Almakia_The vilashi and the Dragons

by Lhaisa Andria

  Garo-lin held her breath and closed her eyes, preparing for whatever came.

  However, nothing came.

  Blinking anxiously and looking forward, she saw that Krission Dul'Maojin had turned his back on her and was quietly leaving, followed by the rest of his group, who looked as stunned as she was at the situation. For a while, the students' uneasiness with the departure of the Dragons sounded around Garo-lin as if it were a shapeless and distant mass, such was their mental agitation. And when all the other students dispersed and there was only one kidari left in the field, Garo-lin also collapsed on the ground, wanting to simply dig a hole and never leave it again.

  Then, like a light in the darkness of her thoughts, a small hot flame came, accompanied by a voice:

  — Thank you for saving Shion, Garo. – Kidari murmured.

  At the sincere words the girl gave to her, she was sure that for the first time in years she had been able to be herself again and felt a little satisfied – even if still terrified. If it was part of her destiny to be expelled by the Dragons after what had happened, she would not hide.

  It did not matter what she would have to face and how the rest of the Institute would react to what would have happened. She would be Garo-lin Colinpis, one among thousands and proud to be the simple vilashi who crossed the Black Gates of the Institute with her own almaki power. Despite the risk she had run, she could see how much she felt alive with that boldness.

  Chapter 3 – The Assignments

  — I need to get away from here!

  — How? – asked a confused Kidari before the desperate announcement of Garo-lin. – Get out? Dragons chase Garo until world end.

  — End of the world?

  — End of the world – she repeated in sentence tone.

  Her friend's encouraging way of reminding her that she had no hope made Garo-lin think seriously about the alternative of playing from the top of the Institute hill.

  All that strength of will to face whatever had come had disappeared the next day, after a clear night mulling over all the consequences of what she had done. Now it was obvious why the Dragon leader had not killed her in that field.

  Even though he had an unquestionable authority within the Institute, the most he had ever done with a student who had irritated him was a slight injury, as in the case of the pupil who had wet the clothes of the heiress of Metal. The Dragons never used their almaki, even if they were fully capable of doing so. It was not wise to create irremediable wounds on those who in the future could be her allies. But Garo-lin was far from being anything in the society of Almakia and much less thought of fighting for such position.

  Her greed within the Institute was to receive a seventh level of training – the minimum required by the Royal State – and return to her village, where she would make her almaki something profitable for her countrymen. Her own masters had already shown that the maximum that would take her was to the point of being able to handle and pose a minimal danger to the people around her. As such, she was a perfect target for the Dragons to have fun for a while, without fear that their uncontrolled attitudes would be grounds for later obstacles.

  — I never wanted so much to be able to ride on a mimbelula and get off the ground... – she confessed to Kidari, peering around a corner of the main classroom building, from where they could watch the students following their masters across the pavilion. Realizing that there were no Dragons in the vicinity, they rushed into the classroom, coming in just in time, before the Master closed the door.

  — Do not worry, Garo. Shion have debt. Shion defender – Kidari whispered as they sat down in their seats.

  Garo-lin simply kept quiet, and an obscure part of her mind that was not terrified or worried flickered, making her realize how Kidari was using the words better after the fright.

  But this detail was soon covered by the memory of the one who had started all that. Ever since the incident, the winged cat had hidden somewhere in the Institute and would probably only reappear when the Dragons left for the Assignments...

  — How could I not have thought of this before?! – Garo-lin almost shouted, clapping her hands on the table and standing up, unable to resist the brilliance of the idea. – The Assignments!

  Several angry glances from classmates turned to their corner and the lively conversations of students who settled in their seats ceased for a moment. Humbly, Garo-lin sat down again and pretended to be centered on her book. Although the vilashi's uneasiness had broken that moment of relaxation from the beginning of a day of classes, the students did nothing, all aware that her situation was still suspended, waiting for the sentence of the Dragons.

  — What? – Kidari whispered after a while, not seeing the point she'd discovered.

  At the Dul'Maojin Institute, teaching was divided into stages called Levels, which were equivalent to a cycle of study and training. From the first to the fourth level, all students received the same instruction, which approached in a generalized way all the common knowledge and almaki accumulated by the masters. Fifth-level students also began to be instructed within their specific power and from there they were classified according to the Institute's Elementary Table, which fitted them into one of the Seven Elements of Power, defining their Group, Category, and Function.

  This table was the headache of the younger students, but, after being decorated, it served mainly – and only – to know their position within the Institute and with whom one should have respect, a classification that was followed even beyond the Black Gates. As the number of students throughout the immense Institute was only a few hundred, the Table was hardly completed, even joining all three last levels. In addition to the fact that the average number of students within the groups of the Seven Elements does not exceed fifteen, since after being classified, the majority only remained another two years to complete their studies. Continuing after that was not mandatory and not always an option for those who were well placed in the Almaki Society.

