The final three sets hardly qualified as robes at all. They didn’t even have sleeves, and the skirt was so abbreviated, it barely dropped below my waist. There weren’t even buttons or zippers. The super casual outfits were made from a fabric so stretchy I could just pull them over my head. The pants were knee length and made of the same material. Those must have been meant for workouts.
A sudden rush of excitement ran through me at the realization of what those were for. I snatched the exercise gear off its hanger, pulled it on quickly, and slipped my feet into the short black shoes on the floor of the closet.
The booming came again, and I rolled my eyes and took off down the stairs. The cottage’s door had no lock, and it didn’t need one. No one could get into my private quarters without going through the dormitory tower’s front door, and that wouldn’t open for anyone but me.
The booming came twice more as I ran across the bridge and wound my way through the forest. The trip back to the dormitory tower was much shorter than the trip to the cottage had been. I wasn’t sure if that was because I was more familiar with the area or if there was some sort of time and space bending weirdness going on. It wouldn’t have surprised me either way.
“You’re going to make us all late for our first martial arts class,” Eric said when I threw open the tower’s door. “Let’s go!”
“Lead the way.” The doors slid closed and locked with a click behind me as I stepped into the hallway. “Far be it from me to keep anyone waiting.”
Eric took off, and Abi fell in beside him. Clem and I followed them, and she slowed down to let them get far enough ahead of us that we could speak without being overheard.
“Where did you go?” she asked. “I saw the portal suck you away, but not where you went.”
I wanted to be honest with Clem, but the geas would only let that go so far. I mulled over what I could tell her for a moment, then rolled out an abbreviated version of yesterday’s events.
“The portal took me to a fancy meal with the elders,” I said quietly. “They want me to work for them.”
Eric’s single-minded determination to get to class on time pushed the school’s shifting architecture harder than I’d ever seen it before. We didn’t take a single corner or go down any steps. The hall rearranged itself just ahead of us as we made a beeline from my dormitory tower to the dojo. I filed that little tidbit away for later experimentation. If it was possible to get through the school faster, I wanted to learn that trick.
“What do they want you to do?” Clem asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.
“I learned a lot of stuff working for Tycho last year,” I said honestly, then lied. “They want me to do the same sort of stuff for them.”
“Are you going to do it?”
“I don’t know,” I said, which was also the truth. “It would take so much time, and I don’t want to spend another year slaving away. I want to enjoy at least some of my time at school, you know?”
“This is a big opportunity for you,” Clem said thoughtfully. “Working directly with the elders of your clan will be a prestigious feather in your cap.”
“Maybe,” I said with a shrug. Everything I did would be a secret. I wasn’t sure how much of a reputation boost that would give me. Still, it would help people, and that was important, even if it was dangerous. I just wasn’t sure what I should do.
“I’m sure you’ll make the right choice,” Clem said. She threw an arm around my shoulders and gave me a quick squeeze. “Oh, we’re here.”
The School’s dojo had an elaborate arched gateway instead of a door. The wide opening in the stone wall revealed an open floor covered in a soft, somewhat springy material. Older students were already practicing with one another, while the younger upperclassmen had gathered in small groups where they chatted nervously.
While no initiates ever saw the dojo, we’d all heard stories about what went on there, and spotted upperclassmen with bruised faces and bandaged limbs at mealtimes. This room was where Empyreals truly learned how to harness their martial capabilities.
As soon as we passed through the gateway, a gong reverberated through the dojo. A tall man with his long gray hair pulled up into a topknot entered through a door across the room from us. His robes, like those worn by the rest of us, were clearly intended for comfort and ease of movement. His gaze swept across the fifty students gathered in his domain, then stopped to meet mine.
A faint smile quirked his lips, and he gave me a short nod.
“Welcome to the dojo,” the man said. “I am Professor Song, and I’ll be instructing you this semester. Please, form a semicircle around me. I’d rather not shout to be heard.”
The professor waited until we’d gathered around, then launched into the first class’s teachings.
“You should all be familiar with your aura, serpents, and swords.” He crossed his arms as he spoke and paced back and forth inside the semicircle. “Your aura is your defense against jinsei attacks. Your swords are your most potent offense and will become more so as your cores advance. Finally, your serpents are the most flexible tool at your disposal, capable of attack or defense, and so much more. My goal for this semester is to help you understand how these three work together to become more than the sum of their parts. Today, we’re going to
