Lumen and the Thistle

by EJ Wozniak

  “Allister is a genius, man. I don’t know how he did it, but it’s true. You can’t jump from here.”

  Alec got the group’s attention.

  “Thanks, Gretchen. Okay, everyone over here.” Alec signaled for them all to go to the back of the cabin.

  “Everyone keep your hands and feet within the platform at all times,” Alec said while trying not to laugh at his own lame joke.

  Lumen and the other new students in the group looked at one another in confusion. Alec grabbed the chain hanging from the lamp and pulled it down. The light turned on, and the floor they were standing on descended down. Till came to Lumen’s side and held his arm. He didn’t know how to react but was more curious about where they were headed. He would deal with Till later, he thought.

  The floor descended slowly, only lit by the small lamp Alec had used to start the descent. Lumen looked up, and the light from the cabin began to fade. He wondered nervously where they were headed. Eventually one of the walls opened up and they could see where they were going. They landed on the ground and stepped off the platform—Lumen noticed right away that there were many more Eauge pupils present there than in the Paxum. They landed on the end of a courtyard made of smooth, peppery stone. The courtyard opened up to a huge corridor with a large statue towards the end of the stone walkway. The statue was of a man Lumen did not recognize. There were large stone buildings on either side, each with several unopened doors and signs above them. Lumen peeked inside one as the group looked around. He observed what appeared to be a normal classroom with a chalkboard. The next room had nothing but a giant tank of water in the middle of it, extending from the stone floor to the ceiling. There weren’t any desks or chairs inside; Lumen wondered what happened in there. On the other side of the corridor, Lumen guessed, was a convenience store, as students were walking out with bottled drinks. The corridor itself was at least a quarter mile long before it opened to a tundra. Behind the snow, that went on for at least a hundred feet, was a dense forest.

  Lumen was confused about how there could be an area like that thriving underground. He got to the end of the enormous corridor and saw that the wooded area opened up. The entirety of forest wasn’t covered by a ceiling like Lumen expected. Instead, it seemed to be clear from any walls at all. There was cloud cover above, just as there was in Entropolis.

  “Wait, what? We went underground, how does that work?” Lumen asked, befuddled.

  “I told you, man, Allister is a genius. Just appreciate it. The Illustra Forest,” Alec pointed to the dense forest beyond the snow, “to the Genaqua, to the Paxum. It’s pure art.”

  Lumen looked around once more and saw a group of kids having a snowball fight, only they weren’t scooping the snowballs up from the ground. They were just holding their hands out as a snowball quickly formed in their hands. One of the girls involved hid behind a stone wall forming snowballs and creating piles for her team to use. Still observing in awe, Lumen laid eyes on a young man juggling three spurts of water into the air, only he wasn’t using his hands. The three little spurts were simply moving about in a circular motion as the young man’s head followed. He thrust his head down, and the three spurts of water immediately froze and slammed into the snow below.

  Lumen couldn’t wait to be able to do some of this stuff, all he could do then was make some water vibrate gently in a glass.

  “It’s amazing isn’t it? I don’t know how they created this place, but it’s beautiful that people like us have a space to safely learn,” Till spoke up.

  “Yeah, I guess it is.” Lumen looked at Till on his arm, suddenly realizing she had been there that entire time. She was smiling up at him.

  Alec whistled.

  “Alright, gang, over here. You guys will be starting in this classroom. This is your core class. You will all have this class together here every day to start. Your schedules may vary from there.”

  Alec pointed for them to head into the normal looking classroom. They all filled in, but Alec didn’t follow.

  “Hey, where are you going?” Lumen asked.

  “I have my own classes to get to. Allister wanted me to help you guys out. Good luck, man. I’ll see you in a little bit.” Alec jogged off to the other side of the corridor, across the stone path between the two large stone buildings, near the statue, and into another classroom. Lumen watched all the other kids trot into their classrooms.

  “Excuse me, Lumen. Could you close the door so we can get started?”

