The morning light came through the estate window flat and early.
Arthur hadn't slept much. He'd moved from the desk to the bed at some point and stared at the ceiling until the room lightened around him. Whether anything happened between those two states, he couldn't confirm.
Roz was already sitting upright on the pillow, bow tie straight, both eyes open. Waiting.
"I need to train," Arthur said.
"Yes."
"One day. Maybe one and a half."
"Yes."
Arthur sat up. His hands were still slightly off, the last residue of going aetherthin. "I burn through reserve too fast. The network, the anchors, the shots. I'm wasting aetheric blood on maintenance that should hold itself. Every time I extend the shadow network across a full space I'm already halfway to empty before I fire once." He looked at Roz. "Fix that."
Roz was quiet for a moment. Then he climbed off the pillow onto Arthur's knee and sat there, looking up at him.
"Elven technique," Roz said.
Arthur waited.
