The doors to Kael's forge slammed shut behind them with a grumble of metal and smoke, sealing away the heat and hammering. The boys stood just outside, a strange weight in their hands and on their backs—not just metal, but potential. The kind that buzzed at the edge of their skin.
"Well," Asher said, grinning as he hoisted his greatsword off his back. "He definitely likes me. I mean, did you see the way he grunted when I left? Pure affection."
Nick rolled his eyes. "He grunted because you almost blew up his furnace."
"I call that a minor accident," Asher replied. "Besides, we're heroes in the making now. We've got weapons! Real, enchanted, elemental—oh gods, I think I'm in love."
Ethan stared down at the Spellmirror Daggers, the runes still faintly glowing along the blades. He could feel the current running through the hilt, like a caged storm humming beneath his palms. Dangerous. Unpredictable. Just like him.
"So where do we try them out?" Nick asked, sliding one of his twin wind blades from their sheaths. The steel was whisper-light and nearly invisible in motion. "Far from the dorms, I hope. I'd rather not explain to the healers why Asher burned off someone's eyebrows again."
"That was one time," Asher muttered. "And it was only half an eyebrow."
They made their way toward the edge of the training grounds, bypassing the sparring fields filled with standard trainees. Their steps took them deeper into the forested outskirts of the academy, where the air was cooler, and birdsong filled the silence between their footsteps.
They found an open clearing surrounded by ancient, twisted trees and the distant rush of a waterfall. It was private, serene—and perfect for explosions.
"Alright, boys," Asher said, slamming his sword into the ground with unnecessary dramatic flair. "Let's see what we're working with."
He stepped forward, gripping the hilt of his weapon—Blazebringer—its core thrumming with heat. The blade gleamed like molten metal, alive with inner fire. Without a word, he swung it through the air.
WHOOM.
A wave of fire exploded outward, ripping across the clearing and reducing a poor, innocent bush to cinders.
"Uh… oops?" Asher blinked, the heat baking his face. "Okay, so maybe I need to... finesse that a little."
Nick dove to the side, avoiding the flames, his wind blades already in hand. "That was finesse? You nearly turned the entire forest into a bonfire!"
"Kael did say something about essence-venting," Asher said sheepishly. "Guess mine vents with attitude."
Nick exhaled and focused, lifting both of his slender blades—Zephyrfangs—and moving in a blur. Wind coiled around him instantly, catching the leaves and grass and launching them into a miniature cyclone.
"Whoa…" he muttered as he jumped, twisted midair, and landed like a feather.
"Okay, that was cool," Ethan admitted.
"I feel like I could run up walls with these," Nick said, looking at his blades like they were an extension of his own breath. "Kael wasn't kidding. They shift momentum to wherever I need it—legs, arms, even redirecting in midair."
"And they're silent too," Ethan noted. "That's terrifying."
"Thank you," Nick said with a smirk. "Now let's see what you can do, Mister Mirror Blades."
Ethan didn't speak. He took a breath, closed his eyes, and unsheathed the Stormveil Daggers.
A crackle of lightning snapped between them the moment they cleared the hilts. The wind around him shifted, and a tension settled in the air like thunder waiting to be born.
He moved—fast.
In a blink, Ethan crossed the clearing, lightning dancing along his limbs. He flicked one dagger forward, and a bolt of condensed energy exploded against a rock, bouncing off and—ricocheting back toward him.
"Ethan, dodge!" Nick shouted.
Ethan didn't flinch. He slashed with his second dagger, catching the spell and redirecting it skyward in a violent streak of violet light. It vanished with a thunderous boom into the clouds.
There was silence.
Then—
"Okay," Asher said, his voice high-pitched. "You're never allowed to be angry around me again."
Ethan's fingers twitched. "It's not easy to control. It's like trying to juggle lightning."
Nick stepped back cautiously. "Kael wasn't kidding. Those blades really do reflect spells. And amplify them."
Ethan nodded. "The moment a spell hits, I feel it in my arms—like pressure building. If I don't release it in time, it could backfire."
"Dangerous," Nick muttered.
"Deadly," Ethan corrected.
"And very, very cool," Asher added, wide-eyed. "Can we trade? No? Worth asking."
"Also," Nick said, "did you guys notice this?" He held up one of the Zephyrfangs, focused, and whispered, "Forger's Hand."
The blade shimmered—and vanished.
Then it reappeared in his hand a second later in a flash of wind.
"What the—" Asher tried it with his sword. "Forger's Hand!"
Blazebringer vanished in a swirl of sparks—only to rematerialize on his back with a clunk.
"OH THAT'S AWESOME."
Ethan followed suit, and the Stormveil Daggers blinked away, then back into his open palms in a storm of static.
"Kael never told us this part," Nick said.
"He said he didn't feel like explaining," Asher snorted. "Because clearly forging masterpieces that defy physics is boring to that guy."
Ethan finally chuckled, and the tension lifted.
They spent hours in that clearing, testing, adjusting, learning the feel of their new weapons. It wasn't easy. There were burns. Cuts. One time Asher accidentally launched a fire slash that nearly bisected a tree—again.
But they laughed, fought, cursed, and grew stronger.
When the sun began to fall and the shadows stretched long over the forest floor, the boys sat down on the grass, breathless and bruised, their weapons resting beside them.
"Kael didn't give us these out of kindness," Ethan murmured. "He sees something in us."
"He wants more resources," Nick said. "And he's expecting us to bring him some."
"Then we better not let him down," Asher said, grinning through a soot-smeared face. "Because I really want to see what else that crazy old forge master can cook up."
They leaned back, watching the sky fade into twilight.
Armed. Bound by chaos. Forged by fire and steel.
Their real journey was only just beginning.