Nightborne Academy

by Jessica Morris

  There's a knock at the door and I lift my head. The shadow disappears from my sight, melting back into the darkness. I force my body up with a groan and walk to the door to wrench it open.

  Doc Reese, no, one of his clones, stands there with Courtney behind him. The panic on her face gives me a moment of joy, but I look to the clone.

  "You're late."

  "I thought I had four hours until your shift ends."

  He smiles at me, a little more warmth than an ice block. "You will be taking a magic defense class, so we will have to fit and calibrate you with new bands before you enter the classroom."

  "Ah, that makes sense. What do I need to bring?"

  "A notebook and pen, whatever you need for class." His gaze moves toward Courtney, but only I can see it since she's behind him. "And whatever else you feel is necessary for your first day of school."

  I smirk. Don't leave behind things that can be stolen. Got it. "Give me five minutes and I'll be ready."

  Courtney moves forward and the clone holds out his arm, preventing her from entering.

  "We'll be waiting."

  I close my door and turn around to stare at the room. The window opens and I see a puff of smoke and then a too-familiar face staring back at me as he crouches on the sill. His silver hair shines in the moonlight. The guy from the front gate.

  The shadow melts from the darkness and speaks quietly to the other.

  The smoke guy waves his hand and a feeling of warmth covers me.

  "What did you do?"

  "Privacy spell. Tell me which of your things she went through."

  "Why should I?"

  "I work with Detective Cutter. Doctor Reese is going off duty. I'm his replacement as your protection detail." He jumps down off the sill and walks through the room, eyeing everything with a slightly bored expression. "You would have officially met me at the infirmary, but someone couldn't keep her hands out of your stuff." He walks to the desk and picks up the crumpled envelope. "This is from the detective for you. Don't let anyone else read it."

  "What if she already did?"

  He shrugs. "Don't know. I'm just telling you what he told me. But if I were the detective, I’d make sure the letter is spelled for privacy so that only you can read it."

  "Then tell me earlier."

  He laughs and drops the envelope on the desk. "Your new bff was in a hurry to put you in your place."

  "Were they really best friends?"

  He stops moving and eyes me from head to toe. "You're almost exactly like Lacey."

  My hands tremble and I shove them in the skirt pockets, thankful to have a place to hide them. "Isn’t that obvious? We're identical twins."

  "That's not what I'm talking about. Get your gear together. I'll be following you during my shift and I hate wasting time."

  I narrow my gaze at him. "Won't it be obvious that you're following me?"

  He chuckles. "No one can see me unless I want them to."

  He turns to smoke and moves. My gaze follows and I arch an eyebrow when he pops up again.

  His body stiffens and he does it again, popping close to me. I back off before he appears and he catches me, trapping me where I stand. "You can see me."

  "Of course I can."

  He turns to smoke once more and hits the windowsill. He turns solid and sits on the sill, watching me with much more interest than before.

  "You are going to be fun. Try not to give me away when I follow you. Stealth is important for protecting you from evil murderers and psycho best friends."

  "Okay." So, me being able to see him is weird. Does that mean his smoke form is a ghost or spirit form?

  "Get ready. I'll put a lock on the room so that only you can enter. The spell is active for forty-eight hours. Use that time to read through your father's letter and the letter from Cutter. Then call me. I'll burn them for you."

  "Why?"

  He chuckles. "It's like they're just asking you to walk right into the slaughterhouse. Stay out of trouble until it's my turn to protect you."

  "And then what?"

  "Get into as much trouble as you want. I'm bored out of my mind here." He turns to smoke and disappears through the window.

  I huff out a sigh and close the window behind him, the warmth of his spell still lingering on me. The trembling has stopped and the aches and pains in my body have eased. Was his spell the reason? "Time to get moving."

  I throw my dad's letter and the envelope on the desk into my backpack. The shadow stares at me and I shrug. "Why would I trust a guy who breaks into my room on the second floor?"

