Page 62 of Into the Isle

Chapter 19

Ravinica

RANDI SAID SHE DIDN’T know the guy in the trench coat, other than that he was an initiate like us. It was a bit of a letdown, because I wanted the tea on him.

Gods, Dagny was right: When did I become such a gossip queen? I needed to change that, fast. I’d find out about these people soon enough.

The pale man in the trench coat struck my fancy because he didn’t seem to give a shit about anything happening around him, and I wanted to embrace that vibe. He had an apathetic demeanor, similar to Grim Kollbjorn, yet somehow different at the same time. He interacted with no one while he ate. He sat alone, away from everyone. He didn’t talk.

Walking side by side with Randi on our way to History & Tomes, which was thankfully up in Dorymir Hall—familiar territory—I thought of all the people I’d met in such a short time. It had been a flurry of names and personalities.

There were the helpful ones: Arne, Dagny, Randi. I guess my brother Eirik falls into that category for now, too.

Then there were the ones I had to watch out for: Ulf Torfen and his pack leader brother, Sven. Tomekeeper Dahlia had been cordial to me, yet seemed icy. Her daughter, Astrid Dahlmyrr, appeared ready to stab a knife into my side on day one.

It’s a shame. Bog-bloods like us should stick together. I guess there’s even a hierarchy between regular old swamp rats like me and “silvermoors” like her. And what’s the deal with her being a bastard, if the Tomekeeper is her mother? There’s something there.

Finally, there were the people I was unsure of, but wanted to learn more about: Grim Kollbjorn and Mr. Trench Coat.

As we neared the vast auditorium on the side of the hill, Dorymir Hall, butterflies returned to my stomach. I desperately hoped my first class would go without a hitch, even though drama seemed to follow me everywhere I went. Please, All-Father, just one relaxing class before the hell that I’m sure awaits me at Runeshaping Basics.

History & Tomes was filled with only initiates—mostly people who didn’t know me or my background. The thirty or so students only filled a quarter of the multi-tiered room. Everyone sat near the front, facing the stage, which was lined with a chalkboard and small table—reminiscent of lecture halls I’d see anywhere else.

I took my seat next to Randi on the second-level bench. I watched as Astrid and her posse came in and scowled at me before sitting on the opposite side of the second row. A smattering of students sat in the first row, and most of the initiates took their places behind me on the third. That was all of us.

Mr. Trench Coat came in last, as usual, and took a seat at the very front with his back to everyone—far left on the crescent-moon row, far away from everyone.

It irked me. For some reason I wanted to get closer to him, if only so I could learn what his deal was.

I shouldn’t be so snoopy. I feel like I’m a kid again, learning how to behave in this playground for badasses. It’s ridiculous.

Taking a deep breath, I opened my bag, pulled out the weighty textbook for the class, and slammed it on the tiny desk in front of me, which was attached to the seatback of an initiate in the first row.

The stranger looked over their shoulder and scowled when their seat shook from me setting the book down.

I winced. “Sorry.”

A tall curtain behind the chalkboard on stage rustled. Out walked a diminutive woman with thick Coke bottle glasses, a robe of black with the Vikingrune emblem across the front, and big frizzy hair sticking out at all ends. She looked frazzled yet calm at the same time.

I tilted my head, amused, as I watched her take her place in front of the chalkboard and write her name, then underline it.

The woman looked like a prototypical librarian—much more than the actual Tomekeeper. I couldn’t tell if she was forty or four hundred.

She faced the quieting rows of initiates and spoke in a scratchy, raspy voice, sounding like she was a lifelong smoker. “My name is Hersir Thorvi Kardeen. You might notice by my last name, I don’t care about titles. You can call me Thorvi.”

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