Into the Unknown

Chapter 6, Part I: A Dragon Slayer

As Lira lead her group upstairs, Clarence opened a door to the side of the grand room and gestured for Caleb to enter first. Inside the room was... well nothing. The room was bare of all furniture or lighting. The ceiling, floor, and walls were all pure white but gave off a glow that illuminated the room. Clarence walked in and closed the door.

"Sit." Clarence suggested.

Caleb looked around and asked, "Where?" Clarence held his arm out towards the floor and smiled. "Of course." Caleb sat down and criss-crossed his legs. Clarence followed suit. "Now what?"

"Now, you watch." Clarence raised his hand and opened his palm. His eyes glowed a bright red and a ball of fire appeared above his palm. Clarence closed his eyes and the fireball dissapeared. He reopened them and they were back to their normal dark hazel. "Now, you try."

"...Wait." Caleb looked at Clarence befuddled. "What? There's no 'how to' or something? I can't just see something and do it."

"There isn't a recipe for magic, Caleb. You just do it, like walking or breathing. Once you do it, it's part of you. Part of your life."

"Well you don't just come out walking when you're born. You have to learn right?"

Clarence sighed and nodded his head, "This is why I was opposed to blocking the kids off magic. Just like walking or talking, it's much easier to learn something when the brain is still developing. Adolescents are just so... stubborn." He looked up at the confused Caleb and sighed again. "If you must have instructions then try imagining fire."

"Imagining fire?" Caleb looked down at his hands. He held one out just like Clarence did and opened his palm. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine fire. "Fire, fire..." he repeated in his mind. He closed his eyes tight, everything went dark... Then it was just Caleb in a pitch black space. He was sitting down as he was before, the. suddenly a ring of fire rose around him. The fire spread throughout the black space and closed in on Caleb. A familiar laughter echoed in the background as the flames closed in. He stood up and tried to find a way out, it was no use, flames surrounded him from every angle. There was no escape...

"Caleb." a voice called. "Caleb!" The voice echoed through the space. "CALEB!" The voice called even louder. "CALEB!" Caleb opened his eyes and gasped, tears were steaming down his face and his eyes blazed with deep crimson hue. Fire was erupting out of his hand, spreading across roof. "Caleb! You're awake!" yelled Clarence, his arm was over his eyes, trying to protect himself from the intense light. "I know he's the Dark Master, but this is just ridiculous!"thought Clarence, "Even I can't create flames this strong. If Caleb could learn to control this fire, he might even be able to surpass her..." Clarence tried speaking over the flames, "Caleb! You have to calm down, magic is directly linked to your emotions!"

"Greeaaat. When is it not? What is this? A story?!" Caleb yelled over the flames. "Okay Caleb, you can do this. Happy place, happy place..." Caleb closed his eyes again and repeated in his head, "Happy place, happy place..."

"Raawwr, I'm a dragon and I'm gonna eat yoouuuuu!!" a voice echoed. Caleb opened his eyes only to find himself in his old living room. Caleb turned his head to see a laughing toddler with a toy sword in his hand swinging vigorously at a man dressed in a lizard costume that had cardboard stapled to the back to make up for wings. The lizard costume was crudely made with the man's face still sticking out of the chest. The man had long wavy pitch-black hair, and a short pitch-black beard to match. Other then that his face was a blur. "Raaawwwr!!!!" The man's voice echoed. Something about this scene gave Caleb a deep sense of nostalgia, but he couldn't remember for the life of him.

"Caleb save me!" called a voice from behind the dragon, "Save me my knight!" The source of the voice was another toddler. She was stuck on a couch, entrapped by a wretched pillow fort, she jumped up a down to get her head over the plushy fort, "Caleb!" she called.

"That's... me?" Caleb looked over to the boy, "But, I don't remember this." Even though he knew she was talking to his apparent younger self, it still felt like she was calling for the present day Caleb to the defeat the dragon and save her.

"I'll save you Katie! Release her you scoundrel!" said the kid-Caleb, he held his sword up and prepared for battle.

The dragon stood up and put his hands on his hips, "Now that's no way to speak to your father!"

"My... father?" said Caleb, he looked back at the face sticking out of the dragon's chest, but no matter how much he tried to focus on his face, it remained a blur.

Kid-Caleb lowered his sword, "Daaad, you broke character!"

The man looked startled the hunched down again and held out his arms like claws. "Oh, right sorry. Ahem. Raaaawwwr, you'll never get the princess, raaaawwwwr." The man's words began to fade along whole scene.

"No wait! Don't go!" Caleb reached out for the man only to have him disappear right as he was about to touch him. "Don't..."

Before Caleb could even start to cry the man's voice echoed out. "Caleb, what do you wanna be when you grow up?" he asked. There was no scene this time, it was just an infinite darkness with the man's voice echoing in Caleb's head.

"Ummmm. I wanna be a dragon slayer! So I can protect everyone from dragons!" replied kid-Caleb.

"Even if your dad ends up being one of those dragons?"

"You're not a dragon silly! You're a dad!" They both laughed and soon their laughter faded just like the memory.

Caleb gasped and opened his eyes, fire was no longer erupting from his hand. Instead, a little wick of fire danced around his palm, then flickered out. Caleb's eyes returned to their usual blue. "That. Was. Awesome!" Caleb, hopped around the room with excitement. "Did you see it?! I just closed my eyes and then FWOOM. I never thought I could do that! Clarence, can you teach me more pleeaaassseeee?"

Clarence's glasses were half off, he pushed them back on, "Ahem, yes all in due time. First you need to learn how to control your fire. If you pulled something like that anywhere else but in this magic-proof room, you would've started a fire! Your emotions are much too sporadic! Listen, to control fire magic you must have... conviction."

Caleb stopped jumping around the room and looked back at Clarence, bewildered. "Conviction?"

"The determination to stick to a goal, to control fire you need to find your reason to fight. Your reason to use fire. Think of what you want to use your magic for and force the magic to aid you. Magic isn't going to do your willing, you need to show it your power of will. If you show weakness it'll only go out of control like it just did."

Caleb looked at his hands, "My goal? My conviction?"

"Yes, what do you want to do? What do you want to be with your magic?"

Caleb clenched his fist, "I want to be someone who can protect those close to me. Someone who can fight evil and destroy it from the inside out." Caleb looked up at Clarence his eyes glowing black, "I wanna be... a dragon slayer"