Page 254 of Elemental Becoming

“My village was attacked,” I start, my voice tight. “There was screaming. Shadows everywhere. I couldn’t find Lyra. Then I did. But my parents were in danger, and I left them. I thought I could get back in time.”

My throat tightens.

“I didn’t.”

My chest constricts, but I keep moving.

“That’s when the house collapsed. With them inside.”

I pause, squeezing my eyes shut for a moment. When I open them, the flame is fluttering violently. I plant my feet and force the breath from my lungs, turning my head so I don’t blow it out.

“I didn’t even understand what was happening. I just felt something rip open inside me.”

The flame jerks sideways. I stop moving. Breathe. Refocus.

It steadies again.

Valen doesn’t interrupt. He lets the silence do its work.

“I tried to protect people,” I continue. “But I didn’t know what I was doing. The power just . . . exploded out of me. I didn’t choose it.”

“And now?” he asks.

I meet his gaze. “Now I want to.”

The flame holds.

A faint smile touches Valen’s mouth. “Then you’ve alreadytaken the first step.”

I glance down at the flame still dancing above my palm.

“You can let it go now,” he says quietly.

I release the magics. The fire gutters out.

We rest in silence for a while, seated again on the ledge. My body is flushed with exertion, sweat cooling on my back. The flame has long since faded, and so has my focus. But something in me feels clearer now. A bit unmoored, yes, but steadier than before.

Valen doesn’t rush me. He lets the quiet stretch, and when he finally speaks, his voice is softer than it was before.

“Ready for the third step?”

I look at him with wide eyes. “There’s a third step? I feel like I barely survived the second!”

He smiles.

“This one is less about control.”

I narrow my eyes.

“That sounds suspicious.”

His smile widens.

“It should.”

He shifts into a cross-legged position, his hands resting loosely on his knees. I mirror him, settling back onto the stone. My legs ache and my spine protests, but I push the discomfort aside.

“This is where most students struggle,” he says. “They think mastery comes from holding tighter. From exerting more control. But the Water Clan teaches something older.”