  The shadow melts back into the darkness and I open the door. Doc Reese's clone stands exactly where I left him and I can see Courtney in the middle of pacing back and forth in the hallway. "Let's go," I say with a smile.

  10

  The walk to the infirmary is scenic. Midnight flowers bloom along the pathway and the moon is bright enough to illuminate the ground. Courtney and the doc’s clone both use lamps, and I wonder if I should have one, too. "Why aren't there any streetlights?"

  "There are, we just don't use them in the off season. Less than 1% of the Academy population remains on campus during winter break." The clone walks beside me, making sure to light my way. Courtney, on the other hand, seems to want to avoid me at all costs, straying to the other side of the doc.

  The truth is, hurting her was never my intention and I don't know what's happening to me. The ice, the power,that was something ghosts did. Not humans. I stretch out the hand I used on Courtney and try to call ice again. Nothing happens. I pull my palm close to my face and flip it over and back, searching for some damage or sign that it actually happened.

  Did Lacey help me?

  If so, why isn't she showing up? Warmth is fading in my body and I shiver in the cold. I guess silver-haired guy’s shield reached its limit.

  "Is something wrong with your hand?" Doc's clone asks me, and I drop my hand back to my side.

  "No." I see a flash of smoke and the guy from before moves ahead of us. The warmth from his previous spell dissipates completely and I'm left trembling.

  "We're almost there."

  I nod and fight the weight of exhaustion as it pulls on my limbs. How much of a boost did he give me earlier when he cast that spell?

  We reach the doorway and I see the doc and the smoke guy hanging out together. The headmistress stands by a window, iron gaze locked on me the moment we enter. I clench my jaw and try to hide my body's reactions, but an arched eyebrow is all I get for my effort.

  "Courtney," she snaps, and the girl jumps in fright.

  "Here, ma'am." Her voice is a hoarse whisper.

  "Is there something you'd like to tell me?" She asks the question quietly, deadly intent hidden in her terse tone.

  Courtney shakes under that gaze, and I realize she's terrified of the headmistress. Instinct has me step between them and the woman's eyes stay on me the entire time. "Thank you for sending Courtney to help me. Her lessons have been enlightening."

  "Is that sarcasm?" The headmistress puts a finger on her lip and smiles at me, canines on full display. "I see four days near death hasn't done much to curb that temper of yours. Do you really think you should be interfering with this?"

  My entire body shakes with fright at the gleam of amusement in her eyes. She wasn't supposed to be able to hurt any of the students in the Academy, but there are a thousand ways to torture someone without directly causing bodily harm. And there's no telling if mental anguish is excluded. Dad taught me about loopholes in magic. He uses them regularly. "Interfering? I'm not being sarcastic. Thank you for sending her my way. I hope she'll continue helping me in the future."

  The entire room stares at me, even Courtney.

  She sighs. "This child. Being kind to someone who does wrong to you is foolish."

  "Using someone else's power to get revenge is cowardly. If I can't handle this, how can I expect to help you all?"

  "She has a point." Doc Reese smirks and sits on
the edge of his desk. "If the schoolgirl spat is over, I'd like to get the magic switchover finished so I can get some sleep." He opens a case and waves me to his side.

  I ignore the headmistress and position myself in front of him.

  "These have been calibrated based on the tests I've run on you while you were sleeping. Blood, magic analysis, and spellcraft all confirm that you have death magic."

  Courtney gasps beside me and I stare at the choker in his hand.

  "What does that mean?"

  "Not sure. We've only had a handful like you in the past."

  "But she can cast freezing magic," Courtney blurts out.

  Doc Reese raises his eyebrows and stares intently at me, making me feel more like a bug every passing second. "Elemental magic?" He puts the choker down and pulls something out of his pocket. "Tilt your head down so I can put this around your neck."

  "What is it?"

  "An elemental magic tester. If you have ice and death magic, you may be more powerful than these can contain." He grins at me as he slips it over my head.

