Rise of the Retics (12 page)

“Besides,” Laszlo continued “That beautiful young lady in the back of the room is going to need a friend at Thales. You wouldn’t want her to be lonely, would you?” Lord Laszlo pointed right at Tyranna as he spoke. Her heart nearly jumped for joy as she realized what Lord Laszlo had said. She was going to be living in a school, a real school! It was like a dream come true.

chapter
13

A new direction

Jaxon

Rosehaven: Thales Academy

October
27, 1503

School? I have to go to School! Is he serious
?. Jaxon had never actually attended a school before, but he was positive he would hate it. Forcing children to be educated against their will seemed to be cruel and unusual punishment. Besides, who did Lord Laszlo think he was, especially after his thrilling victory in the arena? He was a hero now. He should have had a parade instead of a punishment!

Sir William had attended Thales when he was much younger, like most of the Roune-Knights, so Jaxon had heard many less than exciting stories of its hallowed hallways. Thales was the only true school system on the island, and competition to attend was fierce. Jaxon wasn’t exactly sure why. He figured most kids would have been fighting not to go, but apparently that wasn’t the case.

Most children in Rosehaven learned at home with their parents, or in small groups with other kids their age in the neighborhood, but Thales was a different experience altogether. Attending meant he would be living there almost full time under their rules and supervision. This was the part that scared him the most. It was easy to get away with breaking his parents’ rules, but teachers were a whole new challenge. Jaxon knew this was going to be far worse for him because unlike parents, teachers actually had training with children.

Questions flowed through Jaxon’s mind like a raging river, which did not make him happy at all. He much preferred his brain to have desert like qualities, barren and peaceful. Ignoring Jaxon’s preference, the questions remained—what were they going to make him learn? How would he be able to get away when he wanted to? Were they going to let Rigby come with him? The questions seemed never ending, which for an thirteen-year-old boy was anything that made you think for longer than thirty seconds.

“Don’t worry, son,” said William, interrupting Jaxon’s thoughts. “It’s the best place for you.” Sir William again placed his large hairy hand upon Jaxon’s shoulder, trying to comfort him. Jaxon found that the contact had the opposite effect. He had always hated being touched. Even as a baby he would cry in order to be put down and left alone.

“And just think, in just a few short years you’ll be a trained sorcerer and able to make Rosehaven proud. You might even be able to gain your knighthood, just like me. ”

Despite Jaxon’s desire to hate the idea, his foster father’s words helped put him at ease. Perhaps it wouldn’t be quite so bad. The prospect of learning to use magic, just like the demon hero Savnock in his mother’s tale, was very exciting. He could imagine how frightened people would be of him. Then they would have to respect him. He might even get to be lord protector one day, since everyone would be too terrified to vote against him.
Lord Protector Jaxon Miniheart. I like the sound of that
. His thought quickly turned from panicked questions about school to dreams of grandeur.

“I guess that would be kinda fun.” Jaxon mumbled in response.

“I know this is not exactly what you dreamed of Jaxon,” William continued, “but I want you to promise me you’ll at least give it a chance.” The large satyr crouched down so he could look Jaxon directly in the eye. It made Jaxon feel like a little kid whenever he did that. Jaxon knew that Sir William just wanted what was best for him, there was no question about that, he just had no idea what was best for a demon of his potential. He was just a satyr, what could a satyr possibly know about raising such an important child? Jaxon began to think back through the years he spent with the Hoofstomps—Saan’s late night stories and early morning songs, the games Sir William used to play with him in the park, even the horrible cooking. As hard as it was for Jaxon to believe, he feared he might actually miss the place. Shutting out the memories, Jaxon forced a reply past his lips.

“I promise,” Jaxon finally said, ripping his gaze away from William’s. Jaxon’s eyes began to well up with moisture. He was sure he must have been allergic to one of the plants adorning the outside of the tower, as that was the only logical explanation. He turned and wiped them clean with his sleeve.

