The Flag was the most violent sport in the Otherworld, which was exactly why it was played and celebrated as passionately at it was Yawana and Ved hated it just as much as now as he had the first day he had seen his seniors playing the game.
Short of outright maiming anyone, everything else was shockingly permitted in the game. Shoving, punching, five strategic hexes, if you could get away with it, it was legal enough. Ved watched to his discomfort as the House banners snapped proudly above the stands, and the seating mounds roared. Today, it seemed the crowd had worked itself into a frenzy. As the sun cast a honey-gold sheen over Yawana's central field, the teams fought just as violently as ever.
Ved sat beyond the marked sidelines. Around him, his group of usual suspects shouted themselves hoarse for their House. Even Javi who was still limping, waved his wooden crutch painted in the green and copper colors of the Corvus House.
The stand to their left buzzed with the sneer and haughty laughter of the Drago House, smug as ever. Ved smiled faintly, noting that every other house seemed to be cheering for Corvus. Because the Dragoes were led by the infamous Three Witches – Angela James, Julie Sharma, and of course, Rose Fontaine.
"By the Sentinels, if we win this, we're in the finals and the reign of the witches is finally over," Raj shouted, pumping his fist. Javi answered with a weak whoop.
They're crazy, Ved thought, rolling his eyes. How can anyone find this remotely entertaining? Students on brooms maiming each other for sport.
"I hate this," he muttered aloud unable to control himself, and tried to leave only to be yanked back down by Javi and Raj.
"Sit down, you selfish bastard."
"Yeah," Javi growled. "Jammy's out there risking his neck for our House, and you can't even sit and support him?"
"That's a load of dragon-shit," Ved said, brushing grass off his sleeve. "Even Jammy would agree to that. He's not doing it for the house. He's doing it because the International Flag Federation scouts are watching. He wants a contract. And boatloads of gold buits."
"Shut up."
And Ved did, as usual, knowing well that he might be the only person in school who thought the game was idiotic.
"The scores are still tied," Raj muttered.
Ved glanced up. Indeed, both teams were still at zero. No flag captures yet and the clock was about to run over. Ved stared absently into the wind, brows lightly furrowed, as his fingers played idly with the copper box in his robe. The noise around him, the cheers and whistles, the thrum of brooms zipping overhead it felt like a distant memory.
He was still back in that chamber, thinking of her.
Those red eyes. The sensation of her pale fingers touching him through the mirror it sent shivers down his back.
It had to be a hallucination Ved reasoned but a voice at the back of his head knew that Tulsarium has no recorded hallucinogenic effects. Ved bit the inside of his cheek. The mirror wasn't part of his chamber. No spell, no mental trick, no memory lapse could account for that.
The mirror wasn't part of my chamber, No spell, no lapse in memory accounts for that. Ved thought to himself. The girl had eyes like starlight trapped in blood. They were not entirely human.
"Jammy's in!" Javi exclaimed, sitting upright. "We might actually win this!"
Ved turned just in time to see Jammy, break formation with his broom slicing through the wind. His movements were pure finesse, and he had now used windtrail spells to amplify speed.
He was now a true lean magic machine (as he often called himself) and was cutting through the defense like a hot knife through butter.
"Oh shit," Raj whispered. Ved's gaze snapped to the far corner. A Drago infiltrator had broken rank. Fast. Too fast.
It was Angela. She didn't go for the broom. She lunged, full-bodied, and slammed into Jammy's shoulder mid-turn. No wand. No warning. Just brute-force.
Jammy tumbled through the air like a rag doll and smashed into the grass. He didn't get up. The stands erupted into gasps and shouts. Someone screamed for a medic. Javi surged to his feet.
"Bloody hell! That's a red-class foul!" someone bellowed.
"That was targeted! It's illegal!" Javi shouted as loud as he could manage.
Ved, however, wasn't watching Jammy anymore. He was watching what followed.
Out of the chaos, Rose Fontaine launched forward. Blonde hair streaming, her broom a blur of grey-black. She had waited and planned exactly for the chaos. She now bolted for the flag, two infiltrators flanking her like blades. They cast spells in sweeping arcs, blinding, misdirecting, shielding her flight.
"Did she... did she plan that?" Javi asked in disbelief.
"Of course, the witch did," Raj growled.
Ved's pulse quickened as he watched her fly. Rose was nowhere near as good as Jammy but she didn't need to be as she had planned this to a tea. She dodged, through the broken formations with the five spells each player was allowed. Her eyes locked on the enchanted flag, glittering in the branches of the animated tree that guarded the Flag.
Rose weaved through broken formations using the five legal spells every runner was allowed. She dodged struggling but holding on somehow, her eyes locked on the enchanted tree that guarded the glowing flag.
But Jammy to his credit, even down, had accounted for it. Two defenders emerged to block her path. Ved leaned forward in anticipation to see what she would do next.
"They'll collide!" Raj shouted.
