Exile (3 page)

The girl to Cyril’s right remained silent, hardly sparing a glance for Aless. Aless didn’t recognize her, but she looked awfully young to be a guardian, and her body didn’t show any noticeable signs of having a spirit inside her. She was immensely pale, looking similar to people from the mountainous Far North. She was small, too, easily over a head shorter than Aless. Her eyes were eerilypale, and her face was too serious for her soft features.

At Cyril’s left was another woman, the same one who had spoken earlier. It surprised Aless, because throughout the years there had been very few instances of women managing to house a spirit, and even when they did, they were usually separated by a few decades. The woman at Cyril’s left was tall, taller than Aless even, and broad, but she really was an incredibly gorgeous, curvy woman. She looked as if she was from Far West, reminding Aless heavily of Piers. However, her hair was a dark-brown color, rather than Piers’s shocking red, and it fell around her back in tight curls, decorated with various beads and feathers. Her skin was covered with bright-green markings, as was typical of Petra’s guardian. It was a huge step up from the old, decrepit man they had before, especially since she looked far calmer than he remembered Petra’s old guardian ever being.

“It’s our pleasure to see your return, Aless,” Cyril greeted, standing and making a small bow, gesturing for the two women to do the same. “I hope you managed to have some enjoyment in your exile, however dull it might’ve been.”

Aless stepped forward and bowed to Cyril. “I thank you for your generosity in allowing my return,” Aless said with full sincerity.

“I also hope you understand that we would not be allowing this if I thought we had a better option,” Cyril said. “However, there is no one available to take your place. You are lucky that we are not simply throwing you under a temple.”

Aless swallowed. He had expected something to that effect. “I understand.”

“Do try to keep your restraints on. Next time we will not forgive you.”

“I will,” Aless promised.

“About that, Aless,” Cyril added, “we need to discuss the incident.”

“I’d agree,” Aless replied, sighing. “What do you want me to say?”

“Well, firstly I’d like you to know we do know it wasn’t your fault,” Cyril stated. “The spirits are unpredictable at best. However, I would like to know what brought on the… incident.”

Aless glanced nervously at Piers. “I was frustrated before I went to sleep—being a guardian at the beginning was immensely stressful,” he explained. “After that I remember waking up restrained and covered in blood,” he answered truthfully.

“We left you with Serac. During your stay in the woods, did you experience any weakening of your bonds?” Cyril asked.

“None. Even if I do not know what happened, Cyril, I will never let this happen again.”

“I understand, Aless,” Cyril answered, standing up and placing a hand on his shoulder.

The girl at Cyril’s left stepped forward, taking Aless’s hand and kissing it, giving a small bow. “My name is Kateline, Guardian of Petra. It’s a pleasure to meet you formally, Master Serac.”

Piers laughed at her actions. “You’re barking up the wrong tree, Kateline. Might as well not waste your time with your seduction,” he teased, walking over and giving Aless a small punch to the shoulder.

Kateline snorted. “I simply wished to be polite, or are you allergic to courtesy, dear Piers?”

Cyril nudged the remaining girl on the back, and she reluctantly slinked forward, offering her hand to Aless. “Selena, Guardian of Zephyr,” she spoke quickly, giving a small bow. So this was the girl who hated him with such a passion….

“Pleasure to meet you, Master Zephyr,” he replied.

She pulled away almost instantly, turning to Cyril. “Now, is that everything? May I go back to my training?” she asked, not bothering to cast another glance in Aless’s direction.

“I’m afraid not, Selena. As we discussed earlier you are still expected to be present for his re-introduction to the clan,” he replied, smooth voice managing to permeate the entire room.

“Come on, Lena, it’s only a few minutes. Besides, don’t you want to welcome Aless back? He’s my best friend and he’s been gone for ten years,” Piers chimed in, giving her a pathetic look.

Selena flushed dark red. “Can we make this faster, then? I have to train and I don’t have enough time to do it.”

