Chapter 6: 5.

Dawn broke through the window and hit Volan in the face. Wincing and trying to resist waking up just yet, Volan’s eyes slowly crack open. His vision is blurry for a moment, but a few blinks later and it’s back to normal. Looking around, he was laying on his bed with the box he opened yesterday still on his bed. Sliding his legs over and off the side, he sat and held his head. His mind felt fuzzy.

Volan remembered everything that happened yesterday, but slowly. Pieces came back starting from him and his father talking as they ate. It was his birthday, but Gael had to leave because of King Zacharius calling him in for something. Then he left and Rose came in. He did the dishes, put the rest of the pie away, and went to his room.

That was where he found the box and a letter from his mother. The words she wrote him still rung in his mind, but that wasn’t what he was trying to recall right now. It was something about the box. Something about it wasn’t normal. But what was it?

Suddenly, an eye flashed in his mind and the name “Galarin”.

Galarin… who was that?

Then Volan recalled the mysterious chamber with mossy stone, flowers, and tree roots. The light that came down and chains binding… something.

Galarin, Galarin, Galarin… Who was that? I remember that name, but why?

He tried to focus on the name, but there was nothing. Volan couldn’t drag the memories up no matter how he tried and let his arms and head fall. And as he was recovering, he noticed something off about his right arm.

“What the…?”

Looking at his arm, he immediately noticed a tattoo made of red lines and symbol-like images he didn’t understand. It stretched from the tips of his right hand to the tip of elbow, but lost intensity as it shifted from the red on his hand to his plain skin tone. It looked like he’d reached into a fire and grabbed something. Then he remembered. He’d let the “book” bit his hand and transform.

Quickly, Volan went over to the box where his gift was supposed to be. But upon looking inside again, it was empty. Even putting his hand in, Volan didn’t find anything. It was an empty box now. Volan quickly scanned his room for anything that might’ve changed or if he could’ve put whatever was in the box on a shelf or something, but the rest of his room was the same. Whatever the gift could’ve been before, it was more than likely the markings on his arm now.

Volan was nervous, I’m gonna have a hard time explaining things if anyone sees my arm…

Then there was a knock at his door. Volan panicked before realizing it was Rose. Quickly checking the time via his phone, Volan realized it was just the usual wake-up call and gave a sigh of relief.

“I’ll be right out!”

There were another two knocks on his door to signal that Rose heard him. It was time to get up and go, so Volan started getting ready. He had barely enough time to shower up and get dressed, but he’d make it. And within the short span of time he had before school, Volan was on his way to the Academy with Rose only mildly annoyed at him. However, she didn’t seem to notice the tattoo on his arm.

Can she not see it? Or is she ignoring it?

It was mostly covered by his shirt and jacket, but Rose was sharp. She would’ve noticed it going all the way to his fingertips and want to know how it got there. Perhaps it was something only he could see? Volan found that train of thought entertaining for a moment, but then wondered why.

Was this “bestowed upon” him like some kind of mysterious blessing? Or possibly the opposite and it was a curse? Volan and his father had plenty of people that didn’t like them, but he doubted there was anyone that hated them so much as to hex either of them. Maybe this was all just some kind of coincidence and he just got it by chance? They were all viable answers in their own rights, but it seems Volan would be left clueless for now.

Moments later, Volan would be in his classes and things progressed as they usually would. Some studying in one class, taking notes in another, a pop quiz at random, nothing out of the ordinary. It also seemed that no one else could see the markings on his right hand even when it tried to make it as blatantly obvious as possible. And eventually, the last lesson of the day came. Getting into the locker room, Volan started changing into his field gear for the weekly practical battle class he had with his assigned squad members.

As he changed, one of his squadmates joined him. Giving him a sudden hit on the back, Kunal Booker, then opened his locker and started chatting with Volan as they changed. Kunal’s head was shaved on the sides and back, but he had a tuft of hair that was taller in front and shorter in the back. He also already had a good amount of facial hair that cleanly slid down from atop his upper lip and met his jaw and chin, and his skin was like darkened caramel.

Kunal asked, “Ey, man! How ya been?”

Volan looked over at him as he was making sure the lower half of his gear was fully secured.

“Been alright. Not the best of weeks, unfortunately, but could be a lot worse.”

“Mr. Hunt chew you out again?”

“When doesn’t he?”

“I’m surprised you’re still in his class at all. Still no luck with transferring out?”

“If I had, ya think I’d still be our team's Sentinel?”

Kunal laughed,  “Fair ‘nough, but your birthday was yesterday wasn’t it? Rare to see you so… off today. Didn’t get much sleep last night? Or did you spend all last night playing with Rick?”

