Page 18 of Broken Lands

“We were just discussing Riley’s schedule.” Bee explained, as we continued down the stairs. “You’re close to Professor Darmon. Do you have any idea how she’s going to manage classes for all four elements?”

“I do. It’s going to be interesting. You’ll love it.” His full lips tipped up in a devastating grin, his silver eyes sparkling with laughter. He refused to reveal more as we passed by the dining hall. My meeting with Professor Darmon was early, so Bee and I had agreed to meet back here for brunch.

We continued across the room, past the staircase leading down from what I now knew to be more dorm rooms. We headed down another hallway leading to the teaching wing of the Academy and stopped outside a door with a simple plaque reading ‘Academy Dean’. I bid farewell to Stefan and Bee as they turned back in the direction we came.

Taking a deep breath, I smoothed my hands down the front of my shorts, composing myself before knocking to announce my arrival.

“Come in.” Professor Darmon called, his voice slightly muffled through the door.

I entered slowly and found myself in a light, airy office space. A large wooden desk sat in the center of the room, in front of a large arched window. The window had been cracked open, letting in a cool breeze, the briny smell I caught yesterday still tainting the air. Bookshelves lined the walls, filled to the brim with more books than I even knew existed, many of them old and worn.

Professor Darmon rose from his chair, gesturing for me to take a seat in one of the two cream armchairs placed in front of his desk.

“It’s nice to see you up and about, Riley. How are you feeling?” He asked, his brow slightly furrowed, concern etched into his features. He had every right to be concerned, I supposed. The last he’d seen of me, I’d been barely conscious and completely drained of energy after experiencing an unscheduled wakening of power. From what Bee had told me, that just didn’t happen.

“I feel much better today, thank you.” I said, offering a reassuring smile.

“I’m glad to hear it. We have a lot to discuss this morning. General Brand will join us shortly. I’m sure you must have a lot of questions for me and I’m hoping we’ll answer them with the information we cover today. If you don’t mind, we’ll go through any that may linger at the end of our meeting.” I nodded my agreement, my thoughts scattering a little, distracted by the mention of General Brand.

“Fantastic.” He clapped his hand together enthusiastically, before shuffling some papers in front of him. “Let’s start with your enrollment at this academy. We think it’s best you be enrolled as a First-Year student, just like any other fae who’ve come of age and had their powers woken. There is just one minor issue.”

“Let me hazard a guess. I possess too many elements?” Bee had been forthright about it being a problem. The downside of being an unknown factor, I suppose.

“Yes, though I believe we’ve found a solution. As you may or may not know, we schedule both general and combat classes for each element. Our wielding classes teach you how to control your element, and how to use it to assist in your everyday life and what roles you can take in the community. Our combat classes teach you how to use your element in a fight, should you ever need to.”

“You will be required to choose an element, the one that you feel the strongest connection with, and we will treat that as your primary element. You will attend those classes at their scheduled times, with the other students of that element. We will then set you up with tutors, other students and perhaps some staff, to meet with you once a week and teach you what you have missed in that week’s wielding class.” A knock on the door interrupts his speech, and he pauses for a moment before instructing them to come in.

General Brand let himself in, the smell of freshly chopped wood and whiskey filling my nostrils as he moved through the doorway, closing it softly behind him. He was wearing black boots, cargo pants, and a fitted white shirt, the pure artistry of his muscles on full display as they strained against the seams. Inhaling deeply, I breathed him in before catching myself. Flushing, heat blooming across my cheeks, I turned my attention back to Professor Darmon, hoping neither of them caught my moment of pure admiration.

What was it about this man? Most of the time he was cold, any personality he had buried deeply beneath his role as Army General and the thick wall he’d built around himself. And yet, the way my insides warmed as his chocolate brown eyes looked me up and down was almost criminal.

