Academy of Falling Kingdoms Box Set

by Marisa Mills

  Professor Gareth stood beside me and leaned against the wall. I still hadn’t figured out how Elaine had vanished in thin air. Maybe it was a spell of some kind. I kind of wanted to ask, but it wasn’t really my business. And I certainly didn’t need to be involved in another mystery.

  “Excited?” he asked.

  “A little nervous,” I admitted.

  “I think you’ll be fantastic,” he said. “I’ve never actually seen you use magic, but I’ve heard you’re wonderful with fire. It’ll be enjoyable to watch you compete in the dueling tests.”

  “Thank you,” I said, “But I’m really not that great.”

  “I think you’re too modest,” Gareth said.

  “I wish that was it,” I replied, “but I haven’t learned as much as I’d hoped.”

  “Perhaps, that means only that you’re a smart, young lady,” Gareth offered. “I would be more concerned if you did think you’d learned all you should have learned. But you are doing better on my tests, for what it’s worth.”

  I offered him a small smile.

  A whistle split the air. Celeste and Du Lac stood on the balcony above us. I felt like Du Lac was looking straight at me, even though I stood behind a large crowd of people. The feeling sent shivers down my spine.

  “Good morning, students,” Celeste said. “Today is the day you’ve long waited for. These examinations will determine the students who pass from this year to the next. Written tests will take place this morning. Testing in sigils, rituals, and potions will take place during the evening. Tomorrow, testing in swordsmanship and dancing will take place in the morning, followed by the final testing which will occur in a series of duels. Your opponents have been selected, and each winning student will move to the next round. Please, note that losing one of these duels does not automatically indicate a failing grade.”

  The only one that really mattered happened tomorrow evening, then. I could fail the others. But not that one. I still had nearly two days to find the journal, but just in case I didn’t, I needed to pass these exams so I could keep looking. I knew it was possible, in theory. I hadn’t thought that humans could even do magic, but if Lucian was right, I just had to pretend I was really a mage, and believe in myself. I didn’t have to do better than everyone; I just had to pass.

  From the ballroom, we went to the halls outside. Schedules of tests had been posted along the wall. I stayed at the back of the crowd, waiting while everyone else rushed in to see who they would be facing. Finally, I edged my way to the front, my eyes skimming down the list until I found my name and time.

  Tatiana was my opponent. I didn’t know much about her magic.

  “What do you think, Lucian?” I asked, “Can we beat her?”

  He didn’t answer. I bit the inside of my cheek. By myself, I’d only managed to—what? Draw lightning by accident. Possibly set some curtains on fire. I’d drawn Lucian’s sigil, but I had no idea whether that was his magic or mine, and I doubted it would be a useful skill during the duel. Lucian’s powers had been dependable and strong, and I needed them. Maybe I was more like the mages than I wanted to admit.

  Without Lucian’s help, I seriously doubted my cobbled together assortment of magic was going to be enough to keep me in the Academy, which meant going back to the Scraps empty-handed. It should have been a relief. At least I’d be back with Sterling and Briar, unless my uncle followed through on his threat and sold Briar off to someone else.

  Viviane knew my secret and the prince had kissed me. Everything was falling apart, and I had less than two days to find what I couldn’t find all semester.

  Twenty-Six

  THE SECOND I LAID EYES on the first test, my confidence plummeted. I twirled the pen between my fingers, staring at the sheet of paper before me. I’d managed to get about half the questions right, which was more than I usually managed. But the others? I had no idea. I filled in all the questions about foreign kingdoms with Aubade because it was a kingdom I remembered. When I got to the questions asking about different royal families and parts of the Council, I just scrawled in whatever first came to mind. I didn’t know if King Gregory, Alexander’s five-times great-grandfather was really responsible for writing some legislation involving forcing the people in Argent to mine coal, but it sounded as reasonable as anything else.

  I let my cheek rest in the palm of my hand and stared at my exam. Several of my classmates had already left. Which mage was responsible for the creation of potions as a discipline? I scribbled down a name pulled from my memory; I had no idea if it was correct.