“Neither, actually.”

Kunal was surprised, “Oh? What were you doing then?”

Volan turned towards Kunal to see if Kunal could see the marks on his right hand, but their conversation only continued as normal.

“I think I just slept too much. Woke up later than usual and felt a bit out of it.”

Kunal joked, “Food induced coma, perhaps? You and your dad do go hard on food when ya go out in the evenin’.”

Volan chortled, “If only.”

The two finished getting geared up and headed out, weapons in head. Kunal carried a two-handed maul, but it was more accurate to call it a sledgehammer. He’d gotten in on a scholarship, but his family couldn’t afford any of the newer weapons most other students had. However, his father was able to pull some strings and got Kunal a choice of retired weapons no longer used by the military.

Volan, on the other hand, carried a hand-me-down longsword Gael used during his time in the military. It was well worn and had more than its fair share of scratches. There were some chips here and there, but it’d been repaired to full functionality many times. It was nothing special to look at by any means; hell, Kunal’s hammer looked arguably better. But to Volan, it felt like he carried his father’s presence with him when he wielded it.

Perhaps it was because they were both outsiders in a house filled with the prestigious and noble, or it was because the two carried weapons basically given to them by their fathers, but Volan and Kunal always saw eye to eye. They’d definitely gotten into their own share of fights, verbally and physically, and there was always a respected amount of emotional distance between the two, but neither would ever betray the other without a damned good reason.

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Volan and Kunal walked to an area behind the school along with several other students. Just ahead of them were multiple vehicles with their engines already running. These vehicles were mock armored personnel carriers. Most students who graduate from the Academy are expected to join the military, so these were gutted vans that had been completely remodeled inside and out to resemble APCs and help familiarize students with military equipment.

Three instructors stood near the convoy of vehicles as the students showed up. One was, to Volan’s disdain, Mr. Hunt. Thankfully he stood at the very front of the convoy, which meant he wasn’t gonna be in the vehicle with Volan and his squad. Volan couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief in his mind.

Next, in the middle and just a few vehicles ahead of the one for Volan’s team, was Ms. Greenhaven. She was one of the younger instructors, but an experienced Striker and one who earned plenty of accolades on the northern frontier. Mr. Greenhaven had auburn hair and brown eyes, as well as a pair of lines on each cheek. But the most prominent feature she had was two asymmetrical antlers that extended out from the temples of her head marking her as half-fae. It was rare to see any person with fae blood to be in such a prestigious position.

Lastly was a man older than both of his colleagues, Sir Nickolas Crawford. He was a former Major of the Flameguard, but well before Gael had assumed the position of Sword-Captain. Sir Crawford didn’t talk much, but he always seemed to carry a dreadful expression. And whenever his eyes fell on someone, it looked like he was staring straight through them and looking at their heart of hearts.

However, there was also something strange about Sir Crawford. No one really knew what he was at the academy for. No one seemed to have any classes with him, at least openly, and many rumors about him had come about. Some speculated that he was a spy for the Old Noble Houses. Others believed he was the King’s means of searching for the next Sword-Captain. A few thought of him as nothing more than the Academy’s old guard dog.

Then a thought raced through Volan’s mind. One that was not his own.

It whispered, Old friend.

And for a moment, Volan was hit with a single frame of a memory. It was on a battlefield where only two people remained. Weapons and armor had been left scattered all over the place, and a man with his sword was stuck on one knee as a monster towered above him. The sky was a deep crimson and the earth was soaked with blood; it all smelled terribly of iron and flame. Volan couldn’t help but wretch as his senses were overwhelmed in that moment.

Kunal, surprised, asked, “Yo! You okay, dude?”

Volan shook it off and nodded, “Yeah, yeah. I’m alright. Just… felt a little weird for a moment is all.”

“Alright. But don’t go getting sick during the training. Otherwise Vivi ‘ll chew you out as badly as Hunt would.”

Volan straightened up and joked, “Wouldn’t that be a shame.”

The two continued on to their transport vehicle, but Volan couldn’t help wondering what it was he just saw. What was it he just felt? It felt too personal, too real to be some random hallucination or day dream that hit him by chance. Maybe it had to do with last night and meeting Galarin? Regardless, it was time to get on board and meet with his usual squad.

As they approached the vehicle, Broderick could be seen resting his back on the APC. On his hip was a collapsible staff the Academy had most Synergists use. It was, at least for most anyone else, an expensive piece of equipment. Something well out of reach for Kunal’s family, and even Rose or Gael would be hesitant to buy an equivalent for Volan to use. However, Broderick belonged to the Red Hand Old Noble House. More specifically, a branch of that family. And through that connection, he was able to afford what most couldn’t.

