Soul of a Human

The Agaton glider was simple yet robust, and with Sophie's incredible affinity for Air, the traveling band could isle hop before Sophie ran out of magic power. If Morokhan were with them, it might be easier here because the giant distance to her husband removes the shared reserve advantage, but he had to stay back in case of an emergency.

That left them with having to hop from isle to isle and, to Saphine's horror, staying more than once with Mor's extensive family. Orth found this extremely funny because no matter on what isle they stopped, another "Agaton" family would just take them in, no questions asked, and treat them like they were expected. Mor, in turn, talked at every opportunity, his energy withholding with Clare, and tried to teach that spell to his friends and mother without much progress.

The first major hiccup came on the third day, when Sophie told her son that the next isle was further away than expected, seemingly moving away. This would generally be no problem, but with only Sophie able to fly the glider and her energy not lasting, they had to make a decision. Either they land on the ground and take a break there, risking a monstrosity attack, or Sophie has to show Saphine how to fly this thing. Mor's lack of affinity AND magic power, in addition to his call-in with Clare, removed him as a candidate. Orth was right out because he couldn't use strong enough air magic as an Earth affinity mage.

After Sophie recognized that she had to work together with Saphine, her sour face would have made Mor laugh, but no one wanted to spend a night watching out or, worse, defending from monstrosities. It was the only other option. Saphine would need to take over until Sophie could recover enough energy to finish the flight.

However, this was overly optimistic, as Mor had to stop two fights between the women, and they almost crashed. Again, the human's out-of-the-box thinking saved them, and as always, some trial and error was involved.

°If you had a strong air affinity, it would be just enough? Right?° The human asked.

°Probably?° Mor said, not getting what the human was going for while breaking up the next argument.

°So, if we could give your magic to your mother, she could use her affinity to get more value out of it.° The human explained.

°And how would we do that? We only know how to enhance the natural magic regeneration, but that wouldn't do.° Mor said.

°We know another technique. Snow taught it to us.° The human said smugly, and finally, Mor understood.

°Let's try it! Before we crash...° He sighed.

"Saphine, get to the back. I have had enough of your arguments and fighting," Mor said sternly, and his mother smiled in victory before he gave her a disappointed look.

"You're just as much at fault, mother. Can't you two not get along?! Not even when our lives are on the line?" He scolded them both, and both of them mumbled some excuses.

Orth had an "oh shit" face at Mor's outburst, and Mor himself let out a sigh.

"Luckily, the human got an idea that spares us your childish behavior. I will give my energy to my mother. With her strong affinity, it should be enough to get us to the next isle. Right, mother?" Mor said, and Sophie nodded.

"Barely." She evaluated.

"Good enough," Mor said. Now, please don't be surprised. This is something we have never tried before."

Sophie held her breath as Mor tried something impossible again. He tried to see his mother not as a living thing but as a vessel in his mind. A deep blue crystal able to store magic energy, Mor remembered the humming after it was filled, the glow when it was full, and suddenly, he could feel his mother's reserves. Mor smiled, then let his magic flow into this reserve. At first, it was like filling a barrel with single drops. Mor felt his mother's subconscious resistance.

"Mother, don't fight me, please." He mumbled, and Sophie tried to overwrite her instincts.

Mor could feel the effect. The resistance lessened, and his energy flowed more freely. Sophie could feel her energy returning, her reservoir refilling, while Orth and Saphine watched in unbelief.

°How about we try augmenting with energy from our surroundings? It might not be much and not offset your mother's demand, but at least it would help.° The human suggested, and Mor nodded.

Mor emptied his own reservoir, and when the headaches set in, he switched, drawing energy from around him, and closed with his eyes still closed.

°Something is strange.° He said.

°What?° The human asked.

°It feels different from before.° Mor said.

°How so?° The human wanted to know.

°Somehow easier? Like I can pull harder? I can't explain it.° Mor said, and the human thought for a second.

°Something, to put on our list. Right now, concentrate on your task.° The human dismissed it.

With Mor's effort, they reached the next isle and turned into an inn for the night because it was pretty late, and they didn't want to bother the family. But when they all sat down for a late lunch, mainly light snacks, before retiring to bed, Sophie started to ask her boy some questions.

"Mor, enough is enough. You need to explain to me what you did. Two impossible things in a few days are definitely too much." She opened, and Mor almost choked on his food.

Coughing, he said, "I can guess you want to know how I can speak with Clare and how I could transfer my energy to you. Right?"

His mother nodded at that.

"Well, as I already tried to explain, the talking is just an enhancement to the normal telepathy spell. You just don't see your target, but imagine it. And the clearer your picture, the better your chance of success. The second one is more confusing. I learned the basics from the ice kin Snow." Mor explained, and Orth and Saphnie were also interested.

