Chapter 5

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He sat on the floor focused only on what he could sense around him. He calmed his breathing and listened to himself. He knew exactly what the sphere around him looked like despite his closed eyes. He tried to slowly locate the source of this energy, just as he had done several times before. He paid close attention to the energy around him and slowly followed its footsteps, which, unfortunately, were quickly lost.

Once again, he began to perform the same actions with great care. He carefully examined what he felt around him. Again, he found that this energy felt as if it was familiar, as if he had encountered it before, but he was not able to accurately pinpoint it.

He concentrated more and began to look for some source of this power. He noticed a few of the stronger clusters of energy and looked at them. He felt that it was in these places that the energy was taking its shape. He quickly found a strand of power and followed it. Carefully, so as not to lose it, but with great excitement, as he hoped that this time he would succeed and find what he had been looking for for so long.

He slowly followed the thread with his senses and came to the same conclusion again. The source was somewhere close to him. He cursed as the thread split in front of him. He shook his head and opened his eyes. He was upset by another failure. He swung his hand vigorously, wanting to hit the sphere, and suddenly noticed that it flared up more strongly than usual. The emotion that had just gripped him weakened and quickly dissipated like blowing in the wind.

He sat for a moment staring with slightly opened lips at the rippling field. What if... No, it's not possible after all. He thought, stretching his hand out in front of him and watching the sphere expand. If I've approached this wrong? If there is, however, another, simpler explanation for what is happening? He waved his hand looking at the displacement of the shield. If I am the source? He rested both hands on his thighs looking somewhere in front of him. There's only one way to find out. He thought and closed his eyes again concentrating on the energy around him.

Once again he sensed the sphere around him. He quickly found one of the threads and followed it to where it was disintegrating, then took a deep breath and suddenly began to focus not on what was around him, but on himself.

He was surprised to sense his own body. Suddenly he could just feel the blood pulsing in his veins, his organs working and something else. Somewhere inside, as if beyond all this, he sensed threads of energy pulling in every direction without any order or purpose. They filled every nook and cranny of his body, which surprised him the most. Only now did he feel how much energy was there, power that was beyond any control, that wanted to get out somehow, to be used. Fascinated, he began to follow its course and after a few moments he noticed that none of it was coming out of one particular point, but they all had something in common.

He looked even deeper into himself examining everything more closely than before. Unexpectedly, he bumped into something that was outside his body, but was his essence. He did not know what to call it. He found himself in a space of his own consciousness filled with streams of undirected energy stretching in all directions.

He wanted to grab the closest of the threads, but could not reach out. For a moment he stared at it somewhat stupefied and then criticised himself. How am I supposed to grab something inside myself? After all, not with my hand!

He concentrated hard on the flowing energy and tried to push it with his thoughts. The stream wobbled and changed its course slightly. He was pleased and pushed again, but this time harder. The thread bulged and changed its course again.

He wanted to try something different and focused on one point on this line. Instead of pushing the energy he stopped it at that point and watched it slowly gather into a luminous ball. After a moment of observation, he released his thoughts and the energy splashed out and formed three branching threads.

Out of curiosity, he began to follow the direction from which the energy seemed to be flowing. He wandered following the winding stream. After a few moments, or hours, he felt something different. He sensed a concentration of this power, its source.

He quickly focused on this sensation and moved towards it. Somewhere within himself he saw a gradually enlarging bright spot, which took on some shape the closer he got to it. Eventually he saw a luminous figure from which all the strands of energy were spreading. It seemed to him that he was looking at a source of pure power. He looked at it and became still.

He looked at himself. He was both fascinated and slightly terrified. He didn't know what it meant or what could happen. Without thinking much, he reached towards the luminous figure and then something happened that he could not explain. He felt that he was reaching towards himself, that this was not some source of power that had appeared out of nowhere, but that this was a part of him that had been dormant somewhere deep inside him for so long and it was not until the real threat stimulated it to release its power and create a shield to protect him.

Suddenly he felt that part awaken, but he no longer saw it as a luminous being. It was he who stood surrounded by the oozing energy around him. He was fully aware of it, could feel it and could influence it. For a moment he relished the feeling of control over it, and then with a single thought he forced it to flow towards him. Then he felt the energy no longer undirected, but taking shape, or rather the form of a luminous sphere glowing with a warm golden radiance. As it all flowed back to him, he noticed that the energy did not begin to form chaotic threads again but remained in this one place by itself concentrating around him.

He slowly withdrew from this realm of consciousness and returned to his body. Here he no longer noticed the streams as before and everything else was working normally. He gently focused on his surroundings, but here too he did not sense the power or the asymmetrical sphere.

Draco opened his eyes smiling triumphantly. He didn't see any rippling sphere this time and he could feel the energy inside him the whole time. He blinked a few times. How about this... He stretched his hand out in front of him and tried to release a bit of power. A perfect golden sphere appeared above his palm. He laughed lightly and locked the energy away.

