CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
I T FEELS WEIRD, HAVING THIS unyielding support from my friends. They didn’t run to Major General Rune and try to have me taken. They didn’t judge me for keeping this from them, knowing that it would either get me killed or have me hidden away in a tower where I would never see the light again, most likely turned into a puppet for the needs of the enemy. Aunt Gretchen said not to trust anyone, but I’m starting to think that maybe it’s okay to trust the right people… I just hope I didn’t choose wrong.
Nero pecks my cheek as we leave the training yard, heading to Battle Strategy. “ You didn’t choose wrong, Rav. Trust me, my instincts on this are singing true. ”
I sigh, eyeing him out of my peripherals. I know he’s right.I feel that same instinct tugging in my stomach, like a warm, comforting hand reaching to help. “ I know. It’s just we spent so long obeying and listening to what my mother and aunt told me. It feels… good, though. Thank you for pushing me. ”
A purr emanates from his chest as pride fills our bond. “ I’ll always push you when I think you need it. ”
We enter into probably the most boring lesson I have during the day and see that Captain Corvo is awaiting us at the podium in the center of the circular room. He’s an older male, with a gruesome scar that runs from his cheek, down his jaw and throat. From the war stories he’s told us, battle is obviously something he’s very passionate about, even though he drones on like he’s about to take his last breath—that’s how slow he’s talking.
Melissandre takes my hand and pulls me into the center of our row, the rest of our squad surrounding us with Ember on my other side.
Captain Corvo begins the lesson and everyone perks up with interest at today’s topic. “Today we will be going over your options for The Choosing.” His pale yellow eyes trace the classroom, lighting up with glee as fae sit up straighter in their seats. “This is your final trial to officially have the great honor of joining the Damorleia Military. To fight for the right to vengeance on behalf of our late Queen and her consorts.”
My stomach twists at the mention of the Queen. Blurred memories try to force themselves to the surface but are stopped short and fade back into the recesses of my subconscious.
“Can anyone tell me the five different factions? Everyone should have their hands raised as you learned this earlier this year,” he states, his gaze searching for slackers.
My entire squad, along with the rest of the fae in the room raise their hands. He calls on Rozen.
Rozen answers confidently, and I must admit, I’m glad I actually did remember all of them. “Infantry, which are the ground troops. They are on the front lines, fighting head-on with the enemy. Berserkers are our heavy hitters; we send them in to do heavy damage and fast. Magick Artillery: they fight from a distance using long-range magickal attacks. Then you have Gryphon and Dragon Riders, which are our aerial fighters, but dragons can also do massive ground damage, and gryphons are much smaller therefore able to maneuver quicker, giving them some advantages on the battlefield. But dragons also have magick, making them a much more fearsome foe.”
Corvo nods excitedly. “Yes, exactly. Good job Cadet Stoll.” He pauses for a moment as he seems to gather his thoughts. “For the final trial, you must choose which faction you’d like to join. Once you’re signed up, you will be given time to see what you can find out in the library about your trial to prepare yourselves accordingly. Some of you may already have an idea of where you’d like to be placed, but I will warn you: as much as becoming a rider is exciting, those trials have a higher chance of death, so be smart. Know your strengths and ignore your wants if you want to survive into the second year.”
He grabs a few parchments off the podium and pins them on the notice board by the door, where a tethered quill and ink bottle sit next to it. “When you’re ready, you may sign your name under your chosen faction. You will have until the week before The Choosing to change it. After that, the parchments will be collected and your decisions will be final.”
WE LEAVE THE dining hall and the six of us slip away from Bracken, Bren and Gregor as they head to wherever they go after dinner.
Ducking into an empty classroom, I spin to face them. “How do you want to do this?” I ask, wringing my hands together. They’re the ones who wanted to try to train during the day, but I’m not sure how they expect us to get near the officers’ quarters when everyone is still up and moving around. I think they mentioned something about making us disappear?
Rozen’s lips tug at the corners of his mouth until they stretch into a wide grin, his eyes gleaming with excitement. “You’re going to have your first mini lesson right now, because I’m going to need your help casting a large enough illusion to cover us.”
I blink at him. I don’t think I heard him right. “Right now? What if someone walks in?”
He shakes his head as if I thought he would be so careless. “So little faith, Ravie. Right now I have it so it looks like there’s no door here, and they won’t even notice even if they are looking for it. But we should probably hurry, because when they get far enough away, they’ll wonder why it’s gone.”