  “Students,” Gareth said. “Your time is up.”

  I looked around. To my relief, I wasn’t the only student still left. Dahlia hadn’t finished either.

  “I have another obligation,” Gareth said, “But if you want to finish, you may take your exams to my office. I will assume that you’re being honest and not taking advantage of my kindness.”

  “Thank you, Professor,” Dahlia replied.

  Gareth smiled and nodded. After he left, Dahlia sighed. “I don’t suppose you know why I’m supposed to care about Geoffrey, the thirty-ninth Baron of Eastbriar?”

  I frowned, unsure if this was or wasn’t cheating.

  “It’s my last question,” Dahlia said. “Please.”

  “Didn’t Geoffrey first propose enlisting people from the Lower Realms to help Reverie in the war against Aubade?”

  Dahlia snapped her fingers and wrote down the answer. “I think that’s it! Thank you. Did you have any you were stuck on?”

  I bit my lip. Maybe one question wouldn’t hurt. I’d answered one for her. I scanned the test and found one that I was really stuck on. “During the formation of the Council, members of the aristocracy were uneasy about leaving magical affairs solely at the discretion of the Council and by extension, the Academy,” I said. “As a compromise, five noble houses were charged with safeguarding large stores of enchanted objects, a practice which continues today. Name those five noble houses. I have Eastland, Willowbrook, Northhaven, and Mauverine.”

  Dahlia’s lips moved as she repeated the names. “Rosewood,” she finally said.

  My skin prickled. How had I missed that? So Dorian had a vast store of magical items hoarded beneath his estate?

  “Thank you,” I replied, filling in the answer.

  Dahlia gathered up her test. “Don’t mention it!” she replied.

  I looked at my test and slowly went through the answers, filling in a few blank spaces with random guesses. Any answer was better than none at all. After I was finished, I headed for Gareth’s office. Although I’d never been inside, I’d heard him talking in it before. When I arrived in his office, I knocked on the door before opening it.

  Gareth’s office was brighter and more spacious than Du Lac’s, but it was still overflowing with books and papers. I found Dahlia’s test easily, sitting atop his desk. I placed mine with hers and glanced around Gareth’s office. He must’ve just stepped away for a few minutes. I paused, considering. Gareth knew about Guinevere. If this did all involve her, maybe he had the journal. And I was here, alone, in his office. I felt bad stealing from the one professor who’d been kind to me, but I couldn’t afford to think about that now.

  I pushed away my guilt and began sifting through the papers on his desk, before combing through the bookshelf. The volumes were in no discernable order, but I didn’t see anything relevant. Then I turned to the drawers on his desk. They all opened, except for one. I bit my lip and pulled out my sword, slicing a thin cut through my forearm to draw blood. As I drew the sigil, my hand shook. I felt my energy wane as usual. Slowly, I reached my fingertips towards the locked drawer; my hand passed through without difficulty. I groped around, feeling papers and something leathery. My fingers closed around it, and I pulled out a couple books and a few scattered papers.

  I heard footsteps approaching, so I stood quickly and wiped the smeared blood off the desk. My heart raced and my palms were slick wit
h sweat. There wouldn’t be time to look through everything, so I pulled off my sweater and tucked the books and papers behind it, hoping to pass off the things as my own.

  I smiled as Professor Gareth walked in. “I finished my test!” I declared.

  “Oh, good,” Gareth said. “Thank you.”

  His kindness was like a dagger in my stomach. I wanted to thank him for being so kind. That was more than I expected or deserved. And odds were, I wouldn’t see him again after all this. Worse, I was carrying an armful of his things. So many questions ran through my head, but this wasn’t the time or place.

  “It’s been a great semester, Professor,” I said, backing up towards the door.

  Gareth’s eyes crinkled at their corners. “It has,” he said.

