“I invented it,” she told me curtly, climbing to her feet. “So you couldn’t possibly have seen it coming.”
That was happening to me a lot lately. We both took up stances, ready to react if the other one moved. I held my small sword at the ready, though I wasn’t quite sure what to do with it; I didn’t really want to seriously injure her.
A hush rolled through the crowd as one of the professor’s approached. Not wanting detention again, I shrunk the knife and slipped it back into my belt sheath. The crowd parted to let Netalia through, and I was sorely tempted to pull the sword back out.
“What’s going on here?” she asked, beadily eyeing us both off.
“We were having a conversation,” Eleanora said immediately, flipping her long hair. “Sky is ignorant.”
I fought the urge to roll my eyes.
“I am. She was helping me learn some new moves,” I told Netalia, lying almost as easily as Petre did.
Netalia looked at us, trying to figure us out. It was pretty obvious that we’d been fighting, but it wasn’t obvious if the fighting had indeed been educational. She sniffed, making up her mind.
“Very well,” she said stiffly. “But please refrain from doing so in the castle from now on. The grounds or the practice hall serve that purpose, not the corridors.”
She continued on past everyone and slowly the crowd dispersed. Eleanora fixed me with a glare as though trying to figure me out, but then dismissed it and marched off past me.
“What the hell was that about?” Theresa asked, watching the blonde woman stalk off.
“Phoenix broke up with her and she thinks I had something to do with it,” I replied, shrugging.
“Did you?” Dena asked after a second.
“No,” I said, a little too fast. “But that reminds me... can I meet you guys in a little while?”
“Sure,” Dena said, looking out the corner of her eye at Theresa. “We were heading to the games room.”
“I’ll meet you there soon.” I said, and began to walk up the stairs.
“Sky!” I turned around and faced Dena again. “Don’t do anything... hasty.”
I nodded and continued on my way. I knocked on the door and stood waiting, my heart in my throat. I had almost lost my resolve completely when Dustin opened his door.
“Sky… I guess I’ve been expecting this.”
“Can I come in?” I looked up at him. “Please?”
“Sure,” he stepped back, allowing me into his room. “To what do I owe the pleasure?” the pleasant tone in his voice was very forced.
I got to the middle of his room and turned around, and my expression made him stop smiling.
“Though I get the impression this isn’t going to be a pleasure,” he said quietly, not looking at me as he closed the door.
“Dustin,” I began. “I’m really sorry. I’ve made up my mind.”
He looked up at me sadly.
“Is there a reason why?”
I wrung my hands, biting my lip.
“I just have a feeling things are about to get really complicated soon,” I said quietly.
“You don’t like me anymore, do you?”
My heart seemed to be gripped in a vice.
“Dustin, I’m sorry-”
“Don’t be,” he said, holding his hands out towards me. “I’m sadder right now than I’ve been in a long time, but please don’t be sorry.”
He hugged me, and I gripped him tightly.
“I am sorry, though, you know,” I said, sniffing up at him through my tears.
“Me too,” he replied, and kissed the top of my head.
We stood that way for a long time, clinging to each other. The awful feeling was back but I knew it’d be worse to drag it out. It would be painful for both of us.
“Are we still friends?” I asked a little while later.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he said, stepping back from me, his eyes bright.
“Thank you... for understanding. I’m sorry it couldn’t work out between us, Dustin.”
“I know.”
I left him alone and walked quickly back to my room. Despite what Dena and Theresa had said, I was in no mood to join them in the games room. I sat on my bed, resting my chin on the windowsill. Morri flew through the open window to perch on my head.
“Hello,” I greeted him sadly. He peeped and began to preen my hair. “Long time no see.”
The door opened behind me, and Morri flew to the person who entered. I didn’t need to turn around to know that it was Larni; she was the only other person he would go to apart from Jett, and the only other person who would enter my room without knocking.
“Are you alright?” she asked quietly, and I shook my head slowly.
