by Nyssa Renay
“Yeah, I know how you feel.”
He zipped up his final piece of luggage. “Help me to the front with these?”
“No problem,” I replied, picking up one of Ownie’s three bags and following him to the front of the dorm. No sooner had we gotten there than I heard the thunderous arrival of Shepherd Diabelle.
“Shepherd on deck!” the door guard shouted, and the entire room of potentials rushed to the platform, standing at attention as Diabelle descended the stairs. She had come to collect Ownie and the other two graduates and escort them to their ceremonies after leading us in an evening prayer for their final departure from the academy.
“Good evening, gentlemen!” she roared. Her voice echoed in the room with its usual electric tone. She proudly gazed at the three graduates.
“Good evening, ma’am!” we responded.
Diabelle closed her eyes and bowed her head. We followed her lead as she began to pray. “It’s my deepest honor to begin evening prayers tonight by asking our Esteemed Patroness and her Father to bless these potentials who are about to become shepherds. Guide them on their journey. Give them strength and courage against conflict. Keep them safe and protect them until we meet again in the great realm of Ein Himself. Ein be praised!”
“Praise be to Ein!” we replied in unison.
“Ein is the most supreme presence in our lives. We are blessed to serve Him.”
“We are blessed to serve Him,” we repeated proudly.
“Ein’s children are the supreme leaders of our realm and our lives,” she prayed.
“Praise their holy names!”
“Without Ein, we are nothing…Without Ein’s love, we are empty.”
“Glory to all that is Ein,” we prayed as one. “Praise to His children and our responsibilities toward them.”
“Ein, we ask You to watch over these potentials as they depart from our care and devote their bodies and souls to Your children. Feniche,” she finished.
“Feniche.” The word echoed in the room and then we all fell silent.
With the prayer finished, the potentials mingled with the graduates until Diabelle announced it was time for them to depart. As Ownie picked up his bags and moved toward the stairs, I quickly grabbed him by the arm.
“Hey, I know it’s a weird question, but did they ever tell you about possible dangers you might have to deal with during a Call?”
“No, not really,” he answered, somewhat confused. “I wouldn’t worry about it. I don’t think anyone would be stupid enough to mess with a shepherd anyway.”
“Potential Octavio!” Shepherd Diabelle’s voice rang out. “Are you going to join us today, or do you want to spend another year here?”
“Coming, ma’am!” Ownie shouted back as he glanced up at her. He turned to me and said, “Take care of yourself, Vigil.”
“You, too,” I replied somberly.
Ownie climbed the stairs one last time, and the three graduates were officially gone from the dorm. A dismal feeling plagued me, but I shook it off as best I could and carried on with the evening routine, feeling like a part of me was lost forever.
-45-
The next day, after orientation, we were presented with only one new potential for Necra sect that year. He was a scrawny kid with messy brown hair, and he was shaking so badly I thought his bones would rattle right out of his skin. He looked about as hopeless as I did when I’d first arrived at the academy. He was absolutely petrified of everything around him, especially Shepherd Diabelle when she came into the dorm to meet him. I felt bad for the kid; I knew exactly what he was going through.
“Hallelujah…the drought is over!” Diabelle shouted at the new boy. “We got ourselves a new snowflake! What’s your name, son?”
“Ar…Arcro,” he answered nervously from behind the huge pile of his issued gear, which he struggled to hang onto.
“Ein have mercy, that’s the worst name I’ve ever heard! What’s the matter with your parents? Didn’t they like you at all?” Shepherd Diabelle burst into laughter as a couple of the other potentials forcibly hid their snickers.
Although the rest of us knew her pageantry was just for show, it still bothered me that the other potentials were laughing, especially when her comments regarded their family. When I’d first arrived, I felt that no one could possibly have understood what I had been through, but every potential experienced the same thing. We all became orphans the moment they took us from our homes. It was just unsettling how quickly most of the other potentials seemed to forget.
