Chapter 2: The Stone Warriors
I put the musty old hat on my head. "Kai Umas," said the hat. I jerked in my seat. It was talking to me. "Rash, hotheaded, determined, and courageous," The hat continued. Protests built in my mind. I wasn't rash or hotheaded! But I realized that deep down it was right. My reaction proved that. It was kind of scary that an imamate object could read me so well. "I'll put you in…" the hat paused. "Fire!"
Cheers and applause greeted me. I took off the hat and joined the rest of my house. I walked past the boy with the smug face—Chen, I remembered. Great. He was in my house. I sat down at the end of a table by myself. Meanwhile, the sorting ceremony was still going on.
"Jay Walker." It was the whining kid from the mountain. He was sorted into lightning. After that, an old man with long, dirty, white beard stood up. "Greetings, students. For those of you who are new here, my name is Master Wu. Before we eat our feast, I have a couple of announcements. Classes will begin tomorrow. Do not be late. Also, do not feed the new koi fish in the pond. Unlike muggle koi, these fish have sharp teeth and will not hesitate to bite your hand off. First years, at the end of the feast follow the Head Boy to your common room. Thank you."
I watched carefully as the old man sat down. This was Master Wu. He didn't look all that special. I was distracted by the smell of roasted fish. I turned to find food on plate. Wow. This place was full of surprises. I took a bite. It was delicious. It almost put Karin's cooking to shame. Almost.
After the feast, I followed the other fire students back to our common room. Once inside, I followed a sign to the boy's dormitory. My things had already been sent to my room. I sat down on my bed and wished Nya were here. There were so many things I wanted to tell her. I sighed. I was going to have to do without her.
The next morning, I made my way down the stairs. A tall boy with a badge, the head boy, I guessed, started speaking. "First years, don't forget to grab a map and your schedule, as well as your house kimono. Make sure that you grab the schedule with your name on it."
So I followed all the other students and searched through a mountain of papers until I found my name. I scanned through the list. I had Elemental Magic first period in room 102. After breakfast, I walked down the long hallways searching for the classroom. 200's, 300's, oops, I made a wrong turn. Uh, 200's, 190, 180… If it wasn't for the map, I would have been completely lost. The room was almost completely filled by the time I got there. I ducked in through the doorway and slid into an open seat.
Fortunately, I wasn't the last kid in the class. A kid with reddish brown hair and an orange scarf made his way into class. It was Jay.
"Man, I nearly got lost down all those hallways," he said. I couldn't believe he was in my class. I thought that we would be with the people from our houses.
"Why didn't you use your map?" Someone asked.
Jay flushed and looked at the ground. "I couldn't figure out where I was."
"What's wrong with you, can't you read?" It was Chen. A boy began to laugh. Followed by another, and another, until almost the whole class was laughing. Jay just stood there, frozen in place.
"Knock it off," I said. I couldn't stand it one when kids picked on one another. Maybe it was because I was an older brother, but I felt the need to protect this kid. Chen turned to look at me. Hatred reflected in eyes. I didn't back down.
"Indeed," said a voice. The whole class turned toward the back of the class. The old man from the feast—Master Wu, I remembered—was standing in the back of the class. I didn't even notice him coming in. "The journey to find oneself is the most important journey in this life. It is not a laughing matter."
"Yes, master," the class muttered.
Master Wu made his way to the front of the class. Jay took this opportunity to sneak into a seat. He chose one next to me. "Thanks," he whispered.
I was surprised. I didn't expect gratitude. It was just something that came naturally to me. "You're welcome," I whispered back.
"Now," Master Wu said. "This is general class designed to help you find your inner piece and find your true potential. Let us begin."
We spent the rest of class drinking tea and calming our minds. It was very relaxing, but I had no idea what it had to do with magic. I grabbed my bag full of books and made my way toward the door at the end of class.
"Hey, what class do you have next?" Jay asked.
I blinked slowly. It took me a second to realize he was talking to me. "Oh, Magical History."
Jay grinned. "Me too. Can you help me get there? I would hate to get lost again."
"Uh…sure?"
"Great!"
While I tried to figure out how to get room 560B, Jay told me his whole life story. Apparently, he grew up in a junkyard with his parents. His father was an electricity wizard too, but his mom was a regular person, or a muggle. Then he started talking about his hobbies. I sighed. Did this kid ever stop?
I was relieved when we finally made it to class. Mr. Hutchins was a former imperial guard and did not tolerate talking or disrespect of any kind. As I suspected, magical history was boring, but I didn't dare fall asleep. Next was transfiguration. Fortunately, Jay had a different class, so I didn't have to listen to his rambling.
