Читать книгу The Oyxia Chronicles: Shadow of Lorian - - Страница 6

The Great Hall of the Castle of Fire was spacious, but not endless. Tall columns adorned with flame patterns supported the vaulted ceiling, from which a soft reddish glow of magical crystals streamed down. The air was warm, saturated with magic.

At the center of the hall turned the Circle of Fire Control – a magical spiral composed of four testing sectors. Here, under the watchful eyes of mentors and students, the future mages were to undergo their first serious trial. Among them stood Elissa Fayrell and Leonard of Tirgold.

They did not know each other yet – but today their paths would cross.

“Next: Elissa Fayrell,” the mentor’s voice rang out.

Leonard, standing among the other students, raised his head. Until then he had paid little attention to the others – his thoughts were fixed on his own trial. But when he saw the girl step forward, his gaze lingered.

She entered the Sector of Calm.

The fire flared softly, swaying slowly around her like a drowsy beast. But… something was wrong. Leonard had seen other students find their balance in this sector – their breathing slowed, their movements became smooth. Elissa, however, tensed. Her gaze darted, her fingers curled into fists.

She can’t relax.

The flames around her suddenly wavered, mirroring her inner anxiety. The fire began to rise higher, the space around her seemed to tighten, the pressure growing.

“Easy, Elissa,” Leonard whispered under his breath.

She clenched her teeth. How was she supposed to be calm when magic raged all around her? She could feel the fire inside herself – boiling, alive, craving motion. How could she just stand still?

Suddenly, the fire shot upward – she was losing control.

But at the last moment Elissa exhaled sharply, closed her eyes and… stepped forward. Not slowly and evenly, but with a natural, confident movement. Her breathing did not become perfectly steady – but she accepted that. She couldn’t be motionless. But she could keep walking.

And then the fire around her settled.

She passed.

Sector of Passion

As soon as Elissa entered this sector, the fire awakened. It surged up around her, tongues of flame flaring and swirling as if inviting her into a dance.

She paused for a moment… and smiled.

Here it was easier. She felt this fire. She understood it. It was not an enemy, not just a trial – it was alive, just like her own magic.

Elissa took a step, and the fire moved with her. She did not try to dominate it – she moved with it, in the same rhythm.

Leonard noticed the spark in her eyes, the faint smile at the corner of her lips.

There it is. Here she’s at home.

The fire flared one last time, as if in delight, then scattered and cleared the way for her.

She completed the trial.

Leonard gave the slightest nod. Interesting…

Sector of Illusions

The moment Elissa stepped forward, the world around her changed.

The fire vanished, giving way to shadows. They thickened and twisted, curling around her on all sides. Before her, her hometown appeared – Pyrenholm.

The houses burst into flame, as if answering her very breath. People ran, screaming. Heat slammed into her face; streets, rooftops, trees – all burned. She heard familiar voices filled with terror, heard children crying.

“No…” her voice shook. “This… isn’t real.”

But the shadows tightened, rising upward in dense tongues of fire. Before her eyes, the city was consumed. And then she saw them.

Her parents.

They stood in the distance, surrounded by flames, unmoving. Her father looked straight at her. He did not call, did not shout. He only watched.

“No!” Elissa took a step forward, but the fire struck back, hurling her away. “It’s not me! I didn’t—”

She squeezed her eyes shut, clutching at her temples, but the sounds would not fade. The stench of smoke, the crackle of burning roofs, desperate voices. She was losing control.

This isn’t real. It’s an illusion. It’s a trial.

Her breathing grew ragged. Every part of her screamed to fight, to rush in, to save them, to act.

But… this was not a place for fighting.

The trial was not about destroying the shadows. Not about winning the battle.

It was about acceptance.

She stood amidst the roaring fire and forced herself to draw a breath.

Fire was part of her. Her strength. Her fate.

“I didn’t burn Pyrenholm,” she whispered. “I am not the fire. I am Elissa.”

She straightened. Looked ahead. Steady. Accepted.

The shadows crackled, flickered, and then broke apart, scattering like ash on the wind.

She took the final step. The illusions vanished.

Light returned.

The mentor nodded. “You have succeeded.”

Elissa answered with a silent nod. The flames of her past still reflected in her eyes, but now… they no longer owned her. They were a part of her – but not who she was.

Sector of Control

The moment Elissa stepped into the last sector, the fire changed. It no longer circled her playfully or danced; it lunged to cut her off. Bursts of flame shot up in front of her, forming walls in her path, and further ahead rings of molten fire took shape – passage was possible only if she found the right path through them.

She tensed.

Control.

She knew she couldn’t just merge with the fire here as before. She had to lead it, not follow.

Elissa threw up her hand, directing her power – and one of the tongues of flame obediently scattered.

It’s working!

She moved on, confident and precise, slipping past the rising bursts of fire. Sometimes she redirected them with a motion of her hand, sometimes she simply sensed the right moment to pass.

The fire no longer stood against her as a barrier. It moved with her.

