Page 18 of Ocean of Silver

“What?” she cocked her head to the side and glanced up at me as I took the seat next to her.

“You aren’t trying because you’re scared.”

“I’m not scared…” she started, but I held a finger over her mouth to silence her. I quickly drew it away, feeling the exact fullness of them beneath my touch.

“You are scared. I told you before that I have a sense about certain things. You can’t hide your emotions from me, so don’t bother trying.”

“Is that your ability then? To know people’s emotions?”

“Something like that, but there’s more to it,” I answered. I caught her eyeing my left wrist, where my rank five brand was burned into my flesh. She audibly swallowed before looking back at the pool.

“Fine then. I am afraid. I don’t know what you want me to do about it.”

“I want you to learn that this water won’t hurt you. That the water will, in fact, do the opposite. It will help protect you when you call to your ability. I want you to learn that it won’t harm you ever again.”

“And I am supposed to do that by putting my feet in the water?”

“Yes,” I said, looking down at her. Even sitting cross-legged, she was small in stature. I had not seen such a small Advenian, other than my sister, in a while.

I tried to hide my smile as she slowly peeled her shoes off and rolled her pants to her knees. It was a good start if she was willing to try so soon. My eyes snagged on her right calf as she shimmied closer to the edge. Her skin was mutilated there, a permanent burn. I remembered seeing her leg raw and incinerated crawling on that beach, but the King started her interrogation in Tennebris. He didn’t show how she got that, how she was taken from her home. It made me curious about what unfolded that night and why the King wasn’t concerned about it.

“I won’t let you fall in,” I said to her because I think she needed to hear it.

She nodded, then slowly lowered her legs. A soft gasp left her lips as her toes hit the water first, then her breathing turned ragged. Slowly, she closed her eyes and sank her calves in, submerging the mangled area of her skin from my view. With her eyes still closed, I took the opportunity to study her face. Her lips were pressed tightly together, her eyebrows were thick and scrunched so close to one another. Now that the grime from the dungeons was mostly washed off, I noticed she had freckles scattered across her nose.

“Good,” I coaxed softly, not wanting to cause her to sink further into a panic. “The water won’t hurt you. It’s a part of you. Think of your ability as a connection. It’s an extension of yourself. You are one and the same. In order to master your ability, you need to master your fear. If you are scared of it, it will control you. If you can overcome it, you will control the water.”

Her eyelids gently fluttered open. Her lashes elongated around her bright sapphire eyes. The reflection in the water made them appear like they were glowing. Even with the bruises beneath them and her hollowed cheekbones, she was absolutely stunning. I could see glimpses of who she used to be.

“Now what?” she asked hesitantly.

“Now nothing. I want you to sit here until you no longer have a pained expression on your face.”

“I don’t—”

“You do,” I interrupted. She was the most stubborn person I’d met, and I barely knew her. This training was going to be a lot harder than I thought. “I want you to sit here until this feels comfortable for you. Until you are no longer scared of just soaking your feet in the water. That’s your assignment. No more training today. I’ll send for your maid and have her wait outside. When you are finished, return to your chambers, eat, and then get a good night’s rest. Tomorrow we have to do some testing before we train again. Meet me at dawn.”

She nodded her head nonchalantly, but I could see the fear shining in her eyes. This was difficult for her, but she didn’t seem like the type to shy away from a challenge.

* * *

“You’re late,”Brock said when I finally made it to the training grounds.

“Yeah, I know. Sorry, mate. Did anyone give you a hard time?”

“Only a few.” My friend shrugged, but I could tell he was hurting. His body was stiff, and his knuckles had a layer of dried blood on them.

I hated that the soldiers liked to challenge him when I was gone. I knew it was a lot worse than he let on. I scanned the group before us. They were hours into their training for the day, but not nearly finished. It was my job to train all the new recruits, and from time to time, make sure the seasoned soldiers knew their place. I honestly hated it. I hated everything about the army, but the only saving grace I felt was when Brock and I brought the men off their high horses.

“Polaris?” I asked as I nodded toward him. His brown hair was pulled into a tight bun, exposing blood dripping from both of his ears.

“Yeah,” Brock admitted. “The prick doesn’t know when to quit.” As if he knew we were talking about him, he glared Brock’s way, but quickly got back in line when he saw me next to him.

“He hates that you’re better than him. I hope you gave it to him good.”

“I did.”

“Good.” I smirked. We only had another six weeks with him before the King recruited him to his personal guard. He took all the strongest soldiers for himself, and Polaris was a lethal rank five. One of the worst I’d seen in a long time. He was too similar to the King for my liking, just as sadistic and power hungry.

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