Raelia (The Medoran Chronicles Book 2) (25 page)

Fifteen minutes later, Brendan again yelled to her over the tumultuous noise. “I take it back—this isn’t fun anymore!”

Alex grunted in agreement and kicked out at him. They were practising unarmed fighting techniques, so at least they didn’t have the added danger of slipping on the muddy ground and impaling themselves on their blades. That was a positive, if noth

“I’ll tell you what,” Brendan shouted. “Why don’t you just let me win and we’ll be allowed to finish?”

Ten minutes earlier, Karter had told the different pairs to move out of a practising stance and into an attacking mind
frame. As soon as one person managed to overcome the other, the pairs could finish class for the day. It was an uncharacteristic offer from Karter, but his leniency was likely a result of him being unable see his students.

“Me?” Alex yelled back, ducking his fist. “Why do I have to lose? Why can’t you let
me
win?”

She heard his faint snort over the cacophony of the rainstorm.

“Why is that funny?” she demanded, swiping her leg out towards where she thought he was. The rain was so blinding that she missed him by about three feet, and she heard him laugh even harder at her failed attempt.

“We both know you’re not going to beat me, Alex, and no one would believe us if we acted like you did,” he said. “Sure, you’re heaps better than you were, but I’ve been in Epsilon Combat for
years
longer than you. And I’m an apprentice, while you’re just a fourth year. You’re good, but you’re not
that
good.”

Normally Alex could handle the banter of the Combat boys, knowing they used taunts to throw off their opponents. But Brendan’s mockery just fuelled the fire that sparked from Alex’s exhausted state of mind.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to still her rising irritation, and her newly determined peace brought a sense of quiet that she’d only experienced once before. Alex suddenly
felt
everything around her. When she opened her eyes, she could
see
everything so much clearer than before. She watched in amazement as single raindrops fell from the sky in slow motion. She could see the other boys in her Combat class who were spread around the Arena and fighting awkwardly due to their limited vision. It was like switching from a static video to high definition; the added detail was startling. And when she threw her hand out towards Brendan—whom she could now see with phenomenal clarity—he wasn’t fast enough to block her blow.

Another punch, an elbow to his stomach, a sideswipe of her foot, and a final roundhouse kick to his torso landed him on his backside with her standing like an avenging angel over his winded body.

“How—How—?” he stuttered, looking up at her in awe as the rain fell onto his mud-splattered face.

“Cat got your tongue, Labinsky?” she said, holding out a hand to help him to his feet.

As if knowing their fight was over, the rain began to ease slightly. Of course.

“How did you move so fast?” he asked when he was standing again.

She brushed a wet lock of hair behind her ear. “What are you talking about?”

“You were like a blur,” Brendan said, lowering his voice to a more normal level as the rain continued to lessen. “I barely even saw you move.”

“That’s because it was raining,” Alex said. “The water was so thick I couldn’t see you either.”

But despite her words, she couldn’t ignore the fear that prickled up her spine. At the end of their fight, she definitely
had
seen him. And she knew how.

“No,” he said, shaking his head adamantly. “I mean, yeah, the rain was thick and it made seeing you difficult, but I’m talking about the speed of your attacks. You were insanely fast.”

Alex felt her breath catch with his admission but she forced herself to remain calm, even when her memory flashed an image of the cuts and nicks she’d given Roka in their fight a week ago. Had she somehow managed to tap into not only the increased sight, but also the Meyarin attribute of speed during her fight with Brendan? That was definitely a dangerous path to tread. She would have to be very careful in the future.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Alex told him, faking indifference. “You said it yourself; I’m still not that great a fighter. I think the rain distorted what you think you saw and I just got a few lucky hits in.”

Brendan seemed to think about that as they walked to where Karter was waiting. Kaiden and Declan were already standing with him, but Nick and Sebastian had yet to finish their match.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Brendan accepted before they reached the others. “Maybe you did just get lucky.”

Alex tried not to look too relieved.

“Labinsky, Jennings, you’re done?” Karter asked gruffly, wiping the rain off his face. It was now only drizzling lightly and Alex had to force herself to not scowl up at the sky.

“Yes, sir,” Brendan answered.

“You hurt, Jennings?” Karter asked.

Alex turned to him. “Hurt?”

“Yes, hurt,” he repeated. “Injured. Wounded. Damaged in any way.”

She looked at him in bewilderment. Sure, she often sustained injuries during Combat class, but rarely did Karter ask her personally if she was okay unless it was obvious she was in a bad state. Otherwise it was just expected that she—and her classmates—would go and see Fletcher if necessary.
After
class ended.

“No more than usual, sir,” she told him honestly. Just like after every Combat class, she was probably covered in bruises, but nothing more serious.

He frowned at her as though she’d said something wrong, then turned to look at Brendan. The apprentice must have been able to read his expression better than Alex, since he quietly mumbled something she couldn’t hear.

“Speak up, Labinsky,” Karter ordered.

“I said, Alex isn’t hurt because she didn’t lose the fight.”

Karter’s eyes flickered in surprise before his face reverted to its natural stoic expression. “Is that so?”

“I just got lucky,” Alex said, repeating what she’d told Brendan.

Karter peered intently at her. “Lucky or not, I expect you to keep it up.”

He then told Alex, Brendan, Declan and Kaiden that, as per his earlier agreement, they could leave early. Sebastian and Nick would have to continue until one of them won their fight.

As they sloshed their way out of the Arena and up the hill towards the dorm building, the boys conversed with one another while Alex’s mind wandered to her comfy bed. Maybe she would get a proper sleep that night for the first time all week.

Just as she was contemplating skipping dinner and going straight to bed, a voice broke through the tired haze of her mind.

“Are you excited about this weekend?”

She looked questioningly at Kaiden as he stepped up beside her. “This weekend?”

