The Sons of Satrina: A Sons of Satrina Novel

by Kristan Belle

  “Right, are you ready to go?” Kayleigh asked her after they had grabbed a quick bite to eat back in her room. Leigh thought it would be best for her to avoid the rest of the trainee’s until she took that first step into combat training. There were plenty of rumours going around the academy about the mystery girl with the mark, and she didn’t want anything to phase her. This was huge. She thought that Ash was handling it so well and she didn’t want anything or anyone to set her back.

  “Aisline?” When she got no response, she glanced over at the young woman who was sat spinning one of her rings round and around her finger, and registered the look of alarm on her face. “Honey, is everything okay?”

  Ash looked up at her and slowly got to her feet, “I’m fine, I think. It’s just that it’s all going a little bit fast now. You know what I mean?” She even tried to smile, but despite the positive effort, she still only managed a half-hearted grimace.

  Kayleigh walked back over to her, “I can understand that, I really can. Unfortunately, with everything that’s happening lately, we‘ve got our hands full and we can’t slow the pace down. We need all the warriors we can get out there. And seeing as you are the very first female warrior in our history, we have to strike while the iron is hot and move fast. While we still make sure we’re getting everything right. It’s a bit of a juggling act. Plus, we don’t know what’s going to happen in the future. You never know, there may be more female warriors turning up on our doorstep. You have to lead the way. I know it‘s a lot to put on your shoulders, but we‘re all here to work together with you. You are not alone here.”

  Aisline nodded and stood up again, breathing deeply and evenly, hoping to suck in some strength and courage while she did it. “So, I’m like a guinea pig here, huh?” She was the kind of girl who often resorted to humour and sarcasm as an emotionally defence technique.

  Kayleigh chuckled, though there was little humour in the sound. “‘Fraid so, sweetheart.”

  She didn’t have any more words of comfort for her. There was no point in mollycoddling the poor girl, or trying to tell her it was going to be all smooth sailing from here when that was an out and out lie. No one knew what was going to happen next. And a lot of how things were dealt with would lie with Aisline herself. Either she was going to suck it up and get on with it, or she wasn’t. Kayleigh’s mind was whirling with ideas and lists of things that they needed to complete to get her sorted for training. She just hoped that Aisline was up to the task.

  Walking back through the corridors, they headed over toward the medical wing with Kayleigh leading the way. This was one thing that Aisline really wasn’t looking forward to. She had always hated needles and wasn’t relishing being poked and prodded. A medical, was what Kayleigh had told her, but she hadn’t elaborated on it. Great.

  Plodding along in bright cerise yoga pants and a skinny tee, Ash felt like a bit of a fashion slob compared to Kayleigh. The differences between them were as clear as night and day. Kayleigh was wrapped in clinging midnight blue from neck to ankle, topped off with matching elegant heels. Ash thought she must look like the poor relative here, as she trotted alongside her with her shoulders stooped and hair falling forward to shade her face.

  Turning in the medical wing, everything stood out in stark and sterile white. That wasn’t the first thing that struck her, though. It was the noise.

  Here, voices and laughter rang out from every corner. It was the first time that she had encountered any people here, apart from Kayleigh and Professor Kelton, outside of the cafeteria. In there, she had expected it to be busy, maybe not so many of them all at once, but it had been expected. Here? She wasn’t prepared to face anyone, and she didn’t want to be the centre of attention all over again. As if the medical wasn’t enough to contend with….

  Suddenly, her heart started to hammer in her chest. This place was full of boys, male trainee warriors, and male warriors. She was in the minority here. How many females actually were there on site? Was it only Kayleigh and herself? Were there anymore? She was outnumbered drastically in any case. Would she be able to hold her own? Aisline was no longer sure. Her waning confidence seemed to seep out of the bottom of her feet and into the marble tiled floor.

  This was about being a warrior - sex was irrelevant, in both sense of the word. She was here to train, just like the rest of them.

