by Pam Uphoff
The big men around them sniggered and loomed.
Paer pretended to not notice. Heak tried, and failed, to not shrink away.
Then Sensei Arvi walked in.
The older students shifted quickly into assigned positions, plenty of room between them, four rows of four. Ebsa started drifting back to continue the pattern and start a fifth row.
"No." Arvi stopped them with a word. "I want you new students where I can see you. Second row, move to the back, and City as well. You five into their spots. You can see what the front row does, and I can see how well you follow their example."
Ebsa eyed Edge . . . and the apprehension on Heak's and Azko's faces. Ebsa stepped into the spot behind Edge. Ra'd eyes crinkled in faint amusement and he moved up behind Ogly. Heak, Azko, and then Paer right behind Azko.
The first kata was a basic warm up. Repeated faster. Ebsa relaxed and let the speed flow a bit.
Second kata, more demanding. The Sensei nodded approval. And they started another.
Heak and Azko reached the limits of their training and speed abilities quickly. Paer and Ra'd were as good as the older students. Ebsa floundered a bit over some things he'd never done and got a few pointers from the Sensei. They were all sweating, and most of the students still angry after firing up.
Paer was cool and ignored comments as she steered Heak away from a confrontation with a heckling fellow the others were calling Blob. Azko eased slightly in their direction, obviously hot and tired.
Ebsa turned back to where Ra'd was in a staring contest with Edge and Ogly was circling out to flank him. Ra'd was aware of him and turned slightly. Ebsa turned too, as he tried to look casual, wiping his sweaty face and stretching as he just happened to be where, in an actual fight, he'd be covering Ra'd back.
Sensei Arvi eyed them silently. One of the other men circled around Ebsa, looking a bit aggressive. But he glanced toward the Sensei and walked past to nudge Edge. "Don't forget we're assisting the Range Master today."
The staring contest broke off and the group splintered and departed.
The new kids hung back a bit, to avoid starting another confrontation. The last of the senior women glanced back at Heak. "Useless nice girl. But she's not our problem any longer."
Heak scowled. "Yeah. I'm a beginner, with weapons."
Ebsa winced. "Oh crap. So am I. And that's where I'm headed next. This is going to be painful."
Azko clutched his head.
Ra'd snickered. "So they can pick on you two instead of me for a change. C'mon, hit the shower, this could be interesting."
The firearms classes met outside. Bright late summer light, not a cloud in sight. Ebsa was sweating already. Again. Bet I'll smell even worse once we're done here.
"We'll save the indoor range for foul weather. It all evens out in the end." The range master eyed his comp. "Riiiight. So you lot are the last quarter of the new students. Split up into eight groups of four or five each. If you consider yourself an expert, head to your left. If you've ever hunted, left of center. If you've target practiced, move a bit to the right. If you've never shot a gun in your life, go to the far right."
Ra'd headed left. Of course. Ebsa and Azko both walked to the stand the furthest to the right. They were the only two there.
Ogly smiled down at them. "You two will be required to get extra range time. Now, this is what we call a gun. It is a dangerous weapon . . . "
"It's a Hoeven revolver." Azko muttered.
Ogly frowned at him. "And you've never shot one?"
"No. I researched them and gamed shooting several varieties of popular firearms and lasers."
"Games. . . " Ogly looked at Ebsa.
"Yeah, I've played a few. Never bothered much with the data on the weapons."
"I suspect you are therefore not as good a gamer as your little pal here. Now. This is a rifle." He paused and looked at Azko.
"CA 6 mm semiautomatic. Caracas Armory."
"Very good. Long guns are easiest to learn on, so we'll start with it, and possibly move on to the revolver. So, safety rules . . . " He broke off at a series of shots from the far end. They all turned and looked.
Ogly picked up his binocs and looked at the targets. "Your buddy just shot the middle out of the three hundred meter target. Where the One hell is he from?"
Ebsa shrugged. "Someplace pretty damned dangerous, as far as I can tell."
There was some chatter from the far end, Ra'd voice. " . . . mostly a GT 15 . . . "
"Where the hell did you play with one of those?" Edge's voice was loud and clear.
