A day in the life of Sonea.
Sonea sighed at the sight in front of her. Regin and his gang had yet again cornered her. No matter where she went or who she was with, they always managed to get her alone in a corridor void of any Magicians. It was ironic really, not only was she one of the most powerful novices in the Guild, she had some of the Magicians beat as well, and yet here she was scared and annoyed, cornered by a bunch of no brain thugs.
Well She thought I may as well get this over and done with.
Standing straight and proud Sonea created a strong shield about her. She knew it wouldn't last and she'd have to let it drop eventually but for now it would do. Taking a deep breath she waited for the onslaught. It would not come straight away, she knew, no Regin liked to jibe and goad her first. She wasn't sure whether he wanted a reaction from her or he wanted to make himself feel big.
Hmmm I guess It's the later She thought with a grim smile Ah yes there he goes, shouting his big mouth off. I wonder if he realises he's repeating himself?
"Why are you here slum dweller? It can't be because you want to be. We don't need you or your kind here. We are high born, we are better than you, we have the right to learn magic and you have the right to live in reber swill." Regin sneered at her. "How's your Guardian? Just because you're the High Lords favourite still doesn't mean you belong here. Maybe you should go home to Mommy and tell her how nasty us Magicians are."
Sonea stood motionless. She showed no outward signs of discomfort nor did she show his words had any affect on her. Perhaps she was becoming numb to his jibes and taunts, or maybe it was purely because she wasn't listening fully. She had been listening somewhat but it sounded distorted and wobbly to her ears. She guessed it was because she was tuning in and out of his bigoted speech. He had stopped speaking and was looking around the crowd of novices he had recruited. Now came the really painful part, the beating.
Sonea staggered as fourteen stun strikes hit her shield all at once. They were concentrating their efforts on a single part of her shield. Sonea considered this and decided to strengthen the spot slightly whilst keeping the rest of her shield strong and stable. She couldn't afford to loose concentration and let part of her shield weaken even slightly. It would be a disaster if a novice spotted it and focused an attack to the weaker part. She could die. This was no Arena and it was no Warrior Skills class, that was for sure.
She felt her shield weakening minute by minute. She kept strengthening it but after an hour this was putting a serious strain on her source. Deciding that to go down would be the lesser of two evils Sonea dropped her shield. Sonea cringed and backed away as Stun strikes met her flesh.
"Careful!" Regin had shouted "Don't merge them. We don't want her dead……..yet. A fire strike would kill her."
Sonea startled. They were going to kill her or at least Regin was planning to. Hitting the floor Sonea curled up into a fetal position. There was nothing she could do if they wanted to kill her, but for now she could protect her vital organs from any major damage.
After what seemed like forever Regin and his gang wandered away, satisfied by the beating they had dished out for her. Gingerly Sonea rose from her spot on the floor and gathered together her things. Her notes, pens and spare parchment were scattered across the hall. Picking up her healing notes and the homework she had just finished she noted inky footprints stomped all over it. She would have to write it out again but first she needed rest. Limping and sore Sonea made her way back to her quarters in the High Lords residence. It was First Day and she wondered what Akkarin would say to her after missing dinner.