“You can do this, Ravina,” Ember states firmly.
I focus back on Roz, the Szellemi fae of our little group. “Okay, instruct then.” I gesture with my hands in front of me, a small smile pulling at the corner of my mouth.
He rubs his hands together. “Okay, reach for your magick. Now I want you to picture using it to create a mist around us, touching everyone but the fae you’re trying to cover. Let it brush everyone’s mind as we pass. Tell the mist what you want it to hide: sounds, visuals, all of it. Make sure you keep everyone you want covered in eyesight at all times, otherwise it’ll fail.”
Doing as he says, I reach for a part of my magick I haven’t touched in years. I’ve only ever created small illusions like a bird for Nero to play with, or creatures for me to practice hunting. But to cover myself? I follow his instructions the best I can, almost getting it the first few times, but on the last try, I feel something click into place.
My eyes snap open and I can’t help the excited laugh that bursts from me. “Okay, I did it. What now?”
Rozen tilts his head before glancing at the others. “Now take me out of the mist. I want to see how well it’s actually holding up. I can feel your magick around me; it’s different from other Szellemi. It’s so strange,” he murmurs.
I pucker my lips in concentration as I pull the mist away from his mind. “Did it work?” I ask, but he doesn’t respond, walking around where he knows we’re standing.
“Are you guys talking? Or just staring at me? I know I’m gorgeous, but I’m going to need a sign you’re at least trying.” He smirks.
Melissandre moves closer to him and I can feel my magick flowing with her. “You suck your thumb like a newborn fledgling and cry out for your mother every night,” she lies and then laughs when he continues looking around, trying to talk to us.
Lennox chuckles. “I think it’s safe to say he can’t hear us.”
“Okay, I think you can pull him back in now,” Ember states, ignoring the jesting with the others.
It’s much easier to pull him back in this time.
“Okay guys, I think it’s safe—oh hey! Yeah, I think we’re good. That was strange. I honestly think she could handle hiding all of us, but I’m still going to add my magick just in case yours stutters. Are you ready?” he asks, throwing his hair behind his shoulders.
“Ready as ever,” I murmur and then feel his light and playful magick join mine. “Okay, let’s move. I wanna get there as quickly as possible,” I state, feeling my nerves amp up. I’m used to sneaking around, getting out of Shalo and even when I was searching for a place to train, so it’s not like I’m not familiar with it.
“ Maybe it’s the fact that it’s more than just you who will get in trouble if you’re caught, ” Nero adds unhelpfully.
“ Maybe this is a bad idea then… ” Visions of my past punishments come darting to the forefront of my mind, and I find myself staggering for breath. Why am I risking them like this?
“ Their decisions are not your own, Ravina, ” he reminds me. “ They want to help you with this. I’m assuming this is what friendship is supposed to be like. ”
I mentally acknowledge what he’s said and ground myself. Shaking off the residual nerves, I push open the door to a nearly empty hall, only a handful of stragglers still heading to their destinations. With haste, we hurry down the halls towards the officers’ quarters and so far, no one is the wiser in knowing that we’re slinking past them.
Until we reach them . My feet stutter, but I push past as I see the three males of Wing One returning from their trip. Verlice’s eyes linger on where we just were, searching for something but not finding us. Shit. Shit. Shit. I keep my focus, keeping my gaze on everyone who needs to keep covered by the illusion.
“Everything okay Jesp?” Craven asks, peering at him with concern.
He nods, brushing his fingers through his silky auburn locks. “Yeah, I just thought I sensed something. It didn’t make sense, though. I’m going to—”
“No,” Driscol snaps. “You need rest and then you need to talk to your mother. We have more important matters to discuss.”
It’s the most I’ve ever heard him speak, or speak at all really, outside of grunts. His voice is deep, and rolls across my skin like burning fire. I almost want to stay, to see if I can hear more of his deliciously deep timbre, but Ember tugs me forward and we escape out of the hall.
Thankfully no more hiccups occur and we all slip behind the entrance that leads under the castle. We drop the illusion and I take a deep breath, not realizing the strain it had on me.
Rozen grins, giving me a light punch on the shoulder. “Great job! You held up a lot better than I thought you would.”
Ember ever so slowly spins towards him. “What do you mean by that, Rozen Stoll?” her voice low and slow, almost like she’s speaking to a young one who’s in trouble.