“Yeah, you know—our SAS getaway?”

Alex stared at him blankly and his lips quirked at her expression.

“Were you paying any attention last night?” he asked. “I mean, I know you got caught in three—or was it four?— of Hunter’s traps, but I thought you were just trying to avoid Skyla. I didn’t realise you were
that
out of it.”

“I’ve had a lot on my mind lately,” Alex said.

Kaiden’s face was sincere but his eyes were laughing at her. “I’m sure you have.”

“All right, Mr. I-Know-Something-You-Don’t-Know,” she said. “What was it that I should’ve been listening to last night?”

“Well, since you asked so nicely,” he said with a wry grin, “tomorrow we have an overnight assessment for SAS. We’re
taking off for the whole weekend, coming back on Sunday night.”

Alex groaned. That was the last thing she needed after the week she’d had. But then again, she might actually get a good night’s sleep if she was away from D.C.’s screams.

Almost immediately, Alex felt bad for thinking such a thought. It wasn’t like her roommate chose to have the nightmares. D.C. was the victim of her own subconscious mind.

“What are you thinking about?” Kaiden asked.

Alex wondered what her expression must have revealed for him to be looking at her with such curiosity, and she quickly relaxed her face. “Nothing. Just wondering what clothes I should pack.”

He laughed. “Wow, you’re really bad at lying.”

She lowered her eyes but didn’t try to deny his accusation. Fortunately, he let the matter drop.

“I guess I’ll see you in the morning,” he said, and she realised they’d already reached the dorm building.

“Yeah, sure,” she replied, giving him a tired smile. She headed up the stairs to her room, quietly closing the door when she noticed D.C. curled up in bed.

“Hey,” D.C. said softly, rolling over to face her.

“Hey, yourself,” Alex returned, crossing the room to sit beside her friend. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” D.C. said. “Finn let us skip PE because of the rain, so I came back for a nap.”

“Really?”

D.C. rubbed her eyes. “Yeah, I was tired.”

“No,” Alex said, chuckling, “I meant that I was surprised Finn let you out of class. Karter made us keep going.”

“You’re still back earlier than usual,” D.C. said, squinting at the time displayed on her ComTCD resting on her bedside table.

“Yeah, by like, ten minutes,” Alex said. “No nanna nap for me, unfortunately.”

D.C.’s face crumpled in apology. “Sorry. I know you haven’t been sleeping well. And I know that’s my fault.”

“You can’t help it,” Alex said with a tired shrug. “And I’ll be gone this weekend for SAS anyway, so maybe having the room to yourself will help you move on from whatever is causing the… episodes.”

“Episodes?” D.C. repeated. “You make me sound like a crazy person.”

“You know what I mean,” Alex said. And then she couldn’t resist adding, “And you
are
a crazy person. Acceptance is the first step to a good, healthy recovery.”

D.C.’s lips twitched. “Are you speaking from experience?”

“Me? Crazy?” Alex placed her hand dramatically against her chest.

“You’re such a weirdo,” D.C. said, shaking her head. “And at this exact moment, you also happen to be a weirdo who is dripping water all over my bed. Go and clean yourself up, would you?”

“Your wish is my command,” Alex said with a salute, and she stood up and trudged over to their bathroom for a quick shower before dinner.

“This is going to be so awesome!”

“If you say so,” Alex mumbled around a yawn the next morning. Once again she’d had little sleep during the night, and she couldn’t muster the same amount of enthusiasm as Jordan for their upcoming weekend.

One foot in front of the other
, she mentally chanted as she followed her friend down to where their SAS class was due to meet at the forest. Even her internal voice sounded weary.

While Jordan continued to babble about what he thought the overnight trip would bring, Alex secretly hoped Hunter would have a change of heart and cancel—or perhaps reschedule to another time.

Unfortunately, he did neither.

“Listen up, everyone,” Hunter said when he appeared out of the forest like a wisp of smoke. “This weekend you’re going off-campus for some field training. I want you all to grab the bag with your name and inside you’ll find everything you need to survive until tomorrow evening.” He pointed to a cluster of backpacks under a tree and gestured for everyone to move forward.

When Alex picked up the pack labelled with her name, she had to stifle a grunt—it was much heavier than she’d expected. She watched in bafflement when the much smaller Pipsqueak lifted her own bag with ease, and even the always-whining Skyla didn’t complain when she strapped hers to her back. Alex resisted the temptation to see if someone had put rocks in her pack as a joke as she heaved it across her shoulders.

“This assignment is about teamwork,” Hunter instructed the group. “You’ll need to utilise the skills you’ve already learned while being innovative enough to adapt to an unknown environment.” Hunter pointed to the tree where they’d picked up the bags. Just above head height was an arrow lodged in its bark. “This arrow is specially made to transport you to your destination. Once there, you’ll need to follow a set of instructions giving you tasks to complete before the weekend is over. After you’ve finished, you’ll find another arrow which will return you here tomorrow evening. You may arrive earlier or later depending on how well you follow the instructions, but you can be sure of one thing: the only way for you to get back here is by completing the tasks and finishing the assignment.”

This is so going to end badly
, Alex thought.

“Any questions?” Hunter asked. He may have given them an opening but it was clear he didn’t think there was anything left to say.

Alex, however, had many questions—the most prominent of which was whether she could stay behind and let everyone else enjoy the ‘fun’ field trip without her. But since she already knew the answer, she didn’t waste her breath.

Her other concern involved being away from the protective wards of the academy. What if Aven discovered she was gone and decided to come after her? But she figured Hunter had to have spoken with Darrius about the trip, and the headmaster would never let her leave if he thought she would be in any danger. Besides, she was too tired to start up a conversation that was sure to arouse the curiosity of her classmates. Definitely not worth it.