Arcane (The Arinthian Line Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

countless questions on his mind. He cleared his throat in preparation. Mrs. Stone closed her eyes as if begging for patience.
    All right, now was not the time, apparently. “Mrs. Stone, um, may I be excused?” he asked instead.
    “Mmm.”
    He slouched off to bed, curious but sleepy. Lying there staring at the cavern ceiling, he wondered what a warlock life would be like. His thoughts turned to Mrs. Stone, eventually twisting into the rugged form of Sir Westwood, his favorite willow, clouds …

The First Test
    Augum woke to the rough prodding of Mrs. Stone’s staff.
    “Time to get up. The day must begin with energy—up, up!” She gave him another jab for good measure. “Your new robe is on the dresser. I have also mended your turnshoes. Dress and join me outside.”
    She departed while he clambered out of bed. He grimaced upon spying the robe, a hideous burgundy with mismatching patches, torn hood, and belt made of frayed rope. After putting it on, he discovered it one size too big, itchy and dusty. Nonetheless, he slipped on his shoes and hurried through the front door, only to gasp at what he saw.
    Mrs. Stone’s cave was high up on the side of a mountain!
    Sharp morning sun shone from behind, casting a gargantuan pyramidal shadow westward. Occasional clouds broke up an azure sky, wispy remnants of the storm. It was windy and the air had the sharp smell of winter. Wet boulders peeked around the lip of the cave entrance. A tiny stream trickled nearby. Wild grasses, brush and scree dotted the mountain below. Near the bottom, the shrubbery graduated to a great forest extending west as far as the eye could see.
    From where they stood, he noticed that the mountain straddled where the forest met the Tallows. Soon as he glimpsed that yellow grass, however, his stomach began churning and he had to look away.
    Mrs. Stone inhaled deeply while scanning the horizon. “Quite the view is it not?” She seemed taller, younger, firmly holding her staff rather than leaning on it for support. Her long hair hung in a braided silver ponytail down to her waist. Her robe billowed in the wind, glittering even in the shadow of the mountain.
    “No one can see this cave, not unless I give them permission .” She placed her gaze upon him. “Are you ready for your first test?”
    He braved a look north at the Tallows; thankfully, the nausea was gone.
    “I am, Mrs. Stone.” He was more than ready; he was excited!
    “Very well.” She raised a professorial finger. “Understand the following: spell-casting is like traversing through a thick forest. At first, there is no path and you have to make one. After, the more you tread on this path, the clearer it becomes. This is the first principle. Do you understand?”
    “Um, I think so, Mrs. Stone.”
    “We shall see. Observe those two small stones on the ground there. Without touching them, bring them together.”
    He gave her a blank look.
    “Do you think me a patient woman, child? Now stop wasting time.”
    He stared at the two stones near the lip of the cave, sitting about a foot apart. He scowled and imagined them hitting each other. Nothing happened. He glanced back at Mrs. Stone.
    “Close your mind from distraction. Concentrate, Augum. Feel their attraction, their natural desire to come together.”
    He closed his eyes and concentrated like never before, groaning from the strain.
    “Mercy, child, you will burst if you continue like that, and I said close your mind, not your eyes. Now, it must be natural yet assertive. Try again. Focus!”
    He wanted to please her, but above all, yearned to believe moving objects with his mind was possible. He refocused on the stones with all his mental might, body quivering. Nothing happened.
    Mrs. Stone sighed, nodded. “Let us leave it there, no sense in carrying on.”
    “Maybe if you could just show me—”
    “No. The belief must come from you .”
    He stared at his feet like a chastened dog; he had failed the test. “I really did try