The Student

by Darin Niemann

  The headmaster noticed my silence, “I realize that you have much to think on. If you would blindfold yourself once more, we will return to my office.” Reluctantly, I did as requested, and eventually we were back up the stairs. This time around, I made sure to keep track of the number of turns and the amount of steps we took up. I wasn’t sure if that information would come in handy, but someday it might.

  When we arrived back in Sol’s office, I removed my blindfold. The Headmaster was sitting at his desk. Looking at him, in his scholarly robes, among his paper cluttered desk, it was hard to imagine him being a part of a shadowy group of assassins.

  He smiled up at me, “We will meet in a week's time. Have your answer by then.” His attention turned towards the countless papers piled on his desk. As I was walking out the door, I turned back and asked, “What do you call yourselves?”

  The Headmaster glanced at me, “We do not have a name that we call ourselves, but outsiders know us as the Shadow Ravens.”

  ~

  The rest of the day I tinkered around at Enelo’s house. My house, now. I cleaned, chopped some firewood, and simply tried to fall back into a normal routine for a little while. Of course, none of this could take my mind off of The Shadow Ravens. I knew that they were powerfully dangerous. As a group of mercenary assassins, their main goals were self-serving and focused on money. There was no honor here. Everything was based on who owned the deepest pockets. It didn’t stop me from considering their offer, though.

  If I accepted I would have to learn to be one of them. I would have to learn to kill. Well, I already knew what could kill a man. Not all ways, of course, but many of them. I knew, though, that if I joined them I would have to learn to kill efficiently and without hesitation. I could decline, and wait to see if the King’s men could gather more information. After so long without any news, it seemed a futile wait. I knew that if I declined the Headmasters offer, I wouldn’t be allowed a second opportunity. Accepting would mean training; training that takes time.

  There was also a good chance I would never be able to walk away from this...alive, anyway. A group such as the Shadow Ravens didn’t get far and survive for long by letting trainees run off. I would happily kill the man who murdered Enelo, but to kill others simply on the word of the Headmaster? I wasn’t sure I could do it. I had seen people killed plenty during my time in Relvan. I wasn’t naive enough to think that nobody should die. Some people were better off dead, like Enelo’s killer.

  As I finished the household chores, I slumped into a chair. I missed Enelo. And Shar. And even the Prince and Iselle. That was another thing to worry about. I couldn’t get them involved. I doubted that even a group such as the Ravens would try to assassinate a prince. Iselle would not be so safe. They could use her against me if I ever tried to leave. I knew I should decline, but I would surely regret it. If I didn’t find Enelo’s killer, it would haunt me till the end of my days. As I thought back to that gods’ forsaken night, I felt the anger inside. I used it to harden myself, and to prepare for the worst. My decision was made.

  ~

  The halls were quiet, as the moonlight filtered through the windows. I strode with purpose towards the Headmaster’s room, noting that, for once, his assistant was absent. I knocked three times in quick succession and waited patiently. I heard a chair slide inside the room. The soft patter of steps on stone grew as their owner came closer.

  The door opened and the Headmaster took me in with a glance, “I have been expecting you, Kayne. Come. Sit.”

  I entered the room, noting that a few candles spread throughout the room kept it lit. The flames seemed to dance as I watched, the small flickers casting shadows around the room.

  “I didn’t know if you would be awake yet, but I made my decision and had to tell you,” I informed him.

  My eyes never wavered as he held my gaze. He nodded, seeing my determination, “Indeed you have. It will take time for us to find the man responsible for Enelo’s death. During that time you will be trained. To the public eye, you will be taking private lessons, as you are extremely gifted and advanced beyond the average student.” I nodded, knowing that my time as a healer had come to an end. At least, for now.

  Sol continued, “I will not be directly in charge of your training. You will have a few different masters, all of whom excel at their craft. I suggest you heed them and learn as much as you can.” He clasped his hands together, silently studying me. “Your training will begin tomorrow morning. Go now, and rest.” He turned to his work, as I quietly left the room, closing the door behind me. It was done. I returned to Enelo’s house and tried to rest, tossing and turning until finally, I slept.

  I awoke before the sun rose, and prepared myself for a day of intense training. My body was already in decent shape from my lessons with Dante. I had thought about telling him but decided against it. He wouldn’t agree with it, and perhaps even refuse to continue training me. Perhaps, someday I would tell him, but it wouldn’t be anytime soon.

  I made my way to the school and proceeded to the Headmaster’s office once more. The students flowed from class to class, none paying any attention to me. The assistant, Niels, was there this time and before I could say anything, he ordered, “Follow.”

  He turned and walked down the hall without looking to see if I followed. I followed him at a short distance. After a few turns, we approached a door. I had never been to this section of the Academy before. We entered into a small, but cozy, room with only a single chair and some half-filled bookshelves. A tough looking man sitting in the lone chair looked up from the book he had been reading as we entered.

  The assistant turned to me and explained, “This is Geoff. He will take you down into the training area. You will, of course, be blindfolded, until you have proven yourself to be one of us.”

