SWNOVELS Chapter 18: Halls of Danger
She is excited to see Carol and Marol when she enters their dorm. They hug her tightly as they bustle in excitement telling her of all their Christmas gifts. Bularia enters the room and squeals in excitement as she runs to Sahara and hugs her.”I see you survived the wrath of the aran.”
The elleths are full of questions about the glorman battle and Tyde. Sahara tries to answer with out telling them too much. She was still skeptical about Bularia’s loyalty after all.
“How was it spending the holiday with Brystol?” Marol asks all dreamy eyed.
“Did you two get along at all?” Carol teasing pushes Sahara when she asks.
“It was,” She pauses remember how sweet he was sometimes, “I don’t know. He kissed me.” She says it before she feels instant regret as she looks over at Bularia’s shocked face.
“Did you get caught under greydrun?” Bularia blurts out with what Sahara swears is a bit of anger.
Marol and Carol are swooning and excitedly pulling at Sahara for more details. Sahara rolls her eyes at their excitement as she says, “He had just received some devastating news and then the next thing I know he is… well…” She cannot say the word kiss again in relation to Brystol, it was too annoying. “It was weird.”
“Is that why the two of you are not talking?” Bularia asks turning her back toward them and beginning to unpack her trunk.
“What do you mean not talking?” Sahara wonders if Bularia had been the one spying on her last night.
“You both looked angry with each other when you jumped out of the carriage this morning.” Bularia says innocently.
Sahara remembers there being multiple elves around when she arrived but she had been too focused on getting away from Brystol to notice who each of them actually were. “You were there? Why didn’t you say something to me?” Sahara asks in confusion.
“Because I was just getting out of my own carriage and you were like running away from him. So I thought you might need a minute.” Bularia says only glancing at Sahara for a moment.
“I wasn’t running.” Sahara says in defense.
“Oh.” Bularia says giving away her disbelief.
The next couple of months become routine with classes, plorksol practice, and plorksol games. The speculating whispers of her and Mailroom Tyde had died down finally and she feels normal for once, now that everyone has come accustomed with her presence. Sahara and Brystol have not exchanged more than a few required words since the holiday break and it has been awkward between them to say the least. He still seems to be with Waizlynn every time Sahara turns around and of course Waizlynn is her usual hateful self.
It seems like every other day as she steps out into the hall with Bularia from the Basic Thought Magic course room. As they progress down the hall they begin to notice worried students running through the halls toward the window that overlooks the courtyard. “What is happening?” Bularia asks as she and Sahara meet eyes. They both follow the spectating students toward the window and squeeze in to see what is going on.
Bularia gasps in shock and squeezes Sahara’s arm. “Is that…Carol?”
“Come on.” Sahara says as they hurriedly run down the stairs toward the courtyard to see what is happening.
Sahara barely notices Brystol as she collides into him on the first floor. “She will be okay.” He says to Sahara but she pushes him away from her and continues her path to exit the building.
They see the carriage that Carol was loaded into already leaving the ground as they make it outside. Marol is sitting on the steps hugging herself as she cries with worry. “Marol?” Sahara says running over to sit next to her on the steps. “What happened?”
“She wasn’t feeling good this morning after breakfast and went to lay down. I left class early to go check on her and she was just laying in the floor of our dorm and I could not wake her up.” She manages the words between sobs.
Sahara hugs Marol as they sit on the stairs as she looks at the two Headoreons talking quietly with Plansa, the Zori. She can tell from Plansa’s expression that something is wrong. She releases Marol from her hug as she speaks, “I’m going to talk to Headoreon Shawdlortur, I will be right back.” Sahara looks at Bularia, “Why don’t you take her to lunch?”
“That is a good idea,” Bularia says lovingly, “come on Marol.”
Sahara moves down the steps but Headoreon Leavint notices her and the trio stops talking and begins to move back up the steps toward the entrance. “What is going on?” Sahara asks pointing her question toward Headoreon Shawdlortur.
“Nothing to worry over.” He says moving past Sahara. She follows him knowing that he looks worried. She had gotten to know him well over the past few months, since they have been working on her extra studies together.
“I don’t believe you.” She says keeping up with his long stride and making her tone sound authoritative. “What is wrong with Carol?”
“I have things to attend to, go to lunch arenal.” Headoreon Shawdlortur says after entering the academy.
