Cassian stood in the center of the training ground yard, his practice sword held loosely at his side. But he wasn't there to train his muscles today.
Ever since the flicker in the bond the night before, a knot of unease had formed in his chest. He had the feeling something was wrong and he wanted to know.
Elias stood in behind him. He looked as he always did—still, attentive, and silent. But internally, Elias was fighting something too. There was a faint, high-pitched ringing in his ears that wouldn't go away. It sounded like a distant flute playing a note that was just slightly out of tune.
"Ready?" Cassian asked, not turning around.
"Ready," Elias replied.
It was a standard exercise. Cassian would release a moderate surge of resonance—enough to crack a stone but not enough to level a wall. Elias would catch the vibration, smooth the jagged edges of the magic, and feed it back into Cassian's core. They had done this thousands of times. It was as natural as breathing.
