The three burst into fits of uncontrollable laughter, momentarily shedding the stress that had built up within each of them. Gradually they each regained control of themselves and put away the books that Tamera had been poring over all morning. In their haste, as they shuffled papers together, closed and restacked books, an additional page of notes that Tamera had made was grouped in with the books. After tidying away the books and notes the trio left the Myth, Legend and the Occult section of the library and returned to the main library. Once there they found a study desk and began to delegate duties for the day in order to complete their various pieces of homework.
Had they been paying more attention as they hurriedly packed away the morning’s literature, they would have noticed the manuscript page that accidentally got trapped inside one of the books. They also would have noticed that the manuscript page was one of the few documents that Tamera had not got around to studying fully. And in due course it would emerge that this very document would indeed become particularly prevalent. Unfortunately it would be many months later and after facing down numerous other challenges that they would finally realise their mistake.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
THE SUBSTITUTE TEACHER
After leaving the library Gabriel started for home, musing over all that had transpired over the course of the weekend. Very quickly life had become incredibly complicated and difficult and he desperately needed to talk things over with his grandfather. But Omari had not been home for over a week, and even then he had barely spent more than a few minutes in the house whilst Gabriel was asleep. The same had been true of his other infrequent returns home recently. Why would he be able to stay for longer to talk today, if he even shows up at all? But this issue couldn't wait any longer. Gabriel feared that he may have already left it too long before reporting it. Grandmaster Bysonn and the gatekeeper Hookbeak were plotting with one another to bring unspeakable terror down upon the people of Sanctuary because of some ancient prophecy. Changing course, Gabriel proceeded with determination to the Council Chambers. He guessed that Omari would be lodged inside, immersed in Council matters yet again.
Since his arrival in Sanctuary, Gabriel had never been within even the remote vicinity of the Council Chambers (with the exception of looking up at it from the Theatre of Life on his first day). Therefore, for the most part he had to rely on his own instinct of the right direction to take in order to navigate his way there. He thought it prudent that he not attempt to find the secret passageway that Seth and Tamera had mentioned as that could potentially bring him dangerously close to one of the two people he was now hoping to avoid.
Cutting straight across the Suburban Caverns, Gabriel eventually found his way into the expansive foyer that housed the twelve enormous doorways into the theatre. He assumed that somewhere nearby would be a passage leading up to the Council's Chambers. He assumed wrong. After much fruitless searching, he exited the foyer and attempted to navigate his way around the exterior of the Theatre of Life. As best as he could he tried to follow a clockwise direction, keeping the theatre on his right, but in the labyrinthine maze of caverns, caves and passageways that was no easy task. Eventually, and by what Gabriel could only presume to be his own dumb luck, he stumbled across a grand and well-illuminated passageway that spiralled upwards. Long, broad steps had been carved into the floor so that the passageway now resembled more of a grand staircase than a corridor. The walls looked like they had been shaped and crafted by hand. The curved walls and ceiling arced round seamlessly in an almost perfect cylinder, so that one could not tell where the walls ended and the ceiling began. In contrast to the flawlessly smooth steps however, the walls and ceiling were decorated with intricately carved, ornate patterns. These patterns, although reminiscent of those that one may see in the natural world, were at the same time unlike any that Gabriel had ever seen before. At regular intervals, and in place of lanterns, pumpkin-sized wells thrust out from the walls, from which red-violet flames billowed forth engulfing the passageway in a warm, soothing glow.
Gabriel climbed the stairs and made his way up towards the Council Chambers. At the top of the staircase, the hallway stretched backwards so far that the guard posted at the far end of it appeared no bigger than a matchstick. All along the long corridor the ornate carvings of the ceilings and walls, and perfectly smooth, polished floor continued unabated. Despite scouring the walls as he walked along, Gabriel had no idea where the secret passage that Seth and Tamera had emerged from was, or could even have been concealed. As he neared the doors to the Council Chambers, the guard stepped out and blocked his path, readying his enormous battle-axe.
