Chapter 24
The Elemani are a Shifted Species brought about by the constant use of a single elemental type of spell over a prolonged period. The myst infuses the user’s DNA over years, causing them to develop physical and psychological traits associated with the element.
Day 156, Quenchenday
Needless to say, I took the offer. This was an opportunity I would regret for the rest of my life if I didn’t take it. In only two years, my life had fallen to pieces, and something new had risen from the ashes. After my father perished, I thought my life was over. But after a year on the streets, Thallos stepped in, and everything changed. Now, I was well on my way to possibly becoming a hero.
It was the day they discharged me from the medical center to the awaiting faces of my friends, none of whom had been allowed to see me for the past two days.
I stepped through the automated doors into the sunlight and spread my arms wide. “Freedom!” I proclaimed.
The moment I spotted Rose, a particular chain of thoughts came to mind that drove a blush to my cheeks. I plastered on a smile and tried to act casual.
“Alright, you horned bastard, spill. Nel told me a bit, but I want to hear it from your lips,” Rose demanded, pulling me into a boisterous, rib-creaking hug.
As we separated, Nel stepped in, her metallic frame warm from the sun. After she stepped away, I slapped palms with Ferris and bumped knuckles.
“The short of it is I ruined Mallrimor’s day, and I apparently have magic.”
“Oh, no, you don’t,” Rose chided, wagging a clawed finger. “I want fight details, and Nel and Ferris want answers.”
I couldn’t make eye contact with Rose without blushing, so I desperately looked anywhere else. The only thing to pass my lips was an incoherent stutter. Rose propped both fists on her hips and leaned into my personal space, her whiskers caressing my cheek. Instead of a sensual caress, it was a whispered threat: “Details.”
I threw up my hands. “Okay, okay! You win. Can we at least get some food and find a secluded area? I’d rather not be overheard.”
Rose nodded. Without another word, we made our way to the DFAC. As we walked, Nel and Ferris caught me up on what I had missed. Apparently, Mallrimor and Kesher were burned so badly they were scarred even after healing. If they didn’t have a grudge before, they did now.
On the topic of Kellennar, the Mysteriarch said he was going to be investigated for attempting to have me killed. Regardless of intent, he was stripped of teaching privileges. According to Nel and Ferris, the rumor was he had been kicked from the academy and sent to a black-threat zone where he would surely die. While I enjoyed those tales, I couldn’t help but cackle at the rumors about me, which Rose and Nel took turns sharing after we picked up our cold sack lunches and made our way to the woods.
“The story among the Slates is that Iver, the terrible mad genius, spat flames and tried to kill half his class,” Nel said with an amused smirk.
“Are even our classmates spewing this madness?”
“Kind of,” interjected Ferris. “My class is saying the terrible Darkling cheated in a duel with the class’s Brightling and scarred him.”
“Of course. The racist bastards,” I said with a sigh. “What has your class been hearing, Rose?”
“Ha!” she boomed. “The stories up the food chain are even weirder. The whispers among the Wisps say a half-demon Slate bled flames in a rage and almost killed a Brightling and himself. I mean, come on! Burning blood? What, are you a Fire Elemani now?”
“Heh,” came a half-hearted chuckle. “Yeah, about that…” I trailed off.
They all stopped and stared at me like I’d grown another set of horns.
“Nnnoooo,” Rose drew out the word.
“What?” was all I could manage.
“You can’t be an Elemani, but that’s the only plausible answer ‘cuz there’s no way in the nine hells you’re an Elemental.”
“But you don’t have any traits of a Fire Elemani,” Nel pointed out.
I nodded toward the sapphire-leafed tree we were approaching. “I’ll explain when we hunker down. Until then, Rose, can you explain what a Wisp is?”
