Whispers Under Water, page 13
Caitriona sat frozen on the floor of her dorm, her heart beating in her palm against the medallion. The vision of the unicorn in the woods swirled in her mind’s eye.
“But a light inside him had gone out. I think that was why he’d been so intent on you going to ELA. It seemed like he’d left a piece of himself behind, in that world. And no matter how much happiness he felt here, in this world with us, that void couldn’t be filled.”
Caitriona stared at the leather-bound book of fairy tales sitting on the nightstand. She felt dizzy. The screams from the unsettled voice in her head reaching a new pitch.
chapter twelve
Monday morning dawned on the campus buzzing with an excitement far surpassing the typical first-day-of-school thrill. The electricity in the air made Caitriona’s hair staticky. The flyaways crackled as she swept the mass of waves into a knot on top of her head. Her mind had been preoccupied all night and had sent her spinning into a carnival of dreams. But she’d woken with a renewed excitement. Her usual dread at the start of a new school year was replaced with tingling anticipation.
She walked with her roommates to the cafeteria and they compared their schedules while not eating their breakfast, their stomachs too nervous for food. Unlike high school, Caitriona didn’t go to all her classes every day for forty-five minutes. The class periods were much longer, two or three hours, and only once or twice a week.
At a quarter to nine, the freshmen converged on the building housing all their classrooms. From the outside, it looked like a metal ring with a bubble rising from the center. The entrance was a fifteen-foot shield with the ELA symbols emblazoned on the front and a split down the middle, either half opening on a hinge. This led to an open-air courtyard. A crystal tree sat in the center, its branches merging with the domed ceiling. The sunlight coming through refracted chunky rainbows around the entire area.
The four classrooms formed a horseshoe with crystal archways framing each door and creating a path around the tree. The walls to the rooms were made of silver and the doorways were more brass shields. These were smaller than the front doors and each had a different elemental symbol.
They all checked their schedules and searched for their classrooms. Dusha had History of Being, which was the first door with the air symbol.
“Do you think we’re going to learn how to ride moose?” Alaia asked. She shared her first class, Athletics, with Caitriona.
“Mmm, I doubt it,” Caitriona said. Athletics sounded like Caitriona’s gym class in high school where she was forced to mildly participate in sports.
Justine cringed. “Mon dieu.” My God. “I hope not.” She waved as she followed a handful of others through the second door, marked with the earth symbol, into the Health and Nutrition classroom.
“What do you think the room will look like?” Alaia peeked inside the earth classroom as they walked on.
“I wouldn’t even know how to guess.” Caitriona checked her sheet and then gestured. “But we’re about to find out.”
Their classroom was less of a classroom than a nightmare kickboxing gym. The floor was sand, with six-foot-tall cactus punching bags growing every ten feet. Four-inch needles jutted out in clusters along the spines.
Their professors were listed on their class schedules, so Caitriona assumed the woman standing in the center of the room, waiting for them to gather around, was Professor Vigga. Her arms and legs were sculpted, her curly hair was pulled into a bun at the back of her head, and her face rested with a stern expression.
“Come in, come in. Don’t be shy.” Professor Vigga motioned for the ten of them to gather around. “Welcome to your first athletics class. I’m Professor Vigga, a fire elemental.” She assessed the group as they stood together in a huddle. “We’ve got our work cut out for us, don’t we?”
Alaia bristled at the Professor’s evaluation. Caitriona wouldn’t call her dormmate overweight by any stretch of the word, though she was shorter and fit a size or two up from Caitriona’s eight. The two of them weren’t the largest of their classmates. But they also weren’t the thinnest.
“Well, have a seat. You’re all off the hook today, but come to your next class with me prepared to start work. I don’t condone slackers and for some of you, this class will be your hardest challenge during your first year here. But if you work hard, it will be your greatest asset going into your second year.
“ELA’s job is to strengthen you. To strengthen your character, your mind, and your body. And while it may seem like my main task is aimed at your bodies, I will be focusing just as critically on your character and mind as well.”
She explained that she would train them in various martial arts techniques and passed out a sheet with a list. It also detailed the things she expected them to do outside of class. Like running a minimum of ten miles a week and other various exercises. A few of the kids moaned as they looked at the hand out while others showed their excitement over the list of martial training.
Professor Vigga tutted. “This class isn’t about learning how to kick and punch and hurt someone. Nor is it about who can do the most push-ups and get the biggest muscles. It’s about building your moral and ethical character. It’s about learning humility and restraint, discipline and patience. As a guardian, you can’t be rash or unnecessarily aggressive. You need to be calm in the face of every situation, and always have your head about you.
“When you understand the connection between the body and the mind, you’ll improve your self-knowledge, coordination, strength, and flexibility. But most importantly, you’ll learn peace and confidence. You will learn to honor your bodies, and how to focus your energy.
“This will be imperative to developing and manipulating your abilities.” In a flurry of sand, her hands and feet struck the nearest cactus. It crunched as divots formed in its green hide, placed exactly between the hordes of spikes. The last blow punched straight through. The severed head of the cactus flew into its neighbor, skewering itself and sticking to it like Velcro.