Gabriel froze, staring in horror at the mighty blade hovering inches above his face. With a shaft almost three metres in length, the lethal weapon carried a two foot long razor-sharp spear at one end and an equally large curved axe at the other. Gabriel shuddered at the thought that the weapon looked as though it could cleave a cannonball in half just as easily as it could a ripe melon. As the curved axe-blade grinned menacingly down at him, Gabriel felt a lump the size of a grapefruit in his throat which took him several attempts to swallow back.
‘HALT!’ commanded the guard in a deep, gravelly voice, ‘Nobody is permitted here without the proper authority, and it is my guess that you, cub, do not have it!’
Gabriel felt his tension ease as the guard lowered the axe.
‘Oh, Styne, I didn't realise it was you. Hi! Look I need to see my grandfather urgently. Could you tell him that I'm here?’
‘Negative. The Council cannot be disturbed once in session.’
‘Yes, I understand that but this is an emergency. I think Sanctuary could be in danger!’
‘Regardless, you cannot be permitted to enter the Chambers.’
‘I know but if you could just-’
‘Impossible.’
‘Look I am going to speak to my grandfather. I've already lost one home, I am NOT going to lose another! So you can either step aside and let me in, or try and chop my head off, but one way or another I'm getting inside!’
Styne gave an amused snort. ‘I wouldn’t have to try, I would succeed.’
‘Whatever. I’m not going anywhere until I speak with my grandfather.’
‘Then you will be in for a long wait,’ Styne said, ‘Omari is not here.’
‘You mean he's at home? Why didn't you say so? I'll just-’
‘No. I mean he's not in Sanctuary. At least not currently.’
‘What? Then where...?’
‘Due to the current turbulent climate, Omari has been forced away on an urgent diplomatic trip to other Colony habitats across the world.’
‘WHAT! Since when?’
‘He left early last Saturday morning.’
‘When will he be back?’
‘I am not privy to that information. Neither are you.’
‘But... but why did he not tell me he was leaving?’
‘The Council fears that if word got out about his absence, then panic would ensue. And if word reached the Reptilians then they would seize that opportunity to strike.’
‘But that's what I'm here to tell him and the Council – I know who the traitors are!’
Styne reeled back as if he had suffered a violent shock and for a brief moment looked rather unsettled. Regaining his composure, he said, ‘How could you possibly know that?’
‘I overheard them plotting together.’
‘Overheard who?’
‘Grandmaster Bysonn and Hookbeak.’
‘Bysonn and Hookbeak?’ Styne was sceptical. ‘Are you sure?’
‘Absolutely. They were in the school basement talking about some ancient prophecy and the most effective time to initiate their objective.’
Styne’s jaw tensed. ‘And when do they plan to initiate it?’
‘They weren't specific about that exactly...’
‘And did they mention what this objective was?’
‘Well, no they didn't mention that either, but-’
S
tyne shook his head dismissively. ‘So they didn’t mention what they were going to do or when they were going to do it?’
‘No...’
‘And you think that this is reliable intelligence on their supposed act of treason?’
‘I... um...’
‘I do not have time for this garbage and the Council most certainly doesn’t. Grandmaster Bysonn is exceptionally good at his job and has earned the respect of the entire Council. And Hookbeak, for all his personality defects, continues to selflessly protect our home. Do you really intend to tarnish their good names with conjecture and speculation alone?’
‘Good names...? But what about the fact that Hookbeak left his post? Or that him and Bysonn chased me though the entire school?’
Styne let out an impatient snort. ‘Even the best of us need to relieve ourselves at some point, and Hookbeak has apologised profusely for that. And as for chasing you through the school... Well let me ask you this: should you have been in the school basement in the first place?’
‘Not really, but-’
‘Did you announce to them that it was you that was eavesdropping?’
