Page 33 of Within the Flames
He smiled at the beithir who'd just entered the room.
"None taken. Macey has felt my magic before however. Maybe she just needs to think about it? Concentrate on it somehow?"
Macey shrugged. "I can try it. It sounds a little too easy though."
"Sometimes, not everything is as hard as it seems," Flint said in a voice that sounded a lot like Malan's. Cam elbowed him in the ribs.
"I better show you my tattoos while I do this," Macey suggested. "Tell me if anything changes."
She took off her bra, almost enjoying Izban's shocked gaze. She stepped towards the sofa and lay on it so that they could all see her back. She closed her eyes, hoping that would make it easier to focus. Not that she really knew what to focus on. She couldn't feel the tattoos, they didn't hurt or make themselves noticed in any other way. She sighed. This was going to be one of those annoying and seemingly unsolvable quests. All part of being a Warden. Bah.
Macey concentrated on her water magic. That one was going to be the easiest, so it made sense to start out with it. Problem was, she had no idea what to do. She didn't want to drench the room in water, or herself, or anyone. She created a few drops of water and let them fall on the bare skin of her back.
"There's water," Flint informed her. "But the marking isn't doing anything."
It would have been too easy. Instead of physically creating water, Macey thought of how the magic felt like. The cool, slippery, calming essence of the magic she'd wielded for years. Even just thinking about it relaxed her. Yes, the magic could be wild and destructive, but while it was slumbering within her, it was a peaceful loch that mirrored her thoughts and emotions. Unless she wasn't feeling peaceful, then it changed into something more violent. It happened. Now that she was looking at her magic, she felt it calling to her. She took a deep breath and jumped, diving into the loch, entering it with an elegant jump that would have made any Olympic athlete gasp. Or so she liked to think.
If this had been real water, she would have shifted into her kelpie form, but as she didn't really have a body in her mind - yes, it was very confusing - she stayed as she was, somehow being able to breathe without a problem.
She swam around a little, exploring the loch that had been within her forever but which she'd never dived into before. It had always seemed impenetrable and not as inviting as it had a moment ago when she'd taken the plunge.
"Something's happening!" she heard from far away. Good. That meant she was supposed to continue swimming, or exploring, or whatever had worked for the marks to activate. She let herself drift to the water's surface and rolled onto her back, looking up into the darkness that was her mind. Not because she was evil; no, it was a familiar, gentle darkness that felt soothing rather than threatening. She spread her arms and legs, floating, completely relaxed. She should do this more often. It felt really good.
"Your water mark is glowing!"
She smiled, until the same voice continued, "Move on to the next one!"
Macey sighed. She didn't want to leave this place. She'd not had a break in weeks, always hurrying from one place to another, never resting. Still, her sense of duty prevailed and with one last splash of water, she left her inner loch, focussing on another kind of magic that was similar: ice.
She thought of what she knew about ice. It was cold, deadly, majestic. A silent killer. Strong. Able to break things. Avalanches, icicles, slippery ice on the ground. The images flashed through her mind and step by step, her skin became colder. She looked down at the loch beneath her, not at all surprised when she saw a thin sheet of ice covering its surface. Hopefully it wasn't permanent. She really didn't want to carry a piece of Izban within her. That was Amber's job.
