"Feel the fire, let it flow up from your stomach and to your chest. Guide it through your arms...not too fast! we don't want it flying out and hitting someone. When you think you have a good feel, extend it out through your hands and gather it between them. Do NOT go that far if you don't feel ready".
I did as instructor Torag said and channelled the energy. I felt the warm energy flow up my being and into my fingertips. Not directing it anywhere the energy cycled around and back down only to repeat the process once again. I let this continue for several moments.
The feeling was remarkably different than casting a spell offensively. To do that one simply gathered enough aether of the element they wish to cast within themselves before releasing it in one explosive burst. This however was a continued channel, rather than a build up it was a flow, allowing the elemental aether to swirl its way around your body much like a river.
Taking a deep breath I extended the flow past my skin I let the aether manifest itself in the physical realm as fire which I held between my hands. It started small but as I opened the flow more the flame grew to a decent sized ball.
The room the class sat in grew brighter and warmer as the other trainees managed the same. We all sat in a circle surrounding the grizzled instructor who kept a critical eye on the proceedings.
"Right, now I want to see how long you can hold it. If you feel strained let the flow slowly return inside. Don't even bother looking at how the others are doing, this is all about you".
A sharp tap at the door almost broke my concentration. Torag swore under his breath for a moment before motioning with his hands for us to finish the exercise. Once all fire was extinguished he got to his feet, stormed through the door and slammed it shut behind him.
"Don't you know better than to interrupt this class you stupid git! could've had some poor sod burnt to death here!"
I heard a subdued reply and then complete silence for a few moments before the door opened once again to allow the instructors head to poke through.
"Something I need to deal with, you all sit there and don't do anything! if I see any scorch marks on the walls when I get back you'd better be halfway to Hells door before I find out cause I'll have worse in store...got it!", he growled before slamming the door again.
As the sounds of footsteps grew quiet the class finally broke their silence and the room was filled with the sound of chatter. I fell flat on my back on the cold stone floor and let the heat I felt seep out of me and into the rock.
"Wonder what happened?"
"Don't know, don't really care. I mean how many chances do we get a break from Torag", I replied, turning my head to raise a questioning eyebrow at the source of the question.
Vaegyr grinned at me from his own spot lying on the floor. "Ohoh, so is the sun gifted Thagyr all snuffed out of flame already? What a poor example you are making to the rest of us tsk tsk".
I spun on my back to try and punch him but he scooted out of reach.
"But seriously, Torag never skimps out on classes. And people do know better than to interrupt. Must've been something pretty bad", he said as he raised himself into a sitting position.
"Torag is one of the best conjurers we have, someone may have just broke a leg or something and there isn't another healer available". I busied myself studying the mural we had carved on the ceiling. A grand picture of Azeyma the Warden, hands spread wide in order to encompass the sun, which by magic glowed a soft orange color in order to provide the room with light. Her position is one we mimicked as we attempted to invoke the fire within ourselves in order to hold it within our hands much as she does in the picture. A small tribute to the Keeper of the Sun and a vital skill needed to be a part of the ceremonies throughout our little culture.
"Doesn't take a master to heal a leg, bet I could do it"
"You haven't even got your soul color in your fire yet, you need a bit more practice before fiddling with other people", I replied. Immediately as the words left my mouth I knew it'd regret it.
Vaegyr had one issue and that was his pride in the magical arts. Coming from a talented family of conjurers he constantly saw himself as some kind of future prodigy for our race. He worked hard at it and was quite good, but he had a competitive streak that grated on a lot of nerves...
"Maybe my soul is just too complicated, with someone like Torag breathing down my neck how could I even concentrate on manifesting it", he shot back at me and already he had raised his hands in the position and closed his eyes.
"Hey now don't be stupid, you know what he said about practicing without him near!", I hissed, trying not to alarm the other classmates.
My words fell on deaf ears as his hands already began to radiate a soft glow. The light had already alerted the rest of the room and those who were closest to us backed away frantically. First thing we were taught before even attempting this was the fire was as dangerous as any thrown by a conjurer.
Uncontrolled it killed just as easily.
