Summoner school, p.25
Summoner School, page 25
“I have papers to grade,” the unfamiliar teacher said.
“Shit,” I whispered and looked around for someplace to hide.
The door to Professor Lovelace’s office opened, and the bird teacher that I’d seen in the cafeteria strolled out, looked at me, and then clacked his beak. Professor Louis must’ve used his amulet to go wherever he called home, and Zenlar gave me a too-wide smile like I’d been caught with my hand in the cookie jar. The lizard-man shook his head, patted me on the shoulder, and then motioned for me to head into the office.
“Good morning, Mr. Hall,” Professor Lovelace said as she leaned against her desk. “It’s good to see you. Feel free to shut the door behind you. I’d hate for someone to overhear our conversations. Privacy is important, you know.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I said and closed the door. “I’ll admit that I heard a little bit. I’m guessing that the rumors are true.”
“I wouldn’t be able to tell you if they were,” the dragon-woman said and ran a hand over her dress. “What brings you to my office?”
“My amulet,” I said and held out the moonstone. “I’ve been having nightmares. It’s always the same, and it’s always hot when I wake up.”
“What are the nightmares about?” she asked and carefully took the pendant.
“The shadow creatures,” I said and watched as shock flashed across her face.
“And you said that you’ve been seeing them around?” the ebony-haired woman asked as she pushed her glasses further up her nose. “Where?”
“I saw some around my grandmother’s house,” I said and avoided any talks about the underground arena. “And a hooded man.”
“You’re sure?” she asked and walked around the desk, pulled out a book, and started to flip through it. “Did you see his face?”
“No,” I said. “He disappeared right after I noticed him. Do you know who he is?”
“I have some theories,” Professor Lovelace said and chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully. “I’ll want to take a look at your amulet again, but keep it with you for right now. There’s some materials that I need to gather for tests, and it sounds like it’s acting as an early warning system for those creatures.”
“Is there anything that I can do to help?” I asked with a look around the stacks of books.
“Not at the moment,” she said with a small smile. “Just be careful. I understand you might be off-campus tonight. Be on your guard.”
There was a knowing look in her eyes, and I wondered how much she knew about the underground arena. The beautiful woman might not be as much of a rule follower as she appeared. I watched her dive back into the book in front of her, pull out a pad of paper, and start to write down notes in the same language that my grandmother’s journal had.
“Yes, ma’am,” I said and debated whether I should ask her about it, but she was too focused, and barely even acknowledged that I’d spoken. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“See you tomorrow,” she responded on instinct.
I stood there for a few more seconds and watched the way her eyebrows knit together in concentration. She was truly a beautiful woman, and it was amazing to watch how quickly she dove into the work. I shook my head and reminded myself that there was work to do, reclaimed my amulet, and then made my way to the library.
“That was fast,” Mike said as I joined everyone.
“She’s going to do some research, and then we’ll talk tomorrow,” I said and sat down, leaned over the table, and motioned for them to come closer. “But I heard the teachers talking. Apparently, there’s some debate whether they should tell the students and confirm the rumors. It looks like school is going to start again tomorrow like normal, but the faculty seems split down the middle.”
“I wouldn’t put it past the headmaster to use us as bait,” Sarya said with a roll of her silver eyes.
“He wouldn’t do that,” Atlesia gasped. “Would he? I mean… it’s his job to protect us.”
“And the council’s job,” the redhead said with a shrug. “But I can guarantee you that by the end of the day my father will release a statement to all the magical realms that this is just some harmless new creature.”
“It makes sense,” I said and shook my head. “My leaders would do the same. They don’t want to incite a panic. But we still need to be prepared. Speaking of which, I think I’m going to summon the jackalope this afternoon and trap it in the emerald. It’ll take less mana to release it from an emerald than it will to summon it initially.”
“But you’ll be doing both on the same day,” Mike pointed out. “Do you think you’ll have enough?”
“I hope so,” I said. “The books don’t really say how much I’ll need, but it’ll be better to have it already created and trapped in a gem rather than try to start the whole process. Sometimes the spell takes time to take effect, and I don’t want to be standing around the ring waiting for the jackalope while my opponent attacks.”
“You’ll want to make sure that you’re strong enough to control it, too,” Sarya said with a mischievous smile. “One of the books I read said that you have to have a strong mind to control a magical creature. And you are only a human.”
“Ah, yes, my weak human brain,” I chuckled and then glanced at my watch. “It’s already close to lunch. I’m going to go ahead and summon the jackalope so that I’ll have plenty of time to fix anything if it goes wrong.”
“And you can rest afterwards,” Atlesia said with a smile. “I may not like the fights, but I’ll be there tonight. And I want you to be at your best.”
“I will be,” I promised.
“I’m coming with you,” Mike said and closed his book. “I can use some practice summoning those vines. If you can’t control the beast, then I’ll tie it down until you can banish it.”
“I’m not going to miss this,” Sarya said and stood.
“Neither am I,” Atlesia said as she hopped up from the table. “This is too exciting to miss.”
“Right,” I said and looked at my friends. “We need to hurry before it gets dark. The last thing that we need is to run into any of the shadow creatures while I’m trying to summon the jackalope.”
