Study in Slaughter (Schooled in Magic) (6 page)

“A Gorgon and a transfer student,” Emily said, noticing a slip of paper in Alassa’s hand. “What’s that?”

“A list of players for
Ken
,” Alassa said. “My roommates were interested, although I did have to explain that they couldn’t fight while they were playing or we wouldn’t stand a chance. I asked around the common room while everyone was reading the lists and rounded up nine more names.”

Emily blinked in surprise. “Nine?”

“Everyone who joins an established team will start at the very bottom,” Alassa explained, ruefully. “Someone like me will have to wait at least four years before getting a shot at being Captain, let alone a chance to build up a reputation. But if I establish the team myself, I can become Captain immediately.”

“I see,” Emily said. “What about equipment?”

“It’s all in the school’s stores,” Alassa said. “Once we have a team set out, we can draw supplies from the stores to outfit the players. We’re not allowed to bring in equipment from outside the school, sadly. I could have purchased the very best of everything.”

“Probably for the best,” Emily observed. “People would wonder if your victories came from superior training or superior equipment.”

“True, I suppose,” Alassa agreed. She looked up at Emily, suddenly. “Do you want to join?”

“I’m lousy at games,” Emily replied. “I used to be the last person picked...”

But was that true any longer? Between the sergeants, who had never met an exercise routine they didn’t like, and Lady Barb, she was fitter than she’d ever been in her life. And she’d learned how to run, climb and crawl through tight spaces, all in the interests of turning her—eventually - into a combat sorceress. Jade had been fond of running through the assault course with her...

The thought gave her another pang. Where
was
he? Why wasn’t he writing to her?

Maybe he found someone else
, she thought. She couldn’t really blame him. They’d never made a formal—or even an informal—agreement before she’d been ennobled.

“Come and try,” Alassa urged. “At the very least, you can help us think of new ways to discomfort the opposition.”

Emily must have looked puzzled, because Alassa launched into a long and complicated explanation. Most of the second year students, male and female, were fans of the game, but they were rarely allowed to try out for high positions in the older teams. Even if they got
on
the teams, they weren’t invited to the planning sessions—and any good ideas they might have had were either stolen or ignored. Alassa, however, intended to allow
all
of her players to contribute suggestions. Between them, they might build up a truly formidable team. They wouldn’t have the experience of the other teams, but they could build that up over the coming months.

Or they might end up embarrassing themselves.

Emily didn’t
want
to play. She disliked team sports, even though she had taken part in team activities when she’d been in Martial Magic. But Alassa was keen on it and perhaps she should at least
try
...

“I’ll do my best,” she said, ruefully. “I spoke to Master Tor.”

Alassa listened as she outlined what Master Tor had said, then nodded when Emily had finished.

“Father could have warned me,” she said, crossly. “But Master Tor is probably right. Blast.”

Emily scowled. Last year, Alassa had shared a room with two noblewomen from different kingdoms, while Emily had shared with Imaiqah and Aloha. But then, she had literally had no ties to
anyone
in Whitehall or the rest of the world. Now...now she was a baroness and had thousands of people underneath her...and the Grandmaster had been right. She really
wasn’t
prepared for such responsibility.

“Still, there will be plenty of time to get used to new roommates and we can meet up outside of classes,” Alassa continued. “And you can try playing
Ken
with us.”

“If I have time,” Emily said. She fumbled through the pockets of her robe and produced her timetable. “I’m going to be attending Lady Barb’s introductory class at noon, just before lunch, then Subtle and Ritual Magic this afternoon. Tomorrow, there’s a special class for Martial Magic...”

“It clashes with Herbology,” Alassa observed, consulting her own timetable. “Do you want to go there?”

“Not if I can help it,” Emily said. She knew which plants could be eaten safely from Martial Magic—and she had no real interest in farming and agricultural magic. “Besides, there’s another four introductory classes, one per day.”

“I’ve got Defensive Magic tomorrow,” Alassa said. “I think the course is really meant as a primer for Martial Magic...”