“Vigil…front and center!” Diabelle shouted at me.
I quickly went to the head of the platform. “Yes, ma’am!” I replied.
“Congratulations, it’s a boy!” She laughed.
“Ma’am?”
“Show the new snowflake around and help him get set up with everything…but just for today. After that, he’s on his own just like the rest of us were. Is that understood?”
“Yes, ma’am!” I said, looking down at Arcro. He was still staring at her and trembling. I nudged his arm with my elbow, trying to give him a hint by nodding toward Shepherd Diabelle.
“Yes…ma’am,” he squeaked out.
“By Ein, it’s a miracle. He can be taught!” she mocked as she headed for the stairs. “As you were, gentlemen!” Shepherd Diabelle barked as she crossed the scaffold and left.
As the room dispersed, Arcro stood helplessly on the assembly platform, visibly overwhelmed. I remembered that fear quite well and wanted to make him feel at home as soon as possible. If nothing else, I wanted to ensure he didn’t end up making the same stupid mistakes I did. After what I knew he’d been through over the last few months, he at least deserved that much.
“Don’t worry. It’ll get better here. I promise,” I said, offering him a compassionate smile. “Come on, kid, let’s get you set up and ready for kitchen duty.”
I gave him the standard rundown of how things ran at the academy, just as Ownie had done for me. I taught him how to fold and stack his clothes. I explained the Tier system to him. After the crowd had dispersed from in front of the duty roster, I showed Arcro where to check his schedule.
When Arcro and I arrived at Chow Hall One, Shepherd Scullery was sitting near the kitchen with papers spread out across the table before him.
“Vigil,” he beckoned, motioning me over.
I hurried over to snap at attention. “Yes, sir!” I looked down at my side to see Arcro already standing at attention, mimicking me as best he could. I was honestly impressed, and judging by Scullery’s cracked smile, he was, too.
“Have Phargus show Arcro the ropes for a bit. I need to talk to you.”
“Yes, sir,” I replied, curious as I led Necra’s newest member into the kitchen to dump him off on Phargus. When I returned to the table, Scullery had most of the papers already filed back into a blue and gold folder.
“Have a seat, Vigil,” he offered with a long, heavy sigh.
“Something wrong, sir?” I asked.
“No. Shepherd Diabelle just wanted me to go over your availability for kitchen duty, now that it’s your last year in Tier II.”
I looked down at the sheet, quickly reading my new daily schedule. “I’m barely even gonna be here,” I commented, slightly surprised. “I knew I was starting my Wraith training this year; I just didn’t expect to be dedicating this much time to it.”
One of the requirements for my final year in Tier II was to learn the basic offensive and defensive capabilities, as well as the general knowledge and responsibilities of the other sects. Each sect had a specific gift to help them guide and maintain the universe. Some sects, like those with foundations based in earth, air, fire, water, or animals, had more physical applications. Those dealing with love, war, plants, life, or death had more of a concentration on intellectual and emotional nature. While I would eventually specialize in my own sect abilities, being able to apply the basics of the other sects was the
key to working in harmony with the rest of the shepherds.
A puzzled expression spread over his face. “I figured you’d be happier about it.”
“Oh, I am,” I replied, forcing a smile. “I’m just so used to being here all the time. I guess I’m a little nervous to be working on something new.”
“You’ll be fine,” he offered, pointing at the bottom of the page before me. “Just sign it and bring it with you when you report to Shepherd Machoji tomorrow morning.”
“Yes, sir.” I did as he asked, then folded the paper and slipped it into the inner pocket of my kitchen robes.
Scullery smiled. “It was nice having you here all the time. I think I let myself get a little spoiled with you doing most of my work around here,” he scoffed lightheartedly.
While I was incredibly glad to be leaving most of my kitchen duties behind, there was still a part of me that felt obligated to Shepherd Scullery for going out of his way to let me work for him for all those extra years. “I’m just grateful for the opportunity, sir.”
