“Breath focus. Connect with the water body in the tank. Feel it.” Arkalis whispered softly.
I relaxed my body… remembering what it felt like earlier today in the river.
After I rescued both myself and freya, the time before sundown I used it in swimming in the water. I became a really fast swimmer and a good one.
I made the water flow as I want, stopped it from flowing or increasing its flow. I did water castles and soon I loved it so much.
“Even the smallest amount of connection matter, you could broaden that connection.” Arkalis whispered in my ear…. Then I did it. I connected with the water body inside of the tank then I transport it to the right tank.
“Yes. I did it.” I said smiling sheepishly.
“You are finally now a master of the water element. We can move to earth.” He smiled clapping, and my smile increase.
“Wow. I can’t wait to master earth too.” I said enthusiastically.
“Be here first thing tomorrow and we would start.” I nod my head at what Arkalis said then ventured to exist the training ground.
“You won’t be thanking me for saving your live back there at the river.” He questions and I turned around in full 360 degree.
“I don’t understand?” I uttered confused.
“How do you think you started hearing my voice in your head at the brink of death. I connected with you and saved your life. I didn’t want to brag about it, but I have to take credit for what I did.”
“Wow. I never would have thought the voice was real. I thought I was probably just remembering what you said at the brink of death. Even though I was so sure that you had never said it that way. Thank you Arkalis, for saving my life.” I appreciated genuinely.
“You are welcome. Just be careful next time. You can’t die when you still have a destiny to fulfill.” He pats me on the shoulder encouragingly.
“I will master.” I don’t know. I just felt the urge to address him as my master and so I did. I then I left him in the training ground.
****************************************************************************************
“Touch the ground and see how deeply the earth is rooted deep into the ground. Now dig up a huge chunk of earth out of the ground and put it back in.” I was on my kneel both my hands touching the ground… I raised both hands up and instead of a chunk of earth, it was two chunk of earth. “Two i see. Good work.” Arkalis compliments.
“Thank you master.” I grinned.
****************************************************************************************
“Push back against me you weakling. Push back!!!” Arkalis shouts at the top of his voice, as he sends numerous of air coming my way. I couldn’t see what I was doing, neither could I breathe so well.. The air was coming in so much on my face.
“Arghhhhhhhhhhhh.” I shouted in so much annoyance pushing back at Arkalis with all my strength. What I wasn’t ready for was to see Arkalis on his butt a little bit far from me. Wow, I just defeated my master.
Oh my God! I defeated my master. I fell to the ground and started laughing.
****************************************************************************************
“Is just fire Anastasia. You can hold it a little more longer. Don’t be afraid… it won’t burn you, you have the fire in you… so why should it burn you?” Arkalis said going around me in circles.
I have successfully learnt all the elements… water, earth, and air. And now I am in the last element, fire.
After Arkalis and I bonded…. I guess…. We have come to understand each other and work well. It is mainly me listening to everything he has to say and guide me.
I have gotten really good at all the elements, and now is time I got good at controlling fire too.
I held the small amount of fire above my palm, fear creasing into my heart… what if the fire falls to my palm and burns me. I hate fire.
Arkalis is counting to hundred before I would stop. He is a 88 and he is a really slow counter.
“Ouch.” I yelled in pain as the fire burnt my palm, I quickly flicked my hand over to off it… the fire refused to off… Arkalis came to my rescue and put off the fire. Gosh, it has burnt my palm and badly.
“Don’t blow on it… you would only make it worse.” Arkalis scolded me as I blew on my palm hoping the pain would go away.
“If you don’t want me blowing on it, then help me ease the pain.” I said almost in tears. I don’t want to cry, so I won’t be mocked for it later on.
I don’t know how he did it, or how he got to know that I was injured… but in a blink of an eye Christian was right before me… tending to my burnt palm with ointment tenderly. I watched in awe as he rubs the ointment softly while blowing on it, so it won’t pain me more. After rubbing the ointment he raps my wound carefully, nearly and precisely with bandage.
