by W. M. Martin
The ruby doors parted and the students filed inside to the large common room. The Secarn enclave was very different from the Avior’s. They had a few things in common such as stairs leading up and down to various floors, high above or far below them. Each floor, no doubt, housing classrooms, training facilities and dormitories segregated for the male and female students.
That is where the similarities between those two clans’ enclaves more or less ended and Secarn had its very own unique signature to be sure. Where Avior’s gem of choice was clearly blue sapphires, Secarn’s walls, halls, floors and ceilings were beholden to blood red rubies. The chandeliers which hung elegantly and were spaced perfectly, were in the shapes of various spider species. The railing on the staircases seemed to move slightly as though an army of ants were crawling along them.
Their fireplace, which rested in the center of the room, was shaped like a giant dragonfly whose legs rested over the massive firebox. Its colossal ruby wings stretched far out and pointed to the four corners of the large room. The fireplace had a stunning hearth not unlike the one in the Avior common room. However, instead of blue sapphires, there were rubies that were larger in height and width than a man. The room was breathtaking. It also made Maggie’s skin crawl. She was surprised that she could feel complete revulsion and honest appreciation for the Secarn enclave’s beauty in equal measure, all at the same time.
Everyone walked into one of the classrooms on the second floor below the common room which they had entered from the Secarn Hall. It was a good sized and well lit room, given that most of the light seemed to pour out from a multitude of tiny lights peppering the ceiling. There were desks for the students to sit in and strangely enough, the legs were segmented like an insect’s. The backs of their seats were built to resemble transparent fly wings. Maggie found it unsettling to say the least.
“So who’s our instructor for this class?” Kylie asked Lucy.
Before she could get an answer, a tall, dark-skinned man, wearing a dark yellow cloak with ruby embroidery, and who had deep brown eyes and a baritone voice that slid very close in affectation to a soft bass, spoke up.
The tall, dark-skinned man said, “I am your instructor. My name is Mr. Carver. My totem, Aisha, is the lovely tarantula hawk buzzing around the room. She won't sting. Well, most of the time.”
Everyone looked at each other nervously. As brave as Maggie most certainly was, she did not want to get stung or bitten by anything. Even Lucy seemed to be leery. Alice moved in closer to Lester for safety and grabbed his hand. Thomas pretended to kiss his own hand passionately, mocking Lester and Alice. He revelled in his seemingly endless journey to embarrass his twin brother and the more that people laughed, the more Thomas loved it.
Mr. Carver continued, “Today you will all learn the basics of “Bracing.” That is the art of using your totem’s power to form a series of weapons. Many of you may decide to stay with the first weapon that is braced. Some may not. You will all, however, eventually settle on a weapon that is right for you, but it is essential that you learn how to produce a variety of weapons. This is taught so that you will all be able to protect yourselves. The dangers which you may all someday face will need to be combated with variety and improvisation. Our purpose as Guardians is to protect the humans from the knowledge of our existence and from the threat of the Fallen. Let’s see, who should go first?”
Mr. Carver’s dark-brown eyes swept the room and landed on Stephanie.
“Ms. Viridi, please step forward and brace for the class,” instructed Mr. Carver.
A lovely girl with a dark-yellow cloak clasped with a diamond shaped, ruby medallion with the image of a butterfly stepped forward. She had a light-olive complexion, green eyes and dark brown, curly hair.
Nigel bumped Maggie on her arm and whispered into her ear, “That’s Stephanie. She's the girl that has a butterfly totem named Max.”
Maggie responded in a whisper of her own, “Cool, do you think she’ll be able to do it?”
Nigel shook his head and said, “I have no idea. I hope she can do it. That'd be so awesome if she braced on her first try, it would also give me a little hope for myself!”
“I bet you'll get it on your first try, Maggie,” Kylie said.
“Yeah, no pressure, Bennett,” Lucy said.
Maggie felt a few beads of sweat crop up on her forehead. Suddenly a wave of serenity washed over her and from the recesses of her mind and the center of her heart, Elliot comforted her.
“We will succeed, Mags. If not today then tomorrow. If not tomorrow then the next day. We will succeed. I am with you. Always,” said Elliot.
