10.Putting It All Out There

10. Putting It All Out There

When we go our separate ways after studying, Samson stays in the library while I head outside. I do my best to avoid thinking about the kiss or second guessing what we decided.

My stroll across campus goes uneventfully until reaching a small crowd near the magical studies building. A spray of bright green pebbles scatters across the cobblestone path. Instinctively, I leap back and avoid colliding with the surprise projectiles.

Obviously, this isn't normal. The campus groundskeepers never use such colorful stones.

"Sorry!" voices call out from ahead.

I find the source of the commotion in the center of the crowd. Two casters are locked in an intense practice, their hands extended towards each other as magic grows between them. Among the onlookers, I spot Professor Solis and head over to him.

"Ah, Argyle," he greets me with a nod. "These casters are attempting to blend their elemental energies. Quite the sight, isn't it?"

The first caster, an earthbrand in training judging by the vines wrapped around his arms, channels a vibrant green energy that glows. The scent of freshly cut grass fills the air.

Opposite him stands a future rockbrand, his energy a deep, rich brown like the soil after rain. The glowing orbs of vibrant energy that they create hover above their hands as we all watch spellbound.

The moment their energies touch and green and brown light collides, an eruption of pebbles and grass cascades around. I cover my face and some students duck and shout. That wasn't supposed to happen.

Huh. I thought that would work. “Are they having trouble syncing their energies? Earth and rock magic are so closely related. I assumed they’d blend together easily.”

“For practical applications, you’re right; the two go together perfectly. It gets tricky trying to combine raw earth magic with rock magic.” There’s another surprise. The ethics professor sounds like an expert in this magical topic. “Earthbrands can do some ground and rock magic, but rockbrands can’t do earth magic. That's why they're two separate disciplines. Give us flowers, seeds, or trees and us rockbrands are clueless.”

“Oh, you’re a rockbrand? I didn’t realize.” Crap, is that rude? “I’m sorry.”

"Don’t worry. Aside from myself and your friend Professor Monroe, there's only one other caster here who doesn’t teach magical courses." The administration would have a heart attack if Professor Monroe used his tantric powers in class.

The rockbrand caster, a boy who barely looks 18 and makes me feel incredibly old, appears in front of us. “We’re getting stuck. Any suggestions, professor?”

“Take a break,” he says. “Do something fun.”

The boy nods and calls the stray pebbles created by their magic towards him. The pebbles, all different shades of green, begin floating over to the caster. He arranges the pebbles until they form the rough outline of a human figure.

Next to him, the earthbrand weaves his fingers through the air, trailing green luminescence that brings grass and vines to life, entwining them around the pebble figure to form muscles and sinews.

Their powers surge together, wrapping around the golem, which stirs as onlookers gasp. It shuffles its feet, arms swinging in a little dance.

As it gains confidence, the golem leaps and jumps, dancing to music only it can hear. When the crowd claps and the golem takes a bow, it vanishes into threads of brown and green energy.

The casters try weaving the threads together, but they repel one another and vibrate against each other with friction. Moments later, their efforts explode in a spray of pebbles and leaves, a cascade of elemental rejection.

“Darn. I thought they had it.”

“Who says they don’t?” the professor counters.

The two magical students laugh and clap each other on the back, talking about how awesome that was and speaking a mile a minute as they share ideas and compliment each other.

Even though they failed, their efforts have only made them more excited to keep trying. They aren't discouraged at all and seem so supportive of each other. I can’t help feeling a bit jealous.

My partnership with Samson is so much more precarious. Our powers don’t mix at all. Personally, we might be hitting it off too well. Do either of us really need a distraction right now?

“Something on your mind?” the professor wonders gently as the two casters ready themselves to try again.

I hesitate for a second before deciding to tell the professor about our struggles. “Samson, the student I’m partnered with for tutoring, it's not going so well. Our powers are so opposed.”

"And you two are as well?" he guesses.

"No, uh, not really. We can get along but that doesn't mean our powers can."

"Then you’re already partway there. Casting with someone is an exercise in trust, not just skill. Challenging partnerships can become the most rewarding kind."

If trust is all it takes, then Samson and I should be there already. I’ve confided in him things only Perry knows. And he told me things he's never been able to tell anyone else.

However, trust is only one part of an exercise like this. Magic is the other.

"In our case, I’m not sure there is a way to bridge our differences,” I admit. “No matter how much we might want to come together, uh, magically speaking, there’s too much working against us. Success may be impossible.”

“That’s one way to look at it. The other is that there’s no pressure. If success is off the table, you get to set another goal instead. There’s freedom in that.” He nods to the spectacle in front of us. “Maybe you two could try something like this."

My eyes widen. Trying to blend water and fire energy? Is he crazy? “Is that even possible for opposite elements?”

“Good question.” He glances towards me with a quick grin. “You should try it anyway. You might learn something new.”

This time, the casters use the natural setting around them. The earth wizard pulls leaves from nearby trees, shaping them into vines that coil and loop around the dirt the rock caster has pulled from the ground.

The casters blast their creation at the same time, changing the natural ingredients into a dazzling burst of energy. Swirls of green and brown wrap around each other, loose and transparent at first. The casters tend to the magic until it solidifies, creating a perfect sphere with swirling shades of green and brown intermingled within it.

They did it. They really succeeded.

Wow. It's amazing. Even cooler than the show I saw at Fusions because these are novice casters. They accomplished this for the first time, and I got to see it.

Exciting as it is, my thoughts still circle back to Samson. Fire and water, now those two elements are as opposite as they come. Could they ever blend?

“And there's one other thing," the professor adds as the audience around us cheers.

"What's that?"

"What if you succeed?” he wonders with a smile. “Once you achieve the impossible, then anything becomes possible."