***
The rest of the school day was uneventful. The lessons were boring, especially math. I mean, doesn’t every eight year old know what one hundred twenty-one plus fifty is? I glanced over at Lucian’s paper to see if he was doing okay. He’d pushed the worksheet to the side, completed, while the rest of us were on question four out of thirteen. He now had a workbook open on his desk and was working on math problems that I didn’t even understand. I think it was math at least. I mean, do letters even belong in math?
That’s when I wrote Lucian off as a nerdy bookworm. He had tons of those workbooks for every subject imaginable. What kind of second year needed to learn about Psychology or Political Science? That stuff seemed boring! Not to mention that when he was attacking me the day I met him, his skills and technique were incredibly lacking. A nerdy weakling, that one.
When class let out finally, I quickly packed my stuff in the backpack that Lord Morgan had graciously given me. Hiking the bag over my shoulder, I told Lucian, “Sit tight. I’m gonna go to the bathroom.”
My godbrother nodded and continued to scribble in one of his workbooks. Shrugging, I walked out of the classroom to the bathroom down the hall. As I entered the restroom, I noticed it was really quiet. After doing my business, I suddenly got a chill. I peeked through the stall door to find two older boys standing there. The tall, skinny one had black hair that stretched halfway down his back. The shorter one was pudgier and had spiky red hair. They looked to be about sixth years in school, and both of them wore sunglasses.
“Hey guys. You scared me!” I chuckled, walking to them and holding out a hand, “My name’s Halden. And yours?”
The taller one responded by grabbing my neck and lifting me off the ground. I kicked my legs and clawed at his hands, desperately trying to break free. “What’s your deal?” I didn’t sound frustrated since my windpipe was being crushed, but I definitely was. My leg reached high enough to kick off the boy’s sunglasses. He dropped me, and my rear slammed hard to the small-tiled floor. Looking up, my eyes widened, staring into the boy’s red irises.
“Atura, Ombres!”
I looked at the entrance to the public lavatory to find Lucian standing there. What did he just say? Ombres? Those are… Shadow People!
That’s when I realized that it was Lucian they were after.
I quickly stood up and charged for the tall one, who was closest. As I jumped on his back, I watched the fatter one approaching my charge.
Then, the little bookworm did something I wouldn’t have ever believed if I didn’t see it myself. He placed his fists one on top of the other. I felt him calling forth his Ascential magic, and for the first time, I felt how strong this kid was. Instantly, a red ribbon of energy shot up from his stacked fists. He held it like a sword and faced off against the tubbier boy.
Suddenly, I was thrown off of the back of the boy I’d jumped on and slammed hard into the tiled wall. I raised my head to find the tall, shadow boy holding a hand in my direction. I saw his black energy swirling around his hand. Closing my eyes, I prepared for the worst.
There was silence for a few seconds. Then, I heard a loud groan, followed by a slam. I peeked through one eye, but opened them completely when I saw my opponent face-first on the floor. I watched Lucian sit on the boy’s body and place his tiny fingers around the boy’s neck.
“Explusa!” he shouted. I watched a black, bubbling substance slowly make its way out of the boy’s mouth, disappearing as it moved toward the ceiling. When it had completely vanished, Lucian stood up, walked over to me, and held out a hand to help me up, which I took gratefully. When I was standing, he gave me a thumbs-up and a smile.
“I don’t get it,” I told him as we left the bathroom. He looked at me with curious eyes. “I thought you were a weakling. You study subjects that I’ve never even heard of before, yet you can take down two Ombres single-handedly. I just don’t get it!”
Lucian chuckled. We turned into our classroom so he could gather his things. “It’s simple. If our enemies think I’m weak, they’ll be easier on me. That means that while they don’t use all their energy and strength, I can take them down with a fraction of mine. Simple Leader Logic.” He paused as he swung his bag over his shoulder, then added, “And the workbooks? I need to know that stuff if I’m going to make a good Realm Leader someday.” He grinned widely and grabbed my hand. “C’mon, Dad’s waiting outside.” Dashing for the door, he dragged me along with him, my cross necklace he’d given me flying in the wind as we ran.
This kid was incredible. He even had me fooled, and I was supposed to know him best to protect him. Well, now that I knew, I needed to step up my game. I decided from that day on that I would train my hardest so I could protect him whenever he needed it. He was the world’s future Realm Leader, and I had faith that he could become the best there ever was.
The smile that appeared on my face was reflected by Lucian as we ran for the front of the school and the rest of our journey together. After all, what are friends for if not to stick together ‘til the end?
OTHER WORKS
As eBooks only::
Tales of Terrara Vikos stories
#1- Cross of Faith
#2- Trees In The Storm
#3- Blood on a Broken Hand
#4- Warped Destinies
The Chaos Accounts saga
#1- Account of Anxiety
#2- Account of Unrest
#3- Account of Friendship
#4- Account of Secrets (Coming Soon)
As eBook AND Print::
The Protektor’s Reality: a Trials of Terrara Vikos prequel
About the Author
Born in Schenectady, NY and raised in Richmond, VA, Christine has always had a love of reading and writing. She didn’t become aware of her gift for crafting stories until fifth grade, when she made it her dream to one day see her works on a bookstore shelf. Her love in the literary world has always been fantasy novels, because they allowed her to leave this world and venture into another. She devoured books growing up and still does in her free time.
Christine lives in Virginia, balancing her day job (working with numbers and Excel) and her creative endeavors.
You can find more about her and her works at::
terraravikos.com
Or
Pledge to her writing escapades at::
https://www.patreon.com/discoverywritin
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