Book One – Chapter 6

“Yeah, about that,” Yves panted, his breath frozen amidst the charged air, “I need more energy.” He spoke not just to himself. He spoke to the Jabarrah, the familiar that had merged with him fifteen years ago. “About everything you have, if you don’t mind.” His words fell heavy. He was burning up from the strain that came with handling such an unreasonable amount of light. He discarded his coat and pushed up the sleeves of his undercoat and shirt, thereby exposing the Jabarrah’s long silver beak fused with his lower arm. The two halves of the beak ran from elbow to hand, encasing his left arm like armour. It was the only visible remnant of the avian beast, all that was left after the elf attack.

They had no conscious bond like the deep connection Yves shared with Midnight. There were only a few instances where Yves had ever sensed the Jabarrah within him. Yet, he knew he was there, an integral part of all that Yves had become after the attack. The familiar was an essence bonded with him, but he also was a foreign mind and energy existing alongside him. Are you with me on this one?

Yves’ body could harbour only a limited amount of energy; a capacity defined by birth, expanded through training, and currently exhausted. The silver beak, however, held more energy than Yves could safely amass in his entire body — an inaccessible reserve, unless the Jabarrah permitted him to draw from it.