Page 38 of The Scars Within
“Yeah? Well, you’re wilder than a…” I trailed off, realizing I didn’t have a good comeback.
“Than a what?” Amusement flickered across his face.
“You’re just wild,” I stuttered.
“I think you have me confused with my brother,” he said coolly, breaking my gaze. He lifted himself from the counter and slowly walked towards me. The tension growing with every step he took until cashmere sandalwood and vanilla consumed me. Rhodes lifted a hand and brushed a tendril of hair behind my ear. We stood in silence for a moment, his expression unreadable.
He broke our gaze and looked down at my ridiculous outfit of the day. One side of his lips started to curl up until it stopped suddenly. He reached for the end of the belt tied around my waist like a rope and examined the leather.
Confused, I looked down to see a ‘W’ imprinted into the leather. That’s when it hit me. He realized I was dressed head-to-toe in his brother’s clothes. He dropped the belt.
I could see the assumption written across his face. A muscle in his jaw ticked. He looked like he was about to say something but didn’t. Rhodes walked right past me without a word, letting the swinging door almost hit me on his way out.
I poured myself a cold brew into my thermos to avoid worrying about returning the glass later. It was sweeter than my usual brew but refreshing—exactly what I needed.
The four of us made it to Intro to Earth Wielding on time, and I was surprisingly excited to see what a full class was like, as I had missed most of it last week. Cleo had informed me that our instructor’s name was Yearwood. It is his first year at Mageia, and he is much younger than the other professors wehave met so far.
Professor Yearwood stood in a bare area to the left of the enclosed space, waving us down. As we gathered, I could see how young he truly looked. He was of medium height and build, with tanned skin suggesting he spent most of his time outdoors. His brown hair was trimmed short, though not as short as Shayde’s. The sunlight hit his features in a flattering way, highlighting his attractiveness. He is not much older than we are. I need to stop staring.
He cleared his throat, and the cadets, especially the females, fell silent quickly. “Welcome back,” he said. “Can I have the earth elementals come forward, please?”
Cleo and four other cadets joined him at the front. The girl standing next to Cleo had googly eyes for Yearwood, the size of dragon eggs. She stood so close to him that they would brush shoulders if he stepped back an inch.
“Today, you will watch some exercises that your fellow cadets have been practicing over the past week, and then you will have the chance to try it out for yourselves.”
We watched the five elementals showcase their new skills for the next thirty minutes. Cleo was already the most skilled among them. They demonstrated lifting dirt and stone walls from the ground as shields and turning long weeds into thick vines strong enough to bind an opponent’s hands and feet. Cleo did more than that; she completely lassoed another cadet, sending vines to wrap around his entire body with his arms stuck to his sides. He was so stunned that he fell over, and Cleo sent more vines to tie his knees together.
Badass.
Once their demonstrations were done, Professor Yearwood called over another group of first-years to join us. Each professor gave their class the opportunity to be the first to spar against each other. Feeling like I needed to make up for the terrible morning and refusing to go back on my pinky promise with Shayde, I stepped up first.
Professor Yearwood grinned when he saw me volunteer and slowly clapped his hands. “Looks like we have a duel.”
The professors gave Hugh, my opponent, and me pointers on what to do and what was off-limits and showed us the area to stay within. We shook hands and retreated to opposite sides of the makeshift ring. We were allowed to run through the thin forest, but that was all. It seemed like a fair duel since neither of us had channeled an element yet.
Yearwood counted us down, and I bolted into the trees as soon as the match began, using my swiftness against Hugh. He stands a few inches taller than me but is built very stocky, so I presume he isn’t one for running.
I wove through the trees in a zigzag pattern to throw him off my trail. My presumption was correct—he is not a runner. He let out a loud growl once he realized I was turning this duel into a cardio challenge.
With Hugh at least ten feet behind me, I tried to channel the earth element. Mimicking Cleo’s demonstration, I held my hand over a root and swung my arm back, hoping to pull it up. Nothing happened. I tried reaching up to the branches and swinging my arm toward Hugh—still nothing.
My failed attempts cost me. Hugh was gaining on me, and we were nearing the boundary of the allowed space. I took a risk, jarring myself backward towards Hugh in a sharp curve, hoping he would struggle to follow.
I succeeded.
Hugh’s face showed shock as I changed direction so quickly. I glanced back to see him bent over, hands on his knees, catching his breath. My classmates cheered for me.
A smile broke across my face. Finally, I was close to a win today.
I stopped running and faced Hugh. He had slowly caught back up, and we stood about twenty feet apart. It was quiet, with only the soft breeze rustling the leaves. We faced off. My lungs burned, reminding me I was out of shape. But I was channeling the heroine’s spirit in my current read, so I hadn’t noticed the sting in my chest until now.
Hugh glared at me, his chest heaving, hands fisted by his sides. He tried the same technique I did, hovering his hand above a tree root and slinging it towards me. It didn’t work. I let out a cocky laugh under my breath.
I bolted towards Hugh. His eyes widened, probably wondering what the hell I was doing. During our standoff, I noticed a sturdy tree limb hanging at the perfect height and distance from Hugh. Once close enough, I leaped to grab the limb and swung my body forward, boots aimed at Hugh’s chest. Instinctively, he threw his hands up to parry my kick.
And then, the earth element sprang to life.
His double-hand movement ripped tree roots from the ground beneath me, tying them around my middle and yanking me down. The impact knocked the remaining air from my lungs. I gasped for breath, seeing bright lights under my eyelids. The roots unraveled from my body, and I heard Hugh’s boots stomping toward me. He lowered himself over me, probably asking if I was okay or apologizing. I couldn’t be sure—my eyes were open, but everything was blurry.