As the unwanted liquid left his eyes he noticed a man in long silk robes the color of crow feathers. He was walking at a rapid pace directly toward them. The stranger was tall and thin and had nearly a half head on Sir William, who was by no measure a small retic. As he studied the new subject’s jet black skin and bright white hair, Jaxon realized he had never seen this man before now..

“You must be young Master Miniheart,” the stranger remarked as soon as he reached him. “I am Instructor Thaddeus Malverne. I will be your mentor at Thales. You and that beast of yours will need to accompany me to your new accommodations immediately.” 

“Good afternoon, Instructor Malverne. I am William Hoofstomp, Jaxon’s caretaker. He bowed, making sure not to lower his head too far
[20]
.

“Yes, Sir William, I am aware of who you are. Many of your wrestling trophies still adorn the great room at Thales.” Though he also bowed slightly in return, Malverne spoke without the slightest hint that he was impressed. “We need to be going Jaxon. Your personal belongings can be delivered to you.” With a quick nod to William, Malverne turned and walked away, not even bothering to wait for a response from Jaxon.

Jaxon found him to be rude and snotty, characteristics he usually found entertaining in a person, but today was different. Today this man was here to take him away from the only life he had ever really been comfortable in. He could at least pretend to be cordial.

“I guess that means it’s time to leave.” Jaxon looked up at William not knowing exactly how to say goodbye. The Hoofstomps were the only real family he had ever known. He may not have liked living with them much, but some days he hated it less than most. Today was one of those days.

“It’s ok, Jaxon,” started William “I’m not very good at good-byes either. Just make sure you listen to your instructors and stay patient. We’ll see you in a few weeks for the harvest break.”

Though Jaxon was certainly excited at the concept of leaving to learn to become all powerful, something didn’t feel quite right. He was finally free of living with the Hoofstomps, away from their smelly home and disgusting food . . . yet he didn’t want to leave.

“I don’t plan on waiting for you, Jaxon Miniheart. We have too much to do today to be held up with long, sappy goodbyes.” Malverne yelled without even turning to look. The instructor’s words came crashing into Jaxon’s head and helped him push his feelings down. It was time for him to go and become the demon he was always meant to be.

Not knowing what to say to William, Jaxon just nodded, slightly of course to not offend the satyr, and turned away. Rigby was far less unsure of her feelings, jumping up on William’s chest and giving him a huge sloppy kiss good-bye, before running off to catch up with Jaxon. She had a panting smile on her face, obviously very excited to be going somewhere new. 

After a quick jog to catch up, Jaxon and Rigby reached Malverne. Eyeing the tall, dark-skinned man again Jaxon found himself wondering what race he belonged to. He had never seen another retic with nearly the same look. Normally Jaxon would have had no problem asking, but there was something about the man that made Jaxon think it was a better idea to speak only when spoken to. Jaxon couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but Malverne seemed to radiate a strange presence. Jaxon felt nervous just being near him, almost intimated.

“I am a Svartálfar, a dark elf. You do not need to fear asking simple questions.”

“How did you know I was . . . .?”

“No, I cannot read your mind, but I see you staring at me like I have twelve heads. I can make viable assumptions from that point. You should work on making yourself less transparent.”

“Yeah,” Jaxon responded. “I’ll make sure to do that right away.”

Several minutes went by as Jaxon and Rigby followed Lord Malverne North, away from the heart of the city, without either party speaking.

“I saw you in the arena a few weeks ago,” said Malverne, finally breaking the awkward silence between them.

“Thank you,” said Jaxon, beaming with pride that he already had admirers. Perhaps this guy wasn’t going to be as difficult as he seemed. He obviously had a keen eye for talent.

“There is no need to thank me, Jaxon. I never said you were good. You got very lucky against a superior opponent who underestimated you. If you were to have another match, the young Florensian would almost certainly end your life and no one would weep for you.”