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Jeviev looked over her shoulder once more, looking out for someone who might be following her, but saw no one suspicious. She turned suddenly into a random street and stopped after taking a few steps. She turned around again, but this time she additionally swept her eyes over the sky.

She let out a sigh of relief. She did not notice anything suspicious. She was already close to the old orphanage, but just to be sure, she decided to poke around a bit more, just in case. She set off in front of her and let her legs carry her in a direction on their own.

She crossed a few more streets, squares and parks before she found herself at the back of the decaying orphanage. She stood a few metres from the entrance and took another look at the dilapidated facade. She shook her head slightly and walked quickly inside. As soon as she was beyond the door she relaxed completely. She climbed the creaking staircase and crossed the corridor.

When she placed her hand on the doorknob she stopped for a moment, calming her breathing and her thoughts. She summoned an encouraging smile to her face and stepped inside. As soon as she took in the interior with her eyes she stood frozen seeing her friend sprawled in one of the dilapidated armchairs. She was looking at a human, not a dragon, and could not see the asymmetrical sphere around him.

-You have succeeded,- she said when the first shock of such unexpected success had passed. Jeviev had thought all along that Draco would need some time to get to grips with his new challenge, but he only needed a few days to do so.

-Yes.- He replied standing up.

The elfess ran up to him and hugged him. She didn't know why, but she felt she had to do it. To her pleasant surprise, the dragon reciprocated the hug. After a moment, she pulled away from the man and looked at him. At first she didn't know what she was uncomfortable with in her friend, what had changed about him. However, after just a moment, she was sure what it was about. Draco was more confident than ever. She could see it in his posture, hear it in his tone of voice and see it in his steely eyes, which had suddenly gained an almost extraordinary depth.

-It's enough to leave you for a day and you already change almost beyond recognition.-She pretended to be irritated, but she knew that the wide smile must betray her.-As usual, anyway.- She added a bit dryly.

-Don't exaggerate, okay?- Draco smiled, clasping his hands on his chest.-You can't complain that much. If it wasn't me then who would be providing your entertainment?-He asked with a sassy glint in his eye.

-You really have changed.- She muttered looking at him even more closely.

-I guess it was inevitable.-The dragon laughed briefly and glanced at the bag Jeviev had on her shoulder.-I hope you have something to eat in there?

-As usual, only about one thing.- She shook her head with feigned disapproval.-This will probably never change.

-You know me.- Draco winked at her.-So...?- He chuckled expectantly.

-Oh, all right, but let's sit down and you have to tell me what you've come to.

-Of course.- He replied while helping her take their dinner out of the bag.

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Bleist carefully shifted his footing making sure not to accidentally step on a board that might squeak. He checked once more that he was sure his soundproofing spell was working and immediately positioned himself more comfortably and began to listen as the boy recounted what he had sensed and how he had come to believe that he was directly the source of the energy. Darius was most surprised by the statement that it was as if he had awakened a part of himself. Intriguing. A dragon with an innate talent and ability to see magic from the right angle. It only took him a few days and he had already come to see that magic was part of his being. Really interesting.

-That is...- The mage heard the hesitation in the elf's voice.-That is, it has always been in you, only in a state of...in a state of....

-Hibernation? Suspension?-The dragon spoke lightly, without a shadow of fear or uncertainty.-Maybe the best term would be a state of sleep?

-I think so. You're right.- Bleist imagined that she must have nodded at this, and he smiled.

A silence fell in the room behind the wall. He knew that neither of them had moved from their seat. He waited to see what would happen next and pleaded in his mind for her to ask what he was going to do now, because the next steps he had to take depended on it. The last thing he wanted to resort to was detaining the boy and trying to force him to do something. After a few minutes the girl spoke up again.

-Can you control it, right?- She asked, and notes of confusion and hesitation echoed in her voice.-Could you...- She paused hanging that question between them.

-Show you? If you want.- Bleist could have sworn that at this point the boy shrugged his shoulders. The dragon was very confident.

Darius cursed himself for his own curiosity and cautiously looked inside through the unclosed door. The boy was sitting in a dilapidated armchair sideways to the entrance and looking in the opposite direction. Bleist saw a golden orb appear above his hand, which after a moment waved slightly and turned into some sort of animal. However, for the mage lurking on the other side of the door, it didn't matter what species it was. He does it all instinctively. How is this possible when it takes our students at least a few weeks or months to master their powers like this? He shook his head and stepped back, staring at the wall as if he wanted to pierce it with his eyes.

-So what now? -The sudden change of subject greatly pleased Bleist.

-You know... I still have to get used to it.-The dragon stood up and walked to the window.-In a few days I will be back home and at the Academy and everything will be back to normal.

-What about Pirce?

-The usual, after all, you know he'll get bored quickly and look for something else.

Darius nodded his head. He had found out everything he wanted to know. He slowly retreated and went down to the ground floor, then slipped out and slipped back to the Embassy.