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Lessons of Dynasty Part 1: Abecedarian	By : JohnDoe Category: +A through F > Exalted RPG Views: 470 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
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Chapter List
- 7
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Chapter 7 – Getting Into Trouble

The rest of the week passes in much the same fashion. Classes from dawn till dusk, study late into the night, three square meals a day. Come Saturnsday, they are given the entire day for self-study. Rowena knocks on Reya and Udi’s door bright and early.

“It’s SATURNSDAY!” Udi groans from her bed as she pulls the covers over her head.

Reya rises from her writing desk, having been up for some time and opens the door.

“I thought… you might like to go to the library and study?” Rowena smiles uncertainly, “I ditched Hari to come study with you?”

Reya smirks, “Good girl,” She tosses a dictionary at Udi, “Get up lazy! We’re going to the library.”

Udi groans and sits up in bed. Bed-hair does not begin to describe her zombie-like disarray. “’M’up. ’M’up.” She grunts.

Rowena titters at her.

Reya shakes her head, “Give us a moment, Ro. Wait here.” She slams the door in Rowena’s face before she can reply and crosses over to Udi and kisses her girlfriend passionately. “Get up, clean your mouth, fix your hair, get dressed.”

Udi groans but gets up and gets ready.

****

As Reya, Udi, and Ro head down to the library, they run into Kinesi, Padar, and Riven.

“Kinesi,” Reya greets with a slight bob.

Kinesi gives a short bow, “Danireya, girls. Can I interest you in a spot of entertainment this fine morning?”

“I do like to be entertained,” Reya says, slipping her arm into Kinesi’s lead on.

Udi and Ro fall into step, as do Padar and Riven.

Rowena keeps throwing nervous looks behind them, “We appear to be leaving the library?” She squeaks out eventually.

Kinesi waves vaguely at the stone ceiling, “Well, it’s such a lovely day, we can’t stay couped up inside.”

“But we’re not allowed-” Ro begins before Udi elbows her roughly in the ribs, “I mean… but it’s snowing. We’ll be cold.”

“Au contraire, mademoiselles,” Riven announces as they arrive at the exit to the tower. A mindless Earth Elemental hands them all thick winter coats. “Bear fur. If anything, you’ll be too hot: I’m told it’s quite a hike.”

“A hike to where?” Ro asks, nervously as she shrugs on the coat.

“Don’t be boring, Ro!” Udi admonishes.

Reya curses inwardly, not exactly enthusiastic about wandering the Isle of Voices in the snow. Rather than say anything, she simply gestures at the door: “Lead on.”

Inside the Heptagram, the libraries are warm – insulated and heated by means both magical and mundane. Outside of the Heptagram, the winter air is chill and biting. This early in Ascending Air, Mnemon-Darjilis is chill with frosty mornings, but this far north, the Isle of Voices is covered in a thin layer of snow and a winter’s mist shrouds the Isle – thickening to impenetrable freezing fog a few meters out from the shore, rendering the Inland Sea invisible. There’s a roar of white waves breaking against the rocky cliffs.

There’s only one road on the barren, rocky outcrop, which leads from the pier to the school. Rowena casts a forlorn look toward it: it’s strangely not comforting. Weird glyphs and eerie statues that the first years hadn’t noticed on their way into the school a week ago line the path.

Kinesi leads them direct away from the road leading into the school. They trudge through the snow away from the seven great towers that make up the Heptagram’s libraries. There seem to be shadows moving in the mists, just out of sight.

“Just keep moving, follow my lead.” Kinesi says confidently.

The figures in the mists retreat before them and allow the students to pass off of the school grounds.

“See, I told you. Piece of cake,” Kinesi claps his hand together in the cold, “Right, now which way, Riven?”