Jaxon was taken back by Malverne’s words. He had thought that he was supposed to be here to teach him to be the most powerful sorcerer in Rosehaven, not to insult him. Jaxon could feel his annoyance begin to bubble up inside him. Sensing his anger, Rigby began to let out a low rumbling growl. He put his hand out flat to let her know it was ok. 

“I could have beaten her anytime I wanted. I was just playing with her. You know, for the crowd and all.” Jaxon spoke with his usual confidence, but even he was starting to wonder. Sure Samantha was just a girl, but wow was she fast. He barely knew what direction she was coming from most of the match. Not to mention, had he not managed to create the fireball, that final sword thrust might have gone right through his chest, as it was perfectly placed around the side of the breastplate. Jaxon still had absolutely no idea how he did that, but he was positive he deserved full credit for the action.

“Your arrogance will be your downfall, Demon. As it has been for your people for millennia.”

“Downfall! What are you talking about? Everyone knows demons are the most powerful beings in the world.” Jaxon wasn’t exactly sure where he had learned that bit of information, but he was confident that his facts were indisputable.

“Powerful? Yes, they are powerful. The most powerful? Well that’s up for debate. But one thing that I do know is that simply having power does not make one a good leader or even a decent creature. Knowing when and how to use your power are far more important skills. I have not agreed to train you to make you powerful Jaxon. That would be quite easy based on what I’ve already seen. No, I agreed to train you so that one day you may be proud of who you are, instead of just being proud of what you are. Well, half of what you are I should say. Whether you like it or not, any abilities you are able to harness in life will be just as much attributed to your human half, as they are to your demon side. A retic is not two halves but a whole being, and no power in the world can change that.”

The more Malverne spoke the less Jaxon understood him. He already was proud of who he was! He was a powerful demon sorcerer, or at least he would be one day soon. He had made fire appear from thin air. He had scorched his enemies to near death, and though he might have felt a bit of guilt afterward he was sure there were no more than a handful of other people in the world that could do that. And soon, he was going to be able to control it better than any of them.

No one spoke again until they arrived at Thales Academy. The building was one of the oldest on the island, built hundreds of years ago from simple gray stones. It was huge—three stories tall, with its walls covered in lush green ivy, and windows filled with actual glass. It was magnificent.

A set of aged stone steps led to a great archway over a heavy oak door. On each side, a large stone gryphon statue stood vigil, its lion body and eagle head and wings blended into a single beautiful creature.

“The statues are of Quicktalon and Strongbeak, two gryphons who fought with Lord Laszlo at the Battle of Jaca. It was one of the final battles in the Great War, not long before Rosehaven was founded. You may look at them as little more than beasts, but they were great heroes as well, Jaxon. When the battle had already been lost and Lord Laszlo had sounded the retreat, both these brave creatures made the decision to ignore their training. They dove from the safety of the skies headfirst into the pursuing human soldiers, causing widespread chaos and buying the retics enough time to regroup and make it to safety. They both died that day protecting the retic army as it escaped to safety. They saved hundreds of lives with their valiant act, including an ancestor of mine. That, Jaxon, is true power.”

Jaxon stared at the statues. He appreciated the incredible look of the two beasts, but he couldn’t understand why someone would create a statue honoring two creatures that helped lose a battle? He just didn’t see this power that Lord Malverne spoke of.  He had to remember that when he became lord protector to make sure to have them removed and replaced with a more appropriate symbol. Perhaps an image of Savnock would work? Or maybe even one of himself?

Malverne walked up to the doorway and knocked three times. With a small
shhhkk
a peep hole slid open and Jaxon could see two dark green eyes peering out at him from inside the building. After a few moments the peephole slammed shut and Jaxon could hear a series of loud noises as the locks were being opened. He wasn’t sure why they would need locks on a school to keep people out, as he figured just being a school did that already.

After a minute, the door began to open. Standing behind it was the doorkeeper, a small green-skinned goblin as old and feeble as any creature Jaxon had ever seen. He sat on a small wooden stool just behind the great doors and greeted each of them with a nod, including Rigby. He wore tattered clothing and smelled of strong wine.