Growing Powerful

Throughout the day, they were all reminded, many times, to carry on with their student duties, but many of them took this excuse to slack off. Not many people showed up to the Elemental Practice at all, and even fewer of them took their lessons seriously today.

The girls from Maya's group didn't bother showing up. Maya felt like she was the only one in the entire courtyard who was actually trying. She had no intention of being sent to the Slums. Tanya was there to guide her, but her mind was noticeably absent.

"Like this?" Maya was trying to catch her attention.

"Yeah, sure."

Maya had purposely done the completely wrong thing to test if Tanya even paid attention. She sighed softly. "Tanya, you don't have to be here because of me."

"What are you talking about?"

"I can do it alone. It is just the same as every day. I will repeat it until I succeed."

"It's no problem. I still have my fire group to instruct, as well," she looked at the spot in the courtyard where they were supposed to be. "Oh… they left," she realized, letting her arms flop down.

"You can go, too. I won't tell on you."

"Thanks. It means a lot." Tanya patted Maya's shoulder before leaving.

Maya could swear Tanya looked like all her hopes and dreams were crushed. It was understandable she was especially shaken. After all, many of her friends were taken by vampires, and now, the ones protecting them from said vampires were gone.

Maya was left to repeat the simplest move that worked for other girls. It was so basic. Why couldn't she do this?

"You're doing it wrong."

Maya jolted in place. The sudden voice startled her even more considering it wasn't Leo but the ghost girl she spoke to before.

"What do you mean? I'm doing the right movements," Maya claimed, assured she was doing exactly as instructed.

"But not taking the right approach," the girl pointed out. "It is not your hands that will move the air. It is you."

"And who's moving my hands?"

The girl's laughter, gentle and delightful, filled the air. "I once grappled with the same problem. It's the innate force within you, that you must harness and lend it to your hands."

Maya kept standing there, confused.

"Here," she instructed her. "Stand like this."

She stood upright, palms joined in front of her chest, taking slow breaths with her eyes closed. "Control your breathing, calm yourself," her voice was soothing.

Maya imitated.

"Now, feel the air around you. Feel the particles. Feel the power that flows through them. They want to obey you. You are their master. Do you feel it?"

"What is it supposed to feel like?" Maya asked with her eyes closed.

"Electrified."

"Okay. I think I can feel it."

Maya felt it almost like tingles. She felt there was some connection there.

"Gather them up. As many as you can. All around you. Don't try to move them, just let your power flow through them."

Maya took a deep breath. She imagined her power as some mystic invisible force expanding from her and catching the air around her, as if she was electrifying the air, communicating with particles—if something like that was possible.

"Now, you need to understand the fundamentals. There's a balance in all things, and you can slightly disrupt that balance—that's the core of manipulating elements."

Maya found the ghost girl's advice helpful. Though she couldn't be much older than Maya, she spoke like an expert. Clearly, she had manipulated air before and had a level of mastery. Having a personal trainer from the other side was an unique advantage.

"What is your name?" Maya inquired.

"Focus," the girl continued, ignoring the question. "Instead of forcing the particles to move, I want you to imagine manipulating pressures instead. Air naturally moves to the place of lower pressure, and you are the one that decides where that is."

"How do you know so much about this?"

"I've told you. I had the same problem," she said then chuckled. "Only I had to overcome it four times. Arguably, five."

"What does that mean? You forgot it?" Maya was puzzled.

The girl laughed. "As if such a thing would be possible watching students go through it over and over again for years."

'Hmm… Must be accumulated knowledge.'

Maya felt the girl purposefully avoided introducing herself, so she decided to go first to encourage her. "My name is Maya," she said, but the girl didn't react. "How about you?"

"I'll tell you when I see you move air," she smiled.

Maya appreciated the ghost girl's help, though she didn't understand the reason behind it. Concentrating intently, Maya tried to visualize the process as instructed. Interestingly, she realized, no specific movements had been prescribed.

'Was that the point?'

She lent the power to her hands and did the same movement she was repeating the entire time, only this time she interpreted it as creating a space of low pressure instead of dragging air along.

Nothing happened. But something felt different, as if the air was waiting for clearer instructions.

Maya repeated it immediately, curious as to what that feeling was.