“Here you go, and please be careful from now on. If you can’t do it then skip it, you could come back to it later.” He gave me a pleading look that says… *You are useful to me alive than dead* I guess he doesn’t want the witch who could break the cure dying… only God knows how many more centuries or years before they would encounter another witch with Arkalis blood.
“Uhm okay and thank you.” I muttered barely audible. His fastness to come take care of my wounds is just extremely amazing and shocking. Like when did he had the time to pick up the ointment and bandage.
“You don’t have to thank me.” He replied then walked away. Wow, that was just so charismatic and gentlemanly. Did my heart just skipped a beat?
“What is your relationship with the dragon lad?” Arkalis asked bringing me out of my thoughts.
“You knew he is a dragon?” I asked in shock, putting aside his question.
“I know everything Anastasia. Besides it would only take a pat on your shoulder to see your memories.” He shrugged. Did he just say see my memories? All those pats on my shoulder was to see my memories?!!
“Who would have thought that the pat on my shoulder you kept giving me after almost every training was to see my memory. But anyway, I thought you were not interested in knowing anything from the future. It was your first rule.” I eyed him .
“I’m not. I was interested in my student. I wanted to see if she is worth all my training. I wanted to know if she would be able to fulfill what destiny has set out for her.”
Why does he makes it sound like as if I would be fighting a war or something. All I have to do is lift a curse, that is my mission and nothing else.
“So… since you have seen my life, you would have also seen what caused Christian and his clan become dragons. Can’t you not just try turning them into dragons when the time comes… and then seek for a different solution.” Maybe we could just save plenty of time by stoping him from making that portion.
“Of course I won’t. Turning them into dragons must have helped saved a lot of people and put a stop to whatever war I was fighting. Besides Anastasia, once you go back to your present time, I will forget you were even here. I would not remember a thing again, you and Christian would be the only ones to remember your visits here. Time would fix itself.” He smiled at me sadly.
Wait he is going to forget all our trainings and even when he tricked me with the stupid *can* he is going to forget it all. Oh my God, Freya would also forget me. I should probably not tell her.
“So back to my question Anastasia. What is your relationship with the dragon lad?”
“He is a friend who must guard me with his life, so I can break the cure his clan is in.” I answered with ease and he nods his head. “That’s good. Well… because of your burnt palm we can’t continue with today’s training. Go have some rest, be back by sundown for training.” He was about patting me on my shoulder when I moved I moved away. How many more of my memories does he want to see. He chuckled.
“Uhm, Arkalis.” I called out.
“Yes.” He answered turning around.
“So… what did you think? Do you think I can pull this off? Do you think I have a chance at my destiny?” My hands were entangled together… my heart wrenched in nervousness.
“Only you can answer that Anastasia, only if you can make it happen. But I do think you have a chance at this.” He grins toothy then exit the training ground . Well… I better go get some sleep.
****************************************************************************************
I was deep in sleep when I felt someone tap me repeatedly on my foot… calling out my name. “Anastasia! Anastasia! Anastasia wake up.” I opened my eyes immediately and was met with with Aria’s.
“Yes Aria. I’m awake.” I said to her sitting up.
“Arkalis asked that I bring you to him.” She informs me and I stood up from the bed immediately panicking.
“Oh shit! Please don’t tell me I over slept and is already sundown.” I asked already getting out of bed, thinking of how I would get scolded by Arkalis.
“No, no, you can relax. Is nothing like that. You didn’t miss your training neither are you late to it. Is still very much sunny outside.” She clarified chuckling. I breathe out.. calming down my nerves and I sighed in relief.
I went back to sitting on my bed then asked… “Then why is he asking of me, if it isn’t the time of training yet.” I asked confused. Me and Arkalis has never met outside training, unless on the dinning table.
“I don’t know. He only instructed me to bring you to him.” She replies shrugging. Something is off here, I don’t know what it is… but I can feel a change in the room.
But why should I feel wary of Aria, she’s my friend and we have become closer over the past weeks… there’s nothing to be afraid off.
I shrugged off the feeling of wariness and said… “Alright, take me to him.” I said getting up from the bed.
“Come with me then.” She gave me a smile… and it almost feels so fake.
