Keldras followed Gorra down a narrow corridor after entering the arena until they reached a door.
Inside was a small room with cushions arranged in a circle.
Seated upon the most elaborate cushion was an elderly shaman.
Kazgul’s head was shaved bald, his yellow eyes steeped in the wisdom of age.
He wore simple wolf-fur robes, his bare arms crossed over his chest, revealing glowing blue tattoos.
He nodded to the group as they entered.
Gorra dragged Keldras to a pair of cushions at the front while the others found their seats and settled in.
Kazgul’s aged, cracked voice addressed the room.
“We’ll be reviewing magic control for the next while,” he announced.
The room filled with groans, several of the students shooting Keldras annoyed glances.
He led the group through a form of meditation, instructing them to look inward.
Keldras’s consciousness began to sink into that alternate plane, but he was suddenly pulled back when Kazgul grabbed his shoulder.
The old shaman continued the lecture without allowing Keldras to enter the meditative state again.
The lesson focused on visualizing one’s magical power as a swirling vortex suspended within an endless black or white void.
After class, Kazgul held Keldras back.
Gorra stopped and eyed the two of them, but Kazgul waved her away.
Once they were alone, he spoke.
“You’re not drawing on your own power,” he said, his voice serious.
“When you began entering the meditative state, I felt an immense vortex of magic. It wasn’t yours. Most mortals never achieve that level of power. Given your heritage, it isn’t unheard of, but you’re far too young. You might reach that level when you’re your father’s age.”
“This shaman’s method won’t work for you,” Saphira said plainly.
“Our magic is intertwined. Your magic is the same as mine now. Even if we were forcibly separated, that wouldn’t change.”
Kazgul seemed to notice something when Keldras silently listened.
An inquisitive look crossed the old orc’s face.
“You seem to have some understanding of what I’m speaking of,” he observed.
Keldras froze before staring blankly at Kazgul.
“If I do have some sort of powerful entity inside me, how would I know anything about it?” he replied evasively.
The old orc stared him down.
Keldras met the gaze with a stoic expression.
Eventually, Kazgul sighed and looked away.
He seemed to realize Keldras wasn’t being honest.
“You’ll have to learn how to access your own magic without relying on that vortex,” he warned.
“It could be far too dangerous to depend on power that isn’t yours, especially when you don’t know where it came from.”
Kazgul stood before the council.
He gave Ziri a serious look.
“There is another consciousness dwelling within him. He seems to know what—or who—it is, but he’s unwilling to share that information.”
A gasp rippled through the council.
Ziri’s face darkened.
“Another consciousness?”
Zola paled.
“Impossible.”
“Could it be possession?”
Jinrak raised his head, suddenly fully awake, a smile slowly spreading across his face.
“Could it be a guardian spirit?” He said his smile hiding something.
“No guardian spirit possesses power like that” Kazgul stated.
“Then what is it?” Zola asked.
Kazgul remained silent for a long moment.
“I don’t know.”
“Are you certain?” Ziri asked, her voice shaking.
“There’s no mistake. The vortex of magical power surrounding him is impossible for someone his age. I’ve never seen anything like it in my lifetime. It was as though I were looking at a three-hundred-year-old archmage.”
“This can’t be allowed to stand!” Zola interrupted.
She looked apologetically toward Ziri.
“He must be confined at once. If this is true, it’s impossible for us to know what this being’s intentions are.”
A sardonic smile spread across Jinrak’s face.
“Confinement? I think not. He should be encouraged to develop this power. The stronger his relationship with this being becomes, the greater the power he could potentially attain.”
The remaining shamans erupted into argument.
Some agreed with Jinrak, others sided with Zola.
A small few, barely audible amid the uproar, suggested banishment instead.
Ziri rubbed her temples as a headache began to form.
She didn’t entirely agree with Jinrak, but at least he stood on her son’s side.
Zola, one of her closest friends, wanted to imprison him.
The council was evenly split.
Regardless of her decision, she would alienate one of the two factions.
Finally, she spoke.
“We should hold off on a vote for now. We all need time to process this information before making a decision with clear heads.”
She paused.
“We’ll postpone the vote for two days. If the council is still deadlocked afterward, I’ll make the final decision.”
Back at home, Ziri called a family meeting.
When everyone had gathered, she noticed Rianna among them.
She gave Valdax a questioning look.
“I have something to discuss that involves her.”
“I figured now was as good a time as any,” he replied with a shrug.
Ziri sighed before turning her attention to Keldras.
“Do you have something to tell us?” she asked.
Keldras returned her gaze, his expression unreadable.
“That shaman must have told on us,” Saphira said angrily.
“They’re not going to get anything out of me,” Keldras replied inwardly.
Valdax looked between Ziri and Keldras.
Neither seemed willing to yield.
He opened his mouth to speak, but Ziri cut him off.
“The council is divided. Half of them want to confine our son, while the other half want him to do something potentially dangerous.”
Saphira scoffed.
“Confine us? They can try.”
“Confine him? They can try,” Valdax echoed venomously.
Keldras felt Saphira’s approval.
“So what do the other half want from him?” Valdax asked.
“That’s difficult to explain without knowing the whole situation,” Ziri replied, never taking her eyes off Keldras.
When he continued to stare back in silence, she sighed.
“The vote is in two days.”
“Then we can take the decision out of the council’s hands,” Valdax said cryptically.
Ziri finally turned to face him, her expression blank.
Before she could ask, he continued.
“I’ll take him with me to Kumora.”
Garrok, Gorra, and Ziri all stared at him in shock.
Valdax then explained the situation and why he had asked Rianna to stay for the family meeting.
As he spoke, Ziri’s expression grew increasingly troubled.
“You want to take my son away from me?” she asked coldly.
“He’s my son as well,” Valdax shot back.
“Our children have lived under your heritage since birth, and the moment I suggest taking one of them to learn about mine, you’re this opposed?”
Ziri took a slow breath.
She realized she had been unfair.
She had been too preoccupied with the council to think about Keldras, while Valdax had spent years worrying that his son would never truly fit in.
“Alright,” she said quietly.
“You can take him to Kumora.”
She hesitated.
“But you have to come back to visit regularly.”
The words came reluctantly, and the sadness in her voice was unmistakable.