“Well then, those empty pans aren’t going to fill themselves,” he jested as he stood up from his chair, indicating our meeting was over and it was time for me to get back to work. But as Shepherd Scullery quickly scooped up the rest the papers off the table and shoved them back into his folder, I noticed the royal seal of Telshakra embossed in the top corner of the cover as he tucked it under his arm and swiftly walked out of the chow hall.
In all the time I’d worked for him, I’d never seen him with a folder like that one. I had the feeling he’d let me see it on purpose, yet I had no idea why.
-46-
The next morning, I began the mile-long trek to the amphitheater lecture hall on the outer edge of the academy. I saw many of the potentials I’d lived with at the Home for Blessed Children as we all walked the path together. It was surreal to have the entire group from the Home reunited for the first time since our orientation over a decade ago.
We’d all grown and changed so much over the last ten years, but one person had stayed the same in my eyes. Eeliyah. She was still as pretty as ever. I saw her walking toward our rapidly growing convoy, but did my best to act like I hadn’t noticed her. No matter how hard I tried to play it cool whenever she walked by me at the chow halls, I’d always managed to find a way to make it awkward, and today would be no different.
“Hey, stranger,” Eeliyah greeted me as she joined the procession of potentials, falling in right beside me. “We haven’t gotten to walk and talk together like this since the High Field days at the Home.”
“Yeah, don’t remind me,” I scoffed, but quickly saw her expression melt into one of being almost offended. “No! I meant the Home, not our walks.” I stammered, trying my best to recover from the unintentional faux pas.
She smiled. “Oh, okay. You had me worried for a minute, there. Thought you were turning into another Biklish.”
“He’s really not so bad,” I said dismissively.
“Wow, this is definitely a new side of you I haven’t seen before…I’m impressed. I thought you two hated each other.”
“I wouldn’t call it hate,” I offered, trying to think of a way to explain my newfound acceptance of Biklish. “I guess you’d say it’s become more of a rivalry than anything else. Ever since I saved his life in the mines, he’s gotten a lot of shit from his Palpit brothers. They never let him live it down.”
“I still think he’s an asshole, but that’s just me. He stares at my sister whenever their sects eat together in the chow hall. Makes her feel uncomfortable.”
I forced a smile. “Maybe he likes her. You never know.”
“Ein save me! Don’t even joke about something like that!”
“Well, if I know Abellie, she can handle herself just fine.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Her tone sounded somber. “It’s not like I know how she feels lately, anyway.”
“Why do you say that?” I asked. “Did something happen?”
“Not really, but I feel like this place has changed her.”
“It’s changed all of us in some way, but I’m sure she’s fine. Probably just going through a phase or something.”
“That’s just it,” Eeliyah argued. “Since we barely get to see each other, she always sat with me in the chow hall whenever our sects are scheduled to eat together. Lately, she stays with the rest of her Kindell sisters and completely ignores me the whole time. It’s like she’s avoiding me for some reason, and I don’t know why. I mean, look at her.” She pointed toward the front of our line where Abellie was walking a good fifty feet ahead of everyone else, all by herself. “I have no idea what I did wrong. She won’t tell me.”
“Maybe you didn’t do anything wrong at all,” I offered. “She’s probably just trying to be her own person instead of someone’s twin sister, you know?”
“Not really.”
“When my Uncle Vantaru was here…” I trailed off, immediately noticing her demeanor become guarded and unsettled at the mere mention of his name. “Sorry, Eeliyah.”
“It’s okay.” She grimaced. “You were saying?”
“When he was here, everyone treated me differently because we were related, even though we barely spoke to each other unless we had to.”
“You’re starting to make me sound as if I’m your uncle in this scenario.”
“No! That’s not what I mean.” I hoped I hadn’t made her regret opening up to me. “All I’m saying is maybe she’s trying to be more independent, since it’s the first day we’re all back together again.”