However, Broderick wasn’t the favored son of his household. Rather, he seemed to be a disappointment to his mother while his father had kept Broderick within strict limits with little wiggle room. Volan only knew this because of how he’d gone to visit Broderick every now and then, but he could feel the tension coming down on both of them. Wanting to help his friend, Volan has given Broderick an open invitation to come over whenever he’d like to. But Broderick’s family seems to view the invitation in another and less than pleasant way.

Kunal went up to him with his hammer resting on his shoulder. Reaching an open hand out to meet Broderick’s, the two clasped hands and bumped chests together before breaking apart.

Kunal asked, “Day been alright, Rick?”

Broderick chuckled, “Could be better. Forgot to save while writing an essay last night… and my computer crashed.”

Broderick’s head fell down in shame as Volan joined the conversation.

Volan asked, “Rare to hear you make that kind of mistake. Did you at least have any kind of outline or something saved that would let you quickly catch up?”

Broderick’s head turned to the side as he couldn’t meet Volan’s gaze right now. Kunal couldn’t help but laugh. Volan only looked at his friend with empathy, but also a lot of pity. He’d been there before, and it was painful to experience. But he was biting back his own laughter to not make things any worse. Volan could see the darkness under Broderick’s eyes that came with rushing to get a last minute assignment done.

Volan started making for the back of the augmented van, “Alright, well hopefully you can get some sleep on the way to wherever we’re going this week.”

Kunal added, “Don’t want our support to heal the target.”

Broderick rolled his eyes and hopped in last, “Yeah, yeah. Let’s just get this over with.”

Inside the vehicle were the remaining two members of Volan’s team: Viviana Zoido and Kusika Khamavant. Viviana had short brown hair and brown eyes, thin eyebrows, and a light complexion. She also carried a pair of shortswords. Kusika, on the other hand, had hair black at the roots, but snow white past that. He also had eyes like sapphires, skin the color of lightly toasted almonds, and a face so uncomfortably beautiful that most guys could see themselves falling for. He also carried a pair of chakrams on his hip, each with elemental crystals embedded in them.

The moment Volan got inside, she looked at him with disgust before turning her head away. Kusika, on the other hand, gave them the friendliest smile possible. But everyone in the squad was already familiar with what kind of person Kusika was.

Kusika asked, “Seems you’re finally on board.”

Kusika was an Old House Noble as well, but one who’s background wasn’t quite clear. According to what anyone could find, he belonged to the Blue Rose House but that’s it. He didn’t really share any of the traits the rest of the Blue Rose family had except for his eyes. As for the rest of his appearance, it was anyone’s guess.

However, there was a moment a year or so back where Kusika let his beautiful mask of a face slip. Some gossiping students decided to “joke” about who or what Kusika’s mother could be. Unfortunately for them, he didn’t take kindly to those comments and they students were found in a dark corner of the Academy with more than a few teeth missing. No evidence of the perpetrator was found, but everyone knew Kusika was the one who did it and the Blue Roses are covering it up.

Volan replied, “Good to see you too, Ku. Guessing Viviana was the first on board?”

Kusika chortled, “Yes. It is quite hard to beat the number one student, isn’t it?”

Viviana wasn’t a noble, rather she was similar to Kunal but was attending the Academy through invitation rather than a scholarship. Her father, a Captain in Zekanto’s Army, had gotten recognized for his leadership in a battle that broke out some years past between the Fae and Republic. Apparently it was enough of a deed for Viviana’s father to be granted a single request by King Zacharius.

Viviana’s father requested that his, at the time, newborn daughter be allowed to enter the Royal Academy and nothing else. Many nobles on both sides were against it. New House Nobles thought a personal invitation by the royal family would cause dissent amongst the commoners, while the Old house Nobles viewed it as a step too far by a commoner. The King, however, disagreed and allowed this request. And thus, Viviana was allowed to join the Royal Academy.

But, in the time that Volan had known her, Viviana always strove to be the best. She always aimed for the top no matter what stood in her way, and she achieved it. Or at least, achieved it in all but a few situations. One of them being how she was set as one of the Strikers in the same squad as Volan. Volan wasn’t the highest performing Sentinel, which meant their group score was dragged down. Volan did try his best and had apologized for not meeting her expectations in the past, but it never seemed to be enough.

With that, the pleasantries were done with and the caravan of APCs began to move. Practical training would be underway soon.

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