Professor Monroe entered the classroom in loose-fitting pants and a poncho thrown over her shoulders. The fabrics she wore were dyed in all kinds of color, even those who didn’t match with each other. There were shades of orange, red, and pink together that made Mel’s eyes water.
Austin had barely glanced at her since she’d arrived in the classroom. He kept staring across her bench and out through the window, not really seeing her. When Professor Monroe took the stance, he turned his gaze to her. But an uninterested expression plagued his face.
“Good Morning class,” Professor Monroe said. “Let’s see… today we will cover the history of some important men and families in our kingdom.”
She took out a piece of green chalk and started painting a tree on the blackboard. Long strokes turned into branches and quick jabs colored in the leaves in a crown. The professor switched to a pink chalk and wrote on the trunk of the tree; Berditt.
“The royal family line started ages ago. Before we even have records. They came with the first people into the valley from the Wastelands. The Berditt’s were already the royal family back then, circa year 100. Unfortunately, much of what happened before this time is lost in the bowels of the wastes. But what we do know is that king Edward the sixth loved the valley and after the city of Stonehearth was founded, he made it his home.”
Professor Monroe wrote king Edward’s name on one of the big branches leading out from the trunk. She moved away from the blackboard and paced for a moment in silence in front of the class. Mel took this time to write notes in her pad.
“It was after this time that the beasts first emerged,” Professor Monroe said. “At least to our knowledge. They came from the far east and took over city by city, killing thousands. It was devastating and King Edward was at a loss as to what to do about it. He sent soldiers across the mountains and urged the cities in the old region to protect the people. But nothing seemed to work. They write in the history of Ladena that there were shadows slipping past the guards in the night, killing children in their beds, and vanishing into mist.”
“It wasn’t until we found the dragons far into the valley, even beyond Windbrook, that we could strike back against the beasts. King Gustaf, the second, is said to have closed a deal with the dragons around the year 230. This deal got the dragons to aid us in the battle against the beasts, but no one knows what the dragons really got out of it.”
A hand rose among the front rows, and Professor Monroe gestured for them to speak.
“Rita,” she said. “Didn’t the dragons get all the first-born children of families in the valley?”
Professor Monroe nodded, a thin smile on her lips.
“That is a common story, only superstition, I’m afraid. We don’t know what the king agreed to give them. It isn’t recorded anywhere. The only texts from then, describe his ability to negotiate and paint him in the light of a savior. But there are stories, probably as many as there are people. They say the dragons got virgins to eat or children. They say the dragons wanted none in return. Or they say they got the king’s soul or his gold.”
The professor turned and looked at Mel. Their eyes met for a moment and Mel’s heart sped up, fearing the professor would ask her something. But she didn’t. She just turned back to the room and paced in front of the class.
“In some ways, the stories are almost as important as the recorded history,” the professor said. “For it is in the stories and the superstitions of our ancestors that we can find truths about how the common folk lived. The recorded history only talks about kings, queens and warriors. But the stories speak of the people. The farmers, the fishers, the mothers and the miners.”
“But it’s not what we will talk about during this class, unfortunately,” Professor Monroe continued. “This class is aimed to teach the recorded history.”
Professor Monroe stopped and took a deep breath. “They fought the beasts, but they were inside the cities of the old region by then. They had taken over and all the king could do was watch as, one by one, the great cities fell. Bahlan was said to have been the worst loss of them all. The dragons and the king made a plan to pull out of the old region, across the mountain and protect the valley. They sacrificed the old region, creating the wasteland.”
Professor Monroe’s eyes slid over to Mel, watching her.
“So, at the battle of Cairn, the dragons sacrificed themselves and pushed the beasts back across the mountain. The dragons left us with four dragon stones, giving us their magic to protect the valley.
“There was a soldier in the king’s army. He was not of any particular importance, but when the experiments with dragon fire started, he volunteered to be among the firsts to learn and test the magic. He wielded some of the first weapons created with imbued magic. He and the other test subjects would risk their lives in the name of science. Sometimes blow up entire forests with a firestorm or raze a small village in a landslide. It was all deemed necessary, for the beasts killed far more than just a stray village or two.”
Austin turned his face away from the class, toward Mel, but his gaze was firmly held at the window. He was staring outside, but his eyes were glossy and Mel saw an uneasiness in his posture.
“This soldier later became one of the king’s best and was promoted to a general,” Professor Monroe said. “He was said to be fearless and, together with his company, he was sent across the mountains. They traversed the mountain pass and fought beasts along the way, pushing them further back, and at the entrance to the pass, they created an outpost. This outpost was named the Last Stance and the soldier, a general and elemental warrior, was called Taveck.”
