Rakarthen Academy

by Clara Hartley

  “Should I be thanking them for their mercy, then?”

  “I know you hate them.”

  I shot the king a dirty look. “They’ve been making my life a living hell. Sometimes I feel like a mouse. They’re just biding their time, Cendri and Nemreth, at least, waiting to finish me off once they tire of me.”

  “Nemreth… It’s hard to think of him as that heartless. He’s the kindest fae I know. He wasn’t born into luxury. Not like Cendri and Aland. His father insisted that he be raised poor before we let him know about his part in the prophecy.”

  “He’s a conniving asshole. That’s what he is.”

  “He follows Cendri blindly. Nemreth has much too much gratitude for that arrogant blond twat.”

  “What for?”

  The king shrugged. “Something about his little sister. She has difficulty with magic, you see. Sisters, actually. I’m not sure about the details. The personal lives of the triad don’t concern me too much.”

  Below, the bells began chiming again. I turned to the sight of Cardell beneath us. Most of Cardell was covered with so much nature that the home of the dragon fae blended in with the rest of the forest. As if on cue, my stomach began rumbling, joining in with the ringing bells.

  “You should have dinner soon,” the king said.

  “Since you rule the fae and all, can I have a request?”

  “Whatever will help you win the trials.”

  “Can you feed Kaji and I properly? We haven’t been getting enough food. The portions here are laughable.”

  “I’ll see to it. You’ll need enough energy to fight, after all.”

  Seventeen

  A bloodbath.

  Already, I pictured screaming fae begging for their lives. I knew the fae didn’t value the lives of their students. My very first lesson with Nemreth had taught me that. I wasn’t sure why the king had mentioned Nemreth being kind.

  Nemreth was holding a giant bolt made of pure magic. He set it into a crossbow. I watched him, attempting to figure out what exactly about him was kind. I couldn’t see it. The man was a machine of war. He fought unlike any other and I remembered the way he’d used magic on me, taking away my will. That had been terrifying. When he had me pressed against the ceiling, I had no way of escape. People with kind hearts didn’t do that. They had compassion, and I sensed none of it from Nemreth. He was just incredibly good at deceiving others. That was all I saw in him.

  Nemreth released the crossbow and the bolt shot through the air, straight above and over the fort we were at. The bolt hit nothing. “It’s a reminder of how you properly fire our specialized crossbow. Using our magic arrows is the best way to get rid of the teramarth who can command the power of dragon fae. They’re faster, stronger, and they feel no pain. They can’t die. So precision is necessary. We have to aim these bolts straight at the heads of the teramarth inside their dragon forms, shooting right through their magic. Any questions?”

  He’d demonstrated this move plenty of times, and we’d been made to carry out the same procedure repeatedly. Everybody in this class knew how to shoot the specialized crossbow. When Nemreth spoke of the dragon teramarth, my insides grew cold. My memory of them hadn’t left me. Just a few of them had caused so much trouble for Kaji and I, almost killing us. So far, there hadn’t been any new swarms of teramarth from the Wall of Thorns. I’d overheard some teachers saying that it’d been more peaceful than usual.

  Trouble always followed peace. When were we going to be hit?

  Nemreth swept a hand over his hair. His green eyes settled on me before flicking away. I watched him as he gathered his teaching materials and strode off.

  I wasn’t sure what possessed me to make me act differently that day. Maybe it was the fear of the impending Flower Trials. Or perhaps instinct led me to action. I wanted to follow Nemreth to see where he was going. He’d missed a lot of his lessons, just as the rest of the triad did. They showed up every so often, gracing the students with their presence, but they remained absent for the most part. They were too important for the likes of normal attendees of the academy, apparently.

  “Where are you going, Ly?” Kaji asked. Mayhem paced at the edge of the training grounds, waiting for us to finish. My ingoria would have to wait longer. I wanted to tail Nemreth and see where he was going. If I followed him, that might give me some indication of who he truly was. What did he do during his spare time? Who was he when he didn’t have to put on his mask?

