Siphon (A Touch of Power Book 1)

by Jay Boyce

  “Great! Let’s go then!” She responded cheerfully. She knew her knowledge about this world was severely lacking, but books like the one he’d just mentioned were precisely the reason why she was so keen to get into the library. If she could get her hands on real knowledge, she wouldn’t have to feel like an idiot trying to ask about simple things in the future. With as many books as she’d seen being displayed, there was bound to be useful information...if she could find it. Unlike the internet, books didn’t have a search function, sadly. Guess my speed reading skills are about to be put to the test.

  When she came back to reality, she realized that Eric was holding the door open and Stephen had stopped next to her, holding his arm out. “Shall we?”

  “We shall!” She looped her arm through his, happy to have an easy excuse to get the last little blinking dot she needed from these three.

  He led her to the door, seeming to take care to go at a pace she could easily keep up with. She admired his profile, taking note of his sharp features that contrasted nicely with his dark hair and blue eyes. She could feel the solid muscle beneath her fingers, attesting to the fact that he was ripped. “By the way, classes start in four days.”

  “Good to know.” She murmured as they walked out into the bright sunshine. She vaguely heard Eric telling the receptionist dude that if anyone else came in to be tested, to send someone for them at the library.

  “There you...are?” Raphael had noticed her coming outside and come over to greet her, only to belatedly notice she was holding onto Stephen’s arm. Perplexed by their closeness, he quickly shut up.

  She smiled at him, saying quietly, “Thanks for bringing me here. I was accepted!” She paused, then went on. “They’re going to take me to the library. Sorry for making you wait for me, but I’ll find my own way back.”

  He had a complicated look on his face, but finally, he nodded brusquely. Apparently, he didn't dare to say much more in front of the three examiners, who had by now all exited the building. “Congratulations.” He paused, then seemed to decide to try and leave with some of his dignity. “I’ve got work to do, so I’ll see you later.”

  “Kay, later!” She chirped happily. She had noticed his discomfort, but there wasn’t much to do about it. She didn’t have the experience necessary to coddle his wounded ego. Instead, she watched as he turned and left, then smiled at the three men and said cheerfully, “Let’s go!”

  They nodded and walked her across the way to the library while she stared at passersby and let Stephen lead her. Sometimes it was useful being led around because they could pay attention for her. She did notice several people staring at them and whispering, but she paid them no mind. A young skeleton walking with three super buff dudes was a pretty weird sight, after all. The three of them were talking softly about various things, having noticed that it was useless to say anything to her, given her noticeably distracted gaze.

  They opened the door to the library, seeming to come to a tacit agreement to stop talking once they entered the quiet and much darker corridor. She peered more closely at the balls of glowing light hanging on the wall, finally remembering that she hadn’t fiddled around with her new light magic yet. She happily breathed in the scent that all books seemed to have. She’d never known it could be this concentrated.

  They got to the desk, and she started paying attention. There reading a book was Lucas, and he seemed distracted as he asked lazily, “Pass?” He looked up and saw the three men, immediately jumping to his feet. “Eric, Stephen, Jarom. What brings you here?” He then caught sight of her on Stephen’s arm and whispered in disbelief, “Jade?”

  “Oh good, I see you remembered my name.”

  Chapter Twelve – Light

  She pulled out her shiny new card and held it up. “Oh right, you said you needed this, didn’t you?” She was smirking smugly at the moment. The dumbfounded look on his face was utterly priceless.

  It wasn’t until Eric, Stephen, and Jarom burst into laughter at the sight of him that it seemed like a light bulb went off and he gave a little chuckle. “Nice one Eric, didn’t think you’d go so far for a joke. Where’d you find her?” This seemed to set them off even further, and he looked a little confused because she was still smirking evilly at him. Seeing her confidence, he faltered a little. “It’s…not a joke?”

