Everything goes wrong when Roxie Reilly manages to anger the most powerful dark mage in history. Things only get worse when she's kidnapped "for her own safety," when she wants nothing to do with magic at all.
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Roxie Reilly made a critical mistake...
I growled under my breath and got to my feet for the umpteenth time. My body ached from being thrown like a rag doll for hours. I was getting sick of it. Alexie stood on the other side of the room, the wooden pole in his hand. In the past fortnight, I'd learned it was called a staff. His blue eyes watched me, almost lazy, as I concentrated. Red appeared around my hands and I looked at him warily.
He lifted his staff from the ground and spun it around once. White threw itself at me. I lifted my hands, sweat across my head, and blocked what I could. The white slammed into the red and exploded into sparks, disappearing. I took a step back and one finally got past me. I was thrown backwards with a grunt.
"Again."
I groaned, letting myself flop onto the floor for a second's rest. It had been this same cycle for days. I was getting faster at conjuring the crimson magic, but I still lost. He overwhelmed me every time.
It had been the same for the past fortnight. It was a routine now. I woke at sunrise sharp or risked being awoken by a zap from Alexie across the cottage. We'd eat and then move into the attic. Sometimes the day's lesson would last ten minutes or I was stuck in that stupid attic all day.
Every time, I felt like my brain had been eaten by a zombie, regurgitated, and stuffed back into my skull. The lessons were never easy, even if they were simple. One time he had me hold onto the magic for several hours. I hadn't had to do anything, but it was still incredibly difficult. And then there were days like these -- either I defend myself or get thrown across the room.
"Gimme a break, we've been at it for hours." I felt like I'd been through a blender.
His response was to tap his staff against the ground and a coil of fog caught my ankle. I was flipped over and skidded into the wall. It wasn't hard enough to hurt, but it pissed me off.
"Try again. Think outside of the box, Roxie, magic isn't limited to your hands."
The offhanded way he said it, like I was being stupid, made my temper grow. My fists clenched and I got to my feet, glowering at him. I knew better than to snap back. Instead, I satisfied myself with a glare.
Magic isn't limited to your hands.
The dude had been throwing it around like candy since I met him. How? I knew having a staff had something to do with it. After starting to read the book I'd found on the first day, I'd discovered that any neutral magick (besides seers) needed a staff. According to the book, it helped the user guide magic.
Alexie's staff was held in his hands. I eyed it warily. If I wanted to get any progress, I'd have to get it away from him. But then again, I could barely defend myself as it was. Attacking didn't seem like a good idea, but I'd never been good at making decisions.
Magic isn't limited to your hands. Think outside of the box.
An idea crept into mind. I looked down at my hands and opened them, conjuring the magic. Scarlet seeped from my pores and condensed into my palms, like a liquid. Golden sparks danced from my fingertips. I looked back up, face tight with determination. I nodded curtly at Alexie.
White was immediately rushing for me. I threw my hands out and concentrated, but before any progress was made, the white connected with my chest. I scrambled back to my feet and got ready again, determined to make my idea work. It had to work.
On the cycle went. Nearly an hour later, Alexie halted as I picked myself off of the floor again. My arms trembled and my head ached fiercely from the stress. His eyes were doubtful. "Dammit," I hissed. If my own teacher was doubting me, that meant something.
The next time he spun his staff, I focused on the crimson around my hands. I pictured it moving off of them, following my movement, and sliding off of my skin. I shoved my hands forward and it finally expanded away. White and gold exploded as white collided with the scarlet block in front of me.
I finally cracked an eye open to see that it'd worked -- there stood a small wall in front of me, bright scarlet, and connected to me through the scarlet that seeped from my hands. "Ha!" I shouted gleefully. My victory was short-lived since Alexie simply shot under it and knocked my legs out from under me. A ghost of a smile sat on his face.
The next time, I made it more coordinated. The crimson slid off of my hands and formed a shield within a second. His magic bounced off harmlessly and he finally pulled his staff away with a nod. "Excellent work."
I exhaled and put down my hands. The crimson disappeared as I let it go. My head was pounding as I opened my mouth to speak. I hardly saw Alexie's spin in time to instinctively catch the white projectile in red-covered hands. I looked at him in shock. What the hell was that for?!
The white exploded. I was thrown backwards and tripped over my feet while trying to keep my stance. Hitting the ground at a roll, I gawked at him from the floor.
"You must remember," he said as he turned away, "any opponent will fight dirty. The last strike often determines the winner. Never let down your guard even if you believe you've won." The door closed after him and he was gone.
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The ice pack seared into my scalp with a welcome ache. I was definitely going to be sporting some bruises tomorrow. I sat on the bed and picked a few grapes off of the vine I'd brought with me. Another book sat in front of me and I flipped the page lazily.
It had been a busy two weeks. I had only just finished Neutrals Theory and selected another off of the shelf. It looked a basic guide to the magick world. I'd debated reading it. I wasn't going to get involved in this stuff -- I was going home after this. But then again, wouldn't I at least want to know my way around?
I'd given in and pulled the book off of the shelf. It immediately delved into the three classes. Neutrals was one. Brights was the other. And the third and final class was Dusks. It was going through the history in the chapter I was in. Apparently each kind of magick was classified by their raw instincts. Neutrals were ones that were exactly that -- neutral. Brights were those who had no inclinations for violence or the like. Dusks were those who were the opposite. I'd seen mentions of vampires and demons of all things.
Despite the fact that I was planning on going back to my normal life after all of this, I couldn't help the slightest inkling of resentment. My father had known about all of this and kept it hidden my whole life.
Briefly, I wondered how he was doing. There weren't any phones in this place and mine was still totaled after getting smashed in the alley. I wonder if he told my boss that I was out of town or if she's just wondering if I got kidnapped . . .
How long was I going to be here? I plucked a grape from the bowl and sighed. The first book had said most mages required up to several years of training. I wouldn't be able to stand Alexie that long. One of us would murder the other first. Not that I'm planning it or anything...