Mel’s eyes flew over to Austin, and for a second his gaze landed on her. His eyes were dark, intense as usual, but there was a sadness in them. One that Mel hadn’t seen before.
Mel swallowed hard.
“Austin’s ancestor, Terri Taveck,” Professor Monroe continued in the same voice. “He was a great man and he, with the help of his army, held the Last Stance for many years. After his death and his son's deaths and so on, the Last Stance had been held for centuries. The king then announced the Last Stance as an outpost no more and erected the statue of Terri Taveck riding a horse that you can find in town square. He also renamed the city to Aldrion after his favorite goat. Yes, he was a fan of goats.”
The class broke out in giggles and whispers at the mention of where the name Aldrion came from. Mel, however, couldn’t seem to look away from Austin’s face. She felt like she didn’t understand why he was sad about this. Why he wasn’t proud of being a Taveck.
“Only a few years after this, the king declared peace in the valley and thanked the city of Aldrion for keeping the war on this side of the mountain. It was around this time, year 558 that the Falden School of Magic was officially established. Himmey Falden had for many years taught elemental warriors and mage smiths in Aldrion, but it was then that he received sufficient funding from the crown to create this school. After his death in 574, they erected the statue of him outside the administration building.”
Professor Monroe sat down on the edge of her desk and looked around the classroom. She fiddled with her poncho, securing it in place with a safety pin.
“So, now, almost a thousand years later, you get to attend this school and learn the arts of magic. Thanks to the Taveck line, Himmey Falden, and the royal family. All these family lines are still helping the school continue with funding and material for the students. They pay my salary and influence the curriculum. It is why the history test will include a big chunk of the history I presented to you today.”
Professor Monroe walked over to the blackboard once more and filled out the tree of the Berditt family line. She wrote names of kings and queens, of their children, and their positions. She put her chalk next to a name on the board.
“Our current king, Richard the eight, has been sitting on the throne for about twenty years now. He has three children, Timmothy, Jean and Felico. Timmothy is the heir to the throne and the other two are his spares.”
The professor spun around and pointed with a piece of pink chalk to Mel. “Can you tell me who was king or queen before Richard the eight?”
Mel swallowed and pointed at her chest. Professor Monroe nodded and smiled.
“Melissa. Wasn’t it Patrick?” she said.
“Patrick was Richard’s brother, the one in line to inherit the throne,” Professor Monroe said. “But he was actually never on the throne. Because he died before his coronation, poison it is said to have been. So, the one on the throne before Richard was?”
Professor Monroe pointed to Flavio.
“Flavio. It was Lennard the second, Richard and Patrick’s father, who was on the throne. Their mother died in childbirth and only had two sons.”
“That’s right,” Monroe said.
She turned to Mel once more and asked her another question. “Are you not taught history in Windbrook?”
Mel winced and felt at once like the odd one out again. The classroom turned to her and watched as she bit her lip.
“No,” she said. “I mean, yes. But not like this. Our history lessons sort of glanced over the royal family and the rest of the world and focused more on the dragons and the history before they vanished. And also, I guess, I wasn’t the best student at my former school. And maybe we were taught this, but I just don’t remember. Sorry.”
Professor Monroe waved a hand in front of her and shrugged.
“Don’t apologize,” she said. “This class is full of people from different regions with different knowledge. That’s why you are all required to take the basics together. To breach those gaps of knowledge and learn the things that are mandatory for an elemental warrior and a mage smith.”
“Anyway,” Professor Monroe continued. “If you need to brush up more on the recorded history and lineage of the noble families, I recommend turning to the Falden library. There are books in there about all this and much more. The rest of our lessons, I will devote to speculations and stories from before our time. We will talk about religion, the wastelands and the civilizations said to have once lived there.”
She looked around the room, and then her eyes landed on the blackboard. “Tomorrow we will meet at the church of the sun here in Aldrion. We will attend the sunrise mass and after that I will have a brief lesson on history in the church. I expect you all to attend.”
Austin’s head turned at this announcement, and a frown covered his face. He picked up his pen and notebook, untouched during class, and as soon as the professor had announced class was over, he walked out of the classroom. Mel watched his back as he walked away from her, without saying goodbye, and shook her head.
She was more sure than ever that Austin had secrets and couldn’t be trusted. He hadn’t told her about his family or ancestors. He hadn’t told her who he was. Maybe because he had already assumed she’d known. But still, he felt like he was keeping more from her than just that. She felt like he was guarding something inside.