She raised a copper brow. “When you graduate from Slate, you get a trainee rank based on your sect. Each has a theme. Crimson Blades are Pups. Blackened Crown are Fledglings. Burning Hand are Sprockets. Silent Heart are Throbs. And Sightless Eye are Wisps. I’m a Tier-One Pup. The theme continues after you graduate. I’m training to be a Mastlok. The title I’m aiming for is Still Blade, the Crimson Blade and Silent Heart combo.”
“Impressive knowledge. Where’d you learn it?” I asked, immediately feeling dirty for sucking up to her.
“It’s basic stuff that gets explained when you get picked up,” she answered, my attempt going unseen.
“And you want to train under my uncle, right?”
“Hells yes, I want to train under Mystagogue Kiem! The dude is a legend. I just need to catch his eye while training and show off my murder skills. I know he’ll pick me.”
We reached a clearing and sat down. I pulled out my lunch: two sandwiches, two bags of chips, and two cans of soda. I had snagged two lunches. My stomach had been growling for the entire walk. I took a bite of a beef and barbecue sandwich. After the second bite, I realized everyone was looking at me expectantly. I took a hard swallow and told my side of what happened, omitting my thoughts about Rose. When I got to the blood, Rose’s eyes went wide. I explained Myst-Blooded as best I could but stopped short of the sixth sect. Thallos and the Mysteriarch had been clear: it must remain secret unless I trusted someone implicitly. I wanted to tell them, but I was worried.
“So what do you think, Ive?” Nel asked, shocking me out of my rumination.
“I’m sorry, what?”
“I asked what you thought about comparing yourself to a Wizard.”
“Oh, um. They’re kind of related. But if I remember right, they don’t have a strong affinity for Death, Body, Air, or Fire. All of which I have, though I still need my affinity scores tested.”
“What do you think will be your strongest?” Rose asked.
“No clue. But if I had to guess, fire is pretty high up there.”
The talk went on. At some point, my lunch suddenly tasted bland as my thoughts fell down a rabbit hole of worry.
“Hey, Ive, you okay, dude?” Ferris pulled me from my brooding.
“Yeah,” I sighed. “My head is just caught in a pool of questions. Something else happened, and I don’t know if I can talk about it.”
“Why? What’s going on?”
The girls, who had been bickering, honed in on the cause. “Iver,” came Rose, her tone dead serious, “you can talk to us. Nel and Ferris both owe you their lives. And I care enough to not only pull your ass out of the fire but also spend my Quenchendays training you. There’s nothing you can’t tell us.”
“She’s right, Ive,” Nel said. “You saved me. You might not think you’re great, but even when you couldn’t fight, you stepped up. At this point, you’re my brother.”
“I’m in total agreement,” Rose proclaimed. “You’re my little brother. You could come out as gay, a follower of some dark god, or having a mechanical foot fetish, and I wouldn’t bat an eye.”
“Although we might have an issue if the dark god thing leads to sapient sacrifice,” Ferris chimed in.
“Wait, Iver, is this about what we were discussing before your fight?” Nel asked.
“WHAT?! NO! No, no, no,” I declared vehemently.
“Oh, now I have to hear this,” Rose said, far too eagerly.
Nel cupped her bust. “Well, I mentioned I’m envious of your soft boobs, so I asked him to make me a synthetic pair. He got embarrassed and said he’d never touched one. I said you might be willing to act as a test example, and he got all upset.”
“NENNEL! Shut your trap before I wire it shut!” I howled, my face burning. I covered my face, ready for Rose to get offended.
“Oh, is that all? Yeah, that’s totally cool,” Rose said with an ease that baffled me.
“You’re not joking?”
“Nope.”
“You’re not going to beat me into a paste?”
“Iver,” she sounded annoyed, “why, by the broken blade, would I hit you for that? When we spar, you hit them all the time. It’s no big deal.”
I slowly let my guard down. “I-I don’t know. I’m not comfortable—” Before I could finish, Rose snatched my hand and yanked me over, resting my palm on her breast. I froze, a primal part of my mind telling me to squeeze. I restrained myself. I didn’t need to; she pressed her hand over mine and squeezed.
