From behind, a voice cut the tension.
"Miss Solenhart, practice with your counselor," Professor Hog snapped. "I didn’t approve the change. You’ve only trained with Counselor Ugo Zeyu. Follow orders. This isn’t Emberkeep or your court."
“If you really hurt her, Moonveil,” Shakari warned, pointing a finger at Lorik, “I’ll crush your soul and everyone you love.”
Her braid swung behind her as she stalked toward the edge of the mirrored hall.
“For the sake of Solvir,” I muttered. I was out of options.
Ugo and Shakari stepped aside, standing on the edge of the Hall of Mirrors. This was practice, not combat, but everyone already knew better.
And this time and for the first time, the fear that had always tangled my chest, squeezed my lungs until I could barely breathe, simply... melted away, leaving something fierce and clear in its place.
The mirrored walls caught a dozen Loriks and a hundred of me, bending light until I wasn’t sure which version of myself was real.
His hands were loose, boots whispering on the mirror floor.
“Guard,” he said, voice calm but edged with challenge. “Breathe.”
I summoned light to my palms until it shimmered over my knuckles. “I’m breathing.”
"That’s Emberkeep breathing," he said, tilting his head, a faint smirk on his lips. "All restraint and tension. Dragontail forges emotion into power. Want strength? Stop controlling your feelings. Use them."
“Why?” I shot back. “So, I burn out faster? Easier for you to win?”
His eyes flickered, silver catching the light. “If I wanted to win,” he said evenly, “you’d already be on the floor.”
That didn’t help.
“Do it,” he ordered. The air thickened. Shadows unfurled along the mirrored walls, rippling like smoke come alive. Lightning threaded through them, precise and waiting. He didn’t strike first. He wanted to see how I’d move.
I released a burst of flame. It hit his shadows, scattering in a spray of sparks.
He countered instantly, stepping into my blind side and sending a low bolt that forced me to twist away.
“You say you hate me, that you’re going to show me ruthless,” he called out, shadows coiling at his heels, “but I see no hate in your fire. No rage. Again.”
I flared my flames wide along my arms, sparks snapping off my skin.
“You keep insisting you’re different from your family,” he said, stepping closer, voice low and goading. “Then prove it.”
“You really do know how to push my buttons,” I snapped back, heat rising through my chest. His smirk sharpened, like that had been the goal all along.
“I could say the same about you, Princess,” he responded with an unmistakable small smirk.
I skidded back, heat clawing up my arms. I raised both hands and threw another strike, this one from the pit of my chest. The flare cut the air like a blade of sunlight. Lorik pivoted through it, catching the edge with his forearm. The clash sent gold and pink light scattering across the floor.
“Better,” he said, almost approving.
"Just better…" I started, but he was already moving. He’d only give me a small win.
Lightning cracked from his fingers, white-hot and sharp. I met it head-on, fire against electric light. The impact split the air in two. My light fractured. Shadow poured through the gaps, devouring half of it before I could reform the core.
“Focus, Princess!” His voice cut through the roar. “Feel everything—rage, fear, grief. That’s power.”
I hesitated, then heard my mother’s commands for restraint and perfection. And I let go.
Magic tore through me, pure and wild. Fire surged from my spine to my fingertips as I swung forward, unleashing a spiral of flame and light. It crashed into his field with a thunderous sound.