  “Not a joke.” She grinned and passed her card over. “I’m the newest recruit of Dracona Academy.” She -almost- felt a little bad for him, seeing his lost look. The other three hadn’t caught their breath yet, because just when one was about to calm down, they’d notice Lucas’ lost puppy eyes and start back up again, which set off the other two. He was looking distinctly uncomfortable, and she decided he’d suffered enough humiliation. He’d just been doing his job yesterday, albeit rudely.

  “Let’s start over. I’m Jade Winward, a traveler who arrived yesterday. I’m also a healer. It’s nice to meet you...” She stuck out her hand for him to shake, her evil smile replaced by a much kinder one. The other three had finally shut up and were watching them curiously.

  Lucas glanced at them as if asking if what she said was true, then back to her and her hand. Meeting her gaze directly, he seemed like he was trying to see into her soul and she vaguely realized he was trying to sense motive her or something. So she just smiled amiably and kept her hand out, even though her muscles were protesting the movement. Finally, he sighed, seeming to accept that this was his reality. “Lucas Solanell. It’s nice to meet you, Lady Jade.” With that, he took her hand, and turning it, bent over and gave it the barest brush of his lips.

  She snatched her hand back, staring at him, then glowering at the other three for an explanation of what the heck had just happened. Eric took pity on her. “As a traveler, you’re automatically conferred the title of a lady.” She stared at him blankly. Glancing at Jarom and Stephen, they nodded at her.

  She sighed, then seemed to make up her mind as she nodded. Turning to Lucas, she urged him, “Can I get my card back? It seems I have quite a lot of reading to do.”

  He mutely handed her the card back, which she pocketed and then regarded the library behind him as she asked, “Okay, what are the rules here? How’s it all organized?”

  “You can only read the books here, and they’re organized by subject. There are markers on the end of each shelf.” Okay, well at least that was easy enough. “You’ll also need a light.” Lucas had reached behind the desk and pulled out four little glass balls lit up from within, like the ones she’d seen on the sconces and scattered across his desk before, only not mounted. It seemed he was trying to be helpful to make up for his gaffe yesterday.

  She picked one up, studying it. “Did you make these?” She glanced at Lucas as she asked.

  Seeming a little startled that she’d guessed that, he responded, “Yeah, but how’d you know that?”

  She pretty much completely ignored his question, fascinated by the pretty dancing light. She switched the orb to her left hand, holding her right hand next to it and concentrating. Light is energy. She felt that warm spark inside of her as she willed a little ball of light into being on her hand. When it slowly winked into existence, she grinned triumphantly and looked at the guys to show them. They were staring at her strangely, not celebrating with her like she had anticipated. Defensively, she asked, “What? Do I have something on my face?”

  It was Lucas who asked in a stilted tone, “Did you just learn how to do light magic right now?” His voice was super tense, and she tilted her head, studying him curiously.

  “Well it’s my first time using it, but I studied the lights in the hallway a little yesterday. What? Stop staring at me like I’m crazy!” She crushed the light in her hand, letting it wink out as she glared at them.

  Eric muttered softly, “That’s three already… What’s the limit?” She sighed. They would just have to get used to it because there was no way she was going to hide all the cool things she could do. And technically, that was going to be six, once she stole metal f
rom him.

  Instead, she just smiled and said simply, “Just accept that my gift means there probably is no limit. Can you find that book on Dracona for me?” He had seemed pretty confident of it, and she had no desire to search through everything trying to find stuff when she could just ask and better spend her time reading.

  “Sure, I’ll grab it. Is there anything else in particular you want to look at?”

  She paused thoughtfully, then nodded. “Yes, actually. I’d like a simple introduction to the various types of magic if there is one. If there’s a comprehensive list of known skills, that would also be nice. I also need something on etiquette, if there’s an explanation of the nobility and any duties that would come with being a lady, and anything you have on travelers. I’d also like anything about the use of medicine specifically.” She paused, pondering. “I think that’s probably enough to start.”

