The Blackened Blade, page 14
“Then we’re all good?” He turns to each boy around Jake, who now all wear pallid expressions and give consenting nods.
“Morgan?” He turns his attention to her and the boys around her.
“Another time.” She calls, a dark grin stretching her lips as she gives the group one final glare. A promise I’m sure she’ll keep, by the looks of her expression.
Ezra gives her a small nod, a softer smile embracing his lips as she concedes.
The two boys near her give Jake and his group one last cutting glare before slowly taking their seats beside her. Morgan turns her full attention toward them as they begin talking, falling into their own world again and ignoring everyone else in the room.
Tandy takes a step toward Ezra, a wide triumphant smile on her lips, as if it were her victory. Just as she’s nearing him, a pink blush tints her cheeks and she opens her mouth, “Thank you, I-”
“Let's all get along.” Ezra cuts her off with a tight smile, quickly turning away and heading back to his seat. She quickly closes her mouth, a small pout shaping her lips as her gaze lingers on Ezra’s back before slowly turning back toward Jake and his group.
A low sigh falls from the chair in front of me as Ezra takes his seat, his shoulders slightly sagging. He looks out the window and away from everyone's gazes, the girls across the room still trying to steal glances.
I guess all that would be very annoying and frustrating to deal with, even if he did, at first, seem like he enjoyed the attention.
He leans further back in his seat, his scent wafting toward me with the small movement.
A fresh and calming scent tickles my nose. Like lavender and something else, something familiar, but nothing that I could place.
Mrs. Fleur then enters the classroom, pulling me from my thoughts. The door hits off the wall as she enters in a hurry, late once again. She addresses the class and quickly begins the lesson, and I notice the few empty seats to the centre of the room.
Seria, Xander, Knox, Kane and Anders aren’t here.
If they all weren’t here, then they must be skipping or something.
And here I was wondering why it had been so peaceful.
I look toward the teacher rambling about ‘baritone and sopranos’ as I lean back in my chair. I guess it’ll be a peaceful class today.
And a small reprieve from all the usual drama.
CHAPTER 16
I stretch out my legs and warm up for Defence class. I was a little early for the lesson, having finished my lunch a little too quickly, worrying I would be late again.
And now I was full and ready to tackle whatever came with this lesson; drills, sparring, or a crazy obstacle course, bring it on.
I realised it had been a mistake in my previous life not to attend this class.
Even if I was weaker, to miss out on these lessons was a waste. Even the younger me in her weakened state would have enjoyed and benefited from it to some extent.
Each class I learnt new techniques to attack and defend during a fight. It also pushed my physical stamina through sparring and running, and allowed me to build my strength at a quicker pace than if I was alone. I also enjoyed putting to practise what I had learnt each night during my own training, and until I had it all memorised and perfected.
I also learned that the Defence teacher, Mr. Valor wasn't as cold or as stern as the rumours had led me to believe. He was strict when it came to training or being late, but was a very fair teacher. He didn’t discriminate and treated everyone equally regardless of status or power.
He gave proper lessons and advice and took the time to repeatedly show even the simplest of stances to students who struggled with their form and positioning. He was only stern or cold towards those who were not taking the lessons seriously.
‘One wrong move or mistake would cost you or your comrades their life during battle’, he would call towards boys or girls giggling or messing while we were sparring.
Two girls last week had to transfer to a different class after not being able to stick the training. They would complain and whine at the back of the group during drills and giggle and mess during sparring, focusing more on the boys around them instead of the lesson itself.
I think they only joined because of Mr. Valor, hoping to catch his attention. Unfortunately for them, the attention he gave them wasn’t the kind they were looking for. He would glare at them and make them run laps when they would disrupt the class.
With them now gone though, it meant I was the only female student in the third year defence class, and have since felt the brunt of the harassment from the other boys here more.
They’ve tried to trip me up when we run laps, shoulder me in passing, and have tried to enter the girls changing rooms after class. Thankfully I shower and change in my room.
They do all this when Mr. Valor isn’t around or is distracted by another student.
And when Mr. Valors is around, they choose to ignore me completely as if I don't exist.
And I was getting tired of it all.
I stretch out my shoulder and arms as a snicker from behind pulls my attention.
Three stocky boys stand behind me; Jeremy to the centre, Jake to his right and an unfamiliar ginger-haired boy to his left.
I look around for the other asshole usually with them, and then remember that Kane–along with the rest of the scooby gang– skipped Music class. So they probably wouldn't turn up for this one either.
Jeremy narrows his eyes at me, a leery look in them as Jake whispers in his ear. Both of them rake their eyes up and down my body, blatantly stopping to leer at my chest.
Thank god I wore my hoodie. Creepy assholes.
“Is there something you need?” I ask, flickering my gaze between Jermey and Jake with a short glance toward the new boy behind them.
Jake leans into Jeremy’s side, whispering something again before a vile grin spreads on both of their faces.
Jeremy stalks forward as Jake chuckles.
“Need? What could you possibly have that I’d need, Micai?” His eyes travel back and forth as he begins to circle around me, a group now forming from the rest of the boys in the class that were here.“Or are you offering something?”