  Lumen turned around to see a man standing at the chalkboard, wearing the typical Eauge attire. He had long black and gray hair tied up in a bun with a long gray beard with a massive scar over his left eye. Lumen thought he must have been getting hot in there.

  “Yes, sorry.” Lumen closed the door and looked for an open seat. There were more kids in there than there were in his group earlier. Till waved for him to sit by her; she saved a seat for him. Lumen looked around, but there weren’t any other seats. He counted fifteen students in the room.

  “Thank you. Okay, well, welcome to your first day for some of you! And to the others, welcome back.”

  Lumen looked around to see who may have been a returning student. He hoped to not follow their path.

  “So, this is your core class. You will start each day in here. What we do here is go over Bonumalus’ history as well as learn to use light travel properly. I will function as a mentor to you all in that. I will help guide you into a field of work that suits you. If you have any questions you can come to me. Now, let’s get started.”

  The man was very serious in his tone. He did not seem to be someone who joked around. Still, Lumen found the man to be calming and welcoming. He felt he could go to the man for help. Till raised her hand.

  “Yes, Till?”

  “What do we call you?”

  The class laughed softly. The professor didn’t even crack a smile as he turned and wrote on the chalkboard.

  Mr. Durum

  “Any other questions before we get started?”

  No one else raised their hand.

  “Great. Take out your copy of A History and Time of Bonumalus.. I expect chapter one has already been completed. Take out your notebooks.”

  Lumen looked around. Everyone had a bag with notebooks and books already.

  “Thanks a lot, Alec,” Lumen murmured under his breath.

  “It’s okay. I have extra,” Till handed him a notebook and pencil.

  “Thanks.”

  Mr. Durum spoke up again.

  “Does anyone know the four castes of Bonumalus?”

  Lucy’s hand shot up.

  * * *

  Lumen got through the rest of the week in one piece. His classes had started off well in Bonumalus. On Wednesday, he had Water Bending class. His teacher, Ms. Flecter, put on a show of moving water in all different shapes and sizes. She tossed a bowl of water in the air towards the students and stopped it before drenching them. As the water hovered above, she formed it into the shape of a giant octopus that sprayed a mist at the students. The students clapped with awe as Ms. Flecter snapped and turned the octopus into steam. Most of the class that day was just a presentation of how well Ms. Flecter could bend water.

  “Real show off, don’t ya think?” Lucy told Lumen at one point during the presentation. They laughed together.

  On Thursday, he had Pluviam class.

  “What could Pluviam class possibly be about?” Lumen asked Yu.

  “I’m not sure. Can’t be as interesting as water bending though. Ms.Flecter was amazing,” Yu said.

  They learned that Pluviam was the ability to make it rain. There was yet another display for most of the class as Professor Jeremiah made miniature rainstorms appear. Professor Jeremiah did not come across as the humble type and was very stern.

  “You will call me Professor Jeremiah or Professor J. Do not speak unless spoken to. Unpreparedness will be met with punishment. Understand?”

  The class all nodded. They didn’t dare speak.
r />   “Good. You there. Tell me, why doesn’t it rain indoors?”

  He pointed at Chester who almost instantly turned red.

  “Uh, there isn’t enough water to evaporate indoors?”

  Professor J snapped and made a tiny storm appear over Chester’s head, which then proceeded to rain onto Chester. Chester ran out of the classroom immediately. Till was the only one laughing.

  “Quiet! This should be an example to you all on the repercussions of being unprepared. You all must know the three commandments in Bonumalus. Can anyone tell me the three commandments?”

  The class remained silent and no one raised their hand. J snarled as he tucked a black necklace under his garments.

  “One, do not show your abilities to anyone on Earth. Two, do not create something that you cannot control. Three, do not use the elements with the intention to kill. These are to be followed by everyone in Bonumalus and on Earth. Even the most minor infraction can lead to severe punishment. Note that even the criminals of Bonumalus follow these rules. You will learn how important they are as time goes on.”

  The class went on with Professor J yelling at the class and creating tiny storms to scare or embarrass students who didn’t know the answers to his questions. He seemed to get a lot of enjoyment out of it.

