The Claddagh Academy

Ball and Chain

Blaise

                 “Let’s try this one more time,” offered Karoo from her bed and I groaned, messing my hair in irritation and looking up to the roof above me. The roof looked back at me as if to remind me he wasn’t at fault for my own shortcomings. Frustrated and exhausted from trying to hear the “echo of the mind” I closed my eyes and tried to hear Karoo’s thoughts for the millionth time in the night.

                 A whole month had passed since the Winter Ball and our discovery about the missing pages of the census books. After putting the rest of the Doomhold to speed about our findings we all started training harder to what was yet to come. We didn’t know how many Nulls we were facing or what was the identity behind my mysterious enemy, but Kodiak wasn’t taking any chances. As a king he had straightened his land’s borders and more often than not had shifted out of Claddagh to attend war councils with his advisers. Even the school grounds were packed with Redcaps guarding the fields and in one occasion I’ve seen a Manticore flying over the dorms while he chatted with Kodiak. A freaking Manticore had been chatting with Kodiak. Like a flying monster with a head of a lion and demon’s wings had been chatting with Kodiak. If that wasn’t taking our protection to the extreme then I didn’t know what Kodiak considered a limit when taking care of his people and his family.

                 In general no formal announcement had been made about the situation concerning the Nulls but some students were starting to notice the presence of Redcaps guarding the grounds and the flying Manticore that appeared from time to time and met with Kodiak in the skies. Uriah in specific had been spying on us, following our movements and squinting at Karoo and I when we were studying in the library. I didn’t know what his problem with Karoo was but the guy clearly needed to pay more attention to his girlfriend. Even I was starting to feel bad about Nerva every time I caught Uriah looking at Karoo. There was something about the way he looked at her that confused me. Sometimes I was sure he was staring at her with affection and then at times there was so much hate in his eyes towards her that I had to look away. Men were definitely confusing creatures.

                 Kodiak had also been confusing lately. He had been more distant since the ball, busy as he was with royal matters, but for some reason he always made a point of coming to have breakfast with us every morning. He even served me coffee and take my cup to the table even if all his siblings complained about his preferential treatments and favoritism. I would scowl and ignore the coffee he brought me while he was around but the moment he walked out of the cafeteria I would savor it. What could I say? There was something positive exciting about having a man serving you. Not that I would ever admit to Kodiak that I felt excited about him or anything he did. It was bad enough that I couldn’t remember what had happened between him and the siren during my birthday. We had a reached a silent agreement about the event and never talked about it. Nevertheless, there were moments when we would be close and Kodiak would look at me in a certain angle and I had strange visions of his lips moving closer to me and then darkness. I couldn’t remember anything else and in a way I was okay with it. It was better that way that remembering something that had the potential of embarrassing me for a lifetime.

                 Classes were as boring as always and since we weren’t scheduled to have any more test until finals week Karoo had taken upon her the task of trying to unlock my mind reading powers. We had been an it for an entire week now. Every night before sleeping we would meditate and Karoo would try to guide me inside her mind. The process was impossibly tedious and most nights I fell asleep before achieving anything. Tonight wasn’t looking any more promising than yesterday.

                 “Karoo, this is pointless,” I said to her while staring at the roof with a scowl. My best friend sighed and moved in her bed underneath mine.

                 “It is necessary. Do you think I learned how to read minds without training? It took me months to learn how to read a mind and then years to learn how to control my powers. Believe me, we need to do this every night if we want to succeed,” I frowned and pushed my head down, letting my hair fall all around before squinting at my friend. Karoo was seated Indian style in the middle of her mattress. He short hair had been pulled back with her panda hair headband and she had one of her magical face masks on. She looked girly and cute while I looked like a very frustrated, hairy monster. I could feel all my blood running to my head for every second that I squinted at her in the uncomfortable position.

                 “Once again, how many Fae are capable of reading minds? Last time I checked I only knew of you and Kodiak. Maybe is not something I’m supposed to do,” I said shrugging and Karoo shook her head.

                 “I think your Fae potential is limitless at this point. Think about it this way. A part of you, a part that is strong and powerful, had been dormant all these years while you kept growing and strengthening physically. While we all were able to grow with our Fae powers and control them you didn’t, so now your powers are probably raw and untapped. If we are just able to scratch the surface of what you can do maybe all your powers would come back. I know you are powerful Blaise Darkholme, is just a matter of training and exercising so we can understand why your Fae side is dormant,” I bit my lip and moved back on my bed, once again staring at the roof. I knew Karoo was right. I needed to exercise to become stronger. Not all fights were physical in Faerie. Back in Faerie we have three categories of combat. Mind, magic and physical. Is expected that every single fighter is at least competent in the use of those three categories. That’s what Kodiak had said during our first class of Tactics of Combat. All my life I’ve depended on my body and the use of weapons to survive but if I wanted to become stronger I also needed to at least be a competent mind reader. I still didn’t know who my enemy was but one thing was sure, he was powerful and I needed to step up my game if I wanted to have a chance of surviving him.

