Okinwarry - A Road To Academy of Wizardry

Allecia The Corrosive Spit

Thursday, 31st March 1453

There is only one dining hall and it is in the back of the Main Hall which I had entered earlier together with Senior Priestess Windtalker. It was set on the ground floor and fortunately, I was able to spot the dining hall since all I have to do is to follow my nose, just like a mouse. Hahaha…!!!

When we got there, the food had already been served on the dining table and the bowls and spoon had already been set. I guessed it must be the work of the kitchen assistants so that the students or boarders would not waste time to gather their own bowls and spoon. Instead of waiting for the students to queue up for the bowls and spoon, they would definitely engage in some small chatter. Then they will sit down and chat some more before they begin to eat.

In preparing the table well ahead before the kitchen staffs rang the bell, this procedure cuts down the minutes wasted and the students just land their butts on the benches and wait for the start of the meals after saying, Grace. I find the nearest seat possible, sat down and greeted the ones beside and in front of me.

It was pottage and I never got tired of it ever since I had tasted it and it got me hooked. The students were looking forward to it as well and today, they were serving fish pottage with spring onions and another garnishing. There are some vegetables in them like cabbage, cauliflower and yard-long beans. The fish was deep fried and then turned into flakes before it was sprinkled over the bowl of pottage. On the table were several serving bowls of pottage as well as the deep-fried fish flakes.

“Psst… Are you new here? What’s your name? Are you being paired up with Vomit? Be careful when she sucks things up and don’t be too close, yeah. Or else you would get sucked in along with the things that she intends to put inside her transdimensionalstoragespace or we just call it spatial storage space to understand it simpler. I wondered if she ever sucked in a real person or not…” one of the girls ribbed me at the side and asked me since we are not allowed to talk openly during meals. I nearly choked on the pottage when the elbow hit on my stomach instead of my ribs…!

“My name’s Kristobel, I came from the Orphanage and was told that I had been awakened for some years already. Say, how many awakened people are there here in this Academy?” I asked since the dining hall we are at right now have more than 15 tables and were in rows of 5 and were all wearing our daily wear rather than the Priest and Priestesses that were wearing hooded robes.

“Oh, we don’t call ourselves as awakened people here. Its referred to as students since we are in an Academy and we are here to be educated. We can say that we are fortunate to have a formalised education here since we had all been handpicked by the Priest and Priestesses themselves. Say, what is your special ability? My name is Allecia and my special ability is to launch gobs of corrosive or explosive saliva from my mouth. It is sufficient to eat through the stone. I could launch this saliva in rapid succession. Ptui…! Ptui…! Ptui…! And in seconds, the walls of a castle would disintegrate and our army can invade the French. Hahaha…!”

Allecia had forgotten that we were in the middle of a meal and was chided by one of the students across her. Immediately she bent her head down and continue to eat while she smiled at me as she awaits my reply.

MY REPLY…??? FIRST, WE HAVE SOMEONE WHO IS CAPABLE OF VOMITING AT WILL AND ANOTHER ONE WHO SPITS DOWN WALLS AND DISINTEGRATES THEM…???

IT WON’T BE SURPRISING TO FIND ONE WHO WOULD EVEN EXPEL POISONOUS GAS OUT FROM HIS OR HER ARSE…!!!

When I thought about someone who can fart and poison those around him or her, I nearly laughed out loud and I can't push those thoughts aside. Blame it on Allecia for starting this kind of thoughts playing in my head now.

“squek, squeak, squeakkkkkkk”

“It smells wonderful here. I wondered if the students would drop a morsel or two down the tables accidentally…!” I heard those words clearly as I looked around to find the source of the voice. When I looked down, I saw a small grey mouse and I quickly pinched a bit of the fish flakes and threw it near the grey mouse.”

“squeeaak, squeeaakkkkkk”

“Thank you little human girl, I would save it later and share with my brothers and sisters. Thank you, thank you…!!!” The grey mouse squeaked and wanted to scurry off with the fish flakes when I informed it to wait up as I pinched another few more fish flakes and tossed it near the grey mouse again. “Here’s a few more to share with your brothers and sisters, okay. Come and find me if you need anymore.”