"Those crystals I used against the Ranbor-thing were filled with magic energy, and Snow taught me how to fill them. I can fill them with my own energy or the energy of my surroundings. Sadly, I lost those crystals in the fight, but I thought a Soul-kins reservoir was similar, so I tried it, and it worked." He continued.

"I thought filling your reservoir was only stuff for the last school year," Sophie asked, and both Orth and Saphine nodded.

"It is, and we told Mor as much," Orth said, and Saphine agreed.

"I know, and that technique is different. For example, I can't fill my own reservoir. That's still something I have to work on. Still, it seems somehow useful, and giving away energy to someone who might be more effective with it is a great boon", Mor said, and his three companions nodded.

"Then, can you help me recover faster?" Sophie asked.

"Yes? But the technique is very exhausting. I don't know why because it doesn't use my energy. It seems to have something to do with guiding the energy around to where I want it to be, and if I do this extensively, I get extremely tired. Interestingly enough, though, this only applies when I use external energy. If I give my own away, I don't have that problem, but my energy also needs to recover after today." He explained further.

"So today, I can't do it again. I'm just too tired to concentrate on anything strenuous," Mor confessed, and with that confession, his tiredness seemed to take over, forcing a big yawn out of him.

"I get it," his mother says. "Then I better regain my energy on my own."

Once that decision was made, everyone retired for the night. However, because the inn had only two rooms left, Orth and Saphine shared a room, while Mor shared it with his mother. Normally, the boys and women would share, but Orth and Mor knew that those two would only argue instead of resting, so this was the next best option.

For a short moment, though, it seemed like Saphine wanted to protest but then relented without anyone noticing. While Mor was instantly dragged into a dreamless sleep and his mother recovered her energy, Orth still had something to talk about with Saphine. Using this sleeping arrangement, he took his chance.

"You were uncharacteristically docile today." He said, and Saphine looked at him in surprise.

"Are you drunk? Did you get some kind of alcohol?" She asked, and Orth laughed.

"No. It just occurred to me that you didn't start to argue with him every time Mor "broke up" your arguments. Or even make a snarky remark." He said questioningly.

"Well, of course not! It was a delicate situation, and I didn't want to make it worse. Even if I can't stand that woman." Saphine stated, but Orth didn't believe her.

"You're lying. This has something to do with what you told me earlier. You know, before we went to help Clare. This is because of your dream, right?" He asked.

"No, it isn't! Don't question my decisions." Saphine huffed.

"I told you already. A strong person, saving you from fire? It seems like your memory has the moment ingrained that Mor saved you after our defenses broke. He threw himself between us and this attack," Orth said casually while laying on his cot.

"And I told you that is impossible. Yes, I can stand Mor as a friend, but he is still just a commoner! No matter what a prince said in jest!" Saphine hissed. "Also, if you don't stop with your teasing, I will throw you out, and then you can sleep on the streets!"

Orth sighed. "Mor is a good man. He has a bright future ahead of him, and with his "human" pushing him to incredible heights, it is only a matter of time before he joins the nobility. Do you really want to dismiss those feelings just because of what he is now? I already offered him a position at my side, but others will too, and if the prince hears of Mor's new "impossibilities," he will do so too. If he hasn't already." Orth said, then sat straight up as a cold splash of water hit his face.

"There are no "feelings". I don't care about Mor!" Saphine huffed.

"Keep lying to yourself then. For me, it's clear as day." Orth said, grumpy. "Did you need to make my bed wet?"

"Your own fault. I warned you." Saphine huffed.

The next morning, Saphine woke up after a restless night, Orth's words still in her head, coupled with another nightmare. Orth had a similar bad night as he tried to find a spot in his bed without dampness. Like this, they both came to breakfast, exhausted.

Mor woke because something was crushing him, and he couldn't breathe. He tried to get up but was constrained to his bed. He could hear soft breathing at his side, and with a glance, he could see his mother. Sophie had snuck into the bed with him and snuggled her boy as close as she could.

"Mother." Mor tried to wake her, but the human giggled and received only a murmur in return.

"Mother!" He tried louder, this time trying to free himself more forcefully.

"Whaaat," Sophie said dizzyly. "I want to sleep a bit longer."

"And you can, but I need to get up." Mor urged and finally struggled free.

He almost expected his mother to protest when he got up, but nothing was happening. Only her sleeping breathing was returning. Leaving her, Mor went to pee and then went to get breakfast.

"Good morning, Orth, Saphine." He called out. Saphnie turned away in a huff, and Orth smiled apologetically.

"What is up with her?" Mor asked.

"Nothing, we had just a bad night," Orth answered, and Mor looked at him confused.

"Where's your mother?" Orth asked.

"Still resting, she was more exhausted than she wanted to admit. I know we want to get going, but it would cost us more time if she overexerts herself." Mor explained, and Orth agreed.

The kids decided to eat breakfast and chat until Sophie had recovered enough to continue the journey.