But they didn't. Rose vanished into a cloud of smoke. Gasps tore through the crowd. Ved stood now with the others. His trained eyes caught something else, Julie appearing from the smoke, charging through at the defenders, swerving just in time to mislead them.
And in a moment of disarray Rose slipping in and reappearing from behind the tree, flag in hand.
"Impossible," someone whispered behind Ved.
"Illegal," another voice hissed.
Ved felt a thrill crawl up his spine. It was the sense of watching an idea perfectly executed. The sirens went off the enchanted chimes that signaled a flag capture.
The game was done.
And the reign of the Three Witches was far from over.
****
The ivory spires of the Parliament of Magi rose like knives into the sky, etched against gathering clouds. You could see them through the long echoing halls of the High Assembly, where Headmistress Adara walked, in her white-pinke robes trailing over the glimmering black floors.
Two Shadow Sorcerers flanked her in silence, faces half-concealed beneath charmwoven veils. Their presence was symbolic given as a mark of respect to imminent visitors. The walk to chambers of the President's Tower was a long one, and never the same one as before.
The Sorcerers bowed and stood guard opposite the chambers as she was called in by an attendant. The air inside was thick with candlelight. President Koti was sat alone at the head of the beautiful table made of minglewood. He rose as she entered, offering a weary smile.
"Still walking through fire to come see me, Adara." he said.
"Yes Mr. President" she said and offered her hand. "It is good to see you, old friend."
He didn't take the hand. Instead, he embraced her briefly, with the hesitance of a man who'd forgotten how. He felt weaker than she remembered and his breathing was ragged.
"You came fast," he said, parting finally and gesturing for her to sit.
"I flew with the Northwind and I didn't stop."
"So it's true, then. A Gateway."
Adara didn't answer immediately. She reached into her satchel and unwrapped a scroll bearing the sigil of Yawana's seal.
"A gateway and a river serpent," she said softly.
"By the old blood." He swore habitually she noticed smirking.
"I could not even open the portal. I barely illuminated it for more than a few seconds with all my strength."
President Koti closed his eyes and exhaled.
"It was always easy to pretend they were never there. Wasn't it?"
Adara looked at him closely. "Did you know there was one at the Academy?"
"I only now know that they can be anywhere." he said. "Even here where we sit. The Gateways never operated with any logic anyway."
He stood now, his hand passing over a crystal orb on the table, whispering a ward of silence. The room dimmed. The walls shimmered faintly and sealed against eavesdropping.
"There are powers moving beneath this world," Koti said. "And I can no longer keep them from turning their gaze on us."
Adara's voice was level. "You think someone opened this Gateway?"
"I don't know what I think anymore." His eyes found hers. "But I do know I'm being booted out. At the next council vote. It's already been arranged."
Adara stiffened. "That's absurd. You're the only one with enough alliances to hold the Council."
Koti's voice was calm, but bitter. "Alliances turn that's what they do."
"Why now?" she asked.
Her old friend didn't answer even though she could tell by the twitch on his lips that he wanted to. Instead, he reached into a drawer and pulled out a black badge marked with a seal of three crescent moons. "I'm sending three Shadow Sorcerers to Yawana. They will not interfere. They are yours."
"And if you have to ask me of any favours, don't defer it for tomorrow you won't be able to."
Adara looked down at the badge and whispered "Koti…"
"I know Yawana," he said. "There's no safer place. The grove shields it. The ancient roots of the First Tree still pulse through that ground. No one can enter without your knowledge."
"I know" said trying to comfort the man who looked far too old for his age.
He sat again, slower this time.
"You remember the Age of Wars," he said. "Cities burning, mothers burying their sons under black skies. We stopped that. You and I with the others. I remember that and I don't want to be a part of that ever again."
"The world remembers too, Mr President."
"No, the world has a poor memory. And power has a longer one."
Adara's eyes were on the candle now, flickering strangely. "We kept too many secrets," she said in a defeated voice.
"We had to." Koti replied taking a deep breath.
"Did we?"
There was nothing to say except sit in the silence of what they knew of the bloodshed committed to their memory.
Then a chuckle from Koti. "Do you remember our Duelling Finals?"
"You knocked out two of the judges when you hexed your wand backward."
They laughed quietly together at that. She knew everyone had teased Koti about that for a month.
"The International Finals are coming again," Koti said, the smile slowly fading. "Yawana will be hosting. It's the safest magical grove in the known world."
Adara nodded. "Yes. We're ready."
"Be vigilant Adara. It's not just a tournament anymore. Not with all that's going on. These children… they are all we have."
Adara stood. "Then it is our job to protect them until they do."
Koti looked at her for a long moment. "Yours more than anyone."
She didn't answer and turned to leave. "Be careful with your students, Adara. You might not know which of them already hears whispers from the other side."
"I always am," she said pausing at the door. "But you still haven't told me what you're not saying."
Koti gave her a tired look. "All in good time."
Outside the Parliament, the storm broke at last and thunder rolled over the capital city of Idraz-Maara. Adara shook as the lightning split the clouds like torn prophecy.