Breeze Corinth (Book 1): Sky Shatter (16 page)

He headed back to his office when he stopped to look up at the stars. Sunrise was not far away and the sky was beginning to light up.

“You’re out there somewhere Bram, I know it,” he said.

The heavens responded with a distant rumble of thunder. He noted the billowing dark clouds on the horizon heading toward the island with streaks of lightning snaking through them like a live wire.

Typical summer weather
, he thought and continued on.

THE NEXT MORNING THE
students gathered in the dining hall for breakfast. They shuffled in looking like zombies as Sally’s hair was a tangled mess held up with a band while Ray and Breeze both looked disheveled with wrinkled clothes and tousled hair.

They sat around a wooden table and listened to Excort bang around in the kitchen off to the side.

They avoided eye contact with each other, choosing instead to gaze around the room, noting the holes in the ceiling.

Sally broke the silence. “I preferred Greenbrier. This place smells. Everything is broken and nothing works,” she said and stared at Ray.

He shrugged. “What am I supposed to do about it?”

“Call your father!” she said shrilly. “Make him tell Oslo that this place is a disaster and in need of serious repairs. How in the world could our parents have sent us to this dump? I was perfectly happy at Greenbrier, with its beautiful mountains and tall trees, along with the warm summers and snow in the winter. This place? A humid, roach infested hotel passing itself off as a school. How anyone deals with this heat is beyond me.”

“I like it. It’s definitely a change for me,” Breeze piped in.

“What do you know? You come from a desert with cactus for trees and tumble weeds to keep you amused,” she said with a dismissive wave.

“Hey, it’s not all that bad. We have mountain ranges too. The mornings can be very cool, and the air is clear and you can see for miles. There is a lot of life in the desert, you just have to look.”

“Whatever.” She looked toward the kitchen. “Where is that midget with the food? I’m starving.”

The pots and pans in the kitchen banged even harder, and then stopped when Excort stepped out pushing a cart loaded with plates of food. He plopped down before each of them dishes filled with cuisine they had never seen before.

“What…is this?” Sally poked at her food with a fork. She took a stab at a slice of white fish filet and held it up for all to see.

“Broiled hogfish, plantain chips and seaweed with a bowl of conch chowder,” Excort announced.

The boys paused for a moment as they eyed their plates, then grabbed their forks and knives and tore into their food like ravenous wolves.

Sally would have none of it. “This is not acceptable. This is not even food.” She pushed her plate away, half expecting the boys to stop eating. Her frustration doubled as they ignored her and continued to eat. She crossed her arms and fumed at Ray. He paid her no heed and kept shoveling food into his mouth. Breeze looked up from his plate for a moment and wilted under Sally’s withering gaze.

Like a volcano that had been threatening to erupt, Sally exploded.

“Raymond, I demand that something be done about our deplorable conditions. I will not tolerate—”

“What do you want me to do, Sally?” he said as he threw his fork and knife onto his plate. “I’m here with you. I know what it’s like. I see everything around me. I’m here for the same reasons you are, and that’s because of our parents. Do you, of all people, expect me to disobey my father? You’ve met the man. I’m the dutiful son. I obey his commands and do what I’m told. He tells me to pack my things, that I’m transferring here for a summer session, and that you were coming with me. He was never happy with the fact that Greenbrier was not a military academy. He felt we would be better off here, even if it’s just for the summer.”

“You would be better off here, not me!” Sally shot back. “Military academy? Are we expected to use our powers for what? Combat? Against who? I’m not fighting anyone. I don’t even understand why my parents would lie to me about how old and beat up this place is. I didn’t know that this place existed”

Ray shrugged. “Maybe they thought you would be better off here, too. That this place would have something to offer than Greenbrier couldn’t. I don’t know. Before we left, I noticed how weird our parents and instructors had been acting. Everyone seemed so nervous and jumpy. My parents come to me one day and tell me I’m transferring to another school for the summer, and that you would be going too. The next day, we jumped on the transport to come here. I’m telling you Sally, I know as much as you do.”

“You know,” Breeze offered up, “I had a couple of guys from Perihelion come to my house and tell me about this place—”

“Nobody cares,” Sally cut him off.