  Lucas was still staring at her like she was an alien. Eric caught it and rapped him lightly on the head. “She’s smarter than you. Her intelligence is already at 16, and probably only going to get higher. Now come help me find this stuff for her.” He glanced over at the other two and ordered them smoothly, “Jarom, watch the front desk for me until Lucas has finished helping me find what she wants. Stephen, why don’t you lead her to study room…” He paused, thinking about it. “Make it 15. That way she can leave the books there and come back to them.”

  She thought it was interesting that Eric was ordering the others around, but they nodded like it was perfectly normal. Jarom just did a vertical jump and hopped over the desk like it was nothing. She gawked wide-eyed at the action, asking softly, “Am I going to be able to do that?”

  Stephen laughed and ruffled her hair. “Maybe one day we’ll get you there.” She nodded, still staring in awe at Jarom as Stephen started to lead her away. Eric and Lucas had already disappeared into the shelves. Jarom was grinning boyishly at her, soaking in her attention. With a wink, he flexed at her and she giggled. Stephen glanced back, but Jarom had gone back to normal in the blink of an eye, smiling innocently. Stephen gave a little huff and then pulled her away while she was still giggling softly.

  When they were further away and passing a series of doors, she finally asked. “Why are you following Eric’s orders? Is he your boss?”

  Snickering, he shook his head. “This is his domain. He’s the assistant head of the library, so when we’re here, he’s in charge.”

  This spiked her curiosity. “What are you and Jarom in charge of, then?”

  He smiled enigmatically and replied, “Jarom is one of the battle instructors.” He paused in front of one of the doors and opened it, saying simply, “This is your room. Do you think you’ll be able to find it on your own?”

  She stared at him. “Don’t think you can fool me by changing the subject. What’s your area of expertise?”

  He grinned cryptically. “I’ll give you extra points if you figure it out for yourself.” She frowned at him, but he poked her in the forehead and laughed. “Now look around and make sure you can find the room again.”

  She groaned softly. “The rooms are in numerical order. It’s not hard to find. That’s what happens when things are done logically.” She stepped into the room and sat down, and he stepped in as well, keeping her company for the moment. So of course, she decided to continue her line of questioning. “So, why were the three of you chosen to do the examinations?”

  He snorted. “That’s an easy one. We’re the youngest staff members in our positions, so we were told it was our turn. They decreed that three years ago...and it probably won’t change until someone newer takes our places.”

  She laughed, and the door opened at that moment. Eric came in with three books, placing them on the table in front of her. “Lucas will bring the rest over when he finds them, but I figured you could start with these three.” Stephen stood up, straightening his clothes as he prepared to leave with Eric. It looked like they were just going to leave her here, but then again, how much fun would it be to watch someone read?

  She smiled and stood up to see them out, saying quickly, “Thanks for bringing me here! I have just one more question.” Eric tilted his head, raising his brow as if encouraging her to go on. She blushed a little and said quietly, “Uhmm… Can I bring food in here?” She was really, really hungry. He was giving her a strange look, so she continued nervously. “It’s kinda the downside of my gift. I’m growing extremely fast, but the energy has to come from somewhere. In order to have enough proteins to break down to support my changing biology, I need to consume quite a lot.”

  Stephen looked curious at this, and ignoring the jargon he didn’t understand, cut straight to the point. “Wait, what have you been eating? You just got here yesterday, so you shouldn’t have any money…”

  She blushed a little bit. “Uhm, well the mom of the little girl I healed yesterday gave me a little bit, and the rest…” She stared at the ground. “I uhm...have basically been eating Raphael out of house and home. He caught me raiding the kitchen last night...”

  Eric asked curiously, “Exactly how much is a lot?”

  She scuffed her foot against the floor, muttering softly, “Raph said last night I ate about half a pig, two apples, and six cups of wine…”

  “Seriously?” Stephen and Eric were both staring at her in amazement. “How did you eat that much in one sitting?”

  She shrugged. “I was hungry.” They laughed, and she relaxed a little.

  Stephen came over, a pretty platinum crown just somehow appearing in his hand. “Here, this should take care of what you need until we figure out what to do.”

