by Andur
From time to time we get visited by my grandmother Quamar. That's the only complaint I have about my life. Quamar seems to hate me. She is a real dragon. Luckily my mother can keep her at bay. The old hag even once tried to attach some kind of curse to me. Luckily I could counter the spell which baffled her. Afterwards she started to ramble something about dark magic and the spawn of evil.
The other visitors to the household are some servants who only show up for cleaning and vanish again like a breeze of the wind.
Oh, I almost forgot about Daylen, he is my father's advisor. But he doesn't concern himself with me at all. He just shows up to talk with my father about stuff regarding the city and that there are much more people who try to cheat with the taxes these days. Well, I think there aren't more than before. The difference is just that the guy who is calculating the tax reports has changed. “Haaa...”
My aunt Jade joins him from time to time to do some small talk with my mother. I like her visits because she always brings me a present. She seems to be very grateful to me for saving her life.
I blink and look at the wristwatch on the table in front of me. It's a very delicate device. I used telekinesis to carve the nuts, bolts and gears out of metal. It's a hobby of mine to build clocks in my free time. I am fascinated by these devices which are meant to measure time, but fail inevitably.
Just one last gear. I take a forceps and try to insert the last gear into its place. Of course I could assemble the whole clock with telekinesis. But this task is like meditation to me. It would be boring to use...
*BAM!*“Azir!”
“Darn!”
Valda kicked the door to my room open and stormed inside. I was so surprised that I flinched and deformed one of the gears. “A week's work! Mom, what is it?” I turn to my mother and look accusingly at her.
“Did you play through the entire night again? I told you that you have to sleep at night!” She snorts and holds a bag towards me. “Whatever. I'll have to take a look at your sleeping habits.” She holds a bag towards me. “Take that and come. We can't be late, or you have to wait another year.”
I grab the bag which is made out of hard leather and take a look inside. All this stuff inside it looks strangely familiar, but I can't place them in the right context. “Late for what?”
Valda grabs my hand and pulls me from my chair. “School of course! You are five years old and a new semester is starting.”
“School?” My eyes turn big and round upon the dreaded word. “But I am not five! I am a little less than four years in this world! And what could a school teach me? I probably know more about...”
“That's not what the forged documents say.” Mother doesn't care and pulls me forward. “They may not be able to teach you anything new, but you'll at least learn some common knowledge and common sense. And you'll learn the ropes in dealing with your generation. Maybe you manage to forge some important future connections with other clans.”
I furrow my eyebrows while we leave the house. “How does school in this world even work?”
Mother smacks her head. “You are so smart in most areas. I always forget that you are a complete dunce in some things. Listen. Since you are talented in magic you have to enter the great academy in central city at the age of five. Don't worry, it's just a short trip through the City Gate with a carriage. Then you get a standard education until the age of fifteen. If you prove worthy, you can choose a higher education which lasts until you are twenty five. This also allows you access to the great Bibliotheca des Patres. It's a library with all the remaining knowledge of our forefathers. You may deem this price worthy to spend some time in a classroom.”
Maybe. Maybe not. But access to a famous library would be cool. Playing a student could be also interesting. I would have more than enough time to search for a suitable girl which is easy to manipulate. Or I could go for multiple ones.
*Smack!*
“Don't go down that route!”
“Ow! What was that for, Mother?” I rub the back of my head as we enter a carriage. Maybe I could go with one girl on every finger? One girl for each night as soon as I am old enough? Or even better, try all of them!
*Smack!*
“Think about the reputation of our clan! It has to be a good match! I won't allow just anyone.”
I gasp. “How... How the hell do you know what I am thinking!”
Valda snorts as the carriage starts moving. “I am your mother. I know you best.”
I place the leather bag protectively between me and her. “You've known me only for a little less than four years!”
She smiles with closed eyes and place one hand on her cheek. “~But to me it's like I've known you for all your life.~”
I look out of the window to avoid eye contact with her and watch the passing streets. The houses are made out of red bricks and the streets are neatly arranged. Tri doesn't look like a city which grew over time, but like it was designed at the drawing board and built accordingly.
The people who have no magic are all commoners, but according to my information they live a surprisingly good life. People with magic are something like protectors to them and the clans are almost worshipped.
Magic makes their lives easier and the artefacts, which are created by magicians, are helping in all aspects of daily life. Of course the clans are always working hard on their image to achieve this. There are rigorous penalties for anyone who harms a non-magician.
I watch the streets with people. Some of them are even bowing to the carriage. Then we arrive at the Gate. It's a simple huge ring with the broad street leading through it. The Gate seems to be made out of silver and the sun is being reflected on the surface which is covered with runes.
A steady stream of carriages is passing through it in both directions and we enter the row of waiting carriages. The row is moving steadily and it doesn't take long until we pass through.
The capital Nict on the other side isn't any different from Tri. The only change I can recognize, is that the sun is at a slightly different position in the sky.
