The Storm Apprentice

Chapter 6

When she spotted Ceylis outside the entrance to the arena, Narira broke into a jog. There were two strange-looking copper swords strapped to his belt, and he was talking with someone, though his back was covering whoever it was.

Jay, Narira realized. Apprehension swept over her as she wondered what this apprentice was like. Will he like me? What if he thinks I'm competition? Taking a deep breath, she decided there was no use in worrying. "Ceylis!"

Ceylis turned, a smile lighting on his face. "Narira!" Then he stepped back. "This is Jay," he said, gesturing to the boy, who smiled at her. "He's fourteen, like you. I've been training him for four years." He was, also like her, shorter than average. His sandy hair went halfway down his back, tied back with a length of twine. But though his hair was a standard color, his eyes were not the regular medium brown that was common throughout most of the continent. They were a burning blue that shattered the cool morning air.

"Hi," he said conversationally. His voice was high, but not strangely so, making him seem maybe a year younger.

"Hi," Narira echoed, her usual confidence failing her. "I'm Narira, Ceylis's new apprentice. I'm... also fourteen." She fingered her hair nervously.

"Are you from Ilatra?"

She laughed. "No," she sighed. "Everyone asks me that. But as far as I know, I'm mostly Malynrian." Her face took on a resigned look, and her confidence returned as she felt the tense atmosphere evaporate.

"Cool," he responded simply.

"Are you two ready for training?" Ceylis asked, his voice soaked with deliberate boredom.

"Ready when you are," Jay responded.

"Alright. Now, I know you're both at different skill levels... by quite a lot... as far as electrovite magic, but Narira already has some experience dueling. So I'm going to give you some basic exercises that you both will benefit from."

"Does she have her Starrynt yet?" Jay inquired.

"She does now," Ceylis said, pulling one of the strange swords from his belt and handing it to her.

"Narira, this is a Starrynt, an electrovite's standard weapon. It can act as both a sword and a conductor of electricity... though its thin build makes it less than perfect for blocking with."

The copper metal glinted in the sunlight as Narira raised the blade to inspect it. It was long, and it looked sharp near the hilt, but the blade became a rounded point higher up.

"Why isn't it sharp all the way up?" she asked curiously.

"This allows for a more controlled blast of lightning. You'll find it allows for more precision than a regular, flat sword would, and much more than a shot from your bare hand.

"It's also made of a special material," he continued. "Stayagan copper -- copper infused with stayagan gold -- is the best conductor of electricity that has been discovered, aside from stayagan silver, and that corrodes so quickly that it gets too expensive to replace."

"Stayagan gold can only be mined in select places," Jay added. "Most of those are in the mountains of Ilatra."

"Why is the electrovite council in Cecota, then?" Narira asked. "Why not in some Ilatran city?"

"I don't know," Ceylis said honestly. "But anyway, you two will be doing a basic dueling exercise. Narira, I know you know how to do this, but just try to get used to the Starrynt, and Jay... well, you've been working on staying paced with your opponent so it's harder to be surprised. Try to keep pace with her."