Emily scowled, remembering Aloha’s reaction to discovering that Emily had been put into Marital Magic. Aloha had worked
very
hard to enter the class during her Second Year, but Emily had just jumped ahead, pushed by Void and the Grandmaster. She’d threatened Emily with a fate worse than death if Emily let her down, although she’d calmed down after Emily had beaten Shadye. Emily couldn’t have done much more to prove herself.

“My father won’t let me take Martial Magic,” Alassa supplied, a moment later. “Too much chance of serious injury—or death.”

“True,” Emily agreed. She’d been injured more than once during Martial Magic, where a mistake could have ghastly consequences. “But if you do well on Defensive Magic, you might be able to get him to change his mind.”

“Maybe,” Alassa said, doubtfully. She looked down at the timetable for a long, thoughtful moment. “Law is something I probably need, sadly. I studied the law in Zangaria, but not the law elsewhere in the Allied Lands. And things are changing quite rapidly, thanks to you.”

Emily flushed. Many of her changes had already started having unintended consequences.

“Animal bonding might be fun, but father probably wouldn’t let me put it into practice,” Alassa continued. “Imaiqah was talking about Artwork; she thinks she might enjoy it. Construction and Warding are definitely worth taking—I think they’re actually taught by the same teacher. And then there’s more formal etiquette lessons. You probably need them.”

“Not if I can get out of it,” Emily said, quickly.

Alassa gave her a droll smile. “You’re a baroness,” she said, dryly. “Every time you pick up the wrong fork, you are diminished in the eyes of everyone watching you. Make enough mistakes and people will think that you are going soft and start plotting against you.”

“I think I preferred it when you taught me,” she admitted. Most of the etiquette she’d been taught made no sense, but Alassa had managed to hammer it into her head somehow. “You were patient.”

“That’s true,” Alassa agreed. She looked oddly pensive, recalling her childhood. “My mother was patient too.”

Emily poured herself another cup of kava and then settled back in her chair. “Are you going to be coming to Healing?”

“I think it might be useful to know the basics,” Alassa said. “Father might have other ideas for my future classes, of course. He wouldn’t want his daughter to be a healer, bound by Healer’s Oaths. At least he knows and respects Lady Barb. I hear she was a very strict teacher. Imaiqah would probably want to go too.”

“I should go to the library later,” Emily said, thoughtfully. She’d missed Whitehall’s vast library almost as much as she’d missed everything else. “It’s been too long...”

“There won’t have been time to mess up the books,” Alassa assured her. “Why don’t we go for a swim instead? There won’t be anyone in the lake at this hour.”

Emily laughed. “You do remember that it’s snowing out there?”

“Heating charms,” Alassa said. “I checked it out last year. During wintertime, the lake is warmed by magic. We will probably need additional spells on us too, just in case, but we should be fine.”

“Or we could go for a snowball fight,” Emily suggested. She’d never actually had one in her life, ever. Proper snowball fights required friends. “Or see what magic can do to snowballs.”

“Turn them into walking, talking snowmen,” Alassa hazarded. She looked contemplative for a moment, then shook her head. “But swimming would be preferable. It’s good exercise and it would be
warm
.”

Emily sighed and gave up. “All right,” she said, “but I don’t think we should be late for Lady Barb’s class. I think she would be very strict indeed.”

Chapter Five

T
HERE’S NO ONE HERE,” ALASSA SAID,
as they entered Lady Barb’s classroom. “I told you that we were leaving too soon.”

Emily shrugged. She’d enjoyed the swim, even though the lake had been surrounded by snow and flakes had dropped into the water from high overhead, but she didn’t want to be late for her first class. They’d had to climb out of the water, use charms to dry themselves and then dress rapidly—and, somehow, the charms never left her feeling completely dry. Her robes were still threatening to cling to her body.

The classroom was massive, easily large enough to hold fifty students at once. There was a single large metal table in the center of the room, surrounded by desks and chairs. The walls were covered in parchment drawings of human anatomy, including a surprisingly detailed chart of the human skeleton. Others were explicit enough to make Emily blush and look away. High overhead, powerful light globes orbited, casting brilliant white light down on the table below. Emily realized, as she found a desk and sat down, that the room was spelled to allow them all to see what was being done at the center.

