Shifting Flames {Book 1 of the Black Mancer Series}

Chapter 1: Tess

"Come on princess." Kiara dragged Tess' foot out from underneath the warm covers. Tess groaned and jerked her foot to free it and return it to the cozy warmth. Alas, Kiara had always had a strong grip, and her foot remained cold. "Don't you remember what day it is?" Kiara said, not leaving the suffering foot alone. That's right. Kiara only got up early when she was excited about something. And today, that something was Inquisition Day. Tess slid out of the bed and pulled the covers up neatly. Kiara's bed was on the opposite side of the room, still messy as if she'd just got up. Tess couldn't believe they were twins.

She noted Kiara was fully dressed before she was, for once. She was wearing her usual clothes, complete with leather riding boots and dark green cloak. Despite being dressed, Kiara's brown hair was still a knotted mess. So much for finally changing.

"What Flame do you think you'll get?" Kiara asked, like she had so many times previously. "I'm probably going to get green, like mother." Kiara had always wanted to follow in their mother's footsteps and become a Green Scout. The clothes she was wearing emulated the Scout's uniform.

On Inquisition Day, all thirteen-year-old children of the Queendom of Abira were tested to see if they had a Flame, and if so, what colour. The colour of a Flame indicated the highest Mancer rank you could reach. Green was both the fifth rank and the highest "Elemental" rank. For their backwater town of Gilstead, it was uncommon to receive. "I'm going to get a purple Flame." Tess said confidently. Purple was the ninth rank. There was a boy, Fred, who had produced a navy blue Flame, the sixth rank, and had already graduated Inverell Academy. In Gilstead, it had been celebrated for days.

"That's stupid." Kiara said. "Only nobles get purple Flames." The average person only had a 50% chance of getting any Flame, and then a smaller chance for each rank after. Tess knew this, of course, but she also knew that genetics weren't the only factor. Some lucky commoners got really high ranks, and some nobles were stuck with lower ones.

"Maybe I'm secretly a noble." Tess shot back defensively. She looked to their thin bookshelf, and Kiara followed her gaze. Books were a luxury in their little backwater town, so they treasured every volume they received on their birthday. Every year, the postman would deliver a book for each of them with a small note from their mother. They were mostly fictional tales of grandeur rather than educational, and Tess loved them all.

"Life isn't a book, Tess. You're a commoner, in Gilstead, in the middle of Abira. Time to get your head out of the clouds and under a Flame."

Tess sighed and mumbled "Rich for you to say, dressed like that." Kiara ignored her, adjusting her cloak.

"Why do you do that?" Kiara said, indicating Tess's bed while sitting back on her own and leaning against the wall. "Nobody's going to see it anyway."

"Because it's neat and tidy. It doesn't make me feel like a slob." She shot a look at Kiara, who rolled her grey-blue eyes. It was one of the few noticeable differences about them, as Tess' eyes were a blue-green.

"I'm gonna get breakfast." Kiara pushed off of the bed and went downstairs into the kitchen.

Tess got dressed similarly to Kiara, except she wore a red cloak instead of green, and a black corset that would make her look more mature. That, at least, she could hold over Kiara, who was built more like a rectangle than an hourglass. She flicked her carefully brushed chestnut brown hair, revealing the gold chain of the jade pendant their mother had given her on her first visit home. Tess slumped, wishing her mother could be here to be with them, with her, today. But duty called, and their mother had to answer.

After a moment's hesitation, she made Kiara's bed as well. Things needed to be tidy. Joining Kiara in the kitchen, Tess saw her twin painstakingly peeling her boiled egg. She was obsessive about getting the shell off completely and perfectly every time. Tess just took a spoon to it.