                 “Okay, let’s do this one more time,” I said to Karoo, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath.

                 “Relax and empty your mind,” I focused only on listening to my own respiration and not thinking about anything else, “now picture me in your mind and extend your power to me but without touching me,” I frowned because sometimes Karoo didn’t make any sense. She was my best friend and all of that but the girl loved to speak in riddles from time to time. Still I tried to imagine what she was saying. Tentatively I pictured Karoo’s face in my mind, face mask and panda headband included, and then tried to reach her. To my surprise I felt as if invisible arms were erupting from my mind and started flowing like boneless limbs in Karoo’s direction. They moved slowly, like snakes and then a thousand of hands that looked strangely like my own surrounded my best friend’s head. I ignored what Karoo was saying and reached with the invisible hands a little bit closer.

                 The moment I moved closer the invisible hands jumped into action and rushed to touch Karoo’s head. One touch and I was in. It felt as if I was inside of her mind, seeing the world through her eyes. I could see and hear everything that she was feeling and then she gasped as in surprise. A tall white wall covered in green climbing ivy appeared in my mind pushing me out of Karoo’s mind. I was out of her mind just like that. I registered a slight pain in my temples but ignored it. Damn. Did I just do what I think I did? I cleared my throat and licked my lips.

                 “Hmm…Karoo Doomhold?” I asked slowly.

                 “Blaise Darkholme?” answered Karoo and I could hear the excitement in her voice.

                 “I was able to read your mind, didn’t I?” I asked jumping out of my bed and Karoo started squeaking in delight. We hugged each other and started jumping up and down across our bedroom. At some point we stopped behaving like little girls and Karoo stepped back with her arms still around me and a proud smile.

                 “I knew you will be able to do it. Now we just need to take it slow, okay? Try reaching my mind and listening to what I’m thinking,” she said and waved a hand for me to try. I closed my eyes and tried to reach her with the strange invisible arms. This second time was even easier. I touched her head with the invisible hands and was inside her mind once again. This time I focused on her thoughts. The trick was to ignore the sounds she was listening to and follow the sounds inside of her mind. I could hear her thoughts right away. Bravo Blaise! I knew you could do it! She was also thinking about eating brownies and ice cream but those thoughts were more like images and no words echoed in my mind. I went out of her head with a little bit of effort. Let’s just said it was a bumpy way back. Karoo had pushed me out the first time and I had no way of knowing how I was supposed to go back. But after a couple of tries I was able to retract each one of my invisible hands and returned them to my own mind. When I opened my eyes again Karoo was jumping and clapping her hands, her excitement was contagious, “This could only mean your Fae side is awakening. Now we need to work on building your mind shields and…”

                 I ignored the rest of what she was saying and closed my eyes again. I knew Karoo had asked me to stay out of Kodiak’s head and warned me it would be a painful experience if I ever tried but I had to try. I just needed to. This was the boy who had been reading my mind constantly for months now. And now that I could read minds he was the first person I wanted to hunt down and spy on. He deserved it for all the times he walked inside of my mind without permission. I closed my eyes and tried to picture Kodiak’s face in my mind. Once I’ve imagined him I reached out for his mind with my invisible hands. This time around it took longer to reach him than it took to reach Karoo. I could feel the invisible arms moving and crossing miles of distance until they reached him. I couldn’t see where he was or what he was doing but I could feel a power like no other surrounding him. His power was menacing and the most frustrating fact was that I couldn’t even measure it, or picture it or even reach it. It almost felt as if his mind was surrounded by a mine field and trying to get to him was a suicidal mission. Of course I had to try to reach him. Duh.

                 I focused on ignoring all the warnings and the menacing power surrounding his mind and moved deeper. And deeper. And deeper. I focused on reaching his mind even if I was scared of what I was doing and all my instincts screamed at me to go back. And then I was inside pure darkness. Pure, solid, frightening darkness. I was like a beacon of light floating in the shadows and then I was standing right in front of a large wall that was surrounded by shadows and black smoke. I looked up and saw a red sky and lightening’s covering it.  I looked to the front and could only see those adamantium walls that were inexpugnable. Black and shiny without a single crack that I could see. Inexpugnable. Frustrated after all the work I’ve passed to get there I hit the wall with the palm of my hand and was propelled back as if someone had punched me in the nose.

                 The pain was…Gods the pain. I screamed and went out of his head, falling on my knees and shaking over the floor. Karoo started screaming, not knowing what to do while I spasmed and arched in excruciating pain. It felt as if my bones were on fire and my head was about to explode. I started vomiting then and Karoo screamed for Mss. Lambert while she held my hair back and tried to pat my back. I went still when I finally emptied all my stomach and then hugged Karoo while we both trembled. She was crying and then she whimpered when she looked at the floor. I looked over her shoulder and felt myself freeze when I realized I’ve vomited a long iron chain and a ball. I’m kidding you not. A chain and an iron ball.