A pause. Ra'd actually sounded cautious when he answered. "Fort Rangpur has a reenactment every year. My father had several authentic . . . "
Edge laughed. "Get the boy a Jag 15, let's see if he can hit a centimeter circle at four hundred meters, he thinks he's so good . . . "
Ogly cleared his throat and resumed the lecture. Taking the rifle apart, putting it back together, safety, trigger mechanics . . . they dry fired it, then learned how to load and unload.
Ogly produced two headsets. "To protect your hearing. In the unlikely event you actually continue team training you will learn how to protect your hearing magically, and be drilled on triggering it until you do it automatically."
They were the last to actually shoot. Ebsa managed to hit the paper target twice. Azko got all of his shots on the paper, even if scattered about.
Ogly sighed. "Lots of practice." He tapped his computer, and they found themselves with assigned times. "With a coach. Once we know you aren't going to be stupid, you can set your own schedules."
Ebsa flexed his shoulder. Six shots. I shouldn't have a sore shoulder. Drat. He looked down the line. Half of the groups had popped up the near targets, and were potting away with revolvers.
"You'll graduate to the pistols pretty quick." Ogly shrugged. "We're done for today. Let's go see what your buddy is up to."
Shooting expert with everything the Range Master had handy, apparently. Ra'd stepped back to join them. "I only get to shoot once a week." He sounded disgusted. "With the most modern weapons. I don't believe the electronics they weigh the guns down with these days. It's an insult to some beautiful machinery."
Edge glared over at them, but turned back to the other students.
"And Edge is a lousy teacher. Competitive, doesn't like a student to do well enough to threaten his supremacy."
"Huh, poor Ogly, dealing with us wimps, was actually a good teacher, if occasionally a bit sarcastic." Azko grinned. "I'd brag about shooting better than Ebsa, but then you'd ask our scores and refuse to be seen in public with us."
"That bad?" Ra'd looked amused.
"Worse." Ebsa looked around.
People were starting to disassemble their weapons, and Ogly jerked a thumb back to the right. "C'mon. I'll tell you how to clean a gun, as you clean it."
"At least I've only got one gun to clean." Ebsa glanced at the array on Ra'd's bench and repressed a sigh.
I will get better.
Chapter Five
4 Qadah 1402 yp
Only the magic class was off the Directorate's area of campus. Everyone was required to take the basic "Introduction to Magic" before they took classes in advanced magic. And all Team Trainees were required to take advanced magical training.
"Two days a week, no lab? One, I have a bad feeling about this class." Ebsa strode down the street, part of a gaggle of directorate students heading for the same class.
"It's a requirement for all other magic classes. Nobody gets out of taking it." Paer was striding along with the guys. Heak had to scramble to keep up, and Azko had to break into a trot now and then.
"It's all about theory and cautions and laws." Azko shrugged. "Emphasis on the legal. Memorize and survive. I plan to ace it."
The directions took them to a huge lecture hall, three quarters full already. People with screens were sorting the students. "Directorate? That aisle, sit on the left side." He pointed to their left.
E
bsa eyed him. "Why not mix in with the other students?"
The young man, probably a grad student, looked down his nose at them. "So the professor knows where the violent people are, the ones who will get extra cautions."
Paer rolled her eyes. "Great!"
They weren't the first directorate students to arrive, Ebsa recognized most of the other people seated to the side . . . except the dark elegant girl, in the last seat of the lowest row. She was the only person in the bottom three rows. "Who's that?" He walked down the aisle and slid into the seat two away from her. Gave her a friendly nod and started setting up his comp.
Damn good looking! Medium toned for an African, jet black hair halfway down her back, silky, barely a wave to it. Part Oriental? Her faintly slanted eyes were such a dark brown they looked black. She nodded politely and turned back to her own comp. Ebsa lowered his mental shields a bit to incoming . . . she glowed, a solid strength behind shields. High Withione. I'm surprised she isn't in the Princess School.
Ra'd was eyeing the room with displeasure. He slid into the second row, last seat, and sat a bit sideways with his back against the wall.
