The Afterlife Academy Saga

Chapter 28

28

A couple of weeks passed and things settled into a new normal. Ryoko avoided me, just like after our first fight. Only this time, I didn’t really care. It was better this way. For both of us.

Aellyn no longer talked to me in class or sat with me during lunch. Not that I blamed her. I blew her off too many times. It was a wonder she tried for so long while I was a rubbish friend.

The Valkyrie head table kept Oda’s seat empty, out of respect. But Flavia filled my seat. With Astrid. She strutted around the school like a peacock with new feathers, clearly pleased with her social promotion.

Classes continued like nothing happened, but I couldn’t just sit there and listen to my teachers ramble on. I didn’t want to talk to anyone.

Instead, I roamed through the woods. Always in search of the Forest of Illusions, hoping that one of these days, I wouldn’t find my way out. That the forest would swallow me and rid the world from my blight. That would be better for everyone.

Just like all the previous days, I skipped my lecture and came to the forest. The silence of the trees was my solace, my salvation. They didn’t judge me or hate me. They just harboured me, contained me. That was exactly what I needed.

The mark on my hip burned, guiding me deeper into the woods and further away from the Academy. And blindly, I followed wherever it would take me. As long as it was far away from here.

The trees around me changed, but the mood within me never did. There was just a hard ball of darkness living in my chest, threatening to erase me. Something a couple of people probably agreed with.

Desperate, I pushed deeper and deeper into the forest. The Keeper’s mark glowed and I just obeyed its pull. I didn’t care where I was going, so why not?

After countless hours of tripping over roots and stomping through bushes, the forest cleared open. The smell of smoke lured me towards a place I’d visited many times before.

Var’s hut.

Great. Why did the forest bring me here? It hadn’t done this in weeks. What did it want from me?

Before I could turn around, the door swung open and the old man stepped out. He had a new cane, one that looked stronger than the previous one he broke on my back.

“Ylva?”

I gave him a short wave. “Yo.”

“You’re here.” He sounded surprised. “I thought you weren’t going to show up anymore. Couldn’t wait to learn more about Shadow Walking, hmmmm?”

Even the word left a sour taste in my mouth. I couldn’t believe I ever wanted to learn more about it. That I wanted to stay a harbinger of doom.

Without replying, I sat down on a fallen tree and stared at my hands.

“What’s wrong?” Var hobbled over to me and sat down too. “You look different. Are you sick?”

“No.”

He shoved his cane into the ground. “Why did you leave me waiting?”

“Someone died.”

“So?”

“She was my friend. Actually, it was my friend’s friend.”

Var shrugged. “It was her time.”

“She didn’t get to say goodbye. I didn’t tell anyone about the death countdown.”

“Goodbyes are overrated.” He straightened his robes and jumped off the log. “Now stop moping so our first lesson can begin.”

I balled my hands into fists. “No.”

“No?”

“I’ve decided I don’t want to learn anything about Shadow Walking. It’s vile and wrong. I’m not going down that path.”

“What about our deal?” Var growled.

“Our deal is off.”

The old man twirled his cane and sighed. “There’s nothing wrong with Shadow magic. It’s a natural force, just as old as time. It’s just a medium. It can be whatever you want it to be.”

“Then why are all the stories about doom and death? Why is everyone scared of Shadow Walkers?”

“Because the world is full of cowards. They’ll make up any excuse for their own incompetence and failure.” His forehead wrinkled into a frown. “It has nothing to do with Shadow Walking. Nothing.”

Was he right? It sounded like he knew what he was talking about, he was a Shadow Walker himself after all. Maybe it wasn’t all bad… But then, why did he live on his own in the forest? If there was nothing wrong with the magic, why did he isolate himself?

That wasn’t normal.

“You shouldn’t take too much stock of what people say, Ylva. They just want to blame you because it’s easy. Because they’re jealous.”

Jealous? Why would anyone be envious of this wretched power? I recalled Flavia’s face clear as day when she blamed me. Her eyes had been full of disgust and contempt. Just like Ryoko’s right before she stormed out. Neither of them were jealous of this, of me.

Var held out his hand. “Maybe we should just try some easy things. Some of the—”

“I said I’m not doing it. I’m sorry to break our deal, but I just can’t do it.”

For a moment, the man stayed silent. He took a deep breath, his hands shaking. “Ylva. Now don’t make any stupid decisions. You said you wanted to learn.”

“Yes, that was back then. This is now.”

Something was off about Var. Maybe it was the sudden twitch around his eye or the trembling fists.

Slowly, I shuffled away from him. If he was a Shadow Walker like me, maybe he had the same ball of destruction within him. If he was going to explode, I didn’t want to be near it.

I ran a hand through my hair to hide my suspicious nerves. “Hey, I actually need to go back to the Academy. I have class, you know? Maybe—”

His hand flew to my throat and he grabbed me by my collar. “You’re not going anywhere.”

“Let go!” I clawed at his hand, desperately trying to break his hold over me.

“Oh, I don’t think so. You’re going to shut up and learn Shadow magic until you can control the Veil. I’ve been stuck in this place for far too long, I’m sick and tired of it. You’re going to get me out.”

There was so much menace in his voice, it set off all the alarm bells. Something was seriously wrong.