Caitriona’s chin wasn’t the only one practically hitting the sand.
Professor Vigga spent the remaining class time explaining how they would divide their time during their lessons and how that would change throughout the year. She told them what they should wear and the equipment they would need to bring, and that she’d supply them with the crucial items, like boxing gloves and protective headgear.
As they left the classroom, Alaia frowned at their syllabus. “I hate working out. This is not going to be pretty.”
Caitriona had never been a runner. She didn’t enjoy the sensation of her lungs burning. And she spent enough time on her feet working in the bakery as it was. She didn’t deny that she could use a bit of exercise in her life, but she and Fianna had always been more into yoga.
“At least you don’t have another class immediately afterward. I’m going to have to sit through Health all gross and sweaty.”
“Good point. It’s a small win, but I’ll take it,” Alaia laughed and said goodbye as Caitriona headed towards the earth classroom.
She met Eero at the door.
“G’day, mate,” he greeted her. “Didn’t see you much yesterday. How’s it going?”
“Pretty crazy, but good. You?”
Eero nodded. “I reckon. What class are you coming from?
“Athletics. You?”
“History.”
“Oh. I’ve been looking forward to that one. Was it interesting?” Caitriona asked.
“It was defo interesting.” Eero frowned. “I think I’m still processing, ya know? It was a bit bonkers.”
“Oh man. I don’t have it till Thursday.”
“What do ya reckon this class will be like?”
Caitriona shrugged. “I give up trying to guess things.”
Eero nodded and motioned for her to go first.
This classroom was as much a classroom as Athletics. If not for the clear roof and greenhouse attached at the back of the room, Caitriona would have thought they’d gone into a cave. The walls and floor were smooth carved stone and the whole room smelled of freshly turned soil. In a back corner, dozens of small drawers and cupboards were set directly into the wall. Along with built-in shelves holding rows of glass stoppered bottles. A large stone counter jutting out below these had balance scales, slate cutting boards, mortars, and pestles. Stacked underneath the counter were black cauldrons in various sizes. Herbs were strung up on long lines for drying.
Across from the medieval apothecary stood a glass-fronted refrigerator and three wood-fired ovens set into the stone walls. In place of desks, tables sat in four rows of two. The tabletops were made of massive chunks of raw wood, the surfaces marred with dents, grooves, and char marks. These were held aloft by thick roots growing directly out of the dirt-packed floor. Large leaves sprouted from the roots and surrounded the tables like stools.
The greenhouse in the back was a bubble exactly like the roof. Vines grew like coat hangers, their ends curling into hooks where suspended pots held plants and herbs. The floor was covered in more flora, so dense it looked like a rainforest.
Professor Peiony was a beautiful Indian woman with flawless skin, except for the smudges of dirt across her forehead. Her hair was twisted into a loose knot at the nape of her neck. She wore a flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled past her elbows and loose khaki pants. She greeted them at the door and handed them a syllabus similar to the one from Professor Vigga.
Once everyone was seated, she held up a poster of the food pyramid. Caitriona first learned the food pyramid in elementary school, and then her teachers had drilled it into them through middle and high school. She remembered the large version of it tacked next to a Got Milk? poster in her home economics classroom. Professor Peiony smiled and then tore the poster in half. She crumpled up both pieces and tossed them over her shoulder with a flourish, wiping her hands together.
“Now that we got that out of the way. I’m Professor Peiony, I’m an earth elemental. And this,” she reached into a large pocket of her pants and pulled out a mole, “is Iris.” The fuzzy creature lifted its long nose into the air and sniffed. “Which is short for Osiris, though really, I never call her that. Don’t know why I bothered. Should have just stuck with Iris. But she’s stubborn about it now.” Professor Peiony gently returned the mole to her pocket.
“As my demonstration suggested, you’ll learn about proper nutrition in this class, as well as how to prepare healthy meals. We’ll also explore ways of substituting highly processed ingredients for healthier ones.”
Caitriona bit back a laugh. She thought of the storage shelves and walk-ins at Tea Cakes loaded down with cartons of sugars, blocks of butter, and jugs of heavy cream.
“You’ll also study the healing properties of herbs and other various plants, and how to utilize them in balms, teas, medicinal tonics, and more.
“And we won’t just discuss health for your own bodies, but for the environment, as well. I’ll discuss all the wonderful ways that the island is fully self-sustaining. We’ll visit the farms and talk about the proper and humane techniques for raising animals. And so much more. We’ll study the ways the Mortal Plane is destructive and techniques that can be utilized to counteract some of the harm.”
Professor Peiony pointed to a boy whose hand had gone up. “Yes?”
“Rangi.” He had rich caramel skin and thick, dark hair.
“Rangi, what’s your question?”
“Why are we going to learn about plants and stuff for medicine? Isn’t that a little medieval?”
Professor Peiony smiled. “An excellent question. It is true that there are now many modern medicines to replace the techniques I’ll teach you. But modern isn’t always better. Science has advanced many things for the human race but at a great cost. For us, the ancient treatments that use natural resources produce results ten-fold. As entities of element, your bodies are far more susceptible to materials that remain as close to their original, natural state.”
