Chapter 638: Day One (1/2)
Dex jumped at the sudden intrusion. His eyes staring at the room's new occupant.
”What are you doing with my fish?” The girl's lightly freckled face was flushed with anger. Her appearance was unlike anyone he'd ever seen. She had long red tresses that ran down her back like a waterfall made from the purest flame. Light brown eyes stared into him, hostile but exceedingly beautiful.
”Huh? Well, you see...” The sentence was interrupted when the fish's tail slapped across his face.
Before he could react, the fish wiggled free and was out the window. Dex stared at the free-falling fish until it splashed into the stream below. Unbeknown to him, the girl had rushed to his side.
”I'm finally free!” The gold-colored fish's voice deepened considerably as it stared up at the two figures in the window. ”You foul witch! Just wait until I become a dragon!” Then, in a flash of gold, it disappeared into the depths of the water.
”Huh... It was a guy.” Dex grinned at the sudden change of events. ”Hey, I'm sorry...” His words trailed off as the air seemed to ignite with thousands of sparks of electricity.
”You...” The air around the redhead pulsed with energy; it crackled and popped with the power of lightning. ”Sadly, your time at the Academy ends here.”
Dex felt a sudden release of energy; without thinking, he jumped forward and shoved the redhead. Taken by surprise, she fell backward into the tub with a huge splash that caused a miniature lightning storm to erupt in the room. His last view of his attacker was her outraged expression as she was submerged in water. Then, shamelessly, he fled the scene like a robber in the night.
Maric looked up as his roommate burst into the quad and closed the door behind me a few moments later. His hair was standing straight up, and his face had been blackened by scorch marks. ”You okay?”
Dex nodded while wiping his face down and running his fingers through his hair. ”Was almost killed by some crazy person.”
”Fights are pretty common, but it's never a good idea to go overboard.” Maric gave him a sympathetic smile. ”Picking a fight on Welcome Day is nearly unheard of. If they show up here, I'll take care of it.”
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Since the dining halls weren't open during Welcome Week, workers from food services delivered hot dinner boxes via pushcarts that rambled up and down the hall on squeaky wheels. Dex eyed his black-boxed 'special.' ”Why is mine different?”
They were sitting on the floor chatting; Maric seemed to know just about everything concerning the Academy. The 2nd year student slightly. ”Mine is the generic one that those of us without sponsors get. It should be written inside the cover.” He uncovered his box and showed it to Dex. In a self-explanatory script, it said, 'Tembai Academy.'
”Do I have a sponsor?” Dex opened the black box and peeked under the lid. In gold-colored ink, the words 'Sponsored by Haven' were scribed. Underneath that, a handwritten signature of the preparer was visible, 'Hyai.'
Maric whistled softly. ”Being sponsored by Haven is considered the Golden Ticket. And having Hyai's signature on it means you are part of the inner circle.”
”Hmm?” Dex thought back to the Nix the Mad Scientist and his warmly attractive wife. ”So, I'm in good shape?”
Maric nodded. ”Yeah... Even Seti gives way when it comes to the Rat King.”
Dex grinned at the title; there had been a large number of rat puppets in the Inferno Leader's workshop. ”Nix is the Rat King?”
”Rat King, Dragon Slayer, Emperor of the Nether... He's got more titles than I can remember.” Maric watched as his roommate dove into his prepared meal. ”Hey... If you're from Haven, you should know the Thunder Princess. Right?”
”Thunder Princess?” Dex fixed him with a confused glance while continuing to feed himself. Virtual or not, it was by far the best meal he'd eaten since before his at-home confinement.
Maric lowered his voice and glanced at the door nervously. ”Nix's daughter... not one of the sweet Aquarion ones, the other one.”
Dex chuckled at his roommate's discomfort. His words were barely louder than a whisper. ”I don't know any of Nix's daughters.”
”Oh, I see...” Maric went directly into lecture mode. ”There's Lisa; her mother sometimes makes an appearance here at the request of Instructor Fajii.”
Dex shrugged slightly. ”Rabi mentioned Fajii. She's one of Nix's wives?”
Maric nodded. ”She has the Scorched Earth element; her daughter is named Narissa.” The mage smiled suddenly. ”No one would ever confuse her and Sigh. Rissa is a dark beauty with a very pleasant personality. While Siyan is...”
Dex found himself smiling at Maric's sudden loss of words; a thought suddenly occurred to him. ”This Thunder Princess has the lightning element?”
”Yes. Before you ask, it's exceedingly rare. She's the only one in the Academy with that element. She also possesses the Water and Air elements, which means she'll mature into a Storm Dragon.”