40. Declan

Chapter forty

Declan

I sat on the inside edge of the inner ring of stones juggling three balls of air, a proud grin plastered across my face. Without warning, órla zipped into the middle of the flying balls and pooped all over my boot. The balls dissipated as I stared down at the white goo splattered across the leather.

"Hey! What was that for?"

"Kels? told me to distract you while you practice to see if you could maintain your concentration." She landed on the center pillar and placed both wings on her sides, mimicking a human with hands on her hips. "Looks like you need more practice. I'll work on making more poop."

"Maybe we can come up with a cleaner way for you to distract me?"

órla cocked her head. "I don't know. Target practice is fun."

I didn't want to encourage her but couldn't stop myself from laughing. She was just so . . . perky .

I stood and turned to find something to clean my boot—and nearly ran into Kels?. She was smothering laughter with a hand. "Something on your boot?"

"Very funny. Is there a towel or something I could use to clean this off?"

"Nope. Guess you'll have to think of another way." She raised a brow.

órla flew over and landed on the table. "Declan, I'm starting to think you really are as dumb as you look. You have magic, silly. Use it."

"Now órla, no need to be cruel. He's still only beginning his magical journey."

"I guess," órla said, ducking her head in deference before turning back to me. "Sorry, Dec."

I ruffled the feathers on her head. "Keelan's the only person who ever called me Dec. Well, Ayden does sometimes, too."

My eyes drifted as I pictured Ayden standing in the center of the stones. He would resent being surrounded by magic he couldn't use but would also find the whole thing fascinating. It had been months since we'd seen each other. No amount of Well-induced wild dreams could replace the feel of his fingers diving into my hair.

"Enough, you two. Time to clean that boot, Declan." My mother's voice chased the image of Ayden away .

I called a burst of wind and directed it to blow across my boot. The runny liquid dried and hardened almost instantly.

Kels? and órla giggled.

"Guess that's not right," I said.

I then drew water from the bowl in the stone circle and directed a careful stream back and forth across the boot. Once the poop was gone, I switched to air and dried the leather. When I looked up, Kels? clapped, and órla mimicked clapping with her wings. I offered an exaggerated bow.

"All right. Elemental is the easy one. Time to dive into deeper water—excuse the pun."

"That was easy? Spirits, I may not make it through the rest." I blew out a huff.

Kels? ignored me and returned toward the center of the stones. "Physical, Mental, and Natural are all areas we haven't covered. Like Elemental, there's no way for me to know what abilities you may possess in each area. It's likely you'll discover other abilities over time—or, more likely, learn how to apply an ability in new and different ways—but you'll need to understand the basics in each area if you're to recognize new abilities as they arise."

I joined her in the center ring and leaned against a pillar. "Makes sense, I guess."

"There are four key abilities that fall into the Natural pillar. Animal Communication allows you to speak with nonhumans. Depending on the strength of your ability, this could be one way or work both ways."

"Well, I already have that box checked. Right, órla?" I nodded toward the little owl. She continued preening and ignored our lesson.

Kels? shook her head. "Remember, what you have with órla is a unique bond. She isn't precisely an owl, even though that's how she's chosen to appear in this lifetime. The two of you can communicate Telepathically, you can ‘borrow' her vision, and I would bet you'll find other abilities you share over time, but that doesn't mean you'd be able to talk to the squirrel that's sitting on the ledge over there."

I followed where she pointed.

A black squirrel, its bushy tail curling over its head, sat chewing remnants of nuts we'd dropped around the table.

"Hey, squirrel! Can you hear me?" I shouted.

The furball didn't so much as twitch.

"I was going to say, I doubt you'll end up with this ability. It's pretty rare and tends to surface in extremely introverted, socially awkward children. You don't fit any of that description."

"I don't know, Kels?. He is pretty awkward. You oughta see him romping through the woods. Total klutz!" órla squawked from across the ledge. "And when he talks to Ayden—"

"órla!"

"What?" she shrugged her wings. "I was just saying—"

"Declan," my mother said through a pronounced smirk, "try again. This time, use your magic, not your voice."

I tried using Telepathy with the squirrel, speaking to it as if to órla. "Hey! Look over here. Got some really good wine."

