The Iron Realm (The Iron Soul Book 1)

by J. M. Briggs

  Nicki pulled them forward one at a time and had them pull on spare jackets, gloves and masks before she handed any of them a foil. Under her supervision they settled into the en garde position with their knees right above their toes. It felt strange to Alex's body in comparison to the karate classes she'd taken when she was younger, but she soon adjusted her balance to settle into the position. They were facing the wall and Nicki moved swiftly down the short line, adjusted positions where needed.

  In the next hour they mastered the en garde position and Nicki started teaching them how to move, advance and retreat quickly, but started losing their attention as several of the students with some experience started fencing to show Professor Bosco their skill level. When nine arrived, Alex returned the equipment she'd borrowed to the racks and turned her attention to Professor Bosco who delivered a quick farewell and reminder of the next meeting.

  “Hi Alex,” Aiden greeted walking up to her as the students began to leave. “Did you enjoy yourself?”

  “Yes,” Alex answered cautiously.

  “That's nice to hear,” Aiden told her with a smile as Nicki came up next to them. “How did she do?” he asked Nicki, turning to his friend.

  “Pretty good,” Nicki answered. “She had a chicken wing with the foil for a few tries, but she's straightened her arm out now and is quick on her feet.”

  “Well soccer players tend to be,” Aiden replied with a grin. “Anyway, hope to see you on Wednesday Alex,” Aiden told her before he turned away to go help with cleanup, giving Alex the familiar small wave over his shoulder.

  “That was weird,” Alex observed with a raised eyebrow as Aiden moved away.

  “What, a normal human interaction is weird?” Nicki teased with a smile. “I think he feels bad he upset you the other day.”

  “He told you about that?” Alex asked with a small sigh.

  Nicki shrugged and answered, “We've been best friends since we were five. His Dad taught us fencing together since we were ten and we have dinner at each other's houses at least once a week so yeah he tells me stuff.”

  “Thick as thieves,” Alex huffed in irritation.

  “Usually,” Nicki told her before sighing, “After I forgave him for stealing Sarah Thompson away from me.” Nicki held up her thumb and forefinger close together, “I was this close and then they start dating.”

  “Uh, okay…” Alex replied slowly and a nod.

  Nicki chuckled and gave Alex a pat on the shoulder before saying, “Well see you in class tomorrow, have a good night.”

  “Right,” Alex agreed. “See you tomorrow.”

  As she stepped out in the quickly darkening campus, Alex smiled softly and chuckled. Waving to some of the other departing students, she headed north towards the lake and her dorm room feeling better about life in general. Aiden and Nicki were definitely strange, but she found that she liked them a little. Looking back over her shoulder, she caught a glimpse of the two of them leaving the building with Aiden’s father and laughing. She shook her head and headed for her own home, pulling out her phone to call her mother and report on the general improvement of college life.

  11

  All Hallows Eve

  Late October brought a chill to Ravenslake that even the joy of midterms being over couldn't overcome. No longer were students sunbathing in the afternoon sun, but instead the first coats were appearing. Alex and Jenny had fully settled into their dorm room with a thick blue rug between the beds, a hanging plant by the window and photos of their new friends along the walls. Alex's mobile phone was full of new numbers of those she'd met through intermural soccer, fencing, classes and a couple of parties. To the excitement of all the students, Halloween was on the coming Friday adding to the cheerful atmosphere on campus.

  Professor Yates' office was a corner room with light entering from two windows on either side of his desk. Bookshelves lined the walls, filled not only with old looking heavy bound books, but trinkets from around the world. An elegant old world map hung by the doorway to the office and a small wooden table that matched the dark color of the desk stood next to the comfortable chair in front of the desk. It was all Alex could do to stay still rather than looking about wildly as she sat down for her meeting with Professor Yates to discuss the upcoming semester.

  In the past month, Alex had gotten over her first encounter with the Professor and done her best to put vision and strange dreams at the back of her mind. She'd done well in his class with strong grades and compliments on her papers, but she hadn't realized until the October advising notices arrived that he was the professor assigned to her. Now that they were alone in his office and he sat looking over her current classes and her possible classes for spring semester, Alex felt all of her nerves return. Professor Yates hummed an unfamiliar tune softly as he read over the copy of Alex's current schedule and her draft schedule for the next semester.

  “Well,” Professor Yates finally said, looking up at Alex from the papers in front of him. “Everything looks in order. You're on the right track working on your general education courses now, but I'm pleased that you'll be taking a few English courses.” Leaning back in his chair, Yate's silver pin caught a beam of sunlight making it shine. “I don't see any problems in your academic schedule, but make sure you select one or two backups just in case the classes are full.”

  “Yes, sir,” Alex answered automatically, keeping her hands in her lap.

  Her tweed clad professor studied her for a moment and gave her a warm smile. “So how are you adjusting to university life?”

  “Adjusting?” Alex repeated a little surprised at the turn of conversation. “Alright I guess. I like my roommate and my neighbors in the dorm are pretty cool.”

  “Good,” he answered with a smile. “You're making friends?”