“Dustin and I broke up.”
“Oh,” silence fell, and I knew she didn’t know what to say.
“I didn’t feel the same way about him anymore,” I said, turning around and kneeling on my bed.
Larni met my gaze evenly.
“And did someone else take his place?”
Larni was the only one in the castle who could read me like an open book. Not even Dena knew me as well as Larni did.
“Yes,” I replied, saving her the trouble of interrogating me.
“I guess I don’t need to ask who,” she said sternly, sitting next to me on my bed. It was only then I realised she wasn’t carrying anything; she’d come on a social visit. “Remember what being a soul mate means, Sky. You can’t fall in love with him.”
“And what if it’s too late?” I asked tearfully. “What happens then, Larni?”
She stroked my hair with shaking fingers.
“Then you try your best to fall out of it,” she replied unevenly. “You can’t love him, Sky.”
“But I do,” I whispered, tears beginning to fall. “And he loves me.”
Larni held me as I cried, terrified of myself. When she left, hours later, I rolled up into a ball on top of my covers and cried myself to sleep.
~Chapter Twenty~
The fight with Eleanora had been my last burst of energy; the next few days passed in a blur. I felt like I was underwater for a lot of it; someone would talk to me and I would only hear mumbling. I slept a lot and barely ate, which worried Larni to no end; she’d seen how much I could eat. I hardly saw Phoenix, and I felt guilty remembering the trip, though when I laid down to go to sleep, I allowed myself a few guilty moments,
remembering the feel of his lips on mine, his hand on my neck, the feel of his chest under my hand. During those moments, I wished he was here next to me so that we could talk and kiss and laugh as freely as we had on the trip into the mountains.
When Netalia called an emergency meeting with all of the mages and staff, my heart seemed to shrivel up and become a pebble in my chest.
This is it, I thought as I dragged my feet to the Main Hall along with the rest of my classmates. Now I get banished.
Suddenly the Academy seemed like the most wonderful place on the planet. As though sensing it was about to be taken from me, my magic sang in my veins, heightening every sense. By the time we stepped through the doors to the Hall, I was about ready to try my luck with sailing to another country if it meant I could stay in this realm.
We settled on chairs that had been laid out in rows and waited for Iain to speak.
“I trust that you’ve been working hard on your studies,” Iain began. He looked strangely untidy, as though he’d been up all night. “Unfortunately, this meeting is not one of good faith or wishes. It has come to our attention that the Academy will be under attack soon.”
“What?” I said in disbelief. Cries echoed throughout the hall. Way to stir up the general populace, Iain, I thought bitterly. “Attacked by whom?” I asked Dena, who shook her head, eyes wide.
“A group of mages from the North-”
“I knew it,” Petre growled on my left, and I ignored him.
“- have made their demands clear. I tell you this so that yo
u will be on alert. In the meantime,” he made eye contact with Phoenix, who was sitting close to the front. “If you could come with me.”
I stood up when Phoenix did.
“Sky, sit down,” Dena said worriedly, tugging at my shirt.
“If Phoenix goes, I go,” I told her and began to shuffle along our row. People murmured to each other as I passed, but I ignored them and caught up with Phoenix just as he was about to exit with Netalia and Iain.
“Sky, what are you doing?” he asked in surprise.
“I’m coming with you. You’re my soul mate,” I reminded him.
“She can come,” Netalia said. “Over here.”
They took us up a flight of stairs to an office that I assumed was Iain’s. Inside was surprisingly bare except for the usual furnishings of an office, a sword in its sheath leaning against the desk and a glass bar on the wall behind the desk, filled with green pebbles. As I watched, a few of them shivered like they were contemplating moving, but the bar stayed perfectly level.
“Phoenix, the mages who made the demands are from Orthandrell,” Iain said, not wasting any time. “They had one demand.”
“What was it?” Phoenix asked, and I was the only one who saw his hand shaking.
