by Eric Vall
“Do they now?” the Headmaster asked, as he stood, his arms clasped behind his back. “And what would these grievances be about, I wonder?”
I shared a nervous glance with Gawain. Should we tell him? Would it influence his decision? I didn’t think it was really necessary to mention the Nia aspect or why we came to this in the first place, his confrontation with Layla. Before we could decide to answer or not, the Headmaster chuckled to himself.
“I’m kidding. Whatever private issues are between you two is your own business. However, I must ask. Gryff, are you aware of what a Rashni Kae is? Few outside of the Academies rarely do.”
I shook my head. “No sir, I don’t know the specifics.” Gawain scoffed, but the Headmaster cut him off with a look.
After that, he folded his arms and gave me a long stare. “Well, it is an ancient tradition adopted from the old western country before the Enclaves. In our language, it means ‘Dance of Wills.’ It was formerly a duel to the death amongst western nobility. It is held in high regard at all Academies, so this isn’t something we take lightly.”
“I understand, sir.”
“Good. You have my permission to duel then.”
Gawain smiled and inclined his head. “Thank you, sir.” He sounded downright humble, which was an odd thing for him. I supposed that even his self-importance had a limit. He knew better than to be anything other than polite and civil with the Headmaster.
The prefect cleared his throat. “I’m afraid it’s not that simple, sir.”
Headmaster Sleet frowned. “Hmm?”
Before the prefect could explain, I took a step forward and did it myself. “I made a wager with Maddox that if I win the duel, I could take his place on the monster response squad that’s being led by Miss Hamner. Of course, you could nix that if you so please, sir. I understand that people’s lives can be affected by who’s on the squad.”
“Do you believe you’ve earned a place on that squad? You’re right, lives do hang in the balance.” He stared at me, eyes narrowed. He stroked his beard. Now it was my turn to gulp under the intense scrutiny of his gaze.
“I–yes, yes sir I do.”
Gawain scoffed next to me.
The Headmaster pondered that answer. I wasn’t worried about his response though. He was the one who wanted me on the squad after all. He just couldn’t openly say that, but I’d come up with a solution, and I knew he would accept it.
I was right.
“Very well,” he said. “I will allow this provision.”
My smile was full. “I appreciate it, sir.”
“After all, if you defeat an esteemed fire mage like Mister Maddox here, you will have earned the spot.”
Indeed, I would. I had to smile coyly at that. We both knew that I’d more than earned my place on the squad, more so than Gawain certainly. Even the Headmaster was a slave to societal expectations, but I would show everyone that I belonged. Plus, beating Gawain at anything was as good a reason as any.
“Your duel will take place tomorrow,” Headmaster Sleet stated as he returned to his seat. “Late afternoon. I expect you two to still go to your classes and fulfill any academic obligations beforehand, understood?” We both nodded. “Good. Now, off you go.”
And so we departed, mutual enemies who would settle our issues once and for all in the best way possible. A magical duel, strength against strength, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
***
The rest of the day went by in a blur as my thoughts stayed focused on the duel. I wasn’t particularly worried about it. I knew my skill, and I knew that Gawain’s arrogance and underestimation of me would be his undoing. He didn’t believe a summoner could do anything, and that would be my path to victory.
That didn’t mean I could get cocky either. By all accounts, he was an exceptionally gifted fire elemental, so I couldn’t afford to be lax in my preparation and concentration. I was counting on him on being sloppy, but that didn’t mean I could be sloppy too.
After dinner, I went to the library to check out more books. I was through with the ones Arwyn had originally selected for me, so I was eager for more. I selected a few titles on elemental magic, as well as one on the economics of the loot trade, purely for curiosity’s sake. There were dozens of books on these subjects, but I selected the few that seemed most appealing to me.
As I exited that wing of the library, the books in my arms, I spotted a flash of white hair sitting at one of the study tables. I knew it anywhere. Nia. Before I made my way to her, I went to the head librarian to check out my books. Once that was done, I strode across the room to where Nia sat.