She lead me out of my room and out of the house, headed for the warehouse.. she stops. “He asked that you meet him in the warehouse. I will be on my way now.” She points at the warehouse not to far away from us, gave me a slight smile and left.
What is it with her and the smiling?
I shrugged my shoulders casually, then started walking towards the warehouse. With every move I take, I felt so uneasy.
I got to the warehouse, opened the door and walked into it. “Arkalis, are you there? Master, I’m here. You called for me.” I walked around the warehouse in search of Arkalis only to realize that he is no where to be found in the warehouse.
If he isn’t here, then why did Aria bring me here. Then I remembered she was the one who took Freya and I to the stream, and she didn’t even bother telling us that the steam is connected to a waterfall.
Ohh my God, is Aria trying to kill me.
I rushed to the door immediately and try to open it but it wouldn’t move. I was about using the force of air to open the door when the door and warehouse goes up in flames, almost burning my face and my body.
I stepped back immediately in fright. The fire spread rapidly, and the ceilings were already falling down… woods here and there hitting the ground and not to talk of this is a warehouse for maize and wheat… so the fire grew rapidly.
I have to stop the fire or find a way to get out of here. I’m standing on earth, I could use it to quench the fire. I dig up lumps of earth from the ground then threw at all corners of the warehouse, but that didn’t stop the rapid growth of the fire. I was slowly suffocating and my skins were burning in heat.
I can’t beat the fire, I have to use the fire to my own gain. I have to be able to walk through it.
*Breathe Anastasia, breathe… the fire can’t burn you, the fire can’t burn you. You can produce fire from your body, what comes out of you can’t burn you.* I said to myself repeatedly. I made sure my whole body was calm around the fire, and believed the fire is my safe-heaven.
Then suddenly I stopped feeling the heat, it wasn’t affecting me anymore. I touched the fire with my bare hand and nothing happened it didn’t burn me. I smiled confidently and walked out of the burning warehouse through the fire.
“Ohh my goodness, you are alive. You are alive.” Christian shouts running to me… he entraps me in a big bear hug and I had no choice but to hug him back.
“No way. Did you just stepped out of that fire in one piece, unscathed… like you literally walked out of a burning house. Only Arkalis has been able to do this, now you are definitely taking over his legendary story.” Freya giggles happily joining in the hug. While Arkalis stood by and watched us, giving me a smile.
Then the she devil herself walked into the scene… Aria. I separated myself from Christian and Freya and walked up to her.
“I’m so glad you are alive Anastasia. Everyone was so worried.” She said and I laughed in shock. She has the effrontery to say that to my face, after being the one responsible for the house burning and almost killing me.
“Really, are you sure you’re happy to see me alive?” I questioned glaring at her so intensely.
“I don’t understand. Why won’t I be happy to see you alive?” She asked pretending to be confused. She’s so good at acting, cause I myself almost fell for it.
“What is going on Anastasia?” Arkalis asked.
“Aria here.. told me you were asking for me and that you were waiting for me. She lead me all the way from the house to the barn house, and told me you were in there. But when I got into the barn house, you weren’t there and somehow… the door was locked. And as is if that wasn’t enough she almost killed me!” I exclaimed, it is taking a whole lot of me not to strike the devilish liar on the face.
“I never asked of you. Aria what is she talking about?” Arkalis asked.
“I have no idea of what she’s talking about. I have been at the stream all day, doing the laundry.” Wow! She is so good. She’s so good at lying, and she didn’t even blink not even once. How can she lie to my face so perfectly.
“Wow. I never knew you were such a badass liar Aria. Who the hell are you and what do you want from me!” I yelled at her getting frustrated with all her lie.
“I am Aria! That is who I am. I don’t know why you would make up such stuffs against me Anastasia, but I did not do them. What would I gain in harming you, nothing! I will gain nothing.” She yelled, cleaning a few strands of tears from her cheeks.
I don’t why or how I suddenly feel this way. But I just knew in my heart that she’s telling the truth. But if it wasn’t Aria that lead me to the warehouse, then who was that?