"You know I can hear you badgering that poor thing, right?" órla's voice echoed in my head.

The squirrel continued eating without glancing up.

I turned back to Kels?. "All right, guess that one's a bust. You said there were four Natural abilities. What else?"

"Animal Husbandry is the ability to raise and care for livestock or other animals, extending life longer than normal, and granting greater health to the beasts. The third is Horticulture. Think Animal Husbandry, but with plants. I doubt you have either of those two, and testing for them would take months, probably longer."

I doubted they would be useful in the budding war either.

"Okay, let's skip those."

She nodded, then continued, "The fourth is an interesting one I hope you possess. We call it Spirit Interaction. At its most basic level, this ability allows you to speak to spirits or ghosts. More advanced Mages with this Gift may summon spirits, or even banish them from the living realm. I haven't known anyone with this ability in generations, but it would be extremely useful as you continue on your path. "

She kneeled and began drawing in the dirt at the base of the center pillar.

"Why do you think this one would be so useful? Seems cool, but also pretty creepy." I frowned as I imagined dead people everywhere.

"Well, think about the mission you were helping your brother with. What if he could have spoken to the spirit of the girl who was taken from Freeport and later killed? What could an investigator learn from their victim to help solve the crime or stop the killer from striking again?" She stepped back and examined her drawing, then looked up. "Now, imagine you were fighting a war for the survival of your people, your country, and you could compel the spirit of an enemy to speak? What could you learn?"

"Okay, I get it, but it's still creepy."

Kels? pointed at the ground. "Look at this symbol."

I studied her drawing. A large outer circle contained a square whose corners touched the inside edge of the circle. Inside the square was another circle whose edges touched the inside of the square. Two perpendicular lines began at the inner edge of the innermost circle and formed a cross that intersected at the exact center. The whole thing reminded me of a device I'd seen a sailor use once to sight the horizon.

"What does it do?" I asked.

"This is a summoning circle. It focuses your magic and creates a barrier between the world of the living and that of the dead. Mages who can summon, entrap, or banish spirits use the circles as the foundation for their work. It is critical the circles remain unbroken, or whoever you have summoned will escape and cause untold havoc. Spirits, especially of those long dead, are not generally friendly to the living. Some are outright hostile."

"Great. Don't let dead people escape. Got it." I reached up and ran my hand through my hair.

" Psst , Kels?. He's nervous when he does that thing with his hair," órla whispered.

My hand froze. "The idea of bringing spirits around for a chat doesn't make you nervous?"

órla laughed. "Good one, Dec. I am a spirit, returned to your world in the form of a brilliant and beautiful owl for your comfort and viewing pleasure."

I turned to Kels?. "One day, you're going to have to explain all of that to me."

She smiled and nodded.

"Let's stay on track." She shot órla a silencing glare. "Communicating with the spirit of a person who recently died is the easiest of these skills. As a general rule, the more recent the death, the easier the communication. If the person's body is nearby, that makes things even easier. Spirits gravitate toward their physical shell even after they are separated by death. An item of particular sentimental value to the person comforts the spirit and makes communicating easier. "

"I'm not going to sleep after this, am I?" I asked.

Kels? ignored me. "Communicating with a spirit that is nearby is relatively simple. You simply talk to them like you would anyone else. Unfortunately, if your Gift in this area is weak, the spirit will probably ignore you or run away. The power of your innate Natural Gift compels the spirit to remain and converse.

"The most difficult end of the spectrum is summoning the spirit of someone long dead and where you have nothing of sentimental value. In other words, you are summoning them blind, across hundreds of years or more."

"Why would I even want to do that?"

She thought a moment. "Assume the last person with your same power was someone other than Irina, and you could talk with him or her about your abilities. Would that be helpful?"

"Of course. That would be awesome. I mean, you're doing great teaching me, but you don't have all these abilities. If I could talk with someone who did, who knew how to use them, I could learn so much more . . . and faster." I surprised myself with my own enthusiasm.

"I will ignore you comparing my teaching style to a dead person," she said dryly. "The basic principle in summoning is picturing the person in your mind as if you truly believe they are standing in front of you. Once you have their image firmly in place, touch your Light. The summoning circle and your Light will do the rest. You should then be able to release the mental image and communicate with the spirit. To release the spirit, simply release your Light."