The sound my books made when I dropped them onto the table in front of her was a little too loud. She jolted, and her eyes shot up to glare at me.
“Don’t do that,” she said in a huff.
I smiled. “Sorry.” I took a seat across from her.
She stopped whatever she was reading or working on when I sat down. She closed her book, and her eyes surveyed me like she was trying to put together a puzzle. It was hard to stay still under her gaze.
“So,” she began, “I hear tell that you challenged Gawain to a duel in the arena.”
“I did.”
She sucked in some air. “Why on earth would you do that?”
I raised a brow. “Why? Do you not think I can take him? You’ve seen my magic first hand. You know better than anyone how good I am.”
Nia snorted. “That’s not what I mean. I know you could beat him. I’m asking for your reasoning.”
I mulled over what I should tell her. I didn’t want to lie, but I also didn’t know if it was wise to tell her all my reasons, especially Gawain’s intentions regarding Nia. But in the end, my heart won over my head, so I decided to tell her the truth.
“Well, it started with Miss Hamner and the Headmaster both wanting me on the response squad, but they couldn’t put me on it for it was already full.”
She nodded like that made sense to her. “I don’t know why they didn’t just include you in the first place. We certainly work well together.”
I grinned. “Exactly, but I understood why they couldn’t name me to the squad straight off with the stigma toward summoners. Plus, as you’ve said, Gawain is an excellent fire mage, something most squads would crave. So, I racked my brain for a solution and thought I would blackmail Gawain since he’s a douchebag anyway and doesn’t deserve to be on the team.”
Nia gritted her teeth. “He’s definitely an ass, but even I can’t deny his prowess. He’ll make a squad sooner than later.”
I grunted. “You’re not making me feel any better, Kenefick.”
She smiled cheekily, which made my face feel warm. If she noticed, she didn’t let on.
I continued. “Anyway, I wanted Layla to snoop around his room to find some dirt on him, but she was caught pulling a prank on him, as she is want to do, and he confronted us about it during study hall. By the way, where were you for that?”
“I wasn’t feeling well if you must know, farm boy,” Nia scoffed, “but it doesn’t surprise me that Bethel can work a lock and likes to cause mischief.”
“Don’t be so judgmental,” I said with a scowl.
She rolled her eyes in response. “Is it being judgmental when I’m right?”
I ignored that and pushed on. “That aside, I challenged him to a duel over her and the response squad position, and he agreed thankfully. It was simple to get the Headmaster to agree.”
Nia’s eyes narrowed. “Gawain is an arrogant little man, but he isn’t stupid. Why would he agree to that when it in no way benefits him at all? Those terms only favor you, except for the Bethel part.”
I scratched the back of my head and cleared my throat. “Well, you see—”
“Gryff, what did you agree too?” she asked, almost breathless.
I chuckled and tried to look away from those scary blue eyes of hers. “We may have wagered on if I could spend time with you.”
She blinked ha
rd as if she couldn’t process my words. Then she blinked again, and again. The muscles of her neck and jaw clenched with tension. “You what?”
I had to be delicate with this, so I explained it exactly as the conversation between Gawain and me had gone. She took it well, though when I mentioned Gawain saying she was promised to him, she blanched. A low rumble came from her throat at that, part groan and part growl.
“What did he mean by that?” I asked with a tentative breath.
She hung her head and sighed. “It’s complicated.”
“Is it really? Or do you just not want to talk about it?”
Her head shot up, her eyes casting an exasperated glare at me. “Why must you be so persistent?”
I laughed. “If you think that’s persistence, you haven’t tried to keep a secret from Layla Bethel.”
Nia scoffed, but it almost sounded like a chuckle. “My family is widely famous and influential, you know this obviously.” I nodded. “But so is Gawain’s family, the Maddoxes. They are one of the wealthiest families around and routinely have members in positions of political power, like the Viscount here in Varle or on the councils in Garvesh or Hartmire. My family is always high in the military, and his is always high in politics.”
