Emotionless (The Emotionless Book 1)

by Shaina Anastasi

  “Wow, hold a grudge much. You’re just jealous that Eileen goes to Mage Academy. The most prestige school for mages,” Charlie spat.

  “Oh, really?” Lauran scoffed. “Eileen is good at using others to climb higher through the ranks. She may even steal your test scores and claim you tried to copy off of her. Because she was such a perfect girl, they loved back then that they would believe her. Then you would be sent to St Clairiss Academy because you had a mark on your portfolio. Just like I was.”

  “Lies.”

  Lauran stepped forward and grabbed hold of my denim jacket. She was much taller than I so I raised a little higher off of the ground and on the tips of my toes. I stared blankly at her while she glared down with utter hate at me. I really don’t know what I had done for her to despise me so much. We used to be close. She was the only one I enjoyed replying back to when she spoke. I cannot fathom this much hate. But it all began that night a summoned a Guardian… oh, I see.

  “It’s because I summoned a Guardian at a young age, wasn’t it?” I then asked.

  Lauran huffed a breath and released her hold on me. I then took a step back and brushed down my denim jacket. “Everything is all about you, Eileen. Eileen. Eileen. Eileen. That’s all everyone talks about. Even now, as the most hated mage in the world, you are on the tip of everyone’s tongue. It infuriates me. But not for long. I heard there’s a dragon that goes to Mage Academy. I will be the first mage in five years to be able to summon a Guardian Dragon. Then everyone will talk about me!”

  “Lawliet,” I whispered.

  “Oh… is that his name?” Lauran asked. “So, you know him. When’s his birth date so I have the most optimal chances of summoning him?” I shook my head. Her eyes then narrowed at my resistance. “Why? You already have a Guardian. You will not be strong enough to summon a dragon as well. There’s a reason most mages can summon only one Guardian. They drain us of our mage magic. Besides, even if you didn’t have a Guardian, I doubt you would be able to summon a dragon. You are weak. For once, I am stronger than you. I am the only one capable of summoning a Dragon Guardian. I will be worthy to stand by a dragon’s side and together, we will rule the mages at the Organisation.”

  “Do you truly believe you will be chosen?” Lollie asked. “You are already showing madness as you speak to Eileen. The power you talk about is the power that frightens mages. I will certainly not be voting your family in.”

  Lauran raised her chin high in the air and glared down at me. “Well, there’s nothing they can do now that Eileen is out of the running. The Dwight family is the second strongest and oldest of the families. Eileen’s reign has ended, and at the end of next year, mine will begin.” Lauran then stepped forward. Her veins crept to the surface, and they throbbed a bright white. “Now, Eileen Frost, tell me when I can summon my Dragon Guardian.”

  “No,” I breathed. “I don’t know, and if I did, I would not tell you.”

  Her eyes widened substantially. “You… you fancy him, don’t you? Oh… oh, I cannot wait to rip him away from you, Eileen Frost.”

  I could feel it. There was this hot, lava bubble burning within me, and it rose like an eruption. My hands desperately wanted to ball into fists, and my face wanted to contort into anger and crinkle until I was unrecognisable. I could feel hot breath wanting to seethe through my teeth and hiss out towards Lauran. But all of that was my imagination I tried to break free from the curse. Instead, frosted breath swirled out of my open mouth.

  The temperature dropped, and the wind stilled until there was nothing but silence around us. Mages stopped, stared and surrounded us like a barrier or a gate, waiting for a fight to break out. The snow stopped falling and froze in the air around us. They sparkled and glistened in the dull light above. I could hear the twinkle of magic within the flakes of snow, the magic that throbbed in my veins. Tattoos then swirled to life and burned with desire.

  I took a step forward, and Lauran balled her hands into fists. I took another step forward and stood beside her, but faced away from her. I stared blankly at the shop that had pretty, beautiful, coloured crystals and gems inside. In the window, I stared at my reflection and at the golden aura that palpitated behind me. “Have a wonderful day, Lauran Dwight,” I whispered.

