Aeres Academy - Chapter 16 preview

Standing before the attendant, waiting for him to finish the count of shards and decide the exchange rate for them all was mildly uncomfortable, what with the glares and rapt attention of the hall directed at me. Returning on the dot meant that I was, by default, the most interesting thing to happen at that time.

It took a while, and from my position I had enough time to see what the attendant was doing, splitting each shard into its respective sections, going by cut, clarity and luminescence. 

“Worst kind of ring buying,” I muttered, then shook my head as the attendant frowned at my interruption. This felt exactly like when I proposed to Em, the pressure and expectation of all those around, the many – and myself – wondering if she would say yes. I was, of course, mostly certain by that point, but you could never be a hundred percent certain, not really. After all, I had been – as the children said – batting out of my league.

I could not help but remember her for a time, the struggles we had. It had been a different time, back then, when we got together. Marrying young was normal – but marrying out of your race? It had taken a lot of courage on her side, even more when her parents had disowned her when she said yes. The first few years had been hard, living in that ratty one-bedroom apartment while we subsisted on the odd jobs I found and her own secretary salary.

Still, it had been worth every dollar I put into that ring to see the look on her face. These days, of course, the idea of buying diamonds might be passe but, back then, it had to be done. And done well.

“Here.” Perhaps cognizant of how many eyes were on us, the attendant pushed a slip of scrap over. It took me a moment to decipher it – bad handwriting and a different language meant I read slowly. Slowly enough that he spoke up. “Can you not read?”

“I can. Just…” I hesitated, decided to tell the truth. “Not well.” My hand came up, stopping him from speaking. “I think I worked it out.”

He had been thorough, breaking down the shards by what he had seen, their relative values, which ones he had adjusted and added together to come up with a total. He had even taken the time to break down not just how much I had earned but also what I had left, which was a staggering amount if I translated shards to bosses and levels.

“Seriously?” I said, tapping the bottom number – four cores and six shards remaining after they took their share. 

“Yes. Congratulations, that puts you in third place.”

That surprised me, now that I had seen my total. I would have thought I had the most, especially considering I had taken the tribe council down. Then again, that was the thing about swarms – if you managed to handle them well, it was possible you could acquire quite the hoard. That was really the only way I could think of someone acquiring more shards and cores than me. 

Other than… No. 

No one would be that insane.

Pushing the thought aside, I focused as he kept talking. “You’ve got two options. You can take your cores and shards now, I’ll pay you out and you can then bank it wherever you wish. Or you can leave it with us, and we’ll keep a tally on your behalf.”

“There a bonus for leaving it with the academy?” I asked, curiously.

“No. Just makes it easier for us to keep track of things. Especially if you are buying, renting or making use of school resources.” The attendant shrugged, not looking like he cared.

I guessed, for the academy, the difference was minimal. After all, the amount of cores that flowed through it from us students was likely paltry, especially compared to the dungeon teams that were sponsored by the academy to delve deeper.

“Can I split it?” I said, tapping one of the cores. “I do need something for living expenses.” I hesitated, then asked, softly. “Do you split into levels and bosses?”

“We do.” The attendant looked up at me and enunciated clearly. “Each full core is worth, at the academy’s exchange rate, four bosses and eleven levels. Would you like to be paid out?” 

There was something in the way that he said it that raised a suspicious bone in my body. The attendant also made no move to take the core, and I found myself shaking my head. “No. I’ll just take the core itself.”

“Very good.” Making a quick note on the slip of paper he had gifted me and then on his own notes, he pushed the core to me. “Now, best get going. I believe they’re waiting for you.”

“Right, uhh… thank you.” I bobbed my head, then paused. “Sorry. I never got your name.”

“Vethan.”

“Nice to meet you, Vethan. Hopefully, I’ll see you around.” 

“I am sure you will.” Vethan gave me another thin-lipped smile, then waved me off. Taking the hint, I made my way to where the other successful aspirants awaited at the end of the room. They milled around there, patiently waiting for everyone to gather. 

A woman with long, lanky, golden-hair half-white, looking half-bored by the proceedings locked her eyes on me – no, on Vethan, I realized a moment later. And the moment I made it to the other side of the hall, she clapped her hands together.

The minor sonic boom made my ears ache and rattled the windows and tables in the room. The attendants, guards and what I assumed to be professors, by the fact that they were older, better dressed, more confident and had weapons them, all glared at the woman. She resolutely ignored the looks as she stepped up to a small stage that allowed her to look over us all.

“Now that all the dust has been wiped off, we can get properly started.” Her lips peeled apart into a wide smile, more predatory than joyful. “Unless, of course, some of you who didn’t pass are still here, hanging about like mana leeches. In which case, be gone.”

A well-dressed individual skulking near the back with me and a wiry woman at the front started at the words. They spun about, their movements jerky, as though their limbs were not theirs to control anymore. Facing the doors, they marched out of the room. The woman managed to get hold of herself as she exited the door, only to be met by a stern-faced guard who pulled her out.

Smile still on her face, the woman who had commanded the two turned to us, a small tap of her foot on the stage sounding out like a heavy drum beat. “Now, we’re finally ready to start. Welcome to the Aeres Academy, noviates.”