  She beamed up at him. Somehow, she felt more like he was the caring older brother she’d never had. “Thanks, for everything.” She smiled sweetly at the two of them, just happy that in the course of an hour, she’d gained two people who seemed to want to be on Team Jade. Well, okay, it was more like three, or maybe four. She figured Jarom was on her team too; he just wasn’t here, so she wasn’t sure. And Lucas…maybe. She’d have to wait and see on that one. She’d convert him to her side completely...eventually.

  Eric smiled back at her, saying softly, “You’re welcome. And for the record, food isn’t allowed in the library. Since you have special circumstances, I’ll allow it though. Just nothing greasy, and don’t get it on the books. Don’t tell anyone either, okay?” She grinned and nodded. She could be sneaky with her food, so long as she could have it. He laughed and explained, “We’ve got to get back now, a messenger came to tell us that someone else showed up to be tested, but if you run into any problems, you can come find us. I’ll come visit you after the examinations are done so we can figure out what classes to put you in.”

  She nodded and smiled shyly at them until Stephen ruffled her hair again and gruffly implored, “Be good.” They then turned and left, her seeing them off silently until they were out of sight.

  She’d considered following them out. She was still half dying of hunger, after all. However, the appeal of books was stronger, and she decided she’d at least wait until Lucas brought her the rest of them. Moving to the table, she studied the three titles she’d been given.

  Magic: A Compendium. The Noble History of Dracona Academy. Basic Etiquette for Beginners.

  She grinned. They were perfect! Getting comfortable, she grabbed Magic: A Compendium and opened it to the first page, starting to read.

  Magic as we know it has been classified into 20 known types of increasing rarity and difficulty. The list from easiest to hardest is as follows: Water, Earth, Fire, Wind, Contractual, Light, Dark, Lightning, Metal, Life, Death, Illusion, Nature, Spiritual, Summoning, Blood, Healing, Compulsion, Spatial, and Special (untyped)...

  Lost in the new world of information, she forgot her hunger.

  Chapter Thirteen – Monsters

  She wasn’t sure how long it took for Lucas to bring her the rest of the books. Mentally, she allocated some of the platinum coin that Stephen gave her to getting a pocket watch i
f Raphael hadn’t procured one for her like she had asked him to this morning. It was probably outside of his job description, but what his job description actually entailed, she didn’t know. Other than keeping the students in line, of course. And overseeing Jessica and Kaylee, obviously.

  But the question remained, was he a counselor? A butler? A drill instructor? A dorm RA? One of the teachers? There were so many possibilities and no answers, so she’d have to give it up for now.

  In the meantime, Lucas had arrived with a giant stack of books in his arms. It looked really heavy. She mused aloud softly, “You need a book cart.”

  With a loud whump, he set the books down and inspected curiously at her. “A book cart? What’s that?” He thankfully seemed to have lost the hostility he had shown towards her before, probably at least partially because she’d ‘started over’ with him. It would be nice if it was truly that easy.

  “Oh, it’s a table on wheels? Or like a small bookshelf on wheels so that you can set stuff down on it and wheel it around and you don’t have to carry everything by hand.” She smiled, starting to take inventory of what he’d brought her. There were several that looked like storybooks, and she figured those were probably the ones travelers might have written about. It was a good idea; she needed to write stuff down so she knew what to invent.

  What she was the most surprised about were several volumes labeled things like Wielding Water Magic and Lighting the World. They were probably books about those specific elements, and she grinned, pointing at them. “Are there books for all the elements?”

  He looked thoughtful and then mused, “Most of the more common ones, yes.” She grinned gleefully and he sighed. “I’ll get them for you.”

  She didn’t even glance at the rest of them, hopping up as she requested, “Wait a sec.” He turned to gaze at her questioningly. “I just wanted to say thank you for helping me find these. I’m actually going to get something to eat, but I’ll be back, so no rush. These will probably last me for a bit anyway.” He nodded again, since that made sense. She paused, then thought of something that she had yet to ask anyone about. “Why is everyone carrying weapons all the time? Do fights break out a lot or something?”