Firebolt

Chapter Three

I pressed the green button near my head, and warm soft pink water came splashing from the metal nozzle. It smelled like roses, and a sense of calm washed over me.

I had never been in a shower quite like this one, until a couple of days ago. Grecian marble seats lined the walls with mosaic tiles placed in delicate and intricate patterns on the floor. The water cleared and rinsed my body mentally and physically. A more potent aroma of roses and water, softer than before, caressed my skin, creating small waves across my still-bruised flesh. My skin had begun to flush in the heat making my now greenish, yellow bruises darker and more pronounced.

The tension in my muscles and the pounding inside my head started to evaporate as the heat and smells enveloped me. At the moment these showers were the highlight of every day.

I got lost in the string of thoughts, swirling inside my head like an unrelenting vortex.

I’d always wondered about Dad’s stories and if Peageia was really located inside the Bermuda Triangle. A part of me always felt that Dad’s stories could be real. I just never imagined it was this real. One of the things I do remember that Paegeia was a realm hidden from the human world behind an enchanted wall; a realm where Dragons and magic existed.

Constance explained that they’d had to conjure the wall to protect magic from people; dark, selfish people who wanted to harness and abuse the magic for themselves. It was only after the wall was erected that they realized just the dragons could cross it. Once a human entered Paegeia, they could never leave. I looked at it like buying a one-way ticket to Neverland. The only thing that worried me was that Dad must have told me about this, but why I couldn't remember it raised more questions.

As the water continued to rush over me, I struggled to accept Dad's death. A small part of me still felt responsible for it. His death, and the reality that dragons were real, was the reason I had spent nearly five days sequestered inside this infirmary.

I hated hospitals, more than I hated moving, but Constance was really kind. She and Julia, her assistant, had been my only company ever since I arrived here. Master Longwei, the headmaster of Dragonia, which this infirmary was located, also popped in from time to time to check on my recovery.

His wise advice: If I wanted to keep my sanity, I had to face whatever was out there. Today, I decided reluctantly to take that step.

I didn't want to end up in the loony bin just because I couldn't accept what was real, even though magic and dragons belonged only in Fairy tales.

Fortunately, there was a silver lining around this dark cloud. My birthmark.

Back home, a mark like mine was common. A lot of people had them. Doctors diagnosed these marks as pigment defects.

My version was an ugly dark splat above my knee that kept me from wearing shorts even in the height of summer. In Paegeia, it was something significant. The people saw it as an honor and, according to Julia, most humans would kill for one as dark as mine. What it really meant, I still hadn’t figured out, but it was my ticket straight into Dragonia Academy.

I took a deep breath and climbed out of the shower. Goose pimples broke out over my flesh as the cool air made contact with my warm body. I quickly grabbed a large, white towel positioned on a hook next to the shower and tried to retain some of the shower’s warmth.

“Elena, you okay?” Constance knocked softly on the door.

“Just give me a minute,” I yelled as I towel-dried my long hair. The shower had felt great and the clothes that Master Longwei had given me fit like a glove.

A quick glance at the price tags, before ripping them off, revealed the name “Twigs” written in big bold letters. Master Longwei had dropped them off last night when he’d come to check on me. The jeans were the kind I always wanted: it had the effect of being washed too many times, which made it look really old. The emerald-green tee went well with the color of my eyes, and the flip-flops were the perfect size.

How had he known what size to get? With his fashion sense, I was lucky to receive an outfit this hip.

Dad had never bought me the things I really wanted. It was always in and out of stores with him, too quickly to try anything on so my clothes always ended up being too small or too large. My throat tightened up at the memory. I swallowed my tears, pushing him to the back of my mind. I was done with crying.

I pulled my almost dry hair back into a high ponytail, and took another deep breath before opening the door.

“Don't you look beautiful.” Constance's echo bounced off the walls around me. Next to her stood Julia, a striking woman who put even Constance’s ethereal beauty to shame. She was all bronzed skin and soft curves, accented by a mane of long, wavy brown hair and large almond-shaped eyes. When she saw me, Julia gasped with joy, giving me the confidence I needed to leave the bathroom. I knew I looked pretty good considering the circumstances of my arrival and, of course, the bruises.

“Are you ready?” Constance asked.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I mused. “Besides, I will go nuts if I have to stay here another day.”

Constance pulled me into a tight hug, crushing me against her stethoscope. “If you need anything, I’m right here,” she said, whispering softly into my ear. “Please don't be a stranger.”

“And she doesn't mean by breaking a leg,” Julia said with a mischievous glint in her eye.

“I could still end up losing my mind, and then you’ll be stuck with me forever,” I countered.

“Nonsense, you’re a tough cookie.” Constance smiled warmly.

“I’m going to miss you,” I said, feeling the emotions beginning to clog in my throat.

Julia leaned closer and grabbed me around the neck. “Believe it or not, I’m going to miss you too. It's too quiet here sometimes.”

A soft knock came from the door and we all turned and found Master Longwei waiting patiently.

Constance nodded once and he entered our small gathering.