He shuffles nervously. “Well, her magick didn’t falter at all. I was expecting it and made sure we wouldn’t have gotten caught. I promise.”
Lennox steps down the stairs, getting between them. “Hey, we made it here without getting caught. Ravina did it. Let’s not get at each other’s throats, yeah?”
She peers around the hulking Elemi fae. Even though she’s at least half a foot taller than me, she is still smaller then both of them. It doesn’t stop her from getting into their faces. “What matters is that we said we would help her, and keep her secret. What if your magick alone hadn’t worked, huh? What then? From now on, if you think there is even a slight chance of her getting caught, we don’t do it. We find another way.” She storms down the stairs and I follow after her.
Melissandre is close behind but I hear her yell, “What she said.” as she rushes to catch up with us.
“ Remind me not to get on her bad side, ” Nero mutters, watching the female carefully.
I roll my lips between my teeth to hold back a chuckle. “ You and me both. ”
After a short yet tense fast-paced walk through the tunnels, we come up to my hidden wall. I place my hand on it and watch as the rock shifts away, letting us beyond into my makeshift training area. Once everyone is secured inside, I shut it again.
Nero flies off my shoulder towards his perch after taking a couple laps around the space to stretch his wings, and I face my friends. “Okay so, what should we start on? I usually just try to find different ways to use my elements, forcing them to their limits—or well, as much as I can in here.”
Ember—who seems much more calm now—tilts her head, assessing me. “Why don’t you start off with what you can do with each ability and then we can come up with a plan.”
I nod thoughtfully before answering her question. “I have what I think is an average grasp on the elements. Before today, my Szellemi magick I’ve only ever used to create small creatures. I don’t think I’ve touched my Vopn Fo abilities, and definitely not Skuggi magick.” Considering how taboo that type of magick is, I think I would be killed on the spot if it leaked out.
“I think she should train with Ember first. She’s already helping her with combat—it won’t be much to get her to trigger weaponry magick,” Melissandre adds.
“Then me,” Roz adds helpfully. “I’m sure I can get you sinking into fae’s minds in no time. I would teach you how to shield your mind against fae like me, but you seem to have that pretty down pat. Actually, I can teach the rest of you how to enforce your shields properly. If you leave yourselves open to us and we realize, it’s almost too tempting not to.” A wicked yet playful glint enters his gaze as he wiggles his fingers at us.
My brows furrow. “I don’t know what you mean—I’ve only ever shielded my mind intentionally. I haven’t been shielding when we’re alone with each other…”
His puzzled expression matches mine before he shrugs. “Maybe it’s your bloodline? I’ve never come into contact with a Gallalaus Fae before, so it’s more than possible.”
My frown deepens. Aunt Gretchen taught me the basics to keep people out and said that I have the tools I need to help, but didn’t elaborate. Why wouldn’t she have if I’m supposed to be keeping my past a forgotten secret? Mind you, the few memories I do have aren’t much, but it’s enough.
Lennox chimes in. “Well, then after you two, you, me and Mel can work on our elements together.”
“What about the Skuggi Magick?” Ember muses, “She’s going to need to learn to control that as well.”
The silence becomes so loud that it’s almost deafening. I can hear water dripping somewhere in the recesses of the cave. “No, it’s fine. If that magick slipped out, I would be dead on the spot anyway. It’s best if I don’t learn so that doesn’t happen.”
Melissandre shakes her head sadly. “Ravina, it’s only a matter of time until it does slip out, and with no control, who knows what you will be able to do. We’ve only heard rumors about their magick. It’s not something we learn about here until the third year, and we definitely don’t learn how to wield it.”
“We could always check the restricted section,” Lennox adds.
I shake my head. “Only the librarian can take books off the shelf, otherwise it triggers some sort of lock-down. We would need her permission or a Captain’s permission to even gain access.”
“It’s true, she’s a cantankerous old hag,” Ember murmurs, placing her hands on her narrow waist.
“Leave that to me,” Lennox grins. “I have a way with the females.”
Melissandre gags. “Yeah, sure you do.” Then she turns to Ember and I and mouths, “We may need another plan.”
We nod vigorously. Lennox may think he’s smooth, but watching his idea of flirting is like watching a carriage crash… while it’s on fire. “Well we should get started before it’s time for lights out and our squad-mates get suspicious.” My attention falls on my Vopn Fo friend. “Ready to beat the shit out of me?”
A genuine grin stretches across her delicately sharp features. “Let’s make you angry.”