  The amulet drops against my chest and the exhaustion from earlier intensifies until I can barely keep my eyes open. Why was he pretending like he didn't know about the ice magic? Didn't his shadow tell him?

  "Ah, no luck." He sighs and takes it off.

  My body lightens and a surge of energy flows through me. I never want to deal with that thing again.

  "No elemental sensitivity."

  "But she froze my arm."

  The doc glances at a clone and it steps forward to touch her forehead. "No damage detected. If she really cast an ice spell on you, the flesh wouldn't recover so quickly."

  "But—"

  "Wait outside," Doc interrupts, and one of his clones escorts her out of the room.

  "Now, where were we?" He picks up the choker. "This is made from elementium silver. It's formed through our metallurgy division. It's not available in your world since it requires magic and enchantments to form its structure. This metal will block your ability and protect you from harm while on this campus. If you leave school grounds, it will turn off, signaling your escape. Anyone caught out of bounds will be arrested and imprisoned until their trial."

  "Imprisoned?"

  He glances over at the headmistress and I hear her sigh.

  "Every student on this campus is capable of killing you in a heartbeat. Some of them have committed murder, others crimes you don't want to know about. Consider this as the only thing that can keep them from ripping you to pieces." The headmistress strides forward. "Hand me the choker." She takes it in hand and opens it. "Once this is on, it will only be taken off when we release you from it."

  "Will it backfire on me like it did Lacey?"

  She puts it on my throat and the scar on my neck tingles. I clench my jaw and hold back the shuddering. After a moment of adjustment, it fits firmly against my throat, covering the mark.

  "This is an updated model. You don't need to worry." The doc hands over the bracelets. They're small and dainty in appearance, silver chains covered in runes that make me dizzy when I look at them.

  A few words of an incantation are whispered and the weight of them disappears. I see them on my wrists, but unlike normal bracelets, they remain perfectly still against my skin.

  She steps back and smiles at me, a genuine, heartfelt smile that leaves chills on my flesh. "Welcome to Nightborne Academy. We normally have a welcoming ceremony, but we can't do that for you now. The certificate will be given to you later."

  I look toward the doc for explanation.

  "It's a certificate of enrollment stating that you've gone through the ceremony."

  "I don't need one." I run my finger against the one at my throat. This is like getting praised for accepting a leash and collar. No thanks.

  I see her expression harden for a split second and I wince, remembering that she can read my thoughts.

  Doc clears his throat and the headmistress comes back to herself. "Well, stay out of trouble. Let Courtney guide you. And hurry up and learn how to defend your thoughts from others. It's exhausting hearing your mind shouting every time you get upset."

  With that, she brushes past me and exits, stilettos clacking on the tile floor.

  11

  The silver-haired smoke guy blows out a low whistle and pops up next to me. "Do you have a death wish?"

  I ignore him and focus on Doctor Reese. "I nearly froze her arm earlier."

  "I know. Shadow told me. But it's not elemental magic." He reaches over to touch the choker around my throat. "How does it fit?"

  "The scars on my neck and wrist are uncomfortable with something covering them."

  He makes a noise in his throat and adjusts them slightly, leaving me with more space between the skin and metal. "What did you feel when you hurt the girl?"

  "Anger. Resentment. Frustration that she tried to steal something and pretend like it wasn't a big deal."

  "Whatever you did drained her completely. I had to reinforce her reserves with magic of my own." The smoke guy smiles at me when I glance over. "She can see me move, too."

  "Really?" The doc puts his hand on my forehead and warmth seeps into my head.

  Smoke guy is wearing black slacks with a button-up white shirt. The sleeves are rolled up to his elbows and a jacket with the Academy logo is folded over his arm. A different outfit than what he wore when he stopped by my room. Even his hair is neater. How quickly did he change before I got here? "What's your name?"

  "Curious about me?"

  "No." I close my eyes.

