A World Apart The Jake Thomas Trilogy - By Steven A. Tolle Page 0,136

the city."

"You can release the power now, Jake." Tomaris said. "You should go rest and relax. Tomorrow, we will begin to explore its uses."

Jake released the power, said good-night to Tomaris and headed to his room. Dominic was not in his room when Jake arrived, so he went out to enjoy the late afternoon on the balcony. As he sat there, he would call up and release the power. So focused on the sensations that the power caused, he did not realize that Dominic had come into his room until he spoke.

"Playing, I see." Dominic said from behind him. Startled, Jake turned to face him. "You remind me of a young soldier who received his sword for the first time. I have seen them drawing it over and over again, just to see and feel it." He looked at Jake, eyes serious. "This power is not a plaything, boy. It is a weapon to be used when needed. I hope you understand that."

Jake released his magic, flushing with embarrassment from Dominic's words. "I understand, Dominic. I was simply practicing calling it up."

"Leave over for now." Dominic replied, making a dismissing gesture with his hand. "We are invited to join Moshanna for the evening meal with his officers. Wash up and we'll go."

As he had said, Tomaris began to instruct Jake on how to use his magic in their next session. He started on how to defend against attacks. "Holding the power provides a defense in itself. It will deflect the demons' power, but not as effectively as when you focus it to specifically repel the attack."

He reached over and tapped Jake's breastplate. "Think of it as your armor. Just wearing it gives you protection. But if an arrow is coming towards your front, your armor may or may not stop it, depending on its weight and the force behind it. But what if you could, with a thought, bring more of the armor from the back of your breastplate to the front, or increase the angle of the metal? You could make sure that the arrow is deflected or does not penetrate."

"Your power is the same. By focusing it, shaping its use, it becomes more effective." He continued. "The use of the power is a matter of thought. If you are being attacked, you focus it to defend against that attack. You may encounter some of our enemies that have enough power to overwhelm yours if it is not focused."

Tomaris had Jake imagine a demon was attacking him from the front. "Its power is coming for you." He said softly. "You want to defend against it. Think about your magic strengthening in front of you."

Jake concentrated, following Tomaris' instruction. As he watched, his aura seemed to brighten slightly. That was all that seemed to happen. He looked over at Tomaris. "Was that it?"

"Yes, child." Tomaris said, pleased with what he saw. "It may not look like much, but that proved that you can control it. As you progress, you will see that this was a good first step. Do not expect to be a master of it within a few days. Try it again."

As Jake again focused his power to defend, Tomaris suddenly picked up and threw a small piece of rock that was on the table at Jake. It pinged off of his breastplate, falling to the floor. Jake's power winked out as it took him by surprise. "What was that about?" He demanded.

"One of the reasons I am having you continue training with Dominic is that this power is only of use against the demons or the minions corrupted by their evil power." Tomaris said. "As you just saw, it will not stop ordinary objects. I told you it was not of the physical world."

He smiled at Jake as he came over and picked up the rock. "Enough for the day. Go rest. I will see you tomorrow."

In their training sessions, Dominic continued to press Jake. Jake was getting better at defending, so his bruises were becoming less, but was still not able to successfully land his own attacks. When his duties did not require his presence, Deepwood would often sit and observe, offering some advice along with Dominic's. Dominic did not seem to mind this, which struck Jake as odd, knowing that Dominic had his own ideas about things. He asked him about it after one session.

"You should listen to Moshanna; he has some good advice." Dominic said as he put away the practice swords. "He is