The Orphan Wars (Book One) Page 5

  "Nemeth, how could you even think of something like that?" asked Aria. "The three of us would be killed if we tried to escape from here."

  "What was your rank for the year Aria?" asked Nemeth.

  "I only ranked number 14 this year," answered Aria. "I'm sorry that I can't be perfect like you! I hate it when you make me feel jealous like this!"

  "I'm not trying to put you down for ranking number 14," said Nemeth. "My point is that being number 14 is still very high compared the rest of the students. You're at just as high of a risk as I am of being sold."

  "I'm telling you that we're still too young," replied Aria. "We're not going to raise any interest to anyone at any of the auctions this summer. I don't think that Prince Bogdan will be capable of convincing Professor Phantas to allow direct buying either."

  "Don't you ever wonder what happened to your family?" asked Nemeth. "Do you ever wonder if Nemeth and Aria are even our real names?"

  "Yes, sometimes I wonder my family," replied Aria. "I try to stay positive though. That's something you need to work on. If I thought about their deaths all the time, I'd be a miserable wreck. I like both of our names. I wouldn't want them to be anything different. I'm starting to feel so sad now. Why are you trying to hurt my feelings?"

  "I'm not trying to hurt your feelings," said Nemeth. "You were told that your parents are dead, but where is the proof? I think we've been lied to about our families ever since we came here. How is it that the thousands of students have no family whatsoever? It's just not possible. I believe that we have families out there. The best time to start finding them is now."

  "I would love to have a real family," replied Aria. "Somewhere in my heart, I feel that you're right about all this. I'm just so scared about what would happen to us if we tried to escape and got caught. We'd surely be killed instead of getting sent to the Detention Center for punishment."

  "It's more frightening to think about what might happen to us if we continue to stay at this academy," replied Nemeth. "We joked about what happened with Olmak, but that could easily have happened to one of us."

  "We've learned from our past mistakes though," said Aria. "Both of us have been in that Detention Center before. It was unpleasant to say the least but we survived. Listen, I'm going back my dormitory to get ready for the party at Serend Lake. I should be at Serend Lake in about an hour. I'd prefer if we talk more about this tomorrow instead of at the party. I want you to promise me that you'll show up at Serend Lake though. Don't just run back to your dorm room and hide in seclusion. This party is going to be one of the moments in your life that will never forget! But if you don't go, it will be something you'll always regret!"

  "Ok Aria, I promise!" said Nemeth with hesitation. "I should head back to Justile Dormitory and get ready myself."

  Aria reached over to Nemeth and gave him a big hug.

  "Gross!" exclaimed Aria. "You're covered in sweat. You smell pretty bad too. Did you even bother showering today? Ugh, you should probably go take a shower before showing up at the party. Do I have to teach you everything?"

  Aria laughed and let go of her hug. She ran off to the west in the direction of the Zenith Dormitory. Many students could be seen headed off in all different directions, but most were already headed to Serend Lake. Nemeth paced very slowly to the north toward his dormitory. He desperately wanted to skip the party at Serend Lake. Aria was right when she said that he just wanted to hide away in his dorm room. He didn't want to have to see his classmates again. He needed to think of a foolproof plan to escape from the academy regardless of whether Aria and Bastilone were coming along.

  About three quarters of the way to his dormitory, he came to a sudden stop. He began to think about Aria and decided it was best that he keep his promise. There was no need for him to change his clothes again. It would soon be nighttime and the temperature would be much cooler. Who cared if he was a little bit sweaty? Surely Aria was just humoring him. The rest of the students didn't have his unique uniform either. What Nemeth was wearing was nothing to be ashamed about. He could think about how to escape while he was at Serend Lake. The academy itself was on low security already since all the other students from other class years were on vacation. Nemeth hoped that escaping was as simple as walking outside the main gates of the academy.

  Nemeth continued his slow pace while he backtracked to The Great Hall of Athos. He then started to head southwest to Serend Lake. The sun had started to set as he made his arrival at the lake. It looked like the festivities were well under way. Most students were engaging in conversation with one another. Some students were swimming in the lake. It looked like the majority of students were already participating in drinking games.

