Vera Suis Background part 5

Title: Reestablishment
Author: Silver Ink
Writing: Character Background Story
Word Count: 1230

Jane Exina was right.

Life at Shalenfear Academy was much like I had always envisioned life for a student to be: School, chores, homework, and leisure time. In addition to language and math and science and history and magic, Souls were also drilled in soul-work and possessing objects or people. A few of us were selected to work for the Shalenfear Guard, a prestigious station of office. Chores consisted of keeping our dorms neat and cleaning the school every weekend. There were other positions, but Souls were exempted so they could train their abilities.

I was new, and a Soul.

Despite my lessons and Jane’s persuasive skills—using examples from my personal past as academic examples—my conversion was rather slow. Gradually though, I understood and embraced the principles of Cordelian life. By the end my first year in Shalenfear—and my admittance into the actual Academy—I was a successful convert.

I wandered, sometime soon after my arrival to Shalenfear Academy—after the conversion— to the main courtyard just in time to hear the following conversation about me.

“The new girl, you know. Suis.”

“Vera,” another supplied.

“Bright orange hair with the funny winged hair ornaments?” I recognized this boy—he was the top Soul in the class, known only as Bus Kandler. “Yes, her.”

“What’s so weird about her?”
“Don’t you know?” A pause. Someone must have shaken their head.

“She used to be part of the Revelin. Jane Exina found her living with a Native in the forest nearby. Rumor is that she’s a Revelin spy.”

“But Bus, she’s a Soul!”

“She grew up around the Revelin; an oddity.”

“Huh. I can see. Her powers too, did you see?”

“Soul-sending and Biological Control. Absolute possession. Scary.”
“I think she’s here to destroy the Cordelian government from the inside.”

“I am a Cordelian!” I shrieked, stepping into sight, enraged. “And not a spy!”

“You eavesdrop though, said Bus Kandler.

I clenched my fists threatening him silently. The group of students around him backed away quickly—the Academy had no policy against fighting. The weakest fell because of their inability to protect themselves. Unnecessary violent was prohibited, but this was provoked. The law of the school was on my side. Only Bus remained unfazed. “Go ahead, stupid ornament-hair girl. Give it your best shot.”

I knew I could not outmatch him in a battle of power. His telekinetic power was well honed, and would react faster than I could act; nevertheless, I attacked, sending the soul of my whole body—but not me—into a nearby boulder and attacking with the stone-concrete statue I now controlled. A few of the others charged at me, and I spun some of my soul-self back, letting the parts drop from the concrete body as I hit the closest with my fingers. Haphazardly, I hit under his ribs, and was whisked into an area I thought to be his diaphragm. It was a short journey to the lungs to pop a few alveoli and transfer a bolus from the esophagus to one of the bronchi, which is what I did. I cut the muscles of two more attackers, plummeted a third with a concrete foot, and drove two of them headfirst into the mud of a nearby planter with a friendly, “Enjoy” to the tree.

This time there was no Akeisa to stop me.

Bus was gone though, by the end of this. I saw him the next day in class, and we passed with a simple curt nod each—our battle had become academic.

I spent my leisure hours alone, honing my skills in the smaller courtyard outside my dormitory hall. No one bothered me there. Jane Exina came a few times, and only she would dare trespass on the territory that was clearly marked “Vera Suis and her only.” I did my homework alone too, for all of the four years I was at the Shalenfear Academy. But Jane Exina was still right: it was a home.

Graduation Day. I had turned out at the top of the Soul class that year, and had a grant to being working directly with the district Guardians. Graduations at Shalenfear Academy were not to be made a great deal of. There was no long speech; only the presentation of badges and other necessitated dignitaries. I passed on my role as one of the head Souls in the Shalenfear Guard and accepted the title of Guardian without much ceremony.

Beside me, graduating second in the class, was Bus Kandler. He accepted his gold medal—mine was made of Soul-steel—with a bitter expression of defeat and accepted the title of Head of the Shalenfear Guard. I clapped politely, my smugness thoroughly concealed.

In the end though, at the party, Bus tracked me down. We were standing about three yards from each other, me talking to a the sole Guardian that had attended and he glaring loathingly at me. He shrugged and pulled off the medal and tossed it at me, intending to ruin my moment talking to the esteemed Guardian. I reacted instinctually, sending a hand of my soul into the gold and putting up a blocking the disc with a shield the shape of a hand in the same material.

“You dropped your medal,” I said, picking it up with the large gold hand. The Guardian had stopped talking, and many people were staring. Bus looked at the small golden disc in golden palm and shook his head.

“You err, Guardian Vera. I meant to hit you. Preferably in the eye.”

A gasp sounded from those watching who understood—a Soul’s weakest point was generally his or her eyes. The Guardian present gave Bus an irritated stare. “Vera, show this insolent what those who reckon with us are treated to.”

And order. I really didn’t want to hurt him, but the order—and my knowledge of the punishment asked for—compelled me to do so. I nodded a single swift jerk of my head in acceptance of the orders.

Bus obviously knew the punishment as well and blasted the medal telekinetically at my eyes. Too slow. I had long since improved my skills: with lightning speed I transferred the soul of in the gold hand back into the medal to stop the path of the disc; the new, tiny, golden hand streaked towards Bus and tapped him lightly on the leg. In a flash, the muscles in both legs had been moved to his stomach and rear end, which provided good cushioning as he collapsed.

 He seemed surprised but any pit for him was replaced by irritation at his scowl. “Stupid hairband girl,” he muttered so quietly that only the Guardian at my side and I heard.

I reached my hand into the my hair for a moment, pulling the winged hairbands out of my hair in an innocent move. “They have a name.”

I tossed them lightly at him, muttering so he would know—and not make the same mistake again—“Estallos.”

If Bus Kandler wanted to get out of the stone prison that encased him—and he was lucky it was only a stone prison and not instant death-- he would need a few very good spellcasters who were willing to suffer the same fate as him.

The Guardian nodded a tacit approval as Estallos fluttered back to me and set themselves in my hair.

Artist's Note: I lied again! >_< But I promise the next one is the last part for Vera. I'm trying to figure out how to tie in the ending of hers into the beginning of the next character's. The next one will start off where the excerpt in the beginning of part I-- so long ago! :/ >.<-- left off. 

Cookies for whoever can guess who the two people in the beginning are, now that all major characters relevant to Vera's story have been mentioned. More cookies to whoever can guess the next OC in this to-be never-ending thread of background stories.

Regarding the post itself though, I am rather pleased. I discovered that I write best at midnight >_< I am throughly tired now, and my fingers are heavy from typing nearly non-stop for the last 3 hours (work and then the story) and I'm sleepy. So goodnight! Please read and review!

~Silver Ink