“Like telicalling my father?” Brystol’s voice behind her is startling. “We want to come.” Sahara wonders who he is referring to as we as she looks around for Waizlynn. Then, she realizes he is referring to her.
“I cannot al…” Shawdlortur begins to speak but Brystol interrupts.
“I heard what Plansa said Carol...” Brystol pauses glancing down at Sahara. “Well, you know.”
Headoreon Shawdlortur speaks quietly as he looks around in surprise and what Sahara suspects to be fear. “Come along then.”
Sahara has a million thoughts running through her mind as they make their way to his office. She impatiently waves her hand beating Shawdlortur at covering the room with a protective sound barrier wall after the door closes.
Brystol looks at her impressed, “When did you learn…”
She shakes her head at him as she interrupts with her own question., “What is wrong with Carol?”
“It appears,” Shawdlortur sounds as if he is being cautious with his words, “she has been flaetered.”
“What?” Sahara says frustrated at being presented with a new word at a time like this.
“It is an extremely rare kind of poison.” Brystol clarifies.
Sahara swallows trying to process what they are saying. “How?”
“That is what we need to figure out.” Shawdlortur pulls out a rounded telicaller. A few moments later the aran’s hologram appears in the room with them.
Sahara had heard about telicalls but she had never gotten to participate in one. She is surprised to see it is like the aran is in the room with them. “What have they done?” The aran says after looking at Brystol and Sahara.
“Nothing, they are still not speaking to each other,” Headoreon Shawdlortur’s words cause Sahara to roll her eyes at Brystol in annoyance. “But this is actually about Sahara’s roommate. She has been flaetered.”
The aran immediately straightens his posture in alarm. “At the academy?”
“Yes, it seems after breakfast she claimed to not feel well and then was found laying in the floor hours later.” Shawdlortur explains.
“Flaeter takes at least 2 days to present symptoms.” Aran Rayterbay says looking over at Sahara and Brystol, “Are any other elves presenting symptoms?”
“That is just it,” Shawdlortur says sounding nervous, “Her twin, who is also Sahara’s roommate, says she had no symptoms before this morning, but she was unresponsive when she was found and we just had her flown to Shreklav.” Shreklav was the hospital just a few miles away from them, Sahara notes as she listens the him continue, “She was fevered and I will be honest it doesn’t look good.” Sahara feels tears building in her eyes realizing that her friend is worse off than what the were letting on.
The aran looks sharply over toward her and Brystol before looking back to Sharwdlortur as if he is wanting an answer. “Ah, yes,” Shawdlortur says clearing his throat nervously. “They insisted to be in on our meeting. And since they are the future aran and tar…”
Aran Rayterbay interrupts finishing his sentence, “You thought it would be alright to include them.” The room is silent as the nervous trio watch the aran, wondering if they are about to be scolded, but instead he looks pleased. “Good for you two.” He grows a proud short lived smile. “Now, if it is flaeter, the zori should be able to run tests and find traces of it in their system. Test the food before it is served, Sahara and Brystol are to be fed and served only by Chef Uplee. I will send him immediately.“
“What about everyone else?” Sahara asks not appreciating the special treatment.
“Everyone else is not of my concern at the moment, but that of Headoreon Leavint’s. I am sure he is preparing a plan to protect them.” The aran responds in a mono tone.
Sahara gets angry. “You’re the aran! Everyone should be your concern, not just us.”
The three ellon give her a surprised look. Aran Rayterbay raises his voice in response, “I do not answer to you, aranel. But out of a curtesy, I will explain the system to you this one time. Leavint is the head of the school, if he needs my advice he will seek it out. Shawdlortur is head of your protection, if he needs my advice he seeks it out. That is what this telicall is about. Your protection. NOT everyone else.”
She feels uncomfortable as she looks down at the wooden flooring. She knows her cheeks are burning with embarrassment.
“If it were a meal that was poisoned, wouldn’t there be more than just one student ill?” Brystol contributes thoughtfully.
“We have snacks in the elleths rec room, Carol eats them almost every day.” She says.
“Who has access to the snacks? Do you eat them as well?” The aran asks curiously.
“Yes. Sometimes, but not as often as Carol.” She responds quietly. “I mean, everyone knows we have a community snack stash and lots of the elleths contribute. They get stuff in the mail all the time from their parents and what they don’t want they add.”
“Hmm.” The aran shakes his head looking over toward Brystol, “Do the ellon have a stash too?”
