Calluna

Chapter Twenty-Three

"Good! But keep your arm an inch lower and your gaze slightly more to the right."

Not only did I have to learn how to aim weapons at palace training, now I have to figure out how to aim a blast of water, a surge of fire, a deadly icicle.

I throw another fireball at the tree target, which misses by more than last time.

"Calluna, take a breath and start again. You won't be able to aim if you're not thinking."

Atreus sits lazily against one of the trees, assessing me. I take a deep breath as he said to, but it's hard to focus when he's staring at me, evaluating my every move. He peels back an orange's peel and pops a piece in his mouth, as if he doesn't even notice how much he's getting on my nerves.

It's been a little over a week of his training, each day a different skill, a different power. Today, I want to do nothing more than sit on the ground and eat fruit too.

I throw another blast of fire towards the target and it hits, but the wrong tree. The tree bursts into flames and I have to hold back my shock—and anger—as I send a gust of water to settle it. The now black tree begins to fall, cracking. I bite my lip until I taste blood before I run to place my hand on the tree for it to come back to life.

"Now, Calluna, you must—"

I turn to him, my gaze sharp. "If you know so much, why don't you come over here and show me?" I blurt in frustration, throwing my arms into the air.

He gives me a look as if to say, touché. He stands and hands me his orange. I take it and eat a piece as he fires a blast perfectly in the center of the target.

"You make it look easy," I whine, my mouth full of fruit.

He takes the orange back, finishing it off and throwing the peel on the ground. "I've had many more years of training than you, Calluna. Don't worry, you'll be ready by the time we fight."

"When will that be?" This past week, that's the only question I've wanted to ask. What is all this for?

"We need to wait until you're ready," he answers vaguely.

"Ready for what, Atreus? We need to kill Vulcan soon. If we don't..." I trail off as Atreus walks behind me, taking my arms and holding them into a certain position.

"For now, let's focus on this." His voice is soft in my ear and I hate it. How can he be so calm? It's his kingdom, his mother, his life on the line. And he's spending his time teaching me how to aim. "Focus on the target, Calluna. Fill your lungs with air and as you breathe out, shoot. It will take practice, but you'll get it."

When he doesn't say anymore, I realize I should probably do as he suggested. I inhale deeply, but it's a bit difficult with him standing right behind me, his body touching mine. When I exhale, I shoot. It doesn't even hit the tree.

Atreus roars in laughter and releases me. I blush red and swat at him. "We'll work on it," he says, walking back to his tree.

I stomp my foot on the ground like a five-year-old. "I don't want to train anymore today. I'm tired."

He gives me a questioning look, although his eyes are full of sympathy. He walks closer, taking my hand, a slow smile working its way onto his lips. Before I know it, he's shot into the air, shimmering as he goes. The next thing I know, a bird is flying away where Atreus just was.

I release a hostile breath and shapeshift into a bird as well, flying to catch up to him. He doesn't slow for me to catch up, his large gray wings flapping in the wind. He squawks at me and I can just tell he's laughing inside, watching me stumble along after him.