Page 14 of Akarnae

“I’m sure we can count on your friends to help you out as needed,” Jarvis added.

“Definitely.” Jordan smiled at Alex. “We can say you’re the queen of some forgotten civilisation who demands that we all bow down to you. Except for me—I found you first so I get to be your right-hand man.”

“You’d make a better court jester,” Bear said with a grin.

“Perhaps something closer to the truth,” Jarvis suggested mildly, “such as Alex being a transfer student?”

Jordan’s face fell with disappointment. “That’s just boring.”

“But so much easier to remember,” Alex said. “And besides, you can still be my right-hand man if you want.”

“I suppose I’ll take what I can get,” Jordan happily agreed.

“It’s almost curfew, so you better all get along now,” Jarvis said, dismissing them. “Let me know if you have any problems settling in, Alex, but I’m confident you’ll be fine.”

Alex barely had the chance to call out a quick, “Thanks, Jarvis!” before Jordan and Bear pulled her from her seat and dragged her out of the office.

Four

“Allow us to be yourtour guides,” Jordan offered once they were outside again.

The sun had long since set during their time with Jarvis, and now that her adrenaline had worn off, exhaustion was beginning to seep into Alex’s mind and body. Nevertheless, she nodded her agreement.

“The academy is made up of eight main buildings,” Jordan said. He then pointed to the medieval-inspired building they’d just left. “This fine construction is called the Tower. Most of the professors have their offices and sleeping quarters inside, so if you’re trying to sneak around after curfew or anything, stay away from this area.”

“Noted,” Alex said.

“There’s also the Stable Complex, which is pretty self-explanatory; the Arena, which is where Combat classes are held; the Clinic, for Species Distinction; the Sir Carsus dorm building, where first through to fifth year students live; the Lady Omar dorm, for the apprentices; and then there’s Gen-Sec—the General Sector building—which is where most of the boring classes are held.”

“By ‘boring’, Jordan means they’re intellectually challenging rather than physically demanding,” Bear cut in. He pointed off into the distance, but it was too dark for Alex to see anything. “Gen-Sec is the massive U-shaped building you probably saw earlier. One length of the ‘U’ is for Chemistry-related labs and workrooms, and another length has normal classrooms for History, Core Skills, and SOSAC. The middle part of Gen-Sec is for the Medical Science labs and other research rooms.”

“The Med Ward is also in the middle section,” Jordan said. “It’s like our very own hospital, and it covers the entire ground level. You’ll probably be a frequent visitor there, especially with your high potential classes.”

Alex sighed. “Yay.”

Jordan grabbed her arm and pulled her forward. “We won’t show you around the entire campus tonight because it’s late and you look like you’re about to drop on your feet. But as long as you know the most important building, I think you’ll be all right.”

Bear snorted and Alex wondered where they could be taking her. When Jordan brought them to a stop in front of a large square building, she couldn’t help but roll her eyes when he said, “This is the food court. It’s a very important place that will see to your nutritional needs for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Don’t forget where this building is and you’ll be fine.”

“You’re such a dork.” She smiled at him to take the sting out of her words.

“I’ll have you know that I am no such thing,” Jordan argued. “I am the epitome of all things awesome.”

“I can’t believe you just used the word ‘epitome’ in a sentence, let alone in that context,” Alex marvelled dryly as they started walking again.

Before Jordan could offer a comeback, Bear jumped in and said, “Can you tell us about Freya, Alex? We already know the basics, since our technology is much more advanced than yours and we have people who spend their whole lives studying your world. But I want to hear it from your point of view. What’s it like there?”

Surprised by what he’d just revealed, instead of answering, Alex asked her own question. “There are people here who study my world? Could they have a way to get me back home?”

Bear shook his head. “They can only look into Freya through a viewing screen, they can’t physically travel there. As far as I know, all they do is watch other worlds and glean information about the inhabitants, geography and technology—and whatever else they can see. There’s no interaction, and definitely no visitation. Multi-world transportation is beyond the scope of even our most advanced tech, at least for now. Maybe in another decade or so—who knows?”

Alex’s hopes deflated again and she resigned herself to the fact that she really would just have to wait for the headmaster to return. “Okay, what do you want to know about my world?”

While she answered their questions, Bear and Jordan slowly led her to the Sir Carsus dorm, where they took up their roles as tour guides again.

“All students except for the apprentices live in here,” Bear said, heading through the doorway. “Jarvis said you’re on the third floor, same as us. There are two students per room; Jordan and I have been dorm buddies since first year.”

That explained their brotherly friendship. Alex wondered if she’d find that kind of close relationship with her own roommate.

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