by Raymond Cain
Flynn took a deep breath, steeled his nerve, and jumped into the tank. There was some resistance as he entered, as though he was pushing his way through thick sludge. He glanced behind him and saw shocked looks on the faces of his classmates. Their expressions made him smile until he saw a great white shark headed straight for him. Its jaws opened wide and its rubbery lips pulled back, revealing a maw full of triangular teeth.
Flynn tried to claw his way out of the aquarium but his movements in the water were sluggish. A powerful, muscular arm plunged in and reached across his chest. Master Elgin yanked him out of the tank and the shark slammed into the edge where Flynn stood a moment earlier. The shark clamped its jaws shut and nearly burst out of the Fish Tank. The water bulged outward but the tank held.
Master Elgin pulled Flynn up to his feet as though he weighed no more than a child. “That was brave. Stupid, but brave. You should do well here.”
Flynn was not sure if that was a joke or not. “Why did it attack me but not you?”
“It knows me,” the weapons master said in a serious tone.
Flynn nodded. Considering Master Elgin’s size, the answer made sense.
Master Elgin addressed the group. “Before you enter a watery environment and do battle, you need a breathing helm and swimming boots.” The weapons master indicated racks of glowing blue crystal helms on the walls and shelves of fish scale boots with crystals sewn into them. “If you find yourself in the sea without those, you’ll be dead very quickly.”
Master Elgin studied their reactions for a moment before continuing. “Now that we know what the ocean has to offer, we’re going to take a look at what’s beneath our city.”
The weapons master led the group away from the Fish Tank and through a series of doors leading to a lift chamber. The room was circular and a wide crystal disc was set into the floor. There was a long drop below and the disc was held in place by steel clamps. The disc was large enough to accommodate thirty people but the clamps that held it in place did not appear sturdy enough to bear so much weight. Many of the students, including Flynn, were apprehensive about stepping onto it.
“This lift will take us into the depths,” Master Elgin explained. “I hope nobody is afraid of the dark.”
Once all the students were on the disc, Master Elgin pulled a lever in the wall. A whooshing sound rumbled below and a column of water slammed into the disc, releasing the steel clamps that held it in place. The disc dropped down hundreds of feet and Flynn’s stomach lurched. By the time they reached the bottom, he was nauseous and his feet were numb from the water that was thrust upward against the underside of the disc.
Half of the classmates ran off the disc to vomit and the other half had hands over their mouths. Master Elgin appeared unbothered by the descent.
The area was pitch black and deathly quiet save for the nervous whispers and worried movements of the students. The air felt warm and moist as though some unseen creature was breathing on them. Master Elgin broke the silence—and the darkness—by uttering a command word that made his aquazite ring flare bright blue.
The ring revealed that they stood in the middle of a long natural tunnel but the light did not make their environment appear any less threatening. The glow only extended a stone’s throw from Master Elgin and the uneven contours were shrouded in shadow. Stalactites hung down from the ceiling and stalagmites jutted up from the ground like enormous fangs. Flynn smelled something he felt certain was the stench of dried blood.
“Welcome to the depths,” Master Elgin said.
The man’s words echoed off the walls and Flynn wondered how many creatures were within earshot. He wished he had a weapon to defend himself with.
Master Elgin led the class down the tunnel and spoke as though they were in a safe environment. The soft blue glow of the lifting disc grew dim in the distance as the group stumbled along the rough terrain. “Students here will learn about creatures that lurk underground and how to...shhHHH!” he said, putting a finger to his lips.
The tunnel became quiet save for the nervous breathing of the students. In the distance, a menacing growl broke the silence. The clickety-clack of claws on stone echoed off the walls and Flynn’s heart started pounding.
The other students gasped and backed away from the growling sounds. As it was difficult to ascertain what direction the sounds came from, the students backed away in different directions.
Master Elgin unsheathed a longsword and adopted a fighting stance. He wrapped his scarred hand around the hilt and the aquazite crystals in the pommel cast a blue glow. The man readied himself and the growling sounds grew louder.