“It all depends. Aless, is there anything you wish to ask of us before we reinstate you as the Guardian of Serac?” Aless gave a quick glance between the other guardians—between Kateline’s kind face, Selena’s severe expression, Piers’s teasing smirk, and Cyril’s calm smile he felt an immediate sense of belonging. It had been so uncomfortable all those years, left all alone, secluded from anyone who had trained with the elemental arts. During his exile not even Piers had come to visit him, a fact that made him slightly bitter at times.

But standing right here, in the private meeting hall, surrounded by fellow guardians, even if one of them hated him, he felt a sense of belonging.

“I wish to be reinstated as quickly as possible,” Aless answered.

“Then it is to be done,” Cyril declared, turning around and flicking open a trunk. He pulled out the five traditional vibrant coats. Kateline and Selena both rushed over to the trunk, donning the ornate green and white coats, respectively. Cyril himself wore the black one, passing the red and blue ones to Kateline to deliver to Piers and Aless.

Aless quickly donned his coat, not taking a moment to examine it. As heavy and uncomfortable as their traditional coats were, Aless couldn’t help but feel comfortable. It reminded him of an easier time, before old Master Petra had supposedly goaded him untilhis restraints fell off. He remembered the same process when he had been given his role of Serac’s guardian originally.

Cyril stepped forward and positioned himself ahead of Aless, Kateline, Piers, and Selena. Piers and Selena immediately moved themselves to his left, as if they were in a well-rehearsed dance. Kateline tugged Aless to the right, placing herself closer to Cyril’s side.

Cyril pulled open the doors, stepping forward and into the main dining hall. Instantly the students rose, sensing the importance of the moment as all five guardians had donned their official robes.

Cyril kept the clan at attention, gesturing for Aless to step forward. “Dear family,” he greeted, “I am sure I do not need to remind you all of the significance of this moment. You may all be seated.”

Aless took a moment to scan the room, attempting to assess the mana in the water elementals in particular. There were students there who would make immensely powerful scribes, he noted proudly, and a few who seemed like they could become decent spellcasters with training, but none at the level of a future guardian, much to his disappointment. It would’ve been nice to find an apprentice. He wasn’t about to delude himself into believing he would be alive forever. Even if he didn’t, should he lose control of Serac again, he wanted to make sure someone would be able to take his place. He moved his attention to the other factions, finding similar results in the fire and earth sections.

However, the air sector was a different story.

In hindsight, he wasn’t entirely sure how he’d managed to miss this during his first walkthrough, but there was an immense wave of mana radiating from one of the pupils. It was overpowering. He quickly scanned his fellow guardians. Only Selena’s mana came close, and even then the force of the pupil’s drowned it.

“Now, if you would please step forward and introduce yourself, Master Serac,” Cyril requested, snapping Aless out of his distraction.

He stepped forward and bowed to the crowd. “It’s an honor to introduce, and reintroduce, myself to you all,” he began, standing up straight. “I am Aless, Guardian of Serac. I hope to be allowed to talk to each of you personally, at one point or another. I sense a lot of potential in you, and it will be my honor to eventually take one of you as my apprentice,” he finished, taking another bow.

The crowd politely applauded and was quickly interrupted by Cyril holding his hand up, quieting them. “Now, it is important we discuss the history behind Master Serac’s exile, lest it happen again,” he said. “When a guardian’s restraints fail for one reason or another, it is crucial that you both sound the alarms and get the attention of one of the other guardians. Master Zephyr, in particular, should be the first one you seek out. Do not try to fight off a feral guardian because you will fail, I can promise every one of you that. The incident ten years ago killed a good portion of our old scribes, guardians, and students. The best you can do is sound the alarms and fortify the barracks,” he elaborated, patting Aless on the shoulder. “Before we welcome Aless back to our clan, I would like us all to take a moment of silence to honor those who died that night.”

Aless looked back at Piers, Kateline, and Selena, all three of whom had lowered their heads. He followed suit, taking deep breaths to calm himself. When he first went into exile, he spent a good deal of his time trying to piece what he had done and who he had killed. It had been difficult. He lived the large part of the first year simply
staring
at the wall and trying not to cry. His eyes welled up with tears even now. He didn’t want to break down in front of everyone.