  “Same, Eileen Frost,” she said through clenched teeth.

  I walked away from her, and the anger started to diminish. For a moment there, I nearly lost control of myself. I could feel my Guardian behind me, ready to appear and fight. I wasn’t prepared for slaughter. As much as I desperately wanted her to hit me so that I could retaliate, it wasn’t worth. In the end, I would be painted as the villain, and it would harm my family further. The best thing that I could have done in that situation was to walk away before I started something my Guardian would happily want to finish. I wasn’t ready to have blood on my hands. The way that Mika spoke, it was something that he has regretted. I know I would too.

  “Woah, Eileen!” Charlie skipped until she walked in front of me. She looked at me as she stepped backwards and punched the air painfully. “You beat her up with your words. I could hear the venom in your voice. You were pissed off, weren’t you?”

  “Somewhat,” I admitted.

  “That was badass,” Lollie laughed. “The boys won’t believe it when we tell them what Eileen just did.”

  “That was intense. Who is up for some ice-cream to cool off before we go dress hunting?” Charlie asked.

  “I like ice-cream,” I said.

  Charlie whirled around dramatically and raised her arm to the sky. “Onwards, my psychotic mage friends!”

  She was definitely an oddball, but I wouldn’t have her any other way, I suppose. Her and Lollie are the friends that I really needed today. I am grateful for their company and for not turning their back on me immediately after what Lauran told them. I have a feeling other mages would have betrayed me because of how powerful Lauran is. She is powerful. I cannot deny that. But she is not strong enough to summon a Dragon Guardian. It was all talk, but even so, I couldn’t help but be worried that other mages were waiting for him to turn eighteen so that they could summon him immediately.

  Butterfly Kiss.

  Four Days Later: Wednesday.

  The sky had thick, black clouds that suffocated the air. Fire rained down and washed everything in hot red water. Explosions burst all around me, and orange sparks flashed in the sky. Thunder rumbled off in the distance like the banging of drums, and they echoed and vibrated the ground with every thunderous clap.

  Bones broke into flakes of ash underneath my feet, and charcoal air made it hard to breathe. My throat closed up, and I desperately tried not to inhale the scent of burning flesh. My eyes stung, but no tears pricked in the corners of my eyes.

  The city was burning, engulfed in smoke. Orange light flashed across the smoky covered sky, and black, broad wings stretched outwards and flourished. A loud screech of a sound then echoed and shook the ground. Rubble rippled like heatwaves in the far distant.

  Those black wings then tilted, and the dragon turned, and the head of the dragon directed itself at me. I stood, frozen in fear at the dragon that dropped like a torpedo towards me. A swirl of orange and red burned inside of its throat. I thought I was about to die right then and there to dragon fire, but then the dragon flapped its wings once and landed onto the ground. Gold swirled inside of the dragon’s eyes, and my sunken heart lifted, and I reached out to touch the scales that I believe would be rough when a low chuckle came from above the dragon. Lauran stood proud and tall. A cruel and sadistic smile stretched across her face.

  She then raised her hand and veins crawled their way up and heightened along her skin. She pointed her staff towards me and said, “Burn in hell.”

  Dragon fire gushed out of Lawliet’s mouth and towards me.

  I woke from my dream and stared up at the ceiling when this bitter coldness came from the side of me. A cold draft came in from the open window and curtains brushed in the breeze. Snow littered along the win
dowsill.

  I don’t recall leaving the window open. However, after that nightmare, I am a little glad. My body was burning up, and my pale skin looked red in the dull, white light from outside. It feels like I have been burned by dragon fire.

  I sat up and then went to the window. There was a bitter bite that pinched along open flesh that wasn’t covered by my nightgown. I grabbed hold of the handles of the windows and pulled them shut and flicked the lock. After, I decided to dress instead of a shower. The thought of going under warm water didn’t appeal to me right now. I needed my skin to cool down.

  As soon as I stepped out of my room, the fire alarm went off and smoke filled the air. It smells like something was burning.