“I think I get a sense of where this is heading…”
She huffed and swallowed hard, not bothering to correct me. “Our families have feuded in the past. Nothing violent, but we often find ourselves in a tug-of-war of power. My father wanted to put an end to that, so he forced my middle sister Nerha to marry Gawain’s cousin.”
I knew exactly where this was going. But first, “Is this the same sister of yours that’s the world-renowned apothecary that has invented dozens of medicines and potions?”
Nia nodded. Her eyes were glued to the table. “Yes, and look how much good that did her. That’s nothing next to the power of Gallahar Kenefick.” Gallahar Kenefick, her father, was the highest ranked general in the unified Enclave military, and widely considered the most gifted and powerful mage in the world, a peer to our esteemed headmaster.
“So…” I began.
She finished, “So, my father promised the Maddoxes that I would marry Gawain.”
It felt like I just took a bullet to the gut. I fumbled for words but couldn’t find the right ones, so I just settled for, “Fuck.”
Nia snorted and ran her fingers through her hair. “Fuck indeed.”
“How could you stand to even marry someone like him?”
“I’m not married to that slime yet,” she said defiantly, her chin out. “I made an agreement with my father, one that he has yet to inform the Maddoxes of. He promised me that if I finished each year in the top three of my class and lead twenty successful monster response missions, he would fast-track me onto his own personal squadron and nix my marriage arrangement with Gawain.”
“That’s a high standard, but why top three and not number one?”
She shrugged, her eyes looking past me, as if she were picturing her father standing before us. “Gallahar Kenefick is demanding but not unreasonable. He knows there could always be other outstanding mages. My sister did finish number one each year, but my two brothers finished third and fourth, and there’s no shame in that.”
I grinned, “But they weren’t pressured into marriage.”
She blinked and betrayed a hint of a smile. “True.”
I leaned back and crossed my arms. “But twenty missions? That feels like a high number.”
“It’s about five per year. And with people like you and Miss Hamner and others, I feel confident I can do it.”
I nodded, my face warm from her compliment. “Maybe. Still seems a dangerous prerequisite, and a high price for your marital freedom.” I paused and scratched at my goatee. “So that’s the reason you’re so…”
Her eyes narrowed. “So what? And pick your words wisely, summoner.”
Oh, I was smart enough to do that. “Wound tight? Yeah, that seems about right. You can’t afford to have a summoner like me show you up because then it means you have to marry that cockless wonder Gawain.”
She chuckled at that and even managed to snort, which surprised me. “That’s part of it, I suppose. I wasn’t lying to you when I told you about all the expectations and pressures I have on me. I...” She twiddled her thumbs and flicked her bangs out of her eyes. “I’m the prodigy of my family, and that’s saying something considering the accomplishments of my siblings, parents, and extended family.”
I whistled. “Yeah, I’d say so.”
Nia’s lips curled into a smile, but her eyes were a thousand things other than happy. “People have said they expect me to surpass my father. Talk about pressure, huh?”
“That kind of pressure can turn coal into diamonds,” I mused.
She frowned. “Are you calling me a lump of coal, Gryff?”
“No, I’m saying you’ll use that pressure to become a big ole diamond, the biggest and the brightest anyone’s ever seen.”
Her cheeks burned a furious shade of red. She smiled wide and chuckled. “That’s probably the stupidest and sweetest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
“That dumb yokel charm of mine again, huh?” I said through a grin.
“Yeah,” she said. Our eyes locked, and the warmth in her gaze made my heart flutter. “Thanks.”
My grin grew wider as if I’d just won a contest. “Don’t mention it.” I’d never made her smile so warmly like that. I wanted to treasure this moment, but it didn’t last too long. We were talking about something serious, after all.
“Anyway, back to the issue at hand before we got sidetracked,” she said as she collected herself. “You bet Gawain what? If you lose, you can have no further communication with me?”
I nodded. “Yeah, other than in class.”
