Marcus
The wooden blades felt right
in my hands.
Too right. Like I hadn't just
learned them but remembered them.
My grip adjusted on its own,
fingers tightening slightly as my stance shifted. Weight balanced shoulders
relaxed. Focus narrowing.
Across from me, Callie rolled
her shoulder once, her weapon already in hand- a whip, coiled at her side.
Of course, she chose something
like that. Flexible, unpredictable and fast.
"Don't hold back," she said.
I let out a breath, steadying
myself.
"I wasn't planning to."
That earned the faintest
smirk.
"Good."
Then she moved.
The whip cracked through the
air with a sharp snap, cutting toward me faster than I expected. I snapped back
instinctively, bringing one blade up to deflect while the other stayed ready at
my side.
The force behind it stung my
arm even through the block.
She didn't pause.
Another strike, this time
lower.
I pivoted, letting it skim
past me before stepping in quickly, closing the distance. That was the weakness
of a whip.
Range.
Once you got inside it-
I struck.
One blade aimed for her side,
the other following immediately for her shoulder.
She twisted out of the first,
barely catching the second with the handle of her weapon before sliding back.
Fast.
But not faster than me.
Not anymore.
I pressed forward, no
hesitation.
Strike. Step. Cut. Turn.
The rhythm came naturally-
fluid, controlled. My body moved before I could think, each motion connecting
into the next.
She blocked. Dodged.
Countered.
But I was pushing her now.
"You've improved," she said,
her voice steady even as she moved.
"You too," I shot back.
But it wasn't equal. Not like
this. Not here.
With blades in my hands,
everything felt clearer. Sharper. More precise. Like the world had narrowed
down to angles and timing and intent.
I slipped past another whip
strike and stepped in close again, bringing both blades up in a quick cross
strike.
She blocked but barely.
The impact forced her back
this time. Creating a small opening.
I took it. One step forward,
then I felt it.
The surge. The bracelet
pulsed.
Heat spread through my arm,
fast and intense, rushing through my body like something waking up.
Stronger, faster. Everything
sharpened again.
I moved without thinking.
Faster than before.
My blade cut through the air
toward her and then it flickered.
The power stuttered like a
broken connection.
My movement slowed just enough
for Callie to notice and she didn't hesitate.
Her whip snapped forward,
wrapping around my arm and yanking me off balance before I could recover.
Then-
Impact. Her strike hit hard.
Too hard.
Pain exploded across my face
as I was thrown back, my grip loosening as I hit the ground.
For a second, everything went
quiet.
I tasted blood.
My lip was split.
I pushed myself up slightly,
wincing as the world steadied again.
"Marcus!"
Ella's voice cut through the
clearing. Sharp and angry.
She rushed forward, eyes wide
as she looked between me and Callie.
"What is wrong with you?!" she
snapped, turning on Callie.
Callie didn't react.
Didn't step back or apologize.
"You call yourself his sister
and you're doing this to him?" Ella continued, her voice shaking now. "You
don't even care if you hurt him!"
"That's exactly why I'm doing
it," Callie replied calmly.
That only made it worse.
Ella stared at her like she
couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"What kind of logic is that?!"
Callie's gaze didn't waver.
"I care about my
brother," she said. "Which is why I won't lie to him. Or go easy on him."
"That's not caring!"
"It is here."
The tension snapped tight.
I paused myself fully to my
feet, wiping the blood from my lip with the back of my hand.
"I'm fine," I said.
Ella turned to me immediately.
"You're not fine!"
"I am," I insisted. "That
wasn't her fault."
She blinked. "What?"
I glanced down briefly at my
wrist.
The bracelet had gone quiet
again.
Cold. Distant.
"I lost control," I said. "I
felt it but I couldn't hold it."
Callie didn't interrupt or
deny it. She just watched.
"It's my fault," I added.
Ella shook her head,
frustrated tears building again. "You're actually defending her?"
"I'm not defending her," I
said. "I'm telling the truth."
"That didn't look like the
truth!"
"It is."
She stared at me for a long
moment.
Then she turned away sharply.
"I hate this," she muttered,
her voice tight as she stormed off.
I hesitated.
My body already moving to
follow-
"Stay."
Seraphina's voice stopped me
instantly.
I turned.
She hadn't moved from where
she stood.
But her presence felt heavier
now.
"I should go after her," I
said.
"Callista will," she replied.
I glanced toward Callie.
She was already moving,
following after Ella without a word.
That left me alone with
Seraphina. Which felt worse.
I exhaled slowly, wiping the
last bit of blood from my lip.
"That could've gone better," I
muttered.
"Yes," she said calmly. "It
could have."
I frowned slightly.
"That's it?"
"What more do you expect?"
I let out a breath.
Fair.
She stepped closer now, her
eyes studying me carefully.
"Why did you pull back?" she
asked.
I blinked. "I didn't."
"You did." Her tone didn't
change.
"When the power rose," she
continued, "you hesitated."
I looked away slightly, jaw
tightening.
"I lost control."
"No," she said. "You rejected
it."
That made me look back at her.
"I didn't reject anything."
"You did," she repeated
calmly. "Even if you don't realize it yet."
Silence settled between us.
I thought back to the moment.
The surge, speed, strength,
then that flicker.
"… it didn't feel stable," I
said finally.
"it wasn't," she replied.
"Then why would I trust it?"
Her gaze sharpened slightly.
"Because it's yours."
That answer didn't sit right.
"It doesn't feel like mine," I
admitted.
"It won't," she said, "until
you accept it."
I let out a quiet breath.
"And if I don't?"
Her expression didn't change.
"Then it will continue to fail
you when it matters most."
That… hit. Because I knew she
was right.
I looked at the bracelet
again.
"...So what?" I asked quietly.
"I just let it take over?"
"No," she said. "You stop
fighting it."
I frowned.
"That's not the same thing?"
"It is," she said. "For now."
I shook my head slightly,
frustrated.
"This isn't simple."
"It was never meant to be."
She stepped back slightly,
giving me space again.
"But it is necessary."
I looked out toward the
direction Callie and Ella had gone.
My chest still felt tight.
Everything felt... messy.
Unfinished.
"Get used to that feeling,"
Seraphina said, as if reading my thoughts.
"What feeling?"
"Conflict."
I glanced back at her.
"You think it goes away?" she
asked.
I didn't answer.
She turned slightly, already
done with the conversation.
"Tomorrow," she said, "we try
again."
Of course, we did.
I looked down at my hands then
at the bracelet. Then back toward the path where Ella had disappeared.
I realized something then.
This want just about getting
stronger.
It was about choosing who I
was going to become.
And right now…
… I wasn't there yet.