*DRRRING!*
Bells chimed somewhere high above as stone corridors filled with the echo of hurried footsteps.
Enark moved among them with measured strides as he approached the academy gate, its main entrance elevated by a long flight of stone stairs.
Every breath tugged at his side.
The wound was bound tightly beneath his uniform, the cloth stiff with dried blood. It throbbed in time with his heartbeat—dull when he stood still, sharp when he moved too quickly. He kept his posture straight, refusing to give the pain any visible victory.
He bore more bruises from the night before, due to the stab wound slowing his movements. A drunken fistfight. Another robbery. Getting caught too close to a gang dispute, he had no business being near.
"Gooood morning, Narky, my man," Archie slapped him on the back.
Enark stiffened, a sharp jolt flaring through his side. He masked it with a breath and kept walking.
"Eugh," Archie continued, squinting at him. "You look horrible. And you're walking like an old man."
Enark huffed softly. "Says the one wheezing up three steps."
Archie grinned, entirely unbothered. "Actually, that's called strategic pacing."
Suzune and Kirsty waited at the top of the stairs.
Suzune glanced down at them, eyes sharp as ever. "You're late," she said. "Again."
"Sorry, sorry—next time we'll be early," Archie replied, waving it off.
Kirsty stood beside Suzune, arms folded around a book pressed to her chest. Her eyes lingered on Enark a moment longer than necessary, studying his face.
"You look tired," she said.
"I am tired."
"That's not what I meant."
Enark slowed his pace slightly, adjusting his stride. "Couldn't sleep."
Suzune raised an eyebrow. "But whenever we had sleepovers, you were usually the first one out cold."
"That's weird," Enark said, a faint smirk tugging at his mouth. "I could've sworn you were the one who passed out first."
Suzune scoffed. "That is not true."
"We all remember that one time you drooled on your pillow," Enark added calmly.
"What—no—I—" Suzune's face flushed bright. "That was just sweat! It was hot that night!"
Archie burst out laughing. Kirsty followed, covering her mouth.
Enark smiled—but only briefly.
Though he hadn't given Kirsty the answer she was looking for, she let it go for now.
They entered the classroom together, the room already alive with chatter. Sunlight filtered through tall windows etched with Xiphonian crests. The classroom filled in waves, and Enark and his friends took their seats carefully.
The bench pressed against his side, and a dull flare of pain bloomed beneath his ribs. He masked it with a slow breath, adjusting his posture until the pressure eased.
Archie dropped into the seat beside him with all the grace of a falling crate.
"Man," he muttered, stretching his arms, "if I die in this class, tell my parents I went out bored."
Suzune sat one row ahead, already upright and attentive. Kirsty slid in beside her, smoothing the pages of her notebook, eyes flicking briefly toward Enark before returning to the front.
The doors at the front of the room opened.
A Professor entered without ceremony.
He was old—not frail but worn in the way stone steps were worn. His academy cloak bore the sigil of Xiphonos at the shoulder: a vertical blade bisected by a star. He set his satchel down on the desk and waited while he surveyed the room.
Silence spread as his gaze lingered on each student.
"Good," he said. "You all remembered how to behave."
A few students chuckled.
"Good morning, students," he continued, turning toward the board, "I am Professor Halvor. And today we begin our survey of Xiphonian history, specifically, its foundational capitals. And before anyone groans—yes, this will be on the midterm."
That earned him a collective sigh.
Halvor smiled faintly. "Let's begin simply."
He tapped the board once.
"Who can tell me," He said, "why Caldonia is called the City of Blades?"
He turned. "And why not Forgery? Or Justice for that matter?"
Archie leaned over toward Enark and whispered, "Because swords are cooler."
Enark exhaled quietly through his nose, trying to stifle a laugh.
Hands rose immediately, filling each row.
Suzune was among them while Kirsty hovered hesitantly.
Halvor pointed. "Yes, you. Third row."
Suzune stood. "Caldonia was founded under the covenant the Goddess of Ordnance had with the Caldonian royal family," she said clearly. "Martial doctrine, sword styles, and the Roundtable of the Imperial Knights were centralized here."
"Acceptable," Halvor said. "Sit."
"If Caldonia was claimed by Lady Andronika," Halvor continued, pacing slowly before the rows, "then who claimed the other capitals of Xiphonos?"
Hands rose again—fewer this time.
Kirsty lifted hers, tentative but steady.
Halvor noticed. "Yes. Miss Bronte, I believe."
She stood. "One of the other two was claimed by the Goddess of the Forge," she said. "Mistress Caelith, The Eternal Smith."
"Correct," Halvor nodded. "And the third?"
Archie didn't hesitate. "Maestra Eudora," he said. "Goddess of Justice."
"Indeed," Halvor replied. "Three capitals. Three patrons. Blade, Forgery, and Law."
He turned back to the board, chalk scratching briefly as he marked three symbols.
"Most citizens learn that much before they can read," he continued. "What is taught less often… is what came after."
The room quieted.
"The end of their triune reign came about around 300 years ago," Halvor said, voice lowering, "both the Goddess of the Forge and Goddess of Justice fell."
A ripple passed through the class.
"They were slain," he continued, "by a foreign god—an interloper that descended to Xiphonos from afar."
He wrote a single honorific name on the board.
"She is known as the Goddess of Retribution," Halvor said. "The Avenging Scales."
Archie muttered under his breath, "Dark..."