  "What is that stench in the air?" asked Nemeth quietly to himself. "Oh come on, it can't be…"

  It certainly wasn't wine or any type of alcohol that the students were drinking. The students were definitely drinking the psychotropic beverage known as Ambrule and lots of it. Many people called Ambrule the nectar of the gods but Nemeth preferred to call it poison instead. The more Ambrule you drank, the greater chance you had to experience a euphoric feeling. If you were really lucky, the Ambrule would make you re-experience some of the happiest moments of your past. If you were really unlucky, the Ambrule would make you re-experience some of the darkest moments of your past.

  There was an unusually low amount of supervision by adults at the lake. In fact, the only adult that Nemeth saw so far was Ferrin. Ferrin was in his mid-20s. He had an average build, a mature looking face and a shaved head. He spent most of his time guarding the front gate into Lord Dragomir's Academy. He was wielding a large spear in his right hand, much like the one that Crimlore wielded. In his left hand, he was holding a mug filled nearly to the top with Ambrule. He was not wearing his usual chain mail armor, but a rather hideous bright pink suit and long black pants instead. Nemeth ran up to him in a state of panic.

  "Why is everybody so intoxicated already?" questioned Nemeth. "Why are you allowing kids to have Ambrule?"

  "I don't think you understand what kind of pressure us guards have," replied Ferrin. "You're just a kid and you have opportunities available still. I had opportunities once but I blew my chances. Ah, no use in thinking about that though. Do you even understand what kind of pressure you have as a student? I'm tired of this academy's rules and regulations and I think the students the feel the same way that I do."

  "Yeah, I hate the rules and regulations here too," replied Nemeth. "But I think maybe in this one case they need to be enforced."

  "It gets boring guarding the main gate," said Ferrin. "I've been doing the same job for six, seven, maybe even eight years now. I can't keep track at this point. I'm just hoping if I drink enough of this tasty Ambrule that luck with favor me and I'll experience some happy moments. It’s a shame that I have to drink so much of this stuff and for such a long time in order to feel its effects. I hope I experience the best moments from my childhood. Oh and who cares how old they claim you have to be to drink this stuff? Let's be rebellious tonight. I've got everything under control. I'm just trying to be the guard that all you kids love. There are plenty of kegs of Ambrule scattered around the lake. Grab yourself a mug and then drink up and enjoy kid! You'll be glad you did it!"

  Nemeth didn't really care for drinking Ambrule. The few times he tried it, he never really experienced the euphoria that most people did. He instead was unlucky and re-experienced some of the darkest moments of his life. There was a ban on Ambrule throughout the entire academy even if you were an adult. If you were caught with Ambrule, you would face severe consequences from the academy's top ranking officials. This made Nemeth wonder how such a large supply of Ambrule managed to get to the graduation party and into the hands of so many kids at once. Something definitely wasn't right about this situation.

  "Ferrin, you're right man!" exclaimed Nemeth. "You know what? You've always been one of my favorite guards! I just never told you that before. You're loved by most of the students. Oh
wait just a second, let me correct myself. You are my FAVORITE guard of all time and you are loved by ALL the students. I think that it's awesome you've gotten all of this Ambrule for the party!"

  "Yes, I'm so damn awesome aren't I?" questioned Ferrin. "Oh, but I didn't supply the Ambrule. Would you believe that it was supplied by Professor Phantas himself! I never thought that old stiff would loosen up the rules but he went ahead and surprised everyone!"

  "That doesn't sound like something Professor Phantas would do," replied Nemeth. "How do you know Professor Phantas supplied the Ambrule?"

  "Well I have this note here," replied Ferrin. "It says that the ban on Ambrule has been lifted for the third year student's graduation parties and that it was supplied personally by Professor Phantas himself. After all, it has his signature on it too. You can't fake a signature."

  "May I see the note please?" asked Nemeth politely.

  "I can't let you see the note," replied Ferrin. "It would be a violation of the rules and regulations."

