CHAPTER 4

I woke up at some point later in the dark once more and found Draughtby and Revina staring at me considerably more than I thought they should.

“You killed one of my men.” Revina’s simple statement held a lot in it, I felt while she stared down at me.

“He tried to kill me.” I croaked back in retort. My throat hurt and my body was sore, but it wasn’t unbearable. Why wasn’t it?

Draughtby put a hand on my shoulder gently, “Best not to retort too heavy, boy. This is serious.”

I grunted and sat up so that they didn’t sit quite so much higher than me, “So am I. He tried to kill me. All for the spot you forced on me in the academy.”

“Charm wore off.” Draughtby sighed and his eyebrows rose slowly as if this was a fiasco.

“You kill one of my men.” She frowned, disdain flooding her face but still managing to look cold and calculating. “If I kill my men, I get a slap on the wrist—not you. Now you have no choice but to go to the academy. Before they may have let you leave due to age and ability, but not know.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Means that you have a sentence to serve, boy.” Draughtby sighed again and flicked my ear. “The academy is now your prison until you’re released, then you’ll come and serve under Revina.”

I blinked at him, then turned to her and the disdain left her face only to be replaced by a small smirk, “I’ll explain that it was in self defense but that you’re to be held for me unless someone of a higher rank or station decides that you’re theirs. In which case, I’ll be owed a man anyway.”

“And so the nose is tied and the stool is kicked.” Draughtby grunted and stood. “Get the boy on the litter, Shex and Lilten, we got more ground to cover. Let’s go.”

They put me on the makeshift litter that they’d made of thicker tree branches and a sleeping bag, comfortable but both of them men looked at me in an odd light. It wasn’t hatred, like one might expect.

No. Not that. It looked like it could have been respect.

Why they carried me, I couldn’t tell. My injuries hurt and my arm was still in the small bandage they’d put it in then secured to my chest with another wrap and a knot. But other than that, I felt fine. For the seventh time since I had woken up the quest giver chirped, Say the word “Status” or think it to open up the system and receive your reward.

Status? The word echoed through my being and in front of my eyes an object filtered into my gaze. It was opaque and I could see the words on it somewhat, but it was difficult to tell what they meant.

On of the Seelie coughed and grunted and I stiffened, looking at them all to see that while they looked at me furtively when they thought I wasn’t looking—they didn’t see the thing I did.

Welcome to your status screen! Here you will be able to allocate the ability points that you accrue while leveling up on your personal journey through life.

My what? I blinked and as it shifted and began to show me all kinds of things like numbers in languages I couldn’t comprehend until the voice spoke again, Languages obtained and listed by use and comfort. Would you prefer your statistics be represented to you by way of Elvish, Sylvan, Elderan or Muck.

I thought about what that last one could have been, never having heard it before, but didn’t opt for it instead thinking, Elvish?

Preference confirmed—Elvish. The object blanked and I blinked at it for a moment until all of it appeared in the scrawling runes of my native tongue.

Name: Saemus

Race: Elven

Level: 0*

Statistics: Measurement

Might: 1

Dexterity: 4

Constitution: 1

Mind: 3

Magic: 0

Charm: 2

What even does all of this mean? As I thought about all of it again, I noticed that if I focused on one particular word, it opened and made an explanation.

Might was how physically imposing I could be, a combination of my strength and how much I could endure physically before exhaustion. Dexterity was how fast and capable with my hands I was. Mother and father had always said that I was nimble fingered and my balance was pretty good for someone my age.

Constitution represented my overall physical health, how much my body could take before injury or sickness took hold and how fast I would heal. Which explained a lot for all the times that I had gotten sick as a small child. Mind was how intelligent I was and how I could apply said intelligence to problems. Magic was one’s ability to harness the ambient mana in the elements around them, store it and infuse it into the things that they wanted to do. My parents could sing and make the plant life around them stronger and bloom more often. It was their power.

And I had none.

I shook my head as tears sprang to my eyes as I realized that my father had been right. I was broken. Just not how he had thought.

Finally charm was there to show over all how people liked me, and how well I could convince others what I said or did was okay or right.

That was weird. All of this was weird. What was all this and why me?

You were chosen before you were ever even born, Saemus.

That had been the first time the quest giver had ever said my name and now I didn’t know what to say, so it spoke for me. In order for your level to show in the system, you must allocate your points. To do so, select your level on the status screen and place the points where you wish them to reside. Keep in mind, all point allocations are permanent up finalizing your selection.

