The Red Glaive

Caius slept in that soot bed for the night. Remarkably, he didn’t groan about it in the morning. Instead he rose bright and early, much to Aeria’s irritation, and covered in black soot decided he needed Aeria to help him practice his new gift in the training grounds before their training with Overseer Rector. He left for a shower and instructed Aeria to wake up Niko and Telfer as well, but Aeria dismissed him and fell back asleep.

She was a awoken rather rudely by her covers being savagely pulled away from her. Aeria groaned and curled into a tight ball to keep whatever of the warmth remained.

“Ariel get up.” Caius could be head saying but completely ignored by a very sleepy Aeria.

“Hey!” Telfer shouted before his entire jug of water was dumped all over her.

That was enough to get her to leap out of her bed and then fall onto the cold, hard floor when her legs tangled on the blanket. Before, a grinning Caius stood in front of an exasperated Telfer and a giggling Niko.

“I hate you all.” Aeria said standing.

“Ariel you’re up, let’s get going.” Caius said.

After a quick change, the four of them went up to the training grounds. The eagerness in Caius to try out his magic was more than palpable in the quick pace in which he traveled to the training grounds above the caverns. He nearly jogged down. That eagerness was immediately stamped out when it turned out that most of the other adepts had the same idea and were equally eager to test their new abilities.

No one could really do much. Those with the Colossus could only move stones, some bigger than others. The three who had been presented with the Avian settled close to the doors and exclaimed when one of them managed to create a small spark between their fingers. A few carried jugs like Telfer did sat with them in front of them and tried to make the water rise.

“I can’t practice with all these people around.” Caius said. The skies were still dark, the sun had only just began to rise.

“There’s a small empty space over there.” Niko said pointing to a corner of the training grounds.

“Last time I tried I destroyed Ariel’s bed.” Caius said looking at his hands then at all his peers. “I can’t risk it.”

“So you got me up this early for nothing?” Aeria said jokingly and Caius shoved her lightly. She could feel it coming before she ever saw it. She reached up and plucked the stone from the air before it hit its intended target.

“What was it?” Caius asked as he looked at Aeria’s hand closed around a rock close to Telfer’s face. It was large enough to cause severe damage with a throw, propelled at that speed it held the potential to kill. Her hand burned but she didn’t feel like anything had been broken. Aeria didn’t have to look to know where it came from.

A few ways off Brecht and Griffo could be seen staring them down. Brecht especially had a dark look on his face. It was Loris who approached them. “I’m so sorry!” Loris said coming up to them. “It just got away from us, I’m sorry.” he was apologizing to Caius.

“You could’ve killed someone.” Caius said. “Don’t let it happen again.”

“It won’t, I promise.” Loris said and turned to leave, but not before shooting a quick look to Aeria that told her that they were testing them.

“It better not.” Caius said unaware of the small exchange. “I suppose I’ll just practice my swordsmanship.” Caius eyed the untouched rack of weapons.

“You’re already the best.” Niko said.

“But you’re not.” Caius said. “We haven't had a round in a while have we Niko.” It was mostly Aeria that sparred with him.

“I’ll go get the swords.” Niko said with a sigh. He still didn’t have much of an appetite for fighting.

“I need to refill this.” Telfer said holding his empty jug.

“I’ll go with you.” Aeria said knowing what happened last time she was caught alone.

They walked back down to the deep, dark caverns and into one of the alcoves were a pool of dark water came from deep within the earth. Though it didn’t glow with the moonlight like it did Reflection Pool it was the very same water of the Silver Oasis. Aeria could feel its magic just bubbling under the surface.

“Glaive Marcoul told us that this water is easier for use to move.” Telfer said placing his wooden water jug at the water’s edge. Then he dipped his hand into the water and moved it in a wave like fashion before pulling it out slowly. The water rose with his hand and he maneuvered it to flow up from the pool into his jug.

“You’re pretty good.” Aeria said. It was much more than she had seen the other Leviathan adepts pull.

“It’s just while we learn, Marcoul said that eventually we’ll be able to pull water from the air itself.” Telfer said standing and corking his jug.

“You have to come all the way down here to refill it?” Aeria said and Telfer nodded before they made their way back up the caverns. After a short silence, Aeria said, “Telfer can I ask you something.”

“It’s about the others isn’t it?” He already knew but he seemed hesitant to answer.

“You owe me that much after we pretty much saved your ass in that tavern.” Aeria said making Telfer sigh.

“You weren’t here from the beginning.” Telfer said. “I came down from Durus with Brecht, Loris and Griffo. They were all highborn so they assumed I was as well. I never told them the truth, I suppose I enjoyed the feeling of belonging. We were the first ones here and they demanded the best of everything and treated everyone else horribly. That all changed when Caius showed up.”