  "Aw, come on. I was kidding. My name is Grayson."

  The doc releases me, and I open my eyes to look at smoke boy. Grayson. “That’s an interesting name.” The smoke around him seems more intense than before. And his smile doesn't quite reach his eyes. It's easy to see the glimmer of the choker and bracelets on his dark skin. "Can the headmistress see you when you’re in your other form?”

  “No one can see me.”

  Except me. But I don’t say it. “You're a student here."

  "I am." He crosses his arms. "Any other observations?"

  I tilt my head and observe him from head to toe. "You don't like authority."

  The doctor chokes on a laugh.

  "Go on," Grayson says, his smile dropping a notch. The smoke around him intensifies.

  "You're afraid of the headmistress." Otherwise, why would he change back into his school uniform?

  "Who isn't?"

  "Okay." I stare at him. "Casting the spell to help me earlier exhausted you."

  Reese looks at him and Grayson rolls his eyes.

  He clicks his tongue. "Too bad, kid. I'm fine."

  "Whatever you say." I smirk and shove my hands in my skirt pockets.

  "Just out of curiosity," Doc interrupts our stare-down. "What made you think he exhausted his power?"

  "He's having trouble maintaining his solid form."

  "What do you mean?" The doc turns to look at him and Grayson stares back at me in shock.

  "I see smoke around him. Black and gray. Silver tendrils like his hair. When he changes forms, it’s the same color and style that’s already around him. You mentioned that creating clones exhausts you, so it seems logical that him showing more of his smoke meant he was tired."

  "Smoke?" Grayson poofs to smoke and then appears in front of me. "It looks like smoke to you?"

  "Yeah. It's different from Doctor Reese's ability, obviously, but you turn into a puff of smoke that travels from one place to another." They're both staring at me like I grew a second head. “It’s pretty interesting. Neat to watch. Are you guys related or something?”

  "First of all, we’re not related. Our power is completely different magic systems, but you should keep this ability of yours hidden." Doc's grin is gone, replaced by an expression that leaves me with chills.

  Hide my power. Like I haven’t had to do that for ten years already? Even here nothing changes. "Okay."

  "I mean it. No one
outside this room can know that you can see him in his other form. So if he moves, keep your eyes off him."

  "Got it." Did I make a mistake?

  Grayson runs a hand through his hair and sighs. "I'm going to catch a nap before class. Try to stay out of trouble." He turns to smoke and leaves.

  Doc taps me on the forehead. I knock his hand away and he shakes his head. "I told you not to watch him when he moves. His stealth is why he's your bodyguard."

  "Who else knows that's he's helping me?"

  "Detective Cutter. Headmistress Nightborne. Me. You. And him." He emphasizes the words. "No one else can know."

  "Didn't Courtney see him?"

  He chuckles and waves a hand, moving back to the chair behind his desk. With a sigh, he flops into the chair and stretches out. "Grayson is always in here. You'll see why very soon. Now get out of here and go to class. Come see me in two days so I can recalibrate your gear."

  I put my backpack back on my shoulder and turn away from him.

  "Don't forget to sign up for herbology prep, basic magic, and magic circuit theory during your cram sessions. Those classes will begin after Christmas, so use this time to prep for them."

  "Why those classes?"

  "They're the prep courses required to get into your culinary magic and herbology classes next semester. You'll need my signature to approve taking Medical Herbology one and two at the same time, so don't disappoint me."

  I glance over my shoulder at him and smirk. "There's not a test in this world I can't ace with enough practice and prep."

  "Bold words. Hope you live up to them. Now get out of here."

  Doc Reese is fun to deal with. He's scary when he gets upset, but his power is so interesting. And learning medical magic would save me some pain in the future.

  Courtney leans against the railing, staring out over the empty sidewalks, the lantern at her side. When I exit, she looks up and then away again. "What the hell do you think you were doing in there?"

  "Getting collared and leashed," I reply as I tug at the choker on my throat.