by Bob Dattolo
“I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.”
Her jaw tensed, “There’s…you don’t smell like a dragon, but you kinda do.” Her eyes darted up, “I saw what you were doing. The spells?” She looked back down, “I’ve been working with my magic since I was ten. I can’t do what you did. You said you gained your power back recently. There’s no way…you weren’t lying, but there’s no way…something’s not right here.”
Hmm, what to say? “I don’t have a clue why I smell like I do. Like I said? I’ve been tested endlessly by seemingly everyone under the sun. They have zero records of someone having mortmagi removed and them healing and gaining power again. None. They don’t know how it happened. They don’t know if that’s tied into how I smell or why they can’t tell what I am. They know who my parents were, and they pretty much alluded to me not taking after them. More lack of information on how that’s possible. Let me turn the tables a little. You said there’s something about me. What about you? Paige and Riley? Why the hostility? Why the hidden conversations? What’d I ever do to any of you to deserve that?”
Her confusion cleared up and the hostility flowed in, it just wasn’t as overt as it had been. I expected some sort of response. Something. Anything. Instead, she tilted her head and stared at me for a long second, then opened the door and walked out.
Oookay. So that happened.
I swear, I think this world used to make more sense to me before my brain was turned into swiss cheese. Now? Every time I think I’m making progress; I get batted back to my starting point. Possibly a step or two behind it.
I have a roommate and two neighbors that have to be allies. I’m not sure they’d be hanging out and talking like they have been otherwise. I’m not sure if I’ll ever be able to break through the hostility. Or if I even want to. I can’t tell if they’re nice or not, what with all of the lovely conversation we’ve been having. They seem like bitches. I’m just not sure their attitude isn’t being forced on them by the environment we’re in.
I have an ally. Kaylee. I’m not sure if she really wants an ally or not. Given what I’ve learned and the various conversations, I wouldn’t be shocked to find out that she’s really doing it to take the focus off of her for a bit. Hide in my shadow as others go for me and leave her alone. Does that mean she wouldn’t have my back if something happened? Or will she go running?
My bet is on running. Unless it’s in the trial? Ugh…I don’t even have enough information there to understand what happens during one. I know it changes from year to year, I just don’t know what they do! It’s not an obstacle course. I know that for a fact. It’s not gladiator fighting. I also know that. It’s not technically a fight between students. Yet we can kill and drain others if we can manage it.
And it’s perfectly fine and legal and expected.
Ugh. More weirdness.
I have a table of huge guys that don’t like me. Levi hates me because some stricken guy killed his parents. How a magicless blind guy would kill two gold dragons is beyond me. How is that possible? I can’t even say that he hit them with a car because he’s blind.
I have four other huge guys that are part of Mr. Angry’s posse. They have to be allies, although I wonder if they have plans to kill each other to get their powers. I’m thinking they do; they’re just holding them in reserve on the off chance they can do them.
I have a challenge.
Colin, you right bastard. Why in the world would you think it’s okay to hit me…dammit. Unless making me angry and me challenging him was his goal? They had talked about basically fighting for the right to kill and drain me yesterday, so maybe that’s his way of shortchanging that argument? When you drain someone, you get stronger. So if he does that during this challenge, maybe he thinks it’ll make him strong enough to be safe from the others?
I’m thinking goldie would still have him. Gold dragons are no one to be fucked with. They’re the strongest physically and magically, at least usually. They’re only medium size, at a about 45 feet on average, but they pack a ton of power into their size.
What else is happening to me? Let’s see, I have memories that are shot to hell. No idea who I was. I’m legally not her any longer, but to me I am. And if I survive this? I plan on figuring that out at some point. I want what’s mine. And while I may not be that person legally, I can take back what’s mine quite legally if I gain enough power and hunt them down.
I have magic powers that I don’t understand and that I can use at least a little bit now. That’s too cool.
Huh, you know what? I’m pissing away time. Let’s play with that some more and see if I can manage anything else.
That has my book coming out, pages getting turned quickly. Instead of reading the section, I tried what I had done yesterday and managed to get a ball of light near the ceiling on the second attempt. Then I filled the space with another 39 of them and left them floating along. It takes some power to continually drive a spell. It’s not free light. The plus is that it doesn’t take the same concentration to keep a spell running as it does to get it to fire.