"Sounds easy enough. What's the catch?"

"We do not know if you have this ability. I do not, and would not be able to sense a spirit even if you summoned one. You will have to practice on your own, and I will not be able to tell if you struggle because you are doing something wrong or because you simply do not possess this ability.

"For today, practice drawing a summoning circle. It is a simple pattern, but it must be very precise. If you get even the slightest angle off, your summoning will not work. Worse, if you fail to close your circles, the spirit will escape."

Kels? handed me the stick she'd been using, and I spent the next hour drawing and erasing the summoning circle. I was surprised how difficult the simple lines were to draw, but twenty attempts cemented it in my mind. As we strode back into the cavern, breaking for lunch, I found myself checking for spirits around every corner and resisting a perpetual shiver with each dancing shadow.

When I next stepped back onto the ledge, Kels? sat at the table with two glasses of wine filled to the brim in front of her. I walked over and sat, intrigued by an afternoon of exercises and wine .

She chuckled. "Yes, you get to drink the wine. Down them both—and don't sip this time. We need you fully loaded."

"Yes, ma'am!" I grabbed the first cup and lifted it to my lips, careful not to let a drop spill. "How does this stuff never get old? I mean, it tastes better every time."

"Actually, that's an interesting observation. The magic in the wine senses what you like, what pleases and comforts you, then adapts to your changing interest or taste." She smiled as I downed the second glass. "Remind me never to get into a drinking contest with you."

"You wanted your boy to have skills, right?" I winked. "Picked that one up with the Rangers."

"Handling wine like a champ . . . just what every mother wants in her son." She snorted.

órla flapped onto the table. "All right, you two. What does Declan getting drunk in the middle of the day have to do with Mental magic? Other than the fact I'm going mental just thinking about it?"

Kels? snorted again and covered her mouth with the back of her hand. When órla tottered over to a glass and dunked her head in for a drink, I lost any semblance of composure and snorted along with my mother.

"Snorting must be a family trait. Any other weird noises I should know about?" I heard órla chirp in my mind.

Kels? finally cleared her throat. "So, we're working on Mental magic this afternoon. There are more abilities in this pillar than any other, but each is specialized, which makes it nearly impossible to possess more than two—even for someone like you.

"Let's start with the ones I'm fairly certain we can rule out. Heightened Senses allows the user significantly improved hearing, sight, or smell. If you had this one, we'd know it already because it manifests at a very early age. Empathy is similar in that it usually manifests by the age of three or four."

She paused to pour herself a drink and take a sip.

"Atikus is the best example of Enhanced Memory I have ever known. He may actually have perfect recall. If you had this ability, you would have only needed to try the summoning circle once. I have been watching for signs of this ability since you arrived and am confident it is not in your tool kit."

I drawled in a provincial accent, "You callin' me slow, Ma? Thanks a lot."

She closed her eyes, then continued. "That brings us to Enhanced Charisma. Spirits help me, I think you've overdosed on this one. Atikus reported signs of this one when you were very little, charming everyone in the guild with a wicked smile. He couldn't sense your magic at that age but believed it would grow into a powerful Gift."

"It had to be his smile," órla blurted. "It couldn't have been his hair. That's a bird's nest—and I'm a bird. I would know! "

"Hey, Ayden loves my wavy locks." I flicked my hair off my shoulder and turned dramatically away from órla.

"I believe that's a ‘yes' for Charisma Overkill," órla peeped.

"Back to me, please." Kels? grinned at the never-ending banter. "Enhanced Charisma is a passive ability. That means it's not something you turn on or off with your Light. It is either present, or it is not, like Atikus's memory. I am afraid there's nothing we can do about your painful likability, son."

"If it's my burden, I will bear it." I placed a hand over my heart and bowed my head in mock solemnity.

Kels? snorted again. "That leaves us with Telepathy and Illusion. Telepathy is one of the easiest abilities to master, but Illusion ranks up there with Healing as one of the hardest.

"We will start with Telepathy. Once you've mastered the basics, you should be able to speak into someone's mind without much effort, similar to how you speak with your voice. Are you ready?"