A few of the other boys laugh and whistle as Jeremy stops in front of me.
“I wouldn’t turn down a quick taste,” He licks his lips, his leery eyes trailing back up my body as a sick smile forms, “...just because it's cheap.”
The group of boys all nod and chuckle, a darker atmosphere flooding the air as they take a step closer.
I feel boxed in, a slight suffocation and panic trying to pull at me before I push it down and look around me. Their laughter and jeering fades in my ears to white noise as I look at each boy. Each dark and leery gaze and the dirt and filth showing through each smile and stare.
And something almost like a switch flips inside me.
Hadn’t I done this already? Hadn’t I dealt with this enough times? These dark, disgusting looks and vile grins that make my skin crawl. Why was I restraining myself after all they had done to me? All they keep doing.
Why was I giving them all the benefit of the doubt when they never gave me any? When they’ve shown me over and over again that they don't deserve it.
They deserve the bruises, the blood and broken bones I should have given them from the start, and from when they threw the first hit.
Why should I worry about repercussions? They and this school’s system is already twisted and tainted anyway. Why should I follow the rules when they created their own?
I held back, restrained myself enough. Even after the attack with Dean and those vile pricks I swallowed it all, worried more about what Mr. Valor would do if I was caught fighting back. I enjoyed this class and respected Mr. Valor–the only real fair teacher here–but it's not enough to take their brutality. Not any more.
A heavy sigh escapes my lips, a weight lifted from my shoulders as it leaves me.
The laughter around me dies off as Jeremy pokes a meaty finger into my shoulder.
“What are you smiling about?” He sneers as Jake and the ginger boy step closer to him.
“You assholes are all the same…” I slide a hand through my hair, pushing it off my face, and gazing directly into his venomous eyes, “Thinking with only your tiny dicks, and tinier brains.” The area falls silent.
“The fuck did you say bitch?” Barks Jake moving toward me, before Jeremy places his arm out, stopping him.
He meets my gaze before scoffing. “Micai…do you really think that's wise?”
He tilts his head, a dark smirk growing on his lips. “Look around you. You're surrounded by groups of boys. Ones who despise you. And have no problem overpowering a weak little girl and taking what they want. We have power and strength…that you don't.”
He takes a step closer, and I can feel his rancid breath brush across my face as a mocking smirk pulls at his lips. “You can’t win against us.” His grin fades into a dark sneer as he meets my eyes, “You’re nothing. So why don’t you behave, and put that mouth of yours to better use…on your knees.” He chuckles, joining in on the jeering and laughter around us again.
There are a lot of things I’m sure they have that I don’t; like a lack of brain cells, a few genital diseases and a sadistic tendency that's probably created more than just a few victims, but power and strength…I have my own.
My fist meets his face before he can move or dodge, my speed now rivalling that of a shifter’s with ease. I feel something crack beneath my knuckles before a liquid trickles down my fist, red droplets flicking out and onto my face as a loud howl falls from his throat.
His friends run toward me as I pull his head down and slam my knee into his face, silencing his wailing. He flops to the ground, his eyes rolling to the back of his head as I hear shuffling around me.
I turn quickly, twisting away from the large fist coming for me from the side and throw a quick kick out. It lands straight into Jake's stomach, stopping him in his tracks and winding the asshole. He bends over wide-eyed, as a grunt leaves his lips. I guess he wasn’t expecting the hit to be that strong.
The ginger-haired boy lashes out toward me, more wary of my movements than the previous two boys. He pushes his meaty fist toward me, it's quicker and with more precision, but still too slow for me.
His eyes flicker behind me and I catch the movement, twisting to the side as a couple of hands try to reach for me. I guess the rest of the group wanted to get involved too.
I shirk and dodge all the hands aiming for me, punching a few faces that come too near. They shout out in pain, their faces now bloody as they stumble away. The other boys in the group fall back, more cautious of me now.
“Just grab her!” Shouts the ginger boy to the rest of the group as he balls his fists and comes at me again.
His fist misses my face by mere millimetres, but mine connects beautifully with his torso. He tilts forward, gritting his teeth but doesn’t go down easily. He tries to grab me but I push his hands away and swing my head back, smacking him right in the face.
His eyes gloss over before he stumbles backward, then drops to his knees before landing in the grass behind him. He's out cold with the hard hit to the head, just as Jake catches his breath a little.
“Stupid…bitch.” He wheezes, his hands gripping his stomach, where hopefully there's a nice heavy mark of my shoe print. He pulls himself up, his eyes narrowing on me, as he takes a shaky step toward me.
Suddenly he freezes, his eyes going wide as he stares past me.
My brows furrow, my gaze focused fully on him, even through the slight throbbing in my head. As if I would fall for the ole ‘look behind you’ trick.
I clench my fists, readying for whatever pathetic attack he wanted to play out.
“It seems like you’ve started the lesson without me.” A cold, silky voice rings out from behind me.
I turn toward the familiar tone and straight into Mr. Valor’s green eyes. They flicker toward the two boys on the ground and then to the crowd surrounding us.