Ebsa shook his head. "Man, you are so paranoid."
"I prefer to think of myself as cautious."
Ra'd eyed the dark girl as she turned to look at him.
Azko, Heak, and Paer spread out to claim the rest of the second row. As more students entered, they scooted over, eventually compacting into the end of the two rows, with the dark girl.
The professor was a tall woman. Old, but straight and strong. Glowing with the unmistakable strength and unwavering control of a trained princess.
"Welcome to 'Introduction to Magic.' I am Professor Jues. You will have to pass this class to take any other magic classes. We will cover the history of magic, briefly. The orthodox, established history, not the heretical mewlings of a Native spy." Did her eyes shear toward them? Past them?
From the corner of his eye, Ebsa could see the dark girl's hands still for a moment.
"We will cover the genetic basis of magic, and we will discuss the legal restrictions on the use of magic. We will study the place of magic in government." The professor ran a jaundiced eye over the packed auditorium. "All of these subjects will be studied in depth, in other classes. After you pass this class. And then there are the techniques of magic. We will touch lightly on the theories and definitions. There is no 'lab.' All practical work will be done after you have passed this class, under strict supervision, in very small groups. No doubt you noticed the magic practicum listings in the catalogue."
"Pass this class first. Or you don't get in." She smiled, not very nicely, certainly not cheerfully. Her gaze raked their side of the crowd. "The Directorate School has its own advanced classes, but again, not until you have passed this class and the basic practical magic classes here."
"There will be a test every Friday, covering that week's subjects and a random assortment from previous weeks, so you don't forget. There will be a midterm examination on the sixth of Shawwal. The final is on the twenty-fifth of Ramadan.
"This is the list of the textbooks . . . "
At the end of the class, Ra'd leaned forward and caught the eye of the dark girl. "She looked this way, every time she got snippy about cross dimensional magic. Are you from Comet Fall?"
The girl straightened. "Yes. I am Nighthawk Swishdaut."
Chapter Six
4 Qadah 1402 yp
They hauled her off for coffee.
Ra'd and Ebsa toted cups from the counter while the others cleared a messy table.
"What is Comet Fall really like?" Heak was all bright eyed. "Do you know Endi De . . . I mean Xen Wolfson? Is he really that cute?"
Paer snickered. "He is very handsome. But, Nighthawk, I'm wondering if you aren't the daughter he's mentioned. Did you really run away from home when you were ten?"
Nighthawk's elegant brows rose. "I'm not supposed to talk about the family at all, to avoid making any larger a target of myself than just being from Ash is."
Ra'd frowned. "Ash?"
Azko jumped in. "That's the village where the most powerful magicians live, and your magic school is there, right? Is it really a village?"
Nighthawk blinked. "Well, I suppose it's all a matter of definition. Umm, a couple hundred people? The population of the world is so low, we just don't do a lot of large towns. Probably not more than a couple dozen cities with a million or more people living in them."
"Really? I heard your population was half a billion?"
Ebsa was beginning to get the idea that Azko was the brains of the group. An information junkie, for sure.
"Umm, sounds a bit high, to me." Nighthawk shrugged. "You lot, with eight billion people? And more than half of them here, on the One World? Now that's mind boggling."
"Some areas are densely populated, others aren't." Ebsa shrugged. "We're probably more urban than you are. We run ten city people for every agricultural worker, because of the machinery."
Nighthawk pondered that. "We're probably five to one the other way around, and the cities smaller, of course. But then we've got a lot of miners and fishermen, I dunno where they count. And fortunately we don't do that horrible vat food the cafeteria serves here. Do the people manufacturing it count as agricultural or city factory workers?"
Blank looks all around. Even Azko hesitated. "It's mass manufactured . . . probably factory?"
"And transportation." Heak frowned. "That's probably pretty slow on Comet Fall?"
"Only from the farm to the nearest corridor. Of course that's a pretty new innovation."
Ebsa brightened. "Do you guys use them much? I mean, they're expensive, must be hard to install. Can you tell us about the practical aspects of it?"
