by Jason Letts
At this, Aoi erupted. “If I could have just gotten my hands on you, you would have had a mouthful of dirt!” The venom in her voice startled Mira, but Aoi calmed down. “Vern has an attractive force, so you think it would be easy to get near him, but it’s not. And that’s why he’s class leader—because he finished last year top of the class.”
A smug and satisfied expression formed on Vern’s face as he folded his arms. Mira wanted to know more about what “an attractive force” meant. But Vern’s grin enraged Aoi and she went off before Mira could say anything.
“Things are going to be different this year. So you can just wipe that look off your face!”
“Maybe the real reason you’re upset is that Fortst asked me to help out because I’m class leader, and you’re here as punishment.”
“What are you being punished for?” Mira asked.
Aoi hung her head and spoke in almost a whisper. “I may have accidentally broken something.”
“It was a house, Aoi!” Vern boomed.
“I break things! OK? It happens. They shouldn’t have made that house like that. It was just asking to be knocked over. It wasn’t my fault!”
“What do you mean it wasn’t your fault? Everyone saw you drop kick it.”
Aoi just shook her head, fuming. Mira decided to change the subject.
“So what are you doing here, anyway?”
Both Vern and Aoi turned to look at the large boulders and some divots in the ground that lay before the entrance of the schoolhouse.
“We’re trying to make a pathway leading to the door. But we’re not having any luck getting these stones into the ground.”
Mira walked over to analyze the work area. She couldn’t be sure, but she guessed that they had been digging up these boulders and then trying to press them back into the ground, leaving half-buried rocks that were still half as tall as Mira.
“How are you moving these rocks around?” Mira asked. “Oh,” she added, after Aoi put her hands together. “Why don’t you try breaking the rocks into pieces? You can lift them up, and then bring them down hard on another rock. That should create some flat surfaces along the break point. If you carve out thin slices from these rocks you will only have to do a tiny bit of digging to set them in the ground.”
Vern and Aoi resumed their places in the workspace. Mira, hustling out of the way, watched as Aoi yanked a boulder as large as herself. Vern shouted directions to her and she maneuvered over toward another stone.
Standing in position, Aoi slammed the stone down hard. The rock cleaved in two. Without a word, Aoi went about preparing to shatter the remaining stones.
Only then did Mira finally get a chance to fully survey the schoolhouse. Her notion of an impressive institution of learning met with resounding disappointment. The building before her had thin wooden boards, an uneven cement foundation, and a shingled roof that surely leaked.
Getting the OK from Vern to go inside, Mira walked up the three cement steps to the door, which had a basic metal latch. Opening it, she felt even she could break it without much effort. Rust from the latch rubbed off on her hand. Inside, fifteen desks stood before a lectern. A heavy black board hung against the far wall, which had caused a crack in one of the wallboards. A few materials, some for teaching and some for repair, lay in the far corner.
The only point of interest for Mira was a bird nest up in the rafters. She sat down in one of the uncomfortable wooden seats, listening to the crashing of rocks outside and trying to find something optimistic in this disappointing place.
She thought about the two students she would be studying with, Vern and Aoi. The one seemed full of himself and the other much too volatile. Maybe the rest of the students would be easier to get along with. The promise of having a real teacher stirred some delight within her. Even the dullest, dreariest setting could be transformed under the guidance of a thoughtful and inspiring teacher.
Feeling like she had seen enough, Mira left her seat. Outside, thin stone slabs speckled the ground and a number of shallow holes had already been made. The work would be finished in no time. She walked along the edge of the forest, sure to stay out of the way. Before leaving, she turned to address the pair still hard at work.
“It was nice to meet you. Good luck with the path!”
Neither of them broke their focus longer than to mumble a quick “yeah, bye.” So much for immediately striking up deep friendships.
Mira returned to the gate of Corey Outpost, where her father patiently waited for her. They immediately began the walk home, and Mira noticed her father behaving timidly.
“So did everything go alright?” she asked.
“No problem at all,” he said. “The meeting will be soon and then you’ll officially be a member of the class. How was the schoolhouse? You’re going to be spending a lot of time there, you know.”
The building hadn’t left as memorable an impression as the fact that she’d finally met her peers. “Two students were there, a boy and a girl, and we talked for a few minutes. I just realized that’s the first time I’ve ever spoken to anyone my own age.”
Mira kept her face free from any significant expression.
“How were they?” he asked.
“The girl had a very big temper for how small she is. And the boy? Well, I think it would be difficult for me to like him more than he likes himself.”
“I’m sure you’ll make lots of friends in the class, even if those two aren’t a perfect match for you,” he said.
They walked in silence for a while.
Mira posed another question when they had reached their home. “Dad, what’s the Tournament Trial?”
Kevin’s eyes widened and then he winced.
“Every school year, all of the students are pitted against each other three times. The first and the last are to decide class rank. You’ll have to beat the others in special contests to demonstrate your ability and aptitude. Having a good class rank is very important,” he said, almost in fear of his own words.
The image of massive boulders crashing together came to Mira’s mind, and her mouth went dry.