“They want us to hand over a student.”
“Which student?” Phoenix asked, but I already knew the answer.
“You,” Iain said, just as I interrupted.
“No, not happening,” I snapped, stepping up to Phoenix’s side. “You’re not thinking of answering the demand?”
“Of course not,” Iain said, his brow furrowing as he looked at me. “When Phoenix came to this Academy he entered our service of protection. We have no intentions of answering the demand.”
Netalia fidgeted, like she wanted to say something, but Iain glanced at her and she stayed silent.
“Well, what happens then?” I asked. Phoenix seemed to be struggling with something.
“They’ve made it clear that they’ll come to the Academy and take him by force.”
“Over my dead body,” I hissed furiously. “Why him, why Phoenix?”
“Because it’s my father,” Phoenix muttered. “Isn’t it?” Iain nodded as Netalia said, “yes.”
“Your last foster father,” I breathed. “The letters...”
“He stopped sending them because he gave up. He’s coming to take me back to the Mountains.”
“Aloysius is an extremely powerful mage,” Iain said, leaning against the desk and crossing his arms. “We’ve had dealings with him in the past.”
“What does he want?” I asked, looking from Phoenix to Iain and back again. “What is so terrible-”
“He wants the magical realm to be for those only of magical blood,” Phoenix interrupted, meeting my eyes for the first time. “He believes that humans should never have been brought here.”
“That’s why you left,” I whispered. “That’s why you came here.”
“Yes. I didn’t agree with him.”
“Obviously,” I said, smiling just a little, and he smiled back.
“But I can’t let the Academy be attacked because of me,” Phoenix said, looking to Iain and Netalia again. “I’ll go to him.”
“No!” I protested, gripping his arm. “Phoenix, you can’t-”
“I can,” he replied, peeling my fingers from his arm, something warning me in the depths of his eyes. I released him and stepped back. “Iain, it’s my choice.”
“No,” Netalia broke in. “When we took you into the Academy we promised you protection from him and your kind. We will honour that agreement.”
“Phoenix,” I pleaded and he looked at me. “Please.”
He looked at me for a long while, and then finally relented.
“I’m sorry,” was all he said.
“We’ll deal with this,” Iain said, standing up straight. “We’ve already sent word to Gowar and Abdoor; they will be on alert but I have a feeling Aloysius will be prepared for them.”
“He’ll sail around the coast,” Netalia filled in for me.
“And so, the mages from those states will be joining us here,” Iain looked out the window as though expecting them already. “This castle was built to hold many more though; we welcome them.”
So you send for mages from other states, but you won’t help the people when they call for help or instruct them to help the impoverished, I thought angrily.
“What about our friends?” I asked, gesturing to the door. “The other students?”
“They can fight if they wish,” Iain said, holding my gaze. I shuddered and looked away; it had felt too much like someone reading my mind. “But we won’t ask them to.”
“They will anyway,” I said, knowing how indignant Theresa or Yasmin would be if they missed out on a confrontation of any kind.
“We must head back downstairs,” Netalia said. “Please return to your rooms.”
They left, leaving us alone in Iain’s office. Against my better judgement I flew to Phoenix and buried my face in his shoulder. He held me tightly, resting his chin on my hair.
“It isn’t fair,” I mumbled into his shirt, gripping bunches of it between my fingers. “I’ve only just gotten to know you-”
“This isn’t going to be the end, Sky. It can’t be.” I lifted my face and met his gaze, then ran my fingers through his hair.
“Your hair is a lot longer than when we first came here,” I said quietly, tucking a few strands of it behind his ear. He watched me carefully, and when I was done, I met his gaze.
It suddenly struck me how very close we were standing together. Our noses were almost touching, and if I reached up on my tippy toes
“You’ll be the death of me,” he said, stepping back. “Sky, we have to be careful.”
