THE APPLE OF SNAKES

iii. discipline switch

The banquet hall was more lively than it had been in years.

They not only celebrated Coam's return home but also the disciples of their clan who had spent the last five years on the southern border and beyond. But Itoroh's on-and-off war against Tilica had reached its climax a year ago and now the two nations had settled into an uneasy peace. For now, at least.

But it did offer the disciples an opportunity to return home and they were allowed to eat and drink and indulge in all the pleasures they'd abstained from on the border.

Nerluce silently wished to join them but he was seated at the front of the banquet hall, to Lord Father's left. Thankfully, Lord Father wasn't paying much attention to Nerluce. Instead, he was focused on Coam. She sat on Lord Father's right, in the seat of highest honor. Lady Okiachi was on Coam's right and Lady Fanjie was on Nerluce's left. The five of them were sitting in the front of the banquet hall on a dais, Mother nowhere to be seen.

It was probably for the best. Nerluce didn't want her to make a fool of herself in front of all these people. She didn't have much favor left, even less than Nerluce. The last banquet she'd attended she'd spilled wine all over a visiting member of the Sonkugi Clan - their neighbor to the east and one of the five southern border clans. To say that had been a difficult situation was an understatement. Lady Okiachi had gotten it worked out somehow.

"Oh, Coam!" Lady Okiachi exclaimed. "Tell us about how you managed to take the great walled cities of the south. The letters we received said that you managed to conquer them one after another using only your left hand!"

Coam smiled like she always did and lifted her glass of wine to her lips. Nerluce turned away, picking at his rice. "They always exaggerate in those things, Lady Mother," Coam said. "I used both my hands. One to hold my sword and the other to burn the cities to the ground." She snapped her fingers and a flame appeared.

Lady Okiachi gasped. "Oh my!"

"Your magick is progressing well," Lord Father said. Nerluce stole another glance because he knew Lord Father was looking at Coam. His eyes were soft, his shoulders relaxed. He even wore a small smile filled with pride.

For some reason looking at them made Nerluce feel sick.

"I feared without proper masters your progress would stagnate. I am glad to see the adage is true: experience is the best teacher." Lord Father nodded his approval. "You were close to breaking through when you left. What finally allowed you to?"

Coam laughed and blew out the small flame she seemingly created from nothing. But that wasn't exactly true. Despite being useless at magick, Nerluce understood its most basic principles. Something could not be created from nothing. What looked like Coam snapping her fingers and creating fire was, in actuality, her harnessing the kinetic and heat magicks from the snap and transforming it into fire magick.

The magick just changed types. It was still plenty hard - many fire magickians never mastered what Coam had just done with such ease - and Nerluce couldn't even control a flame that had been lit for him. He took another bite of the rice, only half listening as Coam retold the story of how she'd first done this transformation of magicks.

It was about halfway through this story that Lady Fanjie leaned over and pinched his cheek. Nerluce let out a little noise of surprise but it went unheard among all the other noise in the room. Lady Fanjie smiled innocently at him. "Why so sour, little Luce?" she asked. "They put vinegar in your cup instead of wine?"

"No," Nerluce snapped.

"I think there's a little in mine as well," Lady Fanjie said, swirling the contents of her cup around before she took a sip. "Some people are just born with fortune shining on their shoulders."