Shift

Circle

I take a seat opposite of Erin, carefully maneuvering my dress to one side. Alcander sits beside me. Erin still looks slightly unsure on how to interact with me, though she covers it with a smile. I feel the same about the entire group. With Alcander, it was one-on-one. Still awkward, but standable. Now I'm an outcast, invading a private group with a very important leader. One that, in all reality, can rip away everything I have left to live for.

"Reports," Rowan says, calm as ever.

"The infiltration of Aske Palace is ready to proceed," Erin says, turning her attention from me to Rowan. "I'll need a week of preparation, but all of the pieces are in place."

Alcander leans over to me. "We're planning to take Aske Palace. Been planning, for a long time, actually," he whispers. "Your arrival here couldn't be more perfect. We had enough before... Well, now, with only three people, the chances that the plan would have failed would have been extremely high. Now, with you, we stand a chance."

I glance to the empty chair beside Erin. Five chairs, three people excluding me. But Alcander makes is sound like there are others, or were others. Other people at this table that, for one reason or another, are not here today. A shiver travels up my spine. Something isn't right.

"The delivery of the new Apprentice has been sucessful," Alcander says, gesturing to me. Rowan shifts his gaze to me, yellow-amber eyes surveying me once more. I'm reminded of when he visited me the first time, when I had no idea who he was. The way he looked at me, as if deciding whether I would be a hunter or the hunted.

Three months have passed since then, though. I've learned. I've developed skills I never thought I had, done things I never thought I would have to do. I'm a different person now than I once was. I am no longer the scared, grief-torn, desperate girl. I hold his gaze, not flinching as he tries to tear me apart, piece by piece.

He flicks his wrist. It's a small movement, barely visible, but I catch it. A wave of white-blue flames shoots from Rowan straight to me, bold and bright, as deadly as any lightning strike. It all happens in a second, less than the blink of an eye.

I don't think. My body moves on instinct, throwing up a shield of the same flame. At the same time I slide out of my chair, nearly knocking over Alcander as I do so. The flames cancel each other out, but it isn't the end. No, that is only the beginning.

Rowan emerges from the wall of flames, his sword in hand. I barely have time to make my own before he's on me, blades connecting with a deep ringing. The harsh vibrations run up my arms. I grit my teeth and escape to the side. My heart pounds. My Mark burns, both with excitement and strain.

Rowan is relentless. It's easy to see that he has had years of training, or at the very least is much more skilled than me. I create a vase and throw it at him, but a flame appears just before it hits him and incinerates it. The ashes don't have time to hit the ground before our swords meet again, the blade coming down straight over my head.

I fall back on my heels, balance wavering. I push back with everything I have, summoning winds to keep me balanced enough to do so. Slowly, Rowan's sword moves back toward him. My arms burn, threatening to give out. My breaths are short, constrained by my tight dress.

I take a deep breath and push with everything I have, all at once. At the same time, I carefully balance myself on one foot and kick Rowan with the other, heel landing right in his stomach. He staggers back, one hand pressed to his stomach. I catch him flinch ever so slightly, but it's gone in an instant. I take the advantage, attacking his right side. He blows it away like it's nothing.

Once again Rowan takes the offensive, pushing me closer and closer to the wall. It's not hard--the room is small, and the table takes up most of it. It takes everything I have to keep myself upright and alive. I'm still drained, though, and every time I use my Mark I get weaker and weaker. Rowan, on the other hand, uses the blue-white flames at every opportunity. Miraculously, I manage to protect myself without catching my dress on fire.