the Woven River. An Aetheric bolt to the back of the head.”

“Oh my,” Marvain said.

Domrik nodded. “I was devastated. Hector did the best he could with the investigation, but nothing turned up. I have no idea who Norwin talked to or where he went, but it appears the wrong people got word of his actions. Someone out there doesn’t want people to know the truth about themselves.”

“Could it be the same people who attacked you?” Evan asked. His expression grew worried. “Was it Zandith?”

“There’s no way to tell. It could be one, both, or neither. The moral of the story is this: Do not, under any circumstances, tell anyone about the healing abilities of the Aether. We don’t know who knows who. I never teach anyone this ability without telling them Norwin’s story. Hector knows because he was the one assigned to the case, but I would prefer he didn’t know.

“There are legends that tell of times when healers roamed the land, but their numbers dwindled as the unhealed ones grew enraged and slaughtered them. I believe the books I found were written by the last few in hiding. I don’t know if their bloodlines survived, and if they did, if the knowledge survived with them.”

Evan sat back on the couch in contemplation. “So you’re saying you might be the only one in the world who knows this.”

“That would be a tragedy. Surely there are others who have stumbled across these abilities on their own. If any were wise, they would have kept quiet.”

Evan’s gaze bore into the opposing bookcase. “Who do you think stole the bow?”

Domrik blinked, jarred by the change in subject and the sudden need to craft a clever answer. “Why do you ask?”

“Just curious,” Evan said smugly. “I mean, it was quite the coincidence for it to happen right after Strucka finished the bow model for you. He’s pissed, by the way, so don’t expect him to accept any commissions from you anymore.”

Domrik chuckled. “Quite the coincidence, indeed.”

Marvain grabbed Evan’s arm. “Honey, what are you saying?”

“I’m not saying anything,” he replied, keeping his suspicious gaze on Domrik. “Only that Strucka thinks Domrik might have been the one to pull it off.”

“And why would I do such a thing?”

“Money.”

“I already told you I have more than enough.”

“It could be a collector’s item.”

Domrik gestured with both arms to the surrounding bookshelves. “All I collect are books, nothing more.”

“It is a weapon.”

“Have you seen the artifact? The string is solid metal. Completely useless, especially when I already know how to wield Aether.” He couldn’t help but smirk. He was almost convincing himself he didn’t do it. If it weren’t for his ability to sense the Bow’s presence, he wouldn’t have had cause to plan the heist. He would be in Evan’s position, convinced it was just another exhibit. If the heist had gone according to plan, there would be no cause for Evan’s suspicion.

“Then why did it happen so close after Strucka delivered on his commission?”

“You’re not going to like my answer.”

“I still want to hear it.”

“I don’t know.” The lie took more effort than he thought, but he made sure to maintain solid eye contact. Maybe he had a tell in some other way. Someone as sensitive as him would have been able to detect it from a kilometer away.

Evan pursed his lips. “You were right. I don’t like it.”

Domrik put up his hands in innocence. “Look, if you want solid answers, Hector might be able to provide at some point. I can’t help you there.”

“No, you can’t,” Evan said, folding his arms as his gaze went distant in thought. His turmoil had lessened, but Domrik couldn’t tell whether Evan was convinced of innocence or guilt.

“Right, then,” Domrik said, putting his hands on his knees and standing up. “Let’s work on manipulating the shape of Aetheric structures. Unless you’d rather continue with the healing lesson?”

Evan looked at his mother, then down at his hands. “I don’t think I’m ready for the healing yet.”

Domrik bowed his head. “You are wise.”

He headed toward the library exit and held the doors open as they walked through.

“Wise beyond your years.”