  I gave him one last smile before heading out. The corridors were bustling with students making their way to class. I spotted Kris among them, but she didn’t seem to notice me. I darted into the dormitories. They were crowded, but as long as I didn’t let on that something was wrong, everyone would just assume I was studying. I unfolded the sweater and dumped the contents onto my bed. There were two books. I pulled one open and flipped through the pages. There were rows and rows of sigils, tiny drawings of flowers and stars, and snippets of texts. Had I found someone’s class notes? The other book did appear to be a journal of some kind. The leather was stiff and the pages yellowed from age. I flipped through it quickly, searching for any names I might recognize.

  I miss Guinevere so much these days. I knew it would be hard being apart from her, but I hadn’t anticipated it being so lonely. I wish she’d agreed to come with me. She’d have loved it here; it’s a bit like Reverie.

  Whoever’s journal this was, it belonged, at least, to someone who knew Guinevere, which seemed promising. This might be right, but there was only one way to know for sure. I gathered up everything but the journal and shoved them in my trunk. I was supposed to go to Du Lac’s exam, but at this point, what difference did it make? He’d probably fail me anyway. If this really was Nicholas Armenia’s journal, there was no point in showing up now, pretending to be a mage.

  I headed downstairs and left the Academy through the front gates. It was a pleasant day with a faint breeze that played in my hair. My heart fluttered in my chest. Everything was so beautiful up here, I felt a painful longing in my chest. Was this really the end of everything? Could I really go home after this? Dorian hadn’t said he needed anything else. Would he honor his word and help me get away from my cruel uncle?

  I made my way quickly to Rosewood and pounded up the entryway steps. A sudden thrill filled me now that I was on safe ground. Briar and Sterling could have a new life, and I could leave Reverie. I didn’t belong here, I never had. So why wasn’t I happier about leaving?

  When I raised my hand to knock, the door opened. Dorian stood in the doorway, Francisca close behind him. I slowly lowered my hand. “How is it that you always know when I’m on my way?” I asked.

  Francisca rolled up the sleeve of her blouse, revealing a dark blue sigil over her forearm. “It gives me a sense of where people are. No one ever sneaks up on me,” she replied.

  That was certainly useful.

  I held out the journal. “Is this it?” I asked.

  My heart was in my throat as Dorian took the journal and flipped through it, his brow furrowed. “I’m not sure,” he said at last.

  For a long moment, I just stared at him, unsure if I’d heard him right.

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “I mean, it could be a forgery,” Dorian said, “Or the wrong book entirely. I’ll need to have someone verify it is what I’m looking for.”

  “How long will that take?” I asked.

  “Probably a week,” Dorian replied.

  I froze, my heart plummeting.

  “But the final examination is in two days,” I said slowly.

  “So it is,” Dorian replied. “Given that we don’t yet know if this is Nick’s journal, I suppose you’ll just have to pass the exam, won’t you?”

  I had a sinking suspicion he’d planned this somehow. Maybe he already knew whether it was Nick’s journal, and he was just playing with me. Or maybe he was trying to weasel out of our agreement.

  “But I’m not a mage,” I said, panic rising in me.

  “Didn’t you summon fire to fight a demon?” Dorian asked.

  No, Lucian had, and Lucian hadn’t spoken to me since our fight. I should have told Dorian the truth. I was more of a fraud than even he knew. Or did he suspect it already? Maybe he knew I’d fail the exam, or be discovered as a fraud, and then he wouldn’t have to honor the promise he’d made me. Maybe he and Viviane were working together to ruin me. Maybe even Alexander was in on it. Maybe Lucian was right about everything.

  “But if that is Nick’s journal, you’ll do what you promised, right?” I asked. “And if it’s not and I pass, you’ll…you’ll let me keep looking?”

  “As long as I get what I want, little mage,” Dorian replied.

  I drew a shuddering breath. At the moment, I’d have given about anything to actually be a mage. But I wasn’t going to give up when Sterling and Briar might have a chance for a better life. No, I was going to take that exam, and if I wanted to pass, I’d have to practice.