The campus was already more crowded than it had been at breakfast. Students stretched out on the brightly-lit quad and talked about their long weekends, but an anxious cloud still hovered over every conversation. I was sure that the only reason they came back was because they thought the school was safe, but with all of them back, it was the perfect mana pool for the shadowy beings.
“Good afternoon,” the headmaster’s voice echoed throughout the campus as we reached the north gate.
“Here we go,” Sarya said and crossed her arms. “I swear he and my father are cut from the same cloth. I’m so tired of all of the games.”
“The council has released a statement regarding the rumors that you’ve all heard,” the disembodied voice said. “The shadow creatures that have recently been seen around the cities of the nine realms are not a threat. They are simply a new species that has migrated from their forests and are drawn to the shadows that the lights in populated areas create. The council has a plan in place to lead them back to where they belong, but there haven’t been any attacks, and we’re sure that we can move them without any incident.”
A few cheers went up from the quad as relief washed over everyone’s faces. The headmaster’s announcement ended, and I looked at my friends. There were a lot of half-truths in the official statement. The creatures hadn’t actually attacked anyone, outside of my dreams, but there was something evil about them, and it was only a matter of time.
“Come on,” I said and stepped through the gate into the north forest. “We need to be prepared.”
“Why would they lie like that?” Atlesia asked as a rare frown pulled at her lips. “They may not have attacked anyone outright, but you said that they try to kill you in your dreams, and why would everyone be so afraid if there wasn’t an evil aura around them?”
“They don’t want anyone to panic while they figure it out,” I said with a shrug. “We’ll just have to prepare ourselves for when something does happen. How did your research into the dark mages go?”
“Not great,” Mike sighed. “Almost every entry mentioned darkness and shadows, and every picture had a cloud like the creatures that you described, but nothing was definitive.”
“What if they’re created when a mage goes evil?” the flower-nymph asked as we stepped into the meadow.
“That would be a lot of evil mages,” Sarya said. “At least, if the rumors are true.”
“We’d definitely be in for a war,” I said and looked around.
The hairs on the back of my neck stood up like something was watching me, but it was still too early in the day for any of the shadow creatures to be out. I squinted in the bright afternoon sun and tried to see if anything moved in the trees, but there was nothing but a soft breeze that ruffled my shirt. The feeling stayed even as I pulled out all the ingredients to summon the jackalope, but no one else seemed to notice, and I kept a quartz filled with bees within reach, just in case.
“I really hope it’s nicer this time around,” Atlesia said and bounced up and down.
“Me, too,” I said and glanced up at the sky.
A few dark clouds had blocked the sunlight, and the wind had picked up. I didn’t smell rain, but the heavy gray cotton balls looked like they were ready to burst. If a thunderstorm did start, then the jackalope might try to use its lightning attack, and I needed to make sure that my mental control on it was strong enough to keep us safe.
I set out the two emeralds, a vial of the powdered antlers, and then looked over the spell for the jackalope. There hadn’t been as many variations as with the rats and snakes, but the design was far more intricate, and in the end I was sure that my choices in the puzzle would render the best attack animal. If not, then I had more powdered antler and emeralds.
“Are you guys ready?” I asked and looked around at the crew.
“Ready,” they all said in unison.
I nodded as my heart started to race in my chest. My mana coated the spell in a film of gold, and I poured the antler dust over the paper. The powder ignited and a slow flame began to consume the spell and the mana while I focused on the jackalope.
It was a tricky spell, and if I didn’t perform it right, then the jackalope would come out wrong. It could be more volatile than it originally had been, which was a terrifying thought, or I might have to watch it die and feel every ounce of its pain. I took a deep breath and smiled as the emerald began to glow.
“What the hell are you guys doing out here?” Rarus snapped as he stepped into the meadow.
“We’re training,” I shot over my shoulder and focused on the spell.
Only half of the puzzle had ignited, but thankfully there was plenty of mana still in me for it to use. I still needed to concentrate on forming the jackalope, and that meant that there was no time to play with the angry bull. If he distracted me, then we could all end up dead, and the jackalope could go on a rampage before someone put it down.
“You think you’re so great,” the bull-man said as he stomped over. “I think it’s time that someone taught you where you belong on the food chain.”
“Leave him alone,” Sarya said and stepped closer with flames licking at her fingers. “He’s in the middle of a dangerous spell. I know that you’re not stupid enough to risk all of our lives over some petty grudge. Even if you are a minotaur.”
“No talking,” the minotaur said and turned toward my group of friends.
For a long second, I thought that he’d use the bubble spell to drown them, but then a wall of thick mud sprang up from the earth. The ground shook, and I steadied my spell components as the last of the paper was consumed. Rarus shaped the mud into a dome that kept Mike, Atlesia, and Sarya trapped and then turned to me.
“Now is really not the time,” I said as my friends started to attack their prison.
“I think now is the perfect time,” the angry bull snorted. “And there’s no one around to stop me.”