The glow intensified and slivers of visible aether began to congeal in the centre of his palms and had already began to ascend to the centre between his outstretched hands. My mind raced attempting to think of a method to subdue him but the risk of him losing concentration was too dangerous.
"By the Twelve Vaegyr stop... before it gets too far... you might kill someone", I spoke as slow as I could, pleading.
"Heh, I have this", his face, one of triumph as the energies swirled into a ball of flame switch to annoyance as he took notice that it had no special color. His focus intensified as he pushed more energy into the ball and it grew quickly. Embers sprouted wildly out of its swirling form, threatening to burn anyone they touched.
The other classmates had already frantically scrambled for the door. But as they reached for it someone opened it from the other side. Torag stood framed in the passage for just a moment before he rushed to Vaegyr and placed one open palm upon his head.
Vaegyr looked confused for a second before his eyes widened.
"No I almost have it, I can feel it, NO!"
A bright flash forced me to shield my eyes and silence ensued.
As I opened my eyes slowly I took in the form of Torag sitting beside Vaegyr, now sprawled on the floor cradling his head. We were alone in the room, as the classmates had already left for fear of their lives.
Torag, a stern and unyielding teacher, looked surprisingly calm. It seemed eons before he spoke.
"You, have threatened the lives of not only yourself, but everyone else that was in this room. Of all my days I have not seen anyone so stupid, so inconsiderate for others wellbeing", he took a deep breath and sighed. "You are banned from classes, you are not to be taught by anyone, not even your closest friends or family. You are not to conjure anything within our walls. The elemental arts are forbidden to you"
He stood and walked over to me and yanked me to my feet. He led me to the hallway without even looking back. I glanced back at my friends form, which seemed almost frozen in its position, hands clutching his head and mouth opened but no sound coming out.
"Now lay there and think about what you did", Torag muttered as he closed the door behind him. As we walked quietly down the hallway the silence was broken by a scream of rage and anguish that reverberated through the rocky caverns.
As we exited the training areas Torag finally let go and demanded I explain what happened fully. He said I was wise not to have interfered when it went too far. Feeling for my friend I opened my mouth to ask why such a harsh punishment was imposed, but he simply shook his head and told me to go home.
Little did I know back then that my teacher saw something that I never did. Something that'd I would soon learn myself.
I did as instructor Torag said and channelled the energy. I felt the warm energy flow up my being and into my fingertips. Not directing it anywhere the energy cycled around and back down only to repeat the process once again. I let this continue for several moments.
The feeling was remarkably different than casting a spell offensively. To do that one simply gathered enough aether of the element they wish to cast within themselves before releasing it in one explosive burst. This however was a continued channel, rather than a build up it was a flow, allowing the elemental aether to swirl its way around your body much like a river.
Taking a deep breath I extended the flow past my skin I let the aether manifest itself in the physical realm as fire which I held between my hands. It started small but as I opened the flow more the flame grew to a decent sized ball.
The room the class sat in grew brighter and warmer as the other trainees managed the same. We all sat in a circle surrounding the grizzled instructor who kept a critical eye on the proceedings.
"Right, now I want to see how long you can hold it. If you feel strained let the flow slowly return inside. Don't even bother looking at how the others are doing, this is all about you".
A sharp tap at the door almost broke my concentration. Torag swore under his breath for a moment before motioning with his hands for us to finish the exercise. Once all fire was extinguished he got to his feet, stormed through the door and slammed it shut behind him.
"Don't you know better than to interrupt this class you stupid git! could've had some poor sod burnt to death here!"
I heard a subdued reply and then complete silence for a few moments before the door opened once again to allow the instructors head to poke through.
"Something I need to deal with, you all sit there and don't do anything! if I see any scorch marks on the walls when I get back you'd better be halfway to Hells door before I find out cause I'll have worse in store...got it!", he growled before slamming the door again.
As the sounds of footsteps grew quiet the class finally broke their silence and the room was filled with the sound of chatter. I fell flat on my back on the cold stone floor and let the heat I felt seep out of me and into the rock.
"Wonder what happened?"
"Don't know, don't really care. I mean how many chances do we get a break from Torag", I replied, turning my head to raise a questioning eyebrow at the source of the question.