  I nodded my understanding. They had to be careful with the secret of the underground halls. And the man, Geoff, did not look like any simple guard. As he stood and approached, I could see he was dangerous. He carried himself in a manner that exuded confidence. It was different than the way Dante carried himself though.

  He scrutinized me bluntly, not bothering to introduce himself or to speak to me at all. Once he was finished with his examination he turned to Niels. “This is he?”

  Niels nodded once before addressing me, “We have prepared a room down the hall to allow you easy access to your training. While in training, you will stay here in the Academy. If you are questioned, you are having private lessons under the Headmaster’s orders.” He motioned toward the guard, as if handing me over. With that, he left, leaving me and Geoff alone.

  Without saying anything, he turned and grabbed a cloth from a drawer. He came behind me and tied the cloth around my eyes. His hand on my shoulder propelled me forward until he pulled back, indicating me to stop. After a few moments I heard a scraping sound as wood brushed against stone. Another hidden passage.

  He lead me down stairs until we reached the bottom. After a few moments, with some more scraping and scuffing sounds, he removed my blindfold. We were at the bottom of a set of stairs, the path continuing into a small hallway. Everything was made of stone, softly lit by the torches spaced in intervals throughout the hall. Geoff didn’t say anything as we walked, so I also stayed silent.

  Was this man one of my teachers? Or just a guard? The answer came as we entered the training room I had seen on my last visit with the Headmaster. Geoff pointed across the room towards a man, and then silently left back the way I had come. The man, presumably my instructor, was sitting calmly in a chair, casually sharpening a dagger. I approached his side cautiously, wondering what this man would teach me.

  I stopped when I was close enough to speak without shouting, “I was sent by the Headmaster. I am here for training.”

  He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye, but kept on sharpening, “I know who you are, boy.”

  I waited, growing impatient as I stood silently. Finally, the man held his dagger up to a torch, the lig
ht bouncing off the stone walls. He gave a satisfied grunt, sheathing the dagger at his waist.

  “What do you know of blades?” he asked suddenly.

  I wondered if he meant all blades, or daggers specifically. I chose not to reveal my training with the sword, though they perhaps already knew about it. “I know the basics.” I replied confidently.

  He snorted, “The basics? Boy, just from looking at you, I can tell you know nothing of daggers. You do seem to have some skill with swords, though.” He paused, musing. “It matters not, swords will not be useful to you here. Here, you will learn skills to strike swiftly and with the aspect of surprise.”

  Suddenly, he spun, the sharpened dagger leaping from his hand, soaring past my head. It had happened so fast that I couldn’t react. I looked behind me to see the dagger stuck in the center of a target. I was impressed. It was such a fast, smooth motion that I had barely been able to follow, even with the training from Dante.

  The man smirked, seeing my expression, “A sword would do no good in our line of work. It is too large and slow to block a light and fast dagger.”

  It made sense. It would simply take too long for my sword to even be in position to block a flying dagger. Of course, not many men could throw a dagger so fast and with such precision. This man was a master at his craft, as the Headmaster had promised.

  “I understand. Where do I start?” I asked.

  The man nodded as he considered me. He approached a nearby table filled with a variety of daggers. All were different in shape and size, some even made with substances other than steel. I was curious about that, and reminded myself to ask about it later. A moment after, he found what he was looking for, and he tossed me a sheathed dagger with a smooth stone. I caught them both, looking at my new teacher.

  “The first thing you need to know is how to sharpen a blade. This of course works with all kinds of blades.” He gestured to a chair next to the one he had been sitting in. We both sat, and I watched him as he started sharpening a different dagger, explaining the process as he worked.

  ~

  I followed Geoff as he led me to my new room. It was small, but satisfactory. He left me, telling me that lessons began anew the following morning. I now knew more about daggers than I ever thought possible. As soon as I had learned how to sharpen my own dagger, he made me sharpen as many of the weapons as I could, while listening to him impart his knowledge of them. I had learned how to tell the strength, balance, and weight of a dagger. I also learned of the many different types of daggers and their origins and uses. Tomorrow, I had been told, we would start to practice throwing.

  The sun was nearly gone, only a hint of light remaining. I pulled out a sheet of paper, and wrote a short letter to Prince Erik. It told him that I was now taking private lessons and would be extremely busy, not knowing when I would be able to visit him or Iselle again. I signed it with my name and folded it just as the last rays of light disappeared. I really did miss their company, but I didn’t want them involved in any way with the Shadow Ravens. I knew that simply killing someone wasn’t the only thing they could do. Some of the devices I had seen in the training room were clearly for extracting pain while leaving the subject alive. I couldn’t take the chance of them getting hurt, or worse, so I thought it best to avoid them unless it was necessary. I slept fitfully that night, dreaming of the awful torture devices below, and of a sky filled with ravens.

  In the morning, before heading to Geoff’s room, I slipped the note under the Prince’s door. I really did want to tell them everything, but I couldn’t risk it. I sighed and returned to begin my training. Once more, I was blindfolded and lead to the training room. I assumed that within these lower halls were many more rooms. I could only imagine what could be hidden down here along with what I had seen so far.

