The Academy Volume One

by Maxine Mansfield

  How had she gotten here? She could not remember.

  Still, she didn’t turn away. She couldn’t―she must find Uthiel. She knew that’s why she was here. And time was running out.

  A familiar voice filled her mind. “Our destinies are intertwined, Healer. Yours, mine, and the paladin’s. Where are you? The time draws near.”

  She turned in a circle, searching for the voice known to her as Carnelian. There was no one there…only open spaces, blue skies, and rubble.

  Two majestic mountains on either side of the castle caught her eye. A narrow path led around one side of the ruins and headed toward the peaks.

  Small animals suddenly scurried to and fro as shadows glided near Briar. Overhead, large birds with massive wingspans flew through the brilliant sunlight.

  Briar looked closer. They weren’t birds at all.

  They were dragons.

  “Briar, where are you? Briar, I need you.”

  Uthiel! She couldn’t believe her ears. It was him, although his voice was no louder than a whisper carried upon the wind. Briar strained to listen while she ran toward the sound.

  She hurried along the path leading around the ruins and towards the mountains. It was lined with huge old oak trees, their limbs and trunks battle-scarred, and many still reddened with bloodstains.

  The path abruptly opened along a narrow outcropping with a breathtaking drop. Water flowed over roaring falls before cascading out of sight. Briar tentatively picked her way along the rocky wall, watchful of every step.

  Hurry. I must hurry. Oh, Uthiel, where are you?

  From somewhere below, she heard his voice again. “Briar, where are you?”

  The hypnotic sound pulled and urged her forward. She chanced a quick glance over the falls, and the crystal-clear pool far below echoed his voice back up to her.

  “Briar…come to me. I need you. Please, Briar. Come to me. I love you. Briar…it is time.”

  The only way to get closer to Uthiel’s voice without plunging over the falls was to step into the river’s edge. Water rushed swiftly past her feet, swirling angrily, its white foam spraying and soaking through the thin leather of Briar’s shoes, up her bare legs, and under the hem of her tunic, leaving her chilled to the core.

  Edging ever closer to the plummeting precipice of water, she stepped on rocks so slippery her balance became a problem. More than once she tripped and scratched her hands and knees on sharp protuberances.

  Still she plodded forward.

  “Briar! Hurry, before it’s too late.”

  The voice of the man she loved grew more urgent with every passing moment. The stone, tucked safely between her breasts, burned into her skin and pulsed with every word he spoke.

  “Briar…Briar…come to me.”

  Grasping a tangled limb at the edge of the waterfall to maintain her equilibrium, Briar peered over the rim of the tumbling water. She leaned out as far as her arm would allow, searching below for even a single glimpse of the man of her heart.

  Nothing. She could see nothing but falling, roaring, rushing water.

  Straining hard to gauge from which direction his voice came, Briar closed her eyes and listened.

  She finally heard his faint call.

  “Briar…Briar…hurry, please, before it’s too late.” Uthiel’s whisper―no more than a fragment of sound―reached her ears.

  She stretched a mere inch more, searching the horizon and the pool below.

  Her grip failed, and she lost her footing on the wet rocks.

  With a splash, she landed hard in the swift river.

  “Oh my God Draka!”

  Though she fought it with all her might, the frothing liquid rushed her over the edge.

  Arms and legs flailing, she tumbled. The vividly pristine pool she’d glimpsed earlier loomed below, eager to swallow her in its innocent depths.

  “Nooo!” she screamed, choking on the icy cold water. Uthiel. I have to find―

  A rocky ledge about halfway down the falls threatened an abrupt end to her long plunge.

  Not sure which she feared more―an imminent but quick death if she hit the outcropping, or a tortuous drowning in the pool below―Briar closed her eyes and sent a prayer upward to Lord Draka as she plummeted.

  She missed the ledge, but a split second before hitting the pool headfirst, Briar sat straight up in her bed.

  Sweat drenched her skin. She stared in horror at her dorm room, her breath coming in short, panicked bursts, and shivers uncontrollably racking her frame. Her hands burned and her muscles ached.