Maggie wiped the drops of sweat from her brow, smiled and sighed, “Thanks, Elliot. I needed that.”
Stephanie stood calmly at the head of the class and stretched out her arm and opened her hand. Her palm lit up like flames dancing with careless abandon on dried brush. Slowly, but with a singular purpose, a pole-like weapon with a shimmering and seemingly sharp blade on the end appeared. Mr. Carver was pleased that Stephanie, a fellow Secarn, was able to brace on her first attempt.
He stated with pride, “Ah, I see that you have braced a jumonji yari, Ms. Viridi. A deadly weapon to be sure and an equally useful tool for defense. Very good. It is used in the martial art known as sōjutsu. Its translation literally means the ‘art of the spear.’ A fine choice indeed.”
Mr. Carver called Sara and two other boys forward. Oliver Wells from Clan Terran and Callum Young from Clan Okeaous. Oliver’s emerald, triangle medallion held the likeness of a large, roaring tiger and Callum’s pearl, star-shaped medallion was the image of an electric eel riding the currents.
Mr. Carver said, “Ms. Carlson, I would like for you, Mr. Wells and Mr. Young to please brace for the class next.”
Sara opened both of her hands and they pulsed with a bright light, rhythmically flashing like a pair of fireflies caught up in a wondrous dance, and a pair of nunchaku formed in the grip of each. Sara looked up with a huge smile and looked over to her left at Oliver who was admiring the beautiful longsword that had appeared in his hand after having been birthed from a torrent of light. She then turned to her right and giggled at Callum who was turning his hands over and glaring in astonishment at the strange spiked, metal gloves that were covering his hands.
Callum asked Mr. Carver, “What in the world are these?”
Mr. Carver answered, “You have braced a pair of cesti, Mr. Young. A cestus for each fist. Your totem apparently feels as though you are a rather proficient pugilist.”
Next, Mr. Carver called Lucy, Alice, Thomas and Jax Cooper, the boy from Terran. Almost immediately, after an explosion of radiance, Lucy held a beautiful katana with a razor sharp sapphire blade and a black tsuka which housed multiple sapphires in honor of Clan Avior. Alice had braced a pair of pitch black daggers, each blade was wavy and razor sharp. They seemed to steal the light that should have bounced off of them. Maggie thought to herself that the daggers were particularly devilish in appearance, especially when juxtaposed with their sweet owner. Thomas held a spiked ball mounted on a shaft, known as a morning star, out in front of himself and marveled at the weapon’s ferocity. Jax braced a pair of bearded axes, one for each of his young, strong hands. He twirled them and posed, heroically, for the cheering classroom.
Mr. Carver praised his students, “Very good, everyone is doing splendidly. Let us continue.”
After a while everyone had braced except for Maggie. Approximately half of the class had been successful in their attempts.
“Ms. Bennett, you are the last one in class who has yet to brace. Are you ready?” Mr. Carver asked.
“Yes sir. I think I am. I hope I am,” Maggie said half-jokingly.
She walked past her classmates, many of whom were still admiring their newly braced weapons, and took the front of the room. She turned, slowly with an air of nervous anticipation, to face them all. Maggie blew a strand of her light-brown hair out of her sky-blue eyes and opened her hand. She clos
ed her beautiful eyes and then she reached out for Elliot in her mind.
She thought to him, “What do you think, Elliot? I've never even held a sword. The only kind of weapon I've ever even touched was a bow and a few arrows at a summer camp a few years ago. The camp held an archery day for all of the kids who were there, and I did alright I guess, but I wasn't the best at it. It was fun though, I really did enjoy myself that day. Should we try to brace that?”
Elliot responded, “I can see your memory of that day, and you looked happy. I like when you are happy, Mags. Let us brace a bow.”
Maggie asked, a little worried, “What about the arrows? Will I be able to brace a quiver of arrows?”
“Yes,” Elliot answered before continuing. “You will not require a quiver however. All you will need to do is to draw back on your bowstring and our power will form any and all of the arrows which you could possibly desire. If you wish for multiple arrows to be braced, I shall make it so. If you wish for arrowheads with various abilities, I will make it so. Let us brace together, Mags.”
