Almakia_The vilashi and the Dragons Read online

  Chapter 2 – The Dragons of Almakia

  To have someone walk beside her, someone who asked questions and expected answers, someone who looked at her as a colleague, not a stone from the wall, was news to Garo-lin. And she liked the idea. Kidari was smart, though disoriented. Even not knowing what reality existed in Kodo, it was visible that Almakia, to the foreigner, represented a place very different from everything that was accustomed.

  Language was not really an obstacle, and she not only struggled to learn, but learned quickly. Thus, in less than four hours, the dialogues between them already flowed in a way very close to the acceptable one.

  Garo-lin could not understand all the points in her story, since Kodorin used words that did not arouse correspondents in her head, but she had a general outlook: Kidari had demonstrated to have almaki still when she was an little kid and only now her father had talked with almakins so that the decision to put her in the Institute was taken. It certainly had not been an easy decision because she had passed the age limit at which students were admitted to the Institute.

  At the end of classes, Garo-lin guided the new student through the corridors and annexes of the Institute, explaining the directions and reassuring her that she would soon know the place so well as not to confuse the corridors and get lost. After going through all the main points, it was only necessary to orient her by the wings of the students' coexistence, which included the dormitory buildings.

  Having read the information of where she would be accommodated in the paper signed by the Institute's own director, it was well expressed that the only thing against Kidari at that school was the fact that she was not an almakia pure, since power and money should be things that her family had the hills. She would have one of the dormitories reserved for important students, near the rooms of the Metal Dragon. It would be a very different reality from that of Garo-lin, who occupied the last room, behind the common wing of the women's dormitories, which made her look much more like a housemaid than a student. And if she compared her room to what would be given to Kidari, hers was certainly much closer to a bodyguard. But this fact did not make much difference, since it saw a huge advantage in her little place in the Institute: kept her away from the other girls and was the closest to the gate, which allowed her to avoid all the great movement of the students.

  — Very far – Kidari let out a gasp, visibly tired of so much walking.

  — Things have been made here to be immense, but soon you get used to it. – Garo-lin tried to cheer her up. – We don't have as many classes on the fifth level and soon... Look out!

  That reaction was almost automatic for Garo-lin. She grabbed Kidari by the robes and pulled her into a small hallway that led to a side exit to the fountains of a garden and there they were pressed against the wall, hidden by a column.

  — What...

  — Shiiii! – she did to her colleague, who remained quiet and fell silent, obedient, looking scared to the portal of the corridor where they were just walking.

  Soon some voices exclaimed by the direction from where they had come and then the reason appeared: a group of five students walked down the aisle and kept walking without noticing them. The other students made way for them and made a point of revering, a formal gesture that was mandatory for older souls already trained by the Institute.

  — Who are they? – Kidari asked as soon as Garo-lin released her and they returned to the main hall to peer through the students who crowded like an audience.

  — They’re dragons – she reported and waited for her colleague's enthusiastic reaction, as was common to most people. – The Dragons will dictate the future of Almakia and Almakia will be what they are... don't know that line?

  However, from her expression, it seemed that she did not. Garo-lin took some time to realize this unreal fact and ask with a tone of disbelief:

  — Don't you know the Dragons?

  — I think... listening of Dragons... but...

  Garo-lin realized that she was in front of a person who did not know the fame of the heirs. Maybe the only one in the whole world. Immensely rarer fact than a vilashi or a foreigner owning an almaki.

  The only thing she could do was let go of the air with a:

  — Unbelievable.

  — Important? – the other asked worried, as if she had made a serious mistake.

  — Well – Garo-lin tried to think where to start –, they are important – and swallowed the but I think that Almakia is that gives much importance to them that came in the continuation of her thought.

  Even though it was not a pleasant thing to do, she could not let Kodorin walk through the Institute without knowing who the Dragons were. It would be extremely dangerous and cruel. Then, with a sigh, she led her in slow steps down the corridor, explaining in a low voice while all the attention was directed toward the party that was moving away:

  — Do you see that one lighter than all, with two-colored hair? – she made gestures for the girl to understand. – Dark hair underneath, white and spiked on top? On the edge, the biggest of them. See?

  Kidari nodded, watching the group walking down the hallway.

  — It is the heir Savorul, Benar. A wind almakin, first order. He comes from the cold northern mountains and his family are the dominant almakins there – she looked around to make sure no one heard her and moderated her tone of voice. – But, in fact, he descends from the old Snow Pirates and everyone respects the Sfairul for being afraid of what they can do. There are sinister stories linked to that name!

  Kidari watched the boy talking to the other Dragons smiling nonchalantly and commented:

  — He does not seem to be sinister.

  Without replying, Garo-lin continued:

  — The one on the side, with dark hair, is the heir Zawhart, Vinshu, lighting almakin, first order. His family is from here in the area and are almakins who keep the Secrets of healing. Vinshu is a genius, but he is as arrogant as he is intelligent. He despises anyone who is not minimally within his acceptable standards... so just talk to the other Dragons and no one else.

  — Almaki my equal! – Kidari said gladly, seeming only to have heard this part of the whole speech.

