Smolder Chapter 10

Jade waited, determined to let him make the first move. He was too revered in this town she didn’t want to embarrass him, even though she knew he wouldn’t go easy on her. I’ll hold back, she thought. I’d rather look undertrained than hurt my grandfather.
“Go!” he barked, and Jade braced herself.
Before she could react, a ball of energy slammed into her stomach, knocking her clean off her feet. She hit the wooden platform hard, the impact sending a shock through her entire body. The wind was completely knocked out of her, and for a moment, she just sat there in a daze, staring up at the sky.
“Whoa,” she muttered, sitting up slowly. He’s strong. Her grandfather’s power felt like steel, dense and unrelenting. The old man still has it, she thought with a mix of awe and respect. Glancing over at him, she saw a smirk flicker across his face before he replaced it with a serious, focused frown.
“Is that all you’ve got?” he challenged, his eyes gleaming. He looked younger, almost revitalized by the fight, and Jade knew this wasn’t going to be easy.
Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she jumped to her feet. “Let’s try that again.”
This time, when he shouted “Go!“, Jade was ready. She flung a ball of fire from her left hand, meeting his attack mid-air. The two flames collided, fizzled, and vanished. Before she could celebrate the block, another burst of energy came hurtling towards her, and then another. She was barely able to meet his rapid attacks, her flames striking his over and over but she was struggling to keep up.
Sweat dripped down her brow as she deflected another strike, then absorbed one into her body. Absorbing his power took more time and energy, but it was better than being overwhelmed. Even so, she was tiring quickly, and her grandfather showed no signs of slowing down.
The instant Jade’s strength began to wane, and she lost track of her grandfather’s next move, Aiden’s voice rang out across the platform.
“Left!” he shouted, and she spun just in time to deflect a ball of flame that she hadn’t even seen coming.
“Above you!” he called, and Jade shot a burst of light upward, intercepting another attack.
“Left, Jade, come on!” he urged. “Right! Low! Move faster! Center!”
Her frustration grew with every command. She wanted to focus on the fight to handle it herself, but his voice was overwhelming. Even though his directions were keeping her in the game, she felt like she was no longer fighting. I’m just reacting, she thought bitterly.
“Your face! He’s aiming for your face!” his voice cut through the air again, and she barely had time to block the shot. It was enough.
“Shut up, Aiden!” she snapped, spinning to face him mid-fight. “You’re not helping me, okay? You’re distracting me! I can’t concentrate on anything except your voice!”
Aiden’s face fell, surprise and confusion washing over his features. His mouth opened slightly like he didn’t know how to respond.
“I’m sorry for yelling,” she added, taking a deep breath, her chest heaving with the effort of the fight. “But I want to do this on my own. So can you please stop telling me what to do?”
"Jade, what in the world are you talking about?" he asked, his voice laced with concern.
Jade still slightly dazed from the fight, felt a surge of annoyance. “What do you mean, what am I talking about? You’ve been yelling at me for the last ten minutes,” she insisted, turning to look at him. Surely her grandfather would confirm it.
But he shook his head, his brow furrowed. “Jade, I swear, I haven’t said a word since you started fighting.”
She blinked, confusion sinking in. “But I heard you,” she murmured, her certainty wavering. Was she losing her grip on reality?
“What’s the matter?” her grandfather approached, his cane tapping rhythmically against the wooden platform. Even though he was trying to appear composed, Jade noticed a fine sheen of sweat on his brow, making her feel a little better about her exhaustion.
“Um, nothing,” she replied quickly, trying to shake off her confusion. “I thought I heard Aiden say something, but evidently, he didn’t.”
Her grandfather gave her a knowing look but didn’t press the issue. Instead, he turned to Aiden. “Good. Then let’s get back to work. Aiden, I want you to fight Jade so I can observe both your movements.”
With that he walked over to his chair on the Conclave’s platform and sat down to watch, his sharp eyes never leaving them. Aiden shrugged and moved to the opposite side of the platform, preparing to fight. Jade pushed her earlier thoughts to the back of her mind and focused on the task.
“Ready?” he called out.
She nodded, her body tense as she waited for him to make the first move. They faced each other, and a tense silence filled the space between them.
Suddenly, Jade sensed his attack before he even moved. A strange instinct told her he was going to aim for the center. Almost simultaneously, they released their flames, which collided in mid-air and fizzled out with a flash.
Right, her instincts whispered. She fired again, already knowing where his next shot would come from. Then she heard the voice again, guiding her: Above. She shot upward, meeting his attack before it could gain momentum.
Every strike, she seemed to anticipate his movements before he made them. Their flames met again and again, as though they were perfectly synchronized. Yet, instead of feeling empowered, she was growing frustrated. Why am I so irritated? she wondered. I’m holding my own, so why am I annoyed?
The fight continued, but her frustration gnawed at her. This is the best I’ve ever done against him. It’s like I know what he’s going to do before he even does it.
She glanced at his face. His jaw was clenched, eyes narrowed with determination. But beyond that, she saw something else: irritation. Wait—why is he frustrated? she thought. He’s not the one struggling. I should be the one confused, not him.
Jade’s mind began to wander. As the emotions swirled inside her, she tried to trace the source. Something felt off it was like a cloud in her brain, disconnected from her body, as if… it wasn’t hers.
Her eyes snapped to Aiden, her thoughts racing. Could it be? she wondered, her breath quickening. Am I feeling what he’s feeling? Am I somehow reading his emotions? His mind?
Caught in her head, Jade hesitated then one of his fireballs crashed into her chest. The impact threw her backward, sending her tumbling off the platform. She landed hard on the grass with a dull thud.
He leaned over the edge, his face appearing above her, lips twitching with barely contained laughter. “You okay?” he asked, amusement evident in his voice.
“Yeah, yeah,” she muttered, more embarrassed than hurt. She rubbed her backside, brushing off grass and dirt. Of course, she had to go flying off the platform in front of half the town. Only now did she realize how many people had gathered to watch. Some were smiling, others muffled laughter behind their hands. Great. Just great.
With a sigh, she pushed herself off the ground and back onto the platform, trying to ignore the lingering embarrassment.
“Up until a minute ago, you were performing admirably,” her grandfather commented. His voice was neutral, but Jade could tell he was impressed. “I look forward to the trial tomorrow.”
She nodded in acknowledgment, though her mind was still racing. As her grandfather turned and walked away, his cane clicking against the wood, she couldn’t help but admire his resilience. He was an old man, but he was sharp, and she hoped that, someday, he might open his heart to her. She yearned to learn more about her mother through him, to look through old family photos and hear stories that had long been buried.
But for now, her thoughts remained on the strange connection she had felt during the fight. Was I really in his head? She glanced at him, watching as he hopped down from the platform. And if I was... what does that mean?
As the crowd began to disperse, Jade couldn’t shake the unsettling feeling that something had changed inside her something she couldn’t quite explain but would soon have to face.