So he allowed his mind to wander back to that pupil he had sensed earlier. What was he like? How did he have such an immense natural force? Was the pupileven a he? Aless allowed himself to wander off—perhaps it was a young man, someone with an innocent spirit and a gorgeous face, someone who could easily be coaxed into being Aless’s eventual apprentice, when he decided to take one, one who would share his bed on cold nights…. Back in Far South, Aless was sure people would have a fit over anyone in power bedding their students, but the monastery had always functioned differently from the rest of Nier.

Aless took a deep breath, reminding himself he was getting ahead of himself. For all he knew the powerful spirit belonged to a girl or was purely based in housing Zephyr. He hoped that wouldn’t be the case. Would he even be able to approach Selena, asking to meet a member from her domain? She definitely disliked him, and people in general, if her interaction with Piers was anything to go off of. It’d be inappropriate.

Cyril’s booming voice once again drew Aless out of his thoughts. “With that done,” he began, “I wish to welcome Master Serac, Aless of the Far South, back into the Cult of the Elements.”

The entire crowd erupted into applause, many members of Serac’s sector standing up to commemorate the event. Aless smiled at this, feeling almost like a local celebrity. The adoring gazes were great, and he couldn’t resist taking another respectful bow. He stopped once he raised his head, biting his lip. It wasn’t the time to get cocky. The attention was great, but he refused to let himself forget the destruction he had caused. There was always the possibility of his restraints breaking again, and as soon as they did, Aless knew almost every person in this room would be dead.

Eventually the applause began to die, and the clan members began sitting down, returning to their various meals.

Selena immediately turned to Cyril, unbuttoning her coat and passing it to Piers. She wore a knee-length button-down dress, a set of warm, thick leggings, and high worn-out brown boots. She looked more ready for a day of training than she did to welcome a new guardian. It was offensive, in Aless’s opinion. Aless looked worn down today, but to his credit he hadn’t had a chance to acquire any new clothing for years.

“Is that everything?” she asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

“I’d appreciate if you would stay for some conversation, Selena. If I recall, this is your first meeting with Aless. I’m sure you two have much to discuss,” Cyril said.

She shook if off. “If that’s everything, I should return to my training. Corin, come with me to the training ground!” she barked.

The young man from the air sector immediately stood up, staring at Aless with wide eyes and bowing. Aless raised his eyebrows, analyzing his mana and feeling that earlier wave of power crash over him. So that was the one. Corin of Zephyr.

Cyril turned to Aless quickly. “You’re now free to resume your duties as the Guardian of Serac. Congratulations.” He smiled, pulling Aless into a quick, fatherly hug. “Can I welcome you all to join me for a meal?” he quickly asked, gesturing for the remaining guardians to return to the conference room for a private discussion.

When all four present guardians had entered and deposited their coats into the chest, Cyril slammed the door, taking a seat at the head of the table. “I first would like to apologize for Selena’s rudeness out there,” he stated, giving Aless a sympathetic look.

“She’s normally a very nice girl,” Kateline added, examining her nails idly.“But she’s incredibly immature. She’s only five winters younger than me, but she may as well be ten.”

“Kateline,” Cyril scolded, “you should not speak this way of a fellow guardian.”

Kateline rolled her eyes. “Well, it’s true, is it not?” she replied. “She’s been nothing but a bother since she found out Aless was coming back, and she rarely even talks to me anymore! I’ll speak of her exactly as I choose, thank you.”

“Be nice, Kateline. She’s been going through a fair amount of stress,” Piers replied, leaning back.

“Of course
you’d
be her protector, Piers,” Kateline replied, sighing. “I’m sorry. I’m being far more temperamental than normal. She just never speaks to me anymore. When we first became guardians we were very close—it’s frustrating.”

“I don’t mind, really,” he answered. “I hope she’ll give me a shot in the future.”

“I will have a talk with her if she does not,” Cyril said. “For the time being, I suggest you reacquaint yourself with the place and explore your chambers a bit. We wouldn’t want you getting lost, now, would we? I have a few scrolls to read, but I’m sure Kateline or Piers can show you around the monastery.”

Kateline smiled, turning to Aless. “It would be my pleasure,” she replied. “Piers?”

Piers shrugged. “I have nothing better to do. I’m sure I can spare a moment for an old friend.”