“I just don’t understand how they could hate me so much.” Aeria said, had they left her close to death? The events from that night were still fuzzy, she could recall close to nothing after entering the alcove. “They barely even know me.”

“It’s not you that they hate.” Telfer said as they made their ascent to the training grounds. “They hate Caius, everything was going their way until he came around. On the night he arrived he broke Brecht’s nose and snapped Friehei’s finger, put them in their place immediately.”

“Oh.” Aeria said, “That’ll do it.” They couldn’t get to Caius so they came after her and Niko. Perhaps they realized they’d gone to far with her and spared Niko a similar fate.

“They want you to tell Caius’ what they’ve done you know. They want him to be rash and come after them full of rage so that the overseer can see then have him removed from the Red Glaive.”

“That sounds like something Caius would do.” Caius wasn't very clever, if there was one thing he knew it was violence and when to use it, and he was protective of his friends almost possessive. “What about you Telfer?”

“They turned on me when they realized that I wasn’t highborn, I suppose I have to thank for that, they quickly realized that I wasn’t trained by an arms master like every highborn usually is when you knocked me out so quickly.”

“No,” Aeria said, though she was a little glad to hear that she had at least a small part in tearing him away from them. “I mean where do you stand on all this Telfer?” Aeria asked. He seemed like the type who’d cozy up to whoever made it easy for him.

“I’m on the outside,” he said. “always looking in.”

“Oh stop it.” Aeria said. Last thing she wanted was a broody anyone. “You’re with us, none of this outside nonsense.” Maybe it was she who was possessive.

They made it back to the training grounds late and when Overseer Rector saw them he said loudly, “Thank you two for wasting our time this lovely morning. You’re cleaning the dining hall tonight.” A loud giggling was heard from the benches. Two girls sat there giggling, much to Aeria’s dismay. Aeria grumbled. “And since you're moaning and groaning over there I think you two should go first.” he said and tossed her the black sack he was carrying.

There was something moving in the bag, slow and steady like a coiled snake. Aeria looked at the other adepts bewildered. “Reach in and see what you pull.”

Aeria pulled the drawstring on the sack and a green smoke poured out and filled her nostrils with the scent of trees and rain. The smoke still whirled within the sack hiding its contents. “Here Telfer, you can go first.” Aeria said offering him the sack.

“He gave it to you.” Telfer said quickly.

“You’re wasting our time again boy, just go!” Rector shouted and Aeria shoved her hand into the sack.

It was wet, thick, and warm. Like putting her hand in blood. “There’s nothing in here.” Aeria said.

“You’re not looking hard enough.” Rector said and Aeria reached in deeper so that the whole of her arm fit into the small sack.

Then the tips of her fingers grazed something cold and sharp and her hand closed around it. It refused to come out until Aeria pulled with al her might and yanked it free. Everyone then crowded around her eager to see what she had pulled.

There resting in the palm of her hand, black as obsidian and as smooth as an eggshell, lay raven’s skull.

“What is it?” Aeria said holding the skull. It felt warm to the touch.

“What you’re holding is one of the Red Glaive’s better kept secrets.” Rector said and every eye shifted to him. “Ever wonder how we mange to communicate with each other in field? How we always manage to be when the Night Devils come?” No one answered. “Those things are our messengers, our familiars. They send our messages hidden from view.”

Telfer took the bag from Aeria and reached in. “How?” an ever inquisitive Niko asked as a everyone tried to snatch away the bag from Telfer after he pulled .

“Those skulls don’t look like much now, but they will.” Rector explained. “You must guess their name so that life can be breathed into them.”

“Guess his name?” Aeria said without thinking and looked down at the polished black skull. Her father never had one, or least she never saw it. A secret indeed. Her hand closed around it and she swore she heard whispers in her ears.

“What’d you get Niko?” Caius could be heard asking, they both watched as he pulled a cat skull from within the bag. Caius pulled up his one canine skull and when they all glanced at Telfer he showed them his own equine looking skull.

“Can you show us yours Overseer Rector?” Niko asked when all the adepts had pulled a skull.

“I would but I longer have one.” Rector said and the excitement died, “Only field Glaives get a familiar, which I no longer am because of you lot. Now, the sooner you get those names the sooner you can start your patrols.”

“But we don’t have our swords yet.” Niko said making Rector laugh.

“You’re not going to kill anything, you’ll be patrolling and using your familiars to get real Glaives to your location so they could do the real work, so the sooner you get their names the better.” Rector said.

Such a well kept secret, but Rector seemed so careless to speak about in front of complete strangers. The two girls were still there, but their attention was elsewhere. The squires had emerged from their barracks on the far end of the training grounds and the girls stood on the bench as if hoping to catch a glimpse of something.