"The engineering companies make it look easy, but the people with the talent are making millions. I mean, Disco finances itself making gates and corridors."
Paer snickered. "Did Endi, I mean, Xen think up that name?"
"I think it was Q. Umm, you've heard of Doctor Quicksilver?"
Azko snorted. "Of course, and then we argue about your names, and what they imply, again."
Nighthawk snickered. "We pick themes, and go through them alphabetically, naming children. But some letters are tough. The colors theme was pretty much a disaster. 'Beige' is a spectacular strawberry blonde, 'Yellow' is a redhead, and well, for Q, Quicksilver was the best they could do. I'm not sure where she picked up the nickname Quail. So now she goes by Quail Quicksilver everywhere except in Ash, where she's Quicksilver Rustledaut."
Ebsa nodded. "Makes better sense than our names. Especially since we're supposed to drop the clan and subclan designations and all be one big happy family here at the Directorate."
"It's worse for the guys than the girls. They've only got seven letters their names can start with. We got nineteen." Paer shrugged. "Not that we don't still get some hideous combinations."
Ra'd grinned. "Sometimes on purpose."
Ebsa eyed him, but didn't ask who'd chosen to give him that particular name, apparently to encourage the use of an Arab style nickname. Like my own mother chose the letters that weren't used in my father's name. We Oners name our children to show respect—or disrespect—of various relatives, and apparently in this case disrespect of the Oner naming scheme. Pity the poor child who had to carry the name Wqlw forever.
Not that he seems to mind. But where could he be from, to not be registered until he was old enough to choose his own name?
Ra'd scowled at the girl. "What about your old gods? Do you worship them? No one knows anything about your churches, other than jokes about orgies."
Nighthawk sniffed. "They aren't like, real gods. They're just extremely powerful magicians. And the orgies are down in Verona, at the Temple of Love. Poor Romeau avoids the place like the plague in the spring."
"Romeau?"
"Umm, Actually, Jason Rombeau. He's the God of Love."
Ra'd stiffened. "Jason Rombeau."
"Yes. Did you e
xpect them to have Oner style names? Anyway, the poor man mostly writes the worst poetry ever. He's the mayor of Ash."
"And you call him a god?" Ra'd crossed his arms, looking blank.
No. Feeling blank. He's shut his shields completely. If I had to guess, I'd say he was upset. But why be upset about a name? Or is it the casual use of the term god that bothers him. Ebsa eyed the man cautiously. No. That's not a priest! But maybe he got some rather different instruction in Makkah.
"The collective subconscious . . . do you guys know what that is? Yes? The collective subconscious has molded him into the archetype of . . . gosh. I'm going to have to study more of your mythology and stuff to even have a decent conversation." Nighthawk frowned. "Does your mythology . . . is it mostly Arabic? Is there a god or angel or whatever of love?"
Ra'd snorted. "All mythologies have gods and goddesses of love."
"Tell us all about your magic school. Does it involve as much lecture time as ours?' Azko was practically bouncing in his seat.
Nighthawk dimpled. "Yes. But not in a classroom. We generally get our lectures while soaking in the hotsprings. Naked. And once a year we take a hike to the crest of the tallest mountain in North America. We wear clothes for that. Good thing we're genetically engineered, it's cold and the air's pretty thin. But if anyone tells you we dance naked in the moonlight, don't believe them. We don't dance. We sing." She raised her nose, lips trembling with the effort to not laugh at them.
Ra'd crossed his arms and scowled.
Ebsa grinned. "But what about the orgies?" He checked the time. Grimaced. "Gotta run. I have a hot date with a gun."
Azko rose as well. "See you next time Nighthawk."
"Me too." Heak grimaced. "I will do better this time. I will."
As they strode away Azko sighed. "I hope we can get her to talk. Do you realize what an asset that girl is? We could really ace the New History class."
Ebsa grinned. "You did request Info Team track, didn't you?"
"Of course."
Ebsa tried to kill inoffensive pieces of paper until his shoulder and wrists ached, then cleaned the three different guns he'd used.