Dreadlords Inner Peace, Outer Pieces [Dreadkids]

[Kristen Pirian]

This was never going to be an easy story to tell, was it?

Kristen's lips pursed and pulled long, and then she decided it best to get it done and get it over with as quickly as possible. Which meant forgoing her usual loquaciousness, dispensing with setting up the story in full, in favor of being succinct. This, she felt, was going to feel a lot like removing a sticky bandage that needed to be changed from a sore, stinging wound.

"So...ahem..." And then she spoke quickly: "I was so nervous that I nearly vomited on her."

Maseno Luana

 

[Maseno Luana]

Maseno grimaced.

"I - well..." how did one put it lightly that Kristen had probably ruined Zana's perception of her on a potentially permanent scale. Who knew for certain, but that would be a big faux pas to overcome.

"You will always stand out to her memory for certain. Becoming unforgettable is not so easy to do with someone of her caliber," a sympathetic smile followed, "She did not even know I existed until ... I also did something lamentable."

 

[Kristen Pirian]

It wasn't Maseno's intention, Kristen recognized his genuine attempt to assuage the folly of hers well enough, and yet...it would be a lie to say that his first sentence didn't feel like a stake being driven into her chest, and his second didn't feel like said stake being hammered in further. A sheepish grimace met his sympathetic smile, and the thumbs of her entwined hands in her lap fiddled and fought with one another.

I also did something lamentable.

"Oh goodness, you as well?" Dreadlord Zana likely scorned all the work she and Talus had done, looking down on the current crop of upcoming Dreadlords as a parade of imbeciles. Woe to their ill fortune.

"May I ask what happened?"

Maseno Luana

 

[Aelita]

“Lumen,” Aelita replied to the mention of her name.

“Just saw you swinging away. You know there’re indoor training grounds?” Aelita asked.

“Also, thanks,” Aelita said with a smile as she lifted a hand an stretched out her fingers.

Following that, the light umbrella expanded a bit. It was large enough to allow for two people to fit underneath.

 

[Zaire]

Slowly, Zaire’s eyes widen in… was it hope? No, it couldn’t be hope. But it was sorta like hope, wasn’t it?

The most popular at every university? Zaire did not believe Proctor Fernando to be a liar, if anything, he seemed too keen on telling the truth.

“I don’t really care about working on a team, I already do that, that’s the whole point of my magic,” Zaire said gently, his voice low and close to a mumble as usual. “And I don’t need to understand myself, but… brightening up the day of any audience?” Zaire cleared his throat, feeling the top of his ears grow hot as only one person came to mind. He was glad for his dark skin. “I wanna be popular.” A firm statement, coming from the initiate who was often in his own world through certain herbal remedies.

“And I want to make someone have… a better day. Like, when they’re listening to a bunch of voices and if I could, like, maybe, make things clear for her again then that would be cool, I guess.”

Fernando Matos

 

[Maseno Luana]

Maseno's smile vanished, overtaken by a look of somber reflection where his gaze left the lock with her own in a moment of shame, "I killed several Initiates and two Proctors."

When he looked back to her, it was with a noble effort of facing the truth of it, and his brows furrowed in thought as he attempted to get ahead of her own train of thought, "It happened about six years ago. Well before the revolution ... my sister, Houri, went missing and there were rumors she had been taken. The Proctors were not making any effort to try and find her or her captors. I volunteered to go myself, they refused me. I became angry," a frown returned as the memory of that night replayed in his mind, "and I lost control of myself and my powers."

"I wish I could say it was an accident. That I never intended for anyone to get hurt, but that would be a lie. I wanted to tear the entire Academy apart and I would have taken down anyone I had to in order get the answers I sought. Dreadlord Zana was in attendance that evening and stopped me before I could leave the western wing."

 

[Fernando Matos]

Ah, the lust for acceptance. The drive to fit in and just "chill with the boys" as many of the youth were saying these days.

This job had been an admittedly difficult posting for Fernando. Some of the students here had done things that were reprehensible and terrible but he had to remind himself they were merely children led astray by strange teachings that the Anirian Guard was adamant about changing. Still, there were many things that made these initiates no different from the students he helped at his previous postings at universities abroad.