  Aisline wasn’t sure if she was ready for the whole warrior thing now that it was here, and that was what scared her the most. Her confidence had taken a sudden knock now that it was all coming real. Could she really do this? Was she just setting herself up for a fall? How much of a fool could she really make out of herself? A big one, probably. The thought made her shake.

  Walking down the corridor, she couldn’t help but peek into the rooms to see what all the noise was about. You know what they say, curiosity killed the cat and all that. All she could see were groups of young men, waiting around in line - for something. She couldn’t see what, though. She didn’t have the time to find out, either, as Kayleigh was already striding off down the walkway and Ash had to hurry to catch up with her.

  When they got to the end of the hallway, Kayleigh knocked on a door and opened it, poking her head in before ushering Aisline into the room.

  Ash was surprised, and pleased, to see that the Lamia doctor was female. At least there was another female here to add to her personal army.

  Kayleigh introduced her as Doctor Marilyn Phillippe. She was like the rest of the mature vampires, appearing to be approximately twenty seven/eight years old with jaw length bobbed champagne blonde hair, piercing sky blue eyes, sharp high cheek bones you could ski off and a comforting, friendly smile.

  “Come on in and sit down. We’ve got a bit of time to talk before we do the examination.” Dr Phillippe said, indicating the other chair in the room as she smoothed down her hair.

  “I’ll be back with you shortly.” Kayleigh said as she smiled at the pair of them and backed out of the room before Aisline could protest.

  Aisline was relieved that she felt so at ease immediately with Dr Phillippe and that she didn’t mind Kayleigh bailing on her. Perhaps it was just because she was another female here in a male dominated world, or maybe it was because of that smile. Whatever it was, Ash felt fine. Sitting down in the plush cushioned chair, she fidgeted with her hands while the doctor looked her over.

  “So, how are you feeling?”

  It took Ash a couple of minutes to think about that one. Fine? Nah. How did she feel? She really wasn’t sure. Confused? Alone? Exhilarated? Excited? Floundering? Scared? She wasn’t at all sure. It was all so fresh and new and all so very different from anything that she had ever encountered before that she couldn’t compare it to anything. There was nothing in her life that she could ever come close to this experience, so she didn’t know where to start.

  So, she just said the first thing that popped into her head.

  “What’s happening down the hall? What are all the trainees doing? They are trainees, aren’t they?” It was obvious from the younger age of them that they were trainee warriors. Plus, it was as good a place to start as any - after all, it would take the heat off of her! Ash wasn’t comfortable talking about herself.

  Dr Phillippe chuckled, “They’ve all been down here for their medical exams and now their off for a fate worse than death for some of them - the dreaded haircut. I don’t think they were too impressed at being pulled out of combat for something as boring and girly as having their hair chopped off.”

  Aisline looked thoughtful for a moment again, before looking sharply up at the doctor. Doctor Phillippe couldn’t help but laugh again when she saw the obvious question crossed Aisline’s face. “Forgive me, I shouldn’t laugh, but you’re like an open book - so easy to read. You look distraught at the thought of losing your hair. Am I right?” Aisline nodded, a sheepish grin spreading on her face, “In answer to your question, no. They won’t be asking you to cut your hair. Kayleigh and I have already discussed that and we are goin
g to have a stylist come in and teach you how to bind it for combat.”

  Aisline breathed a visible sigh of relief, and she didn’t mind at all that Dr Phillippe had found her reaction amusing. At the thought of having to cut off all of her hair, she nearly threw a shit fit! That was one thing that she hadn’t thought much of as of yet, but as soon as the thought had flitted through her mind, she’d been distressed. As much as she wanted to be one of the guys, she knew a buzz cut would look horrendous on her.

  Her hair was long and luscious and silky to the touch. And as much as she wanted to be a warrior, she would have fought tooth and nail to keep it. She was thankful that Kayleigh had already covered it.

