Chapter 14 Lazriel #3
Things had shifted so much, in so many different ways, some in obvious in-your-face ways, others in smaller aspects but just as profound.
And it had kind of resulted in my heart not being in it lately—in continuing to keep my head above water here at Wraeven Academy, in me putting my all into it, being a part of this place, and it being the defining aspect of my life.
Some things that had seemed so important before just didn’t anymore.
Like, did I even need to get through the rest of this year to graduate?
Sylas was done with it. He’d been here under duress, forced by Ryker Morgan, but all that was moot now because of what had gone down.
And Velra had already achieved what she’d come here for—learning how to balance both sides of herself, coming out of her survival state and building a life beyond that, and finding a sense of belonging which she now had in us.
She was also pregnant and while that didn’t mean she couldn’t continue her studies at the Academy, it would shift things for her, and changing that up could be a part of it.
I figured Cassius would remain teaching here. He enjoyed it and he was good at it. So there was that. He’d continue to split his time between here and Haven Initiative.
I jolted as a couple of students coming out of Lenos’ class accidentally bumped into me, because I’d been so caught up in my thoughts that I’d had my instincts offline basically. And, yeah, I was still coming down from the intense fucking with Cas. Definitely a factor.
I meandered past another three, then entered the classroom.
Lenos was leaning against the front of the lecturer’s desk at the far end of the room, sipping from a cup of coffee while he read from a leather bound book levitating before him.
His navy jeans were scuffed up and the white shirt with the rolled cuffs he had on over a black T-shirt was wrinkled to shit.
He looked out as my booted footsteps resonated down the gangway.
“Ah, Lazriel, just the student I was waiting on.”
What? “Waiting on?”
With a dramatic hand flourish, the levitating book he’d been reading dematerialized. He pushed off the desk and met my approach. “Cassius said you’d be popping by to request notes for today’s missed class.”
Cassius had done what? I’d only left him twenty minutes ago.
The confusion must’ve shown all over my face because Lenos explained, “He texted me.”
“Huh. Well… good.”
“I’m also aware of your recent troubles and I am so very sorry.”
“Cassius told you that as well?” That seemed nearly impossible, because Cas was majorly protective of us.
“Ryker Morgan made me aware.”
What? Why would Ryker—hold on. “Is this about Sylas?”
His lips twitched. “You’re highly astute, just like your work in class suggests. And your assignment.”
I frowned. “I thought we weren’t getting them back until a couple of classes from now?”
“I took an early look at a few of them.”
He walked back to the desk and opened his messenger bag. I followed him over at his gesture, as he pulled some papers out.
He rifled through them for a moment, then he handed my assignment back to me.
Inter-Realm Diplomacy in Action: Trials and Tribulations.
I raised an eyebrow as I took in the grade. “An A. Seriously?” I mean, I was pretty good when I applied myself, but that grade was still kind of rare for me when it came to theory-type classes. Hands-on was more my thing. Obviously.
“It was well-earned. Under the banner provided, you chose to explore the role of the Shifter Stabilization Unit in not only reassigning territories to incorporate draconic expatriates, but also in normalizing hybrid beings, assimilating them into pack structures with adequate support without repressing their special natures. You posed incorporating education among pure wolves and dragons to combat stigma and ignorance. And you also highlighted the benefits to opening pack structures to those with hybridized natures using language that shifters understand—power and strength.”
“Yeah, well. Just doing what was asked.”
“No,” he said, flipping back his black, shoulder-length hair. “This was above and beyond. In fact, it’s so detailed and deeply thought out, that it reads more like a proposal than a mere assignment. I’ve actually passed this on to Ryker Morgan and Jaxon Silver.”
“You’ve…wow.”
“Yeah. You’ve got a gift for this. Don’t discount that. I’d urge you to consider work in his vein once you graduate.”
“I don’t know.” A lot was up in the air right now.
“Making major decisions while you’re bogged down with trauma and heaviness is when mistakes are made.
Best to stick to where stability lies for you and wait on anything more.
Like walking away from said stability because it seems insignificant when thrust up against this nightmare going on beyond these walls. ”
“Damn, you’re good.”
He smiled. “Just observant.”
“And you must’ve seen a lot over all the years you’ve been a practicing sorcerer.”
“There’s also that, for sure.”
“Well, thanks,” I said, tapping my assignment on the desk before turning to go.
“Your lesson notes?” he called after me.
“Right, sorry.”
“No worries, there’s a lot on your mind.
” With a twirl of his hand, a navy textbook materialized, along with a parchment scroll that was shimmering with green magic—not his.
He flicked the textbook to me and I snatched it from the air.
“Notes are slotted inside, along with section highlights for your next set of readings that you’ll find helpful. "
“That’s really nice of you.”
“Minds like yours need to be protected—fierce, progressive, and visionary.”
Was that what I was?
Instead of asking, my attention was drawn to the scroll still levitating in front of him.
He caught my eye and told me, “I need you to give this to Sylas.”
“What is it?”
“We’ll call it a compromise.”
“From Ryker?”
“And the Unity Council.”
“Really? You guys want him to work with you?”
“Collaborate would be the best way to put it. Especially where Sylas Morgrave is concerned. Tell him to review the documentation, then use the card that Ryker gifted him to set a meeting with the benevolent Head of the Guardian Movement.”
“Yeah, all right.”
Sure, I wanted to ask more, but as so often went hand-in-hand whenever Sylas was involved, there was a whole lot of cryptic that took more than one conversation’s worth to cut through.
Plus, it would be best to get it from Sylas anyway.
The more I asked, the more it could reveal what I knew, and I couldn’t risk that.
So, I took the scroll, thanked Lenos again, then headed on out.