“So, you don’t think it was me?”
“No, I honestly don’t,” I said reassuringly. “Just give her some space and see where it goes.”
“Fine, I’ll try.” She let out a long, frustrated sigh. “Thank you, Vigil.”
“Any time.”
By the time we reached the amphitheater, Shepherd Machoji was already standing in the center of the room, patiently waiting for everyone to arrive. I noticed Abellie at the very front corner of the room and decided to ask Eeliyah to sit with me near the back, hoping to create a sizeable space between the two of them.
“Welcome, Potentials!” Machoji announced when everyone was seated. “Ein be praised.”
“Praise be to Ein,” the class replied in one voice.
“Today, you will all begin to apply what you’ve learned over the last ten years here at the academy. Although it’ll be difficult at first, within a few months, you will develop a good foundation for the practice of Wraith, the ultimate source of a shepherd’s power. Rest assured, I’ve watched over this beginners’ class for over three centuries now, and I’ve never failed a single potential,” Machoji stated confidently. He motioned for Abellie to stand beside him.
Eeliyah passed me a quick, concerned look, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. I had no idea what was about to happen, and it was obvious that Eeliyah was clueless as well.
“Under the direction of Shepherd Phlogis from the Kindell sect, Abellie will be performing a special demonstration for us in the training annex in just a few moments. But before we go, I want you all to check the board at the front of the room,” he instructed, pointing to a small corkboard near the doorway at the front of the amphitheater. “We’ll have one individual demonstration per week, followed by everyone’s participation in replicating the same performance, until everyone learns. Either we’ll all succeed together, or we’ll all fail together. No one gets left behind.”
I could hear a growing anxiety-laden murmur spread throughout the room.
“Enough!” Machoji ordered. The room went silent once more. “Each of your shepherds will set aside time for one-on-one training for this assignment. If I were you, I would take full advantage of their time and wisdom. Now, with that said, let’s see what Abellie has prepared for us today,” Shepherd Machoji encouraged, gesturing Abellie toward the door with the rest of us in tow.
Eeliyah tugged on
my sleeve and leaned in to whisper. “Do you think this was why she has been ignoring me so much?”
“Maybe,” I offered, not really knowing what else to say. At that point, all I could think of was how nervous I would be to get up in front of the class myself. It was odd. I’d been through some horrific experiences in my life, yet the thought of getting up and giving a presentation in front of my peers shook me to my core. I was seriously starting to miss kitchen duty.
When we arrived in the training annex, Shepherd Phlogis was waiting for us in the middle of what looked like a minefield of wood filled stone fire pits buried halfway in the ground. There were dozens of wooden pylons resembling tall, spindle-legged stick figures with bull’s eye faces looming ominously in the distance. Many of these practice dummies had been burned to a crisp, giving me an eerie feeling I might not be ready as I thought I was, after all.
“Welcome, everyone!” Phlogis said proudly as Abellie moved to stand by his side with a sly grin on her face. “Let’s begin.”
-47-
“Now then, handling the essence of the flame is not as easy as moving rocks or controlling water,” Phlogis said with an air of superiority. “Fire moves and changes without reason or warning. It goes wherever it wants, growing and consuming anything in its path if not controlled properly.”
Shepherd Phlogis began. “The first thing you’ll learn today is how to create and maintain a fire in one of these pits using only Wraith. Then, over the course of this week, you’ll learn how to control and contain the flame and ignite the tops of those pylons,” he said as he pointed to the wooden pylons placed around him. “Now, Abellie here will give you a proper demonstration,” he boasted proudly. “Are you ready, Abellie?”
She nodded as a slow, eager smile spread across her lips. She tucked a piece of her bright red hair behind her ear and centered herself in front of the stone pit. Although Abellie physically resembled her twin sister, there was something decidedly different about her presence. While Eeliyah was calm and reserved, Abellie gave off a more impulsive and erratic energy.