  Around the corner, Isilies was frantically waving a washcloth across the fire alarm that was attached to the wall. Sometimes I find it odd that my brother does things the Ordinary-Human way instead of using his crystal to suck up the smoke like a mage would.

  “Eileen, could you help me by opening that window, please?” Silas called. I went over to the window and dragged it up. Smoke started to move its way out and into the winter sky. The fire alarm then stopped beeping, and Silas sighed and stepped off of the dining chair. “Cooking is hard,” he then complained.

  I looked down at the pan that was in the sink and at the charcoal scrambled eggs. I then looked up at a bashful and embarrassed older brother.

  “I thought I could leave them while I went to have a shower,” he mumbled. “When’s Hopper coming back so he can do the household duties again? I can’t keep trying to cook.”

  No, he cannot. He will be the death of us all if he tries to cook another meal.

  Hopper has been gone for four days. I didn’t think that it was going to take him this long to gain back The Midosseny T’Sholm Murder book. I gave him specific details as well on where it should be located. However, since the move, it could possibly be anywhere. Especially if Mum and Dad has been through the books and sorted them out once we left that home. Let’s hope he comes home soon so that Silas can stop before he burns the tower down.

  “You will get there. Don’t give up,” I murmured. I needed to give Silas fake support. In reality, I didn’t want him to step foot inside this kitchen again. “Until then, I can go down to the cafeteria to eat.”

  “Good thinking, Eileen. I will clean up this mess before my classes.” I nodded and went to leave with Silas called me over once again. I looked back at Silas narrowing his eyes. He seemed particularly suspicious. “Oh, and Eileen, can you take your brothers? They are cooking up something inside of their room, I just know it. I think it is a hair monster. I saw them trying to search for my hairbrush. Little do they know that I keep all of my belongings locked in a safe in my room. Even my shoes.”

  My brother worries me.

  “We will be out in a minute, Eileen!” Donte and Nixon called. “We are just bottling our potion.”

  “I knew it,” Silas hissed.

  I then suddenly had a thought. “Brother, did you know Mika well from school?” I asked.

  “Uh, Mika, yeah.” Silas nodded. “Why?” He then asked.

  “I was wondering. He was the one that won A Mages War five years ago.”

  “Yeah, he did. If you wanted to know if we were close, I’d say we respected each other. He was a hard worker for someone so young in appearance. Funny. There always had been competition between Mika and Timothy. A lot of mages were unsure about who was more powerful. I guess no one will know…” Silas trailed off and looked away.

  Again, he had that saddened look on his face. Silas tries to hide it, but for me, it was very apparent and clear for me to see. Whenever he talks about that night, or around that year, he has that look of regret. For some reason, my brother believes that it was his fault I was cursed and then had to defend myself. That wasn’t the case at all. I hope he sees it soon that none of what happened that night was his fault.

  The door to Donte and Nixon’s room then bursts open, and they rushed out, looking a mess. They were dressed like they draped their clothes over them rather than put them on properly. Nixon’s tie was over his shoulder, and Donte’s jumper was crinkled like he grabbed a used one from the ground and put that on. They didn’t look well presentable, and I shouldn’t really be surprised.

  Silas whimpered into his coffee and looked the other way. Just like I wasn’t, Silas wasn’t ready for a day of school with my brothers. At least he doesn’t have a class with them. I have to suffer listening to them spout on about who they were going to prank next.

  After we left home, we went inside the cafeteria. I ignored the glares of mages that floated high above me on the tables and went to the line to grab my food. I then sat beside Charlie who was already at a table with Lollie, Kent, Wes and Spencer. Every time I come down here, they look disgusted on what I get from the line of food: chocolate-coated strawberries, pancakes drizzled in melted, hot chocolate with whipped cream and ice-cream on the side. There’s a reason why Hopper tries to give me my own packed lunch. I have a sweet tooth, and I don’t deny that at all. I enjoy my sweets too much. I am surprised that I am not a little chubbier. Not like I wouldn’t mind having more meat on my bones. If I did, though, I do believe my parents would place me on a strict diet and exercise so that I could be at the best of my abilities. The Frost family girls are always supposed to be slim in size, and rather tall and elegant. Unfortunately, I didn’t get the tall side of things, but I believe that was part of my charm that made mages think that I was adorable and cute.