In order to gain more points, you must level up. Level up and take control of your own destiny.

I thought on that and did as the quest giver had explained and focused on my level.

A burst of light flashed in front of my eyes and I gasped the Seelie around me went onto high alert, some of them crouching and bringing glass swords to the fore as they surveyed the surroundings.

“Try not to do that, boy.” Draughtby grumbled as he walked beside me. “This part of the forest is dangerous enough as it is, and we don’t need our folks growing complacent. Understand?”

“Yes. My apologies.” He just shook his head and I turned back to the floating vision the screen as the voice had called it. I watched as the small stick at the bottom filled and refilled, the number above it counting upward as it filled again and again.

Finally the bar stopped about three quarters of the way full and I stared at the number about it, fighting the urge to say it aloud.

There were twenty points for me to choose from and if I judged it correctly, I was potentially level 20. Was that a good thing, or a bad thing?

But the higher my level, the better if I could choose to add to things and take from them, right? Was that bar how I would judge how much EXP I needed to level up again? As I stared at it, it showed how much I would need to level up and where I was.

1500/2000.

“I don’t understand something.” Revina grunted as she appeared on the opposite side of the litter as Draughtby. “How did you manage to stop him?”

I thought about remaining quiet, but an opportunity presented itself to check something as the quest giver returned, Quest received, Revina wants to know how you were able to overpower one of the weaker members of her men. Reward: 5 EXP, improved or lessened rapport with Revina and her men.

So the amount of EXP could fluctuate? Interesting.

“He wasn’t as familiar with medical practices as I was.” She turned to me and stared intently until I grew uncomfortable enough to continue. “The muttroot he used is normally more powerful when consumed whole. He just put it into my mouth and trusted that my struggling might make me swallow it. I didn’t. Instead, I spat it out and waited.”

Now it was Draughtby’s turn, “Muttroot? What’s that?”

“It’s a painkiller.” Revina explained offhand. “It has a few applications but I want to hear what he knows.”

She stared at me again and I almost sighed, since the quest wasn’t complete, so I explained more, “Muttroot is exactly what she says, but it’s also something that is supposed to be mixed with other compounds so that the effects last longer. Otherwise it’s clear of the system before it could do any real good, or in my case, make me an easier target to kill.”

One of the other Seelie guards whistled low, Draughtby chuckled and it was Revina’s cocked head that made me ask, “What?”

“How did you know it was muttroot he dosed you with?”

I smiled, “I had to help my parents hunt it out of our grove, it likes to try and grow on larger trees and poison them to eat their nutrients.” I remembered my first interaction with the plant, my father telling me it was delicious and having me try a leaf. I fell face forward into one of the trees and he just laughed as my mother chased him with a pail. Later on he had warned me to be cautious of the food strangers offered and to know the plants in the area that I would be in so that I could avoid becoming a meal for something else.

It had turned out to be a highly valuable lesson indeed. At the thought of them, morose feelings of longing rose in my chest that I had to try and crush down to keep from crying in front of the strangers.

Standing and interest improved with Draughtby Sliverbren and Revina Doranda as well as the Seelie soldiers in earshot.

“Excellent work then.” Revina’s praise was strange enough that it shocked me, but she simply moved away from us to the fore guard and joined them in scouting ahead.

“High praise.” Draughtby chuckled and passed me a piece of that bread. I checked it the older warrior watching me with a newfound respect as I inspected his offering. While I tugged at it to see if he had put anything inside it, he just snorted and pulled a piece of the bread off for himself and popped it into his mouth. “Kind of rude to inspect food given to you in front of someone unless you want them to know how little you trust them.”

His smile was almost enough to make me relax but I just said, “I don’t trust you.”

“As you shouldn’t.” He gave me a mild look and nodded to the bread that I pulled off and ate. It tasted bitter, but it didn’t seem to be anything to be concerned about. Once I finished it quickly, he chuckled again. Then when I looked at him he added, “Someone knowing how little you trust them just means they need to find better ways to get past your guard. Remember that, boy. Always remember that.”

It was suddenly so hard to keep my eyes open that I knew he had drugged the bread and would’ve mentally kicked myself it I could think straight. “Remember this as well—cultivate immunities to common drugs and poisons. It can only help. Sleep well, boy.”

**

I woke up some time later, the land around me dark still and groaned as I didn’t quite feel like myself. Everything was fuzzy to my sight, my face felt funny and I couldn’t focus on anything. I looked around myself and realized that I was in a room on something soft and that the only light came from a window above where I lay.