  Friday came. Lumen was exhausted as he hadn’t adjusted to his new life yet. He felt like he was constantly in school. His mom had been working unusually long hours, so he hadn’t had to lie to her. He also had two tests that week and a couple homework assignments due in his normal school classes. He forgot to finish one of them and received his first zero ever—he wasn’t worried though, he had over 100% in the class. On Friday, he had a literature test. He fell asleep the second he sat down after turning the test in. The bell didn’t even jar him awake. His teacher woke him up to let him know it was time to go.

  He mumbled to himself on the way out.

  “Crap, sorry Mr . . . thanks.” The teacher just waved goodbye.

  Lumen ran into Sofia on his way to his next class.

  “Hey Lu, you okay? You seem tired or somethin’. You going to be able to make it tonight?”

  Lumen completely forgot about his date tonight. He also forgot he had been planning to ask her to be his girlfriend. He thought of a lie quickly.

  “Oh yeah, uh . . . I’m not sure. I’m not feeling too well. Can I let you know a little later?”

  Sofia smiled.

  “Of course. Don’t worry about it if you don’t feel well. I hope you feel better.”

  She hugged him tight, and they departed in opposite directions. Lumen wasn't sure why he didn’t just tell her he couldn’t. Not only was he exhausted, he had to go to Bonumalus tonight for class. He was planning on taking a nap before class but decided that he could maybe hang with Sofia instead. He suddenly thought of Till. She had kept up her antics all week, somehow always ending up with her arm around Lumen or holding his hand when she was scared or surprised. Lumen never thought he would get annoyed of a girl giving him attention like she was, but Till managed to do so in a short amount of time. And the smile, it was burned into his memory.

  Chapter 11 - Snow Day

  Lumen stared out of a classroom window and the ground was covered in snow. The principal of Bromide High made an announcement over the intercom.

  “We are going to continue to get heavy amounts of snow; it came a little earlier than expected today. I advise that you all call your parents or guardians to come pick you up. If you take the bus, it will be leaving in 15 minutes. Please get home safe. The storm should continue through the weekend. We will let you know about class next week.”

  Lumen wondered if someone from Bonumalus made it snow here. He deliriously decided to walk home because being Eauge meant he should be able to survive a measly snow storm. On his way out, he ran into Sofia.

  “You’re walking? Don’t be crazy, you’ll get buried out here. My dad is here, we can take you home or you can come over now if you’re feeling better . . .”

  Lumen thought for a moment. He could go there now and leave on time for Bonumalus. This was perfect, he decided.

  “Yeah, I’ll come over. I feel fine.”

  Sofia smiled and grabbed his hand.

  “C’mon, my dad is right over here.”

  Lumen remembered his plans to ask Sofia to be his girlfriend. He wasn’t sure how he would do it yet.

  The snow was really coming down, and Sofia’s father complained about not being able to see the car in front of him. Sofia held onto Lumen’s hand tight during the car ride.

  Sofia’s dad dropped them off, mentioning he needed to take care of some things at work and would be right back.

  “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” he said to Lumen as they got out of the car. Lumen nodded. He wasn’t sure how to react.

  They ran inside. Sofia decided they would make some hot chocolate and watch a movie. Lumen was perfectly fine with that. He sat down on the couch and looked around. He didn’t realize Sofia’s house was so big. She came back in with two steaming cups of hot cocoa.

  “Here you go.”

  “Thanks. I didn’t know you were rich,” Lumen said.

  Sofia giggled.

  “I wouldn’t say we are rich. My dad does well. He’s never around though. You see, he went back to work even in this weather.”

  “Where’s your mom?” Lumen asked.

  Lumen saw Sofia’s face turn white, and she gulped.

  “She passed away last year. It’s just been me and my dad since then.”

  Lumen felt awful for bringing it up. He never heard of that happening. It was quite surprising because news like that got around quickly in that town.

  “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry, Sofia. I had no idea,” Lumen said, somewhat embarrassed.