A guy named Nuero was the teacher. He looked like a mad scientist with snow-white hair and a streak of black in the middle and bags under his eyes. I wondered what to expect in this class. Nuero took out his wand and tapped a paper clip on his desk. "Telum convertens!" The paper clip morphed into a shuriken.
Wow! Now that was magic. I reached for my own wand to try out the spell. "Before you can preform this spell, you must learn the theory behind it," Nuero said. Are you kidding me? More studying? I slowly put my wand away. It looked it was going to be another slow class. I sluggishly flipped through pages describing the importance of saying the incantation correctly and the wand movements that went with it.
Nuero noticed my lack of enthusiasm. "Do you think you can perform this spell, Mr. Umas?"
I glanced up. His eyes were boring into me, daring me to say yes. Somehow, I got the feeling that wasn't the right answer. "Uh, no, sir."
He raised his eyebrows. "Are you sure? You seemed awfully eager to preform the spell before. Do you still want to?"
Why did this feel like a trap? Someone sniggered. I ignored them. "Can I be honest, sir?"
"Of course."
"Yes. I would like to do some actual magic."
"Actual magic? Then why don't you show the class your skills?"
"Well..."
"That wasn't a request, Mr. Umas."
I was stuck. I slowly got out of my seat and inched my way up to the front of the class. I hoped the bell would ring before I could do the spell. "We're waiting, Mr. Umas."
I took a deep breath. There was no turning back now. I cleared my breath, and tried to remember how Nuero had done it. "Uh, Telum convertins!" I snapped my wand over the paper clip. The metal began to twist, but stopped before it looked like anything. I was ashamed. It looked like a child had tried to twist the paper clip with his hands, but given up. Bits of the paper clip were sticking out every which way. I had failed. Miserably.
"Perhaps you should study more before preforming actual magic, Mr. Umas."
I slunk back to my seat, not meeting any of my classmate's faces. I heard someone laughing. I didn't have to look to know who it was. That arrogant snort could only belong to Chen.
I hurried out of class before anyone else. Hopefully, potions would go better. I was starting to get a better feel for the corridors and made it to class with the room still half empty. I chose a seat near the back to avoid any more embarrassing situations. The class looked pretty ordinary, with a clay teapot and cup sitting on a desk in front of the class.
The lady who had led us up the mountain came in the room. "Welcome to potions. My name is Mistaké, blah, blah, blah. Now, let's get down to business. How many of you have read through 1001 Magical Herbs and Fungi?"
A single hand went into the air. It belonged to Zane. Why wasn't I surprised? He looked amazed that he was the only one who had read the textbook.
Mistaké's eyes narrowed. "You all have homework tonight. Go on, write that down."
I rushed to obey her instructions. This woman meant business. She spent the rest of the day drilling us on plants and their uses. I left the class with Mugwort, Caraway, Verbena, death, love, effects and side effects swirling around in my brain. I was not looking forward to the reading tonight. I wondered if I could ask Zane to help. That kid seemed to know everything.
Next was Defense Against the Dark Arts. Unlike the other classes, Professor Ronin had us practicing spells right off the bat. The object was to freeze the straw dummy with a stunning spell. This was what I was waiting for! But then, the first kid, Sally had her spell blow up in her face. I watched student after student fail. Suddenly, I wasn't so ready to practice magic. Maybe Professor Nuero was right. Then Chen got up to the front of the class. He stunned his 'opponent' on the first try. Anger swelled in my chest. I wasn't going to let this bully best me.
When it was my turn, I waved my wand and said, "Petrificus Totalus!" I knocked the dummy backward, but it wasn't completely frozen like Chen's. I ignored his smug smile and promised myself that I would beat him next time. I didn't pay attention as Zane cast the spell perfectly, or as Jay half froze the dummy, or even when Cole pretty much rocked it. All I could think about was Chen.
"Your homework is to keep practicing. Tomorrow, your casting will be graded."
Great. The bell rang, signaling the end of class. I spotted Zane making his way toward the exit and I hurried after him. Since he wasn't in my house, this could be my only opportunity to ask him for help.
"Zane!" I called after him, trying to catch him before turned around the corner.
He turned to look at me. "What is it?" He asked. Even his question sounded flat.
"I was wondering if you could help me with Defense Against the Dark Arts and Potions."
"Can you help me too?" Jay asked. I jumped. He had just appeared at my shoulder. Cole was right behind him.
