“What. Was. That!?” Hazel demanded as she stalked towards Edmund, her words drew Asher’s attention back to the present. “You could have given us a bit more warning that you were about to throw us into a fight for our lives. And what in the world was that blast? Does lightning just strike randomly and without warning here?”

  “I wouldn’t say so, no.” Edmund replied. He jumped up from his seat and began stretching.

  “That was not okay!” Hazel reprimanded. “Those things were terrifying, how dare you just leave us to them like that. What if we’d died?” She was clearly furious.

  Edmund faced Hazel’s outrage and responded with an equal measure of sincerity. “I promise, on my honour, that you were never in any real danger.”

  “On your honour.” Hazel scoffed back at him.

  Asher, feeling just as frustrated as Hazel was , cut in. “I think we would appreciate a more direct approach to support next time. We got lucky this time with that freak flash of lightning.”

  “I promise that in the future I will take my role as your guide and protector more seriously.” Edmund said with a sincerity that surprised Asher. “But! in the meantime I have some lectures the two of you are in dire need of attending.”

  The casual change in subject left Asher with a feeling of whiplash. Once again Edmund was proving too strange for Asher to keep up with.

  “It is now clear to me that the two of you have zero experience or understanding with magic or even plain old physical violence. I personally think magic is more interesting so we’ll start there.” His tone was still completely casual, he had shifted into the role of a professor as if they weren't standing in the middle of an open field, blood still pooling on the dirt road at their feet..

  “You could have just asked us about our experience, or lack of.” Asher said. Still feeling annoyed.

  “Didn’t want to waste time with your incomplete assessments.” Edmund replied without hesitation, almost as if he weren't being obnoxious.

  “You’re lucky I’m desperate enough to learn more about magic that I am willing to forget about leaving you behind.” Asher replied flatly.

  Edmund smiled, turned back to the trail and resumed walking. The lecture commencing alongside the hike.

  “With magic one can achieve what otherwise would seem impossible. To use magic you must first understand your mana, you must learn to sense and identify with it.”

  “And what is mana exactly?” Hazel asked.

  “Mana is the energy of will, the stuff of the soul. Now that you’re here, you both have mana freely coursing through you. Before you can even think about starting with magic you must be able to feel the power that fuels it.” Edmund continued.

  “Is he making any sense to you?” Hazel asked Asher.

  “Sort of, I'm not sure. It’s exciting though isn't it?.” Asher replied. He was too focused on memorising Edmund’s words to contribute much to conversation.

  “I think we need a break.” Edmund declared as he once again sat down without much warning.

  “Wha- We’ve barely just started.” Asher protested as he stumbled to a halt, dodging Edmund who was now very much in his way.

  “Nonsense, now sit down. Quickly now, we haven't got all day.” Edmund replied, pointing a finger emphatically at the ground, demanding they sit.

  Asher hesitated a moment before ultimately giving in. “You really are the strangest man I have ever met.” He grunted as he sat down.

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  Hazel rolled her eyes and joined the others sitting on the ground with a sigh.

  “Now, in order to sense your mana-” Edmund began but he was interrupted by Asher’s irritated voice.

  “I thought you said we were taking a break.” He said, exasperated.

  “A break from walking.” Edmund pointed out as he stared blankly at Asher. “Anyway, in your case and at your level, mana will likely feel very quiet to you. Quiet isn't quite the perfect word for it but it's a good approximation of the idea.” He paused as if waiting for some kind of response. He was met with silence and so decided to move on. “So… in order for you to sense your mana you must be ready to “hear”. You must be focused, and focus is best cultivated in a clear, peaceful mind.”

  Asher noticed that as he spoke about hearing mana Edmund’s voice had taken on a slightly different cadence. He wondered if perhaps the man was recalling and relaying something from memory.

  “If you would, please close your eyes and try your very best to empty your minds.” Edmund guided.

  “If this has all been one big act to have us drop our guards and rob us, just know I will commit the rest of my life hunting you down to exact my revenge.” Hazel threatened.

  Asher wasn't entirely sure if she was being serious or not. He wouldn't risk it if he were Edmund.

  “You insult me.” Edmund replied, and to Asher’s surprise he did sense a note of hurt in Edmund’s voice.

  Hazel grimaced at Edmund’s response and relented, closing her eyes. Seeing it was settled, Asher followed suit.

  “Now, as I mentioned earlier, mana flows freely through your body at all times. Once your mind is sufficiently calm and your focus sufficiently refined, you should begin to be able to feel that flow.

  Asher took a moment and focused in on his breath for a few cycles. Having calmed his mind as best he knew how, he began searching. He searched even though he didn’t really know quite what he was looking for. He tried to open his mind to any new unfamiliar sensation, no matter how minor. Frustratingly, He found nothing.

  “Well done Asher, you're a natural at this. Hazel, I have some advice for you.” Edmunds words caught Asher by surprise, causing him to open his eyes and lose any sense of focus he had remaining.

  “But I haven't felt anything.” Asher protested.

  “My friend, you must give yourself more credit. You breezed through the first step, you found your peace almost immediately. Not everybody can just naturally do that Ash.” Edmund smiled encouragingly at Asher and gestured for him to continue trying.

  “And how in the world could you know that?” Asher asked, disbelief clear in his voice. He was growing a little nervous about the nature and scope of Edmund’s magic, if the man could read minds they might need to reconsider relying on him so heavily.

  “I can sense your mana. When you calmed your mind your mana’s flow changed proportionally, its choppy inefficient flow calmed and quieted.” He explained. “And no, don't worry, I can't read your mind.” He finished that with a wink.

  Asher shuddered.

  “The only advice I can give you at this stage, Ash, is to stop trying to feel it. You need only allow it the space to be felt. “ He continued with a smile. “Don’t worry, once you learn to feel it, doing so becomes much, much easier.”

  Asher found the advice aggravating and puzzling. How could he find his mana if he didn't look for it? He eventually decided that he had no choice but to try to follow the advice even if he didn’t understand it. He supposed that maybe it made some bizarre kind of sense for magic to not make sense anyway.

  Returning back to the peaceful version of his mind turned out to be more difficult than Asher had expected as he continued to be distracted by Edmund instructing Hazel.

  “Hazel, I could see you were making some progress but you were struggling with clearing your thoughts.” His voice was gentle and honest, he was making a real effort to sound helpful rather than judgemental..

  “I don't even understand what it means to empty my mind. Thoughts come, I dont bring them.” She replied.

  “You have more insight than you realise. Your assessment is actually correct. Many, if not all of our thoughts, at some point come to us unbidden. So if we are passive viewers of our thoughts then what options do we have if we want a less crowded mind?” Edmund asked.

  She sat in silence for a few moments, brows furrowed. Asher had cracked an eye to steal a glance, and he could see that she was clearly giving proper consideration to the question.

  “If thoughts come anyway, and I’m just watching them, then the only thing I could do would be to observe the thoughts less? But that doesn’t make any sense.” Hazel said.

  “Almost exactly right.” Edmund responded cheerfully. “You don’t need to avoid observing the thoughts as they pass you by, that is rather difficult. Instead you can still observe them, but spend less time considering them. Allow thoughts to flow by you as if they were leaves flitting by on the wind. You see them, you notice them, but you don't try to keep a hold of them.”

  Asher smiled to himself, not only did he actually appreciate the advice for his own understanding, but he also knew that Hazel enjoyed metaphors and he suspected that she would find Edmund’s advice very helpful.