  Throwing off the covers, Briar quickly rose and dressed.

  I must get to him. I simply must.

  She rushed about the room, gathering her herbs and oils and the medicine bag that would hold them.

  “We have to leave now, at this very turn of the hourglass,” she muttered. There was no time to waste.

  Hot…cold…hot…cold… A little colder each time.

  ****

  Briar glanced over her shoulder. “Will you two quit chitchatting and keep up? We must hurry. I think the library is down this hall. If not, then I’m almost sure it’s the hallway we passed around that second corner. I’ve only been there once.”

  Hands on hips, she waited for her companions to catch up.

  “Has she always been like this?” Sarco asked.

  Midan Tumbleweed puffed hard as he struggled to speak, and Briar felt a twinge of guilt for rushing them.

  “And here I thought you said you knew her.” Midan wiped a hand across his face.

  Sarco shrugged, “No, I said I needed her help, not that I really knew her. All I know about her is what Uthiel has told me. And have no doubt, when Uthiel learns I’ve involved her and brought her along, I’m going to really wish I hadn’t. If I wasn’t so desperate, things would be different right now.”

  Briar tapped her foot impatiently, but Sarco wasn’t finished. “Not to whine, but we didn’t even get to break our fast. She’s led us all over this Academy, just so she can look up some castle instead of Uthiel’s Isle. And why? Because of some stupid dream.”

  Midan’s countenance stiffened and Briar reveled in a moment of pride when her father rose to her defense.

  “If the lass says there’s a castle we need to be finding, then it’s a castle we’ll be searching for. You don’t have much experience with womenfolk do you, lad? It’s best to let them think they can have their way and find whatever they feel they must in their own fashion. Then, when they run out of steam―and they will eventually―we men step in, take over, and do what really needs to be done. It’s the way of things.”

  Sarco shut his mouth, shook his head, and followed.

  Her father’s little speech had started out well, and his intentions were good, so Briar chose to not respond to his latter comments.

  Ha! She’d show him. Run out of steam? Only men knew what needed to be done?

  She snorted, then proved her own unspoken point a moment later when she stopped in front of a set of arched wooden doors. “I told you I’d find it,” she grinned.

  With both hands, she tugged on the large golden ring serving as a door handle. The heavy door creaked open.

  Briar stepped inside, the men close on her heels. She inhaled deeply and sighed as the smell of linseed oil, old parchment, ink, and dust enveloped her. Briar paused, allowing the peacefulness and quiet of the place to calm her frazzled nerves. Row after row of books promised a semblance of order to her out-of-control life.

  The dream had rattled Briar more than she wanted to admit, even to herself. It had been so real. The castle, the flag, the stone soldier, the grass, the trees…and the waterfall and her plunge over it.

  Briar shuddered. Panic once more threatened to overcome her, and bile rose in her throat.

  She forced it down. No time to give into childish fears now. Uthiel needed her. His voice had been the most real aspect of the entire dream. Well, that and the opal, which still radiated heat and iciness, and beat fast then sl
ow. She patted the stone through her tunic. Maybe it would be a good luck charm.

  Squaring her shoulders, Briar headed toward the large desk and the librarian.

  The name on the small shiny nameplate before the frail, hunched woman simply read Ms. Bea Hayven. Briar looked from the nameplate to the woman behind the desk, and back to the nameplate. Looks could be deceiving—how well Briar knew that.

  Briar waited patiently for the older woman to look up and acknowledge her presence, but the librarian didn’t. She cleared her throat to get Bea Hayven’s attention, but that didn’t work either. She glared at her father and Sarco, hoping they’d help, but they just stood there, grinning at her predicament. She even shuffled her feet, tapped her fingernails on the desktop, and hummed softly. Still the librarian ignored her.

  When she could take it no more, Briar exclaimed, “Ms. Bea Hayven!”

  The woman’s head popped up and Briar’s mouth dropped open. This was no little old lady. Long, thick hair the color of a raven’s wings curled seductively around peach-blushed, perfect skin. The woman’s pink tongue flicked out and licked full, red lips. Eyes, the shade of hot cocoa, stared past Briar and hungrily focused on Sarco and Midan. This was a librarian?

