Bastial Explosion (The Rhythm of Rivalry: Book 3) (6 page)

“Effie!” His eyes locked to her. “I haven’t seen you in so long.” He was making an obvious effort to ignore Alex as he leaned down for a hug, forcing Effie’s arm to unwind from Alex’s elbow.

Effie chose to introduce the two of them when the quick hug was done. She was unsure if Alex would want her to introduce him by his nickname, so she gave his full name instead. “Brady, this is Alarex.”

The men shook hands without a word, barely even a glance.

“I’m so glad you’re back.” Brady turned his attention to Effie once again. “Did that Krepp act this way the entire time you were with him?”

“No,” Alex answered for her. “He’s just having a tough time adjusting.”

Brady held a smile, looking to Alex for just a blink before bringing his gaze back to Effie. It seemed as if he was waiting for her to answer him instead.

“Yeah,” she muttered, “he’ll get used to the school soon enough.”

A heavy silence came next.

Effie was thankful when Brady interrupted it. “Well, I’m happy to see you’re safe. Until later.” He put his palm on her lower back as he passed by, giving her such a slight rub she wasn’t even sure she’d felt it.

Outside the dining hall, she and Alex still walked beside each other, but she no longer was hooked around his elbow. She would’ve taken it if he’d offered, but he didn’t.

“Friend of yours?” Alex asked.

“Kind of,” Effie answered, reluctant to say more—that she’d kissed Brady the first time she’d met him. That she might have feelings for him. That she was the reason he and his girlfriend had broken up.

She sighed as it all came back to her.

Chapter 6:

ZOKE

“Where are we going?” Zoke asked Marie, her slow pace making him impatient.

“To my quarters,” she answered, content to say no more as to why.

They walked by Warrior’s Field. A few young men were stretching, while others seemed to be fighting.

“What are they doing?” Zoke asked, pointing with his claw. He thought Humans within the Academy wouldn’t fight each other when their war was against Tenred and the Krepps.

“They’re dueling,” Marie answered with a sly grin. “Something you’ll be doing soon as well.”

Why is she smiling like that?
But Zoke decided to ask a different question. “What’s dueling? I haven’t heard this word.”

“Well…”

Marie seemed to have trouble determining how to describe it. The leathery skin on her forehead was scrunched together. “In this case, the word refers to warriors engaging in combat with one another in order to train. They don’t wish to harm their opponent.”

“How can they train with a weapon without using it to harm their opponent?”

Marie let out a breath, already a bit winded from their walk. “I think it’s best to direct any questions about dueling to Warrior Sneary when your class begins. He’s the Group One instructor. You and I have other things we need to discuss.”

Zoke didn’t like her tone. It was dismissive, as if she was about to scold him for asking questions. He felt the need to spit, this time deciding not to swallow it like before with Effie. He let the saliva go, directing it away from Marie…at least for now. She grunted in disapproval.

Why is everyone expecting me to be something else besides a Krepp?
Then he realized what it was.
They want me to be Human.

But the last thing Zoke wanted was to be more like them.

Sometimes he found himself wondering why he was still in Kyrro. It was Vithos who’d wanted to join the Humans. The Elf had convinced Zoke that it was the only way to reunite with Zeti. But now with Vithos dead, did these Humans have any chance of defeating the Krepps…at killing Doe and Haemon?

Well, they’re going to fight against my old tribe anyway,
Zoke reminded himself.
I can either be part of that battle or not. Those are the only options I have…and I’ve already been marked as a traitor by my own kind, so I’ll just be killed if I return.
Then he remembered that this was the argument that had caused him to stay with Vithos in the first place.

He hadn’t expected the Elf to become a friend. It made him wonder if he was capable of forming as close a bond with Humans as he had with the Elf. The idea made him want to spit again, though he didn’t know why.

His thoughts went to his sister.
I hope you’re safe, Zeti. Keep your distance from Doe and Haemon.

Marie brought him back with a question. “How old are you, Zoke?”

It was the first time a Human had asked. He knew Krepps and Humans didn’t think of age in the same way, so he didn’t know how to explain it. He decided to start with how he would answer a Krepp and go from there.

“I’m
pra durren
—four,” he said, not knowing if there was a word for
pra durren
in common tongue. “It means I’m four years into adulthood.”

The morning sun was just coming over the western Academy wall, causing the old woman to shield her eyes. Zoke squinted and raised his hand as well.

“And what makes you an adult?” she asked.

Zoke might’ve been annoyed, but her question held no judgment. She’d done well to show that she had no doubts that he was in fact an adult. Or she just was skilled at holding back her ridicule.

“Krepps become adults when we shed our birth skin. After this is completed we mark the day, and each year from then on we’re one year farther from our
pra durren
—one more year into adulthood
.
”

“So it’s been four years since you’ve shed your birth skin?” Marie asked.

“Yes.”
And I left the Krepp encampment right as Zeti was shedding hers. She’s going to look so different when I see her again…if I see her again.

“And how many years from birth does it take before Krepps shed their birth skin?”

“Most
pra durrens
start on the eleventh or twelfth year after birth.”

“And what was it for you?” Marie asked.

“Twelve.”

“So that means you’re only sixteen.” Marie stopped and glanced up and down his body. “I was told Krepps are generally a lot bigger and taller than you. Is this because you’re still young?”

“I’m not young. I’m a full-grown adult. Other male Krepps are a head taller than me, yes, but not because of my age.” Zoke didn’t go on, reluctant to tell this mage about being born with the inability to smell, not eating as much as his fellow Krepps, and being belittled because of it. She wouldn’t understand what it was to be a
gurradu,
not that other Krepps would, either.

