Mav hunched over, drenched in sweat and breathing hard. He ached from head to toe. Today’s lesson had been particularly grueling. After a moment, the golden glow surounding him flickered and went out. Without his magic he was just a man.

Japa stood upright, a pillar of neatness amidst the char and ruin around him. A modest sheen dotted his brow, which was crowned with a blue halo. Mav had thrown everything he had learned at him- torrents of fire, snaking blades of icy wind, even an earthquake. The master hadn’t attempted to counter any of them. Instead he had waited until they were almost upon him before making the smallest change that barely turned them away. Nothing touched him.

“You see, you do not think- you act. Instead of building a spell, you let it pour out of you as uncontrolled as a child’s tantrum. It is time to be an adult. While there is power in emotion, it also drains out of you quickly. If this were a real duel, you would be completely powerless against whatever fate I decided for you.”