Strena The Voyage Part Seven

 Magical Training

Strena was still practicing on her violin. She finished her piece when she saw Chashathrophogh and Bash walking on the deck. He had a determined look in his eyes. She tried to ignore this as she put her violin away. 

“Right, time to train you two!” He called. “You need to strengthen your magic.”

Strena felt her ear prick. She wanted to stay and watch but she knew that the longer that she stayed the more suspicious Chashathrophogh would become. Then the more suspicious he would become, the more likely it would be that he would figure out what she was. Then it would be only a matter of time until he would kill her.

So she walked to the door and reached out to the doorknob.

“That includes you, Strena!”

She closed her eyes in dread as her heart beat increased. Yet she thought that she could not out of this by playing like she did not know what he was talking about.

“What?” She asked as innocently as she could.

“Oh come on, you’re a child born out of wedlock.”

“What makes you think that?”

“You have magic and the moment you looked at me, you looked at if you were about to die. Also, Grasharlo did make it out as if I will kill you. It was not that difficult to figure it out. Now, put that down. You have magic so you need to train to use it.

“But I was able to put all those people to sleep!”

Oops!

“I know. You may be able to put more people to sleep, and without any physical contact. Which I will have to commend you on not in figuring out how to do that but also being able to make that many fall asleep.”

“Thank you?”

“Now come on!”

She walked to them.

“Now, both of you, here.” He said as he summoned a ball of fire. “Stop it and throw it back to me.”

He threw it to Bash. She stopped it and threw it back to him. He then threw it at Strena. She used her will to stop it and she willed the fire back to him. Yet it was far too fast and he only just stopped it in time.

“You need to learn restraint.”

She nodded.

“That is what we will be working on. Now, when I throw it at you, throw it back to me, control how much will you put behind it.”

She nodded.

He threw it at her. She stopped it and she did not put as much will into it this time round. This caused it to go slower. He stopped it. Then he threw it back to her. They did this again and again and again until she got the hang of it.

“Good work. Now, let’s go back to throwing the ball of fire at each other again and again and again. Yet it was slow and steady. Then it started to get faster and faster and faster. In fact, the ball was going so fast that it looked to Strena like there was a ring of fire rather than a ball of fire being passed between them. Yet she was the first to feel a strain but she continued nevertheless. So as she continued after five minutes, she felt drained and she dropped, painting.

She could feel her body shaking as she was coated in sweat. The increase of the temperature made sure to keep her warm. She felt a hand on her back.

“Good work!” Chashathrophogh and Bash said.

“Thank you!” She whispered.

“Now go and rest. After Cerpheres and Zaryb are finished with the lunch. We will continue.”

She nodded as she raced to her violin and ran to her room. She dumped it on her bed. Then she suddenly felt a release of peace. There seemed that there was less tension in the room.

So, when Zaryb and Cerpheres with a chicken roast dinner she could sniff up happily. Once she sat on the table they dug in.

“Wow! That’s good.” She exclaimed.

“You seem happy!”

“I am.”

Zaryb went to get out a bottle of beer until Chashathrophogh stopped him.

“No. It is far too early to get drunk.”

“Fine!”

“Here! Try this!” Cerpheres purred, giving him a bottle with an apple on it.

“No.”

“What? It’s only apple juice!” He moaned as he pulled out another glass bottle of a pomegranate on. “Strena, try this!”

She took a sip.

“Hmmm… It’s bitter, yet sweet too!”

“Glad you like it!”

Soon they ate their lunch and drank their juice. Then she followed Bash and Chashathrophogh.

“Where are you going?”

“To train her magic.”

“But she-”

“Needs to sharpen her magic first. She can sharpen her body tomorrow.”

“Right.”

“Now Cerpheres, stop the ship for an hour.”

“Any reason?” he purred with a flirtatious eye.

“I need to assess something first. But you need not worry. It will not be too long.”

“Alright!” He sang, returning to the wheel.

The three walked to one side.

“Right. Try and freeze as large a body of water as you can.”

Strena nodded. She closed her eyes.

“No. Do it with your eyes open.”

She nodded and focused all her will and sent it into the water. She used her magic to turn the water to ice. Soon it became colder and colder and colder. Then she saw the tiny icicles. However, she did all to make more. Yet it occurred to her at that moment to join the ice and she did that. She kept this up until there was a small iceberg the size of a carriage. Despite feeling a strain she continued until she could not do any longer, by this time, she had an iceberg the size of a house.

“Good girl!”

Then he helped her over to Bash to see that her iceberg was the size of a small ship!

“Well done, my dear niece.”

“Thank you, my dear Uncle.”

Looks like I have a lot to catch up on.

“Now, I know where you two are, Strena melt this. Bash, you melt Strena’s.”

She nodded and she did all this and she fainted. Over the next month Chashathrophogh trained the two girls to increase the power of and time using their magic.