I thrashed against him, fighting to be released from his grip. “Get you out of what?”

“This damned place! Do you know how long I’ve lived here? How long I’ve been lost in the Forest of Illusions?”

“Let go of me!”

He brought his face so close to mine, I could feel the spit on my skin. “Thirty years! Thirty damned years. And I waited and waited, until someone stupid enough would find me. I’ve waited for long enough!”

“But…” His grip was restricting my ability to breath. “The battlefield?”

“It’s all fake. It’s an illusion the Forest created for me. I just used it to my advantage and you fell for it. I thought I’d finally get out of here, that you could take me with you through the Veil, but you just have to ruin it all with your stupid morals and cowardice.”

Terrified, I bit down on whatever I could access. Blood exploded in my mouth and Var’s grip faltered.

“Ouch! That hurt!”

I scrambled to my feet, panic yipping at my heels. I was lucky that Lick wasn’t here. The dusk wolf would’ve caught me in no time. But it was just me and the old man. This was my chance.

I charged towards the edge of the forest, seeking protection from the trees once more. The mark on my hip burned raging hot, egging me on, drawing me towards the forest.

“Come here!” Var growled, his voice not far behind me. He crashed through the forest like a bear, breaking twigs and branches whenever they came in his way. He was fuming, his mouth was foaming.

“Go away!” I screamed, immediately regretting it. I needed to save my breath.

“I’m not going to be trapped here forever! If I find you, you’ll regret this!”

Carried by the wind, I fled through the trees. Roots retracted, branches bend. The Keeper was looking out for me, even if I was an abomination.

My heartbeat drummed in my ears, my chest burned. I couldn’t keep running like this for much longer. I needed to hide.

Yes. Hide. But where?

I scrambled through the moss and leaves, desperate for anything that could conceal me. A fallen tree, a small alcove between roots, a cave. It didn’t matter. Anything.

“Ylva! Come back!”

He was still on my tail. Why wasn’t the forest helping me anymore? Why couldn’t it just bring me somewhere he wasn’t? Or maybe the forest couldn’t because he was here. The Keeper did say it always had to be me alone.

Shit. s**t. s**t. s**t.

Panic drove me like a merciless master, chasing me deeper and deeper into the unknown. I needed to lose him, but how?

“Come on, Ylva,” I encouraged myself. My muscles were shaking, my lungs wheezing. I was slowing down by the moment, but I couldn’t let that happen.

Aimlessly, I stumbled forward until my foot got caught in a root and I smacked down. The bed of leaves gave way and I sank into a hole. I clawed at the earth, trying to break my fall, but to no avail. The ground swallowed me.

Forest debris covered me, blackening out the world around me. I tried to get up from the hole, but there was nowhere to go. I couldn’t get out and from the sounds of it, Var was coming closer.

Shit. Now I was in a whole world of misery.

My only option was to remain as silent as possible and hope he didn’t discover where I was.

“Ylva?” His voice was eerily loud. He had to be standing right above me. A few more steps and he’d tumble into the same pit.

I pressed my hands over my mouth. My breathing was just so loud. There was no way he couldn’t hear it.

“Ylva? I’m sorry! Come back!”

His words were nice, but I heard his underlying anger. He was seething and there was no way I would ever go back.

“I didn’t mean to trick you, I promise.” He took a couple of steps, the crunching of the leaves indicating where he was. “I’ll tell you the truth. All of it. I beg you, come back!”

My heart hammered in my ears, fueled by the panic and fear racing through me.

“I’m sorry. I know it’s wrong that I tried to trick you with an illusion. I won’t do it ever again. I need you. I just want to get out of here. I won’t hurt you!”

He sounded sincere, but it could all be lies. I had no way of knowing and I couldn’t take the risk. Not now he broke my trust.

“Ylva! I just want to get out of here! I’ve been roaming these woods for so long, I don’t even remember the caress of the wind on a cliff or the smell of the sea. Please… I didn’t mean to lose my patience.”

Part of me pitied him. If this was true, he’d been living in a nightmare. Lost in a forest with no exist for thirty years? That would turn any man insane.

But the other part of me… I couldn’t help him. Not when he demanded things from me when I wasn’t ready. Not when he treated me this way. And especially not if he lied to me.

He stomped loudly, the twigs and branches snapping under him. Slowly but surely, his sounds diminished until the forest was quiet again. And yet, I didn’t dare move. I waited, minutes, hours, I didn’t know how long. Just to make sure he was gone. Only then, I attempted to climb out of the hole. Mud sank under my nails and dirt coated my clothes, but I managed to wrestle to the top. Every part of my body screamed in pain, begged for rest, but I couldn’t afford it. I was too scared.

Without a moment’s respite, I fled in the opposite direction I came from. I didn’t look back, I didn’t pause, I just ran like the wind.

The leaf on my hip glowed and the forest thinned. I shot from the woods and landed on the Academy grounds. Some sense of safety overwhelmed me, but it wasn’t like before. Nothing was like before.

And now, Var had stolen the safety of the forest. I couldn’t go back in, not without worrying I’d run into him again. But then where was I supposed to go? Where did I fit in? Was there even a place in the world for people like me?