“What do you say to the Gate?” Mom smirks at me.
“Neat device, but a bit clunky. I could build it smaller if I had the materials.” I continue to watch the streets until I realize that my mother is staring at me with a blank expression.
Then she sighs. “Don't tell that to anyone. It would create an uproar. Why am I even surprised about it?” She mumbles while she looks at the ceiling of the carriage.
I frown. “When I attempted to escape my dying world I built a similar teleportation device.”
She lifts an eyebrow. “What went wrong?”
I clear my throat. “That erm... when I was done, I activated it and teleported a test subject far, far away. I could clearly tell that everything worked properly. It was when I stepped onto the platform that I realized something... and that was that I had no idea where I should teleport to. Space is vast and most of it is empty. And I had just one try.”
Valda smirks. “That sounds like you. Ah, it seems like we arrived.”
The carriage stops and we step outside onto a huge plaza. There are bigger buildings than I saw earlier throughout the city. It's clearly the campus of the school. Valda leads me to one of the bigger buildings. “The campus is safe, but you shouldn't walk alone in the streets. The carriage will bring you here every morning and get you in the evening, just look for the sign of our clan on the carriage.”
I nod and we head towards a big building where we find a secretary waiting for us. Valda fills out some documents which are handed to her. Afterwards she hugs me and we say our goodbyes. A servant leads me to a classroom. The door is marked as 1C. From there on I am left to my own devices.
Without another choice I enter the room and find it in utter chaos. Children of my age are running left and right while playing with each other and screaming. This is hell!
I count eleven boys, including me, and twenty nine girls. Quite a big class. Forty students? The teacher's table is in fro
nt of a big chalkboard while the ranks of tables for the students are a little elevated. The classroom looks like a stadium.
“Move it!”
Suddenly I am shoved into the classroom. I glance behind me and find a man in his forties who makes shooing motions. He walks to the teacher's desk and slams his suitcase onto it. Then he turns to the class.
“SILENCE! Everyone who hasn't found a seat within ten seconds has to write ten pages with all letters of the alphabet until morning!”
Everyone scrambles to get a seat, but because I am still close to the exit there is no way for me to get up to the students' tables in time. The ranks are quickly filled. Only a few seats are left open in the farthest right corner at the back of the classroom.
A small girl is sitting there. Her hair is black and turns gradually white at the tips. That strikes me as a little odd. I never before saw someone with two hair-colours in this world. The free seats are arranged around her and I don't have much time left.
I throw myself into the chair right beside her. In the meantime the teacher starts unpacking his stuff. So I turn to the girl, grinning. First impressions are important. “Hi! My name is Azir. What's yours?”
The girl looks at me with a confused expression while pressing her lips together, turning them white. She doesn't answer and looks out of the window instead.
How rude! But then I hear the whispers.
“He sits beside the demon!”
“Mother said that I shouldn't talk to the regression.”
“Doesn't he know fear?”
“You shouldn't mingle with someone without a clan.”
9. ~School.~
“The Galith is said to hide in the dark and may take many forms, always using the most plain appearance to give its prey a false sense of security. But there is one feature at which you are always able to recognize it. And that is its black and white hair.
It lurks in the shadows and searches for meat. Children who aren't fast enough to get home before the sun sets disappear without being seen again. So be always at home at the right time.”
-Folklore, Tale to frighten little children.
Free City States of Nict, Nict
Azir
I've seen and learned many things on my previous world. As an archmage I didn't concern myself much with my people and spent most of my time on my studies. I thought that I had seen everything of the world and its cruelty.
Warlords, slavers, kings and murderers, they all pale compared to children!
A week has passed since this school business started and I am witness to something that can be called bullying. Stella, who is sitting right beside me, is shunned by the class. Apparently because her hair is unusual and her social background isn't up to their standards.
Stella is the daughter of two commoners, non-magicians. Apparently they had a magician in their line of ancestors. She was gifted with the talent and it was found out. It doesn't happen often, but it happens from time to time.
That also means that Stella has no clan, nobody of political power who could back her up. And since she is a magician, she has to visit this school and learn to control her powers. All magicians have to. Otherwise they would be declared as rogue magicians and that's not much better than being a dark magician. As long as Stella stays affiliated with the school she is safe.
I hum while I scribble the correct answers onto my test sheet. I am not sure why I am even here. At least there are others like me. We have four girls from the Siorda clan in our class and they seem to be bored too. Up until now we just learned reading, writing and a little general education.
Another downside is that Ingrid's daughter Annice Tinn is at this school. Luckily she is in another class, but that doesn't keep her from showing up from time to time. Thanks to that I became quite skilled at disappearing from the classroom during breaks.
Luckily the other girls aren't yet interested in the opposite gender and I guess that Annice is annoying me only because she was influenced by her parents. I don't think that this hag Ingrid would give her child a proper education.