  — Yes – Garo-lin sighed, thinking it best to agree. – Then she pointed to the girl in the group, dark-skinned and gray-haired, tied up in small braids she kept in an elaborate hairstyle. – Do you see the girl with them? It is Sumerin Gran'Otto, Metal Dragon, first order, the only girl inside the Dragons. Heir to the largest family of builders in Stone Valley. Gran'Otto know how to handle various materials at the same time. It was the Gran'Otto who built the set of bridges linking the High Valleys and practically all the routes of connections of Almakia.

  This information Kidari sued for a longer time, since Almakia's geography did not seem to be a strong point of her.

  — Do you see the one with light, white hair that is with Gran'Otto? It is Nu'lian Gillion, Water Dragon, first order, also called the Royal Dragon. He belongs to the royal family, but he isn't in the direct line of succession. He is the only almakin within the Gillion. They tell that his mother was a water family handler, who died when he was still little.

  — Hum... – Kidari shook her head, as if she were mentally repeating the names and calling the people she saw, until she realized that there was still one. – And that one?

  She pointed to the one in the middle of the group, slightly ahead of the others. He stood out for the way he walked, as if he did not mind running over whoever was in the way, and the tangle of reddish-brown hair, made up of attempts at curls spreading all around, creating an illusion of tentacles.

  — That is the worst of them all and you must stay out of his way forever! Do you understand, Kidari?

  The girl nodded, frightened by her colleague's firmness, and Garo-lin continued:

  — Krission Dul'Maojin. He is the Dragon Leader of the Dul'Maojin Institute and is an authority in here, as the name says. Neither teachers, nor masters, nor Royal State can rule him. The Dul'Ma
ojin are the most powerful almakia of Almakia and the Fire Dragon will be in charge in a few years. No one wants to be against him... since we're the worst kind here, we'd better stay out of the way. If you stay, he will burn you – she made a crushing gesture with her hands, so that the girl could understand the expression.

  Then the new student looked at the group at the end of the hall:

  — Do not look bad.

  — Believe me, Kidari. Stay away from them and you can face the Institute without problems.

  — Kidari does not need Dragons – she said confidently. – Garo-lin’ll be enough.

  Garo-lin worried that the girl might find it presumptuous to judge the Dragons in that extreme way, but it would be better for her to understand how things worked in there through words, not practice. But the positive response made her smile, and the thought of finally having a colleague since entering the Institute was like a cool breeze making her way through the heavy mists the Dragons left behind.

  — Come on, I'll show you the way to the dorms.

  ***

  That week passed quietly.

  As Kidari had already demonstrated on her first day, she was smart. However, she had strange, foreign ways would be a more appropriate word.

  The girl had a way of serving herself. Although she did not seem to have problems with foods other than the ones she was accustomed to, she made mixed mixes, and Garo-lin often narrowly avoided mixing her vinegar with her piece of cake in front of the other students. She also used to put salt in the sweet drinks and insisted on making faces, saying that sugar spoiled the taste of fruits.

  Often Garo-lin surprised her by talking to herself and in some conversations between the two seemed to refer to a third person, who was always with her, even though there was no one. Garo-lin linked this to some defect in her acquisition of language and tried to correct her, without results. But that morning that theory of the defect had fallen to the ground.

  She was surprised that the girl had not shown up for breakfast and morning classes, and as soon as she was released for the break, she ran down the hallways, scouring the rooms, searching. It was through a bookkeeper's window that she saw Kidari in the courtyard below, seeming to look for something:

  — Shion! Enough hide, please! SHION!

  — Again she's screaming?!

  Garo-lin heard the angry remark of students by the window and hurried to run up and down the stairs of that pavilion in jumps.

  She had to stop her before anyone could take action.

  — What happened? – she asked when he reached her, gasping for breath.

  As soon as she saw her, Kidari clung to her, sobbing.

  — Kidari call, Shion did not come! Call every morning, Shion did not come! Kidari does not know where else to look! Shion never far away and can not hear!

  She'd heard that word before in the conversations between them, but now she realized she was referring to someone who was a name.

  — It would be a start if you said who this Shion is – asked Garo-lin, getting out of her.

  — Never seen Shion? – the kodorin asked, strangely, and tried to explain with gestures. – Always with me... my side.

  Now Garo-lin had been confused: if someone had always been with Kidari, besides herself, it was obvious that she would notice.

  — You don’t think he exists, do you? – the girl asked with a sense.

  Garo-lin was about to come to this conclusion in her thoughts, but the way the girl had said it resounded an old grief.

  — Shion exist, yes! – she stated before Garo-lin could say anything. – Diwari tell Shion not to be, Shion to be yes. Shion like to play, fun, hide, others find does not exist.

  — So... is he hiding on purpose? – Garo-lin tried to understand.

  — Shion do – she told her with a sigh. – Not too long. Do not see Shion since... – she made a broad gesture with her hands, implying that she did not remember the word she needed to speak to indicate measure of time.

  — He may have gone for a walk – Garo-lin tried to calm her down, herself talking quietly despite the strangeness with the situation, while still investigating who they were talking about.