Breeze was about to retort when Oslo entered. He took giant strides and crossed the length of the dining hall to their table in just a few steps.

“Good morning students. I came here to personally greet you and have breakfast together. How is everyone doing?”

Excort pulled out a chair for him and he sat down with a grace that belied his towering height.

“Horrendous.” Sally was the first to answer as she gave him an icy stare.

“Are you having difficulties adjusting to your new surroundings?” Oslo said as Excort placed a heaping plate of food before him.

“Difficulties? Well, what a nice way to put it. Where do I begin? First—”

Ray interrupted. “Sir, I would like to contact my parents. My father especially. May I use the communications room?”

Oslo stiffened. “The comms are temporarily offline. Nasty storm earlier this morning knocked out the tower, but Excort is seeing to the repairs.”

“He’s standing right there.” Sally pointed at the dwarf.

“Yes, of course. His sons help out around the island,” Oslo quickly responded as Excort shot him a quizzical look.

“Oh, there’s more of them?” Sally rolled her eyes.

“Thankfully, yes. Ray, I promise you that as soon as the tower is repaired, you may contact your family.”

“And me?” Sally asked icily.

“All of you,” Oslo said. “Now, let’s enjoy this meal for we have much to do this afternoon,
ja
? What do we have for breakfast? Ah, hogfish, always a delight! Dig in everyone,” he said with joy and reached for his silverware.

Sally pushed back from the table and walked away.

Oslo’s booming voice brought her to a halt. “You have not been dismissed, young lady. Sit back down.”

She whirled around with fire in her eyes. “I don’t like it here! This is place is a disaster. You call this a school? I call it a garbage dump!”

Oslo placed his hands on the table. “You are a student at Greenbrier,
ja
? Phenomenal school and one of the best to be found on the mainland. It is an institution that had produced some of the best scholars and statesman in the North Eastern Territories. Men and women with class, taste, and style, who go on to inspire people of the surrounding territories to better themselves. To encourage others to be something more than what they are, and to forever strive to achieve loftier heights. That is what Greenbrier is known for. Sally, do you feel you are a good representative of that school right now?”

She said nothing while nervously shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

Oslo continued. “Sally, did it occur to you that perhaps Perihelion needs you? That what this place sorely needs is someone like you? That a young woman of your background and pedigree can bring to this place your sense of dignity and grace? To hang your unique style and class throughout the campus and help turn it into a place that is worthy of Greenbrier? May I dare say, perhaps one day, better?”

Sally stood at attention. Her angry stare softened into contemplation. “This place could use some sprucing up.”

“There, you see? That is what I’m talking about. Perihelion is more than just another school. This is not some institution. It’s a new beginning. A chance for a fresh start. The world needs more of that, wouldn’t you agree? We’re building a better tomorrow right here. Let’s begin right now with all of you behaving like students who obey their headmaster. Sit down at the table and eat you breakfast. We have a big day ahead of us.”

Sally sat back down. She casually stirred her bowl of chowder and sampled it. A look of surprise lit up her face and she continued eating.

Oslo beamed. Each of his students were eating their breakfast without any further bickering, and it pleased him to see this. He was responsible for their well-being and he was more than happy to take on that burden.

His eyes began to wander across the dining hall. Sally was more than right. Perihelion was in shambles. He could see the cracks in the façade, along with the leaking roof, and the anemic air-conditioning system that was fighting a losing battle with the heat and humidity. He gave a great speech about rebuilding to Sally. Now he wondered if he bit off more than he could chew.

He lowered his gaze and was greeted by Excort’s glare. “Ah, Excort. Please see to the comm tower if you will, right after you clear the dishes of course.”

Excort grabbed plates and noisily stacked them on the cart. “I’ll head out later and see what sort of progress my ‘sons’ are making.”

“Good man. Students, return to your rooms and get into uniforms. Then wait outside the dorms in one hour. Class dismissed.”

The trio stood up and marched out of the dining hall. When they were out of earshot, Excort spoke up. “Are you mad? Making Perihelion a place worthy of Greenbrier, you said? How? With what? What are you trying to do here, Oslo?”