I nodded.

She stood and motioned for me to follow her into the stone circles. "Touch and hold your Light, and think as though you were speaking to me. It will help if you look at me. You should eventually be able to do all of this without the visual cue. "

She walked to the outside of the second ring of stones and turned to face me. I squared with her and began to concentrate, reaching for my Light. The wine in my belly served as an amplifier, and my magic flared brightly before me. I threw my hand into the pulsing flame and tried calling out to my mother.

"That wine sure makes my Light go crazy!"

"Those are the first words every mother hopes to hear from her baby boy," Kels? retorted.

I giggled like my ten-year-old self. "This is awesome. órla, can you hear this? I'm Telepathing."

"Great. You're talking in my head and making up words. I'll never have a moment's peace." She leaped from the table, sailed by me, and pooped on my boot before soaring out over the neighboring treetops.

My concentration snapped, and my Light winked out as I stared down. I shook my head and drew moisture from the air to wash away the poop. "I'm going to pluck that little owl one of these days!"

"Heard that!" órla called from a league away.

"Telepathy is a yes." Kels? walked back to the stones' center. "Now, this next one is going to be tough. I believe you have the ability to create illusions because it often accompanies Telepathy in those with multiple Gifts, but we will not know for sure until it works."

"What makes Illusion so hard?"

"With most other skills, like manipulating water or air, you are pushing your Light out, or using it to shape an inanimate object. With Illusion, you reach into another person's mind. You are not creating an image in your own mind and pushing it out into the world for others to see; you are using your magic in their mind to alter what they think they are seeing."

"Um, okay, that made my head hurt."

"That is why I made you drink all that wine. You were right when you said it acts as an amplifier for your Light—at least when taken in large quantities. The stones are an even more powerful amplifier that we will definitely need throughout the rest of your lessons. As challenging as Illusion may be, Healing is the most difficult of all skills. We will need all the help we can get with that one."

"Great. Can't wait," I said sarcastically.

"Let me show you what a successful illusion looks like, and how it feels to the target." Kels? closed her eyes, and the stones of the circles began to glow. Nothing happened for a few seconds, then a white-and-brown dog appeared in front of an image of Keelan. The dog spun in circles and barked up at him. Keelan's mouth moved, but there was no sound. My eyes widened at how lifelike the image appeared. I kneeled and reached out to pet the friendly beast, but my hand passed through the image.

I jumped up .

"Whoa. That was wild. It felt like my skin was going to tingle off my hand."

"Now that's interesting." The dog vanished, and Kels?'s eyes popped open. "That was my magic you felt. I have never heard of anyone being able to feel another's magic like that."

"I keep trying to tell you, he's a weird one!" órla's voice echoed in both of our minds.

I chuckled. "Just when you think we're alone . . ."

"I don't think you will ever be alone again, son." Kels?'s eyes sparkled, and I felt the weight of her words settle comfortably in my mind. "Back to Illusion. I know it looked like I was projecting the image of the dog onto the ground in front of you, but I was not. That was your mind thinking it saw a dog because I was casting the image into your thoughts."

"Having someone inside my head isn't very appealing. There could be a lot of ways to abuse that power. What if I wanted to block you from doing that?"

"That is a great question. A Mage with enough skill can Shield her mind. I suspect that is in your bag of tricks, too, but we need to make sure you have the power of Illusion before we try to tackle Shielding. Another challenge with Illusion is that each person's mind is unique, so your magic will have to be wielded in a slightly different manner each time you attempt it. "

"I'm starting to see why you said this one's so tough. If every mind is different, and I'm trying to cast an illusion in a mind I'm not familiar with, it'll be like learning the skill all over again. What a pain."

"It is not quite that bad. Once you learn the basics, it gets easier, but you are right about always having to adapt to the target's mind. If that person is a Mage, things get even more complicated, as they might try to Shield or use some kind of counter on you. There are even Enchanted items that block mental intrusion."

I turned to follow her as she walked away. "Enchanting? You haven't said anything about that power yet."

"I will. It is in the Physical family with Healing and a few others." She picked up the wine glasses. "The sky's darkening. Let's get cleaned up, and you can help me make dinner. I will teach you the power of chopping vegetables."