Maggie opened her eyes and smiled. Her palm, which was still unfolded, began to illuminate. As the radiance reached a crescendo, a soft blue luminescence, which appeared to make her hand look as though it were fashioned out of pure starlight, bounced off of every surface in the room. Many of the students in the room had to shield their eyes from the radiance.
The scintillating glow radiating from Maggie was so intense that it almost seemed to hum. With a final pulse of brilliance, the soft blue starlight in Maggie’s grip formed an extremely elegant bow which had been unmistakably crafted from a single large, blue sapphire. It was a one of a kind weapon; singular in its perfection. It was one of the most beautiful and flawless weapons that Mr. Carver had ever seen.
The limbs of the bow curved smoothly inward and then outward; with the upper and lower portions’ string nocks culminating in the shapes of a falcon’s head and of outstretched falcon talons respectively. The sparkling blue riser, which was the glorious centerpiece of the bow, had Maggie’s name written, elegantly, in cursive on it. The grip was bedecked with so very many speckled, bright and minuscule sapphires that it made the stars which punctuated the night sky appear to be placid, dim, and boring. There were a pair of sapphire falcon wings poised for flight on either side of the exquisite sight window.
The bow which Maggie had braced was nothing short of a work of art.
Mr. Carver gathered himself and said, “You have not only braced a fine weapon, Ms. Bennett, but your totem formed it completely out of the gemstone that represents your Clan. Even your bowstring shimmers with flecks of sapphires. Put simply; it is a stunning weapon. However, a bow isn't a complete weapon in and of itself, Ms. Bennett. Where are your arrows?”
Maggie turned to her right and aimed her bow up into the air. She then drew back on her bowstring. Immediately a mystical sapphire bracer wrapped itself around her forearm for protection and a sapphire arrow with a soft blue shaft and equally blue feather fletchings appeared out of thin air. She rested the nocked arrow on her cheek and inhaled softly. With her exhale, Maggie loosed her arrow.
The indigo dart whistled as it coursed evenly and with sure purpose over the class. It soared high and true, but before the lustrous bolt could reach the ceiling far overhead, it exploded into a shower of sapphire sparks. The royal blue detonation put to shame any and every display of celebratory fireworks that Maggie had ever witnessed. The embers, which were cool to the touch, rained down on everyone in the classroom.
Mr. Carver clapped loudly as did almost everyone else in the room. Only Lucy sat idle. If she did harbor any appreciation for the spectacle, she kept it to herself.
Mr. Carver addressed the class, starting with Maggie, “Ms. Bennett, that was a wonderful display! Everyone has done a marvelous job today. I dare say that this is the most promising class which I have ever taught! Tomorrow we will begin our weapons training. I am very pleased with all of you here today. If everyone can keep this pace then you will all, no doubt, make superior Guardians. Class dismissed.”
CHAPTER SIX
The Macrocosm Chamber, which had been empty save for the Spire that rested in the center, now had rows of tables set out for the students to congregate and eat their lunches. Every table and corresponding chair was fashioned from the gemstones which were representative of each Clan. Maggie sat down at a table made of pearl, an Okeaous Clan table, with the group of teens that had become her friends. The only one in the group that she was unsure of was Lucy.
Kylie drove her fork into her salad and before taking a bite, she paused and said, “We have to go to the Sauropon enclave next. We’re supposed to learn about Armor Envelopment. I'm not very excited about that particular class. I mean, have you seen the armor that the Praetorians wear? It looks heavy and uncomfortable. Personally, I'm looking forward to the Kindred Artifacts class. That seems like something that's worth learning about. Not all of this weapons and armor junk. What do you think Jax?”
Jax looked up from his pork ribs, his hands dripping with sauce, and answered, “I don't care to be a scholar so the artifacts class holds zero interest for me. Now, having armor that's being powered by my totem? That's what I'm talking about. I want armor that will hold my twin axes. Clara has a few ideas that she’s gonna try out for us. I'm so excited that I can barely eat.”
Lester and Thomas looked over at their muscular classmate at the same time and gave a look of disbelief.