When the trial ended, the mentor studied her carefully and nodded.

“Well done, Elissa. But remember – sometimes fire demands not only mind, but passion.”

She pressed her lips together, but said nothing, and walked back to the others.

Leonard watched her go. She’s going to be a powerful mage.

Leonard’s Trial

“Now: Leonard of Tirgold.”

Elissa looked at him for the first time. Until now he had been just another student in the crowd. But as he stepped into the circle, she noticed his easy, unhurried movements.

Sector of Calm

Leonard entered the circle with a kind of quiet certainty, as if this were exactly where he belonged. Elissa watched him move through the Sector of Calm without hesitation. He didn’t second-guess himself; his body seemed to move on its own, while his mind remained clear and focused.

Doesn’t look like he’s nervous at all.

His confidence showed not only in his stride. Leonard might have lacked subtle spellwork yet, but his strength lay elsewhere – in his ability to remain focused and coolheaded, no matter the situation.

He passed the Sector of Calm without a single misstep. Without slowing, he stepped forward into the next.

Sector of Passion

Now came the part Leonard found hardest – his emotions. The Sector of Passion was the trial where he had to confront not only external fire, but the flames within.

When he entered the sector, a storm of fire whirled up around him – and in the center of that storm an image appeared: his little sister. She stood there clutching a toy in her hands, her face full of fear.

“You left,” she said. “You’re not coming back. We’ll never see each other again.”

The words struck straight at his heart. Leonard felt his emotional tension spike. The memory pushed deep into his soul, stirring a fierce struggle. He’d always been so focused on magic itself that he had never dared to fully admit the weight of his feelings. Now, in this moment, those feelings flared outward through his magic – the fire around him began to jerk and flicker as he started to lose control.

He gritted his teeth. One hand pressed against his head, he tried to steady himself, but the emotions held him back. This was the hardest trial yet. His desire to retreat from fear, from the pain of loss, kept him from fully controlling the flame.

Elissa stood not far away, watching. She could interfere – but she knew this was something he had to do himself.

Leonard closed his eyes one last time and focused on his breathing. He felt the fire inside him. It wasn’t just flame. It was his passion. His strength. He had to accept that emotion, not flee from it.

With effort, he exhaled and let go of his pain – and the fire around him began to calm.

He passed the Trial of Passion, but not without an inner scar. He realized that while his mind and logic had carried him far, his feelings were part of his power too. Now he had to learn to master them as well.

Sector of Illusions

And here the real trouble began.

When the flames opened the next vision, he saw his sister again. She was alone, frightened, holding the very toy he had taken with him. Once more she spoke:

“Leonard… don’t go.”

Leonard froze. The inner conflict was brutal. He knew he had to recognize this as an illusion – but his heart was already reaching for her. He had always felt responsible for his sister, and here that feeling intensified until it became almost unbearable.

The question pulsed inside him: What if this isn’t an illusion?

This… can’t be real. But what if it is?

He felt the fire’s heat, heard its crackling, and found himself unable to move.

Then he heard Elissa’s voice. She was beside him.

“It’s an illusion, village boy.”

Leonard spun around and saw her calm face. Elissa watched him with the faintest hint of reproach.

“So, are you really going to let it trick you?”

“You’re giving me hints now?” he muttered.

“I just don’t want to have to drag you out of here later.”

Leonard flinched. The illusion was so convincing that even she didn’t want to resist it. But her words jolted his mind awake. He forced himself to remember why he was here – and stepped forward, letting go of his doubt.

The illusion dissolved.

Elissa gave a small nod, and he felt that something inside him had shifted. Perhaps this struggle with the illusion truly had revealed something more.

Sector of Control

As they approached the final trial, Leonard felt the fire around him shift and take form. Here, in the Sector of Control, his magic fell fully in line with his thoughts. The flames flowed around him, listening, responding to his every gesture. He didn’t rush. He managed the situation carefully – his magic like a precise, well-calculated formula.

With a faint smile, he passed through the sector.

Elissa remarked:

“All you really need is a little more confidence in yourself – not just to control the fire, but your emotions too.”

Leonard shook his head, but her words struck him as a challenge. He was a master of analysis, but he all too often forgot that control over fire required control over himself.

The mentor watched as Leonard emerged from the trials, a little weary, but with a new look in his eyes.

“You have a strong connection with fire, and you know how to command it. But don’t forget – magic does not always obey logic. Sometimes, to be a powerful mage, you must be willing to accept your emotions and let them lead you.”

Fire does not forgive weakness. But it remembers those who dare to burn.

Leonard nodded. He understood now that the trial had exposed his weaknesses – but it had also opened a new path toward self-knowledge. Elissa, watching him, found herself thinking:

He’s starting to look less like someone who merely controls fire… and more like someone who could become part of it.

In that moment, something subtle formed between them – not rivalry, but an understanding that one day they would meet again, perhaps no longer as students, but as mages capable of changing this world.