"Zaire, you'll brighten so many people's day with your singing," his smile still broad. Singing was such a great creative outlet for these students and once they saw how much fun Initiate Glaive was having there'd be a stampede to join in. "I think you'll find that even that special someone will be enthralled."

He had assumed it was Soleil that the young man was trying to impress. And gosh darn it, Proctor Matos was going to see to it that this young man impressed the "socks off" her, as the kids would say.

 

[Lumen]

She sheathed her sword in the scabbard at her side.

"I know," she said quietly. Forearm wiped across the rain-slicked along her brow. If Aelita looked closely enough, she'd see an almost imperceptible soft mist rising from Lumen's exposed skin. A little steam. Lu wasn't bothered by the cold of the rain because of controlling the temperature right around herself.

A hesitant look as she stepped forward, to join Aelita beneath the expanded light umbrella, looking up in wonder for a moment.

Then gaze turned toward the area where Maz sat. Then quickly away.

"The indoor ones don't offer as good of a view."

 

[Aelita]

“Oh, that’s neat,” Aelita commented as she saw Lumen then perform her own self-drying trick.

But she soon tilted her head as she heard Lumen’s words.

“View? What are you talking about?” Aelita genuinely asked.

Dark gray clouds hung above them. Rain continued to pour down. The ground became soaked and muddy.

Aelita’s eyes then followed Lumen’s – toward where her comrade was looking.

Then, Aelita’s mouth formed a wide grin.

“Oooh, a good view, you say?~” she asked.

 

[Kristen Pirian]

There was a Maseno who existed before this talk, and there was a Maseno who existed after it. She had thought Maseno's mentioned lamentable incident would be something akin to her own, some embarrassing but ultimately minor faux pas. Kristen couldn't hide her shock, her dismay, that the Maseno of yesteryears had in common a trait shared among the most condemnable of Initiates. By his own admission it wasn't an accident; it was a lack of forbearance, of restraint, of self-control. Worse, actually. It was all intentional. His anger had gotten the better of him, and those who were not responsible for his sister nor whose actions in relation to this warranted what happened to them perished because of it.

"That's...horrid."

It was all she could say. Rainwater dripped from her bangs, these each hanging loosely from her downturned gaze.

There was but one solace in this revelation.

"It is not my place to forgive in this instance, but...I can at least acknowledge that you have started down its path. Your evident remorse, this change it has inspired in you, is commendable. This is much more than I can say for many of our peers."

Maseno Luana

 

[Maseno Luana]

He did not disagree with her sentiments in the least and the somber nod spoke as much. Maseno decided to keep to himself that that incident had not been the first time his emotions and powers got the better of him and hurt others who were innocent in context. Perhaps those would simply be more rumors and stories she might hear from others, but that was a reality Maz had come to accept and live in.

"I will never atone for those lives taken, the memories are something that will live with me for the rest of my years. But I can make peace with my transgressions," with a slow and deep inhale, Maz straightened his posture and calmly resumed his meditative poise, "and efforts to ensure they will not repeat themselves again."

"The biggest war of man is the war with his ghost and inner demons, a man who learns to make peace with himself, makes peace and tranquility through the world. The book of Eshva taught me this, and with it I walk the path of meditation. Would you still like to join me?"

 

[Kristen Pirian]

Eshva? Kristen could not say she was familiar. Yet, with the clues of context surrounding it, it seemed a matter of wisdom—or, dare she say, faith? Either way, the quote he gave was a reassuring one. How many of their peers would revel in the deeds Maseno had done if they had done so themselves?
Kristen liked to think that if she had been enrolled into the Academy at a young age, during the old way, that she would have persevered through it all with her virtue intact. But it would be hubris to say she knew this for certain. What were the chances she would be much like Maseno, having committed some mortal error against the morals she held in her heart and, thus scarred, made to carry that burden for the rest of her days?

"I shall, for a time," Kristen said of the meditation. "Raf told me, basically, to meditate you simply sit down and do nothing."

She recalled a shadow of the bewilderment from when Raf had told her that, having now said it aloud herself.