Let’s try another spell. Which one, though? Listening? Umm, I can hear pretty well. I can see how it’s useful, I’m just not sure how often I’ll use it. Silence? Umm, maybe. I don’t have anyone to be silent with and don’t really care beyond that. Locking and unlocking doors? Kiiinda useful. Not overly so. Definitely not something that will help me today. What with a possible painful death coming up in less than 12 hours.
Okay, screw that. Let’s try darkness.
The idea of the spell is pretty simple, all things considered. The spell is used to block light, basically. It’s not an invisibility spell. That’s something else, at least according to the book, and not something that the average powerful mage or dragon can cast. It seems like it’s way on the top end of things, and then only rarely.
Sooo, let’s build a new spell using the same approach that I did with light that has helped. I want a ball of darkness over my…over my book? Why not. It’s not like it has to be anywhere in particular. It’ll stay until I shut it down. Let’s see if I can do this.
A wave of lethargy shot through me that shut down the attempt before it got started.
“What the hell, Maddie?” That felt weird. My second attempt got the same thing.
Huh, okay, I’m using power on the light spells and I think that’s making it harder to do this new spell. Can I do it anyway? If it’s the power that I’m pushing, can I adjust how that’s being done?
My third attempt is a little better. My fourth better yet. Neither worked, but it still felt better.
My fifth spell worked.
I basically let the spell rise for a bit before trying to trigger it. I let the power build. Now I have a ball of darkness hovering over my desk. It’s maybe 10 inches across, pretty much the exact size I was shooting for. Putting my hand into it doesn’t feel any different from it being anywhere else. There’s no temperature change. I have to assume there would be if we were in the sun, but in here? Nothing.
Sticking my head in is a little awkward, but I still do it. No light gets in. I can’t see out. Hearing is fine. Otherwise? It’s a ball of darkness, just like the spell called for.
Fan-freaking-tastic!
It takes much longer to get ten little balls of darkness to bounce around with the balls of light. Where they crossed, the darkness blotted out the light, which is pretty cool. Nothing else happened, though. No explosion, which I kinda thought might be a possibility. Nothing like that.
The door opened without warning, and I killed the spells. Parece stepped through by herself, eyes focused up on the ceiling as she closed the door. Did she see what I was doing? When she finally looks down, her eyes tell me she did. She shocks me by not saying a thing as she starts to get ready. I’m not at all shocked that she strips like I did before heading to her dresser. Having been blind for a huge chunk of my life, I haven’t seen many naked people in person. The holes prevent me from remembering that f
rom before everything happened. For all I know, I lived in a nudist family. I seem to remember skinny dipping, but it’s always shots of me by myself. Can’t have any pesky family members there to help identify people. That being said, I’m not thrown off by it as I would have expected. Being able to see is still such a new feeling that the fact that I can see at all trumps boobs.
She heads into the bathroom, where I can hear soft voices from the other two. No silence spell goes up, which is kinda shocking. I expected her to say something to the others about what she saw, or thinks she saw, yet she doesn’t. I can hear them decently well, and there’s no whispered comment about things. I have to assume she told them about what she saw last night. Maybe she’s not saying anything because she knows I can hear them?
I hate this crap. I really do. Why can’t this just be a normal thing? No fear. No threats from others? That’d just be lovely.
Chapter 13
My first class of my first year at the academy is basic magic. I’m early enough that there aren’t any students in the class. I’m in the room maybe ten seconds before an adult comes in behind me and pauses at seeing me, “I’m sorry, are you lost?” His eyes jump to my hair, then back down to my eyes. It’s so obvious that he’s trying to figure out if I’m a very light ice affinity. Or possibly very light air affinity.
“No, my paperwork says that this is my class?” He took the page that I handed to him, “Maddie Stricken?”
Darting eyes again, “I…see. That has to be what the voice mail was about.”
Voice mail? “Let me guess, they warned you about me being here?”
