There was nothing Isidro despised more than feeling incapable. He hated that he had to rely on Elshana and Vashti to get the map while he was stuck in bed with a back full of bandages. After lying in bed until noon, he decided he was tired of doing nothing and forced himself to sit up. With his legs dangling off the side of the bed, he rolled up his pants to examine his hard-earned scars.

When Isidro was given the antidote for the poison, the doctors said he would never walk again. King Tanno refused to accept reality and forced Isidro to have surgery after surgery in an attempt to fix the unfixable. Isidro traced the familiar marks on his legs. They were deep blemishes that symbolized years of suffering. Every surgery had brought Isidro hope, but that hope was always crushed. His legs were useless. As he sat down in his wheelchair, King Tanno’s words echoed in his mind.

“No one will ever accept a cripple as their king.”

“Don’t you dare attend the banquet in that…thing. I have a reputation that I must uphold.”

“There’s no one left that could ever love you now that your mother has died.”

“I’ve decided that you’ll be living on the estate from now on.”

Isidro pushed himself into the bathroom. It was nothing like the one he had on the estate. The estate had been outfitted to fit his needs. It had roll in shower plenty of room to move his chair around. But the motel bathroom was too tiny for him to maneuver his chair around, and the mirror sat above the sink so he couldn’t see his reflection. He gripped the marble edges of the sink and forced himself into the standing position. As long as he didn’t try to walk, he could usually stand for a few minutes.

When Isidro saw his reflection, he wished he’d stayed in his chair. He looked like a commoner. No. It was worse than that. He looked like a commoner that had just been in a really, really bad barfight. The owls had managed to leave a few thin scratches on his neck, and his hair was wild and dirty. He ran his fingers over the dark stubble that lined his face. How did he manage to let himself get in such a state?

He searched the drawer beneath the sink for something to clean himself with. There was nothing. With a sigh, he turned on the sink and splashed cold water on his face. He did it until his face tingled, but it was no use. His father’s words continued on repeat in his head.

“Every ruler of Vekoba has been an aqua mage. Sky mages like you are naturally weaker.”

“There’s not a single noblewoman alive that wants to be betrothed to a crippled sky mage. Even the dead ones would probably run from you.”

“I had hoped that you’d at least be a talented sky mage, but you’re below average in your skills.”

“Oh Isidro, how I wish the spirits had granted me a better child.”

Isidro’s thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the motel door. It was far too soon for Vashti and Elshana to be returning, so he knew it must be Mazidi. He pushed himself out of the bathroom and opened the door for her. With a smile, she handed Isidro a paper bag. He opened it and found a fresh bar of soap, a tiny bottle of shampoo, shaving cream, and a straight razor.

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“I figured you’d be feeling well enough to get out of bed today,” Mazidi said. “Freshening up is good for your body and mind.”

“Thank you,” Isidro said. “Where did you steal these from?”

Mazidi laughed. “There was no need to steal. I went into a salon and taught a few of the stylists how to use their magic to make washing hair less strenuous on their fingers and wrists. They were very appreciative of my technique and offered me a few parting gifts.”

Isidro held the bag on his lap and rolled back into the bathroom. Mazidi had been his mother’s teacher. Then she became his teacher. Mazidi was one of the only people daring enough to stand up to King Tanno’s mistreatement of Isidro. “Sky magic is a gift,” she had said, “don’t treat it like a curse.”

Once he was in the bathroom, Isidro stood up and rubbed shaving cream across the thick stubble. When he lifted the razor, he felt a twinge in his arm. His wounds from the blood owls were still bugging him. Still, he was determined to make himself look decent. He raised the razor again, only to drop it when pain went flying through his wrist.

Mazidi heard and rushed into the bathroom. She picked up the razor and said, “Perhaps it would be best if I shave you today. You’re still healing.”

“No,” Isidro said. “I can do it.”

He took the razor from Mazidi and placed it against his face. The first bit of hair came off without any issues, but then his fingers froze and he accidently nicked himself.

“Dammit,” he seethed as he stared at the steady flow of blood coming from his cheek. “First I lose the use of my legs, now my hands? This isn’t fair.”

“Your hands and arms will recover soon,” Mazidi said gently. She took the razor from him and began to shave his face. “See? Getting help from others isn’t such a bad thing.”

“That’s easy for you to say,” Isidro replied. “When I ask for help, it only confirms what people already think of me: that I’m weak.”

“You are the opposite of weak,” Mazidi said. “A weak person would’ve given up the second they were barred from the estate. A weak person wouldn’t have risked their life to save Elshana during the blood owls’ onslaught. A weak person wouldn’t have searched for a shadow mage as diligently as you did. Even I didn’t think you’d find one!”

Isidro shrugged. “I wasn’t sure if I’d find a shadow mage either. But then Elshana of all people ended up being the one I’d been looking for.”

“I’ll admit it, Elshana is a handful. Definitely not from royal stock,” Mazidi said. “But I’ve never seen another person make you smile so much.”

Isidro’s freshly-shaved cheeks turned red. “What are you implying?”

“I’m implying that you love her.”

“I met her last week.”

“And yet you threw yourself on top of her to protect her.”

“It was so she would have time to use her magic,” Isidro said. “Don’t overthink it.”

But the truth was that Isidro did like Elshana. A lot. When he saw her enter the throne room for the first time, he thought she’d be the timid type with her plain blue gown and nervous demeanor. But then the first thing she said to him was an insult—a well-deserved insult—and he knew his first impression of her had been completely wrong. She was as fiery as the sun and as fierce as the high tides. A true mage in every sense of the word. But Isidro knew he could never be anything like her. He was too callous, too affected by the world around him. And when it came to his magic, he had yet to learn the skill that could change his life for the better.

“Mazidi,” he began, “I wanted to let you know that I’m still attempting to levitate.”

Mazidi patted his face dry. “How is it going?”

“I’m still in this chair, so not well,” Isidro replied. “I think it may be due to the fact that I was poisoned. Ever since that day, my body has been weak. Perhaps my bones can’t handle the strain levitation would put on them.”

“It has nothing to do with your physical body,” Mazidi replied. “Magic at that level is purely spiritual.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because the sky mage who invented levitation didn’t have any arms,” Mazidi answered. “His name was Grand Warrior Kee. He lived over 10,000 years ago in a village not far from here. He stole bread and the village chief cut his arms off as punishment. Kee grew bitter and moved deep into the mountains. That’s when he began to study sky magic. Sky magic was still in its infancy at the time, and many of his techniques are still used today. But his greatest achievement was when he learned to unleash himself from the things that bound him to this world. That’s when he achieved levitation.”

Isidro blinked. “So you’re certain it has nothing to do with my body?”

“If all you needed to levitate was a strong body, there’d be a million sky mages flying around right now,” Mazidi answered. “Only a select few sky mages have ever achieved levitation. That being said, I believe that one day you’ll be able to add yourself to the list.”

Before Isidro could say anything, he heard the door to the motel open. He rolled out of the bathroom and found Elshana waiting for him in the doorway. She had the map in her hands, but Vashti was nowhere to be found. Panic gripped Isidro's heart.

“Elshana, where is she?” Isidro asked. “Where’s Vashti?” When Elshana didn’t answer, he repeated the question. “Where. Is. Vashti?”