Caitlin snapped back, fuming with anger. She’d had enough of being chided. “Why don’t you go and chastise him? Why are you chastising me?”
Caitlin realized she was raising her voice. She had lost her patience for authority figures, and it felt good to final y tel him what was on her mind.
Aiden seemed completely composed. He merely shook his head slightly, expressionless.
“I have chosen to speak with you and not him,” Aiden began slowly, “as a reward, not as a punishment. You have the potential to hear what I have to say. He does not. You have the potential to become the best warrior I’ve ever trained.
He does not.”
“You’re NOT my father!” Caitlin snapped back. “I don’t need to be here. I don’t need to listen to you!”
Even as she said it, she realized she sounded bratty. But she couldn’t stop herself. She was so mad at people trying to boss her around her whole life, and she was tired of answering to people.
She was also tired of taking the blame for everyone else’s mistakes.
“You are correct,” Aiden said calmly. “I am not your father.
And you do not need to be here. Or to answer to me. You choose your path in life, every step of the way. You only need to stay here if you choose to,” he reminded her calmly.
Caitlin thought about that, and slowly calmed down. He was right. She had chosen to be here.
And she did want to train. She just…wel , she didn’t know what it was. She had just been so mad she could hardly think straight.
“Your greatest strength is also your greatest weakness,” he said. “Your passion. Your fury. I’m not saying that you should have not beaten Cain. What I am saying is that you should not have beaten yourself.”
Caitlin tried to decipher what he meant. As always, it was so hard to grasp, at first glance, what he was saying. She realized it was another one of his statements that she would have to contemplate.
“What you stil fail to see is that your current powers are limited. You have, inside you, so much power—more than you ever dreamed of. I want to show you how to tap that power. You are stil caught up on superficial things, like winning and losing, and anger and revenge. If you want to grow stronger, you’l need to reach the deeper levels.”
Caitlin breathed deeply, and began to calm down.
Whenever Aiden talk, she relaxed. The more she listened, the more she realized that he actual y was not like al the other authority figures in her life. She realized that he was not, actual y, trying to control her. He real y just wanted to help her.
She was grateful for that.
“What do I have to do?” she asked.
Aiden took a few steps out into the clearing, and turned and faced her. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He held up his staff, so that the edge of it was touching her shoulder. She could feel the wood pressing lightly into her skin.
“Take off your shoes,” he said.
Caitlin did so. The soft grass felt good beneath her feet.
“Close your eyes.”
She did. It seemed like minutes passed in silence; she was just beginning to wonder what he was doing, when she heard his voice again.
“What do you feel?” he asked.
Caitlin thought.
“I feel…the wood, your staff, touching my shoulder. And I feel the grass beneath my feet.”
“What else?” he pressed.
Caitlin concentrated.
“I feel…the wind in my hair…I feel the warmth of the day.
The humidity. It’s sticky on my skin.”
“Yes,” he said. “Very good. Now, I want you to reach out, palm up, and hold the staff between us. Keep your eyes closed.”
Caitlin reached out slowly with her hand, and grabbed hold of the staff. It was an ancient, worn, smooth wood, and she could feel the energy coming off it as she grasped it.
“Don’t grasp it,” he said. “Just place your hand beneath it and hold it. Don’t make a fist.”
Caitlin loosened her grip.
“Good,” Aiden said. “Now while you hold it, I want you to tel me what you feel.”
“I feel a piece of wood,” she said. She felt stupid, but she was not sure what else he wanted.
“What about the wood?” he pressed. “Can you feel each individual grain? Can you feel its weight? Can you feel its thickness, its length?”
Caitlin focused harder. Slowly, she began to feel al the different textures and elements of the wood.
“Good,” Aiden said. “Now, very slowly, lift the wood, high above your head. Use only your palm, not your hand. Use only the energy running through your body, coursing through your palms.
Find it. Feel it.”
Caitlin focused, and as she did, she felt her palm grow warm, felt a bal of energy exude from it, as she slowly lifted the piece of wood.
“Good,” Aiden said. “Excel ent.”
He paused. “Now open your eyes.”
Slowly, Caitlin opened her eyes.
She was shocked by what she saw.
There, before her, was Aiden’s staff. But it was not actual y in her hand. It was hovering, in the air, about ten feet above her, over her open palm.
She looked at Aiden, in shock.
As she did, the staff dropped from the sky and landed hard on the ground.
Aiden frowned.
“You broke your concentration,” he said.
“How did I do that?” Caitlin asked, stil amazed.
He reached down and grabbed his staff.
“It is one of your many powers. It’s the only one I want to teach you for now. You have it inside you. I cal it centering.
You can use this to move objects a great distance from you.
Or to bring them close to you.
“You see, there is no separation between you and the physical universe. As soon as you realize that, you wil master the art of combat.”
And with that, he turned and walked off into forest. And after two steps, he completely disappeared. Caitlin searched everywhere, but he was gone.
She stood there in shock.
But even more in shock at herself, and at what she had just done. Just how deep did her powers run? And how much about herself did she have left to learn?
CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
Sam stood in the Roman Colosseum. He was dressed in full battle gear, armed from head to toe, wearing a helmet.
He looked out through it to see another warrior facing him, also dressed in full armor.
He charged, and the two of them sparred furiously.