I peek at Stella's test. All of her answers are correct. At least she isn't an idiot. Maybe she'll survive her school life and find a proper purpose later on.
The bell rings and we give our sheets to the teacher. Mr. Pendragon is our tutor and my impression of him is that he is a strict and bad mouthed fellow. But at least he seems to be fair. I place the paper on his desk and turn to return to my seat.
But Mr. Pendragon stops me. “Azir? I have noticed that you are done with your tests quite fast. Could it be that you aren't challenged enough? I could give you a Siorda test if you want to try yourself.”
I smile at Pendragon and shake my head. “I think that's not necessary. It's just that my parents hired a home tutor to prepare me. I would fail a test for a Siorda miserably.”
Mr. Pendragon nods. “I see.” He resumes collecting the tests. Puh. I have to be more careful in the future.
Back at my desk I turn my gaze towards Stella who is studying her textbook. “They will keep ignoring you if you don't attempt to break the status quo.”
I don't really expect an answer because Stella hasn't spoken to me for the entire week. But unexpectedly she closes her book and looks at me. “Why are you always speaking to me. They'll start to ignore you too and hide your stuff.”
“You are sitting next to me and the one who is supposed to sit to my right is three seats away. I don't want to shout during class, so that leaves only you.” That's logical, or is it not?
Stella's eyes wander to the boy who is sitting three seats to my left. “Then why aren't you sitting over there?”
“Because I don't want to change seats? I am closer to the window here.” It's obvious isn't it?
Mr Pendragon claps his hands and smiles at the class. “That's enough idle talk. We'll have our first magical lesson now...”
He continues to talk, but my mind is already somewhere far away. Do I really have to endure this until I am fifteen? My eyes wander to the trees behind the window while Stella attempts to cast a light globe according to Pendragon's instructions.
★
Why did it come to this? Let me recapitulate on what happened. The lesson on magic finally ended and I ran out of the classroom to enjoy my lunch in this park area. So why am I surrounded by four girls and two boys from my class?
One of the girls is a Siorda... Penneliu? Liu? Lulu? I can't remember her name, I never spoke to her. And I never spoke to the others either. Yet why did they follow me?
“You should stop concerning yourself with that commoner.” Lulu points at me with a stern expression. “You are a member of one of the great clans. It's making the great clans look bad.”
I smile at her. “Hahaha. I am sorry, but I don't know about the complicated stuff you are talking about. Are you saying that I can't speak with Stella?”
Lulu sighs. “It's so hard to speak with children from other clans. Simply stop speaking with her.”
“But I want to. The rest of the class is so high and mighty about them being members of a clan. It feels really refreshing to speak with someone who isn't burdened by all that.” I take a bite from my lunch bread and start chewing.
Lulu steps forward and slaps the bread out of my hand, sending it into the dirt. “A guy shouldn't talk back to a woman! You'll do as ordered, or we'll see to it that your school life goes down the gutter.”
My eyes keep sticking to my bread. “My mother said that I should protect our clan's reputation if someone ever showed disrespect towards me... and I guess this counts as self defence.”
“What?”
★
“Hmm... Hmm...” I hum while I am waiting in the office of the school's director. The director is an old hag. Her name is Clara Veit and right now she is reading a report with her right index finger on her temple. From time to time her eyes flick towards me and then back to the sheet.
I was called here after classes had ended. Nobody said a word. I was
just led here to the office and put into this chair. If I hadn't read the sign on the door, I wouldn't even know where I am. Probably it's about the incident in the park.
Finally she puts the sheet down and places her hands in a praying position while she looks at me. “Do you know why you are here?”
“My mother said that I shouldn't speak to strangers who are older than me.” I try to put on my most innocent expression.
Clara's face distorts into an expression which could be a smile, or something completely else. “I am Clara Veit and the director of this school. Do I need to get your mother to talk about this?”
“Um. No. I am Azir Zait. Pleased to meet you.” I bow to her.
Clara leans forward which makes her come a little too close. “Today six students from your class didn't show up for their lessons, so we started a search. We found them in the park.”
I nod. “Yeah, those guys. They weren't there during class. Mr. Pendragon was very mad.”
Clara inches closer yet again. “They were found. Someone bound them with their clothes, heels over head, to one of the bigger sculptures in the park. Leaving them naked and gagged.”
I make my eyes big and round while forming an 'o' with my mouth. “Who would do such a thing?”
Clara is now entirely too close and I can smell the breath of someone who should already rest in peace under the earth. “A student from the higher classes saw you skipping away from the scene, humming a strange melody. That made her curious, so she remembered it when we started the search.”
Tch! I start fiddling with my fingers and try to mimic a nervous child. Which child wouldn't be intimidated if he is treated like that? “I am sorry, but I only ate my lunch there. I didn't come across the scene you are talking about.”
Clara leans back again and scribbles something onto her document. “Too bad that the victims refuse to talk about what happened. No complaint, no redress. And since you've seen nothing... you may go.”