She grimaced. “That sleazy little shit. Who does he think he is, trying to control me? We’re not married yet, and even if we ever are, I won’t stand for that. At all.”
I smiled. “No, I wouldn’t expect you would.”
“It would seem,” she continued, “that Gawain thinks he’s in a no-lose situation. He couldn’t even begin to comprehend you beating him, and even if you did, he’s unaware of my arrangement with my father so he assumes I’m his no matter what. No wonder he agreed so readily to your terms.”
“He’s cocky, and he’ll regret that.” I knew that with absolute certainty.
Nia nodded in agreement. “Yes, he will.”
“Do you have any advice on how to deal with him?” I asked, my voice betraying a little too much hope. I didn’t need her help, but I appreciated it. “You’ve seen him use his magic in your elemental class, I assume.”
“Yes,” she said as she crossed her arms and pondered my question for a moment. “He’s supremely gifted and is quick to cast his magic, even faster than me with my own flames, but his aren’t as powerful as mine. He’ll likely try to overwhelm you early. He likes to go in fast and brutal and finish things quickly, but if you tire him out and drain him of mana, he shouldn’t be too much trouble.”
I snickered. “You pretty much just gave me a whole strategy.”
She shrugged, a small smile tugging her lips up.
“I feel like I should pay you,” I said with a chuckle.
Nia laughed sharply. “Just beat him, please. That will be payment enough. I would hate to lose my private sparring partner before I get a chance to spar with him.”
“Yeah, that would be a tragedy,” I replied. I shoveled the books that I’d checked out into my bag and stood to leave. “I’m gonna get on outta here. Need some shuteye for tomorrow.” I would need all the rest I could get for the duel.
She looked me over, her eyes slowly surveying me. I could only imagine what thoughts went through her head as she did so. “Okay,” she said in a low tone. “In case I don’t get a chance to say it tomorrow, good luck, Gryff.”
I inclined my head in appreciation. “Thanks, Nia. Good night.”
Her resp
onse was a whisper. “Good night, summoner.”
Chapter 20
The day of reckoning went by in a blur. I went through the motions of participating in my classes, all the while not being fully there. I participated when called upon, and took notes as I had to, but my mind was far away. And no one could blame me for that. Nobody talked to me, not even Braden and Layla, though that wasn’t for a lack of their trying. I needed solitude today. I sat alone at breakfast and lunch.
At both meals, my eyes caught Nia’s, who gave me a quick and encouraging nod, though she never came over to me to wish me luck. It seemed she was content to leave things between us as she had the previous night, and that was fine with me.
As I walked down the open breezeways of the school toward the arena, I was thankful that I had her on my side. Even if I lost, I knew she wouldn’t allow me to simply not talk with her anymore. It was a far cry from how our relationship had started, when she hadn’t wanted to spend a single second with me, let alone clamor for my company. We’d come a long way. I smiled. I was persistent, just as she’d said.
When the arena loomed over me, I walked past the main entrance. I skirted along the side of it to the secondary entrance meant for duelists where I met a worker. He had on a slick gray outfit, pressed pants and a tight shirt. He nodded when I arrived and opened the metal door that he stood in front of. He led me down a wide corridor that was bathed in torchlight, then to a room with a low-hanging ceiling, some showers and an array of weapons. That made sense since I knew regular, non-magical duels took place here as well.
At the far end of that room was a set of wooden double doors. The worker stood to the side of it, his arms folded behind his back, and he eyed me sternly.
“The arena is just through here,” he said, his voice gruff. “Go to the end of the tunnel and wait. The doors are magically sealed and will open when it’s time.” He paused and nodded, a grin playing across his pale lips. “Good luck.”
“Thank you,” I replied with a stern smile right back.
I pulled open the doors and stared off into darkness. There was an inkling, a strip of gold light at the far end that I made my way toward. As I walked in, the doors behind me closed and bathed me in total darkness. I swallowed hard and clenched my fists to keep my nerves from making me shake. I could do this.