Halvor continued. "Like her namesake, she held a vendetta against the three god-queens. We do not know why; all that we know is that she set out from beyond even this continent and came to this land to slay them all."
He paused.
"She succeeded, and the Goddess of Justice and the Goddess of the Forge fell to her, still defending their land and their people amid their battle."
Chalk snapped in his fingers.
"But the Goddess of Retribution did not savor victory for much longer. As the Goddess of Ordnance struck her down not too long after, severing her from the world itself. It is said that the place where they fought still writhes the earth itself to this day."
Silence held the room.
"When the dust settled," Halvor said, "Xiphonos stood—ruled no longer by three, but by one."
The students shifted uneasily while Enark listened intently.
He learned of the Goddess of Ordnance's century-long reign before her disappearance. Of the rise of the royal line. And of the legend—half prophecy, of a blade bound in stone, awaiting the hand of a future king.
-----------------------------
*DRRRING!*
The academy courtyard was calmer at midday.
Students clustered beneath arches and low walls, voices softened by the open air.
Enark took a seat at the long table with the others after collecting lunch from the cafeteria.
Archie was already halfway through his meal.
"You ever notice," he said around a mouthful of bread, "that every story about the gods ends right when things get inconvenient?"
Suzune glanced up from her bowl. "Define inconvenient."
"The part where two of them die and nobody agrees on why or how," Archie replied. "Forge and Justice—gone. And all we get is some poorly decoded writing."
Kirsty leaned forward slightly. "Most records from that era were lost," she said. "After the Imperial Sieges."
Archie blinked. "See? That. That's exactly what I mean."
Enark stirred his food slowly, listening.
"I've read accounts from other countries in my dad's library," Suzune added, straightening a little. "They speak of three goddesses who ruled a land to the west long ago. The details are scarce, but it does match up with the story of Xiphonos."
"You have your own library?" Archie said, lowering his voice in reverence.
Kirsty smiled faintly. "If you had to choose one," she said, "which would it be?"
Archie looked between them. "Choose what?"
"You know, which goddess you'd follow," she clarified.
Suzune answered instantly. "Justice."
"No hesitation at all," Kirsty said.
"It's the only one that makes sense," Suzune replied. "Without law, strength and craft are meaningless."
Archie scoffed. "I'm going with Justice, too. I mean, come on, I am trying to be a lawyer here, guys."
Kirsty tilted her head. "Hmm... Nice choice. I think... I'd go with... the Blade."
Both of them looked at her.
"Why?" Suzune asked.
Kirsty hesitated. "I mean, she was strong. Even when the others fell, she won in the end."
"Fair. That is true," Archie nodded.
Suzune then looked at Enark.
"And you?" she asked. "Which one do you believe in?"
Archie blinked. "Oh, yeah. You've been suspiciously quiet."
Kirsty turned as well, studying him with that sharp, assessing look she wore when something didn't add up.
Enark didn't answer right away.
He pushed a piece of food aside. The ache in his side pulsed faintly, but it wasn't what made his chest feel tight.
"…None of them," he said finally.
Archie frowned. "None?"
"I don't like them," Enark said. His voice stayed even, but there was something firm underneath it. "Especially the Goddess of Ordnance."
Suzune stiffened. "She's the reason Caldonia exists."
"And she's also the reason it's rotting," Enark replied.
That drew real silence.
"The other two die, and what? She just vanishes?" he continued. "Leaving the city that worships her to tear itself apart." His fingers curled slightly against the table. "You guys read the news. You see the things that are happening even in our own neighborhoods. Is that what her legacy is?"
Archie opened his mouth, then closed it again.
Kirsty watched Enark closely. "Then… who do you believe in?"
Enark exhaled slowly.
"Someone else," he said.
"Another god?" Suzune asked, skeptical.
Enark nodded once. "One not like the Goddess of Ordnance."
"One who wouldn't abandon anyone," Enark said. "No matter how far they stray, even if they turn their backs on Him."
Kirsty's expression softened—not understanding, not agreement, but something gentler. "That sounds painful."
Enark shrugged. "It probably is."
Archie tried to laugh it off. "Okay, wow. That's—uh—heavy for lunch."
Suzune broke the silence first, folding her hands together on the table. "Does this… god of yours have a name?"
"I don't know what He goes by. Only… that He calls Himself Lord," Enark said quietly. "Still, I mean... Isn't it forbidden to learn the true name of a god?"
Archie blinked, then leaned in with a grin. "Oh yeah, my grandma said if you ever say one out loud, you'll turn into a turtle or something. Or explode. One of the two."
Suzune raised an eyebrow. "A turtle?"
A bell rang sharply, cutting through the moment. The cafeteria's hum rose louder, as if to drown out what had just been spoken.
Kirsty lingered a step longer as she passed him. "Do you think He's real?"
Enark smirked calmly, his voice low. "My grandma once told me something He said: 'The Lord is near to all who call on Him.'"
The implication was subtle, almost hidden in the weight of the words. Kirsty didn't press further; she smiled silently and caught up with Archie and Suzune.
Enark stayed seated a moment longer, letting the cafeteria's noise wash over him. For once, he did not withhold the truth from them—though it was only partial. Yet, unspoken words pressed against his chest. The weight of his double life bore down on his spirit and his body. There were countless truths he wanted to share, questions he longed to answer. But for now, in this moment, there were many things left unsaid…