I’ll disable their Healer so that he can’t cast that annoying barrier. Meddling Minds only took two seconds to cast, but in that short time, he watched as one of his guards was brutalized by Zap and as a second went down with an arrow in his left eye.

His spell went off, and Lucas took over. His guess had been correct, and the Healer had been preparing Force Shield. Rather than springing up in front of Lucas, however, the spell was redirected directly in front of the enemy Mage. The man’s Zap was completely absorbed by the magical barrier, affording Lucas more than enough time to turn and electrocute the archer with Chain Lightning. Unfortunately, the area-of-effect spell rebounded and jumped back at the remaining guard, frying him along with the Rogue at the same time.

The enemy Fighter had been maneuvering around to intercept the guard, but he wasn’t yet close enough to be caught by a second bounce. Before he could turn his attention to Lucas, the Healer turned and clubbed him in the back of the head, sending him to the floor with a bewildered look on his face. Lucas finished casting his second Chain Lightning and zapped the Healer and the Fighter together, leaving him against the enemy Mage. The two stared at each other from opposite sides of the Force Shield, each waiting on the protective barrier to fade away.

Lucas took advantage of the time afforded to him and began charging up three bursts of Chain Lightning. The seconds dragged past, and then at the first flicker of the Force Shield, Lucas unleashed all three in succession. The spells arced through the air, turning the enemy caster into ash before he even got a chance to move.

The moment the final enemy died, the room changed again. This time, Lucas was standing with Xun Guan and his teacher. He glanced around and immediately saw that everything was back to the way it had been before: the charred corpses and all signs of the previous fight had disappeared.

“Nice fight,” Xun Guan said as she reappeared.

“But not good enough,” the teacher lectured. “Why are you threatening people? Don’t you understand what an Enchanter’s goal is supposed to be? While your intent must maintain its murderous edge, your words should drip honey, not vinegar. Your spells won’t be nearly as effective if you cannot convince both the opponent’s mind and soul.”

“So . . . I have to seduce my victim before I kill them?”

“Something like that. Try again. And this time, prove to me that you are capable of being called an Enchanter. Magic should not be your only means of controlling another’s mind. Every part of your being must convey confidence, certainty, and charisma. Now, go before I lose my patience with you.”