“squeak, squeaaaakk, squuueeaakkkk…”

“Hey little human girl, you can understand what I say? My name is Nibbles and I am one of the zippiest mice around here. Thank you and bless you, little human girl.”

I listened to its squeak and this is the first time I heard that mice have names and I wondered how come the one in the Orphanage does not have any names in the first place. “No problem, Nibbles. Come back anytime. My name is Kristobel and I just moved in here and I wondered if you can find me on the third level of this Academy or not.”

I spoke once again with my head under the table as I sat there and I think those around me took little notice of me as I continued my conversation with Nibbles.

“squeak, squeaakkk, squeaakk, sqqquueeakkkkkkk”

“It’s really true…! You can understand me and knows my name as well…! Well, it is going to be a shocking surprise once I inform the rest of my family members, squeak, squeak, squeak…! Alright, I will try to find you if I have something, alright? Toodles…!”

The grey mouse gathered up as much fish flakes that I had dropped on the floor and ran off as fast as its hind legs could carry itself. It came back for another round as it gathered up the rest of the fish flakes and even placed a morsel into its mouth and chewed on it like a gerbil. After it had left, I then sat back upright on the bench and continued eating like as if nothing had happened.

“Kristobel…Did you do something which I think you did just now?” Vivian looked at me with wide-eyed and I just made a sound in my throat. The next moment, Vivian was rapidly stomping her feet and screaming about those rats again and suddenly she caused a pandemonium that broke out first within the girls sitting over on the benches and later spread to other tables…! It was truly CHAOTIC…!!!

Later on that day…

Priestess Windtalker had someone sent me over to her office in one of the wings as I was not accustomed to this place yet. I had never been to school before so I didn’t know that my actions earlier that started a pandemonium in the dining hall was appalled by the educators. Little did I know what stood for me as I was being led through several hallways and I realised that the Main Wing of the Academy was like a walk in a few Orphanages all joined into one…!

*KNOCK KNOCK*

“Come in, please. The door’s unlocked.” I heard Senior Priestess Mystic Windtalker called out from behind the door and the person who ushered me opened the door and told me to enter. She told me that she would be waiting for me outside the hall and bring me back to my quarters once I am done. I thanked her meekly and I walked in, my shoes squeaked slightly on the shiny stone floor that had been waxed recently and muttered a squeaky hello to Senior Priestess Mystic Windtalker.

When the door was closed, Senior Priestess Mystic Windtalker, who was standing near the windows came to her seat and plopped down heavily and then laughed out loud at me. “You know, I used to talk to fishes and when they bring those fishes in the back by the nets, I could hear every fish in the net screaming. Not asking to be released but every one of them was saying like, “Get off my butt, you little chad. You’re hurting my tail…!” It was a noisy affair, you know. The fishes knew they would be turned to food for the humans and none of them asked to be released back to the ocean…! They would gladly be served on a platter instead…!!! Hahaha…!”

“Yes…likewise for me, Kristobel. I could hear plants and flowers talking to me when I was a florist assistant when I just had my first awakening. The plants would call out to me as they were doused with water and they would say, “Ahhh…it feels soooo refreshing. Bathe me more, little girl…!” And do you know what freaks me out in the greenhouse at that time? It was when I was about to prune some of the dry branches of a plant. The moment I sheared it off, the plant let out a blood-curdling scream only I could hear. It screamed out, “Arrrggghhh….MURDERER…!!! Do you know its painful when you cut me up without asking for my permission first…?!?!?” Hahaha….It was weird at that time and it is really funny when I think about it afterwards. Hello, Kristobel. My name is Penelope. Senior Priestess Penelope, but you can call me SP Penny for short. Hahaha…!!!”

I heard an unfamiliar voice in the room, and I turned around when I heard the jovial voice was making an introduction about her so-called ‘experiences’ during her awakening.