Bryce stopped pacing, standing in the middle of the room with slightly wide eyes, "Me? Magical? Oh Hells no, I haven't done a single piece of magic in my entire life!" He removed his bow from his body, placing it on the ground as he crossed his arms, "I've only just turned eighteen, like today, I'm only just an adult and now I'm expected to save an entire world?" He should have stayed at home, he definitely should have stayed at home, "What um, is the.. problem that I'm supposed to solve to save… Asavia?"
"Well, you'd better figure it out," Val grumbled. He wanted to add in how the fate of everyone, including him, rested on Bryce's shoulders, but that seemed like a little too much stress for one day. "Well, good for you. And it's not a whole world. Just a land. It's not that big, either." He shrugged, lips pressed together. "Well, um. The Council– they're the rulers of Asavia– is trying to… um… well, they're trying to kill everyone in the forest. But I don't think they really know they're doing that? It's complicated." Val looked down at the table. The issues facing Asavia were very complex and very hard to explain in a sensible way. "So, there's this group spell that they want to cast. They think that it will provide luck and prosperity to Asavia, but I've looked into it and it will actually destroy the forest we're in. But they're too far in and blinded by a few… annoying people, so they're just going with it. You need to stop them." He looked up at Bryce. "That was a wreck, sorry."
"Figure it out? Figure what out? My 'magic?'" Bryce finally plopped down in the chair opposite Val, processing all the information that he had just been told. Overthrow a government- council- whatever it was called, to save an entire land of people who all have magic themselves that he couldn't possess. Why did he have to save them all when they all had magic, couldn't they just make a spell and zap the council would be gone and everything would be okay again, "Why can't you stop them? You have magic, why do I, a human with no powers whatsoever, have to be the one to overthrow and entire council of people?"
"Yes! You have to have it or the fates wouldn't have sent you through the waterfall!" Val exclaimed. He was feeling like he wanted to flip over a table at the moment. Given that they were going to be coming from a different world, Val had always known that they wouldn't be totally ready for their destiny. But this guy! Didn't even know he had magic! "I can stop them, but I need your help," He finally said, sighing. "You do have magic, I just have to find out what it is." Which would require a lot of work and time they didn't have. He would have to think of something faster. "Don't worry, I'll be there with you at all times. I'll take out everyone else, you just need to take care of the Council. They have protection that prevents anyone like me from hurting them or even touching them. That's why we need you." Val hoped that Bruce wouldn't ask why he knew all of this and just went along with it.
“Why can’t you take out the council? If you can magic everyone else and deal with everyone else why does it have to be me?” Bryce ran a hand through his hair, releasing a breath. This was so, so confusing, all of it. He wasn’t supposed to be here. He didn’t believe in fate. He was supposed to be back home, in the smithy, working and making money to provide for his family. Not being told he had magic which he certainly didn’t believe he had, “I don’t believe in fate. I came through the waterfall because I was being chased by some creature or another that was going to kill me! It was a mistake.”
"I just can't! They have protection magic against me, but not you." Val leaned toward Bryce, his eyes finally betraying a bit of the helplessness he was feeling at the moment. "Believe me, if I hadn't needed you, I would have taken care of them years ago. It has killed me to watch them step closer and closer to the destruction of everything I have known and do nothing to stop them." He let out a sigh and let his eyes fall to the table. "Just because you don't believe in fate doesn't mean it can't exist. It wasn't a mistake. You are the one who will save me, this forest, and everyone who lives in it." Val looked back up at Bryce, eyes locking with his. "Please, just believe me!" He hated how vulnerable he felt, but Bryce needed to understand how much Asavia needed him. How much Val needed him.
Bryce fell silent, taking in the others words. He could tell he was desperate. Knew that if he didn't help the guilt would be too overwhelming and he'd feel terrible. He swallowed, looking down in his lap, "I don't… I don't know how to access my…" The words felt wrong on his tongue. His whole life he had believed he was ordinary, boring. That he would spend his whole life making swords and other items to sell at the markets around the kingdoms and now? Now apparently he had, "Magic." It wasn't a small problem, this whole prophecy relied on him having magic and he hadn't known about it his entire life. How was he supposed to use his power when he was only now learning of it?
