Soul Fire

by Aprille Legacy

  ~

   

  I hurtled down the stairs, still tying my braid. My satchel swung wildly and I almost lost my footing, but I carried on regardless.

  Before class started, I had a very big bone to pick with the Academy.

  “Jett,” I snapped as I spotted him coming out of a door. He started and looked up as I approached.

  “Good morning,” he began pleasantly, but I cut him off.

  “Why don’t the servants get paid?” I held up my hands as he tried to reply. “No, not servants. Slaves,” I spat the word at him like it was acid.

  “Sky, listen-“

  “No! It’s barbaric! Larni thinks she’s worthless because she isn’t a mage like her parents. Why does the Academy take advantage of that?”

  “Listen, I don’t have anything to do with how to Academy is run-“

  “Don’t give me that crap,” I said, stepping away from him. “How long have you been here?”

  He ground his teeth.

  “A year,” he said finally.

  “Why haven’t you done anything about it?”

  He glanced about before speaking again.

  “Look. There are things about this Academy that you’ll never understand. Leave it alone, ok?”

  “No, not ok,” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “It’s disgusting. I don’t care what realm you’re from, it’s slave labour.”

  The Academy bell rang.

  “Go to class,” Jett said, already heading away from me.

  “This isn’t the end of this discussion!” I yelled after him, but he didn’t turn around.

  I followed the rest of my classmates outside, still seething. I spotted Dena amongst them and bounded over to her, determined to tell her the truth about our companions.

  “Sky!” she grinned as she saw me. “Meet my soul mate, will you?”

  The red headed girl next to her smiled as well, though slightly more reserved than Dena’s hearty grin.

  “Sky, Theresa. Theresa, Sky.”

  “Hi,” I said, nodding to her briefly. “Dena, listen can I talk to you?”

  “You can talk,” Theresa said. “Anything you tell Dena, she’ll just tell me.”

  Not as shy as I thought then.

  Before I could speak, Jett swept past us all.

  “This way,  please!” he called, determinedly avoiding eye contact with me.

  He led us to a field on the outskirts of the Academy grounds. In the distance I could see buildings and smoke, and I knew I had just gotten my first glimpse of the village where Larni was from.

  “For those mages from the human realm, you’ll find that our mode of transportation is quite different to what you’re used to,” I turned back to the class and gasped. Jett continued. “Here, you ride everywhere.”

  He was holding the reins of the most beautiful horse I’d ever seen. Behind him, several more of the glossy creatures were grazing peacefully, oblivious to the class gaping at them.

  “You’ll each be given a horse, courtesy of the Academy, and the cost will be added to your tuition. Your horse is yours to care for. Come and meet them.”

  We all approached the herd, the horses pricking their ears up with interest. Some went straight for students, whilst the others hung back. I stood at the back of the group, watching a beautiful bay mare standing at the edge of the herd. Warily, I approached her. I held my hand out as I got closer, and she took the last few steps to close the gap between us. I smiled as her velvet nose rubbed my palm.

  “Sorry,” I told her. “If I’d known I was coming, I would’ve brought something.”

  She blew at me, and I did the same to her. I’d gone to a few riding lessons when I was little, and I missed the companionship.

  I stroked her glossy neck as she inspected me, her large brown eyes looking into mine.

  “Your horses are free to name,” Jett was saying. I looked around, noticing everyone had found their horses. I noticed Phoenix talking quietly to a black gelding and frowned; he had already spoken more words to his horse than he had to me. “Though they might have something to say about it.”

  Puzzled, I glanced at the mare who was nipping my shirt.

  “Alrighty then,” I stroked her nose. “What’s your name?”

  A breeze ruffled the horses’ mane and the grass around us. Riding on the wind, like a whisper, was a voice. I closed my eyes, still stroking the mare.

  Echo

  As clear as day, I heard the single word.

  “Echo,” I said, and the mare butted me with her nose. “My name is Sky.”

  Echo huffed at me softly. She was pleased; I had heard correctly.

  Jett taught us how to saddle our horses and showed us the stalls in the large stable that had been allocated for our horses. By the time it was time to go to the next class, I didn’t want to leave her.

  “I’ll be back tonight,” I promised.

  Our next class was just as interesting; Magical Combat, taught by the most terrifying mage I’d encountered yet.

  “My name is Professor Yu,” he told us in clipped tones, standing in front of us with his hands clasped behind his back. We were standing on a large mat that bounced slightly with every step. “In this class, you will be taught everything about your magic and physical, hand to hand combat.”

  I bounced eagerly, standing alongside Theresa and Dena; Phoenix was yet to acknowledge me today.

  “First lesson; how to fall.”