"I feel as though there is slightly more to it."

Maseno Luana

 

[Zaire]

Zaire brightened up, at least subtly. He was no longer hunching over as he was trying to make his small and unimpressive frame smaller than it already was. Between his dark brown eye and his red eye one could even argue that there was a quick glimmer of excitement.

“Proctor,” Zaire said as he bent over to begin picking up all the stuff he had dropped. “You can’t really… like, I get it, you’re new here, but impressing girls is still, well, you know.” Zaire looked over his back, to where Sol had ran down the hallway.

Maybe it was better that she had left him after all. Couldn’t have her ruining his plans to impress Houri. Knowing Sol, she would probably just want Zaire to sing to her pet lizard.

“So, when do we start with the, uh, singing lessons?”

Fernando Matos

 

[Fernando Matos]

Fernando bent over and helped the young initiate pick up some of the items that he'd dropped, organizing them as best he could. Some of this stuff was really heavy and he was surprised a teenager could haul it all... but perhaps that's why Dreadlords were so feared.

"Oh, I get it Initiate Glaive, speaking to a girl you like can be very scary," he nodded along and wondered if the Guard had reconsidered using those parchments he'd pitched about changing bodies.

No time for that though, Zaire's question is what really intrigued him. "We can begin right now, I can help you carry some of these materials to wherever you're going."

Proctor Fernando Matos began to demonstrate proper breathing techniques while singing to the young man.

 

[Zaire]

Zaire was back to using his magic, one needed balance and strength to handle all this gear. He was kind enough, at the very least, to grant Proctor Matos a bit of his amplification through some minor resonance. Ironically, it was easy to bind his magic with the proctor. The guy must have had a really open heart. Or he was just too dumb to put strong wards on himself.

He was lucky he had never crossed some of the bossy girls like Liliana Lorel.

“It’s out in the outside storage, near the outside training ring.” Zaire said, before copying those breathing techniques. After a moment though, with their heavy breathing echoing around them in the hallway, Zaire stopped, trying to piece together a question to ask.

“Are you married?” Zaire knew very well if he had asked absolutely any other proctor, revolution or not, he’d be put in the Box. Or shoved into a broom closet. Or maybe thrown off a cliff. But it was morbid curiosity, and really, Zaire had to check. Proctor Matos seemed like anyone else. Did he have a normal life outside of being proctor?

A wife and kids? Or… a husband and adopted children? Maybe he was in a thruple and owned ten dogs and ten cats?

Fernando Matos

 

[Fernando Matos]

One should never underestimate the importance of a healthy breakfast. Fernando was carrying the heavy supplies with ease, he'd never felt so strong in his life. It was almost certainly a result of the mango and croissant he'd eaten before starting on the day's work.

"Great! Not so far then," though with how wonderful he suddenly felt he could've easily carried the gear further.

Then Zaire asked a question that caught Matos by surprise. Not that he was offended or upset by it, he simply didn't anticipate it. Few of the students here seemed to possess the empathy to think of others, especially Proctors, as more than tools. As a means to an end.

Knowing that Zaire was different explained a lot about why the boy was so interested in singing. "I used to be married." It was why he originally filed for a professorship at Ravengrowth in Elbion, there was simply no way he was going to take Angelina back to Oban. Many of his colleagues spoke poorly of the barbaric ways of Vel Anir when he took the Academy posting but at least they treated women as equally as men.

"She passed. In childbirth." His voice was solemn for a second, not wishing to dishonor her memory. Then he cracked a smile, "I've found it rather difficult to meet women here at the academy."

The other Proctors and academy staff weren't exactly his type and they rotated Guardsmen so swiftly he never got a chance to make any friends his age.

 

[Lumen]

“Oooh, a good view, you say?~”

Should she have said anything?

Probably not.

Usually gossip time was reserved for Ysobel.

"It's nothing," Lu rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. Besides, there had been changes in the years she'd first had a crush on the broad-shouldered Luana. Lumen looked at Aelita.

"What about you? Have any of the other initiates caught your attention?"