  “Kaj,” I replied, “go make sure Mayhem gets his food.” The fae had been providing Mayhem extra food from their stables. They treated my ingoria better than me. I couldn’t say that some part of me wasn’t jealous.

  “Why can’t you do it?” Kaji asked.

  “Because I’m going to run an errand.”

  “An errand? The only errands you run involve getting in trouble. I’m going with you.”

  “Mayhem’s going to get hungry.” I liked doing my sneaking around alone. It made stealth easier, and I wouldn’t be asked any questions. Kaji wouldn’t slow me down, but I’d prefer doing this by myself. “And you know he starts growling when he’s hungry. You don’t want him to bite off a random fae’s head, do you?” Actually, I didn’t mind if Mayhem did that, especially if said random fae was Cendri.

  Kaji eyed me. “What are you up to?”

  “You know I like my space. You’ve been following me around a lot since we arrived in Thesnan. What happened to lazing about? I’m giving you permission to have the next break to yourself.”

  “That’s because you don’t have any other evaradraes here. I’m the only one. And I have to protect you.”

  “I can do the protecting myself.”

  “Uh huh. You almost got eaten by a bunch of undead dragon fae. I’m coming with you.”

  It was impossible to shake Kaji off. “You just love me too much,” I whined. “Stop being so clingy.”

  Kaji summoned his wings. The leathery texture looked even redder when the sun was this bright. “Clingy, huh? Don’t get too full of yourself,” Kaji replied. “I just don’t want to get on your fathers’ bad side if I return with you all mangled up.”

  “Mhm,” I said, looking over my shoulder. “Mayhem’s going to hate you for not feeding him.”

  “The ingoria is too spoiled. They don’t get regular feedings in the wild.”

  “He’s my baby.”

  Kaji rolled his eyes. His annoyance would look a lot more convincing if he didn’t have food stuck in the corners of his mouth. I thought I might gesture to my own mouth to remind him of his messiness, but he didn’t care about being neat, so why should I?

  “Where are we going?” Kaji asked.

  I sighed. “You look like you don’t even want to be here, Kaj. Why are you coming with me?”

  “I always look like I don’t want to be anywhere.”

  “Fair point.” I searched the skies for Nemreth, chiding myself for getting distracted and losing him. I spotted him in the distance, then sped up, still making sure there was enough space between us so he wouldn’t notice me. “We’re following Nemreth.”

  “The asshole?”

  “Have you decided to call him that now?”

  “That’s what I call him in my head. The asshole. I heard of what he did to you at the pits, Ly. I should have been there.”

  “It was a challenge. You couldn’t have stepped in anyway.”

  “Would have been nice for you to have some moral support.”

  I shrugged. “Didn’t need it. I won in the end.”

  “You might have won quicker.”

  “I highly doubt that.” Nemreth glided through the air. His wingspan was much larger than ours, and so he moved faster. “I’m going to speed up, or we’re going to lose him.” I beat my wings against the clouds harder.

  “Why are we following him?” Kaji asked.

  “I’m just curious about him.”

  “If he catches you doing this, he might do more mean things to you.”

  “Wor
th the risk.”

  “You mean you like the risk.” Kaji shook his head. “Tell me why I signed up for this job again? I’m forced to protect a princess who doesn’t even want to keep herself safe.”

  “You’re always complaining about being bored, aren’t you? This should occupy your mind.”

  “To be honest, the boredom has lessened ever since coming to this crazy place.”

  “Oh, so you’re being entertained?”

  “I’m not sure if anybody would call this entertainment. Shards in my shoes? You’re not the only one facing ill treatment.”

  My heart sank. I knew that Kaji put up with all of this because of me. He hadn’t complained about it. Not until now.

  “Thanks,” I said.

  “For what?”

  “For sticking by me despite my decisions. You can go back to Constanria, you know. I dragged you into this mess, and—”

  “You’re getting all sentimental on me.”

  “What? Is it wrong for me to feel a hint of remorse?”

  “I’m surprised. I didn’t know you had that in you.”