  “Yes,” Alex answered. “I've made a few good friends and have people I hang out with.”

  “Do you have a job or activities outside of school?” Yates asked before noting her discomfort. He laughed softly and leaned forward, “If I'm making you uncomfortable you don't have to answer Alex. I just like to know that my advisees are doing alright outside the classroom as well.”

  “Right,” Alex replied with a soft blush. “Well I'm on an intermural soccer team and a part of the fencing club.”

  “Ah, then perhaps I saw you at last weekend’s demonstration?”

  “No,” Alex told him with a shake of her head. “I'm still a beginner so I'm not doing any of the demonstrations yet.”

  “Well Professor Bosco is an excellent teacher so I'm sure you'll be joining in the demonstrations in no time.”

  “It's actually his son who is working with me,” she told him on reflex. “Aiden Bosco.”

  “Yes,” Yates said with a nod, “I've met Aiden at faculty events and his sister Aisling. He's not in any of my classes presently.” Yates straightened up Alex's papers and schedule draft, handing them back to her. “Well I am glad to hear that things are going well. If you need anything just let me know.”

  “Thank you,” she answered with a soft smile as she took the papers from him and stood up. “I'll see you in class.”

  “One more thing,” Yates added, standing up as Alex moved to the doorway.

  “Yes Professor?” she asked turning back to him.

  “Be careful on Halloween,” Yates told her, a strange look of worry crossing over his face. “Make sure that you stay safe.”

  Blinking at the professor, Alex opened her mouth to ask what he was worried about, but the memory of the visions made her fall silent. Instead, she gave him a quick nod and quickly left the room. Shutting the door behind her, Alex leaned against the wall outside Yates' office for a moment to calm down and collect her thoughts. When she heard the professor moving inside the office, Alex took off down the hallway towards the stairs. She didn't slow down or think on the issue until she was outside and walking towards her dorm.

  “I'm overreacting,” she told herself softly as Hatfield Hall came into view. “H
e probably just wants to me be safe with alcohol and keep an eye on my drink.”

  That made sense, she decided. Professor Yates would have seen and heard about a lot of bad things due to parties and probably didn't want anything happening to one of his students. It had nothing to do with the hallucinations. Slowing down, Alex finally calmed down and took in a few deep breathes of the autumn air. She tightened her coat around herself as she dug into the pocket for her key card. As she unlocked the door, Alex decided that the Professor was right and that she just needed to be careful at the Halloween party she and Jenny had been invited to and put the warning out of her mind.

  Halloween, All Hallows Eve, Friday night was a busy night on the campus of Ravenslake University. Small parties were taking place in numerous dorm halls and several large parties were raging amongst the Greek houses to the south of campus. In the dark sky hung a large waxing moon that illuminated the campus with a low haunting light. Only a few children remained out trick or treating with the youngest already tucked away in their beds.

  The Delta Beta Alpha house was bright with lights and dance music burst out into the street with laughter and shrieking making it impossible to actually hear any lyrics. Costumed students danced on the lawn and mingled with friends, many already shaky on their feet. All the furniture of the living room had been pushed back against the wall leaving the wooden floor open for dancing. Food and drinks covered every flat surface except the floor with fallen streamers, fake spiders and shredded black paper scattered there. False cobwebs hung from the ceiling and the talking skeleton by the front door had long since run down its batteries.

  Alex was standing at the side of the room in her light blue and white checkered dress with a basket on her arm which served as her Dorothy Gale costume along with a pair of silver shoes that she'd explained multiple times through the night as being faithful to the book rather than the movie. With Jenny's help she'd styled her blonde hair into two braids with curled tips. Next to her was Lance in a crusader knight costume including a grey hood pulled up over his head and a helmet under his arm. His foot was tapping to the beat of the music, but he wasn't trying to talk to Alex over the music. Alex hummed softly as a new song she knew came on, but kept her attention in the middle of the dance floor where Jenny as Cleopatra and Arthur as Marc Anthony were dancing. They were the center of attention for the party. Jenny in her long black and gold dress and her long hair styled around a gold headdress and Arthur in golden battle armor.

  Sipping her beer, Alex glanced at the door and tried to hide a yawn. Suddenly, Alex shuddered and gripped the wall next to her as she fought back the chill rushing through her body. It passed as quickly as it had come and Alex relaxed, wondering if a window had been opened nearby. Another song started and Alex grinned as she started to sway to the beat. Lance chuckled and snatched her drink from her hand before giving her a quick spin. Alex let Lance lead her out further onto the dance floor. Jenny glanced over at them as they danced, a strange expression crossing her roommate’s face that quickly vanished. Another icy shiver rushed up Alex's spine as if an icy hand had brushed her neck. Looking over her shoulder, Alex searched for any sign of the source, but saw nothing only to have another cold spike in her arms and then her legs. She grit her teeth and kept dancing, trying to warm up in the rush of bodies and movement, but all she wanted was to curl up. Another shiver made her stop dancing and wrap her arms around herself.