 

[Maseno Luana]

Eshva? Kristen could not say she was familiar. Yet, with the clues of context surrounding it, it seemed a matter of wisdom—or, dare she say, faith? Either way, the quote he gave was a reassuring one. How many of their peers would revel in the deeds Maseno had done if they had done so themselves?
Kristen liked to think that if she had been enrolled into the Academy at a young age, during the old way, that she would have persevered through it all with her virtue intact. But it would be hubris to say she knew this for certain. What were the chances she would be much like Maseno, having committed some mortal error against the morals she held in her heart and, thus scarred, made to carry that burden for the rest of her days?

I shall, for a time, Kristen said of the meditation. Raf told me, basically, to meditate you simply sit down and do nothing.

She recalled a shadow of the bewilderment from when Raf had told her that, having now said it aloud herself.

I feel as though there is slightly more to it.

Maseno Luana

Content to have Kristen's company for a time longer, Maz offered her a short but warm smile and settled into his poise. He supposed he never considered she had no training in the endeavor, and realized this error of assumption only too soon.

Her words brought out a sudden burst of laughter that shook his shoulders and sent a shiver through the raindrops around them, making them pause mid-fall for a breath before resuming their descent.

"Slightly, yes," he said, "this is the traditional seated posture, and a good place to start. The crossed seat grounds you with a balanced foundation. The straight spine allows your energy to flow freely within while the open chest allows the living energy around you to flow freely without. Some teach to rest your hands lightly on your knees, middle and thumb fingers connected as if you are holding a spider's thread between both. Others teach to connect your fists just before your chest in order to free the heart."

Maz demonstrated as he spoke, rainwater dripping from locks and lashes, nose and chin.

"Once you have found comfort and ease in your stance, you move on to your mind. Close your eyes and find yourself in a peaceful, quiet place. It might be the place that you go when you are troubled - the place that brings you serenity in chaos. Immerse yourself there. Do not try to clear your mind of thoughts, but merely set them free in this place where they can match the energy and unlock the flow of your psyche."

A beat, a shrugging gesture, "This part is the most difficult and takes the longest time to achieve. See what you can manage now."

 

[Kristen Pirian]

Raf did not mention anything about energy. Did this truly benefit one's energy? In what sense? In the sense of physical energy, one's vigor, or in the sense of one's arcane reserves? Why, if it was the latter in any way, then it was a shame indeed that the Academy did not teach it!

"Very well," Kristen said, assuming the cross-legged seat and trying out the first stance with her hands lightly on her knees.

And, much like as it had been with Raf, she as a complete novice didn't find much success. She could steer the ship of her mind to a nice memory (one of herself and Amelia and her brother Pedrig all laying back on the courtyard lawn and staring up at the full moons of Lessat and Pneria) but it would invariably be wrestled away to some other topic as if by an unrestrainable tide. Yes, that was peaceful, her and her sister and her brother that night. Can you imagine if Amelia or Pedrig also had magic? Goodness, what if they actually do? I've never thought about that before. Oh, thoughts, right, back to the peace of that night. So restful. Does this stance increase one's energy? What's with the fingers being held so in this queer little circles? Do they teach meditation at the College in Elbion? I'm sure they do. Meditation! Serenity in chaos. Back to the place of peace. Amelia...oh, just when is her wedding? I can still scarcely believe that I shall have in my elder sister a princess as kin! I do hope that she and Lynus can sort out their troubles. I shall pray for them; perhaps Metisa could be of assistance? Peace! Right. Goodness it is cold out here.

Kristen laughed lightly, opened her eyes, and said, "I find it difficult to stay anchored, shall we say, in that peaceful quiet place. 'Tis like trying to tame the ocean."

Maseno Luana

 

[Soleil Verdane]

Soleil was presently down on her hands and knees in her dormitory's common room. Just her, her chameleon, and that cricket she had seen. Where had it gone?

"Find prey," Soleil said to the chameleon as it walked in its loping way around the leg of a chair, weaving slowly through the forest of chair legs and table legs in the center of the common room. "No escape. Perfect trap."

As she watched the lizard go, its independent eyes searching, she shuffled along to keep sight of the hunt not entirely unlike a curious cat.