I saw them nod back and forth a couple of times. It was as if he asked her for permission or something. Then the clothes popped into my head. “Thank you, Master, it all fits perfectly.”

“You’re welcome, Elena. Tomorrow we can go to Elm and buy more,” he said, seemingly satisfied with my reaction.

“Elm?”

“A city close by the students would call awesome.”

We laughed at the way he wrinkled his face when he said it. He even got the rock and roll sign right; I had to give him credit for that.

“You ready?” he asked timidly. I assumed that he didn't want to tear me away too quickly from the familiar.

The corners of my mouth twitched slightly upwards, and I played with my ponytail as I moved slowly towards the door. Constance and Julia looked at me with anticipation. They were probably scared that a dragon would swoop down and fly away with me to its nest or something.

Master Longwei whispered something to them. I hoped he alleviated their worries, but it only made me more nervous.

The first step I took was blinding. When my eyes finally adjusted, I found myself standing on a huge wooden deck. The smell of fresh paint burned my nostrils.

I turned back and waved to my friends as I tried to process my surrounding.

Taking the first step off the porch made my throat dry and I swallowed hard. For the love of blueberries, I prayed I wouldn’t see any dragons soaring through the sky!

“You all right, Elena?” Master Longwei stood next to me with his arms folded behind his back.

I felt unsure. Forcing myself to look away from the sky, I saw a big brass statue of a man. It stood right in the middle of a courtyard surrounded by cobblestone pathways that formed a wagon wheel with many intersections. We followed the paths through a small grove of oak trees and a gigantic castle rose majestically in the distance.

Master Longwei stopped in front of the statue, launching into teaching mode. “This statue is of the founder of Dragonia and the Greatest King that ever lived, King Albert. Who knows where we would be if it wasn’t for him.” He tapped the feet of the statue a couple times.

We turned off the main path, and took one of the smaller trails that led towards the entrance of the castle. As we walked, birds chirped from high up in the branches. The grass was a bright green color; unlike any green I had ever seen. It made me think of magic again. I never believed in its existence until now.

Rising in on the horizon, I finally came face to face with the hulking castle. It was built out of a dark grey stone that looked weathered with age. The entrance of the academy reminded me of a painting I once saw of a sixteenth century castle: three towers were connected to the main building, soaring up into the sky like New York skyscrapers. Two of them had a million windows right to the top. The third one reminded me of Rapunzel's tower, except this one had an entrance at the bottom. Climbing up the walls were bright green vines, providing a touch of color with small violet blooms.

The academy looked definitely elite, the kind that probably had board members and a few sororities. A bird launched itself from a branch above my head, flapped its wings in my direction and flew away. My head jerked up again, searching the sky once more. Still no dragons. I breathed a sigh of relief at this small comfort.

I looked back down, catching Master Longwei searching the skies too. He grinned broadly as he caught me staring at him. I looked away and my eyes caught a giant gate to our far left, rooted in place. I stared at it for a brief second. My eyes closed, and I prayed that somehow they were playing tricks on me. When I opened them, it was still there. So much for that.

“Is the school built on air?”

Master Longwei roared with laughter. “Sorry, Elena. That look on your face is priceless. Yes, and we're safe up here.”

“What is holding it up?” I whispered, still too stunned and confused to comprehend fully what he was saying.

“Magic.” He said with a soft voice.

“Magic?” My right eyebrow arched slightly. Magic doesn’t exist.

“This is Paegeia, Elena. You are going to learn strange things here that science cannot explain. You need to have an open mind, and try to accept it.”

I glared at the gate again. Roses and vines woven into the beams didn't hide the fact that there were clouds gliding by. The effect made it impossible to think of any plausible reason for an entire academy to rise above the air.

“What if we fall?” I asked, fear lacing my words.

“We haven't for the past hundred years.”

I took a deep breath, trying to move my thoughts away from the academy-stuck-in-the-sky thing. I looked up one last time just to make sure that there were still no dragons.

Master Longwei glanced at his watch. “Elena, we need to get going. Class will start soon.” He picked up his pace and entered a door triple my height.

We picked up my schedule from the woman seated at the reception desk. Horned rimmed glasses rested haphazardly on the tip of her nose. She greeted me with a welcoming tone, encouraging me with words meant to instill confidence. Yeah right, she probably never had been to the other side where things were normal, what did she know.

I had to run to keep up with Master Longwei as he quickened down a long passage. The narrowed hall held that old dusty smell often found in basements. A golden statue of a dragon with its head bowed stood sentry at the end of the passage.

We walked into a spacious lobby, with two set of staircases leading to what I assumed, were separate wings of the castle. Paintings of dragons and armored statues were stacked meticulously against the wall. The students that passed us greeted Master Longwei with chirpy “hi's”; followed with soft whispers and pointed fingers as they laid their eyes on me. It was first day of school all over again, and heaven knew I had my fair share of that.

I almost lost Master Longwei in the throng of students as he ran up the staircase to the left.

We entered a wooden door with a woman embracing a dragon engraved on it. It led to more stairs.

