Martel was a better teacher for this than Araceli could ever hope to be. Martel understood magic, Martel had the easy confidence, the way of just taking hold of her wrist out in the desert and pointing her hand just so. Araceli's words aren't for things that she can't understand properly but her head turns, hand still outstretched as the mark does as it should.

"Just focus, let it happen. Let it draw deep," she repeats again with an edge in her voice from trying to keep her own concentration on things that don't really have actual concrete thoughts to go with them. "Don't fight it, we're almost there!"