I wanted to get up and look around but drowsiness overcame me and I fell back into a dreamless slumber.

**

I woke up to song birds and voices that made me sit up so fast the blood rushed fully out of my head. I blinked at my surroundings and saw nothing familiar. I was in a building made of wood that I didn’t recognize, in a bed that was more of a pallet than anything and there were bars on the window on the inside and outside to prevent escape or entry.

Someone new spoke on the other side of the door, “I’ll allow you to explain the situation to him and then I will take him through the enrollment process.”

The door opened, admitting an older-looking elven woman, her wizened face deceiving but telling all at once. Elves weren’t immortal like the other races would like you to believe, just extremely long lived after their twenty-first year of life. It wasn’t unheard of for the average elf to live more than a thousand years if they lived a clean life, and it only took about two or three centuries off your life if you didn’t. Some of the more powerful elves that I had read about could also extend their lives with magic.

She looked like she could have been one of those elves. Aging only really started to show itself once you reached your eighth or ninth century of life and even then, it was a process that took time to reach the stage that it had for this woman.

She had gray hair that she had worked up into a bun, stern brown eyes surrounded by folded wrinkles and crows feet. Her mouth hung in an almost perpetual frown and her skin hung loose around her chin. She stood perfectly straight and moved as if she were only my parent’s age and had all the confidence that Revina carried within herself.

“Ah, you’re awake as I presumed.” The woman’s tone was gentle, her gaze probing and I realized that I wore only a simple smock that covered my modesty. I subconsciously pulled the thin blanket over me closer and she snorted. “Seen more than you could ever imagine, son. Stand up, let’s have a look at you.”

The way she said it made it seem like I was some sort of prize show animal at the village fair. Revina cleared her throat when I didn’t move and I complied slowly. I tugged the smock a little lower uncomfortably.

“Scrawny.” The new woman huffed and looked me over. “Scarred from his wounds, which is already a mark against him with the nobility.”

“They will already know he was not born Seelie, Winfred, I do not care about that.” Revina crossed her arms and stared at me. “All I need know is whether he will make it through the training or not.”

She walked over and poked me, prodding my shoulders, pinching my waist through the thin cloth and then staring me in the eyes. “I can’t tell you.” The way she blinked and stared at me was enough to make my skin crawl.

Revina’s stoicism and mask of emotionless interest fell away to reveal shock and horror that she turned toward me and stared with openly. “You what?”

Winfred shook her head and turned to her, “I can’t see it. I don’t see anything about him other than that he needs some meals to put some meat on his bones.” She scratched her head and stared at me, confused. “Four thousand years and no one in my family has failed to see something about those they gaze at.”

“Should we kill him?” Revina asked, her knife in her hand almost faster than my eye could follow.

“Would you stop trying to kill me!” I snarled and shocked her out of her confusion. The cold contemplation returned as she stared at me intently, but I spoke on. “I don’t know what any of this is all about but I just want to go home. And since you seem hells bent on that not happening, I’ll come here and do what I have to so I can leave.”

Winfred whistled low and shook her head before turning to look at Revina, “And you want him for your squad?”

“I doubt he’ll make it with an offensive tongue like that, but yes.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “He killed one of mine in retaliation for trying to murder him, so he’s earned a spot.”

Winfred’s eyes widened, “Already blooded?” Revina nodded once. “Very well. I’ll get him take care of. Am I correct in assuming you would like to have him in courses that are a little harsher and more deigned for your type?”

“No. I want a varied group.” Revina smiled then, cold and calculating. “He is to have the basic courses, those designed for common soldiers and the extra curricular studies he can take as they entice him.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked softly as she started to turn away from me and Winfred.

“It means that you have your choice of what you study while you’re here as a first year.” She turned back and stared at me hard. “The basics will allow you to pass the tests the academy holds for the most part, but that is all. Out in the real world, on the field of battle? Those basics become nothing more than shackles that will hold you back if you learn nothing more here. So if all you want is to eke by, do little and live a cushy life here, but once you become a member of my group, you just might realize how poorly prepared you are and you will pay dearly for it.”

She smiled, “And Saemus?”

It was the first time she had ever said my name, “Yes, Revina?”

“Do mind what Winfred has to say. She has served my family for many generations and her word here is as good as mine to you.” She stared at me and her eyes grew colder. “She will give you my orders as soon as I make them available to you.”

She turned and waved over her shoulder, “Have fun here at Sidhe Academy.”