He cracked a smile, an honest one, too. Or so it seems, “You could say that.” He handed the page back, “Well, welcome to the class. I have assigned seats, so if you give me a second, I’ll let you know where you can sit.”
“Thanks?”
He moves to his desk, drops the few thing in his arms, then pulls out his planner and flips it open. The room’s pretty big, so I’m not too shocked that there are a decent number of openings. He looks through the available spots, then back up at my hair, “Your paperwork…you really don’t know what you are?”
“No clue. Will that cause a problem?”
He frowned and looked down again, “I wanted to put you somewhere you won’t have immediate issues. You were warned about being here, right? How dangerous things are?”
“Yeah, you could say that.”
Another look up. “I don’t know where to put you. Do you have a preference? I’m not sure if you’ve met many people yet? You arrived yesterday?”
“Late yesterday. I’ve met like nine people so far. I can pick wherever I want?” He nods, so I continue looking through the names. There are a number of spots that seem okay to me. Like they’d be better choices. Yet my eyes keep settling back onto one open spot in particular that makes me smile. “I’ll take this one.”
He frowns more as he stares at the seat I’m touching. “You sure?”
“I’m sure.”
My name gets penciled in without another question being asked. His soft, ”good luck,” sticks with me as I take my new seat.
Ahh, this should be fun.
Can you hear the sarcasm? I hope so.
Kids start coming in maybe five minutes later. Every one of them stares at me as they take their seat. A girl skitters in, as if she’s hiding from everyone. Her eyes catch me immediately and stay on me as she takes her spot in the next row from me, one seat up. She turns instantly and continues to watch me.
“Hey. Fancy meeting you here?”
Kaylee looks around at everyone at my question, “What…what’re you doing here?”
“I heard they have great churros here. I haven’t had one in…ever, that I know of. But I’ve heard good things about them.”
She blinks quickly as her jaw clicks shut.
“I’m kidding. This is my seat. Why?”
She looks around again, “Were you assigned there?!?”
“No. Picked it.”
“What? Why? Don’t you know who…” Voices from the hallway get her to clam up, and she turns back towards the front of the room, staring down at her book and notebook just as an interesting group enters. Hmm, no, it’s two groups that just happen to be coming in at the same time. Based on one of the conversations and the headmaster’s comments, I now have names to go with faces.
The group of eight freezes just inside the door, but I don’t focus on three of them. Parece, Paige, and Riley move to the side and slide through the aisles of desks to their seats. They’re behind Kaylee on my right side. That leaves me staring at Levi, Wes, Shane, Ryan, and Colin.
“Hey, guys! There you are! Come and take your seats and we can get started with the day!” My upbeat happy voice is literally the only sound in the space.
Levi’s growl takes over as soon as I stop talking, “What’re you doing here, dead girl?”
“Well, not killing myself to get away from you, that’s for sure.”
Wes stops him from moving towards me. “Leave her, Levi. Please. She’s dead.”
Ryan drops his books on the desk in front of me, “What kind of shit luck do you have to be put there? Seriously, it’s like the universe has it out for you.”
More laughter. “That’s funny, Ryan. I chose this seat.” His eyes went wide, and it’s obvious he doesn’t believe me, “Ask any dragon in here. I’m telling the truth. I was given my choice of seats, and I picked here on purpose. After all, why not? I get to sit with my besties!” Happy voice again.
“You just can’t wait to die. I’m not even sure why you’re bothering. What a joke.” Colin speaks for the first time.
“Oh, don’t worry, Collie. I’ll be getting to you after classes today. You hit me. I can’t wait to suck you dry. Big bad water mage. Ooh, you’re so tough. Outweigh me by double and you think it’s okay to hit me?”
This time he starts for me, only to have Levi clamp a hand on his shoulder and stop him. “Leave her. Wes’s right. She’s got less than 10 hours left. We can pretend we never saw her scarred ugly ass and move on.”
“You’re adorable, Levi. You really are. Like a tiny yapping puppy. You think calling me ugly and scarred will do anything to me? You have no clue what I’ve been through in my life. Insults are a joke. At least my parents didn’t decide that death was preferable to having the same last name as you.”
