Free They Were Born Upon Ashes by Kenneth Champion Page A

news. I’m sure we are branded as enemies of the crown. There is no doubt in my mind that the six have sent their own messages to the leaders as well.”
    “Time will tell,” said Nick.
    The rabbits were fully cooked and the members around the fire took turns scraping every last piece of edible food. All that remained were bones and the guts. Ron even took the liberty of eating the eyeballs and tongues. Nick’s stomach still growled. It reminded him of the countless nights he was left hungry in the arena. It was a strange comfort to once again have the same feeling.
    He had a few thoughts constantly on his mind. As he stood there above the fire he wondered about Penny and how she was doing. He wondered if Thomas was safe and if the six would soon try to recruit him as well. He also wondered about Phillip’s safety. Everyday in the arena was another day living with the possibility of death.
    ***
    Nick, Andrew, and Dani walked into the great forest that was next to the dirt road the group traveled on. The sun had fallen and a black sky resided overhead.
    Andrew gathered up a bundle of sticks and weaved a dry plant through the top of it. He used fire conjured from his hands and lit the top of the bundle. The three of them traversed under the thick canopy of the forest. They walked for a good while until they came across a giant boulder that sat in the middle of the forest. There was a small pond at the base of the boulder. There were no trees that stood above the boulder. The moon glistened and reflected on the pond’s surface.
    The constant buzzing of the millions of insects soon became background noise for Nick. His brain could simply tune out the annoying buzz.
    “This is truly the perfect spot,” said Andrew.
    “This should be entertaining,” said Dani.
    “I hope it will be,” said Nick.
    He looked at Dani with a stern look on his face and said, “I don’t think we have formally met yet.”
    “My name is Dani Mastro,” she said.
    “My name is Nick Bint. It is nice to finally meet you.
    She laughed and rolled her eyes at Nick.
    “Get on with the show, you two,” she said.
    “Nick, this training is not hard at all,” said Andrew. “Or it can be one of the hardest things you can ever do. It all depends on the power of this.”
    He took his right hand and pointed it at Nick’s brain.
    “If you don’t focus properly it will take you years to realize your full potential. If you focus like I’ve seen some of my previous students do, then you can master your powers in as little as a few weeks.”
    “Seems fair enough,” said Nick.”
    “We will start with the easiest of the three powers to harness; levitating and controlling objects with your mind,” said Andrew.
    Nick nodded in agreement.
    “All you have to do is control this object.”
    He picked up a rock about the size of his fist and opened up his palm. He looked at it for a second, it elevated from his palm, and then it stood still in midair.
    “I can never get to used to seeing that,” said Nick.
    Andrew placed the rock into Nick’s palm.
    “Now all you truly have to do is think back to your experience of when you harnessed the power within your dream state,” said Andrew. “You must relive it to understand how the power can flow from your brain and through your arms. Close your eyes and watch the sharp rocks plummet towards you as you hang from the mountain side.”
    Nick closed his eyes and tried to see it all.
    “I can only see parts of it,” said Nick.
    “You have to focus, Nick. It’s all there; you just have to focus.”
    Nick tried harder. He even shut his eyes harder in an attempt to bring it all back.
    “It’s really hard,” said Nick. “This is next to impossible. It’s like trying to remember every part of a dream from two nights ago.”
    “It’s only as hard as your mind makes it out to be,” said Jeffrey. “If you truly believe it is that hard, then, yes, it will be that hard. If you truly believe it to be that