                 “What the hell?” I mumbled in shock and then I passed out.

                                                         ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Blaise

                 “Can you repeat what you just said?” I asked the doctor and the old Fae pinched the bridge of his nose. We were already buddies him and I, even if the doctor Castor didn’t know it. He always seemed to like me while I was sick and quiet and the minute I got better and started asking questions he grew frustrated for some reason. Considering I couldn’t stay away from the infirmary and the fact I’ve been the only student this year to be referred to the infirmary not once but twice I didn’t know why Castor looked at me as if I was an impertinence. I was saving his job here and the ungrateful bastard couldn’t thank me for getting sick and acted all frustrated.

                 Karoo pat my shoulder and looked over at the clock on the wall. It was already past midnight and the school was quiet. The only ones who had known I’d gotten sick had been Mss. Lambert, Karoo and doctor Castor and I wanted to keep it this way. Doctor Castor had said I could leave the infirmary in the morning either way so nobody would ever know what had happened and I was grateful about that. There was simply no way I would survive Aella’s stupid jokes if she ever found I’ve literally expulsed out of my body a freaking ball and a chain. Doctor Castor sighed and started explaining me what he had just said but in other words so I could understand him better this time.

                 “I can’t be completely sure but statistically speaking in Faerie a ball and chain represents a burden and a restriction of some sort,” he pinched his nose again, massaging the bridge as if he was tired, “it is also a collateral damage of a lock enchantment. I can only presume your Fae powers were locked inside of you by someone extremely powerful and after tonight when you tried to tap into you Fae powers the locks were broken. Hence the fact you cleansed your system of the enchantment. Meaning…”

                 “I puked a ball and chain,” I said and Karoo grimaced.

                 “Please don’t repeat that aloud ever again,” she said and paled. Yeah, no kidding. That was a story I was taking to my grave. I frowned and tried to understand what had just happened. There had been a lock inside of me containing my Fae powers all this time. Which didn’t make any sense. Why would anybody want to keep my powers contained? And following that logic, who had locked my powers? And why did I break the locks tonight of all nights? I’ve been trying to read minds for months now and tonight I’d been able to read minds and break the locks. How? The locks had been on me for years, containing my Fae powers. How I was able to break the locks if I’ve been uncappable of doing it for years? The timing was just odd.

                 “My powers had been locked for years doctor. Why do you think I was able to unlock them tonight?” I asked the doctor, who was half human and had a bad case of greying hair. No full Fae ever suffered from whitening hair or at least that was one fact that seemed to keep Amadeus happy at the prospect of never having to dye his whiskers. Doctor Castor seemed to think about my question for a time before he scratched his greying beard and answered me.

                 “Well, there are only two ways you could have unlocked a charm like the ones restricting your powers. The most likely scenario is that you have grown powerful enough during these last couple of months at Claddagh and were able to unlock your powers on your own. The other only way of having them unlocked is if you consistently ingested Mandrake dust for breakfast during a specific amount of time. The roots can unlock powers but they need to be consistently ingested, every day for breakfast and at the same time,” he shrugged and then pinched his chin, “If that’s everything Mss. Darkholme I would be taking my leave. Please try to rest and please, please, stay out of trouble until I come back to check on you in the morning.”

                 I only nodded but absently, my mind was already in another place and my anger was escalating insanely fast. Karoo and I shared one look and I knew we were both thinking the same. Kodiak-f*****g-Doomhold. The asshole. I’ve been right about suspecting he had been unto something when I saw him reading that book about Mandrakes at the botanic section. He never read but he had read all those books to know what to give me in order to unlock my powers. And since then he had never missed one morning from coming to the cafeteria and serving me a cup of coffee. The coffee that had always tasted too spicy but I’ve liked it so I hadn’t complained. I wonder how stupid he thought I was while he tricked me. I wonder how many times he laughed at my back when he gave my matutine doses of treason. I felt so stupid! And gullible. I knew better than to lower my guard around him. Amadeus had been right. I should have stayed away from him.

                 As if I’ve conjured him with my mind one of the windows from the infirmary opened and a blast of snow and cold wind ran inside the room. The shadows morphed and opened as if they were frightened to touch the large black wings that appeared next. Kodiak landed on the windowsill and turned fast in my direction, retracting his wings until they were folded and then jumping inside the room. His golden eyes seemed to scan me from head to toe in alarm. I really wondered how stupid he thought I was if he thought I was buying his act. Karoo stopped him before he could come any closer to me and shook her head at him. I stopped Karoo before she could talk to his brother telepathically. I wanted to have this conversation from scratch, no mediators and no warming ups. This fight was going to be raw and I was hungry for blood.