  — Not without Kidari – and added with absolute certainty: – Always with Kidari!

  — He is not with you now.

  — Hide, never run away.

  Garo-lin studied her confident expression, totally exact of what she said. However, there was only one way of finding out where Shion had gone and could only do this by probing with questions.

  — And if he... – but not finished.

  She noticed that Kidari's eyes were blurred and darkened to the point of becoming black. Her mouth parted, but there was no sound and she did not even seem to breathe.

  — Kidari? – Garo-lin asked, startled.

  And then, as suddenly as it had begun, that trance passed and the girl looked alarmed to one side, attentive.

  — Field! – she exclaimed.

  Without explaining it, she grabbed Garo-lin's arm, taking her with her in her unpacked run.

  ***

  When they arrived at the broad field of the Institute, generally used for the landing of the trained mombelulas – the main means of transport of the almakins –, there was a small crowd gathered, apparently watching something interesting. When she saw that grouping, Kidari caught her breath and ran with everything she had.

  Reaching around them, she let go of Garo-lin's hand and plunged through the students, cleverly making her way to the middle of the mess.

  The students cheered and applauded, the girls shouting excitedly among loud laughter. By the context, Garo-lin calculated that it should be more of an injustice to the Dragons and, as part of her behavior shaped in the indifference of the Dul'Maojin Institute, she left out, analyzing and waiting for the best moment to escape unperceived. But when she found the moment and was already taking steps to leave the field, she recognized Kidari's shrill scream:

  — SHION! LET SHION GO!

  Later, when Garo-lin thought about how things had all started, she knew that if she had not hesitated to flee in that split second and had not followed her instinct to help, her life might have been different.

  The fact is that she did not run away. The desperate cry made her hands drop the books she carried and her feet unconsciously turned around. Then she squeezed herself through the compact mass of students, and what she saw as she reached the center of the confusion shocked her.

  As she had deduced, the Dragons were there. The Gran'Otto heiress remained in the audience, as did the other students. Beside her was Water Dragon, who also simply watched as someone who had been forced to remain, despite the disinterest. Those who were really getting ready were the other three. The Wind and Lightning Dragons held something that struggled for what seemed to be great wings. In front of them was the Fire Dragon, the leader, pointing his hand at what the others held. He smirked at the cry and asked:

  — Are you daring to tell me to stop, kodorin?

  That was when Garo-lin noticed that he was talking to Kidari, who was being detained by students. She cried and gasped with the effort to get rid of those who prevented her from moving forward.

  — Do not burn Shion! – she asked with a sob.

  — Don't worry, Kidari! He doesn't have the courage to do! – snarled the victim.

  — Do you really think I don't, freak?

  So that was Shion. If Garo-lin wasn't so shocked by what she knew would happen, she would have been surprised to see the arrogant cat that had practically banished her from her retreat days ago. He was singed and wounded, as if he had fought before being captured.

  — To provoke no, Shion! – the girl asked, crying more intensely, but all the cat did was keep her look challenging for the leader of the Dragons.

  Then everything happened at the same time. The instant that Dul'Maojin moved his hand in the gesture she knew would result in an explosion of his almaki of fire, Kidari gave a sharp cry, trying to break free ag
ain, and Garo-lin advanced a few steps, using the tone voice that she could dig up from her throat:

  — NOOOOOOO!

  Everyone – indeed all those who were there – including the victim and the attacker, stared at her in surprise and immediately regretted her almaki.

  This was exactly the moment when Garo-lin had discarded all her long years of silence and tolerance. All for the simple fact that a helpless girl and her pet – which, while arrogant, was evidently loved by the mistress – were in the clutches of the Institute's dictator, with no hope of help. For so little, she easily did what she had avoided doing since her earliest days beyond the Black Gates: she had faced the Dragons in one of her demonstrations of abuse.

  Now, however much she insisted it was for a noble reason and no matter how her conscience applauded her courage, no one could deny the fact that she was an unimportant vilashi, and she had to shrink in the face of the heavy atmosphere that had arisen in her return.

  Then, as her situation could not get any worse, she tried at least to soften it:

  — Could you not do this to him... please? – asked, being more polite and humble. – He is important to Kidari.

  However, what she received in response was the silence of the leader of the Dragons, who maintained an expression of who did not believe in what she had just witnessed. Then something popped around him, as if he were about to drive, a manifestation of almaki that clearly denounced how furious he was. In that time, taking advantage of the general distraction, Shion fluttered his wings, causing them to slip through the hands of the boys, and then, with an impulse, as soon as his paws touched the ground, he took flight, fleeing out of reach of them.

  A chill ran down Garo-lin's spine. The victim had fled, his mistress was lying on the grass with no strength for anything but sobbing and she would inevitably be the surrogate target. He could not run, there was no escape, no one would rescue him. The leader of the Dragons could end it in a moment, and no one within the Institute would mind.

  However, contrary to all the absolute certainties, all the Fire Dragon did was lower his hand and put it in the pocket of his garments. Then he stared at the vilashi in a charged way, as if he were only pitying him for a last breath.