Val stared at Bryce, holding his breath as he waited for an answer. From the way Bryce looked, it appeared as if bareing his soul had worked. Good, because he was never doing that again. "I can help you with that." He closed his eyes for a second, then shot to his feet. Val was pretty sure he could remember a spell that could reveal any magic a person possessed. It was… difficult, but he was pretty sure he could preform it without passing out. Probably. He turned and went to his spell components cabinet. On a good day, he could do it without anything, but he'd already sent Tahre back to the city via the earth. Val grabbed a crystal– simple but effective– and went back to Bryce. "I'm going to cast a spell that will tell you what magic you've got. Don't move." He took a deep breath and clutched the crystal tight in his hand. Val carefully placed a hand on Bryce's chest and said a sentence in the ancient tougue. The crystal crumbled to dust, a flash of bright shooting from Val's fingers. Hopefully, everyone conscious would be able to see what magic Bryce possessed. Unfortunetly for Val, two high-level spells in one day, within an hour of each other, was too much for him. His legs gave out and he slid to the floor. At least Bryce would know.
At first it felt like nothing had happened. And then suddenly, almost as if a switch had been flipped in the very depths of his soul, Bryce could feel it. The slight burning sensation that rose and twisted itself around his heart. It wasn't painful, in fact it was quite comforting, like a warm hug from an old friend. It coursed through his veins, dragging itself around each limb and nerve in his body, constricting around his body before it fell back down into him, lying, waiting to be summoned again. Bryce didn't even have a moment to think about the fire that had just revealed itself to him, because Val was falling to the floor due to how taxing the spell was, "Val!" He was quick to be by his side, worry etching itself into his features as he reached out to help him, to either help him stand or carry him to a bed or a couch, "Are you okay?"
Val woke up on the floor with Bryce hovering over him, looking worried. Opening his eyes promoted a huge wave of pain to wash over him, mainly centered on his head. "Agh, that was not a good idea…" He muttered, closing his eyes again. The pain seemed content to stay and hammer at his brain. Val groaned. "Gods, gods, gods, I hate this. No, I am not okay." He gritted his teeth and let out a measured breath. However many times he went over his limit, he'd never gotten used to the pain. He had come up with a good pain reliever, at least. There was something more important to deal with first, though. "Did it work?" Val cracked open one eye to look at Bryce. A fresh wave of pain made its home behind his eyes, prompting a yelp. "No, wait, help me to the bed and tell me on the way." He normally had to crawl his way there in his own, but it would be easier with Bryce.
Bryce was quick to scoop Val up, trying not to move the others head too much to lessen the pain. He didn’t know how much pain, exactly, the other was in however could tell that it was a lot. He didn’t like seeing the other in pain, not when Bryce was technically the one to cause that pain. He carried Val over to the bed, gently placing him down and placing a pillow under his head, “Yes, it worked. But it doesn’t matter right now, do you need me to get anything for your head?”
Val bit back a gasp of pain when Bryce picked him up. He'd thought that he would help him walk to the bed, but this was actually much better. "Ah, good." Val's lips lifted into a small smile. At least it hadn't been for nothing. "There should be a bowl of things on that table. If you could get one for me?" He waved in the general direction of the bowl. After a few too many days of simply having to wait out the pain, he'd made little pills that helped relieve a lot of it. This, of course, caused him to be able to do this a lot more, but it was worth it. Not at that exact moment, but soon. As soon as he recovered, he would start planning and scheming. They didn't have much time.
Bryce nodded, heading back over to the table. He picked up a couple of the pills, bringing them back over to Val and placing them in his hand, “Do you need any water with these?” He asked, more concerned then he should have been. Val would be okay, however he couldn’t help but be worried for the man who had saved his life. He wondered how many times Val had over worked himself to this point. Would that happen to him? Would he end up ever working himself and end up in the same amount of pain?
"No, I don't. Thank you." Val grabbed one of the pills and popped it into his mouth. The pill instantly dissolved, spreading a cool numbness over his head. It still hurt a little, but he could deal with it now. "Ah, that's better." He pushed himself into a sitting position. Now to the question of Bryce's magic. "Alright, tell me about the results of the spell. What did you find out?" If only Tahre hadn't shown up and forced Val's plans. It would have been much better if he could have seen it first-hand. It would have let him help Bryce understand and control it better. Still, he could work with this.
Bryce sat down on the floor, crossing his legs beneath him as he looked at his hands, “Fire, I think.” He replied. It was then he thought, he knew that was what it was. He’d seen the orange and blue flames twist around his body, snaking itself around his limbs before it had disappeared and now lumbered inside of him, waiting to be summoned, “It was strange. I didn’t hurt even though I felt like it was going to burn me.” Of course that hadn’t had happened, luckily but Bryce was still unsure. What if he did something wrong and the flame consumed him?
"Fire." Val nodded slowly and instantly regretted it. Nodding was a movement he'd put on his 'never do after over-working yourself' list, but Bryce's discovery had made him forget that list for a second. "Fire is good." Fire could kill people. Fire could destroy things. "That's understandable. It is a volatile form of magic. It can be dangerous if you don't learn how to properly control it. Luckily for you, I'm here." Val offered Bryce a smile. He would do everything in his power to prevent the fire inside of the man from consuming him entirely. If Bryce burned, Val would burn as well. Not literally– he didn't think– but the sentiment was there.