  “It’s okay. We kept it under wraps. My dad didn’t want the whole town to know. It was tough on both of us.”

  “I get that . . .”

  They were both quiet for a moment.

  “I never knew my dad. He left before I really remember anything. I know what it’s like with a single parent . . . it’s tough to say the least but it does get easier.” Lumen added, hoping it would help.

  “I just miss her mostly. My dad is trying, but he’s just not the same. She was caring and loving. My dad is not so good with that stuff,” Sofia said with watery eyes.

  “Yeah, I bet that’s tough . . .”

  They sat in silence for a moment again before Sofia suggested a couple of movies to watch. They decided to watch The Zombie Movie.

  The snow continued to pile up outside while they sat inside sipping on their hot cocoa. Sofia put Lumen’s arm around her, and she snuggled up against him. Lumen could feel her body moving on his chest to get comfortable. This was all I ever needed, he thought as he smiled. They put in another movie when the zombie one ended. They cooked a frozen pizza that gave the house a pepperoni aroma, drank more hot cocoa, and talked. It was getting closer to having to leave for the Paxum. Lumen needed to make his move quick. He went to the bathroom to rehearse.

  He looked in the mirror and said a few lines.

  “Sofia, I really like you. Will you be my girlfriend?”

  “Will you be with me?”

  “Sofia, we should be together. Forever . . . No that’s weird.”

  “I’m just gonna ask her. She likes you, Lu, don’t worry.” He wondered if they would kiss if she said yes. It made Lumen nauseous, and he sat on the toilet.

  There was a beam of light, and a window opened in the bathroom. Alec poked his head through.

  “Dude, come here.”

  Lumen stood up, eyes wide. He whispered.

  “Are you insane? Get out of here. Classes don’t start for over an hour anyway, it can wait.”

  He turned on the water so Sofia couldn’t hear anything.

  Alec’s floating head rolled its eyes.

  “No, dude, it’ll be quick. Class is canceled tonight. Allister needs to speak with you.”

&
nbsp; Lumen was concerned. He didn’t say anything and stepped through. They landed in the Paxum. There weren’t any students there, just Allister, Janis, Sasha and Aiden.

  “Hello, my boy. Glad to see you are well.”

  Lumen looked behind Allister. It was the Eauge area of the Paxum. Lumen looked up and saw three trees on fire.

  “As you can see, someone set a flame to some of the trees in the Eauge expanse of the Paxum.”

  Lumen gulped. He wasn’t sure what had happened or why Allister had summoned him there.

  “We have reason to believe the perpetrator to be the same one that set fire to your house. We believe this person is targeting Eauge students now. You, Lumen, could be a target. You need to keep an eye out for yourself,” Allister said calmly

  Lumen was befuddled by this.

  “A target for what? To kill? Why me?”

  Allister looked at the others.

  “Well, son, I don’t know why you would be targeted—or if you are even being targeted, but we have an idea of what the criminal is trying to do. Follow me.”

  They stepped out of the quarry into the Eauge expanse and walked to the burning trees. As they approached, Lumen could see something burning on the ground. As he got closer, he could make out what it was.

  “Join Us” was burnt into the snow.

  “We believe someone is trying to mimic an old foe of the people of Bonumalus,” Aiden said to Lumen.

  “An old foe? Who?” Lumen asked.

  The leaders looked at one another; they seemed uncomfortable answering. Janis looked at Lumen.

  “Maldeus. He is the most notorious criminal of Bonumalus. He was killed about 11 years ago. He started a civil war amongst our people. He believed we should be ruling your world, not aiding it. Every once in a while, we get someone who wants to replicate what Maldeus did,” Janis told him in his normal voice. Lumen was still confused.

  “Why would they be after me? Are they trying to kill me?”

  Allister spoke up again.

  “No, as you can see from the message, they are trying to recruit for their cause. Why you? We aren’t sure. It could be just a coincidence that they chose you to target first. This is probably a message for all of the students here. Luckily, Sasha was here early and caught it before any students did. We canceled today’s classes to clean up. We don’t want other students getting any ideas.”