Chapter Five: The Decision
The house was quiet when Eli stepped inside. The fire in the hearth had burned down low. Most of the lamps had been put out for the night. His father sat at the table alone, the same place he always did after the day's work. A small oil lamp lit the space around him. His elbows rested on the table, hands folded loosely.
"Sit," he said.
Eli pulled out the chair across from him and sat. He didn't speak first.
His father leaned back slightly. "Bram told me about the sparring."
Eli kept his eyes on the table. "Alright."
"Said you've nearly matched him. Said you learned three years of technique in three days."
"I'm not better than him."
"I didn't say you were," his father replied. "But he's not one to exaggerate. I've seen him fight. I know how far ahead he was."
There was a short pause.
"I'm thinking it's time you had a real teacher."
Eli looked up.
His father continued, voice calm and flat. "You've awakened. You've got a trait that might matter. The boy with a copy-skill is only as strong as what he can see and learn. You stay here, you're only going to copy Bram. That's not enough."
Eli didn't respond right away.
"I have coin saved," his father said. "Enough to pay for a tutor for a season, maybe longer if you prove it's worth the time. Someone from the capital is passing through in a few weeks. Guild-certified. He trains low-rank awakened. Doesn't take anyone over Rank 2, says after that they're already set in their ways."
Eli looked down again, fingers resting against the edge of the table.
"You don't have to say yes. I won't push you out. But I want your answer. Not now, your not being rushed. But soon."
"I'll think about it," Eli said quietly.
His father gave a short nod. "Alright. Go on."
Eli stood and left the room without a word.
---
He lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling. The lamp in his room flickered softly in the corner, barely lighting the wooden beams above.
Leaving.
That word held more weight than he expected. He hadn't really thought about it before. Awakening was one thing. But leaving Elmsworth? Training under someone from the capital? It wasn't part of the plan—not that he'd had a real one to begin with.
He thought about the fights with Bram. The way his body was starting to respond faster. The way the Soul Energy held his movements together. He was learning fast—but not fast enough. His body still couldn't keep up with everything his mind understood. He knew exactly how Bram turned his hips when swinging, but couldn't make his muscles match without losing speed or balance.
I need more.
More styles. More fighters to observe. Better training. Knowledge of how Soul Energy really works. No one in Elmsworth could teach that. Not even Bram. And yet—
He looked over at the small shelf near his bed. On it sat a carved wooden rabbit Elen had given him when he turned fifteen. She said she'd found it at the edge of the woods and cleaned it up herself. It was crooked and simple, but she'd made a big deal out of it.
He remembered helping Niall lift the plow when it got stuck in the mud last spring. The long hours in the field with Bram when the rest of the laborers were gone. Their mother's stew that she always made too much of. The porch in the early morning. The barn behind the house.
Leaving meant putting that down for a while.
Not forever—but for long enough.
And what if I fail? What if the tutor thinks I'm not worth it? What if I can't adapt fast enough?
Still, the Soul Energy wasn't going away. His body was learning. Slowly, but it was learning. And there was something inside him—something stubborn—that didn't want to stop now that things had started.
I didn't ask for this trait. But if I have it, I should use it.
He sat up, rubbed his face, and stood.
He walked downstairs quietly, the boards underfoot barely creaking. His father was still at the table. He hadn't moved.
Eli stood across from him.
"I'll take the offer," he said.
His father didn't look surprised. He just nodded once.
"I'll speak to the tutor when he passes through," he said. "You'll leave with him if he accepts."
Eli gave a small nod. "Alright."
His father looked at him a moment longer, then pushed back from the table and stood. He moved toward the stairs without another word.
Eli stood there alone for a while.
There was no celebration. No prideful words. No change in the house. Just a quiet agreement between two men who didn't say much.
He returned to his room and sat down again, staring at the floor.
The decision was made.
Now came the waiting.