  A voice as sweet as honey purred, “Hmm, whatever can little ol’ Bea do for you two fine, distinguished gentlemen today?”

  Briar sighed. It was going to be a long day. “Excuse me.” She waved her hand to get the librarian’s attention. “I need some information, please.”

  The woman didn’t even spare her a glance but simply pointed a finger to her right. “You can find the answer to almost any question in those files over there. Right now I’m assisting these two gentleman.”

  Briar heard the snickers of both men and shot them a reproving glance.

  She took a deep breath and started again. “Castles. Where do I find books about castles, Ms. Hayven?”

  Bea Hayven winked at the men before finally meeting Briar’s gaze. “You are a pesky little thing, aren’t you? What is it you’re looking for?”

  Briar plastered a smile on her face. “Where can I find books on castles, please?”

  “What kind of castles?”

  Briar’s smile faltered.

  “Old castles, I believe, in ruins, and with blue flags and golden fists, and a courtyard with a stone soldier on guard, and, umm, a really big waterfall.”

  “What part of Albrath is this castle of yours in? North, south, east, or west? It makes a difference. We have over four hundred books on castles, you know. This is a library.”

  Briar bit her tongue and counted to ten. She made it to six. “I don’t know what part of Albrath it’s in. If I knew where it was, I wouldn’t be here looking it up, now would I? Could you please just tell me what section the books on castles are in?”

  The woman looked back at the two men. “She always like this?”

  Midan Tumbleweed sighed. Sarco covered his mouth to conceal his laughter.

  Briar couldn’t take anymore. Slapping both hands on the desk, she put her own face level with that of the picture-perfect Ms. Bea Hayven and determined to make herself understood.

  She surprised even herself with the loudness of her voice. “In what section can any and all books concerning castles in all areas of Albrath throughout all time be found? Is that really such a difficult question? Can’t you just give me a simple answer?”

  To the woman’s credit, she didn’t back down. “Testy little thing, I see.” Bea Hayven peered around Briar to the two men and made a production of placing one perfectly manicured nail against her lips before facing Briar once more.

  “Go to Section C for castles, of course. Where else would they be found?”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Hours later, Briar sighed.

  Books littered the top of the table. Big books, small books, fat books, skinny books, even books in every language imaginable. Every single one of them covered the subject of castles, yet the one castle Briar sought was neither depicted nor described.

  Sarco sat back in a hard wooden chair and shoved away the volume he’d been examining. The book skittered across the table and landed with a resounding thud on the floor. “I told you this was a waste of time. There is no dream castle. We’ve been at this for hours. When can we get underway and really start looking for Uthiel’s homeland?”

  Briar wanted to argue with him but couldn’t. Tears stung her eyes and threatened to spill over. It was difficult to focus on the page before her.

  Perhaps he was right. She had meticulously gone through at least twenty books and not one single castle had even come close. Some castles had stone soldiers, some had courtyards, some even had royal-blue and gold flags, a couple even had waterfalls close by, but none had everything together.

  Had it been just a silly, meaningless dream?

  She closed her eyes. Bone weariness filled every joint, and she pondered the irresistible urge to put her head down on the table and just sleep a while.

  She couldn’t, though. Uthiel needed her. He was counting on her. She had to remain strong.

  Lifting her chin and looking both men straight in the eye, Briar cleared her throat. “There is a castle. It’s real. I know it is. I was there, Uthiel is there now, and he needs us. I’ll find it if you but give me the chance. You admitted yesterday you needed my help because I have a strong bond with Uthiel. If you can’t force yourself to believe in anything else, believe in that bond now. Believe in me for his sake.”

  Sarco picked up another book. “You’re right, so describe again the castle we’re looking for, please.”

  Relieved, Briar allowed her eyelids to flutter shut and let the images of the night before take over. “It lies east of a big valley between two tall mountains with a single road leading to it. It’s mostly rubble now, so I believe it’s very old. There is one tower, however, and on the very top of that tower flies a ragged flag of blue and gold.