He came so close to shifting, and it was made worse by me laughing as he struggled against it. His huge buddies crowded around him and helped calm him down. It took a good five minutes for that to happen, all the while, almost everyone in the room stank of fear. Mr. Briggs, our lovely fire mage teacher, included.
It’s fun making friends, isn’t it?
Mr. Briggs did not seem to know what to do once he had the stage. Not even remotely. He started and stopped repeatedly while looking at our little nucleus of fun. Finally, a girl on the other side of the class I haven’t seen before speaks up, “Mr. Briggs? You left off telling us about affinities and why people think they exist?”
He froze at her question, then nodded slowly. “Tha…thank you. Okay. Let’s move back to the topic at hand. This isn’t on any tests, but it’s something that I felt everyone should hear or take part in.” It’s easy to see his gears start to mesh again, which is kinda funny. He strikes me as competent, so I’m not sure which part of what just took place threw him so badly.
“Everyone here has magic.” Side eye at me. “That’s why you’re here. We don’t have a representative from every affinity in this class, yet I’ve had one from every one in my time. I’m sure we all know them. We have fire, water, ice, earth, metal, and air. We have dragon variations for each, with dragons having three subsets for metal. To the best of our knowledge, those are the only subsets.” Another side eye at me. From more than just him. “We’re all familiar with the coloration. Every affinity has a specific color tied to it. It’s readily apparent in our eyes and hair. There is some slight variation in color, but it’s a
lways close to the baseline for each.” Would you look at that? Another look at me.
“There are a number of theories about why the affinities exist. Some have gained traction over the years. Some have lost traction. Some never really gained any.”
“Like what? What theory hasn’t gained traction?” A boy on the other side that I saw briefly yesterday semi-raises his hand and speaks before being called on.
“It runs the gamut. I’ve heard any number of theories in my life. One that was big about 200 years ago that has since almost faded is that there was a deal with the devil that gave us all our power.” General laughter. “Yeah, laugh it up.” He smiled as he said it, which is probably a good sign. “But it did have traction. There was another saying that God gave us the powers, but the devil jumped in and caused the power to split apart.” That’s an interesting one.
“Another is about the affinities when it comes to the difference between mages and dragons. I’ve heard dozens and dozens in my life. Following the God and devil theme, one that was popular for a while is that dragons are the children of the devil, while mages are the children of angels. Nephilim and cambion. To the best of our ability to tell, none of that is true. Could our power be from God? Could be. As far as we know so far, it seems to be intrinsic in each of us and has a genetic component.”
“But then why do they exist?” Another boy this time. Not familiar.
“Now that, no one is very sure. I’m sure we’ve all seen the movies. Read the books. Experienced it, at least a little. Show of hands, who here has tried a spell that your affinity is known to be weak at.”
Three out of 30 hands went up, causing uncomfortable laughter in the group.
Mr. Briggs raised his hand high, “Fine, you all don’t want to admit weakness in the academy? Don’t think I don’t get that. Here’s the reality. Everyone in here has tried it. All of us. All of you. All of my peers. We all try it. We continue to try it. And, I can guarantee this, we all tried it with the knowledge that we’d be the one, the single one, to be successful at it.” A little stronger laughter from the group. “Don’t even. You aren’t the only one. Every person in here has tried it. I’m a fire mage.” He rubbed his short hair, “Kinda obvious. I had been decently powerful when I went to the academy. Then I fell into the wrong crowd and barely made it through the trial for year two. I made it through my third year and then bowed out. Got dropped to 50 percent and considered myself lucky. You should have seen me. I tried so hard, so hard! I wanted to be the first fire mage to master ice magic. To master earth magic. Anything and everything to make me stronger. To get me through the third trial and show my classmates that I wasn’t just prey.” He shrugged. “Yeah, I spent so much time on it that I didn’t focus where I needed to. On those spells that would help me through the trial. That would help with my protections. By the time it was too late to fill the gaps, I knew I was toast.” A smile popped up, “At a guess, I would have made it…an hour through the trial before I would have been taken down. Someone else. An ally. No idea who would have done it, but I took an honest look at my abilities…and frankly stepped out of the game.”