“Oh.”
Chapter 4: The Blood Stone
Long after Mira and Jeana had fallen asleep, Kevin silently snuck out of the house and slipped into the turbulent night. Clouds raced overhead, waiting for the right moment to expel their watery store. A bright moon peeked through, giving everything a fleeting illumination.
Hidden beneath a dark cloak, he crept along the side of his house, keeping his ears open and his eyes vigilant. The mist in the air solidified in front of him, and Kevin stepped onto the dense platform and let it carry him into the air. The wind raced around him as he floated over the treetops on his way down to the outpost. When he descended near the large gate, the mist dissipated just in time for him to step onto the ground.
Kevin ran along the wall until he reached a small shed around the corner. As soon as he closed the door behind him, a heavy rain broke from the clouds, clacking against the shed’s tin roof and washing under the walls onto the dirt floor.
Lighting a match softened the shed’s darkness. Its flickering light revealed the cramped space containing a few broken tools, some rope, and a metal sheet on the floor. The sheet, Kevin knew, sealed the passageway through which he needed to pass.
Before the match diminished, Kevin spoke clearly and confidently to the dying light. “My name is Kevin Ipswich. I have business with Corey. Whither does my voice travel?”
Having followed the instructions he’d received, he waited. Rain rattled against the tin roof. A rumbling sound escaped from below him. He kneeled down to listen.
“A key above the door.” The voice sounded hoarse and raspy but unmistakable. Kevin groped above the entryway. His hands ran over the moistened wood and up to the gritty metal. Pawing at a small pouch tucked above, he felt the key dance between his fingers before falling to the floor.
He brushed over the ground floor for the key. Just as he considered light
ing another match, his fingers felt the key. Within moments the metal sheet and its lock were leaning against the wall.
One end of the rope firmly tied to an iron bar attached to the outpost’s exterior, Kevin tossed the coil down the hole. Grabbing hold of the section near the surface, he slowly lowered himself down, feeling uneasy about the wet rope, the water trickling from above, and the slick surface under his feet.
His feet lost their hold on the wall and left him dangling in the middle of a dark tunnel. Instead of scrambling back against the hard surface, Kevin rested his feet on a cloud that had condensed under his feet. Feeling much more comfortable, he descended slowly, until he felt the floor beneath him.
In utter darkness, he spun around looking for a light to guide him. Having given up hope of finding the way himself, he asked for help.
“Turn ninety degrees to the left and walk for thirty paces.” The same voice, ruminating and echoing, seemed to come from all directions at once.
He followed the directions, and asked again, repeating the process countless times. Often the voice commanded him to turn sharply and walk only a few steps, making him wonder if he maneuvered through a large maze or foolishly wandered around in a great open space.
Soon he stopped walking with his hands in front of him. After several more commands, he closed his eyes. Taking a few more steps and noticing a sudden increase in temperature, Kevin opened his eyes and realized that the man he’d been searching for sat just a few feet away. The light from a small fire smoldered behind the man, who sat peacefully with a blindfold over his eyes. Looking behind him, Kevin saw that the chair blocked the light from entering the corridor.
“This is where your voice has traveled.” The old man said, wrinkling his face with a smile. Kevin had never been in the exclusive company of the elder before; he tried to match the man’s appearance with his revered reputation, the source of reason and knowledge that the entire community depended upon. But seeing the shriveled body before him somehow detracted from that.
“I’ve come about my daughter. She needs your permission to attend the academy,” Kevin said. The old man nodded, already in deep thought.
“If it had just been that, I would have had an assistant take care of you. But that’s not all you needed to discuss,” he said.
“That’s right. There’s something else—”
“Something more serious,” Corey added before returning to the beginning. “I was surprised to hear about the daughter you’ve been hiding, and more so of her circumstances. I’ve heard her, you know. Her footsteps are hesitant and there is much fear and doubt tangled within the waves of her voice.”
Corey’s words haunted Kevin’s mind and drowned out his own thoughts.
“In a race, sound will always lose to light, but sound is much more vital to our existence. After all, we can create sound, but we can’t create light. Most people foolishly depend on light to tell them about the external appearance and the internal emotions of others, but sound is a much better indicator. I can recognize your daughter, Mira, without a doubt and clearly interpret her emotions from just a few words. And the same goes for you, Mr. Ipswich. Now tell me, why did you let your bird out of the cage?”
“Because she’s got a life to live, just like the rest of us. It’s not right for myself or Jeana to decide that she can’t find a place in the world, that she’s not good enough for it,” Kevin said.
Corey again smiled, enjoying something that Kevin couldn’t see.
“And you want her to attend the academy, too. What if she goes off to fight?”
“That will be a decision of her choosing. She needs this opportunity to socialize and learn about the world. You can’t deny her that. I don’t see how she could complete the Shadowing, but if she does decide to go with her classmates to fight then I can be proud of her for it.”
