Page 16

T he wind was particularly bad that night.

One of the windows in their room whistled all night long.

No one cared though, as they were beyond exhausted.

Verrona had not returned yet from the infirmary by the time they woke.

Lilith made the excuse that she likely injured herself yesterday and that seemed to stifle people’s curiosity.

They groggily dressed in their uniforms, which magically appeared fresh and neatly folded at the end of their beds.

Gone was the charred human smell. Lilith picked up hints of peppermint and rosemary.

She was too groggy to think about the magic of the old castle, but gave a silent thanks to whoever cleaned her things.

They ate their bowls of porridge and fruit -but were careful not to overindulge- then they dragged themselves to Mistress Rhodes.

“Already tired. Well, you all know the routine. Complete the run in one and a half hours, those that don’t will have to redo the run this evening.” She watched them as they set off on the run.

Pulling whatever mana energy she had though her body, Lilith took off.

She was going at a slightly slower pace than yesterday, but the run seemed to be rather uneventful.

She jumped over some outstretched roots and ducked under some branches.

She dodged a few fireballs and then she tried to split her reserve into two, conserving mana to maintain her running pace, but also dispersing mana to increase her body heat.

In no time, she found herself descending the curved stairs.

Storm, Orin, Silver, Ruven, Felicia and Taran all made it down around the same time.

Everyone else trailed in slightly under the time limit.

It seemed like no one would have to redo the run today.

Mistress Rhodes grinned at them and watched as they paired up to start weapons sparring.

Since Bear and Verrona had not returned, there was an odd number of students. Felicia and Lilith had agreed to rotate partners, which gave Lilith the opportunity to size up her competitors.

Her first and second rounds with Nym and Juniper gave her the confidence she needed.

They had very little weapons training and struggled to imbue their weapons.

Lilith took a turn sitting on the sideline watching everyone spar.

As predicted, Storm and Orin were strong.

As were Taran, Silver and Ruven. Nero, Cosmo and Amir had strength on their side and familiarity of sparring, but could only focus their mana with short bursts.

Felicia was the strongest of the girls. Meira and Meridith were not bad but occasionally made clumsy mistakes.

They opened themselves up for attacks and countered without thinking.

Lilith took turns facing off against all of the girls.

She lasted a round with Silver and Taran, although she suspected they did not go as hard on her as they did with each other.

She wondered about her mana. If she was able to free herself last night, she should be able to do it again.

After her run, the pool of magical energy was back to being piddly.

She would just have to figure out what triggered the momentary blip in the curse.

The morning went smoothly as they settled into Theories and Tactics.

Verrona had joined them as they walked into class.

She looked better than expected. No marks or signs of struggle marred her skin.

She looked paler than normal and offered no explanation as to what happened.

Verrona sat next to Lilith and gave her a sad smile.

Most of the class had remembered to form a mental shield even prior to entering the classroom.

Those that didn’t held their heads in their hands, nursing a headache.

Andishmand increased his pressure on their minds.

He would ease off, only to push more force moments later.

Lilith had a headache and a nosebleed after his mental training, and it completely drained whatever mana stores she had left.

He reassured them that they would be able to tolerate and increase their mental shields over time.

“We will look at one of my favourite battles. The Battle of Fort Smog. Fort Smog still stands today, just southeast of the capital, Vanguard. It boasts reinforced stone walls, but at one point during a skirmish, the southeast wall suffered a terrible blow and that side was reinforced by wood. Prior to the brief unification, the territories to the west were increasing their attacks on the east. Forces from the west made camp outside of Fort Smog on the northwest side to plan their attack. However, on the night before they planned to attack, a small army from the east slipped into the fort unnoticed. What strategy did the eastern forces come up with to defend the fort?” Andishmand asked the class. “Anyone?”

This was an easy one for Lilith. She raised her hand and replied, “I have a question first: did the western forces choose to make camp on the northwest side? There was no barrier that prevented them from reaching the southeast wall?” Lilith continued when Andishmand nodded to her.

“In that case, the western forces must have noticed the vulnerable side, but strategically chose to camp away from there. Then when an opportunity arose, that spot would be where they would attack. If I were the eastern army, I would move anyone remaining inside the fort closest to the northwest. Dress civilians in uniform and have them stationed to that side. Make it seem that we are expecting any sort of invasion coming from the northwest, closest to their camp. I’d have the bulk of my army hidden near the southeast wall.

This is where the actual invasion would occur. ”

“How do you figure that?” asked Andishmand.

“It makes sense. It would goad the western forces into making a move. We show them our hand, that being what they expect as the extent of the forces within the fort and in turn they would be tempted to attack the fort’s vulnerable side.

As they attacked, we would reveal our true hand and surround them.

” Lilith imagined herself as the captain of her army.

Andishmand stood in front of her. “That is exactly what happened. The eastern army disguised themselves as civilians and casually positioned themselves at the weakest part of the fort. They baited the western forces, creating what seemed to be an opportunity for them to strike. Five Hundred western soldiers were overcome by an army of one hundred and fifty men. Mankind can be quite predictable. Learning how to strategize, knowing that predictability, will help you succeed in defeating against your opponent. Keep that in mind with the upcoming tournament. ”

Andishmand flicked his wrist and passed out a scroll to each student.

“There is a kingdom far to the west that exists beyond our dominion. A mage once found himself there and formed an alliance with their leader. Similar to our lands, they had experienced internal wars. However, it was said that one of their advisors was visited by an old gods, who taught them the vices of men. Knowledge that allowed them to strategize and form rules over their people. They formed a book that was passed down through generations.” I want you to read this scroll, it contains a translated excerpt from their book, and I want you to form an essay on the pitfalls of men.