This is partly a practical class
, she recalled, and shivered.

The classroom slowly filled up as the other students filed in. Emily smiled at Imaiqah as she entered, carrying a large roll of parchment under one arm. Several other students were carrying their own parchment; Imaiqah explained, when Emily asked, that she’d been in Artwork and the parchment was her very first drawing. When she unfurled it, Emily saw a sketch of Imaiqah’s mother and father. She felt a flicker of envy as she realized that Imaiqah had a genuine talent for Artwork.

“There was plenty of your paper there,” Imaiqah muttered. “We spent almost the whole class drawing. This”—she tapped the parchment—“was my final piece of work for the day.”

“It’s very good,” Emily said, sincerely. “You should stick with it.”

“I’m certainly going to try,” Imaiqah said. “But father wasn’t sure what use it might be in the future.”

Emily and Alassa exchanged glances. If Imaiqah hadn’t been ennobled, a talent for drawing and painting might have taken her far, particularly once they started infusing magic into their artwork. But it would be a lower-status occupation for her now, even if her father hadn’t wanted her to remain involved with the family’s growing business. He was planning to sell steam engines to the world once they had improved on the design.

“It might give you some personal fame,” Emily pointed out, finally. Imaiqah’s father could start the ball rolling by promoting his daughter’s work, just like artists had had noble patrons before the internet and art journals. “Or...”

She was interrupted by a loud bang as Lady Barb strode into the room, closing the door firmly behind her. Emily watched Lady Barb march up to the desk and turn to face the class, her face set in a grim expression that reminded Emily of Sergeant Harkin. Lady Barb had donned a white jacket and pair of trousers that set off her blonde hair nicely, but utterly failed to conceal that she was a very dangerous person. And she looked thoroughly unhappy.

“It is now five chimes past the bell,” Lady Barb said. Her voice was very cold, very composed. “In future, the door will be locked at the precise moment that class is due to start. Should any of you be
late
and find yourself unable to gain entry, you can save me some time by reporting directly to the Warden. And you will also be marked as absent from the class, which may lead to your eventual removal if you make a habit of it.”

Emily winced. She wasn’t the only one.
That
didn’t sound fair. What if the student had a very good excuse?

Lady Barb’s gaze swept the room. “This is a very important class that requires absolute concentration and dedication,” she continued. “Many of you will not have the talent or dedication to become a healer. This lesson will assist you in discovering if you
do
have a talent for it—and to save you from spending the rest of the year here, should you not have a talent. As you should have been informed, you may leave within a month without repercussions.”

She smiled, but it didn’t quite touch her eyes. “How many of you have used standard healing spells?”

Emily put up her hand, joined by almost all of the class.

“Very good,” Lady Barb said. For a moment, her gaze rested on Emily, then moved on to the next student. “Do you also understand their
limitations
?”

There was a long pause.

“Clearly not,” Lady Barb said. She clasped her hands behind her back, as if she were at parade rest, and carried on. “The standard healing spells are understandably crude, as they are designed for people who may not know what they are doing. Repairing a broken bone sounds like a laudable goal—and it is—but the standard spells can cause additional damage to the person undergoing treatment.
That
is why you are all told to ensure you see a qualified healer as soon as possible.

“More complex work requires more than a standard spell,” she continued. “Repairing a person’s eyes, for example, is beyond any pre-designed spell. Purging poison from a person’s bloodstream can go horrifically wrong unless the magician is directly involved with the process from start to finish. Learning to direct the magic that is necessary for carrying out more complex healing sessions is an important part of this course. Those of you who do not have the talent for it will be removed very quickly.

“Completing the first year of Healing will give you the ability to treat a wide range of injuries and diseases, as well as a firm grounding in medical magic. You will not, however, be bound by Healer Oaths, nor will you be considered qualified healers. Should you have the talent and inclination to go onwards, you will have to take the oath, even if you don’t wind up serving as a healer. Those oaths are magically-binding and they
will
bite if you end up abusing your position.”