  "Didn't we both agree that we were sick of the rules and regulations?" asked Nemeth. "Let's bend the rules. No wait, I have an even better idea. Let's BREAK the rules instead! After all, you want to be revered right?"

  "Revered?" asked Ferrin.

  "Yes, revered is the word I said," replied Nemeth. "You went to this school when you were younger right? They should have taught you what revered means."

  "I don't even know what that word means," said Ferrin. "Well, whatever it means, I don't care. I'm sure it's a good thing. I like the sound of that word. Revered! Revered! Revered!"

  Ferrin then reached into his pants with his left hand and pulled out the note while still gripping his spear with his right hand. He shoved the note in Nemeth's face. Nemeth took the note from Ferrin and started to examine it carefully. It didn't take long for Nemeth to notice there was something suspicious about the note.

  "This note is nothing but a cheap forgery!" exclaimed Nemeth. "I've seen Professor Phantas' signature many times and this doesn't even come close to the real thing! Where did you get this note from?"

  "It was sent to me by eagle," replied Ferrin. "I think you're out of your mind kid. I'm the adult here and I know that this note is real!"

  Nemeth jumped up and down frantically. Ferrin took a large gulp of Ambrule from his mug.

  "But it's NOT real!" exclaimed Nemeth. "Do you have any clue as to who I am? Don't you see the clothes that I'm wearing? They don't just hand out these uniforms to just anyone. Wearing this uniform means that I'm the top ranked student out of all these kids you see around here. So are you going to believe me and help sort this out?"

  "I still don't believe you," slurred Ferrin. "As for help, the only thing I'll be helping you to is my boot up your ass!"

  "So you won't help," replied Nemeth. "You're just going to get intoxicated and give me blind threats about putting your boot up my ass. Eh, whatever. I'm just going to have to look into this situation on my own. I don't need help from people who refuse to listen to reason."

  "You're a complete freak!" laughed Ferrin. "Look around you kid. Everyone else is having a good time while you're jumping up and down in my face bragging about how you're the best. You only just graduated from your third year here. Talk to me again if you graduate at the top of the class when you reach your final year. Then maybe I'll be impressed. For now, you're just a ZERO! Now get out of my sight before I write up a formal complaint against you!"

  Nemeth was so enraged from Ferrin's insults that he felt like dragging him to the edge of the lake and then knocking him in with a roundhouse kick to the face. However, that wasn't going to help him figure out the mysterious happenings at the party. By now the sun had completely set. A loud, unusual howling could be heard in the distance that gave Nemeth the chills. Nemeth needed to find Bastilone and Aria so he could finish the discussion about escaping from the academy. He hoped that neither of them had consumed any Ambrule. If they did, there would be almost no chance in talking any sense into either of them about escaping. Nemeth walked away from Ferrin in search of Bastilone and Aria. Nemeth approached the first group of students he could see which consisted of two girls and one boy. At first glance it looked like they were having a normal conversation. Nemeth inspected them again and noticed that each one of them was talking to themselves instead of each other. Nemeth placed his left hand on the shoulder of one of the girls and his right hand on the shoulder of one of the boys.

  "Hey, I have a question!" exclaimed Nemeth. "Have any of you seen Bastilone or Aria?"

  The two girls and the one boy continued to talk to themselves. Nemeth looked closely at their faces. It appeared that their eyes were rolling up into their head.

  "Why are you ignoring me?" asked Nemeth. "What's wrong with you?"

  Nemeth listened carefully to the words coming out of their mouths. They were speaking gibberish. The two girls and one boy appeared to have entered a state of euphoria. Nemeth tried shaking each one of the students to snap them out of their trance but was unsuccessful.

  "These three are completely useless," growled Nemeth. "There has to be at least one person here who was sensible enough to not drink any Ambrule."

  Nemeth ditched the group of three and walked around the Serend Lake area some more. He noticed a boy lying on the ground in the fetal position. If it weren't for his slow rocking back and forth motions on the grass, Nemeth could have sworn that the boy was dead. Nemeth got down on one knee and put his left hand gently on the top of the boy's head.