Black feline creatures emerged from the shadows. Light from Master Elgin’s ring reflected off yellow eyes with slit-like pupils. The creatures were built like panthers, save for horns that grew on their head, neck, and spine. Their scaly tails ended in a large claw.
“Darkcats,” Master Elgin explained. “The claw on their tail carries a deadly poison.”
“Should we run back to the lift?” Flynn asked.
“No. They’d be on us in seconds.”
“How many can you handle by yourself?”
“Two. Maybe three, if I’m lucky,” Master Elgin answered.
Flynn gulped. He slid out a shortsword from one of Master Elgin’s scabbards, eliciting a scowl from the man. A moment later, Master Elgin nodded approvingly. Remembering the training his father gave him, Flynn assumed a defensive posture. Together, he and the weapons master waited for the attack to come.
Flynn counted a dozen darkcats charging toward them.
Chapter Fourteen
Ropes of drool and wet tongues hung from their snarling mouths as the darkcats charged. Their claws dug into the ground and Flynn’s heart pounded harder with each running step. He gripped Master Elgin’s shortsword tight enough to squeeze the blood from his fingers.
Lights appeared in the tunnel twenty strides ahead of the students. Ten warriors in black armor were hiding in the shadows and they activated glowing rings that lit up the passage and blinded the darkcats. They wielded crossbows and fired a volley of bolts into the feline creatures. Half of the beasts went down in seconds.
“Good news, class,” Master Elgin announced with an exaggerated sigh of relief. “A patrol happened to be stationed here. Let’s watch these soldiers in action.”
Flynn had a feeling that Master Elgin knew there were warriors hiding in the tunnel all along, but he didn’t say anything. His fear gave way to excitement as the soldiers unsheathed longswords and met the attack head on. Tail attacks were dodged or severed before they could strike. The soldiers ducked and dodged in a manner that reminded Flynn of the way his father moved when they sparred together.
One of the warriors hurled an aquazite-jeweled dagger at a darkcat twenty feet away, striking it in the neck. The darkcat went down and the man held out his hand; the dagger flew from the creature’s neck and slapped into the man’s palm. It was the first time Flynn witnessed a warrior’s ability to summon a bonded weapon and his shoulders slumped with the realization that he would never be able to perform such a feat.
In moments, most of the darkcats were dead and the ones still alive were badly injured. Flynn expected the creatures to turn and flee but they remained, fighting to the death. No matter how gruesome their injuries, not one of them backed down or fled from battle.
Master Elgin had a stern look on his face as he watched the battle unfold. The weapon master’s jaw clenched, his eyes squinted, and his hand gripped his sword tight enough to whiten his knuckles. The man seemed ready to run up and join the battle.
In moments, the patrol finished off the remaining darkcats, drawing a sigh of relief from Master Elgin and cheers from the classmates. The soldiers offered brief nods to the cheering crowd and tended to their injuries. They did not suffer any losses but some were bleeding from claw attacks.
Master Elgin held out his hand and Flynn handed him back his sword. “That was a brave thing you did, taking up swor
d and standing by me.”
Flynn beamed at the compliment.
“But if you take my sword without asking again, I'll stab you with it. You’re a brave one. Brave, but stupid. You should do well here.”
Flynn scowled. That joke wasn’t getting any funnier. “It’s interesting that the darkcats appeared the same time we got here. And there happened to be a patrol hiding in just the right place to perform a dramatic presentation in front of potential recruits. It’s almost as though our lives were put in danger for demonstration purposes.”
Master Elgin glared at Flynn but he did not back down from the man’s gaze.
The weapons master unsheathed his shortsword and slashed it over Flynn’s head so quickly that he barely registered the motion. Wind from the attack tickled the back of his neck and a small clump of brown hair floated down onto his shoulder. He felt the back of his head and the part of his hair that always stood up was missing. He couldn’t believe anyone could move so quickly and accurately.
Master Elgin used the tip of his blade to pick up the hair from Flynn’s shoulder. “Here,” the man said, ominously. “I thought I’d take care of that for you.”
