Light candles

The world around me still felt surreal after Valeria had pulled Carlos out of my body. I could feel it, the raw energy swirling inside me, like a storm trapped in a glass jar, ready to burst.

Every nerve in my body buzzed with the unfamiliar intensity of magic I'd barely been able to touch before. Now, it was everywhere, flowing through me without any filter, and I had no idea how to control it.

"Alright, Ren," Valeria said, her voice sharp but teasing, "Now that your little freeloader is out, let's see what you've got." She folded her arms, her fiery purple eyes watching me with that same predatory gleam she always had when she knew she was about to enjoy herself at my expense. "This will be fun."

I swallowed hard, feeling a knot of anxiety tighten in my chest. Fun was definitely not the word I'd use for what was about to happen.

I looked over at Carlos, who was lounging on a rock nearby, his long black hair draped over his shoulders like a curtain. He looked as disinterested as ever, but there was a small, almost imperceptible twitch of amusement at the corner of his lips.

"You're going to start by lighting those candles," Valeria said, gesturing with a flick of her hand. Hundreds no, more than 200 candles appeared around us in a wide circle, their wicks bare and waiting.

They flickered in and out of existence for a moment before solidifying, surrounding me like a trap.

"All of them?" I asked, my voice squeaking slightly as I eyed the ridiculous number of candles.

"All of them," Valeria confirmed, grinning. "And not just light them do it while fighting off a few distractions."

I raised an eyebrow, not entirely sure what she meant by "distractions," but judging by the gleam in her eye, I had a feeling I wasn't going to like it. I took a deep breath, closing my eyes and focusing on the magic swirling inside me.

Without Carlos siphoning it off, it was like trying to hold onto a raging wildfire with nothing but my bare hands.

The flames were there, wild and fierce, but every time I tried to direct them toward a candle, they shot off in random directions, igniting small sparks in the air or fizzling out entirely.

"Focus," Carlos drawled from his rock. "Your problem is you're trying too hard. You've got all that energy now, but no discipline. You've got to feel the flow, not force it."

I shot him a look, wanting to snap back at him, but I didn't have time. The ground shook beneath me as something large shifted in the shadows beyond the candles.

"Distractions," Valeria reminded me with a wicked grin, pointing behind me. "You might want to take care of those."

I turned, and my heart sank. A monstrous creature, all fangs and claws, its skin writhing with dark energy, was crawling toward me. It let out a low, guttural growl, its yellow eyes glowing in the dim light of the candles.

Behind it, I could see more of them emerging from the darkness, their bodies twisting unnaturally as they moved closer, surrounding me.

"Seriously?!" I shouted, trying to focus on the candles and the monsters at the same time. My heart raced as panic began to rise in my chest.

"Fight and light," Valeria instructed. "That's the goal. You won't always have time to focus on one thing at a time. Multitask."

She made it sound so easy, but I was barely keeping it together. The first monster lunged at me, its claws swiping toward my head. Instinctively, I threw my hands up, a burst of fire erupting from my palms and pushing the creature back.

But the fire was wild, too wild, and instead of hitting the monster, it shot off in all directions. Several candles caught fire, but others exploded, the wicks burning out before they'd even fully ignited.

"Not bad," Valeria said, her tone still dripping with sarcasm. "But you need to control it, or you're going to burn out."

Carlos, still lounging, chimed in, "Yeah, you're wasting way too much energy. It's like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut."

"Then how do I fix it?!" I yelled, dodging another creature that snapped at my legs. My arms felt like they were on fire, and not in the good way.

The magic was burning through me, raw and uncontrolled, and I didn't know how much longer I could keep it up.

Carlos sighed dramatically, as if this whole thing was a huge inconvenience for him. "Smaller bursts, kid. You don't need to set the whole forest on fire just light the damn candles."

I gritted my teeth, trying to channel the magic into smaller, more focused sparks. One of the candles in front of me flickered to life, its tiny flame steady and bright. But before I could celebrate, another creature lunged at me, its claws grazing my arm and sending a sharp pain shooting up my side.

I stumbled, nearly falling into one of the candle stands, but I caught myself just in time. I spun around, sending a wave of fire at the creature, but again, it was too much. The flames engulfed it, but they also spread wildly, igniting several candles in an explosion of light and heat.

"I said smaller!" Carlos shouted, his voice tinged with frustration.

"I'm trying!" I yelled back, sweat pouring down my face as I struggled to maintain control. My muscles ached from the strain, and my head was pounding with the effort of keeping the magic in check. The creatures kept coming, relentless, their eyes glowing with hunger as they circled closer and closer.

Valeria watched with a keen eye, her purple flames flickering around her as she maintained the magic barrier, keeping the chaos contained. "Focus, Ren. Find your rhythm."

Her words barely registered over the sound of my own heartbeat thudding in my ears. I dodged another attack, my feet slipping on the uneven ground as I tried to light more candles. The creatures were getting faster, more aggressive, and my energy was quickly depleting.

One candle. Another. I could feel my strength waning, my vision blurring as exhaustion began to set in. My magic flared and flickered, the flames wild and uncontrollable, but I was too tired to focus anymore.

Suddenly, I felt a claw slash across my back, and I screamed, stumbling forward. The pain was sharp, tearing through me like fire, and I fell to my knees, gasping for breath.

The monsters were closing in, their growls echoing in my ears as they circled like predators waiting for the kill.

"No," I whispered, my hands trembling as I tried to summon more fire. But nothing came. My magic was sputtering, like a flame about to go out.

Valeria's voice cut through the chaos, sharp and commanding. "Get up, Ren! This isn't over!"

But I couldn't. My body refused to move, every muscle screaming in protest. My vision was darkening, the edges of the world blurring as exhaustion finally took over.

"I… can't…" I whispered, my voice barely audible.

The last thing I saw before everything went black was the flicker of candlelight, small and fragile in the midst of the chaos. Then, darkness consumed me, and I was gone.