  Within the classification of the Institute, there were the group of handlers of representations of fire, stone – renamed to metal and encompassed all materials coming from the earth – of nature, lightning, water, wind, six of the Seven Elements. The seventh, light, was called almaki interrupted, since there were no handlers of this element within the Institute and few outside.

  Within each of these almakis powers, there were three possibilities of using them, and that depended entirely on the person: full, moderate, and weak. Still within this division, there were three subdivisions of function, simply called First Order, Second Order, and Third Order, signifying Authority, Control, and Service. Thus, the student who could use their almaki fully in the First Order also stayed with the Authority and could command who was below to them; someone with Control was one who could not get past the student and stood behind them, being able to command, but also obeying; already the student in the third position was, literally, with all the service and could not complain, since it was below all.

  In the case of Garo-lin, her almaki was of fire, the first element within the Table, but this did not give her any advantage. She was part of the almaki group weak and, unsurprisingly, was in the Third Order, the service. Briefly, she was framed in the lowest position within her group and would never be allowed to use her power freely. The leader of the Dragons, for example, also belonged to the first element, but was of the full power group and could handle freely. Having the First Order, he had the authority, which guaranteed him command over all the others, and the junction of all this gave him the title of dragon. In the same way, the other heirs also occupied the same positions within their elements.

  To Garo-Lin, this complicated and convention-ridden division was the absolute proof that the Institute served primarily to alienate its students and make them more manipulable to society and to the status of the almakins. It was no more than proof of how the social division within Almakia itself was extravagant and senseless and how the play of influence was what reigned outside the Black Gate
s. Even if a student had a powerful almaki, such as fire, if he were relegated to the position of service within the Institute, he could not act freely and would always be under the watchfulness of someone above him, doomed to live like this for the rest of his life. Much convenience for Great Families who did not need much effort to maintain their positions and to be respected.

  After explaining what she had thought to her friend, Garo-lin let kodorin digest that immense amount of information. Although now she sees the reason for excitement with the Assignments, Kidari concentrated on her theory book, trying to decipher the table. After all, even though they were there a short time ago, the masters warned about their participation in the event and surely their evaluation would be more rigorous than that of the other students, because they were still outside the classification of the Institute.

  Dejected, Garo-lin looked out the window, wondering why the world inside her could not be as calm as the day outside. She would give anything to run into her refuge and scream with all her might. But now all she could do was scribble in the corner of her book: silly fire dragon.

  With a long sigh, she blurred what she had written. Krission Dul'Maojin came from a very powerful family and naturally his almaki was the same. Firepower was linked to victories in dark times, always used for attacks and destruction.

  Even though all this belonged to the past, in a time before the New Law, Garo-lin could not detach the name of this family to fear, and so it was with most people. The great power that the Dul'Maojin possessed was precisely that no one dared to go against them, since they were aware that the millennial almaki of that Family could define the direction of any situation. For the vilashis, there was a very simple way of describing those who manipulated firepower fully as they: they were like the sun. They depended on it, but if they dared to face it, they would be burned.

  What would her family say if she knew she dared to face someone who was like the sun?

  — The Assignments are the only way out of the Dragons, Kidari – she expressed what she was thinking.

  — Do you think Dragons forget? – the kodorin asked, without detaching the eyes of the book.

  — Of course... I'll probably be sent to some deserted place in the Stone Valley or to freeze in the mountains, and maybe they'll consider that too much punishment... and yet, until finally, they'll surely find someone else to implicate.

  The answer made Kidari laugh, especially in the hopeful way Garo-lin seemed to mentally elaborate on that perfect unfolding.

  — Kidari will not problem go to a horrible place.

  — It wouldn't be all bad, considering I'll be away from them... I have to put up with more this week...

  ***

  Fifth-level students, such as Garo-lin and Kidari, in order to complete their teachings, should put into practice the theory of what they learned under the supervision of a more senior almakin. Likewise, these higher-ranking almakins – sixth graders rigorously selected by the Institute's board of directors – had the obligation to exhibit their values as leaders, demonstrating that they were able to deal not only with their almakis but with the actions of their dependents . These were the Assignments.

  Garo-lin didn't have much information besides, since she didn't have conversations with other students and spoke with the masters only what was necessary. What was generally known was that it was work in regions where the student's almaki was needed and there was room for efficient demonstrations. The process was simple: groups of protégés and mentors were formed and they received a release to leave the Institute, using a mombelula for the trip. This trip would have a period of time, a period or two, depending on the difficulty of the task, and then should return, with results.

  Garo-lin was already expecting to leave the Institute's premises since the fifth level began. Now, faced with the worst situation she had ever faced, the Assignments would be her only way to breathe in peace without fear that something terrible would happen at every next step.