  ***

  Battle magic was my best bet, with or without Lucian. I wasn’t the best in the class by a long-shot, but I was pretty sure I could overcome Tatiana with brute force and a few of the tricks Lucian had taught me in practice. I was sure I’d already failed Du Lac’s class by not showing up, but maybe I could make it up in the final duel, which carried the most weight.

  Once I returned to the Academy, I headed through the grounds and to the fields where Delacroix’s class had always taken place. There were a few other students practicing. The ones I knew gave me nods and smiles. I unsheathed my rapier and moved into a fighting stance, but it was hard to practice without a partner. I hesitated.

  “You really aren’t going to help me, are you, Lucian?” I whispered.

  No answer. Maybe I didn’t deserve one. It was going to be difficult to perform in a magical duel without his fire. Despite Dorian’s insistence that I couldn’t cheat my way out of this, I thought about the device tucked away and hidden in my things. I could use it as a distraction at least, and the fake flames might even pull some extra marks from the judges.

  “Wynter!”

  I turned around at the sound of my name. Alexander waved and jogged to me. “Do you want a partner?” he asked.

  I thought of Viviane, who knew I was a fraud. At least, she knew I’d lied about where I was from, and I doubted everyone would believe me over her.

  “No, I’m fine,” I said. My eyes flicked to his lips, remembering our kiss in the library, but it was too dangerous to be near him now that Viviane knew my secret.

  Alexander unsheathed his blade and moved into a fighting stance.

  “Come on,” he said, smirking. “I’ll go easy on you, I promise.”

  I rocked back on my heels and resumed a fighting stance. I did need to practice. I thrust the rapier forward; Alexander parried as expected. I tried feinting, seeing if he would fall for a trick. He didn’t. Instead, he broke past my guard and tapped the side of my neck.

  “I’m beginning to think,” I said, blowing a strand of hair out of my face, “you really just want to kill me.”

  Alexander laughed. “How absurd,” he said. “I just want you to pass your swordplay exam. I’ve already made plans for your summer, remember?”

  My heart raced. It was a nice dream, but one way or another, Alexander was going to find out the truth, and then he’d never look at me the same way again. I remembered what he said once about the Scraps, that nothing good could come from it. Including me.

  At best, I’d return to a better life with Briar and Sterling; at worst, everything would go back to how it was before. Maybe I didn’t want that, not exactly, but I knew th
ese summer plans were never going to happen. I thought of telling Alexander that we would never work, but that would mean admitting everything. I couldn’t do that, not yet. No matter how this ended, I was never coming back.

  I thrust again. He parried.

  “Your form is good,” Alexander said. “Delacroix will like that.”

  Yes. But her exam wasn’t the one I was worried about. Her exam wasn’t the one that would have me dismissed from the Academy. The final duel was the one that really mattered.

  Alexander lunged forward. I parried his blade and tried to turn the move into a thrust, but he stepped aside. When he thrust, I parried with the edge of my blade. I pushed against him, trying to knock him off balance, but Alexander dropped his blade and swept aside. I stumbled, overbalanced with the sudden loss of resistance. Alexander’s blade tapped against my shoulder.

  I took a fighting stance once more and thrust. My form was good, and that was more than I’d had when I came to the Academy. Alexander parried and went to swipe his blade beneath mine. I parried and feinted. I saw an opening and thrust my blade towards his neck in desperation. The edge of my rapier grazed just beneath his jaw, drawing blood.

  I gasped and nearly dropped the rapier. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean—”

  Alexander laughed and put a hand to the side of his neck. When he pulled his hand away, a tiny spot of blood stained his palm. “It’s just a scratch,” he said. “I think I’ll survive.”

  “But you didn’t cut me,” I replied, wincing.

  “It happens,” he said, sheathing his blade. “Let’s take a break. I’ll show you how to do the healing sigils.”

  He pressed his hand once more to his neck and then offered me his arm. I hesitated before sheathing my rapier and linking my arm with his. “I really am sorry,” I said.