The morning air of Aldrich Academy was crisp, carrying the faint scent of dew from the gardens. Kael Aldrich walked to the lecture hall with his usual careful steps, head low, mind racing. Yesterday's lessons weighed heavily in his chest, but today felt different today was practical training.
Practical training meant working with live spells, side by side with classmates. For Kael, that meant exposure. The idea made his stomach twist.
He tried to focus on the words of the instructor, Master Lorian, a middle-aged mage with a long, black coat and silver streaks in his hair. "Control," Lorian said, pacing the front of the hall. "Power without control is dangerous. One misstep, one lapse of focus, and someone could be seriously hurt. Remember this."
Kael nodded, pretending he was paying attention. His mind was elsewhere on Rowan's fireball, the way it had vanished, and the tingling sensation in his palms that never seemed to leave him.
The class paired students for exercises. Kael was assigned to sit across from a boy named Corvin, a tall, lanky student who smirked as he adjusted his gloves.
"Let's see what you've got," Corvin said casually. "I hear you're… magicless."
Kael's chest tightened. He forced himself to meet Corvin's eyes. "We'll see," he said quietly, surprising himself with the firmness in his voice.
The first exercise was simple: levitate small stones using precise control of magical energy. Kael watched as Corvin waved his hands, stones lifting effortlessly, spinning in small arcs. Every movement Kael tried produced nothing. Not even a tremor in the air.
"Focus, Kael," Master Lorian called. "Feel the energy around you. Let it flow. Do not force it."
Kael tried. He really did. He concentrated, closed his eyes, imagined the energy in the air, imagined the flow like a stream waiting to follow his hands.
Nothing.
A bead of sweat slid down his temple. He could hear whispers, giggles from the students behind him. Magicless… hopeless… A waste of space…. Not fit to be an Aldrich
He forced himself to take a breath, then reached again.
Still nothing, just emptiness
Corvin leaned closer, voice low and mocking. "Maybe your hands are broken, want me to help you fix it."
Kael's fingers itched, tingling like static. He clenched them into fists under the table. His heart hammered, and a strange warmth crept up his arms. Not again…
A soft noise came from behind a shuffling, a gasp. Kael opened his eyes and saw a small flame flicker near Corvin's stone, like a spark from a forge.
Kael froze.
He hadn't done that. He didn't even know how he could.
Corvin's eyes widened. "Hey! What,"
Before the boy could finish, the flame leapt toward him. Kael's hand shot up instinctively. The spark vanished midair, dissipating like smoke.
The classroom erupted in gasps.
Kael stumbled backward, eyes wide, hands shaking. His chest burned with adrenaline and fear. He hadn't meant to do it. He hadn't even thought, he didn't want any one to know.
Corvin paled, clutching the edge of the table. His voice shook. "W-what did you just do?"
Kael opened his mouth. Nothing came out.
Master Lorian's eyes narrowed. "Kael Aldrich. Step forward."
Kael's legs felt like lead. He obeyed, walking toward the center of the hall. Every gaze in the room seemed to pierce him, every whisper cutting like a knife.
"Explain," Master Lorian demanded, voice calm but sharp.
Kael swallowed hard. "I….I don't know," he admitted, voice barely above a whisper. "It just… happened."
Lorian's gaze swept the room, then back to Kael. "You did not cast that flame, and yet it disappeared at your hand. That… is extraordinary. Dangerous, but extraordinary. It seems I will have to speak with your parents"
The words should have comforted Kael. But They didn't. His stomach churned with fear. Extraordinary? Dangerous? What if he couldn't control it next time? What if someone got hurt?and what if his parents didn't want him again, he wanted to say no but his mouth couldn't move, he just stood there frozen.
By the time the bell rang, Kael was trembling slightly, hands still tingling from the residual energy. He walked through the corridors in a daze, trying to make sense of what had happened. Students whispered as he passed, curiosity mixed with caution. He could feel the attention, heavy on his back, but no one spoke directly to him.
When he reached the practice yard, Elias was there, running drills with another group of students. Kael wanted to approach, to tell him everything, to lean on his brother as he always had. But the fear held him back. He just watched from a distance, feeling the warmth of Elias' presence like a lifeline.
He didn't need to speak. Elias caught his gaze and gave a small nod, a silent reminder that he wasn't alone. That was enough for now.
That evening, Kael returned to his chambers, exhausted, both physically and emotionally. The incident in the classroom replayed in his mind, over and over. His hands itched, the warmth still lingering, the memory of Corvin's wide-eyed shock vivid.
He sat on his bed, pressed his palms together, and tried to calm his racing thoughts. Fear and excitement tangled inside him. He had power, yes but it was uncontrolled. He could take, he could extinguish, but he didn't understand.
And that scared him more than the whispers or the laughter.
Kael pressed his face to his knees, thinking of his brother. He wished Elias were here, wished he could explain, wished he knew what to do. But he couldn't. He wasn't ready.
He didn't sleep that night, lying awake in the dim candlelight, staring at his hands. The tingling sensation never left. The memory of the spark, the fear, and the exhilaration swirled in his mind. He didn't know what he was capable of or what he might become but one thing was certain: he was no longer just a bystander in the world of magic.
He was part of it, in a way he didn't understand.
And that terrified him in ways he didn't understand.