  But even as she trembled in class and startled at every word uttered in a louder tone, nothing had happened until then. Which only made her more nervous. In the hallways and even in classrooms, the other students looked at her strangely, as if they were always planning something in whispers, but they expected the Dragons to take the first step. Kidari seemed indifferent and acted as if she did not really notice this reaction. As much as Garo-lin was terrified and tried not to let it appear, she was a new and foreign student and was still in the phase of enchantment.

  However, even pretending to be alien, there were moments when Kidari realized that the charged atmosphere was also directed at her. If something happened, it would be with the two.

  — Give... up? – Kidari had asked that morning, as the two of them ran to the main building of the Institute after they had heard that the assignments groups had already been announced.

  — They gave up – Garo-lin corrected her friend. – No, they shouldn't have given up... and this delay is much worse.

  — Assignments, does Garo and Kidari have to go alone?

  — Well, the way we are dross, being sent alone would be nice – Garo-lin replied with a smile, which was quickly charged with her dismay. – But not. A mentor goes with us. I just hope we're in the same group...

  The two of them stopped and waited at the entrance of the building, thinking it better to wait than to face the crowd of students crowding inside the hall.

  — Dragons – Kidari informed and pointed disguisedly in one direction, to where Garo-lin spied.

  And there they were, in a special place, reserved only for very important people.

  Even standing on a step above, behind large glass windows, they could see well the five assembled watching the drive downstairs. The leader of the Dragons was the one who seemed to be most interested and stood with his arms crossed, attentive, as if he were watching the students below. Garo-lin felt a chill run down her spine and wished she could quickly get her name on the list and escape from there.

  In the middle of the marble hall was a large panel for official news and important information at the Institute, and at the moment one of the masters was preaching the long awaited announcement of the day. Virtually all the students waited inquisitive before the panel, even those who were not of the fifth or sixth level and would not have their routines altered. In the confusion and cheerful chattering that spread throughout the hall, it was not possible to distinguish what they were all looking for, but it was quite clear to Garo-lin the reason for all the uproar: nothing less than the Dragons.

  That was the year when the Dragons were supposed to be responsible for a student and it would be a great honor to be one of those chosen to be the protégé of a dragon. However, as in the previous year they had not actually taken an assignment, taking advantage of their advantages within the Institute, it was quite likely that in that year they would also refuse to supervise. With their titles of Dragons guaranteed from the moment they entered the Institute and with the obligation to keep a Family Secret, there was no need to pass a test to level up, as the other relegated students.

  Garo-lin was explaining this to Kidari when something happened and caught her attention, and she felt it was not good at all.

  Little by little, the cheerful chatter diminished. Like a wave, a murmur followed by silence came crawling from the first students in front of the panel to the last... and everyone looked suspicious to them.

  Then, like a crack in her unconscious, Garo-lin predicted what should have happened.

  — What's it? – asked Kidari, lost.

  Without answering, she took her friend by the arm and pulled her through the students, who easily made way for the two of them. As soon as they reached the front of the panel, she located her name and looked at the name above it. She felt the whole floor disappear beneath her feet.

  — Garo-lin and... Fire Dragon? – Kidari asked as if asking if she had read correctly.

  But the only word that managed to cross the barrier of shock that
gripped Garo-lin's movements was:

  — Un... believable... – and she cast a glance at the landing above, seeing that her avowed mentor was watching her, satisfied.

  ***

  — Where's the logic to this, Kris?!– Vinshu Zawhart asked to the Dragon Leader, pointing to the name of his protégé of that year: Kidari Chanboni.

  The Five Dragons of the Dul'Maojin Institute were gathered in the room reserved for those who held such a title. Not only could they escape the harassment of the other students, it was the only place on the property that allowed them to discuss their own problems without being interrupted by anyone. Although the room always existed since the founding of the Institute, given to the heirs of the largest almakis families when they were still in the first level, she had received several modifications in order to keep up with the illustrious users.

  In it, they could find things typical of their region. The furniture and decorations were made from the finest material available in Almakia – only a worked-up fabric chair in the corner of the ward would provide enough sustenance for a vilashi family to survive for ten frozen periods of plenty. There was also a large fireplace that was always kept lit in the presence of a fireman, no matter if it was necessary or not. Above it was the coat of arms of the Dul'Maojin family and also of the Institute, in which the symbol of fire almaki was embossed with a majestic representation of Maojin Hill. In addition to being a luxurious room – as they deserved – it had large glass windows that gave a broad view of all the buildings of the Institute and which were mostly sealed by curtains of dark and heavy fabric. But at that moment, one of the curtains had been opened and they could watch the students' meeting in front of the panel on the landing below.