  “Anyway, back to the first question. Good dodge by the way,” she gave Ash a knowing smile, “How are you feeling? You can talk to me, you know. Everything that you say to me in here is confidential. It will stay within these four walls”

  “I’m….. Adjusting, I guess. Everything is happening so quickly that I haven’t had much time to think about it so far.”

  That was all she could think to say. It was the truth after all. The only down time she had had to herself was when she was sleeping, unpacking or reading, or trying to convince herself to be courageous. Any time that she had felt rational thought creeping in, she had shelved those thoughts to the back of her mind, blocking out any fear she felt. It was easier to just go with the flow rather than try to analyse every little thing she encountered. Thinking about it too much would frighten the life out of her. She’d rather take it all lightly.

  And the time for thinking was over. Now was the time to start her new life. It was the time for action.

  “And how did your parents take it?”

  The pain that etched itself on Aisline’s face was evident. The doctor had hit a nerve. This was another thing that she had refused to think about, only fleetingly when speaking with Kayleigh, because it was too damn difficult. It was all too raw right now. Her parents had abandoned her when she had needed their support the most. No. She couldn’t think about them at all. If she did, her walls of bravery would crumble.

  “I really don’t want to talk about it.”

  Dr Phillippe sat back in her chair and studied the young woman in front of her. So much had happened to her in such a short space of time that it must have had some sort of psychological effect on her. Looking at her, she seemed strong and together, but she didn’t want the poor thing drowning under the stress of such a drastic change to her life.

  If only she could open up a bit, it might help her.

  “I can’t force you to talk. The only thing that I can say is that sharing your fears is a healthy thing to do. Bottling things up leaves them to fester and rot you from the inside out. Rationally talking through any problems you have can actually help. I want you to know that when you are ready to talk, my door will always be open to you.”

  Aisline looked over at the good doctor and shook her head gently, smiling softly. She wasn’t one for talking about her feelings. She never had been, and probably never would be. In her family, if you ever had a problem, you kept it to yourself. You didn’t burden others with it. The only person she had really ever talked to about things that troubled her, had been Lana.

  Lana.

  But, she wasn’t here now.

  “What you thinking about right now?” Doctor Phillippe asked softly.

  “Nothing”

  The doctor chuckled softly, “Really?”

  “My friend, Lana.” Aisline replied, with a small sigh.

  “Have you spoke to her since all this started?”

  Ash looked down at her hands once again, “No.”

  “Why not?”

  “I don’t want to lose anyone else.”

  “Who says you’ll lose her?”

  “My parents don’t want me, so why should she?”

  Dr Phillippe fell quiet again. She had to tread very carefully here. Finally, the girl was starting to open up a bit and she didn’t want to frighten her back into her shell.

  She only knew the bare facts about Aisline - That the warrior mark had appeared suddenly one night. She was only seventeen. She was evidently a beautiful girl who wasn’t hung up about her looks and was happy to get her hands dirty. And that was about it really. She didn’t want to know the rest. She wanted the young girl to be able to come to her to talk it all through herself. This new warrior was a mystery that she wanted to unravel.

  Scooting around the subject of her parents, which was obviously a sore point that they would have to address in the future, she wanted to try and focus on her friend. To try and find a solution that would help her.

  “Why wouldn’t she?”

  “Because of this.” Aisline tapped the side of her head, pointing out the still relatively new mark of the Warrior. The doctor noticed some bitterness creeping into her expression as she did it. Another thing to think about in the future. Did she even know that she was bitter?

  “And that changes who you are inside, why exactly?”

  That took Aisline aback. She was right. Just because she had suddenly got the mark of a warrior and now had a different path in life, it didn’t mean that she had changed. She was essentially still the same person that she had been only a few days ago. She still liked the same things, she still laughed at the same jokes, and she still hated the same foods.

  She was still herself.