‘Well no, I-’
‘Then how were they supposed to know that it wasn't a spy that they had discovered?’
Gabriel was flummoxed. He was convinced that Bysonn and Hookbeak were up to no good, but it seemed as though Styne had an answer for everything. When it came down to it, what Gabriel's account lacked was proof. It was useless to pursue the issue any further until he could gather irrefutable evidence against them.
Unfortunately he had no idea how he could do so.
Gabriel bid Styne farewell and with a heavy heart set off for home.
***
The next day, with a great deal of trepidation, Gabriel left for school. After all, it was only two days previously when he had fled the school in fear for his life. Gabriel met with Seth and Tamera shortly after he left the house and the three of them continued on to school together. The commute was mostly uneventful, apart from when Aures somehow managed to drop his backpack containing his all of his schoolbooks for the day in the middle of Wingtail Lake during the boat crossing. The bag sunk quickly without a trace. At this, the little toll boy snickered quietly into his hand, the elder nymph girls rolled their eyes mockingly and the Boatman continued on rowing obliviously. Tamera tried to console the wailing Aures, whilst Gabriel and Seth, trying desperately to suppress their own laughter at Aures' clumsiness, offered to share their books with him in class.
As they disembarked on the far shore, Sattan galloped over to meet them.
‘Have you heard the news?’ he asked frantically.
Their stomachs dropped. Gabriel, Seth and Tamera shared glances with each other that suggested they each had the exact same thought: Bysonn knows.
‘Wh-what news?’ Gabriel managed finally.
‘They’re making us take swimming lessons! Swimming! Have you any idea how ill-equipped hooves are for swimming? Look at these,’ Sattan motioned to his feet, ‘do they look like paddles?’
All three let out a huge sigh of relief.
Tamera said, ‘Oh, Sattan, calm down! I’m sure it’s not as bad as all that!’
‘Not as bad as all that? Have you ever tried swimming with blocks of wood tied to your feet? ‘Cos hooves are even more awkward than that!’
‘I dunno, swimming might actually be pretty fun!’ said Seth.
‘Of course you’d say that! You’ve got canine blood in you! You guys should be reclassified as amphibians!’
‘Hey!’ Seth protested.
‘Sattan, for Gaia’s sake, calm down!’ Tamera said.
‘Are you kidding me? I’ve got precious few hours to try to forage something – anything – that even resembles flippers, or feet for that matter, otherwise I’m a dead faun!’ With that he charged off again.
Sure enough after lunch the class was instructed to report to the school swimming pool where they were met by Master Octus. The school swimming pool was in fact the very same pool over which Master Macropus had held Gabriel’s first jumping-focussed Physical Potential lesson. With the platforms removed, the pool looked enormous, stretching out across the cavernous space like an ocean. Gabriel felt all of his fears of water racing back with a vengeance.
Although he had seen Master Octus on occasion around the school, most notably when he had punished Finn in the canteen, he had never really paid much attention to him. Master Octus was a cilophyte, a creature similar in appearance to the merfolk but with octopus-like tentacles instead of a fishtail. His bulbous, yellow eyes were sheltered behind a pair of large, round spectacles. Missing the arms of the frame, the spectacles were balanced precariously on his wide, flat and unusually long nose. Entirely hairless, Master Octus’ bulging cranium tapered down to a narrow chin giving his head much the same appearance of a party balloon. In spite of his awkward, squat appearance, Master Octus was an exceptional swimmer and possessed an almost unrivalled intellect. Similar to his cephalopod heritage, Master Octus was also capable of transforming both the colour and texture of his skin to reflect his mood or to use it as a method of camouflage. However, despite his highly unusual physical appearance, Master Octus dressed in a very conservative beige poncho.
As the students filed into the cave and assembled by the edge of the pool, he met them with as broad a smile as his tiny mouth would allow. ‘Welcome, students, welcome. For those of you that do not yet know me, I am Master Octus and as you have already been informed, I will be your swimming instructor until such a time that Master Tigris is able to re-join us and take up Survival Studies lessons again.’
