Page 19 of Akarnae

Unfortunately, she could only keep running at a sprint for so long, and soon enough she had to drop her pace or risk breaking an ankle. The moment she slowed, Finn was waiting for her, zapping stick at the ready.

Five

Two hours later, Alex waslying on the field, moaning. Everything ached, including parts of her body that she hadn’t previously knowncouldache.

With the psychopathic Finn hot on her heels, Alex had soon caught up to her classmates, but even that hadn’t been enough to please the deranged PE teacher who had continued to zap her forward. She had never run as far or as fast before in her life. And now she wondered if she’d ever be able to walk again.

“You survived, at least. That’s more than some can say.”

Alex didn’t have the strength to open her eyes and acknowledge Jordan’s comment. She could hear the amusement in his voice—she didn’t need to see it as well.

“You should stretch, you know,” he told her. “If you don’t, you’ll regret it later.”

She pried her eyes open. Eventhathurt. “I doubt it’ll make much difference now.” She knew that he was right though, so she forced herself into a sitting position, grimacing as her muscles pulled. “Ow.”

“You’re lucky,” he said, not even trying to hide his grin. “Finn was easy on us today.”

She paused mid-stretch. “You’re kidding, right?”

“You should see him on a bad day,” Jordan said, and he offered Alex his hand. She couldn’t hold back a groan of pain as he pulled her to her feet.

His mouth quivered but he managed to suppress his laughter, sending her a look of sympathy instead. “You’ve still got a full day ahead of you yet. Including Combat.”

She grimaced. “Don’t remind me.”

“You have Archery next, right?” he asked, turning away and motioning for her to follow.

She pulled her timetable out and scanned it as they walked. “Good memory.”

He nodded. “Bear had to take off for Chem, but I still have a few minutes to get to the stables. I’ll show you where to go.”

They didn’t get far before Jordan noticed her discomfort and mercifully slowed his pace.

“It’ll get easier,” he said. “Just give it a couple of weeks.”

Weeks?She wasn’t even sure she would last the day!

“Delta PE and Epsilon Combat will be your toughest subjects,” Jordan continued, “but with such high potential levels, that’s not surprising.” He scratched his chin. “You’re Epsilon for ES too, aren’t you? That’ll be demanding as well.”

He really wasn’t making her feel any better.

“ES?” she repeated.

“Equestrian Skills,” he clarified. “Tayla’s the instructor. She’s great—as long as you respect her horses.”

They rounded the crest of a hill that looked out over another large grassy area. It was sectioned off into three segments by thick, bushy hedges that bordered the edge of the forest.

“That’s where you need to go.” Jordan pointed to the segment closest to the main school campus. “See those people over there? They’ll be your classmates.”

She spotted the group and nodded.

“Meet you in the food court for lunch?” He waited only long enough for her to agree before he turned and jogged back up the path.

Alex mustered her courage and descended the hill, arriving at the same time as her instructor. For the next two hours she was thrilled to play around with a bow and arrow, even if she completely missed the target every time she made a shot. In her defence, she was somewhat distracted by the elf-like teacher, Magdelina Llohilas—or Maggie—who looked like she’d stepped straight off the set of a fantasy movie. Seriously.

When Alex wasn’t watching the graceful teacher, her attention was caught by one of her other classmates. The girl had thick auburn hair and the most interesting eyes Alex had ever seen; they were as blue as the sky, changing into a vivid green towards the middle. The colour was startling, made even more so by the frequent, menacing glares the girl directed towards Alex.

When lunch time finally arrived, Alex was more than relieved to leave the class behind. She had no idea what the other girl’s problem was, and she was glad to put some distance between them.

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