Free The Alchemist's Touch by Garrett Robinson

reason Ebon could not predict.  
    But thinking of his parents, he also thought of the closed carriage door and the shadow behind the curtain. That thought did not bear dwelling upon, and so he looked about the dormitory for something else to do. It seemed no duties were required of him, at least not until the next morrow. Mayhap he could inspect the common room, for he had seen it only twice, and both times in haste. He left his bed and walked the long aisle to the door leading out.
    The common room was wide and tall, but somehow seemed close and comfortable at the same time. He inspected the plush chairs placed about the room again, and the fireplaces set in either wall. It was summer now, and so they sat unlit, but he did not doubt that they would give great warmth when winter’s shroud descended upon the Seat. The walls were the same granite as the citadel, but hung with many tapestries of red and green and gold, and everywhere he saw the cross-and-circle of the Academy worked into the designs.
    To his surprise, Ebon saw another student sitting in the common room. He did not remember seeing her when he had passed through with Jia. Perhaps she had come in only a moment ago—but then, perhaps, he had only missed her, for she sat quietly tucked into a chair in the corner, making no noise. Indeed, she did not even look up or appear to see him. Her hair was lank and black, her skin sallow, and massive bags hung beneath her eyes and above her gaunt cheeks.
    Slowly, anxiously, Ebon drew closer. Still she did not see him. She was holding something in her hands, and now he could see it was a goblet of silver. Then, to Ebon’s amazement, her eyes glowed with an inner light, and she pulled her hands away—but the cup stayed there, floating in midair.  
    She is a mindmage.
    The girl twisted her hands, and the goblet began to spin. First it turned end over end, in line with her nose. Then she concentrated, her nose twitching, and it twisted in another direction. Her hands clenched, wiry muscles taut beneath the skin, and it spun the opposite way. It turned faster and faster, becoming a blur, moving so fast that Ebon thought it looked like a spinning silver ball, and not a cup at all.
    Entrancement made him forget his fear, and now he walked eagerly to her, stopping next to the arm of her chair. Yet, still she did not look at him. He waited a moment in silence, out of manners, and then gently cleared his throat.
    “That is astonishing,” he said, fearing his voice was too loud in the quiet room. The girl said nothing. He felt sweat beading on the back of his neck, and pulled at the collar of his robe. “I…I am Ebon. I am only arrived to the Academy today. How long have you attended?”
    At last she looked up, meeting his brown eyes with her own, still glowing from the use of her magic. Then her hands constricted, like an eagle’s claws sinking into a rabbit’s neck. The goblet abruptly stopped spinning, and crumpled into a tiny ball of metal with a terrible rending noise.
    Ebon jumped, and then turned hastily to scurry away. He found a chair on the other end of the room, blocked from sight by the furniture in between, and tried sinking into the plush cushions.
    As the fright died in his breast, Ebon’s fingers tapped on the armchair. He looked about the room, but could see no one else, nor hear the sound of anyone passing by in the hallway. He could only feel the girl’s presence, as though her eyes were boring into his soul, despite the fact she could not see him.
    Perhaps he had better practice his own magic. Soon he would be expected to perform it, and he was many years out of practice. If Tamen had ever caught him playing at spells, his father would have heard about it immediately. And he had never been allowed to meet another wizard, much less an alchemist.  
    But he still remembered the spell he had done as a boy, when the Academy’s tester had come to see if he had the gift. Now he looked around, seeing cups and a