Follow me Witch Boy, I may know how to save you. (The Covenant)

Lesson number 1

The following Tuesday as they promised, they prepared for their meeting. Alessa took Chase's hand and surrounded them with a whirlpool wave of magic that took them from a clear in Alobourgh to a hill that marked off the entrance to a Pumpkin Patch in what looked a lot like Scotland. The use of magic to travel such distance made Alessa pant for breath, which made Chase realize the amount of effort put in that single trick.

"Just give me a minute to recover." Alessa said holding her finger up.

"About time!" The voice of Rowena surprised the youngsters. She guided them to a side where she had prepared a magic circle, and then she faced the boy and called him. "Chase Collins, you need to learn to control the Power that has been bestowed upon you. Are you willing to learn and follow my directions?" The commanding voice of Rowena Weathon resonated as they saw the High Priestess coming forward. She was wearing a long green and black robe and a pointy hat. In her right hand a staff made of rowan wood made her look as a wise druid. Chase was about to laugh at her outfit when saw that Alessa had use her magic to change into a matching robe but in deep burgundy. A grunt escaped from his throat "Is this really necessary?" Seeing the seriousness in the witch's face, he yielded. "urgh, fine, I'll wear a black one." And in a blink Chase was dressed like his companions.

Chase had never imagined to attend a class for learning magic or controlling the Power and didn't know what to expect from this experience. However he found it difficult to follow the first instruction given to him "Chase Collins, Make this branch of rowan bloom." Alessa just sat on the ground near the place where Rowena had embedded the staff she brought, watching the failed attempts of the boy, but never making fun of him.

His inability to channel The Power came from his eagerness to feel it. All of the warlocks wanted more than anything to use The Power, which made them addicted to it. The price of their eagerness was their vital force. In order to control their addiction they needed to be conscious about the energy they were commanding and how to use it. If they applied their knowledge of nature and physics to their Power, then they could use it efficiently and cause less damage to their bodies. But as much as Chase tried, he could not make the staff bloom.

After what seemed like hours, Rowan spoke again. "Alessa Weathon, come in and provide direction to Chase Collins."

"Is it necessary to use our names like that?" Chase inquired.

"It is indeed. Our names hold power by themselves. Now Chase Collins, place a hand to the ground and the other to the staff..." Chase did as Alessa instructed. Next, Alessa place her hands over Chase's "...the best way of making this rowan staff bloom is injecting power or magic through its veins. Concentrate not on your cells calling for The Power, but in your hands injecting Power to the capillary veins that travel from end to end of the staff." Alessa spoke calmly with a velvety voice. It was a new facet of her that was showing. For a moment Chase felt the connection with the staff, and he could locate the places that demanded to be closed for the staff to bloom. "Now, direct your energy to the points you must feel by now." He did as she told and solid trunk started to thicken at their touch.

"Well done Chase Collins. How do you feel?" Rowena asked after the staff was growing branches.

"Not drained, it wasn't like it was doing what I wanted... but what I instructed. Does it make sense?"

"This is called control Chase Collins, by focusing on a small task you optimize the Power that flows through your body, reducing your cell wear. When you want to make things happen, you force them and need more Power. But when you... instruct them, they use their own energy resulting in a lesser consumption of your Power." Rowena explained the lesson to Chase.

He was weaker than before, but definitively felt better than for example, when he had to bewitch Sarah to blackmail Caleb. This is what the witches were talking about when they said he needed to have a more efficient control over his power. And the lesson ended there as Rowena called it a day. "Next week, same day, same hour." Saying these words, Rowena disappeared from the reunion point.