"Envy you," Soleil said of the chameleon. "Us humans? Invent stupid rules. Animals? Simple life. Kill or be killed."

It didn't bother her, this fact of circumstances contrasting her life with her chameleon's own. If anything, she found enjoyment in watching her lizard stalk after its prey, trying with those unique eyes to find it. And she loved to watch the kill in action.

 

[Maseno Luana]

Maz allowed the lines of his lips to lift at Kristen's admission. He was no telepath ... at least, that he knew of presently. Couldn't tell her struggles within from where he sat and he supposed that was a mark of where he was at in his own journey.

"It took me years," he replied to her, opening his eyes to look her way, "even now at times it is a struggle for me. Peace of the mind is not something we practice here. It is like a muscle you have never exercised before... and here you are trying to use it for the first time out in the rain, surrounded by distraction."

A self-deprecating chuckle escaped his lips, "My apologies, I have never tried to teach it to others before. Perhaps, if you wish, we could try another time in a place that is quieter..." he glanced up at the rainclouds, "and drier."

 

[Kristen Pirian]

...and here you are trying to use it for the first time out in the rain, surrounded by distraction.

"Thrown into the deep end of the lake again," Kristen said lightheartedly, using the very phrase Proctors had used for her when she had been enrolled into the Academy at so late an age with no combat experience whatsoever.

"Yes, a true attempt, or a series thereof, at meditation is still forthcoming for me." She stood then. "For my part now, I think I will go and attend to my original intention: drying off."

With a little wave and parting smile, she turned to go. "Don't stay for too long out here! What better cozy comforts can be found when you are warm and dry inside and it is a day such as this outside?"

Maseno Luana

 

[Zaire]

There was some sort of relief in knowing that Proctor Matos had been married at the very least. A part of Zaire was curious as to the sort of women Proctor Matos would even attract? It’s not that the proctor was ugly, at least Zaire didn’t think he was ugly since he still had all his hair.

Zaire wasn’t sure how to exactly explain it, but Proctor Matos didn’t seem the sort of man girls flocked to. He wasn’t burly and buff and able to deadlift his body weight. Nor was he the type of guy girls liked because he was a rule breaker and narcissistic.

Proctor Matos, was, unfortunately, very much like Zaire. Kinda weird, kinda lame, but a overall cool dude.

And if Proctor Matos could get married, then surely Zaire had a chance to get married as well, right? With Dakarai gone, the responsibility of giving his mother grandchildren were now completely up to him.

“That’s rough, Proctor.” Zaire said, then realized the other part of what Proctor Matos was getting at. Died at childbirth? Zaire’s bicolored gaze flickered over to the proctor. He wasn’t going to ask that much, but the thought did linger longer than it should have. Maybe that’s why Proctor Matos was so into the kids and giving them counseling.

“You should find a nice paladin chick. Not as bloodthirsty as female dreadlords or proctors.” He paused. “And still strong enough to make sure no one tries to murder you.”

Fernando Matos

 

[Aelita]

“Oh, don’t change the subject,” Aelita replied in an instant. Voice slightly elevated.

Then as Aelita leaned in, and slightly quieter went to say, “But I’m surprised. A noble?”

A few suppressed chuckles followed with Aelita’s continued grinning as a cat.

Looking over toward Maz’s direction, Aelita continued with, “Sure, good height. Excellent build. Sane, especially in this place? Okay, actually, I can see it.”

Aelita’s eyes returned to Lumen to jokingly end with, “Still, didn’t guess you fancied Kristen.”

Kristen having been standing near Maz and having a discussion with him until just a moment ago.

 

[Fernando Matos]

Fernando heaved the box he was carrying around towards his other arm as the other one tired.

He decided not to address Zaire's suggestions on the type of woman he search for. He both wasn't certain if sharing his preferences in a partner was appropriate and also didn't want to let the initiate in on the fact that he absolutely would never date a Dreadlord or Proctor given his encounters with both groups thus far.

"Why would anyone wish to murder me?" Matos' question held true curiosity. Thus far he was quite aware that most of the Proctors, and possibly many of the initiates, didn't particularly like him or his education styles...

But murder? That couldn't be right.