Flynn was too dumbstruck to do anything but stare. After a few moments he reminded himself to blink.
“Brave,” Master Elgin reaffirmed as he expertly spun the shortsword in a circle before sliding it smoothly into its scabbard. He glanced sidelong at Flynn before turning back the way they came. “But not so stupid.”
Master Elgin led the class back to the lift. Once they boarded the disc, water slammed into it and carried them back up to the Citadel. Before they left the Citadel, they submitted their preferences for which school to attend. Despite his shaky encounter with the weapons master, Flynn was confident that he would be getting an acceptance letter from the Citadel. Mainly because the other schools wouldn’t want him.
Flynn was glad to be out of the dark, musky tunnel. The plush, red carpeting of the Citadel’s hallways was a welcome relief from the rocky terrain below. He glanced at the wraithsnake on the way out and, as usual, it kept its head tucked in its coils.
* * * * *
The next morning, Flynn sensed a presence enter his room. After rude awakenings by water golems the previous two days, he had prepared himself the previous night by stashing a shortsword in bed. The footsteps neared and he discretely reached for the sword hilt. He waited for the right moment to strike; decapitating a water golem would teach Tasker a lesson for sending them.
In a single motion, Flynn sat up and swung the blade at neck level. He halted the swing at the last possible instant and his eyes widened in surprise when he realized who it was.
Flynn’s sword was pressed up against Tasker’s neck. As wide as Flynn’s eyes were, Tasker’s eyes were even wider.
“What do you want?” Flynn asked.
“Currently? A clean pair of shorts.”
Flynn laughed and laid his sword on the side of the bed. “Sorry. I thought you were a water golem.”
Tasker rubbed his neck where the sword had been and checked his fingers for blood. There wasn’t any. He produced a rolled up piece of paper. “A servant golem delivered this.”
The page was secured with a wax steal stamped with a picture of the Citadel and Flynn could not have been more excited. Tasker left the room before Flynn broke the seal, likely fearing an outburst if contained bad news. Or worse, a hug if it was good news.
Flynn cracked the seal and unrolled the paper. The image of the Citadel was stamped on top of the page and the bottom of it had Master Elgin's signature. The letter read:
Flynn Arcturus,
Thank you for your application. As you likely know, your inability to bond with aquazite prevents you from meeting the prerequisites of either the Engineering Academy or the Sorcery Academy. Unfortunately, the Citadel cannot accept you either. We have a responsibility to produce the best warriors possible and we do not wish to tarnish that reputation by accepting someone with a defect such as yours. On behalf of all three colleges in Seahaven, your application is denied.
Sincerely, Master Elgin.
It felt as though Flynn had just gotten kicked in the stomach. His dream of honoring his parents by joining the same college they did was over. Not only did the letter crush his hopes, it did so in a callous way. It was cruel to refer to his inability to bond with crystal as a defect.
Flynn’s despair turned to anger. He pulled on a white kempcloth shirt and kelp breeches and stormed out of the room. He marched out of the house, across the seagrass lawn, and headed for The Lift. If he had to defeat every instructor in the school to prove himself, he would. Failing his parents, and himself, was not an option.
As he rode The Lift down to Lowercity, Flynn stared up at the countless glowing creatures that decorated the sky of seawater above the dome. As his mind wandered, he considered what he would say to the weapons master. He imagined the arguments the man might use and the counterarguments to defeat them. His father taught him the importance of playing out future conflicts in his mind before the conflict happened. It was a valuable lesson and it occasionally restrained him from acting impulsively.
Flynn marched determinedly across the red streets of Lowercity. He avoided the Waterway and took the long route to the Citadel. The added effort helped him vent his frustration and gave him more time to prepare what to say.
By the time Flynn reached the moat surrounding the Citadel, he had two strong arguments ready. A pair of burly guards in scale armor manned the twin guard towers on either side of the bridge. One of the guards, a stocky man with black hair cropped short into a military buzz cut, stepped forward as Flynn approached.