“Yes.” Brystol says.
“Those will need confiscated and examined.” The aran says turning back toward Shawdlortur. “Mail will need intercepted.”
“Yes, I will see to it.” Shawdlortur says confidently.
“After you receive their results from the zori, telicall me back. Alone.” The aran emphasizes his last word glancing over at the young teens ensuring them they are unwelcome. “Chef Uplee will be there for their dinner meal.”
The aran quickly disappears without saying bye and Brystol mumbles, “Bye father, love you too.” Sahara feels sorry for him, as she quickly looks away from his glance at her.
“Well off to the zori then.” Shawdlortur says to them shewing them toward the door as the protective room covering disappears.
Their tests come back clear but over the next few days more and more elleth grow ill and are taken to Shreklav. Out of concern for the growing number of elleth’s becoming ill, Headorean Leavint has called a meeting in the banquet room. All the elleth are required to attend, because at present zero ellon have become ill while almost seventy-five elleth are ill. “I urge anyone with information to come forward immediately.” Sahara hears Leavint saying as she walks in late to the meeting. She had gotten held up by Headorean Shawdlortur informing her that she would be required to be tested daily and if the rates of illness continue to increase, she would be removed from the academy for protection. “This is a serious matter and once the culprit or culprits are discovered, I cannot promise the aran will be lenient, unless you come forward now.”
The room remains silent as Sahara finds an empty seat next to a first year elleth she does not know. The elleth gives her an odd look and scoots away from Sahara. She finds it odd wondering if she smells bad or something. She notices throughout the meeting multiple elleth looking at her and whispering. She feels uncomfortable wondering what the rumor could be she is missing out on. “Why is everyone talking about me?” She asks Mecca as they leave the meeting.
Mecca looks around uncomfortably and keeps her head down with her quiet words. “Whatever you do, don’t agree to meet anyone anywhere.” Mecca speeds up leaving Sahara with more questions.
“Huh?” Sahara feels someone grab her arm stopping her from following Mecca. She turns to meet eyes with a fourth year elleth she had never spoken to before.
“Hi.” The elleth smiles toward Sahara, “ I am Olive.”
“Hi?” Sahara says, knowing it sounds like a question, because she is confused why this strange elleth is talking to her.
“I was wanting to learn how to play plorksol, and I was told you are the one to go to.” Olive says and Sahara is confused why a fourth year is just now getting interested into plorksol, it is not like she could play next year or anything.
“Umm…” Sahara looks around noticing elleth still whispering and looking at her. “No.”
“Oh, come on, we all saw your first game.” Olive says sweetly. “Could you show me some moves maybe out on the field?”
Sahara knows a fourth year should know that during plorksol season only players are allowed on the field to practice. “Your not a player, so you can’t be on the field.”
“Oh,” the elleth says looking thoughtful. “Maybe in the back of the academy then?”
Sahara remembers what Mecca just told her and she wonders what is at play here. “No.” She says the word flatly and abruptly leaves Olive so that she can find Mecca for answers.
She knocks on Mecca’s door and as soon as Mecca sees it is Sahara she begins to shut the door without saying anything. Sahara puts her foot in the door to stop it from closing. “Mecca? What is going on?”
“Leave me alone.” Mecca says pushing Sahara back from her door and shutting it impolitely in her face.
Sahara sees all the elleths on Mecca’s floor whisper about her again and she runs to find Marol and Bularia, to see if they knew what was up. She finds Bularia in the elleth’s rec room laughing with some of the first year elleths. “Hey?” Sahara says and the elleth scatter away from Bularia, who looks nervous. “What is going on?”
“What do you mean?” Bularia asks acting clueless, but Sahara knows that is exactly what it was, just and act.
“You know what I mean.” Sahara says sternly.
“Yeah.” Bularia turns to face Sahara looking around cautiously. “Apparently, there is a rumor that if someone can get you out by the protective wall behind the academy, so that you can be captured, the sickness will stop.”
“That is ridiculous.” Sahara laughs until she sees the seriousness in Bularia’s face. “Isn’t it?”
“I don’t know.” Bularia says looking flustered. “Flaeter is a poison, some elf is doing this.”
“How would someone getting me to the protective wall help someone capture me?” Sahara asks knowing that only a few elves knew the spell to open both walls.