Riven gives a theatrical bow, throws a winning smile at Rowena, then blows a kiss to Udi, “The Isle of Voices is not a very large island. It only takes a few hours to walk it from side-to-side. The main thing of note, of course, is the Heptagram. But there a number of enchanted valleys, magic groves, and interesting ruins on the island. As well as a small fishing village which grazes sheep on this otherwise barren isle. The Isle of Voices is a place of magic and mystery and untold dangers, so ladies, stay close and we’ll protect you.” Riven puffs up his chest and stands tall. He looks about half as big as Kinesi. Padar chuckles openly. Riven continues, “But seriously, this is dangerous as a trip to Malfeas. We’re not supposed to be outside the library on the grounds let alone this far out so… anyway, they let the older students out to do experiments…”

“And they don’t all come back alive!” Kinesi says in a mock spooky voice.

Rowena jumps, “That’s actually true. Statistically, approximately 62% of fatalities among Heptagram students occur off of the grounds… where cause of death is known.”

Reya yawns, “So, we all must be very brave. Yes. Where are we going Riven? The Caves of Qana? The Black Elder Tree? The Pool of Uma? It’s cold, and the sooner we get there, the sooner we can get back.”

Padar makes a face, “I’ve never known you to complain about the cold Reya?”

“You’ve known me to complain about being bored, haven’t you Pads?” Reya shoots back without missing a beat.

Kinesi laughs, “Pads! I like that! Tell ’em Riven!”

Riven shrugs and pouts, “Come on, ladies. Who do you think you’re hanging with? Do I look like that loser Solu? The Caves of Qana? Really? You think Kinesi is any good at riddles? We’re going to the only other place on this island worth going to.”

Reya shudders before he can say it. Kinesi wraps an arm around her and pulls her close.

“The ruins of the Versino.”

Rowena starts backing off, “No way! I want to be cool, but I don’t want to be eaten alive!”

“Be calm,” Reya says, holding out a hand. She starts to glow, subtly, with the power of the Dragons, “No-one here, not even Pads, is stupid enough to actually go past the magical wards and actually go into the ruins. But to go to the ruins, get right up close to the wards, look down at the ruins of the old school? We’ll be legends.”

Udi skips over to Riven and slides her hand into his, she gazes deeply in Riven’s eyes, “I like the sound of being a legend. What’s a short walk across a small island?”

Padar, obviously irritated by something, stomps off across the snow, “Let’s go already, you talk too much Riven.”

Kinesi motions for Riven and Udi to walk on, before following with his arm around Reya.

Rowena is left behind, wondering whether to head back alone. Reya gestures for her to follow and she takes a deep breath and trots after the others. “You do know we should be heading South-East?”

****

The Isle of Voices is not a place for children to wander. It is a place of magic. Elemental and Celestial energies lie thick upon the isle. Escaped demons and wyld things hide in the picturesque orchards and rolling hills. Talking trees made of living brass lure the unwary into unicorn dens and kaleidoscopic rains wash over the island as magic itself falls from the sky.

Our intrepid school children, however, see little of this. What they see is white snow and white mist. A shroud of white. A blinding shroud that makes it impossible to tell where the ground ends and the sky begins. The rays of sun overhead are reflected and refracted, shining through the droplets of mist and reflecting off the snow on the ground. It is blinding and disorientating.

They do see something else. Shadows. Some of the human sized and shaped. Some of them… not. The six students stay close to one another. An oppressive sense of danger is in the air, and they hold the silence of their forbidden excursion off the school grounds.

“What the fuck was that?” Udi exclaims suddenly, pointing at a receding black shape in the fog.

They’re about half-an-hour away from the school. Five minutes earlier and Riven would have put on some bravado about it not being anything. Now he drops Udi’s hand and reaches for his dagger.

Rowena squeals, “Maybe we should go back? Become legends in the summer?”

“Shut up and get out a weapon!” Reya shouts as she draws her iron dagger.

“And don’t bunch up so much!” Kinesi yells. A quick hand signal has Padar and Riven by his side.

“What is it?” Padar asks as he settles into a fighting stance, eyes straining against the glare of the mist.