“Do you have an appointment, sir?” the man asked with a rough voice that sounded like rocks grinding together. It was clear from his tone that he expected the answer to be no.
The guard had a scar on his neck and Flynn wondered if there was a connection between the scar and the roughness in the man’s voice. “I’m here to see Master Elgin.”
“Nobody gets through without an appointment, sir,” came the gravelly-voiced reply. “But I can submit a request for you to have a meeting with him at his convenience.”
“No need for that, guardsman,” boomed a resonant voice behind Flynn that made him flinch. “Mr. Arcturus has good reason to speak to me and I’m willing to hear him out.”
Flynn was once again amazed at the size of the man. The weapons master was half again wider than either of the two guards, and half a head taller. Beneath Master Elgin’s clothing, muscle wrapped around the man’s arms, legs, and torso into a remarkable consolidation of strength.
The weapons master walked past Flynn and onto the water bridge as though he wasn’t there. Flynn steeled his nerve, cleared his throat, and hurried to catch up. “It's not fair to exclude me from the Citadel for something beyond my control.”
“Of course it isn't fair,” Master Elgin agreed without skipping a beat. “Nothing about life is fair, but fairness has nothing to do with the decision to exclude you. It’s no different from the way the Sorcery Academy excludes people that don’t meet their standards.”
The man wasted no time getting to the point. They crossed the moat and passed by a patrol of armed guards leaving the Citadel. Master Elgin swung open the double-doors and entered the fortified building. Flynn followed close behind.
With his first argument defeated, Flynn started in with the next one. “There’s more to being a warrior than being able to bond with crystal. There is strength, speed, skill…”
“You’re right,” Master Elgin agreed. “But those traits are attainable through training. An affinity to crystal is not.”
Flynn slumped his shoulders in resignation. His best arguments were cut down in seconds and he needed to come up with another.
They walked along plush red carpets and entered a sparring chamber. A handful of young men were inside, arranging racks of weapons and armor. A few others were adjusting large padded mats that protected sparring p
artners from the stone floor. Flynn reasoned they were getting the Citadel ready for the new school year to begin.
“Even without bonding to crystal I can still become a good warrior. . .” Flynn began.
“But not a great one,” Master Elgin finished. “I know it seems cruel to exclude you, Flynn, but it would be even more cruel to accept you.”
“What do you mean?”
“Let me show you. Have you any experience with a sword?”
“Yes, I used to practice with my father.”
Master Elgin paused and stroked his bushy beard. “Galyn Arcturus, right? I knew him well. One of the finest swordsmen ever trained in the Citadel.”
The praise surprised Flynn. “You knew him?”
The weapon master’s enormous frame shook with laughter. “Of course I knew him. I trained him.”
Master Elgin took two wooden swords from one of the weapon racks and spoke to a nearby boy wearing padded practice armor. “Gareth,” the weapons master said. “Will you join us, please?”
The boy turned around and looked at them. He had fiery red hair, freckled cheeks, and emerald eyes that looked much like Flynn’s. “Of course, Master Elgin.”
Master Elgin turned to Flynn, and gestured toward the red-headed boy. “Flynn, this young man is a second-year student. He’s going to demonstrate why you would never be able to compete with accomplished warriors.”
Flynn narrowed his eyes at the claim but he kept his mouth shut. He studied the boy and felt confident about his odds. His father had taught him a great deal during their sparring sessions, and his fiery-haired opponent did not seem too imposing.
Master Elgin handed a wooden sword to each of them and turned toward the red-headed boy. “Gareth, perform the first routine you learned.”
Gareth bowed obediently to Master Elgin and to Flynn. The boy stepped forward and performed left-right-left horizontal slashes that Flynn blocked easily. Gareth quickly stepped back out of reach of a counterattack and resumed a defensive stance. Flynn’s skillful defense boosted his confidence and brought a smile to his dimpled cheeks. Detecting Master Elgin’s disapproving glare out of the corner of his eye, Flynn hid his smile, gritted his teeth, and adopted a serious expression.