Chapter 7
Ryan:
“What fuel are these torches using?” Erin asked, with a look at the lighting along the walls of the staircase.
“Oil, I believe,” Sensei said. “Why do you ask?”
“The fire seems to be moving… a little slowly,” she said.
I looked at the torches as we continued downward. There didn’t seem to be anything special about them. They seemed pleasantly predictable, even normal, at least when compared against everything else that had just happened.
“Perhaps, now that you have discovered your talent, you are seeing your element more clearly,” Sensei suggested.
I considered his words. When I was flying, the air had seemed thicker somehow, like layered blankets, or waves. As I recalled that feeling, I observed the air in the stairwell. I guessed there was a slight breeze, tending upward, hot air rising, with the smoke and heat from the torches. Dry air. Whoa. If there was something positive to be found, maybe this new awareness, this talent, was part of it.
I misplaced my footing and nearly tripped. Erin’s hand was on my arm. “Careful,” she said.
“Sorry,” I said, readjusting the strap chafing my shoulder, careful not to let the scythe slip.
“I was trying to look at the air like you were looking at the fire,” I explained.
“What did you see?” Sensei asked.
“It’s going up, I think. Smoke and heat,” I said with a shrug. “Nothing special.”
“The wind may show you very little in tight spaces like this,” Sensei said, “but if you learn to listen to it, you may find yourself hearing a great deal.”
“Hey, I feel like I can almost see through the walls, the stone walls,” Jason said from behind me. “There must be a chink, a larger than normal gap between stones. If I knew more about buildings, I might say the stress is going to be uneven.”
I looked at him, amazed. There was a pause.
“How did I know that?” Jason said.
“Fish swim. Birds fly. Men survive. The talented try,” Sensei said, his rhythm almost sing-song as he continued downward, his voice echoing through the stairwell. “I have one friend who knows how to turn what she sees into a painting, another who might make a beautiful song out of an everyday object, and another who coaxes water out of the earth. Everyone has at least one talent. Some talents are rarer, and some talented people are more practiced, but all are useful. In some ways, all are equally inexplicable. Intuited, not explained.”
“Intuition,” Kris said. “That I can grab onto.”
“I find that talented women are especially intuitive, in general,” Sensei said, stopping at a door. He knocked.
The door opened a crack, and out stepped an older woman in a long nightgown. “Sensei,” she said, bobbing her head respectfully. “I take it that these are the two girls we discovered today?”
“Yes,” Sensei replied. “Kris, Erin, I would like you to meet Narin. She is in charge of the girls’ dormitory.”
“I’ve been anxious to meet you both,” Narin said in a sweet voice. “You four have begun some gossip already, with Sensei speaking directly to you so quickly.”
Sensei was about to say something, but Narin held up a hand. “Oh, of course, I don’t want to overwhelm you. We have some beds available, fresh linen of course, and I understand you didn’t bring any other clothes with you? We’ll get you a fresh change and see about your laundry before bed. You must be exhausted.”
Kris was ready with a smile. Erin was less enthusiastic. She glanced toward Jason and me. “Where are you taking the boys?” she asked.
“The boys dormitory is the next floor down,” Narin said. “You’ll meet up again during tomorrow’s training, I’m sure.”
“Training?” I echoed.
“Yes, of course,” Sensei said. “That is what we do here. The area surrounding the tower is quite dangerous. New faces appear all the time, like you four, though many are unfriendly. I hope you will consider joining us.”
“Well, it doesn’t seem like we have much choice in the matter,” Jason said, his voice cold.
Sensei turned away, with a shake of his head. “A fair point, and vital observation,” he said with some reluctance, as he continued slowly down the stairs. “You still have some important decisions to make, but they can wait until morning. Let’s go down to your dormitory. I hope that a night’s rest will rekindle your curiosity, and my patience.”
I found myself sending Jason a slight frown, and immediately focused back on Sensei, to follow the old man down the stairs.
“We’ll see you tomorrow Ryan… and Jason,” Kris said.
I returned a wave before the girls disappeared behind the door.
Sensei had stopped on the next floor. The door was open, and a stern-faced middle-aged man in a light robe had stepped out to join him on the landing. Sensei pointed us out to the man, who I took as the dormitory supervisor. He had a prominent, bushy mustache that extended up into his sideburns.
“We’ll talk more tomorrow,” Sensei said to him.
“Leave them to me,” the bushy-mustached dorm supervisor acknowledged. He immediately turned to us with the simple introduction: “I’m Hugo.”
Sensei disappeared around the bend of the stairs, and, with a clap on the back, Hugo ushered us inside the dormitory. “We’ve got beds, and some bedclothes for you, though you’ll have to wait until tomorrow for a wash.”
The voices inside the sprawling bedroom grew quiet for a moment before returning to a low murmur. There might have been fifty bunk beds along the outer curving wall, with perhaps a hundred guys in robes matching Hugo’s.
“There are two beds together, about halfway back,” the dorm supervisor said, with a gesture. “If they look unoccupied, take ’em. Robes should be there. If you have any questions, ask the guy next to you. ...Hey, Cullin, what about that laundry?”
He left us there.
We walked back, and got a few incredulous looks from the guys nearby, though most seemed focused on getting ready for bed.
When we reached an unoccupied bunk, Jason said, “I got bottom; fly-boy goes on top.” He smiled.
“Ha. Fair enough. Stay close to the ground.” I put a hand and foot on the ladder, but Jason touched my shoulder. I turned around to meet his anxious look.
“Seriously, though, we need to get some things straight,” he said. “What do you think of Sensei?”
I rubbed the temples of my forehead with my free hand. “I’m… not sure. I guess we know where the guy stands, more or less,” I answered, letting my optimism show through.
”I’m not so sure,” Jason replied. He nervously tapped the leg of the bunk bed. He seemed to be waiting for me to say something.
“Well, I mean, Sensei showed us our talents. It really seems like he wants to teach us, to help us,” I suggested.
“It could be all an act. We don’t even know this guy.” He was thinking aloud, I realized, talking mostly to himself. “It’s too coincidental: the old man Devidis zapping us with… whatever that black crystal was. And now here’s this other old man calling himself Sensei…”
“Well, yeah, I thought it was a pretty big coincidence... and we know that Devidis is not exactly our friend, but we’ve got to trust someone,” I said. “Not all old men are like Devidis.”
Jason shook his head, frustrated, and grabbed the robe from his bed.
Not wanting to leave the matter unsettled like that, I added, “Hey, I don’t like it either. Sensei deserves a chance, though. But you’re right, too. It’s suspicious.”
I looked around. The guys near us seemed caught up in their own routines, but I made sure to keep my voice low as I said, “It’s like you said. We don’t have much choice. This is all pretty insane. Especially the talents part. I’ll tell you this, though: no matter what happens, we’re in it together. It’s you, me, Erin and Kris.” I stuck out my hand.
Jason hesitated, leaning on the bunk. “Elementals,” I added, just above a whisp
er. It was a word of grandeur, and I was unable to keep a straight face.
The larger boy gave me a harsh look, that broke into grin. He grabbed my hand and shook it firmly. “Well, like the man said, we’re not ready for that title... but I guess we’ll see how things look tomorrow.”
Legend of the Elementals, Book 1: Reintroduction Page 7