Vaegyr grinned at me from his own spot lying on the floor. "Ohoh, so is the sun gifted Thagyr all snuffed out of flame already? What a poor example you are making to the rest of us tsk tsk".
I spun on my back to try and punch him but he scooted out of reach.
"But seriously, Torag never skimps out on classes. And people do know better than to interrupt. Must've been something pretty bad", he said as he raised himself into a sitting position.
"Torag is one of the best conjurers we have, someone may have just broke a leg or something and there isn't another healer available". I busied myself studying the mural we had carved on the ceiling. A grand picture of Azeyma the Warden, hands spread wide in order to encompass the sun, which by magic glowed a soft orange color in order to provide the room with light. Her position is one we mimicked as we attempted to invoke the fire within ourselves in order to hold it within our hands much as she does in the picture. A small tribute to the Keeper of the Sun and a vital skill needed to be a part of the ceremonies throughout our little culture.
"Doesn't take a master to heal a leg, bet I could do it"
"You haven't even got your soul color in your fire yet, you need a bit more practice before fiddling with other people", I replied. Immediately as the words left my mouth I knew it'd regret it.
Vaegyr had one issue and that was his pride in the magical arts. Coming from a talented family of conjurers he constantly saw himself as some kind of future prodigy for our race. He worked hard at it and was quite good, but he had a competitive streak that grated on a lot of nerves...
"Maybe my soul is just too complicated, with someone like Torag breathing down my neck how could I even concentrate on manifesting it", he shot back at me and already he had raised his hands in the position and closed his eyes.
"Hey now don't be stupid, you know what he said about practicing without him near!", I hissed, trying not to alarm the other classmates.
My words fell on deaf ears as his hands already began to radiate a soft glow. The light had already alerted the rest of the room and those who were closest to us backed away frantically. First thing we were taught before even attempting this was the fire was as dangerous as any thrown by a conjurer.
Uncontrolled it killed just as easily.
The glow intensified and slivers of visible aether began to congeal in the centre of his palms and had already began to ascend to the centre between his outstretched hands. My mind raced attempting to think of a method to subdue him but the risk of him losing concentration was too dangerous.
"By the Twelve Vaegyr stop... before it gets too far... you might kill someone", I spoke as slow as I could, pleading.
"Heh, I have this", his face, one of triumph as the energies swirled into a ball of flame switch to annoyance as he took notice that it had no special color. His focus intensified as he pushed more energy into the ball and it grew quickly. Embers sprouted wildly out of its swirling form, threatening to burn anyone they touched.
The other classmates had already frantically scrambled for the door. But as they reached for it someone opened it from the other side. Torag stood framed in the passage for just a moment before he rushed to Vaegyr and placed one open palm upon his head.
Vaegyr looked confused for a second before his eyes widened.
"No I almost have it, I can feel it, NO!"
A bright flash forced me to shield my eyes and silence ensued.
As I opened my eyes slowly I took in the form of Torag sitting beside Vaegyr, now sprawled on the floor cradling his head. We were alone in the room, as the classmates had already left for fear of their lives.
Torag, a stern and unyielding teacher, looked surprisingly calm. It seemed eons before he spoke.
"You, have threatened the lives of not only yourself, but everyone else that was in this room. Of all my days I have not seen anyone so stupid, so inconsiderate for others wellbeing", he took a deep breath and sighed. "You are banned from classes, you are not to be taught by anyone, not even your closest friends or family. You are not to conjure anything within our walls. The elemental arts are forbidden to you"
He stood and walked over to me and yanked me to my feet. He led me to the hallway without even looking back. I glanced back at my friends form, which seemed almost frozen in its position, hands clutching his head and mouth opened but no sound coming out.
"Now lay there and think about what you did", Torag muttered as he closed the door behind him. As we walked quietly down the hallway the silence was broken by a scream of rage and anguish that reverberated through the rocky caverns.
As we exited the training areas Torag finally let go and demanded I explain what happened fully. He said I was wise not to have interfered when it went too far. Feeling for my friend I opened my mouth to ask why such a harsh punishment was imposed, but he simply shook his head and told me to go home.
Little did I know back then that my teacher saw something that I never did. Something that'd I would soon learn myself.