Zoke asked a question before she could give him another of her own. “Why do you want to know?”

“Because I need to know more about you in order to help you.”

Help me?
Zoke wanted to claw her across the face. It would be so easy to tear open her skin—the lack of challenge alone made him lose interest. “Even if I needed your help, I wouldn’t want it.”

“You may not now, but you’ll see once you get it that you’re wrong.”

For some reason, that made Zoke smile. He even found himself holding in a laugh. Perhaps he was entertained by her stubbornness, or maybe stupidity was a better word for it. Who was she to be so confident that she knew what was good for him? She’d never even spoken with a Krepp before.

“And how are you so sure?” Zoke decided to ask, feeling his laugh building up, ready to burst.

But the mood was ruined when she showed him a flat mouth beneath a glare. It reminded him too much of the look his father usually wore.

“You need to start trusting us, Zoke,” Marie said. “We’re all on the same side here.”

They were silent until they came to whatever building the old woman was leading him to. She opened the door and gestured for him to go in first.

If there was one thing Zoke appreciated about the Humans, it was their enormous buildings. Marie led him down a hall, five doors on each side, then up a flight of stairs. It twisted halfway up, bending back to send them the other way when they reached the second floor.

He marveled at how sturdy the thick wood felt beneath his heavy body.
This structure could hold hundreds of Krepps, possibly thousands.

A door had her name on it with a title tacked on: “Marie Fyremore: Master Mage.” She opened it, this time letting herself in before Zoke.

“Please, sit down and get comfortable,” she said, going behind her desk to sit.

“I can’t be comfortable when you Humans keep using words like ‘please.’ ” He sat, the desk now between them.

“I’m sorry. I’ll try not to use it.”

Zoke grumbled. Then Marie must’ve realized her mistake. A hand came over her mouth for a blink.

“It might be harder than I thought,” she said, taking a breath. “I’ve heard some about you from Terren, the head of school, but I want you to tell me everything that led you here to the Academy. Give me every detail, even if I might’ve heard it before.”

“Why?” It seemed like a lot of effort for no reason.

“I need this information in order to help you.”

Zoke glanced over his shoulder at the door. He wasn’t completely heartless—he would feel some guilt if he left without a word, but it might be better than staying with Marie until frustration overcame him.

He’d noticed that he’d been more volatile recently, and he’d heard the murmuring between Effie, Alarex, Reela, and Steffen. Even more so, they’d been distancing themselves from him more and more each day. This was painfully obvious. But still, he couldn’t help his behavior.

Hopelessness was eating its way through him like a ravenous parasite, squirming through his body and chewing on his insides. It was the cause of all his rage and misery. But he knew there was nothing he could do to fix it, which might be why it seemed to get worse the more he thought about it.

He let out a long breath to ease the burning anger he felt burgeoning in his chest. “I’ll tell you what you want to know,” he said. “But I don’t know what you can do about it.”

She surprised him with a strange look—a knowing smile, a confident one at that—like she really knew something about him that he didn’t.

He dismissed it from his thoughts as best he could and started from the beginning with his role within the tribe: gathering Krepps who were in need of punishment because they didn’t fulfill their weekly tasks to the tribe. This was how his work with Vithos began and what eventually led him out of the encampment with the Elf, never to return.

He went on and on, mostly because of her endless questions, many of which were quite odd to him. When he brought up Doe and Haemon lying about sending Vithos north to find the Slugari, the old woman wanted to know how it made Zoke feel when he found out and how he felt about Doe and Haemon now. She even asked questions about his family, forcing Zoke to tell her that his mother had died when he was young, killed by Doe when she was found in the garden of eppil plants.

Soon, he grew too weary to wonder what the point was behind her questions and simply answered them as best he could. He told her about his sister, Zeti, and how reuniting with her was all he cared to do. Surprisingly, she asked what he missed most about Zeti, why she was more important than any other Krepp, and other difficult questions that no Krepp would ever think to ask him.

By the time he was done, his throat was raw and his mind tired, but something within him felt different. It was like he had a grasp on his hopelessness, a hand around the slippery parasite within him. It was hard to hold onto, but he was able to as long as he didn’t squeeze too hard. He could guide it, somewhat control it, even. Although it was still there squirming around, with the tough skin of his hand closed around it, it didn’t bother him.

Marie stood. “That’s enough for today.” Her smile came back—a coy grin as if she was hiding something. “Tomorrow evening we’ll meet at my house here on campus. I’ll make you some food to eat while we talk.”

Zoke stood as well, completely confused. He wondered why she would offer this, but he supposed it wasn’t the worst way to pass time while he waited for battle.

“I agree to be there,” he said.

“I wasn’t giving you a choice, but I’m glad you agree anyway.” Her smile went wide. “Now you must get to Warrior’s Field. You’re late for your first battle training.”

Zoke nodded and left. His grip on the hopelessness started to slip when he remembered that the infuriating young warrior he’d spat on in Redfield was going to be there.

Chapter 7:

ZOKE

No one mentioned Zoke’s tardiness. But it was clear by their expressions that they were hoping he wouldn’t show at all—except for Alex, who jogged over with a forced grin.

“Hi, Zoke,” he said, shooting a glance over his shoulder and pointing. “That’s Warrior Sneary, our instructor.”

Zoke followed his finger to the one older man of the group of about fifty. Sneary seemed to be battle worn, with a tough face creased by deep lines and a thick set of arms for a Human.