  "Dad, I'm so glad you've finally come home," said the boy. "I was worried that you were never going to come back. My prayers have been answered."

  "I'm not your dad," replied Nemeth. "You've drank too much Ambrule and its making you imagine things that aren't real. This is probably a longshot but have you seen Bastilone or Aria anywhere nearby?"

  "Why are you being so mean dad?" asked the boy. "Why would you say that you aren't my father? I thought you loved me."

  In his peripheral vision, Nemeth noticed a girl was approaching them. Nemeth turned towards the girl and looked up at her.

  "This kid is delirious," said Nemeth. "He thinks I'm his father for some reason. There's not much I can do for him. Only time is going to flush the Ambrule out of his system. It's good to see another sober person here. I'm sure you already know my name but I don't recognize you. What's your name?"

  "Oh my dearest husband," replied the girl. "You do have a strange sense of humor. You know that I'm your darling Elisabet. I've been your faithful wife for over 5 years. Has Vasil behaved since I went to the store?"

  "Vasil?" asked Nemeth. "What are you talking about? Who is Vasil?"

  "Oh, quit playing around!" laughed Elisabet. "Vasil is our 15 month old son. I really wish you wouldn't let him roll around in the sand like that though. But I really love how you two are building a sand castle together."

  "Mom, is that you?" asked Vasil.

  "Yes, of course it is my precious little baby," replied Elisabet. "Who else would it be?"

  "I'm not the one who is playing around here!" exclaimed Nemeth. "The two of you…"

  "How is this possible?" interrupted Elisabet. "Our son wasn't able to speak more than a few words before I left for the store. Now I come back and he's able to ask questions? On top of that, my husband doesn't recognize me. I see what's going on now! Both of you are clearly possessed by an unholy force!"

  "I don't have time for this!" exclaimed Nemeth. "I'm just trying to find my friends. The two of you need to rest."

  "I can't bear to see my child and my husband like this!" cried Elisabet. "The both of you are so impure. I must put both of you out of your misery! I pray that the gods understand my actions and will forgive me."

  Elisabet reached her arms out in an attempt to choke Nemeth. Nemeth grabbed her by the wrists and pushed her away. Nemeth got up to both feet and put his arms to his sides.

  "The Ambrule has made you completely bonkers," said Nemeth. "I suggest that you stay away from me
, otherwise I'll have to unleash The Dominator on you."

  Elisabet once again made her way towards Nemeth with her arms stretched out looking like she wanted to strangle him. Nemeth placed his hands underneath her armpits and lifted her up. He then jumped as high as possible and shifted his weight backwards. Nemeth curled both of his knees up towards his torso and let go of his grip on her armpits. He landed flat on his back and Elisabet's forehead smashed into his knees. This caused her to bounce backwards and enter a quick state of unconsciousness on the grass. Nemeth sat upright and then got back to a standing position.

  "Dad, what happened to mom?" asked Vasil.

  "Well um," said Nemeth. "My dear son, your mom is just taking a little nap for now. She's had a very long day. She promised me that when she wakes up she will help finish build that sand castle we were working on."

  "What sand castle?" asked Vasil. "Dad?"

  Nemeth shook his head in disbelief. He tiptoed backwards to avoid any additional conversation with Vasil. He felt some regret having to knockout Elisabet even though he used one of his favorite maneuvers that he calls The Dominator to get the job done. Nemeth hoped that Elisabet would wake up and be her normal self again. That is of course, her normal self with some large red marks on her forehead and a major headache. If the situation with Elisabet and Vasil were any indication of the kind of help Nemeth would get by talking to more people at the lake, then he was better off performing the search for his friends on his own.

  Nemeth continued to walk around the Serend Lake area looking for Bastilone and Aria. He made his best effort to avoid contact with anyone around him. He then decided to make his way towards Serend Lake itself. Perhaps Bastilone and Aria were swimming in the lake.

  "Maybe I should start yelling their names out," said Nemeth quietly. "I just don't want these crazies to realize I'm around. They might all come after me and try to kill me like that Elisabet girl did."