“I wasn’t followed,” she says immediately, dropping her pack beside the lantern. “I took the route we discussed, and doubled back twice just in case.”
“Good.” I nod, unable to stop my eyes from tracing her features in the dim light. Her cheeks are flushed from the climb, wisps of chestnut hair escaping her practical braid. “You’re early.”
“So are you.” A hint of a smile touches her lips. “I wanted time to prepare my equipment.”
She kneels beside her pack, extracting several small devices that look distinctly more advanced than the portable testing kits she usually brings. My curiosity piques.
“New technology?”
“My own modifications.” Pride colors her voice as she arranges the equipment. “I’ve been adapting Haven’s Heart medical scanners to detect and analyze magical energy signatures. If I’m right, they’ll help us understand how storm magic interacts with your physiology at a molecular level.”
I crouch beside her, fascinated despite myself. “You built this yourself?”
“Technically, I repurposed existing technology.” She activates a scanner that emits a soft blue glow. “But yes, the adaptations are my design. The standard equipment wasn’t equipped to detect energy fields beyond normal biological readings.”
This is what continually draws me back to her—her brilliant mind constantly pushing boundaries, questioning assumptions, seeking deeper understanding. In another life, she would have made a formidable Storm Eagle elder.
“What do you need from me?” I ask.
She gestures to a clear space on the ground. “Sit there. I’d like to take readings while you channel different levels of storm magic.”
I comply, lowering myself cross-legged onto the forest floor. Elena moves around me, placing sensors at strategic points—on the ground surrounding me, clipped to my clothing, one held carefully in her hand.
“Start with minimal power,” she instructs, all professional focus now. “Just enough to create a visible effect.”
I extend my hand palm-up and summon the faintest trace of storm energy—a small spark dancing across my fingertips, barely enough to illuminate my skin. The sensors respond with soft beeps and flashing indicators.
“Incredible,” Elena murmurs, eyes fixed on her readings. “Even at minimal output, the energy signature is orders of magnitude more complex than anything in our database. Now increase gradually.”
I comply, letting more power flow through me. A small ball of lightning forms above my palm, crackling softly. The forest around us brightens with blue-white light, casting sharp shadows among the trees.
Elena circles me, adjusting sensors, her face illuminated by both my lightning and the glow of her equipment. “The molecular structure of the energy changes as it increases in intensity,” she notes. “Almost as if it’s… evolving in response to your emotional state.”
She’s right, though few outside the Storm Eagles understand this fundamental truth. Our magic responds to our emotions, becoming more volatile or controlled depending on our mental state.
“It is,” I confirm. “Storm magic is an extension of ourselves, not merely a tool we wield.”
She nods, continuing her measurements with methodical precision. “Now, maximum safe output, please.”
I hesitate. “That might not be wise. The energy could damage your equipment.”
“I’ve built in protective measures. Besides,” her eyes meet mine, determined and curious, “we need complete data.”
Reluctantly, I channel more power, letting the storm energy build around me. Lightning arcs between my hands, dancing up my arms, casting Elena’s face in stark relief. The air crackles with electricity, and the sensors emit a cacophony of urgent beeps.
Then something unexpected happens. As the lightning intensifies around me, I notice a faint answering glow emanating from Elena’s hands. She sees it too, pausing in her measurements to stare at her own fingers with a mixture of scientific fascination and personal alarm.
“It’s responding to you,” I say quietly.
She flexes her fingers, watching the silvery-blue light pulse with her movements. “The storm-touched bloodline Zara mentioned. It’s becoming more active with each exposure to your magic.”
I let my power fade, returning the clearing to near-darkness. The glow from Elena’s hands lingers for several seconds before slowly fading as well.
“Does it frighten you?” I ask.
She considers this seriously, a scientist evaluating data. “Not frighten, exactly. It’s… disorienting. My entire life, I’ve understood myself one way. Now I’m discovering I may be something else entirely.”
I understand this feeling better than she knows. Since meeting her, everything I believed about my nature, my destiny, my people’s place in the world has been called into question.