  I snorted. “I hate you, Kaj.”

  “Sure, liar.” Kaji smirked. “Keep your eyes on Nemreth. You’re going to lose him if you don’t focus.”

  “You’re e distracting me.” I sighed. “You don’t have to stay here just to serve your duty.”

  “It’s not duty that’s keeping me here.”

  “Then what?”

  “It’s you,” Kaji said. “I’m worried about my friend. That’s all.”

  I thought back to the insults and taunts and those countless incidents of bullying. They would have been much harder to handle if Kaji weren’t there. I might have broken. My heart quivered.

  “You…” I said after a drawn-out silence. “You’re wonderful, Kaj.”

  Kaji chuckled. “You don’t compliment me often. I’ll take it.”

  Nemreth didn’t stop flying for another twenty minutes. Cardell was a large city, and Nemreth traveled all the way to the outskirts. We weren’t even in Rakarthen anymore, and mostly saw farmlands. We flew over insect farms, swampy lands with chirping sounds coming from cages made of straw. Kaji and I positioned ourselves higher, reaching above the clouds, hoping they might provide cover.

  “How long until he stops?” Kaji asked.

  “I can’t read his mind.”

  Five minutes later, Nemreth finally answered Kaji’s and my silent plea. He tucked his wings into his back and dove toward a cottage atop a hill. It was right next to a mushroom farm. I’d never seen a mushroom farm before, and I spent a long while perusing the little fungi that sprouted from rows upon rows of logs. Nemreth landed next to the cottage, but we couldn’t make ourselves obvious, so we took a detour, dropping to the logs before making the rest of the journey on foot.

  “Strange place for an almighty savior of the lands to be,” I muttered. “It’s nothing grand.”

  Kaji shrugged. “He didn’t notice us the entire time.”

  “I’m thankful for that.”

  “Maybe his sense of his surroundings isn’t that good.”

  “I really thought he was going to catch us.” After we left the center of the city, we didn’t have tall trees or viney buildings to cover us.

  “The clouds worked, I suppose,” Kaji said.

  We stopped next to a large tree that framed the cottage. Kaji and I huddled behind it, peeking our heads out to find Nemreth. He’d disappeared into the cottage. The sounds of the wind filled the silence.

  “Any idea how long we’re going to wait here for?” Kaji asked.

  “We might just have to wait the whole day.”

  “Missing all our lessons.”

  “You’re worried about your grades now?”

  “You’re the one who wants to prove yourself to the fae. I should be worried on your behalf.”

  I rolled my eyes, then a figure left the cottage. At first, I thought it might have been Nemreth. The man was definitely tall enough to be him, but his blond hair gave him away, and on closer inspection, I saw that it was Cendri.

  “Huh,” I said.

  “Not a surprise,” Kaji replied. “They are known to be close.”

  “What are they doing all the way out here?”

  A second after, a bell chimed, and a little boy ran out of the cottage. He went at full speed, little dragon fae wings spread behind him. He lost his balance. Before he tripped, Cendri caught him, saving him from a face plant.

  Kids?

  I frowned.

  Cendri laughed, saying something to the boy I couldn’t hear from this distance. It was the kindest smile I’d ever seen on him. Most of them time, he was smirking at somebody else’s misery. The boy smiled back and gave Cendri a big, tight hug, one that was too sweet for the bastard. I blinked, not believing my eyes.

  A group of kids followed the first little boy, and they gathered in front of the cottage, sounding like excited little birds.

  “Now, now,” Cendri said, clapping his hands. “Remember the rules, kids! Don’t go running off the compound, and please, don’t hurt each other.”

  “What’s he talking about?” I asked Kaji.

  Kaji shrugged.

  Nemreth followed the kids. A scrawny little girl walked next to him. She seemed small and meek, like a little sapling bracing to face a storm. My attention was drawn to her. She was nowhere near as boisterous or enthusiastic as the other kids. The girl was limping, and she needed Nemreth to support her.

  More questions burned in my mind, but I could only get my answers through watching.