"Hey," he said.
Zane looked curiously between the three of us. "Of course."
Cole's stomach rumbled. "Let's head down to lunch."
"Good idea," I said. The three of us made our way down to the cafeteria. Zane started giving me pointers on my spell casting. It was hard to concentrate with Jay's constant talking, but I managed to learn something.
"You can practice on that statue," Zane said.
We had wandered aimless into a hallway I had never seen before. It was lined with stone statues of ancient samurai. The floor was made entirely out of tatami mats, and was lit solely by paper lanterns. The statue that Zane was referring to was the biggest one at the far end of the hallway.
I hesitated. "Are you sure?"
Cole broke in before Zane could answer. "It'll be fine. Go for it. Then let's go back and get some food. I'm starving."
"What if something bad happens? This is a magical school right? What if the statues come to life?" Jay asked.
"The statues won't come to life. That's ridiculous," Cole responded.
Jay didn't look so convinced. "Actually, high level transfiguration can make statues come to life, Cole."
Zane broke in. "That is highly unlikely. The probability of a statue coming to life is—"
"Guys, you're not helping," I interrupted.
"I'll prove it's fine," Cole said. "Watch." He pulled out his wand and pointed it at the statue. "Petrificus Totalus!"
The statue crashed backward. Cole smiled confidently, "See..."
SCREECH!
Jay looked around nervously. "What was that?"
Cole shrugged it off. "It was probably nothing."
SCREECH!
"You call that nothing?" Jay yelled at Cole.
I stared at the statue. I could have sworn its head was not looking our way moments ago. "Uh, guys? Is that thing moving?"
Everyone stopped what they were doing and watched the stone warrior. It pulled itself off the ground. One by one, all the statues turned to look at us.
Zane answered my question, even though it was obvious. "Correct."
I automatically started backing up. A big mistake. The nearest statue grabbed my arm as soon as I started moving. It moved so fast that I didn't even have time to blink. Jay screamed. I tried to pull my arm free, but I couldn't move.
Cole whipped out his wand, but another statue snatched him too. Jay bolted, but a hoard of stone warriors blocked his path. He turned and ran the other way back toward us.
"Help me!" Jay yelled. The statues were gaining fast. It wouldn't be long before they caught him too.
The only one who hadn't been captured was Zane, who still hadn't moved since the statues came to life. Slowly, he reached for his wand. I watched him, urging him to move faster. The stone warrior's grip was getting tighter. I couldn't feel my hand anymore. Cole had stopped struggling. His statue had given him a bear hug, squeezing the air from his lungs. I wasn't sure how much longer he could last.
Meanwhile, Jay had tripped and fallen on the floor. He had shifted the tatami mats around him, revealing a little bit of the room below. Jay crawled for dear life away from the statue that was chasing him. It was at his feet now. "No! Stop! I'm too cute to get squashed!" He cried.
Zane had finally pulled his wand out. The statues still ignored him. He took a shallow breath, then pointed at the statue attacking Jay, "Spongify!"
At first I thought that nothing happened.
"Come on, Zane!" Jay shouted. In his frustration, he kicked the statue and his foot sunk into the statue. The warrior stumbled and fell through the floor. Zane turned and repeated the spell on the other two statues. I felt the stone's grip soften. Now, I could break free. I kicked Cole's statue to make it let go of him.
Cole slumped to the floor. The statues were still coming. I dragged Cole toward the end of the hallway. I had to drag him around the giant hole in the floor. As I passed it, I noticed a giant clock in the room below. It was made of solid gold with gears and orbs sticking out of it. The hands on the clock were ticking down toward a skull. I wondered what that meant.
Something rushed past me. I looked up, preparing to fight a statue. Fortunately, it was only Jay. "Come on, guys!" He yelled.
I tightened my grip on Cole and kept running. Zane saw me struggling and picked up Cole's feet. Together, we ran down the corridor, and then turned down another, and another, until we all finally ran out of breath. Well, all of us except Zane.
I propped Cole up against a wall and slumped down next to him. Jay just collapsed on the floor. "Where did you learn that spell?" I asked Zane.
He shrugged. "It was in the Standard Book of Spells." Figures.
"Well, thank you. You saved our lives."
Zane nodded. "You're welcome."
I needed to catch my breath. I closed my eyes, but all I could think about was the golden clock.
What was it? What was it counting down to?
AN: I will be posting a new chapter every Friday. Stayed tuned and enjoy. Please review!
