The Lost Dragon (Cycle of Dragons Book 3) by Dan Michaelson (good summer reads .txt) 📗

yourself under duress and you can form something more basic that protects you for the most part, then that is what is of most use to you.” He smiled. “But, if you practice, and you master the weave, and you can call upon it when needed, this is a powerful technique.”

“Are there others?”

He frowned at me. “Others?”

“Other weaves you know that would do something like this.”

He shook his head. “There are many other weaves, Ashan. It is a matter of what you need at the right time.”

“You showed me a defensive weave. Do you know anything like this that would do other things?”

This time, there was no mistaking the disappointment in his face. “I know other weaves,” he said. “And I can show them to you, but perhaps you should master this one. It is complicated, but if you master this weave, then you can prove to me you’re capable of mastering others.”

He nodded to me and left me in the room, closing the door and sealing me inside.

I looked around, focusing on the energy within me. This chamber was designed for dragon mages to practice: The walls were protected, the stone impervious to the power we held. Even knowing that, it was large enough that it would be unlikely for me to strike the walls around me or the ceiling overhead—at least, not without drawing upon the power of multiple dragons.

This wasn’t how I intended to start my morning, but perhaps Walter was right: I needed to use this as an opportunity to get a better sense of the power that I could hold. I began to focus. I’d master this. If nothing else, I was stubborn, and I’d find a way to control this weave so I could protect myself.

5

The inside of the chamber was growing warm—partly from the energy of the dragons I let flow through me, partly from the heat within my body. I was tired, sweating, and had been here for the better part of the last few hours, repeating the same pattern over and over again. It came slowly, and I couldn’t help but wonder if it would be ineffective if I needed to use it in the event of an attack, but I was determined to continue practicing.

I had figured out how to combine the weaves overhead—doing so had helped me find the connection within me, but it was still slow. It was a methodical approach to weaving the connection together, binding the strands up and over each other. The first time I’d done it, formed the shell over my head, I had been too exhausted to try to create the cage around me and it had collapsed before I even had the opportunity to attempt it. The second time, I had forced even more power into it, drawing upon multiple dragons, and found that though I could create the weave, I didn’t have the same control Walter had in order to create the cage around me.

I began to think it was some sort of test.

Many of the instructors at the Academy had their own sort of test to determine whether they would work with and teach other students, and it didn’t surprise me that Walter, as quiet and bookish as he was, would have his own test, as well. It did surprise me that he had such a complex, powerful connection. He seemed so unassuming, but with this kind of ability, he could be quite dangerous. Others would easily overlook him and underestimate him. Perhaps that made him even more dangerous. I’d have to ask Thomas about Walter when I had the chance.

Taking a deep breath, I gathered myself again, pulling on the power and preparing to attempt another trial. That was the key for me now. I needed to see if I could weave enough energy together to form the cage around me. I was determined to do it.

The weave began to come more quickly. Each time I formed it, I could feel energy flowing, could feel the way I slipped power up and over itself, and it finally came together. It wasn’t as fast as it would need to be if I were under attack, but it did hold. Perhaps that was the key, at least for now. Now I needed to create the cage and spread it outward.

Twisting that power came slowly.

I did so gradually and formed the cage of power around me. It was narrow, not nearly as wide as the one Walter had formed, and I had come to learn that was the result of the nature of the initial pressure upon the weave. The more I pushed outward, the more strain there was, yet I had to wonder if that act was part of the spell Walter used. Could the tension be part of the resistance?

It might be. If so, then I had to find a way to push outward and create even more tension so I could accomplish what Walter had.

As I pushed out, the door to the chamber came open.

I froze. I felt as if I couldn’t even move, but I wanted to hold on to the power within me, wanting to maintain that connection so I could continue to test what I was doing. That was needed. It was the reason I’d started holding on to this power in the first place. If I could control it, then I could continue to use it.

Brandel and Jameth approached. I had far too much experience with Brandel, though much less with Jameth. Brandel was a tall young man, with more than a hint of arrogance, and he strode forward as if leading the others with him. He cared little for me, and the feeling was mutual. I still hadn’t learned who his father was within the city, though knew him to be some sort of nobility. He had rank, which Brandel figured kept him safe, despite my knowledge of Brandel’s involvement with Elaine. Likely he had been working with her. Two more followed them