“This place is really big,” I mumbled annoyingly, knowing I would never learn my way around all the staircases and passages.

“It has to be. Where do you think everybody stays? This is the girls' dormitories, boys are on the right.” he explained, and we entered the new space.

We walked up three separate staircases, and by the time we reached the fourth set, my lungs felt ready to burst. He finally stopped at the door with the gold number four, while I silently suggested the construction of an elevator.

Placing his hand against the door, he pushed, and it opened slowly into a cul-de-sac with three doors. He knocked on the first one. We waited.

“Good morning, Master Longwei,” a girl said in a chirpy tone, her toothbrush still in her hand. Her cropped black hair and big brown eyes lit up when she saw me.

“Good morning, Becky, may we come in?” he asked politely.

“Yeah sure, where's my manners.” She took a step back, encouraging us to enter.

We entered a room with three gigantic posted beds, two facing one. They were stunning with white lace hanging from the top and cascading down to the floor.

The floor was carpeted in plain, dark brown shag so lush my flip-flops almost disappeared as I took my first step into the room. A fancy chandelier was hanging from the ceiling, casting a majestic glow. If magic existed in this world, I knew it was somehow responsible for this magnificent bedroom.

“Becky? I want you to meet Elena,” Master Longwei said as he began the introductions.

“Hi, Elena, and welcome to Dragonia.” She sounded like she had ten Red Bull's for breakfast.

I smiled at her nervously and my greeting barely came out.

“Just show her around, and please don't let her get lost. There are still a lot of things she doesn't know. Try to tell her as much as you can,” he explained diligently.

“Master Longwei, you always do this to me,” Becky intoned, a whine slowly emerging to replace the hyperactivity.

“I thought talking to someone her age would help her to understand it better. I’m much too old for this, and don't know how to be hip and cool about stuff. You two speak the same language, Becky,” Master Longwei said.

“Fine, I’ll try. Thank heavens she knows about the dragons.” She raised both her eyebrows and took a long, deep breath.

“Good luck, Elena, and if you need anything, don't hesitate to come and see me. I will see you tomorrow morning for some shopping.”

Becky gasped. “Are you going to Elm?”

“Yes, and if you manage not to freak her out today, you can come too,” he said.

She bounced up and down, barely able to contain her excitement.

I really liked her, she reminded me of a pixie rushing on adrenaline. “This is your room, Elena, I hope you like it. Enjoy your day girls.” Master Longwei disappeared back through the door we had just come through.

This is my room.

I repeated the thought over in my head a million times and waited for it to finally sink in. Becky closed the door, and my eye caught the small lounge with a big screen T.V. hidden in the corner.

“Here's your bed, Elena, I will help you with the linen. I know they are huge, but there’s a reason for that.” She led me towards the empty bed.

“Where’s the other girl?” I referred to the other bed that had already been occupied.

“Sammy is an early riser and you’ve got Vicky’s spot. She's on a self-discovery quest,” she said, as if I was supposed to know what that meant. “I have a bit of a problem with the first, second, and third time my alarm goes off. I love the snooze button way too much." Her nose wrinkled up. “So, I bet you have a lot of questions huh?”

“I did, but my mind went blank.”

“Yeah, I know the feeling.”

I was glad that she offered to help with the bed. I didn't know how I would've managed it all by myself.

“I heard that you have a very dark mark.” She lifted up her sleeve, showing me the light brown stain on her arm. “You can barely see mine.” She promptly waited for me to show her mine.

“Mine is above my knee.” I gestured to my newly acquired jeans.

Her smile dropped instantly.

“Can I show you tonight?”

She nodded, and her smile went all the way up to her eyes. “So, your dad was really a Copper-horn?”

“Yes,” I said in a soft whisper.

She gave me a one-sided smile. “I'm sorry that he died, Copper-horns are extremely lovable and I can't imagine who would want to hurt one, not to mention kill one.”

Tears formed in my eyes, and I wiped them away quickly before she could see. “Did you know my dad?”

“No, he must have left when King Albert died. A lot of them left when he died,” she explained sadly.

“King Albert …he’s the guy that built this school, right?” I tucked one of the corners of the linen underneath the heavy mattress.

“Yes, he was also the true ruler of Paegeia, and the best king that ever lived. He was betrayed by his best friend. Nobody likes to talk about it.”

We finished and fell, breathless, on top of the freshly made bed.

She looked at her watch and jumped up. “Yikes, is that the time?” She grabbed her backpack with her one hand and my arm with the other.

I literally flew out the room, through the main door and down the stairs. My feet skidded off the steps, and I prayed that I wouldn't fall on my face, or worse, break my neck.

“We are so late. Master Longwei is going to kill me,” she said, panting with exertion.

We ran into the reception area, and I gave her a hand with the door.

We managed to open it wide enough for the both of us to squeeze through. More buildings appeared on the other side, which made the castle begin to look like a school.

She darted around the first corner, down another hallway and stopped. She turned around. “You ready?” She opened the door, and ushered me into a hall filled with other students. I felt like I was being thrown to the sharks. Good thing I was a fast swimmer.