Discuss how this knowledge is relevant to you as you prepare for the tournament. This is due by the end of the month.”

Lilith opened the scroll and read the excerpt:

There are five vices of men.

If any man were to contain one of these,

they would be easily overcome by their enemies.

Desperation breeds recklessness, allowing men to make foolish decisions.

Those he commands will perish from his carelessness.

He is quick to act, but allows himself to be defeated by those

that strategize and proceed with caution.

If a man is a ruled by indecision,

he will confuse those he commands.

His men will be conquered by those

that are able to make firm plans and take timely action .

Command by hot temper and lose your position.

A man that is ruled by his emotions also breeds confusion.

Those that are quick to provoke are easily baited.

If he places honour before humility

he will be mastered by false reverence.

Manipulation comes easy to those that are ruled by entitlement.

Loyalty is different than concern for his men.

Worriment leads to indecisiveness.

There must be room for risk.

Lilith reread the passage a few times. If she could apply this knowledge while she spied on her classmates, this would help form strategies against them during the Incantations tournament.

Taran leaned over and whispered, “So what is your vice?”

“Like I would tell you.” She knew the answer.

She was guilty of being quick to anger and indecisive when it came to her life.

She watched her fellow classmates as they read the scrolls.

Storm was busy writing his essay. He would be a difficult adversary.

Orin was reading the scroll, and had positioned himself rather close to Felicia.

His yellow eyes would occasionally lift to stare at her. Interesting. Lilith thought.

“You know, I can see those wheels turning from here,” Taran whispered.

“Do you have something else to do? Other than watching me?” she retorted.

“I can see why he finds you amusing,” he said .

Lilith blushed. “You mean your cousin?” She peered into his blue eyes, a similar shade to the prince’s.

“I do not find him amusing.” She grabbed a piece of parchment and started writing her essay.

After a few moments of silence, she was the first to break, “You care for him, even though he’s an arse. ”

Taran turned to look at her, “Yes, he has his moments. But there is a side to him he does not show to many.”

Andishmand announced the dismissal of class.

“Ah, my favourite class is next,” said Felicia as she went to walk beside Lilith.

“I did enjoy my tea this morning,” Juniper chuckled, joining the group.

“Mmm. It does have a nice floral note,” Lilith joked. They sat at a table with Nym.

“Nym and I have bathroom duties this evening,” Juniper sighed. “I wonder if I could take some herbs to shove up my nose.” She picked a leaf off of a plant on the table and sniffed it.

“I do have some peppermint,” said Sir Hawthorne as he passed their table.

“However, you may need something stronger. I suggest smelling salts.” He laughed as he walked up to the front of the class.

“For your assignment today, you will find dried mountain spring flowers and my favourite, Harpy’s claw.

Both of these plants can be turned into a tincture that can be used for what? ”

Felicia shot her hand up, “They can be used as muscle relaxers.”

“Correct, Miss Flavian. They can become quite potent, so I will be coming around to make sure you are using the correct doses. Please follow instructions on page forty of your textbook.”

They took out their textbooks and found the instructions. Lilith was never really good at her apothecary classes in school, but it seemed easy enough.

She started to finely chop up the little yellow leaves and dried roots.

“This will take six weeks before we can use the tincture,” stated Ruven.

“It will, but by then you’ll really need them.”

“For our emergence?” asked Storm. “But that could start anytime now. It would be too late for us to use."

“The good thing is I have a ready supply. This will be used as restock.”

In the chaos of the last couple days, Lilith had totally forgotten about her emergence.

She thought back to Arlen and Jasper. They were in bed for weeks at school.

What would her emergence look like? A release of a fraction of what she should be.

No. She would have to find a way to be rid of her runes.

She finished making her tincture and finished up class.

“Lilith?” Felicia waved her hand in front of her friend’s face. “Hello?”

“Oh sorry, I was lost in thought.” Lilith replied as they entered the hall. “I was thinking about our emergence. ”

Felicia stopped walking. “I was just asking you about that. The tattoo you have, you get it off when you graduate, right? So you’ll go through your emergence and not know how powerful you truly are?”

Lilith was shocked by how much Felicia saw. “Y-yes. It is one of the downfalls of this tradition. It will make surviving here much more difficult.”

“Let’s hope it doesn’t happen until after the Incantations tournament.”

Silver ran over to their spot with a newspaper in hand. “The Apostles are taking over Vanguard.” He showed them the article,

Queen Holds Special Banquet for the Apostles

By Beatrice Bane

Queen Isolde welcomes the Apostles of the Reckoning into the palace for a banquet in their honour.

All twelve Apostles were seen at the feast speaking fervently with nobles and servants alike.

The queen has permitted them to make residence in Vanguard’s former temple, allowing the public easier access to the Apostles and their sermons.

It was noted that Queen Isolde was in attendance at their last sermon, leaving many to wonder if the Apostles will take up the mantle as the official religion of the kingdom.

Lilith’s eyes roamed the next article’s title as Silver took back the paper.

Rebels Attack Trade Routes, Causing Havoc for Merchants and Supply Chains.

By Beatrice Bane

“I can’t believe this. People are flocking to these Apostles. They’re saying they have a cure for the darkness.” Silver shook his head.

“Oh, the courier will be here later today if you want to send any letters to your family,” Silver stated as he flipped through the pages.