“I know,” I said, my heart pounding. We’d been so close. “But why you, Phoenix? I don’t mean to sound insensitive, but are you the only mage in your village? Aren’t there others that he could... tutor?”
“Of course,” he said, turning away from me and running his fingers through his hair. “But for some reason he fixated on me. That’s why I left the village and came here; he was never going to leave me alone.”
“So now he comes here,” I muttered, looking out of the window.
“Sky, you can’t fight them. He’ll bring a few of his friends with him, and they’re prepared to do whatever it takes to take me back to the Mountains.”
“I’ll be beside you every second of that day,” I said sternly. “Just try to get rid of me.”
~Chapter Twenty-One~
To my disbelief, the mages from Gowar and Abdoor arrived the day after next, early in the morning. I watched with the other students as they came from Keyes, riding the most magnificent horses I’d ever seen, bar Echo. They wore long sweeping cloaks, surveying the Academy as they drew closer. I realised that all of them would’ve been schooled here. A few students like Ispin and Eleanora broke ranks and ran to those they recognised, who dismounted to embrace them.
Iain and Netalia swept out to meet them, their cream cloaks billowing in the autumn breeze. I stood next to Dena and Rain as we watched them head to the stables.
“So many,” Theresa said behind us. “Why does this make me even more nervous?”
True to his word, Iain had offered the students protection if they didn’t want to fight. No one had taken up his offer.
However, he had neglected to tell them that Phoenix was the object of their desire. Instead he had told us to stick together.
“We’ll keep you on the upper levels. The rest of us will be down stairs to meet them as they try to come in,” he had said. “Keep close to each other.”
Phoenix had blatantly refused refuge in the catacombs beneath the Academy. He was determined to fight, and if it came to it, come face to face with his monster of a foster father.
“I’ll end it if I can,” Phoenix had said, and I didn’t want to ask him what he’d meant.
The day that the other mages
arrived, the Academy was a hive of activity. Today, as it had been every day since we’d begun weapons training, Jett was endlessly drilling us. As night began to fall, we expected the class to come to a halt. Instead, Jett set about rigging up some contraption that involved six sandbags hanging from the ceiling.
“Alright. These mages are cowards,” Jett nodded an apology at Phoenix, who accepted it with a half shrug. “They’ll attack one mage with six. This is to teach you how to manage several enemies at once.”
For the next twenty minutes I watched as the other students attempted to fend off the sandbags. Jett controlled them with his magic, commanding the ropes to shorten so that they would swing higher and faster, dropping the ropes lower so they would be slow but deadly. I watched Dustin fight them off for about two minutes, using his scythe. It was when Dustin began to tire that Jett sent all six at him simultaneously. He was knocked out.
“And that’s exactly what they’ll do,” Jett explained, as Eleanora revived Dustin with magic. “When they see you tiring, they’ll attack in force. It’s extremely dangerous.”
Phoenix went next, using small throwing daggers to split the ropes holding the sandbags (and in theory incapacitating the mage the sandbag resembled). He got three before the other three converged on him, one clipping him on the back of the neck and sending him into another that took him out. I winced.
The rest of them ended up with pretty much the same results. Eleanora held them off longest out of anybody, using her arrows to sever the ropes. Eventually she was taken out by one she’d forgotten, turning her back to it. It walloped her in the back of the head, and she hit the floor hardest out of anyone. I was left until last and by then I was itching to try.
“Ok, Sky.” Jett called, gesturing for me to take my place. He’d repaired the ropes and all six sandbags now waited menacingly.
“Can I use the swords?” I asked tentatively. The students looked at each other; they remembered Netalia’s fury at my using them.
Jett nodded slowly, and removed them from the wall. I settled them on my back, their weight now familiar.
I stepped into the centre of the circle and took a deep breath. The first sandbag swung at me and I rolled out of its path, feeling the swords cut into my shoulder blades but not drawing them; I would wait for the opportune moment.
Soul Fire Page 24
