ShadowBound: The Need For Power

Leaving without authorization would be easy enough to attempt. He knew ways to move unseen, and the settlement’s defenses were not designed to imprison its own students.

But disappearing would create consequences.

If something happened to him, Sheila might divert a patrol or dispatch a search team. Even if nothing happened, his unexplained absence could force Edith to account for him, weaken movement discipline, and introduce uncertainty at precisely the moment the command structure needed predictability.

That would defeat the purpose of giving Veyrhold more independence.

He wanted fewer people depending on him.

Not more people abandoning their duties because he had decided to wander into a forest without informing anyone.

’Annoyingly, the sensible approach is to ask permission.’

Liam almost smiled.

He would need a better reason than personal curiosity.

Something concrete. Something that made allowing him outside the walls a tactical benefit for Sheila rather than a concession to his preferences.

A route worth verifying. A suspicious movement on the live map. A location whose inspection could improve the settlement’s security. Evidence that could not reasonably be gathered from inside Veyrhold.

There were possibilities.

He simply had not identified the right one yet.

And forcing an argument before he did would be pointless.

For the moment, the commander could enjoy the rare experience of having Liam Hunter remain exactly where she had instructed him to remain.

The thought was sufficiently charitable that he felt mildly offended by himself.

By the time Liam reached the next watch section, he had begun reconsidering what to do with the rest of the afternoon.

The central structure did not require him.

The patrols were staffed.

The perimeter remained under observation, and Charlotte was handling the scouting arrangements closer to Veyrhold.

There were no immediate reports requiring his attention.

He could continue walking along the wall, but that would accomplish little beyond allowing him to observe students who were already performing their duties adequately.

He could return to the central structure and ask whether assistance was needed.

That sounded suspiciously like volunteering to carry equipment.

Or he could do something useful without involving anyone else.

Liam settled on the third option.

Myst recovery.

His reserves were nowhere near critical. Despite the demands of the morning, he had managed his consumption carefully enough to retain a considerable portion. The controlled use of fire, dark magic, and physical movement throughout the expedition had helped preserve energy for the situations that genuinely required it.

Even the confrontation with the unknown Apex pack had not emptied him.

But there was no advantage in leaving his reserves partially depleted simply because they were sufficient for ordinary circumstances.

Sufficient had a habit of becoming insufficient when something unexpected occurred.

And Eldervale had already demonstrated an irritating enthusiasm for unexpected circumstances.

*Better to have it and not need it.*

He examined the stretch of wall ahead.

Two archers occupied the nearest firing positions, while a third student maintained watch farther along the walkway. Between their posts was a recessed section beside a reinforced support, broad enough for someone to sit without obstructing movement or the defenders’ lines of sight.

Liam approached it and briefly checked the surrounding stone.

Stable.

The support had been reinforced recently, and the walkway beneath it showed no immediate sign of weakness.

He glanced toward the nearest archer. "I am sitting here for a while. Does that interfere with your position?"

The student looked slightly surprised to be asked, then shook his head. "No. We do not use that section."

"Good."

Liam moved into the recess and sat with his back near the stone support, crossing his legs into a comfortable meditation posture. He adjusted his position once, making certain he was not resting against a loose edge, then placed his hands naturally over his knees.

The wall around him remained active.

Boots crossed the walkway at intervals. Someone called a brief instruction farther down the battlement. A bowstring was tested, followed by the muted sound of equipment being set against stone.

Liam allowed the noise to remain.

There was no need to force silence where none existed.

Myst recovery was not dependent on perfect surroundings.

He closed his eyes halfway and began regulating his breathing.

Eldervale’s ambient Myst had a different quality from Amthar’s.

It was not necessarily weaker. Its distribution was simply less cooperative in places, with fluctuations that made the flow feel uneven when drawn toward the core. Some currents were dense, others comparatively thin, and the realm’s lingering irregularities required more attention than Liam would ordinarily give the process at home.

Amthar’s Myst was more familiar to his body.

Eldervale demanded adjustment.

Still, the difference was manageable.

It was nowhere near the trouble he had experienced in Nalim.

That place had made drawing and regulating ambient Myst considerably more aggravating, enough that even ordinary recovery required far greater attention to the surrounding conditions. Compared with that experience, Eldervale’s fluctuations were inconvenient rather than prohibitive.

*At least this place is only occasionally unpleasant.*

A generous assessment.

Liam allowed his breathing to settle into a slow rhythm.

He first examined the Myst already circulating through his body, following its movement through the channels connected to his core. The expedition had left minor irregularities in the flow, nothing serious, but enough that immediately drawing in additional energy without correcting them would be inefficient.

He steadied the circulation before reaching outward.

No forceful absorption.

No sudden increase.

Just a measured connection to the ambient Myst around him.

He began with a small intake, regulating the energy as it entered his channels and guiding it toward his core. The process required filtering and adjustment, especially where Eldervale’s uneven ambient flow resisted settling into the rhythm he preferred.

He corrected the imbalance patiently.

A little more Myst entered.

His breathing remained steady.

The recovery would take time, but time was the one resource Sheila had apparently decided he possessed in abundance.

He almost found that amusing.

*If something unpleasant happens later, I would rather greet it with a full core than an apology.*

He shifted his shoulders slightly, relaxed the tension in his hands, and prepared to deepen his concentration.

The sounds of the wall began fading into the background.

His core steadied.

The ambient flow settled around the edges of his awareness.

Then a familiar feminine voice spoke from nearby.

"Well, well. Look what I found. The academy’s most antisocial student sitting peacefully on a wall. Should I be worried, or has someone finally managed to domesticate you?"

Liam’s concentration stopped.

Not violently.

It simply gave up.

He kept his eyes closed.

"Charlotte," he said, his voice completely flat, "whatever you are about to say next, reconsider it."

A soft laugh answered him.

"Oh, sweetheart, that sounded dangerously close to a request."

"It was a warning."

"And here I thought you were finally learning how to ask nicely."

𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Liam opened his eyes.

Charlotte Raven stood a short distance away, looking down at him with an expression of thoroughly unearned satisfaction. Her brown skin caught the daylight filtering over the battlements, and her curly hair shifted slightly in the breeze. Her academy field attire was arranged for movement, with the practical equipment of her scouting role secured at her waist. One hand rested casually against her hip while the other brushed a stray curl away from her face.

She looked entirely too pleased to have found him.

Liam stared up at her for a moment.

Charlotte’s smile widened.

He had managed to spend several hours confronting Realm-Touched threats, returning to Veyrhold, participating in a command discussion, and accepting the unpleasant realities of organized authority.

All he had wanted now was a little uninterrupted Myst recovery.

Apparently, that had been unreasonable.

’Of course.’

Charlotte tilted her head, clearly enjoying his expression.

Liam looked at her in silence, already regretting whatever conversation was about to begin.