Karl slowly lowers his hands, twisting his wrists. The bubble fills with smoke, engulfing the fireball. He brings his hands together, causing the bubble to pop and the smoke to evaporate as it’s released.
Leo throws two more fireballs at Karl. Using the same hand and arm gestures, Karl adds a little twirl, as if he were dancing, to combine the two fireballs into one bubble. Then he pops the bubble. Leo takes a new stance and uses a flame-throwing spell at Karl.
Karl turns his body sideways and leans back, avoiding the flame flying by him. He opens his arms wide, along the length of the flame, and then twists his wrists and hands upward as if he’s trying to lift a log. He creates the same faded cloud bubblethat stretches the entire length of the flame, cutting it off at Leo’s palms.
Karl twirls as he jumps and tosses the flame above his head. As the flame spins around in the air, Karl drops his arms and makes fists with his hands, acting like he’s pulling down on a couple of ropes. The flame pops like a balloon. Karl turns to look at Victor and takes a bow. The woman and two men standing off to the side start applauding.
Leo lightly shakes his head and places a hand on his hip. “Show off.”
Karl ignores Leo’s comment and focuses on Victor.”These spells might seem simple, but it will take some time to perfect. Come, stand next to me.” Victor walks over and stands next to Karl. “First, I want you to raise your hands as high as your shoulders and as wide, palms facing each other.” Victor complies. “Now, I want you to focus on the air between your hands. I want you to see the molecules drifting by. Focus on it swirling around.” Victor focuses as Karl starts to move behind him. Leo takes a seat as he watches.
Karl leans down and softly talks in Victor’s ear. “Now, feel the air between your hands. As you feel the air, focus on pressing it together into a ball.” Victor starts moving his hands closer together. Karl stops him and spreads his hands apart. “No, no. Instinct wants you to put your hands together as if you’re making a ball with your hands. Don’t do that. Use your energy to create the ball without moving your hands.”
Victor nods as he clears his throat. He takes a deep breath and refocuses on the task.
Leo perks up when he sees something appear between Victor’s hands. Victor keeps concentration as Karl smiles. “Good, keep your focus,” Karl mentions. “Imagine a ball in your mind and manipulate the air into becoming that ball.” Victor’s hands startto shake. “Remain focused,” Karl says in Victor’s ear. A moment later, Victor drops his hands and exhales heavily.
Karl pats Victor’s shoulder, “It’s okay. I could see that you were about to create a ball. Could you feel how much energy you were using?”
Victor nods, “Yeah, it almost felt like my body was getting cold inside. Like it brought in the air through my pores, especially around my arms and hands. You know the feeling when a limb starts to fall asleep? But without the tingling.”
“That’s exactly what you’re supposed to be feeling,” Karl explains. “Every time you cast Air Magic, the part of your body you’re focusing the magic on will have that feeling.” Karl lifts his index finger. A tiny tornado begins to swirl around his finger. As it does, Karl’s skin starts turning red from the chill. “You can also use Air Magic in your feet to jump higher or to kick a burst of air at your opponent. It’s safer on your body than kicking and breaking a foot or leg.”
Karl does a roundhouse kick and lets off a burst of air from his foot that knocks over a stack of boxes about 30 feet away. “See? But that lesson will come later. Do you think you are ready to try again?”
Victor nods and starts over, trying to create a ball of air between his hands.
As Leo looks on, his phone begins to vibrate in his jacket. He becomes annoyed when he sees who’s calling and walks away to take the call.
Chapter Fourteen
Leo walks to a dimly lit corner of the warehouse. He looks over his shoulder to see if anyone has noticed he has stepped away. Then he takes a deep breath and answers his phone.
“I’m a little busy right now,” Leo says harshly.
“Hello to you, too,” the person on the other end says.
“What do you want, Derek?” Leo asks with annoyance.
“I don’t understand why you’re getting so upset talking to your husband. I haven’t spoken to you in over a week,” Derek says defensively.
“You know I’m mentoring someone right now,” Leo remarks. “We just started training.”
“Yeah, the empath. Is he cute?” Derek asks.
Leo squints, acting as though Derek is standing before him. “Why does that matter?”
“Because I want to know about my competition,” Derek responds with a tinge of jealousy.
Leo looks back over to see Victor smiling. Karl pats Victor on the back, expressing his pride over a task. Leo knows he should be paying attention, but his husband is calling, which means he’d better answer.
“How long do you think you’ll be away?” Derek asks.
“I’m not sure, Derek. He’s an empath and in his early 30s. This could take some time since he has a lot to learn,” Leo explains, doing his best to hold back his irritation.
Derek sighs, “I don’t understand why they chose you as his mentor. Why couldn’t they find someone else with more experience with empaths?”
Leo pinches the bridge of his nose. “I don’t know, Derek. I’ve been a mentor for a while, and they probably figured I would be the best for his lessons.”