  “Alex?” Lance called, barely making himself heard above the music.

  “I'm okay,” Alex told him as loudly as she could between her grit teeth as she shivered again.

  Despite her words, Lance gently gripped her arm and led her out of the living room and into the kitchen. The food on the kitchen island had long since been devoured and there were only a couple of people milling around the large room. Releasing her arm, Lance stepped back and checked her over with a worried expression.

  “Are you alright?” he asked.

  “I'm fine,” Alex said as she set the basket down on the kitchen island, congratulating herself on her brilliance before she pulled a zip up hoodie out of the basket. “Just got a bit cold.”

  “Cold?” Lance repeated. “Really?”

  “Yeah, cold,” Alex defended with a frown. “Maybe I'm not used to alcohol,” she suggested in a softer and slightly apologetic tone. “Only had it a couple of time in high school.”

  Lance nodded as Alex pulled on the grey hoodie and zipped it up. Her shivering eased only a little, but she did her best not to show any discomfort in front of Lance. He waited a few more moments before leaving the kitchen to return to the party. Alex rejoined the party after getting a drink of water and navigated through the crowd to find her friends. She spotted Arthur near the doorway, speaking with a teammate who was swaying dangerously on his feet. Arthur looked around and spotted her. He gestured to her to join them with a slightly frantic look on his face that propelled Alex forward through the throng of students quickly.

  “Alex,” Arthur exclaimed with relief as she stepped up next to him. “Look can you tell Jenny that I needed to drive some people home. I'm not sure when I'll make it back.”

  “Sure,” Alex replied, looking over at the clearly drunk football player dressed up as a pirate. “That's a good idea.”

  “Yeah, and he lives across town with a couple others I need to round up,” Arthur told her with a shake of his head. “Lance can probably drive you home.”

  “Okay,” Alex agreed before she jumped back as the football player staggered on his feet. Arthur caught him quickly and slung the man's arm over his shoulders before lowering him to the sofa.

  “I'd better collect the others,” Arthur said with a sigh. “Apologize to Jenny for me.”

  “She'll understand,” Alex promised him with a smile before she quickly darted away from the drunk man who looked ready to be sick.

  Alex glanced back to see Arthur grabbing the arm of another unsteady student and taking him to the couch. Shaking her head, Alex looked around the living room, but saw no sign of Jenny. Alex climbed up the stairs to the second floor and glanced around the first room which was a mess with a student snoring on the bed despite the noise from downstairs. Looking around the corner, Alex spotted Lance and Jenny in the hallway talking in low voices. Neither noticed her until she called Jenny's name, making her roommate spin to face her with wide eyes.

  “Sorry I scared you,” Alex apologized, “Arthur asked me to let you know that he's going to drive some people home.”

  “Oh,” Jenny replied, straightening her headdress, “Is he coming back?”

  “He wasn't sure,” Alex admitted. “One of the guys is in pretty bad shape.”

  Jenny rolled her eyes, but nodded in understanding. Lance frowned with a touch of concern flashing in his eyes before he looked over at Jenny.

  “Don't worry I'll give you a ride home,” he promised Jenny before he looked back at Alex, “You too, just let me know when you want to head back.”

  “Thanks,” Alex told him cheerfully. “That's nice of you.”

  “Thank you Lance,” Jenny gushed, gesturing down at the high gold heels she was wearing. “There's a reason we drove in the first place.” Jenny sighed softly and then smiled at him, “I'm ready to go home now since Arthur has left.”

  “Okay,” Lance said kindly before looking at Alex. “What about you?”

  “Uh,” Alex hesitated, “I'll stay a little longer. This is Aisha's house and I haven't talked with her yet. I'll just walk home,” she added with a small smile. “You don't need to make two trips.”

  “I'd rather pick you up later than have you walk home,” Lance told her with a slight frown. He glanced at Jenny and then back to her. “I'll be back in an hour to pick you up, that okay?”

  “That really isn't necessary,” Alex insisted, but Lance gave her a stern look until she relented and agreed to meet him in an hour.

  With Arthur gone, Lance escorted Jenny down the stairs with Alex trailing behind. She nearly tripped on
the stairs when another shiver shook her body, biting back a curse. Then she heard a strange long howling over the music. Frowning, Alex looked out a window as she reached the foot of the stairs. There was another howl; it sounded closer than before, but she didn't see anything stranger than drunk students in the yard. A Halloween song started to play and Alex laughed softly to herself for mistaking a sound effect for a real animal. She gave a quick wave to Jenny and Lance as they left and went in search of Aisha.

  An hour and a half later, Alex was standing out on the street as people around her staggered home and she tightened her hoodie. Pulling out her phone, she noted that it was past 3 in the morning and still no sign of Lance. She tried texting him again, but there was no answer. A sudden strange howl echoed through Greek row and made Alex spin around in alarm. She couldn't pinpoint which house it came from, but convinced herself that it was just a sound effect. Across the street the last light in Delta Omega Alpha turned out. Sighing in surrender, Alex turned and started walking down the street towards the silent intersection.