At first all they see is a black blob, an indeterminate distance away. Just an oval of darkness. Getting bigger. Getting closer. It’s not until it’s almost upon them that they can tell that the blob isn’t on the ground. It’s floating through the air. No, not floating through the air: it’s swimming through the mist.

“FOGSHARK!” Rowena yells as the twelve-foot-long enchanted shark, swimming through the mist as if it were open ocean lunges at them, jaws open wide.

Kinesi barrels forward into the charge and smashes the fogshark hard on the nose. The Earth Aspect’s punch doesn’t stop the shark’s attack, but it blunts it long enough for Padar to come in from the side, knocking the beast off course.

“You got this Kinesi!” Riven encourages, whooping from the sidelines.

“We’re trying to punch a shark to death?” Udi spits, contemptuously, “Fuck this!” She runs between the boys and drives her blade deep into the creature, slashing diagonally across its exposed flank.

“Udi, wait!” Reya calls, just a little too late. The fogshark’s thick, red-blood, spills into the mist. The creature bucks and twists as the scent of its own blood drives it to a frenzy.

“Now would be a good time to run!” Rowena cries as she turns and runs back for the Heptagram.

“Don’t be a baby, it’s one injured shark,” Udi says before she realises that all the others are running too. Four more dark blobs in the mist are swimming directly toward the spilled blood. “Oh shit!” She says, turning and running after the others as quickly as she can.

The injured shark takes a moment to reorientate itself then barrels down on Udi. The snap of its jaws close on her bear-skin coat, shearing through the fabric, but blessedly leaving her unscathed.

“Leave her alone!” Kinesi bellows, pirouetting himself into a flying punch that smacks full body into the shark. The blow knocks the mighty creature from the air, slamming it into the snow.

The black blobs in the fog grow larger.

Reya stops, her weapon drawn and calls out to her friends, “Udi! Kinesi! Come on!”

They do their best to obey, staggering to catch up with the group, but the other fogsharks are upon them. Reya is dimly away of a shinning green light behind her and a woman’s voice shouting, “There they are, go!”

Everything happens in a blur.

A shinning white light, like pure jade, eclipses the green light for a moment as a man blurs forward out of the fog. The next thing she knows she’s being thrown backwards: a large metal man has hurled her out his path on the way to the fog sharks. The man is the source of the white light, glowing with the strength of Pasiap. He moves in a blur, with a speed nothing that large or heavy has any right to possess. He heaves a massive, two-handed, tetsubo made of pure white jade and banded in blue jade steel over his head – it is a terrible weapon to behold, and he brings it down on the wounded shark like a titan carving a valley from the earth. The shockwave from the blow blasts Udi from her feet, but Kinesi catches her midstride and hauls her over his shoulder without slowing down. The fogshark explodes under the impact, like an overripe melon hit by a sledgehammer.

“Head for the light!” Cynis Ganan bellows, the fogsharks encircle him. The bodies of the enormous predators block the instructor from view as they close in for the kill.

Reya calls out to him, but then Kinesi is upon her and he effortlessly scoops her up as well, throwing her over the other shoulder as he pelts full speed toward the green light.

The green light is ever just on the edge of their vision in the fog, but the children make it back to the Heptagram a lot faster than it took to venture out.

“Are we safe?” Rowena asks, breathing heavily as she stands by the door to the Hall. The green light is nowhere to be seen.

“One should certainly hope so,” Comes an old voice, laden with power. The students turn and swallow hard – it is the Dominie. Ragara Bhagwei looks at Reya, specifically, reprovingly.

****

Udi is cold and numb from having her coat destroyed. But otherwise, the students are unharmed. They are separated and made to wait in the dominie’s tower. For the first half-an-hour, they are left without a word being spoken to them, just some warm blankets given and a place to sit. Then some hot chocolate is brought to everyone, apart from Reya, who is shown to the dominie’s office.