He threw one of his beefy fists at my face, but I ducked underneath it and circled behind him. The spell had officially started, and the picture of the jackalope was in the back of my mind, but the damned minotaur wouldn’t stop, so I had to focus at least half of my attention on not being beaten to a pulp. I dodged another blow from the hammers he called hands, glanced at the shimmer around the emerald, and hoped that the jackalope would come sooner rather than later.
“Rarus,” I huffed and leapt back just in time to miss a punch to the kidneys. “You’re going to get us all killed. I don’t have the time to fight you.”
“You’ll make the time,” the raging minotaur roared and then charged at me like a bull after a matador.
The sharp points of his horns glinted in the little bit of light that filtered through the storm clouds, and a shiver of fear raced through me. I waited until the last minute to jump out of the way, but the minotaur still managed to graze my right arm. He spun around and looked like he would charge me again, but my attention had shifted to the jackalope that appeared behind him.
It was bigger and meaner than I’d thought it would be because of the emotions that had flooded me right as the spell was completed. I glanced up at the storm clouds, thankful that the rain hadn’t started to fall, and then turned back to my unexpected opponent. The jackalope shook its head behind him, and the sharp antlers were pointed right at Rarus.
“Don’t make any sudden moves,” I said and held up my hands.
The jackalope fought my mental connection to it, and it took all of my concentration to keep it from charging at both of us. A sound to my left snapped me out of the battle for control, and Mike stepped out of the dome of mud with Atlesia and Sarya right behind him. My creation used that moment to break free of my hold and bounded toward us with its head down.
“What the--” the minotaur started as he spun to stare at the unexpected beast, but his words were cut off as the jackalope gored him with its antlers.
“Shit!” I shouted and looked around for the emerald. “Shit, shit, shit.”
The jackalope dropped its head, and Rarus slipped to the grass with a grunt. His chest rose and fell in ragged gasps like the antlers had punctured one of his lungs, and I made a move for the emerald so that I could banish the creature. Atlesia and Mike disappeared, and I hoped that they’d gone to fetch the healer before it was too late.
My fingers wrapped around the emerald, and it crumbled in my hand as I sent the jackalope back into nothingness. I ran over to kneel next to Rarus and make sure that he was still alive while Sarya put a hand to the gaping wound.
Bright red blood mixed with dark blue mana as it poured out into the meadow, and I pulled out a vial on instinct to capture some. I wasn’t sure if it would be useful, but it wasn’t like there would be many opportunities to take minotaur blood with mana, and the action distracted me from the fact that Rarus had started to pale.
“You’re going to be okay,” I told the minotaur as his breathing became more labored. “The healers will be here soon.”
“Atlesia and Mike went to get them,” Sarya said.
“Going… to… ki-kill you,” the bull-man grunted as he glared up at me.
“No one is dying today,” a sophmore healer said as she popped into the meadow.
The nymph rushed over to the giant minotaur and shooed Sarya and I out of the way. Mike and Atlesia appeared seconds later, and my girlfriend threw her arms around me. I hugged her back and watched the healer begin to knit Rarus’ skin back together with a fairly complex regeneration spell.
“I’m so glad that you’re okay,” Atlesia whispered into my chest.
“Me, too,” I said. “And I’m glad that Rarus will be, too.”
“I’m less excited about that,” Sarya said. “But I’m glad that you don’t have his life on your hands. Yet. But minotaurs hold grudges. I doubt this is over.”
“Maybe not,” I said. “But it is for the moment. Let’s go back to campus. I think we may need to cancel our plans for tonight.”
“We’ll go next time,” Mike said and put a hand on my shoulder.
“Make sure you stop by the healers’ office,” the woman next to Rarus said.
“Yes, ma’am,” I said and started to gather my things.
Something moved in the depths of the trees, and I looked up just in time to see someone in black robes disappear. A shadow slithered deeper into the forest, and there was no denying that it was one of the creatures from the arena, but it was heading in the opposite direction of the school. I watched it fade into nothingness and then turned back to the crew.
“We should go,” I said as the healer took Rarus back to campus with her amulet.
My own moonstone had started to grow hot in my pocket like one of the creatures was nearby, and I didn’t want to risk the amulet doing something weird when I tried to use the transportation spell. There were too many variables, like the damned thing could take me into a nest full of them. I searched for any signs of moving shadows, but it seemed like we were alone, and my amulet had started to cool down, so it was safe to walk back.
“This is going to be all over campus,” Mike pointed out as we headed toward the north gate.
“It probably already is,” Atlesia said with a smile. “Onet saw us get the healer.”
“No one spreads gossip faster than a pixie,” Sarya said.
“There he is!” someone shouted as I ducked through the gate.
A swarm of students waited on the other side of the north wall like a heroes parade. I was still covered in Rarus’ blood as they congratulated me on humbling the bully and sparing his life. It was declared that I was now officially the best fighter on campus as they patted me on the back and cheered for me.
I made my way through the crowd with as much grace as I could muster, but the only thing on my mind was a hot shower and some food. The clouds still hovered over the school, and the first drops of rain dripped down to rinse away some of the blood that clung to me. I finally made it through the throng of people with my crew still right behind me, and we all headed straight for the dormitories.