“You know,” Corey said darkly, “your voice tells me you know full well what would happen to her. You work preparing supplies for shipment to the front lines, but you’ve only heard of what goes on there. Words can’t describe the kind of bizarre chaos and insane carnage unleashed in the heat of battle. It’s something you must hear for yourself. I get the sense that the danger is coming closer to home than you would like.”
Kevin cleared his throat, chilled by what he’d just heard.
“Yes, that’s the other thing. Before we let her out, Mira said she saw a face in my vapor. I checked everywhere, and I couldn’t find evidence of anyone strange in the area, but I have this sneaking suspicion that someone was trying to get in.”
“You sound like a man who knows to be worried from experience. Am I right?”
Kevin grimaced and looked away.
“Your silence speaks as loud as your words,” Corey went on. “So you think someone is out to get you, again, and so you put your treasure out in the open where anyone can get to it. Is that intelligent?”
“She’s safer away from Cloud Cottage than in it,” he said, defensively. “No one knows who she is or what she is or even where she’s from when she’s out in public. Being at school especially should put her out of harm’s reach. No one knows she exists so she can’t be the thing they seek.”
Corey carefully considered this, finally nodding.
“That’s true, for now. But how long do you think it will be until her secret gets out? If someone is targeting you, that means they’re after something. Maybe they don’t know where it is, but my guess is they will know it when they find it. You must be eternally vigilant and extra cautious.”
Kevin stepped forward.
“That I am aware of, but I’m hoping you can be more helpful than that. Mira said the face tried to speak. Did you hear what Mira heard? Do you know who it was?”
“There is too much out there for me to listen to everything. I wish we’d had this conversation sooner, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be able to help you now.”
At this, Corey reached into his robes and procured a small leather sack. Drawing it open, he removed a small stone. He held it out in his hand, and Kevin took it. It felt smooth and soft to the touch.
“Did you know that people can identify the sound of their own name even in a crowded room with hundreds of talkers. We have a connection to our names and it’s something ingrained in us, in the blood. If I sense that an intruder has come, this stone will carry my voice to you, and you’ll know the moment of action has come. You can carry it with you, always, in the folds of your ear.”
Placing the stone above his ear canal, he found that its shape, like a grain of rice, held in place perfectly and did not rub or chafe.
“Thank you,” Kevin expressed his relief. He then handed Mira’s academy application to the elder. Corey reached back toward the fire for a small brand and burned his mark onto the paper. Kevin felt dismayed at the prospect of leaving this man who could teach him so much, even though their business had concluded. He indulged himself in a single question.
“You are known as a great warrior, but I don’t understand how you fought. How did you defeat your enemies?”
Corey chuckled to himself.
“Mr. Ipswich, for being a fully grown man I would have expected you to be more capable of appraising the powers of another. Sound can carry the sweetest pleasure or the most terrible pain. You’re lucky if you’ve only known the former. I’ll do you a favor and skip the demonstration.”
“There is one other thing,” Kevin said meekly, already chiding himself for his foolishness. “You must have a quicker way to get out of here than the way I came in.”
“Of course, of course. I’ve got better things to do than to walk you back anyway. There’s a ladder set into the wall behind the fire. It’ll bring you up to my office, and my assistant can let you into the courtyard. You’ll be able to float away from there.”
After conveying his deep appreciation and gratitude to Corey, Kevin took his leave, finding the grips in the stone wall and climbing up through the floor above with the help of his cloud. He returned
home not long after, though it was much longer before the sound of Corey’s voice stopped echoing inside his head.
In the days leading up to her first class, and with the specter of the Tournament Trial looming large in her mind, Mira meticulously prepared herself to be in the best possible position. She gathered some useful mathematical instruments, including a compass and a tape measure. Her new uniform, which she appreciated for both its style and its usefulness as active wear, lay neatly folded in her room. Additionally, she had been training her body for the physical demands she knew she would face.
The day before her first trip to Dustfalls Academy as a student, Mira worked away the minutes doing crunches in her home after completing an invigorating jog. Her parents flipped through some old books, and Mira thought this would be a good time to ask some questions that had been on her mind.
“So, do you have any idea what this teacher, Ogden Fortst, is like?”
Kevin looked up from his book and leaned back in his chair.
“I’ve only seen him a few times, but I’ve heard a little bit about him. Seems like an odd fellow, but I’m sure he’s smart or else they wouldn’t have him teaching the senior class. He wasn’t there when I attended.”
“You went to the same school?” Mira asked.
“Yes, I did, and they’d only just built the schoolhouse. Our instructor was actually Mert Bogger, if you can believe it. Guess he was the only guy they could find with the time. So we basically just taught ourselves. Ended up building some of the schoolhouses for the lower levels, too. It was fun. Only had a few homes around the outpost back then.”
“Wow, I didn’t know that!”
“Now I feel incredibly old,” he said, scratching the stubble on his neck.
“You’re not old,” Jeana jumped in. “Don’t pay any attention to those gray hairs.”
“I’m just trying to be more like you,” he poked back.
A loud knock came at the front door. Kevin jumped out of his seat. Both Jeana and Mira were surprised and curious too. They’d never had a visitor before.