“I-I-I-I,” I stammered.
“See? No big deal. I’m not going to paste you over a titty-fondle. If you surprise me, I might jab you with an elbow, but I don’t care otherwise. I know guys have a thing for boobs. They’re fun, comfy, sexy. But to me, they’re just heavy squish-meat.”
The moment she let go, I yanked my hand back as if singed.
“Now, Iver, isn’t there something you want to say to her?” Nel pushed, waggling her eyebrows.
I shot her a glare full of daggers.
“He doesn’t have to thank me for that,” Rose said. “But what’s with the eyebrows? Am I missing something?”
“NO!” I declared before Nel could embarrass me more.
“Iver, it’s no big deal. Hells, I’m even comfortable going topless.”
“I wouldn’t say no to that,” said Ferris with a smirk.
“I am nowhere near comfortable with that!” I protested.
“Why?” Rose asked, her own smirk growing. “Do you have something against furry love-mounds? Do my kitty-titties bother you?” She waggled her breasts as she began to unbutton her jacket.
“Please. Don’t. I might die of a shame-induced heart attack,” I pleaded.
She stopped. “Come on, Iver. Your discomfort is just so fun. But if the fun is over, how about a rating?”
“Excuse me?!” The thought sent me into a tailspin.
“What? Did you get enough of a feel to make Nel something similar?”
“I—umm. I—don’t—” I was saved by a familiar shout.
“Oy! Boy! Ready for your starter classes?!” barked Thallos from halfway up the hill. He approached as he spoke.
“Yes, sir!” I answered, jumping to my feet.
“Wait, what?” Rose asked, sitting up.
“Oh, it’s just my uncle. He’s, uh, giving me extra classes.” I turned to meet him, but he was already right behind me.
“Oh, you’re with friends. Did you share the good news?” Thallos’s voice was tinged with pride.
I shot him a look of shock. Was he about to tell them?
“What news?” asked Nel. “We heard about the Myst-Blooded thing.”
Rose was star-struck.
“What?” responded Thallos. “Oh! No. That’s not all of it.” He wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “Iver here has been accepted as a Mastlok. I’m taking him under my wing to train for the three sects he got accepted by.”
“WHAT?!” Rose shot to her feet.
“Really?!” Nel was excited.
“Yup. Iver has been tentatively accepted by the Crimson Blade, Burning Hand, and Blackened Crown. This is all dependent on him passing his grad trials, but I was given permission to start preparing him.” Thallos lied so easily, a broad grin on his face. How much was false?
“That’s so awesome, Iver!” Nel leaped forward and tackled me in a hug that would have sent me to the grass if Thallos hadn’t held me balanced.
Ferris hopped to his feet. “Dude! Why didn’t you start with that news? Was that what had you worried?”
As Nel let go, I clutched my arm and looked at the ground. “Yeah,” I muttered. “I was worried you guys would be upset I became a Mastlok before you. I wanted us to take this step together.” I couldn’t meet their eyes. I was lying to the only friends I had ever made.
“Are you kidding?!” Ferris exclaimed. “After that fight, you earned it.”
Nennel stepped up and took my hand. “Iver, I’ve watched you grow from the day you saved me. You stood up to those scum-bags time and time again. You didn’t quit. You didn’t just earn that win; you earned this promotion.”
Tears ran down my face. It all felt like a dream.
Ferris tapped my shoulder. “She hit the nail on the head. But you also took a sword through the hand like a badass and weren’t even fazed when you bled flames. Hells, dude, you gave those scum-buckets a fight they won’t live down.”
They were proud of me, and I was spewing falsehoods. I felt terrible.
Thallos squeezed my shoulder. “Come on, trainee. We’ve got to get you ready.”
I turned and followed him. I took one last look back to see Nel and Ferris waving. But Rose just looked stunned. Did she know I was lying? One way or another, I wasn’t going to sleep that night.
