Samer paced anxiously from one end of Roisin’s room to the other. He picked up a book from her shelves, sat down in a huff, skimmed over a page, and then tossed it on the floor. He stood up and began pacing again.

“Samer, cut it out. You’ll drive yourself crazy,” Amara chided.

A few hours ago, Samer had been resting in his favorite comfy chair in the Academy’s library, trying to keep his mind distracted from worrying about how Roisin was doing on her Trial. Then, Tal had found him and urged him to go to the Council Chambers immediately. Amara and the Council had detected that Roisin had left Arcadia’s server and was nowhere to be found.

He arrived at the central room of the Chambers just in time to see Roisin fly out of a whirling mass of wind and energy from high up in the air. A moment of disbelief later, he launched into a run to try and position himself beneath her. I’m not going to make it! he despaired, until he saw General Mateo step into place. Mateo caught her and gently set her down. She was unconscious.

In the time since, a healer had looked over and declared her in full health, to everybody’s relief. Still, she had yet to wake up.

“What if I just Shock her a bit? I’ve been meaning to try out my new spell,” Samer asked, his tone only half-joking. Amara glared at him. “Ok, ok. But isn’t there anything we can do?”

As if his words summoned her from the depths, Roisin stirred and opened her eyes, blinking away sleep. She peered at Samer and Amara in confusion, then shot up from her bed.

“Am I back in Arcadia? Am I a ghost? Who was that guy? Amara, we need to talk. I am not happy with the scenario I was given. Since when do the Mage Trials include elements of torture?” she took a deep breath, cutting over Amara and Samer’s attempts to interrupt. “Wait, first you need to tell me, did I pass the Trials?”

Amara grimaced. “Let’s come back to that in a minute. You need to hear what we have to say first”. Roisin’s eyebrows rose in indignation, but she remained silent. Amara reached out to take her hand. “Roisin, you never took the Mage Trials. You went missing.”

Roisin’s mouth fell and she stared at them in astonishment. “I...went missing? Well I guess that explains a lot. Actually, in a way that makes me feel better. The whole time I had this feeling that something wasn’t right.” She gave a small shudder.

Amara squeezed her hand. “After we detected your disappearance, we asked our Earthside connections to run a search program for you. Fortunately, they were able to locate you. They provided us the information we needed to create a portal and bring you back. I don’t know more than that yet, Mateo is following up with our connections to learn more. It would help though if you could tell me everything that happened to you. Please, spare no detail.”

Roisin launched into a thorough description of her time in the desert, focusing in particular on her interactions with the dictator. Although she seemed in relatively calm spirits, Samer could sense that she was disturbed by the experience. He felt himself growing more and more upset and by the end of the story, could feel waves of heat and anger cascading off his body.

“We need to find this…dictator…and punish him. Severely,” he practically snarled.

Amara sighed. “It won’t be easy finding him. I don’t think he expected us to be able bring back to Roisin so quickly. My suspicion is that he’s gone into hiding.”

“So what, we just wait while he pursues whatever this nefarious plan is he’s working on? No frigging way. Amara, please take me off the expedition so I can help track him down. I will not rest until we find him. And kill him, if we must.”

Amara frowned at him, showing a mix of concern and reproach. “Samer, that’s not the Arcadian way. And no, I’m not taking you off the expedition. We still don’t know who or what is responsible for Kalasin’s opening. It could be this guy or something else just as dangerous. You’ll serve this matter best by going there.” She gave him a reassuring pat. “I know this is upsetting, but we need stick to our current plan. Rest assured, I’ll keep you updated on any progress we make here.”

Samer closed his eyes in an attempt to suppress the angry words that boiled inside him. He knew Amara was right, both that he needed to rein in his reaction and on the importance of the mystery surrounding Kalasin. He also knew that if he fully gave into his anger, he’d have no credibility the next time he encouraged Roisin to try meditation. He treasured his ability to serve as a role model, and that included practicing what he preached.

“Guys, I hate to interrupt. But there’s something I’ve just remembered. Near the end, when that slimeball started his experiment, I had this strange thought, something about me turning into a “metahuman”. It happened twice, almost like I was viewing a progress bar. It reached 15% right before you brought me back. And now, well, I think I feel…different.”

Amara and Samer exchanged an apprehensive glance.

“Ok, so that’s concerning. How exactly do you feel different?” Amara asked.

Roisin scratched her head. “Well, I feel stronger overall. Less tired and less hungry than usual. I also have this instinct inside me that I can cast spells just by thinking about them, rather than using hand gestures. Here, let me try.”

She blinked and a powerful Gust slammed her bedroom door shut. She stared at the door in disbelief, astonished at her own action.

“Wow, that’s incredible Roisin,” half-whispered Samer. Instantaneous casting was thought to be possible, but yet to be achieved by anybody, even Amara, whose face he saw twist slightly in envy.

“If that holds true, you might have been bestowed with a priceless ability. How do we explain that though, given the dictator’s conduct otherwise?” asked Amara. Neither Samer and Roisin could answer.

Amara thought to herself for a moment before speaking. “Roisin, I had already been planning to keep you on the expedition, and now I’m even more certain. If you come across the dictator in Kalasin, you may find out the explanation for whatever it is he did to you. And even though you’ll no longer be Samer’s apprentice, I want him by your side to continue to help guide you and navigate whatever this new condition is you have.”

“Hold on, did you say I’m no longer Samer’s apprentice? Does that mean I am an adept now?” Roisin exclaimed. She sprung up from her bed and gave Amara a giant bearhug. Samer laughed as he saw Amara’s horrified expression. She wasn’t well-known for her love of being touched.

Roisin eventually let go, gave a Samer his own bearhug, and danced a little jig of joy. Samer couldn’t help but grin, amazed at how quickly she had bounced back. Teenagers.

“I would say you have more than earned it. We’ll have your graduation ceremony the night before you all depart.” Amara said, having recovered from her hug and also smiling. “Come, I need you to debrief the rest of the Council. We’ll also do some testing to determine exactly how your spellcasting abilities have changed.”

“I think this is the happiest I’ve ever been,” Roisin half-whispered, as she followed Amara from the room.

Samer watched them go. Left alone, he felt the embers of his anger flare again. First, somebody had threatened Arcadia. Then, they had come for his apprentice. He had always been a bookish nerd, content with staying out of the limelight. Now, he could sense he was about to embark on a journey that would change him completely.