There were a few quiet grumbles and mumbles amongst the class, much of which was coming from Sattan, who had been unable to find any suitable prosthetics to tie to his hooves. Gabriel took it upon him to break the relative silence, ‘Excuse me, sir, but how is Master Tigris doing? We’ve been told nothing.’
Octus sighed heavily, ‘Well that is because certain individuals believe that you should not be subjected to such troubling news. I, however, believe you should know the truth. Master Tigris’ condition is still critical I’m afraid. Unfortunately his attacker was able to inject a vast quantity of venom and as of yet a suitable anti-venom has not been formulated.’
The student body let out a joint gasp of shock.
‘W... wh... why is that?’ Gabriel persisted.
‘Well, the formulation of such a serum is a very difficult task. Reptilian venom has such a unique and complex chemical makeup that in order to formulate an anti-venom we need a pristine sample, ideally straight from the source. Once the venom has mixed with an individual’s bloodstream it becomes near impossible to isolate it. At the moment Master Tigris is surviving off of the most potent medicines we have available and his own immune system.’
The students let out another gasp.
‘Now, now, please try to stay positive. Master Tigris is an exceptionally strong individual and although the chances are remote, it is not entirely unheard of for an individual’s own immune system to overcome Reptilian venom. Now without further ado, onto the lesson... I am aware that an affinity with the water does not come naturally to us all,’ his gaze centred on Brutum, Rostrum, Sattan and Victor, all of which were staring intently at the pool with more than a little trepidation. ‘However, swimming is a skill that all are capable of achieving. Now everyone, get into your swimming costumes and into the pool!’
Master Octus proceeded to divide the class into three groups of varying ability: Aire and the mertwins were placed in the advanced group and were given a series of complex skills to practice, which included speed-swimming, leaps, dives and extensive underwater swimming trials. The intermediate group included: Alae, Root, Seth, Tamera, Verbera and Willow. They were given a similar set of activities, albeit simpler. The remainder of the class were grouped together as beginners and were given the simple task of swimming from one side of the pool to the other without drowning.
After struggling to swi
m to the other side of the pool and back Brutum, Rostrum and Sattan were exhausted. With hoofed feet they were each expending a substantial amount of energy with extremely limited progress to show for it. Aures too was struggling: his arms, legs and ears flailed around with all the coordination of an insect amidst its final death throes. With much hesitation, Victor had finally been coaxed into the pool by Master Octus, whereby he had proceeded to sink like a brick. His stubby arms and legs proved as effective at keeping him afloat as feathers would at slowing a plummeting anvil. Master Octus had wrenched Victor from the pool, which is where he remained for the duration of the lesson, coughing and spluttering and griping about his near death experience to anyone within earshot.
Compared to the others in his group, Gabriel came off looking quite adept at swimming. However, that is not to say the lesson went entirely without incident. On numerous occasions he was forced to stop mid-length after swallowing a mouthful of water, quietly thanking the fact that Master Octus had directed them to the shallow end of the pool where he was able to stand. At the same time, he also quietly cursed him for instigating the lesson in the first place. The pool water was not the clean, chlorinated water that he was familiar with from swimming pools in the human world, instead it was filtered in from the sea water of Wingtail Lake and tasted absolutely revolting.
As Master Octus turned his attention momentarily to the intermediate group, Finn seized his chance with malicious relish. With one mighty flick of his tail, Finn sped the length of the pool like a shark sensing blood and resurfaced a few feet in front of the floundering Gabriel.
Wearing a look of utter contempt, Finn hissed with disdain, ‘Well, well, well. Look at the miserable hybrid, thrashing around like a drowning rat.’
Planting his feet on the floor of the pool and steadying himself, Gabriel replied, ‘Rats can swim, idiot.’ He started to wade past.
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