Bryce tried for a smile back, however it was weak and only lasted a second. Fire was dangerous. Val had said it, Bryce knew that and Val had even said that if he didn't control it then… well, he knew bad things would happen. Of course, he had to have one of the most destructive elements for his power, "Well yes, but currently you can't even move your head without being in pain so being able to control my power is going to have to wait." He didn't want to wait, he didn't want to loose control of his power but he was going to have to.
Val sighed. Bryce was obviously worried about the magic he possessed. "I know you're worried, but you'll be fine. As soon as this whole thing goes away," he gestured at his forehead, "then I'll show you. But for now, just don't try to use it." Val glanced at the extra pills in his hand. He'd never eaten two before– he'd also never needed to train the chosen one to defeat the Council before, either. It probably wouldn't end up badly and Val needed to get better right away. He popped one in his mouth and waited. The ache in his head faded to almost nothing. He didn't feel any weird side-effects either. Perfect. "I'll be good enough to move in a few minutes. Are there any questions I can answer while we wait?"
Bryce snorted, shaking his head to himself, "Hells, I don't know if I even could. I can feel it, but I don't know how to use it. A major difference." He ran a hand through his hair before leaning back on his hands. How old was it going to even take to learn how to control it? He knew that they were probably on a time limit and it was slowly running out. They were running off of borrowed time and Bryce prayed to the gods that they were given more. Especially if those people that Val knew weren't friendly. What if they found them?
"Well, lets keep it like that for now." Val gave a short laugh. The fact that Bryce didn't know how to use his magic was good at the moment, but it would prove troublesome later on. He hoped that teaching the man how to use it wouldn't take too long. And that it wouldn't end up with something on fire. Maybe it would be better to go to somewhere more fireproof than a forest. But where? Val would have to think on that, but for now, it would probably be a good idea to make sure Bryce wanted to work on his magic. Even if he didn't, he would, but Val wanted to see if he would have to convince him or not. "How opposed are you to trying out that magic in a few minutes?"
He raised a brow, looking down at his hands for a moment then back up to Val, biting at his lip, "A few minutes?" They were moving too fast, but Bryce knew that there was no going back. He had to help even though a part of him wanted to run away. Getting started on being able to use his power would be the best option, he wasn't an idiot, "I mean… as long as your head can take it."
"Yeah." Val nodded. "My head will be fine," He added, swinging his legs over the side of the bed and standing up. There was a slight twinge behind his eyes, but he barely noticed it. Those two pills had done their job. "And don't worry about potentially losing control. We'll go somewhere you couldn't burn. And I'll bring some burn ointment, just in case. I don't think either of us will need it, through." Val walked over to his cabinet and looked through it. The best place to teach the art of controlling fire was probably somewhere with easily accessible water and no flammable objects. There was a small lake a few minutes away from there that could do. He couldn't remember if it was that lake or a different one, but he was pretty sure there was a rock island in the lake he was thinking of. Val grabbed a small clay pot out of the cabinet and turned towards Bryce. "Are you ready?"
Burn ointment? Bryce didn’t think the fire would burn him, at least he hoped not. As the person controlling the fire, he assumed that he could somehow reason with it, make it do what he wanted. But there was always the chance, especially when this was a first time for a first time. Bryce looked at his hands, then to Val before he stood and nodded, “Yeah, yeah I’m ready.” He wasn’t, he was far from it but he had no other choice.
"Lovely." Val smiled quickly and started towards the door. Before he opened it, Val made sure there was nobody around. There was no point to having the camouflage if he just waltzed out without checking the area first. As per usual, there wasn't any living creature in the clearing. Val opened the door and hurried outside. He spun in a small circle, trying to remember where the lake was. It wasn't down the river, that was for sure. So, it should be… that way. Val started walking, hoping fiercly that this was the right way and he wasn't leading Bryce on a random hike to nowhere. First he nearly collapsed in front of him, and then he did collapse in front of him. He didn't need to add 'doesn't know where to go' to the list.
Bryce was quick to follow. Even though he didn't know why Val was rushing, there was no need to go so fast when he was probably still feeling a little out of it from the spell. But then again, he didn't know how well those pills worked and if this was a normal thing. He frowned a little when Val looked like, for a moment, he didn't know where he was going but it quickly vanished as he hurried to keep up. He wanted to look around at the surroundings, see how different it was from back home but sadly he knew he couldn't. That would had to wait.
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