“I don’t know. It is just the rumor.” Bularia says turning to leave.
Sahara wonders if it is true, or if maybe it is just that, a rumor. But then again, Bularia was right that there had to be an elf behind the flaeter epidemic. Marol is moving her trunk out of their room as Sahara arrives the J floor. “What are you doing?” Sahara asks confused at what Marol is doing.
“I’m moving in with Valeeze.” Marol says remorsefully.
“What?” Sahara looks over to Valeeze’s room that is a few doors down from theirs. “Why?” Marol does not respond so Sahara presses her further, “Is this because of the rumor?”
“Carol was the first to get sick,” Marol says tearfully, Sahara knew Marol was still having a hard time with Carol still being in the hospital. “That wasn’t a coincidence.” Sahara wonders if her friends think she is responsible for what is happening and it makes her feel bad. She doesn’t fight for Marol to stay knowing there was no way to change Marol’s mind once it was made up.
Hours later, she finds Waizlynn helping Bularia move out of their room too. “You too?” Sahara asks sadly.
“I am sorry.” Bularia says remorsefully.
“I knew you were trouble from day one.” Waizlynn says hatefully before pushing Sahara out of their way to exit the dorm room.
“Bye.” Bularia says quietly as she follows behind Waizlynn.
She once loved to be alone, when she lived with the Craigs, but now she finds the solitude lonely. The next few days, more elleth fall ill and none of the students in the school will speak to Sahara, not even the ellon. At plorksol practice, one of her team mates purposefully hit the pod over towards the back of the academy and it landed next to the protective wall. He tried to coerce Sahara into retrieving it when he says, “Oops, you want to go get that first year?”
Phylan even offered to go with her. “I can go with you if you want?”
Brystol was the only one to come to her defense. “You hit it Eaglan. So, you go get it.” With his words practice ended, and all Sahara could think about was that maybe all the other elves were right. Maybe the sickness would stop if she would just go over the edge of the woods. She stares at the woods wondering what could actually be waiting there for her, or if anything was there at all. “Don’t let them get to you.” Brystol’s words cause her to look over toward him flying in front of her on his plorboard.
“They are just trying to stop their friends and sisters, from getting sick.” Sahara says looking down at Phylan, who’s sister was a third year and fell sick just yesterday. Now there were over one hundred elleth sick and Sahara was beginning to believe that maybe it was her fault. “Even my roommates hate me. They moved out days ago. And it does not help that I get special food.” Sahara says fighting back the tears.
“It will be over soon and everything will get back to normal. Just be patient, and there..” Brystols words are stopped by Bularia screaming up at Sahara.
“Bularia?” Sahara says in concern and flys down toward her. “What is wrong?”
“Marol.” Bularia says out of breath from obviously running. “They are taking Marol.”
Sahara jumps off her plorboard, leaving it with Brystol as she runs with Bularia toward the carriage that Marol is being loaded into. Sahara begins to cry seeing Marol looking pail and lifeless. As she looks up at the students scattered around the courtyard and stairs of the academy, she realizes they are all watching her in fear and anger. She steps back running into someone, and turns to see Brystol. He doesn’t say anything but Sahara can tell his eyes are saying sorry. Sahara realizes she has to go to the back of the castle to see what or if there is anything waiting for her back there. She looks over at Bularia who is crying before she looks back up at Brystol nervously. She moves around him and takes off running towards the back of the building.
“No!” She hears Brystol yell behind her as she runs trying to get away from him. “Sahara stop!”
“Sahara!” Bularia’s voice catches her attention and she glances back seeing Bularia just a few feet behind Brystol. “Please don’t do this!” Bularia pleads.
She refuses to stop as she keeps running toward the wooded area. She realizes Brystol is a faster runner than her as he begins to catch up with her. She stops, knowing she has to teleport to get away from him. She turns and considers saying sorry, but doesn’t as she teleports to just beyond the barrier. “No!” She hears Brystol scream as if he is in pain as he reaches the barrier. “Come back!” He sounds panicked. “Please don’t do this?”
Bularia arrives out of breath next to him banging on the barrier. “Sahara? How did you get over there?”
“At least let me come with you!” Brystol begs.
“I’m sorry.” She says as she backs away from them shaking her head at Brystol.
She ignores the pleas of Brystol and Bularia as she moves further into the woods, she has no clue what she is looking for or what is out here waiting for her, but she knows it will find her.