Jax responded to their stares, “I said barely,” before biting into his lunch.
Alice chimed in to the conversation, “I agree with Kylie. The artifacts class is what I'm interested in the most. Learning about all of the different items that have fueled our kinds’ power since, well, forever!”
Lucy groaned maliciously, “You are such a ditz.”
Maggie barked at Lucy in Alice’s defense, “What's your problem, Lucy? You constantly walk around with a chip on your shoulder. Everyone here has tried being nice to you, but you don't seem like you want to be friends with anyone.”
Lucy rolled her eyes, took one final bite of the steak that she had been eating and left the table. Everyone watched as she left the Macrocosm Chamber and made her way, alone, down the Sauropon Hall.
Thomas scratched his head before stating, “Say what you will, but I think I’m in love.”
Klaus laughed at Thomas and told him, “I've said it before, but now I'm certain, you definitely play with fire, my friend.”
Making their way to the Armor Envelopment class, Maggie admired the Sauropon Hall. The living art that covered the walls were, of course, representative of each reptile and amphibian. It was just as impressive as the Secarn and Avior Halls. The doors to the Sauropon enclave were square in shape and made of solid diamonds. They were flanked by two large Sauropon Praetorians. One whose armor was inspired by a crocodile and another which appeared to be a horned toad.
Sara led the way into the large common room, followed closely by Oliver and Callum. Lucy had been waiting there for a while. Thomas threw up his hand and waved to Lucy.
“It’s about time,” Lucy said.
The rest of the class gathered inside and took in the sight of a giant diamond cobra which was wrapped around the large diamond fireplace that made up the centerpiece of the room. The students climbed a set of spiral stairs which were constructed to look as though the railing had been made of diamond snake scales. They reached the fourth flight of stairs and entered the room just to their left. Maggie was continually impressed by the sheer magnitude of each room in the academy. The students took their seats and opened the book on their desks. A note on a giant chalkboard instructed them to turn to page one. The chapter was titled Armor Envelopment: The Basics and What You Need to Know.
After a while, Lucy spoke up, “Where is the instructor? This is so stupid. Are we all just supposed to sit here? I thought we were in this ridiculous class to be taught about armor, not peruse through these dusty old books.”
A woman’s voice came, with a sultry southern accent, from the wall right next to Lucy, “Y’all are being taught about Kindred armor at this very moment. In fact, I’ve been teaching this class from the moment that y’all entered this room.”
Lucy jumped up in astonishment. She had not seen or heard anyone in the classroom while she had been waiting on everyone else to arrive. She had been alone and she was sure of it.
“What the-?!” Lucy snapped at the disembodied voice.
“Have a seat, Ms. Min and y’all will see what I mean,” was the voice’s answer.
Lucy sat back down and was looking around the classroom, as was everyone else, for whoever was addressing them. An incredibly attractive woman suddenly appeared from out of nowhere before the class. As her body was given form, it was as if paint was being washed away from a canvas. She stood before her pupils in resplendent armor which refracted like sunbeams off of a flawless diamond. The woman stood proudly with a small luminescent Chameleon on her shoulder. She had wavy, flaxen hair that was pulled up, with almost shiny, green eyes and the most comely smile. She grinned and leaned on the edge of her desk. Every teenager in the classroom sat, staring wide-eyed and with their mouths agape. Though, between the boys and girls, for the most part, it was for entirely different reasons.
“Hi y'all, My name is Ms. Holiday and my totem’s name is Remy. We’re gonna be y’all’s Armor Envelopment Instructors this year,” said the beautiful Sauropon softly.
She looked directly at Callum who seemed to be in a daze and said sweetly, “Close your mouth, Sugar. You look like a fish trying to breathe.”
Callum abruptly shut his mouth, but his eyes never left the lovely instructor.
“Now then,” Ms. Holiday sustained, “do any of y’all have any questions for me?”
At once, every single hand belonging to a teenage boy shot straight up into the air. Even Lester raised his hand, much to Alice’s chagrin. Callum, whose hand was still raised, did not wait on Ms. Holiday to call on him before he blurted out a question.