Reya enters with her head down-cast in a rare moment of genuine shame. Ragara Bhagwei sits behind his desk impassively. Reya speaks quietly, looking down at her feet, “I thought the risk was ours to take. I didn’t mean for anyone to get hurt. I didn’t think that anyone would come looking for us… I… I liked Master Ganan. Very much.”

“I’m sure he liked you too, before this incident,” Bhagwei says indifferently.

Reya nods, “Will you tell his family that I accept full responsibility, and will cover any expenses owed for his funeral?”

Bhagwei raises an eyebrow at this and looks down his nose at Reya, “I know, Danireya, that your elders must all seem ancient to young eyes, but Instructor Ganan still has a few good centuries ahead of him yet.”

“Master Bhagwei, there were… fogsharks and-”

There’s a gentle rap at the office door. Bhagwei holds up a hand to silence. The person at the door lets themselves in.

Cynis Ganan steps into the room, leaning on his cane. He’s covered in blood and back to walking with his usual limp. It takes a moment for Reya to notice, but his skin isn’t made of metal either – its honey toned flesh with bronze tan. He’s dripping shark guts on the plush carpet floor and still glows a faint white.

Bhagwei regards him carefully and smirks to himself, “I’m glad to see the rumours of your death have been greatly exaggerated, Instructor Ganan. One hopes none of that is your blood?”

Ganan looks puzzled, “Death? My blood? Uh, sir, you sent me to kill five fogsharks.” He says it with the same confusion and nonchalance as if he had been tasked with killing five ants, “Of course none of it’s my blood.”

Bhagwei permits his smirk to widen to a grin, “One so rarely sees you… denuded.”

Ganan rubs the back of his neck sheepishly, “Well… I am still a little unsteady on my feet. Hence the cane, sir. I got a little sloppy, but really, sir, it was no trouble.”

Bhagwei leans back in his chair, “Thanks to your efforts, all the students returned safely,” He gestures to Reya and Ganan turns as if noticing her for the first time. She looks up at him with eyes wide as saucers. Ganan uncomfortably waves at her. Bhagwei continues, “As no harm was done and this is a first offense, I am inclined to let them off with a minor punishment and a stern warning. That is, unless Instructor Ganan, you are aware of any other infractions committed by these students which I should be aware of?”

The look on Reya’s face changes from wonder to terror. Ganan pauses for moment, his hand still on the back of his neck.

Oh shit! Reya thinks to herself.

Still, Ganan doesn’t say anything, frozen still. Bhagwei clears his throat gently.

“Noooo,” Ganan drawls at last, “No, I can’t think of any.” His face pinches in an overexaggerated way and he shifts his weight uncomfortably, obviously lying, “No.”

Bhagwei busies himself with some papers on his desk and dismisses them both with a wave of his hand, “Then I don’t see any reason to waste my valuable time interviewing them. Two weeks detention – three weeks for the ringleader here. We expect better of you Miss Danireya. Do bathe, Instructor Ganan, I intend that we keep our luncheon appointment.”

“Yes, dominie,” Reya and Ganan say in unison. Reya rises to her feet, and Ganan holds the door open for her as they leave.

****

The rest of Reya’s Saturnsday is spent in detention with her classmates, assisting the custodian staff with menial labour about the Hall in silence. It is not eventful, but as the Heptagram’s punishment’s go, it is the mildest. Reya, and the others, have heard many stories about punishment at the Heptagram aren’t entirely sure which are real, and which are fabrications used to scare students into submission. But certainly, the performance of dirty and smelly tasks about their library tower is a great deal more lenient than any of them had expected – being flogged and expelled back to their parents in disgrace had been the expected outcome of capture off of the grounds.

Still, they know better than to question their luck.

At the end of the day, Reya and Udi find a plate of freshly baked cookies waiting for them at their dormitory door. A neatly handwritten note reads, “From Hari”. The dot above the “Ha” is stylised as a heart. Reya reads the note and passes it to Udi, who casually tosses it on the floor.

(The cookies are good though.)
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Lessons of Dynasty Part 1: Abecedarian