  My teacher, whose name I still didn’t know, questioned me a bit over what he had taught me the previous day. He was thoroughly surprised that I had retained all of the information. We then proceeded to throwing practice. My first attempt was pitiful, as said by my instructor himself. After receiving some explanation and guidance, I finally became able to at least make it spin correctly and stick to my target. And that was only for the first type of dagger. Then I had to try my hand at all the others. I practiced for what seemed like ages before he finally took me back upstairs to Geoff. Even though I was tired from all the knife throwing I was doing, I still wanted to immerse myself in the more comfortable sword forms.

  I retrieved my training sword from my room as it had been brought there with my other things, which I assumed was the Headmaster’s doing. It was safe to say they knew of my swordsmanship now. Making my way to the practice yard, I noted that most of the torches were already lit, as the sun was nearing its decent. Only a few stragglers remained from their long day of practice. I didn’t even bother with the training dummies anymore, as I had learned to imagine my opponent with what Dante called ‘shadow sparring’.

  At first, I imagined Dante and I flowing through the sword forms. Slowly though, my opponent became less like Dante. I realized that my imaginary opponent was now Enelo’s killer. I became faster, sharper, more aware, as I brought my sleeping anger to the forefront of my mind. I didn’t let it control me but I did bring it to the very edge of my limits. I lost myself in the forms, my blade and I dancing to a song only we could hear.

  Suddenly, I was jarred out of the dance as my practice blade was met by another. Startled, I hopped backwards, breathing heavily. My body was coated with sweat, but I focused on my opponent. I relaxed when I saw Dantes familiar face.

  He smiled as he spoke, “You are getting better. Soon even I will have a tough time against you.”

  I snorted, “It is not polite to lie to your apprentice.”

  He grinned openly now, “Is that what you are? And here I thought apprentices were to work for their masters and earn their keep.”

  I smirked and shook my head. I could always expect humor from Dante.

  “Care to spar?” I asked as I took a ready stance. My master shook his head.

  “Not tonight. I had to meet with you to tell you I will be leaving the city tomorrow. There is a job up north, and I will be gone for some time. You are welcome to come with, if you want, but it will be a long journey; and a dangerous one at that.”

  I let my sword arm relax, thinking, yet still breathing heavily from my shadow sparring. It sounded good, to be able to leave the city for a while. I probably would take him up on the offer, if not for my involvement with the Shadow Ravens. I knew my lot was with them, now, and that wouldn’t be changing anytime soon. The thought made me begin to regret my choice, but then I recalled Enelo’s body; deathly cold and lying there, all alone.

  I shook my head, “Perhaps, someday we will travel together, but I cannot.” I paused to look away, “There are still ties that bind me to this place.”

  Dante must have understood, for he didn’t argue. He nodded, preparing to leave. “Oh, and one other thing…”

  I turned back towards him to see him removing a sword and its sheath from his belt. I realized that today he carried two swords instead of his usual single one.

  “This is for you.” He tossed the sword to me and I dropped my practice sword in order to catch it. I glanced at him questioningly as I studied the plain looking scabbard.

  “It’s tradition for a master to offer a student a weapon when they are ready for it,” he said.

  I unsheathed the sword, holding it out before me. The silver gleam of steel danced with the light of the nearby torches. I tested out the balance with a few swings and I was amazed. Unlike the bulky practice blades, this sword seemed to cut through the air itself, further increasing the speed of my strikes. It was beautiful and it was mine.

  I looked up to see Dante with a grin on his face, “Keep practicing. It will be some time before we meet again, but I expect you to be even better than you are now.”

  I grinned, making a grandiose bow towards him. “As you command, master.” H
e picked up a rock and threw it at me halfheartedly, then turned and left the yard. I sheathed my new blade as I stared up at the night sky filled with countless stars.

  Chapter 17

  Every day, I learned more and more, immersing myself in the routine. In the mornings, I would wake, and be escorted to training where I spent the majority of my day. Daggers were not my only subject. I also learned to use the bow and, its sister, the crossbow. Poisons and ways to administer them silently were also taught to me over and over until I had them memorized. I even learned hand-to-hand combat emphasizing on pressure points and killing strikes rather than simply giving black eyes.

  The most intriguing weapon I discovered, in my opinion, was a small pointed blade with a handle consisting of only two tiny circles that would wrap around your fingers like rings. At first glance, it seemed pitiful and weak, but then, as I was taught to use it, I realized how deadly and silent it could be. There were a few places on the human body that, if you stabbed in just the right spot, could kill instantly.

  I also was introduced to other teachers that didn’t teach weaponry. Some taught skills such as walking silently, or trailing people without being seen, or escaping from people chasing me. Some simply imparted their knowledge to me of the world at large. The only thing they all had in common was they were all Shadow Ravens or paid by them. It surprised me at first how many skilled and intelligent people were involved, but then I realized any number of circumstances could have led them here, as happened to me.

  After training, I would eat and spend my own scant amount of free time in either sword practice or reading. The library had become like a second home for me. Every so often I would make a trip to Enelo’s home to remember why I continued to train day after day. My visits I kept short, as they were lonely and full of painful memories.