  So, why the hell couldn’t her parents see past the mark and accept her for who she was? Had they ever accepted her for being who she was? She could still be the same imperfect daughter that they had loved before, and she could still make them proud, just in a different way now. But, alas, they didn’t want a fighter as a daughter. It clearly wasn’t a dignified position.

  Would Lana still want her as a friend though?

  That thought scared her more than anything else right now. She’d lost too much already. Lana was old school, like her parents. Would this be too much for her to handle?

  Doctor Phillippe decided not to push that point too much, either. She just wanted for Aisline to realise that she was still the same girl she had always been, that the changes in her life could be for the better. She wanted her to know that she hadn’t lost herself in the process of getting the mark and that she was still in there somewhere. She needed her to keep an open mind about her new situation and keep thinking rationally.

  “Hmm, I guess that’s something to think about. Yeah.” Ash muttered, still sounding very unsure of herself.

  Doctor Phillippe turned to get some paperwork off of her desk.

  She didn’t want to set Aisline up for a fall by encouraging her to make contact with her old friends. After all, they may have the same opinion as her parents seem to hold. But she didn’t want her to feel isolated either. It was a very fine line for her to tread.

  This was such a new situation for all of them that they were all, each and every one of them who were involved in smoothing out Aisline’s transition, playing it by ear. Trial and error, hopefully without too much of the error. After all, this was someone’s life that they were working with. They didn’t want to damage her, emotionally or physically.

  “So, you’ll come back and talk to me if and when you need it?”

  Aisline smiled but Dr Phillippe could still see the hesitation in her eyes.

  “Will you at least promise me that you will talk to someone rather than keeping it to yourself? Kayleigh? Kelton? Anyone?”

  Aisline smiled again, a little more genuinely this time. Kayleigh was definitely someone she could talk to if the feeling took her. As her mentor, that was also what she was there for, partly anyway.

  “Good enough, I guess.” Dr Phillippe mock frowned at her, and then laughed. “So, on with the exam then.”

  The medical wasn’t quite as scary as Ash had feared that it would be. It was the basic height (5’9”), weight (64 kg’s), a couple of blood tests and a urine sample. She wasn’t quite sure what the liquid tests were for, but she didn’t really want to
know either, so she didn’t ask. There was no point in refusing so she just closed her eyes and got on with it. It could have been so much worse. After all, a couple of prods with a sharp needle was better than she could have hoped for.

  “Right then. That’s everything for today. Is there anything you want to ask me while you’re here?” Marilyn Phillippe asked her as she took a seat back in front of her cluttered desk.

  “Nope, I’m all good thanks.”

  She just wanted to get out of there now. The threat of having to talk about her feelings was still lingering heavy in the air.

  “Okay, then. You get yourself out of here. Kayleigh will be up at the front reception area. If you go and find her, she’ll be able to tell you what needs doing next. Thank you for coming in to see me and I hope you’ll be back soon, Aisline.” Dr Phillippe smiled warmly.

  The girl was adorable, strong, confident, and fragile. And she liked her, genuinely. She was just worried about the effect all this was having on her mental health. She wanted her to know that she wasn’t alone, that she had others around her that could help her through this. All she could hope was that Aisline had listened with her head and her heart.

  “Thanks, doc. I’ll catch you later.” And she was out of the door before she could say another word.

  Closing the door behind her, Aisline leaned her head against the cool wall and closed her eyes. She didn’t do talking. She didn’t do psychologists.

  She had like Doctor Marilyn Phillippe, so it could have been worse. And it was actually good to know that there was another female in the place, just in case she did need to speak to someone. After all, you never did know when you would need someone to turn to. Women’s problems and all that - surely that would scare most of the men in this place.

  But, for now, she had an even bigger problem. Finding her way back to the main reception. Where the hell was it? This place was a goddamn maze. Damn it, next time she would have to remember to draw up a map or something, perhaps leave a trail of breadcrumbs behind her or something.