Professor Monroe entered the classroom in loose-fitting pants and a poncho thrown over her shoulders. The fabrics she wore were dyed in all kinds of color, even those who didn’t match with each other. There were shades of orange, red, and pink together that made Mel’s eyes water.
Austin had barely glanced at her since she’d arrived in the classroom. He kept staring across her bench and out through the window, not really seeing her. When Professor Monroe took the stance, he turned his gaze to her. But an uninterested expression plagued his face.
“Good Morning class,” Professor Monroe said. “Let’s see… today we will cover the history of some important men and families in our kingdom.”
She took out a piece of green chalk and started painting a tree on the blackboard. Long strokes turned into branches and quick jabs colored in the leaves in a crown. The professor switched to a pink chalk and wrote on the trunk of the tree; Berditt.
“The royal family line started ages ago. Before we even have records. They came with the first people into the valley from the Wastelands. The Berditt’s were already the royal family back then, circa year 100. Unfortunately, much of what happened before this time is lost in the bowels of the wastes. But what we do know is that king Edward the sixth loved the valley and after the city of Stonehearth was founded, he made it his home.”
Professor Monroe wrote king Edward’s name on one of the big branches leading out from the trunk. She moved away from the blackboard and paced for a moment in silence in front of the class. Mel took this time to write notes in her pad.
“It was after this time that the beasts first emerged,” Professor Monroe said. “At least to our knowledge. They came from the far east and took over city by city, killing thousands. It was devastating and King Edward was at a loss as to what to do about it. He sent soldiers across the mountains and urged the cities in the old region to protect the people. But nothing seemed to work. They write in the history of Ladena that there were shadows slipping past the guards in the night, killing children in their beds, and vanishing into mist.”
“It wasn’t until we found the dragons far into the valley, even beyond Windbrook, that we could strike back against the beasts. King Gustaf, the second, is said to have closed a deal with the dragons around the year 230. This deal got the dragons to aid us in the battle against the beasts, but no one knows what the dragons really got out of it.”
A hand rose among the front rows, and Professor Monroe gestured for them to speak.
“Rita,” she said. “Didn’t the dragons get all the first-born children of families in the valley?”
Professor Monroe nodded, a thin smile on her lips.
“That is a common story, only superstition, I’m afraid. We don’t know what the king agreed to give them. It isn’t recorded anywhere. The only texts from then, describe his ability to negotiate and paint him in the light of a savior. But there are stories, probably as many as there are people. They say the dragons got virgins to eat or children. They say the dragons wanted none in return. Or they say they got the king’s soul or his gold.”
The professor turned and looked at Mel. Their eyes met for a moment and Mel’s heart sped up, fearing the professor would ask her something. But she didn’t. She just turned back to the room and paced in front of the class.
“In some ways, the stories are almost as important as the recorded history,” the professor said. “For it is in the stories and the superstitions of our ancestors that we can find truths about how the common folk lived. The recorded history only talks about kings, queens and warriors. But the stories speak of the people. The farmers, the fishers, the mothers and the miners.”
“But it’s not what we will talk about during this class, unfortunately,” Professor Monroe continued. “This class is aimed to teach the recorded history.”
Professor Monroe stopped and took a deep breath. “They fought the beasts, but they were inside the cities of the old region by then. They had taken over and all the king could do was watch as, one by one, the great cities fell. Bahlan was said to have been the worst loss of them all. The dragons and the king made a plan to pull out of the old region, across the mountain and protect the valley. They sacrificed the old region, creating the wasteland.”
Professor Monroe’s eyes slid over to Mel, watching her.
“So, at the battle of Cairn, the dragons sacrificed themselves and pushed the beasts back across the mountain. The dragons left us with four dragon stones, giving us their magic to protect the valley.
“There was a soldier in the king’s army. He was not of any particular importance, but when the experiments with dragon fire started, he volunteered to be among the firsts to learn and test the magic. He wielded some of the first weapons created with imbued magic. He and the other test subjects would risk their lives in the name of science. Sometimes blow up entire forests with a firestorm or raze a small village in a landslide. It was all deemed necessary, for the beasts killed far more than just a stray village or two.”
Austin turned his face away from the class, toward Mel, but his gaze was firmly held at the window. He was staring outside, but his eyes were glossy and Mel saw an uneasiness in his posture.
“This soldier later became one of the king’s best and was promoted to a general,” Professor Monroe said. “He was said to be fearless and, together with his company, he was sent across the mountains. They traversed the mountain pass and fought beasts along the way, pushing them further back, and at the entrance to the pass, they created an outpost. This outpost was named the Last Stance and the soldier, a general and elemental warrior, was called Taveck.”
