Shadowseeker

chapter one

"Good. Again."

Aelia got to her feet, her breath coming out in short, quick pants. Sweat glistened on her brow as she turned to glare at the instructor overseeing the training session.

"Khalida, we've been going for ages now. Surely that's enough for today?" she grumbled half-heartedly, though she dropped into a fighting stance anyway.

"You think your enemies will care if you're too tired?" Khalida crossed her arms, her expression remaining unchanged as she met Aelia's glare. "Again."

A small smile tugged at the corners of Aelia's mouth as she turned to face her opponent.

"Tired already, Astor?" her opponent taunted with a smirk, using her surname to sound more intimidating, "I could do this all day."

"Not yet, Elior." 

She lifted her chin slightly, calling the light to her. It appeared as a glowing beam of light that wrapped around her arms, coiling around her whole body as she tensed, waiting for the spar to begin. Elior's gaze flicked to Khalida, nodding subtly to signal that he was ready.

"You may begin." Khalida's voice rang out, filling every corner of the arena.

Aelia and Elior began to circle each other, eyeing each other for potential weaknesses. They knew each other too well; every flaw and weakness in their abilities had already been picked apart in the countless number of battles they had fought against each other.

Elior struck first, a bolt of pure light flying through the air at her. She flung an arm up, shielding the attack with a light shield of her own. Almost immediately, Aelia retaliated by sprinting towards Eli, dropping to her knees and sliding past him before whipping around and using her elbow to knock one of his legs out from underneath him. It looked like an intricate and elaborate dance, one that would end in defeat for one of them, and one that could be deadly if executed outside the arena. Since they were evenly matched with their powers, they had to use other tactics to defeat one another.

Eli stumbled, momentarily dazed by the unexpected move. It didn't take him long to recover, regaining his balance and slashing at Aelia with a dagger that he seemingly produced from thin air. Aelia just about managed to dodge the blow, throwing an arm up to divert the strike. She grinned wildly at him as they sprung away from each other, returning to the edge of the circle.

"Hone in on any weaknesses. You may have been taught to fight in the same way, but every battle is different. Any mistakes can be exploited; any flaws can be used to your advantage." Khalida's voice was smooth, washing over Aelia and pouring strength into her fatigued muscles.

Although she had the power to create sources of light as a Sunkeeper, Aelia turned her attention to the light fittings on the wall. She concentrated for a moment, drawing energy from the steady glow and letting it flow through her, letting it sharpen her senses. Everything suddenly seemed much brighter and every colour was more saturated, yet Aelia's eyes adjusted quickly to the change. She pitched forward, a dagger of pure light forming in her hand. It was a struggle to keep the energy contained, and she could feel its power radiating against her hand.

Elior barely had time to conjure a shield, flinging both hands up as he tried to counter the attack. In an unexpected burst of power, the shield shattered as Aelia drove the blade down, but she could only hold on to such a force for a short while. The energy surged out of her almost as quickly as it had come as she tackled her opponent. Both of them tumbled backwards, scuffling with each other in a tangle of limbs as they struck out in any way they could. 

Aelia recoiled from a blow to her nose, shaking the droplets of blood that splattered across the floor of the arena. Her vision spun, but she kept her wits about her enough to keep her weight on Eli, pressing her knee into his throat. She held back slightly but his hands still flew up to his neck, trying to claw her knee away as he gasped for air. Aelia waited a few moments before lifting her knee and easing her weight off his windpipe, rising to her feet.