She walked past the tables to the strung herbs and pulled down a bundle, holding it up. “Lavender, for example, is widely known and has been used for hundreds of years to treat headaches, nausea, skin maladies, sore muscles, arthritis, and even hair loss. Its antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties are incredibly useful. Not to mention it smells wonderful.” She held the bundle to her nose before replacing it.
“As an elemental, you are tasked with the physical well-being of every living molecule across all the planes. How to nourish and maintain a healthy existence is the most important thing you’ll learn in my class.”
Caitriona’s head swam as she and Eero left the classroom.
“This place doesn’t muck about, does it?” he said.
“What do you think she meant about us being in charge of the physical well-being of everything?”
Eero shrugged. “Maybe we’re like hyper VSO aides or something.”
“VSO?”
“They travel all over the world and help people. Bit like your peace makers. No. Peace…” Eero frowned.
“Peace Corps?”
“Yea, that. Maybe we’re like super-hero versions of that?”
Caitriona laughed, but he did have a point. “I’ve got an hour before my next class. I’m meeting everyone for lunch, do you want to come?”
“I’ve got Vigga next.”
“Oh boy. Have fun.” Caitriona smiled.
“Go on, what’s that mean?”
But Caitriona just waved and headed for the cafeteria. “You’ll see!”
Justine, Alaia, and Dusha were already there and she found them easily at a table.
“Which did you get?” Dusha examined Caitriona’s tray as she set it down. “Chicken, nice choice.”
Caitriona had gotten one of the last plates of balsamic chicken with roasted vegetables and cornbread. The other options were black bean and rice stuffed peppers, or spinach and mushroom pasta with cauliflower noodles. After her lesson with Professor Peiony, she understood why all the cafeteria meals weren’t classic American comfort foods. She wondered if the restaurants downtown were all the same as well. She’d have to bring back some frozen pizzas the next time she went home.
“Alaia has decided to become a vegetarian,” Dusha said with a smile.
“That’s not what I said,” Alaia protested. She had a plate of chicken on her tray, but she looked at it sadly. “I just feel bad.”
“I told Alaia what Professor Peiony said in Health,” Justine explained to Caitriona. “Did she talk about the farms in your class too?”
“Not really. She just said that the island raises all the meat we eat here.” Caitriona took an experimental bite of her chicken. It was cooked perfectly and tasted amazing, complimented by the tangy sauce.
“Besides, you should feel the opposite,” Dusha said to Alaia. “You can be sure that particular chicken lived a good, happy life running around with its chicken friends. Rather than trapped in a cage no bigger than itself with its legs withering away underneath it.”
Justine frowned at Dusha. “What are you talking about?”
“Haven’t you ever watched those awful documentaries about the animal industry?”
“No…?”
“It’s disgusting. And atrocious. You have a hard time eating chicken or a hamburger afterwards. I think it’s amazing that they raise all their meat here on the island.” Dusha swapped her pasta with Alaia’s plate.
Alaia gave her a grateful look. “Anyways. You guys should hear what Professor Vigga said in class this morning.” She pulled out the syllabus and slid it across to Justine and Dusha. “We have to run ten miles!”
Dusha laughed. “Ten miles a week,” she corrected, pointing on the sheet. Alaia had a mouthful of pasta and just gave her a ‘yeah, so?’ look. “I run at least thirty miles a week.”
Alaia’s mouth dropped open and a noodle slipped out. Caitriona wasn’t surprised. You didn’t get a body like Dusha’s without effort. Naturally skinny girls were just that, skinny. Dusha’s body was toned, her limbs stretched with lean muscle.
“This actually looks amazing.” Dusha inspected the sheet. “Can I swap out History for extra Athletics?”
“You didn’t like History?” Caitriona asked.
“I mean, I guess. It’s just going to be a bunch of note-taking.” She pulled out her history syllabus and handed it to Caitriona.
It listed bullet points like; the creation of the universe, the planes of existence, the history of the elementals, successive stages to becoming a guardian, and a day in the life. It all looked vastly interesting to Caitriona. She’d guessed History would be the information dump class, but she wanted to know everything she could about this world. Taking these notes would be far more interesting than any she’d taken in high school.
She passed the sheet to Justine. “I’ll trade you my Athletics for your History.”
“Deal!” Dusha said.
“What’s this? Not liking our lessons?” Oliver plopped into an open seat. “You’d be mad to skip History. It’s pretty informative. Explains a lot.” He turned a smile to Caitriona. “And you’ll be miserable second year if you’ve slacked in Athletics.”
“How’s your first day going? What classes do you have?” Dusha asked excitedly. Oliver was in his third year and his classes would be heavily involved in his abilities.
“Wouldn’t you like to know.” Oliver winked at her and Dusha smiled.
“Well, maybe I need a study buddy.”
Oliver laughed at the underlying implication. “See ya around, ladies.” He gave a gentlemanly bow and walked off.
“Ugh. He’s so hot. Why is everyone here so hot?” Dusha watched him walk away. Justine waved the athletics syllabus at her. Dusha laughed. “Fair point.”