Mel’s eyes flew over to Austin, and for a second his gaze landed on her. His eyes were dark, intense as usual, but there was a sadness in them. One that Mel hadn’t seen before.
Mel swallowed hard.
“Austin’s ancestor, Terri Taveck,” Professor Monroe continued in the same voice. “He was a great man and he, with the help of his army, held the Last Stance for many years. After his death and his son's deaths and so on, the Last Stance had been held for centuries. The king then announced the Last Stance as an outpost no more and erected the statue of Terri Taveck riding a horse that you can find in town square. He also renamed the city to Aldrion after his favorite goat. Yes, he was a fan of goats.”
The class broke out in giggles and whispers at the mention of where the name Aldrion came from. Mel, however, couldn’t seem to look away from Austin’s face. She felt like she didn’t understand why he was sad about this. Why he wasn’t proud of being a Taveck.
“Only a few years after this, the king declared peace in the valley and thanked the city of Aldrion for keeping the war on this side of the mountain. It was around this time, year 558 that the Falden School of Magic was officially established. Himmey Falden had for many years taught elemental warriors and mage smiths in Aldrion, but it was then that he received sufficient funding from the crown to create this school. After his death in 574, they erected the statue of him outside the administration building.”
Professor Monroe sat down on the edge of her desk and looked around the classroom. She fiddled with her poncho, securing it in place with a safety pin.
“So, now, almost a thousand years later, you get to attend this school and learn the arts of magic. Thanks to the Taveck line, Himmey Falden, and the royal family. All these family lines are still helping the school continue with funding and material for the students. They pay my salary and influence the curriculum. It is why the history test will include a big chunk of the history I presented to you today.”
Professor Monroe walked over to the blackboard once more and filled out the tree of the Berditt family line. She wrote names of kings and queens, of their children, and their positions. She put her chalk next to a name on the board.
“Our current king, Richard the eight, has been sitting on the throne for about twenty years now. He has three children, Timmothy, Jean and Felico. Timmothy is the heir to the throne and the other two are his spares.”
The professor spun around and pointed with a piece of pink chalk to Mel. “Can you tell me who was king or queen before Richard the eight?”
Mel swallowed and pointed at her chest. Professor Monroe nodded and smiled.
“Melissa. Wasn’t it Patrick?” she said.
“Patrick was Richard’s brother, the one in line to inherit the throne,” Professor Monroe said. “But he was actually never on the throne. Because he died before his coronation, poison it is said to have been. So, the one on the throne before Richard was?”
Professor Monroe pointed to Flavio.
“Flavio. It was Lennard the second, Richard and Patrick’s father, who was on the throne. Their mother died in childbirth and only had two sons.”
“That’s right,” Monroe said.
She turned to Mel once more and asked her another question. “Are you not taught history in Windbrook?”
Mel winced and felt at once like the odd one out again. The classroom turned to her and watched as she bit her lip.
“No,” she said. “I mean, yes. But not like this. Our history lessons sort of glanced over the royal family and the rest of the world and focused more on the dragons and the history before they vanished. And also, I guess, I wasn’t the best student at my former school. And maybe we were taught this, but I just don’t remember. Sorry.”
Professor Monroe waved a hand in front of her and shrugged.
“Don’t apologize,” she said. “This class is full of people from different regions with different knowledge. That’s why you are all required to take the basics together. To breach those gaps of knowledge and learn the things that are mandatory for an elemental warrior and a mage smith.”
“Anyway,” Professor Monroe continued. “If you need to brush up more on the recorded history and lineage of the noble families, I recommend turning to the Falden library. There are books in there about all this and much more. The rest of our lessons, I will devote to speculations and stories from before our time. We will talk about religion, the wastelands and the civilizations said to have once lived there.”
She looked around the room, and then her eyes landed on the blackboard. “Tomorrow we will meet at the church of the sun here in Aldrion. We will attend the sunrise mass and after that I will have a brief lesson on history in the church. I expect you all to attend.”
Austin’s head turned at this announcement, and a frown covered his face. He picked up his pen and notebook, untouched during class, and as soon as the professor had announced class was over, he walked out of the classroom. Mel watched his back as he walked away from her, without saying goodbye, and shook her head.
She was more sure than ever that Austin had secrets and couldn’t be trusted. He hadn’t told her about his family or ancestors. He hadn’t told her who he was. Maybe because he had already assumed she’d known. But still, he felt like he was keeping more from her than just that. She felt like he was guarding something inside.