  “In the courtyard, a solitary stone soldier faces away from the castle, as if on guard. His hand is alert and ready upon his sword hilt.

  “The meadow surrounding the castle is alive with wildflowers of every size, shape, and color. The river running through it drops into the biggest waterfall imaginable, then into a pool so crystal clear you can see the pebbles on its bottom.”

  “Ah, Castle Kuropkat. How I’ve missed those days.”

  Briar and the men stared at the new arrival―a very familiar little man with a blow-up doll under his arm and a look of nostalgia on his face.

  Leeky Shortz.

  Briar leaped to her feet and her voice cracked, “Kuropkat? My Castle Kuropkat? I mean, the Castle Kuropkat of the fable? Leeky, you know of the castle I was describing?”

  The gnome puffed out his chest and laid his doll across the table. “What the ingrown toenails on the fungus-infected feet of a troll dancing a jig do ya think? Know of it? Why, lass, I not only know of it, but I’m part of its history. I was there during the great battle between the barbarians and the elves. I was a commander. Castle Kuropkat is where I first laid eyes on Miss Kitty.”

  Leeky affectionately patted his blow-up doll’s ample bottom. “Oh, the stories I could tell ya, the adventures.”

  Sarco scoffed, “Mr. Shortz, the battle for Castle Kuropkat was a very long time ago. Even before my father’s birth. I don’t think he was even a thought in my grandfather’s mind yet. My great-uncle Arizon was there, though, and he’s told us stories. We high elves can live as long as a thousand years or more sometimes, but gnomes normally don’t. That particular battle was well over eight hundred years ago. There’s no way you could’ve been there.”

  Leeky grinned, “Boy, ya haven’t even begun ta learn about living. There are ways ta get around just about anything, even time, if ya know how.

  “Living isn’t about how many years ya do it. It’s all about what ya do with those years that matter. And I know ya uncle, the great wizard, very well. Who do ya think he was talking about when he was telling ya all tho
se stories?” The gnome pointed to his chest.

  Briar couldn’t contain her excitement. At last, they had a name for the castle in her dream—and more information on Uthiel’s whereabouts. “Where is it, Leeky? The castle, I mean? I must go there…and why haven’t I found anything about it in these books?”

  Leeky shook his head as he walked down the aisle. “Ya don’t want ta be doing that, lass. Not a safe place ta be visiting these days.”

  Briar followed him, and he leaned in close to whisper, “After it fell, the dragons took it over. Nasty creatures, the lot of them. They’ve been downright inhospitable since the nogards went extinct. No natural enemies now, ya know. And those winged monsters tend ta get a mite temperamental when it comes ta what they consider theirs.”

  “That settles it then,” Briar said to the three men. “We must go there. That’s where he’ll be. Uthiel said his homeland is on a parallel plane with the dragons. We find Castle Kuropkat, we find Uthiel. I just know we will.”

  The gnome shook his head as he strode down the aisle. “Best ta stay as far from Castle Kuropkat as ya can get. Not an enjoyable trip anyway. Portals ta go through, and roads going here and there, over mountains, across valleys, and that’s not counting the trip across the Tambian Sea. Depending on the weather, it can take as much as a week ta get there. Nope, not a fit way ta spend ya summer vacation.”

  Leeky stopped at the end of the long row and pointed one stubby finger at a shelf of books. “Here they are. Ya really don’t want ta be going there. I can tell ya about much happier places ta visit.”

  Briar gasped. Book after book, and all with the name Castle Kuropkat in their titles.

  Taking one off the shelf and opening the pages, she was immediately transported back to her dream. There it all was: the tower, the flag, the single stone soldier, even the waterfall. And it lay northeast of The Academy. Almost as far northeast as one could go.

  The opal pulsed quickly and grew warmer next to her heart. By reflex, Briar placed a hand protectively across the stone, holding onto her link with the man she loved.

  “You don’t understand, Mr. Shortz. I must go. I must leave this very day, and there isn’t a moment to waste.”