Chapter 50 Balance for strength
Sera’s POV
Training stopped being simple the moment my emotions got involved.
The forest clearing looked the same as it always did, it was wide and ancient, ringed with trees that felt old, but something in the atmosphere had changed. It pressed against my thoughts.
Maera stood across from me, arms folded, her expression unreadable. We didn't train with weapons, and there were absence of physical drills.
“Again,” she said calmly.
I exhaled through my nose and planted my feet into the soil. The earth responded immediately, a low vibrating wind passed through my bones. Power coiled inside me restlessly.
“Focus, child. This is balance, you must master it,” she added.
I clenched my fists, feeling the familiar burn crawl up my arms. Strength came easily now. That was the problem. My body wanted to act before my mind could catch up.
“You do things most times without thinking of the consequences, you have to find your balance,”
I lifted a stone from the ground with my will alone, holding it suspended between us. My heart hammered. Sweat slid down my back.
“Good,” Maera said. “Now hold it. Control your breathing.”
I did. Or tried to. But my thoughts betrayed me.
The stone trembled as an image slammed into my mind without warning, my father’s face, pale and unmoving, the memory sharp enough to steal my breath. His voice echoed in my head, it was loud enough to hurt and pull my focus away.
My chest tightened.
“No,” I whispered, more to myself than anyone else.
The power surged. The stone shattered midair, fragments raining down as something inside me snapped. Heat flooded my muscles, wild and uncontained. I turned without thinking, my fist slamming towards the tree.
The tree didn’t stand a chance.
My punch connected with a sound like thunder cracking open the sky. The trunk split, bark exploding outward as the entire tree ripped from the ground, roots and all, crashing into the forest behind it. Birds screamed as they scattered. The ground shook beneath my feet.
We both stood there in complete silence.
I stood there, breath ragged, fist still raised, staring at the destruction like I didn’t recognize myself anymore.
Oh goddess, this might be too much for me to bear.
“I—” My voice broke. “I’m sorry.”
I turned to Maera, panic clawing its way up my throat. “I didn’t mean to, I lost focus. I swear. I just can't handle it.”
Maera didn’t look angry. She looked serious.
“It’s normal,” she said after a moment. That didn’t help, she sounded almost sarcastic.
“How is that normal?” I demanded, gesturing wildly at the fallen tree. “I just took down something that’s been standing longer than I’ve been alive!”
She stepped closer, eyes sharp but not unkind. “You’re not just training your body anymore, Sera. You’re training your emotions, your mind and even your restraint.”
I swallowed, unwilling to meet her gaze.
She glanced at the destruction again. “Today it was a tree,” she continued evenly. “Tomorrow, if you don’t learn control, it could be a home. A village or a civilization.”
Fear slid cold into my stomach. I hugged my arms around myself, suddenly very aware of how fragile everything felt. “I don’t want that,” I whispered. “I don’t want to hurt anyone.”
“I know,” Maera said softly. “That’s why we’re here.”
She placed a hand over my clenched fist, grounding, steady. “Your power responds to emotion before logic. Things like grief, fear, love, rage. You don’t get the luxury of feeling without consequence anymore.”
My throat burned. “That’s terrifying.”
She nodded once. “Good. Fear means you understand the gravity of it.”
I let out a shaky laugh that sounded wrong even to my own ears. “Glad my impending disaster is educational.”
Maera’s lips twitched despite herself. “You’ll do well, you have a great strength within you,” she said. “If you practice, and if you listen. If you don’t run from what you feel. There'll be no stopping you,”
I looked at the ruined clearing, at the scar I’d carved into the forest with one unguarded moment. “What if I fail?”
“You won't fail, your resilience and power are only being underestimated by you,” she replied.
The simplicity of it almost broke me.
We resumed training, slower this time. Every movement was careful, I counted every breath. I focused on keeping my emotions close and contained I acknowledging them without letting them rule me.
It was exhausting.
By the time Maera finally called for a break, my limbs felt like lead and my head throbbed from concentration.
She studied me quietly for a long moment before speaking again.
“Have you chosen a mate?” she asked.
The question hit hard because I never expected Maera to ask about such stuffs. She was more stern in everything.
I froze. “What?”
“You heard me,” she said gently. “Have you chosen one within yourself?”
My mouth opened, then closed. I stared at the ground. “No. Not yet.”
Maera nodded slowly. “Before the full blood moon,” she said, “and before the full activation of your powers, you will have to make a choice.”
My stomach twisted. “Why is everyone so pressed about my choice?”
“Listen, more chaos will unfold if you can't choose one mate out of the two. Chaos from within you and outside.” she said plainly.
I snorted weakly. “No pressure, right?”
Her gaze softened. “None at all,” she said dryly.
I shook my head and stood again, forcing myself back into position. “Guess I should keep training then.”
She nodded approval and stepped back.
I centered myself. Reached for the power again, carefully this time.
That was when I felt a sudden pull.
I gasped for air as the sensation tugged at something deep inside me, a yearning so intense it made my chest hurt. It had to be the bond.
I turned sharply toward the edge of the forest, heart racing.
Maera noticed instantly. “What is it?”
I swallowed, fingers curling at my sides.
“I think they’re looking for me,I can feel the yearning in the bond.”