Oslo narrowed his eyes. “They are young. Brash. Full of energy. Their gifts make them this way, but I can give them a sense of direction. I can help them achieve a sense of accomplishment by getting them to rebuild this place. I can keep them safe here. I know I can.”

Excort continued to clear the table and stacking dishes onto the cart with a loud clink. “Keep them safe from what? I don’t claim to know what the Elephim are doing, or if they still hover above us watching our every move. But perhaps everything is quiet because no one has done anything yet to stir them up,” he said and glared at Oslo. “All I know is things have changed. And why am I cooking and clearing dishes? Why can’t we use the robots?”

“We need them in the hangar. It’s critical that we get the aerocraft operational again.”

Excort pounded his fists onto the table. “What for! What are you going to do with them? What is it you’re not telling me?”

Oslo held up a hand. “You are right. I do owe you an explanation.” He cleared his throat before speaking. “I heard from Bram.”

Excort’s eyes widened, and then narrowed into slits. “What do you mean? How is this possible?”

Oslo sighed. He pushed away his plate and dabbed his mouth with a napkin. “He came to me while I was at my home in Scandinavia, in a vision, if you will. It was a bitterly cold night as I sat before the fireplace trying to get as much warmth as I could. The fire was roaring, and I was mesmerized by the flames. The wind outside was like a lion, lashing my home so hard I could hear the wooden beams of the walls and floor creaking and groaning. And yet, the flames held my attention. I was reminiscing about old times, dearly departed friends and failed dreams when I found myself going into a dark place that forced me to contemplate if I should keep going on, or just give up and leave things be. That’s when I heard his voice. It was faint, like a whisper. I haven’t seen him in so long and yet it felt like time had melted away when I heard it. As if it were only yesterday since we lost contact with him.”

Excort stood in stunned silence.

Oslo trailed off and began stroking his chin, nodding his head as if he were having a private conversation with himself.

Excort motioned with his hand. “And?”

Oslo stared blankly at the dwarf.

Excort had enough. He was tired and frustrated. For him, life here on Perihelion was quiet and tranquil. He and his wife, Mila, were used to the easy life of the island and enjoyed being its caretakers.

They were accustomed to Oslo’s frequent visits over the years as he would stroll along the boulevards of the dilapidated campus and wander about aimlessly with his head down while lost in deep thought.

One evening, as they sat down for a meal prepared by Mila, Oslo began to chatter excitedly about finding others of “their kind,” as he so often put it. When Excort pressed him for details, Oslo dropped the subject and never mentioned it again. He left for Scandinavia in his sailboat the next morning.

Weeks later, Oslo sent them an urgent message. Re-open Perihelion, it read. Get the main generators back online.

They had done as he had requested. Oslo arrived days later on his sailboat, but this time with a look of excitement they hadn’t seen in a while. He spoke about a new group of students he had discovered and the importance of getting Perihelion up and running again. Excort had to calm him down long enough to explain to him that the campus was in disrepair and that they couldn’t possibly get things repaired in a reasonable amount of time. It was just too much to ask of them, Excort told him. But Oslo assured the dwarf it could be done.

Excort reached out to his sons and daughters who had long ago moved away and had started families of their own on surrounding islands. Some of his younger sons who had yet to take wives were the only ones who could respond to his request for help. They never understood why their parents wouldn’t leave Perihelion, and he could never convey to his children the powerful bond they had with the island.

But now he stood before his recalcitrant friend wearing an apron with a cart full of dirty dishes, and he couldn’t even get the man to finish telling him the most important news he had waited to hear for a long time. “Oslo, what did he say?”

“Oh, yes, of course. He said ‘Return to Perihelion, I’m coming back.’”

Excort waited for more. He received nothing. “That’s it?”

“Yes.”

“That’s all he said? You looked into your fireplace, heard a voice, and that was enough to come rushing back here after all this time and to have my wife and I labor night and day to re-open this place, all because you heard a voice? Have you gone mad? Are you drinking again?”

Oslo laughed and held up his hands in mock surrender. “Now, you know I gave that up a long time ago.”

“You think this is funny? I’m taking the rest of the day off.” Excort turned on his heel and marched out of the dining hall.

“What about these dirty dishes?” Oslo called to him.

“Clear them yourself!” Excort shouted.