And there it was. The air moved. It was but a faint breeze, but it was her creation.

Ecstatically, she jumped up. The ghost offered her a kind smile as if she had known it would happen all along. A feeling of validation surged through Maya; a ghost believed in her. A quick survey of her surroundings revealed that no one had noticed her achievement. Neither Tanya nor any supervisors were present to acknowledge her success.

Disappointment washed over her. This was her Awakening, yet there was no one there to document it. It was as if her accomplishment amounted to nothing.

"Well, nice to meet you, Maya. My name is Anastasia," the girl beamed.

"Anastasia?"

The name had a ring to Maya, as some important name, but her thoughts got interrupted by shouting in the background.

"We all know you have no powers. Why don't you just leave and stop wasting everyone's time?" Sarah's derisive remark was directed at Elena.

"Why are you here? Worried you'll be easily surpassed?" Elena retorted with equal venom. "That's already happened, princess. Even those who haven't awakened yet are better than you."

"Shut your trashy mouth!" Sarah snapped. "You're jealous because you know they brought you here by mistake. Even that entertaining warrior bullshit of yours; nothing but a desperate attempt to save yourself from the Slums."

Elena crossed her arms as Sarah continued spouting.

"I bet Hunters died just to prevent a piece of human garbage like you from ever joining them. You belong, and always will, at the very bottom."

"You must be right," Elena responded flatly. "They all killed themselves because of me. You're flattering me, Sarah. I never knew I held such power," Elena twisted her words.

"That's not what I said! You're not important. You're nothing! And soon, you'll be out of our—talented mages—way."

"Is that a challenge?"

"For what? A stabbing contest? Civilized people don't solve their problems with knives. Go back to the jungle you came from, you feral fiend."

"A bending duel," Elena ignored her insults.

"You can't bend, you idiot. Knives don't count."

"Fine. Show me how it's done. I don't need to use elements to win a bend-off against you." Elena continued challenging her, taking her stance.

Sarah scoffed. "This is pathetic."

"Accepting your defeat?" Elena was taunting her. "C'mon, give me some of that fire of yours. I wanna see how bendable you are."

"Stop embarrassing yourself. This is truly getting sad." Sarah looked around noticing the people were turning their attention to them. "I guess I should cut you some slack. After all, you never had parents. You must be starved for attention."

Elena was still, but her gaze got a little colder. "Take your position, Sarah. So I can fairly make you eat dirt."

"I still can't wait to watch them drag you away to the Slums," Sarah declared and turned away, ready to leave, believing she had won this argument.

However, Elena wasn't going to let her bask in victory. As if she had done it many times before, Elena drew water from a nearby water basin, bringing it forth in a whip shape.

The yelling had already drawn everyone's attention, and now they all stood stunned by Elena's ability. Her stance was impeccable and her magic flowed smoothly. She held it in position for an extended period without much fluctuation or loss of control, like a seasoned practitioner. For someone who, as far as they knew, was using magic for the first time, it was an impressive sight.

Even Maya was taken by surprise. She knew Elena could use magic, but the most impressive thing she saw her do was freeze a cup of dirty water.

Oblivious, Sarah soon noticed the strange atmosphere and followed everyone's gaze, only to be met with a soaking surprise. With a complacent smirk, Elena threw a puddle in her face, soaking her from head to toe.

Sarah lost it and let out a hysterical scream. In just a moment, her hair and make-up were ruined. All the effort she must've put in this morning was wasted in just a moment's notice.

As Sarah stormed off, Maya's sense of accomplishment dwindled. Regardless, she admired the cleverness of showcasing your talents when everyone was watching. Although many were absent that day, it created fodder for weeks of gossip. Elena was sure to become a legend.

Maya turned back to Anastasia, expecting her to have vanished as she often did. To her surprise, Anastasia was still there, seemingly engrossed in the drama that had unfolded across the courtyard.

However, something was amiss with Anastasia. Her eyes held a trace of fear, and she seemed frozen in place. Suddenly, her head twisted at an unnatural angle, dropping as if it were no longer attached to her spine. It hung limply, held only by unbroken skin and neck muscles.

Suppressing a scream, Maya's face reflected pure terror. She had never witnessed this up close before — the re-enactment of Anastasia's death.

Without uttering a word, Anastasia vanished.