                 “Karoo, can you close the windows in your way out please?” I asked her and Karoo bit his lips, staring between Kodiak and me with a worried look before nodding and doing like I’ve asked. The moment she was out I crossed my arms and regarded Kodiak from my place in the infirmary bed. He arched an eyebrow and stared at me with a darkened expression.

                 “If you are mad because I pushed you out of my mind I’m sorry. I never wanted to harm you. I didn’t realize you were the intruder until I heard you scream. I swear this,” he said taking a step closer to me. His breathing was labored when he never seemed out of breath. For a second I thought…no, it couldn’t be. Kodiak couldn’t be worried about me when he had done what he had done.

                 “Kodiak, I’m going to ask you a question and I want you to answer me honestly for once. Just how stupid do you think I am?” I didn’t give him any time to answer and get any ideas it was a rhetoric question. I was in a nice offensive position and wanted to keep him guessing. Kodiak frowned looking all innocent and s**t and I contained the impulse of gauging him, “I mean, what did you think it would happen when I realized you had been spiking my coffee every morning for a month now? Did you think I will let it slide? Did you think I will forgive you because now I have my Fae powers? Did you think I will trust you blindly for taking my decision from me and never, not even once coming clean and telling me what you were doing to me?”

                 “I did what needed to be done,” he said, his voice even and his golden eyes steady. Just then I realized he was shirtless and shoeless. He was only dressed in leather pants and nothing else. The air around him smelled like the forest and snow and for a second I wondered if he had been out in the open all night, guarding the borders and the rest of his land. Then I shook my head and reminded myself he had lied to me and he wasn’t even trying to look sorry about it.

                 “You could have explained to me you were trying to unlock my powers. You could have told me you were spiking my drink with Mandrake dust! If there’s something you need to know about girls is that you never spike their drinks, never,” I screamed this last part to him and Kodiak clenched his jaw, staring at me pointedly, never looking sorry, never looking weak.

                 “You wouldn’t have taken the decision of unlocking your powers. They frighten you and that makes you weak. I refuse to let you be weak, I refuse to make you your own liability and I’m not sorry for making you stronger,” he shrugged and smiled an acid grin, one that was pure arrogance and cruelty. This was Kodiak the king, this was the Fae that had no limits when protecting those he loved. I didn’t know if he loved me or not, but in Kodiak’s dark mind there were no moral codes to follow if he thought he was protecting and guarding those that he wanted to be safe. For better or for worse I was one of those people he wanted to keep safe. He didn’t even understand what he had done wrong. I fisted my hands and punched the bed, my emotions getting the best of me.

                 “That gives you no right to do what you did! And how did you even know my powers were locked?” I asked, just now realizing I didn’t understand that final part of the puzzle. Kodiak’s jaw ticked and he unclenched it, staring at me with a look that promised I was not going to like whatever will come out of his mouth next.

                 “The siren told me when she fed on me. She said your mother had locked your powers to protect you and that was the reason your Fae side was dormant,” he said coldly, uninvested as if he were reading the news. I could feel tears stinging my eyes but I hold on to them and squared my shoulders.

                 “You are telling me you have known all of this for a month now and you never considered telling me the truth? And what about my mother’s reason to lock my powers? She did it to protect me! Protect me! What if unlocking them gets me killed? Did you ever think about the consequences of your acts?” I screamed this last part and Kodiak’s expression darkened, taking one step closer to me and covering me in his shadow.

                 “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to protect you and keep you alive. I’m going to lie to you, I’m going to kill for you, I’m going to do monstrous things, evil things and I will do all of them without a second thought if that means you are alive and you are well. Make no mistake, I know every single consequence I’m facing when I made my decisions. If you are angry at me and you decide to never forgive me then I’m fine with it, because that means you are today more powerful than yesterday and that means you are in control of deciding your own path. This world and all of them will be burn to ashes if it comes a day when you are not safe and happy, so I ask you, what would you have done if I’ve told you your powers could be unlocked?” his eyes moved back and forward while he waited for my answer. At the end I had no answer. I didn’t know what I would have done. Maybe I would’ve waited and ask Amadeus for advice. Maybe I would have researched and made sure there would be no consequences if I unlocked my powers. Bottom line was I would have waited. I was not like Kodiak, who acted in instinct and had a skewed sense of morality. When my silence stretched Kodiak nodded and turned around, he paused on his way to the exit and looked over his shoulder at me, “for what is worth, I would have done it again and I will never be sorry for doing what is needed to protect you.”

                 “Even if there are no limits to your protection?” I asked in a whisper and Kodiak shrugged.

                 “Don’t ask me rhetoric questions siren,” and with that he walked away, leaving me alone with my own thoughts.