“It was her.” Grits out Jake as he clutches his stomach and points toward me. “She started all of this.”
I turn back toward the accusing asshole, his finger slightly shaking while aimed toward me. From this distance I could probably break it.
“I think she broke Jeremy’s nose, and Kayden…” He glances toward Jeremy on the ground and then the ginger boy before looking back at me.
“She should be expelled. Doesn’t the school have a no violence policy?”
I almost laugh. No violence? So all the harassment and crap I’ve had to endure is fine, but a few broken bones isn’t?
They were shifters, they would be fine and back to their horrible selves after just a couple of days rest anyway. But if the old me had taken a proper hit, she would be out for weeks, or more.
“That's right.” Answers Mr. Valor as Jake sneers at me.
He couldn’t be serious.
I know Mr. Valor was strict about lessons and all, but shouldn’t he at least listen to my side?
Or was he just like everyone else in this academy?
“Unless it's during Defence class,” Mr. Valor looks at his watch, “Which started five minutes ago.”
A small smile pulls at my lips as I meet his green eyes again.
“And since it was supposed to be a sparring class, I see no fault in Ms. Bane practising with her fellow classmates while I ran late.”
Jakes eyes go wide, “That's not fair, she–”
“Fair?” Mr. Valor’s tone darkens, his eyes narrowing as the boy swallows the rest of his words. He takes a step past me, closing the space between them.
“Is three against one fair, Mr. Andrews?” Jake begins to tremble with whatever he sees in Mr. Valors face.“Your lack of awareness and ability is baffling. Or was it that you realised just one or two of you weren’t capable of being her opponent?” He takes a step toward the two boys still lying on the ground and prods them with the tip of his foot.
One of them groans, and I have to school the grin trying to stretch my cheeks as he continues.
“It seems I also haven't taught you three well enough. But don't worry, I’ll be giving you all extra attention from now on.”
Jake's eyes tremble as his mouth slowly opens and closes.
Mr. Valor turns toward the rest of the class that have gathered around us. He narrows his eyes at each boy in the crowd, a darker look growing in them as each of them turns away from his gaze.
“You two,” His tone is curt as he points to a couple of the boys nearest him. The ones with small injuries from coming too close to me. “Bring the dead weight to the infirmary and get yourselves patched up.” The boys slowly make their way toward Jeremy and Kayden. “And when you come back, you both can join Mr. Andrews, who will be enjoying the scenery and fresh air as he runs ten laps around the training grounds.”
Both boys go pale, but give him a shaky nod before taking the deadweights and leaving.
“Ten, but that's impossible--”
“You want more?” Mr. Valor cuts Jake a glare and he quickly shuts his mouth.
Jake grits his teeth, glancing my way as he clenches his fist, his lips curling up before Mr. Valor steps in front of me, blocking Jake’s view. He points to the huge open field. “Begin.”
Jake gives him a shaky nod before taking off in a slow jog. He’s still clutching his waist, when Mr. Valor shouts ‘Run’ and he drops his hand, grunts and picks up his pace.
Ten laps.
I bite my lip and try to conceal my smile. Most of the class would be bent over and out of breath after three or four, even the shifters finding it a hard task.
I watch as he stumbles while trying to run and clutch his waist. It was a fair punishment from Mr. Valor. But this was far from over between us.
“We’ll continue our lesson at obstacle course number three instead today.” Mr. Valor calls, pulling me from my thoughts.
A few gripes and groans are heard from the group as we make our way over and toward the hardest obstacle course on the training grounds.
It's off to the side of the grounds and nearer the forest, needing its own space as it would span the length of one football field all by itself. It would give even the human military courses a run for their money.
It looks hellish with poles reaching as high as the forest's pine trees, a mud crawl with metal wiring and a man-made ditch with icy water, to name but a few things in it.
So why do I feel so excited?
Mr. Valor brings us to the starting point and whips out a small metal stopwatch, he gazes at each one of us before clicking it. And we begin.
The rest of the class passes by quickly as I run through the obstacle course a total of three times, others barely completing it twice. We’re all sweaty and out of breath–none more than Jake though–by the time the last bell rings in the distance.
Just as I’m leaving, Mr. Valor calls me over. I had hoped I had escaped any sort of scolding or punishment, but I guess I should be grateful that he waited until after class.
“Who taught you how to fight?” He asks as we make our way through the training grounds.
My brows synch together as I gaze into his curious green eyes.
“No-one. I taught myself.” It's not a lie. In the Facility I had to keep moving to survive. I had to be strategic against whatever beast they would pin me up against, and learn quickly from each fight on what worked and what didn’t. Over time it became easier, my body learned quickly and took to each new movement naturally, having memorised it with ease.
His brows pinch together, a slow moment passing as he gazes at me before he gives me a small nod.
“Taking on three shifters without a weapon, and getting the better of them is impressive.” He takes a few steps forward before turning back toward me, the sun setting in the sky and illuminating his golden white strands, making them glisten as a small grin tilts his lips.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what else you're capable of.”
