The steady sound of the river filled the clearing, but Leo sat there, arms crossed, looking unimpressed.
"So," he said, "what's next? More breathing exercises? Another flower trick? Or are you going to hand me a stick and aim me at a bear?"
Anos Kaelion's voice remained calm, though his eyes were sharp. "You touched mana. That's enough to start your trial."
Leo frowned. "Trial? I barely felt anything. Shouldn't we kick things off with something simpler?"
Anos tapped his fingers against the ground, and the earth shook.
From beneath the roots, something stirred. A scaled creature emerged, its wolf-like head sporting glowing green eyes. Fangs dripped with venom that hissed upon hitting the ground. Moss clung to its body as if the forest had nurtured it.
Leo's stomach sank. "…That's not breakfast, is it?"
"The Veyth Serpent," Anos said. "Born from wild mana. It feeds on weakness. Prove yourself against it—or die."
"Great," Leo muttered.
The serpent lunged.
Leo rolled aside just in time, as the beast's strike shattered the stone where he'd just stood. He rolled to his feet, heart racing.
"Stand your ground!" Anos shouted. "You can't run. Call the mana current again!"
Leo forced himself to breathe. He closed his eyes, tuning out the monster's hissing. Below the river, under the earth, in his own breath—he felt it. A spark, faint but real.
The serpent lunged again.
Leo threw up his hands. A rough wave of mana shot out from him. The serpent collided with it and staggered back, hissing.
Leo stared at his shaking hands. "I actually did that."
"Useless," Anos replied, "but real."
"Hmph… You don't even look happy."
The serpent circled again, moving slower this time, cautious.
Leo felt his throat dry up. "Of course, this isn't done yet."
The beast struck. Leo reached for that spark again, but it slipped away. Its tail lashed out, hitting him across the chest and sending him crashing to the ground. Pain radiated through his ribs.
"Focus!" Anos barked. "Mana isn't just tricks. It's the power of the world. Fire burns. Water flows. Earth stands still. Wind shifts. Lightning strikes. Ice preserves. Most mages are linked to one element. But Kaelions…" His voice dropped. "Kaelions are connected to the rarest of all."
Leo coughed, trying to pull himself up. "Let me guess, certain death?"
"Space."
The word froze him.
"Time. Gravity. The void itself. Your father twisted battlefields with it. The Executioner shaped reality. That same spark lives within you."
The serpent lunged again.
With little mana, Leo raised his hand and sent the serpent flying with a punch.
Dropping to one knee, he gasped as his vision blurred. "Did I just… beat it?"
Anos's eyes glinted. "You should be capable of this much for the next generation."
The serpent hissed weakly, then retreated into the forest, disappearing into the shadows.
Silence settled.
Leo collapsed onto his back, chest heaving. "Still alive," he murmured, a shaky laugh escaping him.
Anos stood over him. "Don't fool yourself. Survival isn't mastery. Space mana is dangerous. If mishandled, it consumes the wielder."
If I can manipulate space, he thought, maybe I can find a way back to my world.
The idea struck deep, taking root before he could push it away.
"If I master this," Leo breathed, "I might not be stuck here forever."
His body hurt, his chest burned, but his heart raced with something new.
Not just fear. Not just survival.
Hope.