Chapter 5 #3
In truth, I can’t force him to bring me to the academy tonight. There’s nothing for me to do but hope our contract will hold. “Fine. See you tomorrow.”
“Not so fast. I’ll walk you to your door.” He grabs the bag with the eggs, then steps out of the boat, and I follow him.
We pass by some guards, and I wonder how Alayel got them to leave us alone and not even check if we were carrying anything dangerous or forbidden.
He obviously has much more power than a recruit. Why did he lie to me? I can’t ask him now, not as we leave the busy port or walk through streets full of people. As promised, he leaves me at the back entrance of the Grease & Spice, which is already closed.
We stand by the door, and I give him a playful smile. “Don’t you dare trick me.”
“Me?” He places a hand over his heart, as if wounded. “Never!”
He walks away, carrying the bag with the precious eggs that almost cost my life, the eggs that should be my ticket into the academy.
I take a deep, calming breath, as Alayel turns and waves before disappearing between two buildings. I’m left here, empty-handed except for a contract.
At least I’m no longer in a cell, I suppose—unless a guard drags me back to prison. Unfortunate thought.
I knock three times on the door, pause, then repeat three knocks. In a few seconds, Laristella opens it and gives me a forced smile.
“Look! She’s alive!” Her tone drips with sarcasm, and then she eyes me up and down, her gaze taking in my strange attire—the ripped and tied shirt, the dried blood that hopefully looks like dirt. “Are you all right?”
I nod. “I’m fine. Sorry I didn’t… They wouldn’t let me come back.”
“Mah!” Kaio yells from the bedroom. “Is that you?”
My heart warms hearing my brother’s voice. “Yes,” I reply.
He then comes running from the kitchen, his eyes wide. “Did you get in? Are you going to fly?”
I wish I could say yes, but I don’t know. “I… believe so. Tomorrow they’ll give me the, uh… final answer.”
He grins. “And I’ll have the room all to myself.”
“So that’s why you’re smiling, you little rascal. Here I was thinking you were happy for me.”
“I am!” And indeed it sounds like he is, with his youthful chuckle that I feared I’d never hear again.
I wish I could hug him tight, but I don’t want to reveal the torrent of emotions running under the surface.
My fear of dying was numbed on the island and on the boat, but now it threatens to bring tears to my eyes.
Joy, relief, horror, there’s so much to feel, but I don’t want them to know what I’ve been through.
Laristella gives me an odd look. “So you’re really set on going to the suicide academy?”
“You know how much I want it,” I say.
She takes a deep breath. “One day you’ll realize that wanting something is not enough of a reason to do it. I just hope you’ll survive the lesson. But you should have told me. Finding a cook last minute isn’t easy, you know?”
“I’m sorry.” I don’t have anything better to say.
“No, you’re not. But you’re dirty. Go to the bathing chamber, and I’ll bring you a pitcher of water and clean clothes.” She turns to my brother. “And you’ll help me.”
“Me?” He points at himself. “I’m done for today.”
“Yes, now help your sister.” Laristella turns to me. “Go!”
I almost protest that I can get my own clothes, but, for some reason, I feel like indulging in this moment of helplessness, and walk to the bathing chamber, where I peel off Alayel’s ripped shirt, then place the belt with the waterskin carefully on a stool.
My chest has tiny reddish dots where that strange magic hit me, and they look more like some kind of rash than deadly wounds.
If I close my eyes, I can see that rider pointing his staff at me, his expression full of hatred, as the storm raged around us.
He looked like a figure of legend, emanating power that rivaled the thunder roaring above us.
So much power. I shouldn’t have survived that encounter.
I still don’t understand what happened, why that dragon healed me. So much that I don’t understand. Odd pieces trying to form a pattern in my mind even if they don’t fit.
And then there’s the fear that all of that was for nothing.
As exhausted as I am, I can barely sleep. Part of it is anxiety for tomorrow, for finally making my dream come true—maybe. Maybe is the problem. The uncertainty. My chest feels heavy. My heart loud.
And then, memories plague me. That dragon. Oddly, instead of calming, his presence feels threatening, angry. And that rider still looks at me with fury in his dark eyes. That stare pierces my soul, pins me against the bed. For a moment, I could swear I’m being watched. Hunted.
When I’m almost drifting into sleep, I see two pulsing orbs of light, one green, one red. The eggs. They’re calling me.
I get up as faint dawn light bleeds through our tiny window. In daylight, my fear seems silly, and yet I still feel that eerie sensation. Something strange happened on that island, and I might never understand what.
But now that I’m awake, only one question matters: will I join the Sky Academy?