A Test of Will and Magic: the Student

“Patri! Patri, where are you? Help me!” Her voice rings in my head, As I try to concentrate. I know she’s not here, But the voice sounds all too real. It is the voice of the woman I loved. The woman I could not save. “I’m coming Tarina! I’m coming!” Now I hear my own voice, Even though I am not speaking. I repel another attack, But my concentration is slipping. I could have saved her. If only I had know then, what I do now. “Patri, help me! Patri!” I almost call out to her, But I catch myself before I do. If I speak, I fail. All must be done by thought. I know the voices, And the memories they bring, Are just part of the test. They, like the attacks, Come from the elders around me. They were real once, But are not now. I must concentrate.