Clamping my thighs together, I straightened my spine, determined to ignore the effect he unknowingly had on my body. Focus. I needed to focus. This meeting was important. My future in Danann was being outlined, and hopefully I’d be given some answers I’d been desperately trying to find.

“Perfect timing, Colin. I was just about to tell Riley how you’ve offered to train her in elemental combat.” He turned back to me, grinning like he’d just offered the best solution in the world. To be fair, it was an excellent solution. It just also made butterflies dance violently in my stomach. The thought of being alone with the General had ideas flooding my mind that definitely weren’t appropriate.

“Once a week, when your classmates are in their elemental combat lessons, General Brand will meet with you one on one.” Professor Darmon continued, seemingly not noticing the internal turmoil I was subjecting myself to. “His element is fire, and he will also give you general lessons on that element. Wielding the elements for combat is all about control and creativity, though, and he will be able to talk you through some examples with your other elements. We will reassess at regular intervals and make changes if it’s not working, however I think it will turn out nicely.”

“I work with soldiers of every element every day. I have some tricks up my sleeve. Have you chosen your primary element?” General Brand added, throwing a wink in my direction. My jaw dropped, and I hurried to close it again, his flirtatious display catching me off guard. Was he warming to me? Maybe there had been a reason for his cold front so far.

Both men were looking at me, as though waiting for a response. “Yes. Great. I think I’d like to choose Earth as my primary element.” I quickly choked out, pushing my wayward thoughts from my head and trying to refocus on the conversation.

“Great. That’s settled then,” Professor Darmon said, clapping his hands together. “I will confirm the students that will tutor you in other elemental basics later in the week. Now, let’s move on to more serious matters. Your heritage, Riley. You were raised human?” He asked, though I knew he already knew the answer.

“Yes, I was raised in the orphanage in our village. The directress always said she found James and I wandering around, wet, cold, and starving just days after the Last War ended. We had no memories, nothing to identify where we were from. She took us in and raised us amongst the other orphans.’ I shrugged, not having anything further to add. It was the story I’d been told from the moment I was old enough to ask questions myself.

Growing up, I’d never really felt different from the other children. I’d always been a bit of a loner, though, and as soon as I was old enough, I volunteered to leave school and assist Mr Cole, our head gardener. The directress claimed I had quite the green thumb and, to my surprise, hadn’t uttered a word of complaint. Looking back, my talent in the gardens may have been a clue that I was somewhat different from my peers.

“You would have been two, maybe three, correct? James was older, though, by a couple of years. It is understandable that you would have no memory, or even simply no way to communicate any information that you had. I find it hard to believe, however, that James could not provide any information.” Anger blazed to life in my chest and I felt both their eyes on me as my fists clenched by my sides. I was on my feet before I realized I had moved, quick to defend my brother. How dare they make that kind of accusation?

“Are you implying my brother is a liar? That—at the innocent age of five years old—he kept some bogus secret from the people who took us in and cared for us?” I could feel my skin heating as the intensity of my rage grew. How dare they question James? He was all I had. What reason would he have had to lie about where we came from? He’d been just a child, for god’s sake.

The well of power in my chest bubbled faster and faster until it spilled over the edges of its containment and balls of fire erupted in the palms of my hands.

A red haze fell across my vision, the quickening beat of my heart deafening in my ears. I was losing control; I knew it; they knew it. Frozen in place, I watched as they both rose and backed away from me with their hands held out in front of them.

I had to do something, had to stop before I hurt someone. General Brand’s mouth was moving as he tried to reach for me, but I couldn’t hear him over the thundering of blood in my veins. Even as I backed away, the ball of flames in each palm grew larger and my back collided with the shelves behind me. I was trapped, fighting a battle of control deep within myself.

A sob tore from my throat as tears poured down my face and I realized I was crying. I kept my hands stretched out in front of me, trying to tame the flames, willing myself to bring them under control. I didn’t want to hurt anyone, or burn down the school on my first day. The harder I tried to control the flames as they danced in my hands, the more erratic they became.

---