  The girl looked up at Nemreth, curiosity in her eyes. Nemreth kneeled and kissed her on the forehead. He grabbed both her shoulders, as if trying to instill encouragement in the girl. He reminded me of a big brother. One who was there to protect. Protect? I thought all he ever did was bully.

  “They’re playing hide and seek,” Kaji said.

  “Hide… and seek?” It was such a simple game.

  Cendri clapped his hands again, and the little children scattered, darting in different directions. Nemreth reached for the young girl’s hand. She gripped him tightly, and he led her off into the forest, in the opposite direction. Cendri remained in front of the cottage, arms folded. He counted backward from fifty, his voice booming. “Forty-one, forty, thirty-nine…”

  None of this made sense. Why were two members of the triad out in the middle of nowhere, playing kid games?

  “Oi,” a small voice said.

  I jolted. Kaji and I turned around, and a pigtailed girl with bright green hair stared at us from between two bushes.

  “Um, hi,” I said, giving her a nervous finger wave. Was she going to rat us out?

  “Hi,” she replied, cocking her head. “Are you hiding?”

  “Yeah?”

  “You weren’t at the initial meeting. Can you just join us like that?”

  I scrambled for a lie. “I told Cendri I was going to be late.” I pointed at Cendri. “He said I could just join whenever.”

  “Uh huh.”

  I looked to the side, then at her again. “You should go hide, too.”

  “Estri is probably going to win, anyway.”

  “Who is Estri?”

  “Nemreth’s sister. She’s very good at this game. She can’t walk, but the kids all call her the Queen of Hiding.”

  I frowned. “I’m not sure that’s a title anybody would want.”

  “We respect her for it.” The girl glanced away. “But I should hide. I’ve lost two weeks in a row, now. You should find somewhere else to hole up.”

  “Why?”

  “Hm?” The girl pursed her lips. “Because Cen-Cen’s looking directly at you.”

  My pulse quickened. Was he? I turned around and slowly looked beyond the tree. The girl was right. Cendri—or Cen-Cen, as she liked to call him—had his attention in my direction.

  I thought he might come reprimand me. He was going to punish me. There was always a punishment of some sort involv
ed.

  Instead, Cendri looked away and called, “You kids don’t have much time left! Hurry and find your spot! Ten, nine, eight…”

  I spun back around, wanting to ask the girl more questions.

  She was gone.

  “Should we have gone back to Rakarthen?” I asked Kaji as we sat by the tree. I was waiting for Cendri to finish his games with the kids. He’d noticed me, but he didn’t acknowledge me, and we’d spent the next twenty minutes in this spot. I wondered if Cendri still knew where we were, or if he even cared.

  Kaji licked his lips. “This is pointless. I don’t know why we came in the first place.”

  “Aren’t you the least bit curious about what you’re seeing here? It’s Cendri and Nemreth. Playing with a bunch of kids. I’m having trouble wrapping my head around all of this.”

  “Don’t you usually get things pretty quick?” Kaji asked.

  “It’s not me that’s the problem. Do you have an explanation for this?”

  Kaji had completely tuned me out. He’d found a giant leaf somewhere and placed it over his head. If I left him alone for a couple more minutes, I had a feeling that he’d fall asleep on me. Kaji flicked a piece of food from his mouth. “Nope.”

  “Thought s—”

  The bushes in front of me shifted. I stiffened, staring ahead, and Nemreth appeared from between the bushes. He’d changed into simpler clothes, removing his armor for a plain leather tunic. He looked slightly more like a commoner, but with a face like that, he’d never look completely normal. “Cendri told me that you were stalking us,” Nemreth said. “Watching us from behind a tree. You followed me after the lesson, didn’t you?” His green eyes pierced me with accusation.

  My feet felt like they were rooted to the ground. I swallowed thickly, suddenly feeling like I was being interrogated. Nemreth didn’t even look this serious when he was teaching his classes. I thought he was going to stab me or something.

  “Yeah,” I said. “Why are you hanging out with a bunch of kids? Preparing them to be carved up, perhaps?”