  “Heads up,” Spencer said when the table floated up in the air. “It is supposed to be heavy winds and snow on Wednesday onwards. If that’s the case, outdoor sports will be cancelled.”

  “Thank the blue moon,” Charlie muttered.

  “However, I spoke to my… Headmage and he said the indoor pool should be available for us.”

  “We had an indoor pool this whole time, and you mention it now? Is it heated?” Charlie demanded.

  “Of course, it is heated. In this weather, we don’t want you all to freeze to death.” Spencer shook his head side to side. “Usually there is a swim club, but unfortunately, the manager and coaches that run the swim club have in fact turned eighteen and both boys declared that they will be going into A Mages War. Further swim sessions have been cancelled until they can get another coach. Headmage said he was going to hire a proper teacher this time. Could take a few weeks to a month.”

  “Do you know who?” Nixon and Donte looked at Lollie and Kent.

  “Yeah. Chad and Brad. We called them competitive junkies,” Kent said and nodded. “The whole year kind of knew they would go into A Mages War if they got a good Guardian. I guess they got the Guardians that they wanted. They will leave now at their own free will and train until the beginning of October. That’s when A Mages War starts.”

  “So, they would leave the premises?” Wes asked. “Why?”

  “Wouldn’t you?” Lollie asked. “If I ever were going to go into A Mages War, I will go as far away as possible to any human contact and train really hard with my Guardian in private. There’s no way I would want anyone to see me at all. Especially mages that want to analyse me and know my tactics and strategies so that they can have the upper hand. No, thank you.”

  “That’s actually pretty smart,” Spencer said and nodded. “No wonder nearing the end of the year it is much quieter. Sad, really to see so many of a class leave. One year there’s practically no girls and the next year there is next to none boys. Everyone wants a taste in a wish.”

  “Not me,” Charlie scoffed. “I am going to finish Mage Academy and gain an exalted position at Organisation. Who knows, I might be Lauran’s secretary. I can then strangle her in her sleep.”

  Lollie snorted a laugh at Charlie’s words.

  “You know you can go into A Mages War and wish for that,” Kent said. “You can basically wish for anything aside from bringing the dead back to life, curing an illness that eats at the body or remove a curse… like t
hat guy did five years ago. We learn something different when a mage has been rejected by the Phrelale Flower. That’s what I want to be. I want to study the Phrelale Flower and its wishes so that we can prevent any more useless wishes from coming out.”

  “You will be an awesome analyse, Kent,” Lollie said.

  She fluttered her eyes at him. Kent seemed utterly oblivious at her attempts of flirting and looked back down at his food. Lollie then cleared her throat and looked back at us. “Ugh, I have this lame exam at the end of this week…”

  Her words trailed off as I tuned out of the junk talk that surrounded the table. I did, however, listen into my brothers and their hushed conversation. They had their heads close together and whispered to one another. I guess that this was the first that they heard that Mage Academy had an indoor swimming pool as well. I can tell that within the week, there was going to be some sort of a prank that happens to the water. I will be well prepared, no matter what prank they do. I merely enjoy listening to what prank it would be so that I can watch from the sidelines. It is my entertainment.

  The first two classes breezed past. That was a surprise, considering crafting always bores me. While Donte, Nixon and Charlie headed towards the cafeteria, I went up the flight of stairs and towards the tower. The door creaked open, and I stepped inside and walked towards the sleeping dragon.

  With every step that I took, the image of fire swirled to life, and the city burned to the ground. Buildings were destroyed, and ash wisped in the wind. I tried to blink away the images, but the nightmare that I had last night wasn’t really one that I could shake off.

  I put my artbook down on the table and dragged it across the table and towards Lawliet. I then reached up and went to poke his cheek when his arm flew up, and his hand clasped hold onto my wrist. Golden, snake eyes opened, and he glared up groggily.