The Burning Flowers

Chapter II

In what felt like the blink of an eye, Abigail’s first week of classes were about to come to an end, and she was surprised by how fast it all felt. The day of orientation was like an eternity, but all that followed it was somewhat of a blur, and after having spent a bit of time at the Academy, she couldn’t help but realize that it wasn’t exactly what she had expected. Once they had claimed their ranks the day after orientation, they then went to sign up for classes, with Abi expecting a plethora of subjects relating to the usage of magic, but what she soon found out was that, as a first year, most of the fun and exciting classes were saved for later down the line.

Instead, she was required to take quite a few “general” subjects that included “Introduction to Ijirian Law”, a class that was mostly about the basics of how the Empire’s governing system functioned, “The Origins of Magic” which focused on how magical understanding evolved from tribal civilizations to the modern magical uses, and her required history class, “History of Ijiria: The Kosah Repression”. However, as interesting as she found the subjects, she had already read quite a bit about magical origins and the Kosah Repression, so she found herself quite bored in those classes. As for her law class, she wasn’t very familiar with the inner workings of the government, but she was also rather uninterested, so she feared what her grade might be if she didn’t quickly kick it into gear.

Outside of her general subjects, she did have “Advanced Nature Magic” which she was looking forward to, as well as “Wind Magic Studies”, one she took only because she found out that the students were required to have a sub-affinity, and Ryokumo gave her a half-hour speech on why she should select wind. Eventually, she decided to listen to him since she didn’t have much of a preference anyway, and he promised to tutor her himself if she struggled with it. Overall, her first week was predominantly spent focusing on subjects that weren't nature magic, and as disappointed as she was, she found herself realizing why Grunly had tried to compromise on the one-year deal.

He got me to agree to at least one year knowing full well that the classes I’d actually enjoy require me to be here longer, didn’t he? Gosh, that guy is far more manipulative than I ever gave him credit for.

Abigail sighed, then forced herself to tune back into her last class of the day, the one on the Kosah Repression. She was sitting in the top-left corner of the lecture hall, scribbling down notes on her desk as she listened to the instructor, Professor Motton, who was an older man with barely any of his white hair left and round glasses that were so big she had to wonder how they even stayed on his face. He was a very excitable person, clearly invested in his work, and as he spoke, he swiftly paced around the front of the room.

“Now, many like to attribute Irik Iiji’s attempts to subjugate the various faiths of the Empire to his own personal hatred for religion,” Motton was saying. “But what those people forget is that King Irik was a devout follower of Kosahanity, as were his parents and his sister. No, no, the reason he sought to eliminate religion was because he feared how threatening it could be to his reign.”

The professor shook his head and readjusted his glasses as he pointed toward the blackboard behind him, which listed the various religions that could be found in Ijiria back during the height of the Fifth Age.

“Modern Ijiria, at its core, is a mixture of various cultures, all stemming from the many countries that were conquered and assimilated over the centuries of expansion, and each culture tended to have its own religious faith—its own gods and texts and morals. So whenever a country was brought into the empire, it would add yet another religion to the already quite crowded mix, and these differing beliefs naturally brought about conflict.” He clicked his tongue then glanced around the room at the roughly thirty students present. “And these conflicts could be bloody and destructive. Take the Rape of Port Wellsary, for example. Does anybody know the details of that particular event?”

Almost immediately, a hand shot up into the air, as if having been eagerly waiting for any chance to answer a question.

“Ah, yes, Mr. Glaus, please.”

Rennigan grinned smugly from his spot at the very front of the lecture hall. “The Rape of Port Wellsary was caused by the drastic difference in religious opinion in the city between the Utharians and the Kosah. The city was always fraught with disagreement, and so historians believe that The Rape was inevitable, and all it needed was a spark to light the fuse—a spark that was the death of a seventeen-year-old Kosah girl who was jumped and beaten to death by a group of Utharian thugs. One thing led to another, and the majority population of Kosah overwhelmed the Utharians and essentially wiped out the entire population of the city in a mere few weeks.”

Professor Motton smiled, though Abi could tell from the look in his eyes that he wasn’t completely satisfied with Rennigan’s answer. “Almost perfect, but I must correct one thing. It is not known for a fact whether that beating actually happened and there is a large number of modern historians that believe it was concocted after the fact to justify the actions of the Kosah.”

“Ah, yes, I misspoke,” Rennigan corrected. “But I do know that this particular explanation is also used to explain why the Kosah were so prepared to retaliate.”

The professor nodded then turned back to address the entire class. “Precisely. Good job, Mr. Glaus.”

Pleased with himself, Rennigan leaned back and glanced over his shoulder, immediately making eye contact with Abigail, as if trying to rub in her face that he got a single question correctly.

“Such a pretentious little showoff, isn’t he?” Ryokumo whispered from the seat on her right, to which Abi just chuckled.

“Honestly.”

“Now, it is unfortunate that events like what happened at Wellsary were rather common during the Age of Destruction,” Motton went on. “In fact, entire religions have been entirely wiped out due to these conflicts, and over the course of this class, we will analyze many of these events, but for today, I just want you all to understand their unfortunate frequency, and how this frequency affected King Irik’s state of mind.” The old man finally stopped his pacing and folded his hands behind his back. “Like I said, King Irik was a devout Kosah and believed strongly in the goddess, Rei, and her teachings, but was terrified that religious influence on the populace would be the downfall of his dynasty. That was why he issued the Proclamation of 2152—the one that banned religious practice and declared the empire an atheistic country. He believed that in a war against religion, he could prevail and he believed that if religion was wiped out—if nobody believed in a higher power, then there wouldn’t be conflicts over whose god was the correct one, nor would there be anybody considered above the crown.”

The man then smiled sadly and stopped, as if to ponder the subject for a moment. “Scholars and philosophers have argued ever since over the morality of what King Irik did, for in the end, the civil war that erupted throughout the Empire had a far higher death toll than any of the religious conflicts that preceded it. But that being said, ever since the Age of Destruction ended and the Age of Prosperity began, we haven’t seen anything to the scale of the religious conflict of that time. With the banning of religion, piety essentially died out, and now, roughly two-hundred and fifty years later, there’s very few who follow any sort of organized religion. So what I would request of you today is to write around two pages detailing your own opinion on King Irik’s actions and submit it in class next week.” He then smiled warmly and glanced around at the students. “With that, I excuse you. Have a nice weekend.”

As everybody in the room began packing away their things, Abi let out a sigh of relief, for as much as she enjoyed the lecture, the fatigue of the week had caught up to her, and all she wanted to do was go back to her dorm room and rest.

It’s a fascinating subject though, she internally remarked. And I’m not really sure how I feel about it. I’ve never given it much thought…

Once her notebook was tucked back into her bag, she got to her feet and joined Ryokumo as the two of them followed the flow of students toward the door before exiting out into the hallway. They were currently in one of the general buildings and so, unlike the department buildings, it was just a normal three-story structure that almost seemed boring after having experienced both the wind and nature departments over the past week. And of course, Abi couldn’t help noticing the stares that were occasionally sent their way by the surrounding students. Some were harsh, others were curious, and there were even a few that seemed in awe of them.

And I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. From their perspective, a couple of nobodies managed to turn around a fight that most had already believed was won. It’s no wonder we’d be mildly famous now…though, it is a bit uncomfortable.

However, unsurprisingly, a sidelong glance at Ryokumo showed that he was broadly grinning, as if completely oblivious to the attention he was receiving.

“Well, I thoroughly enjoyed that,” Ryokumo commented as they reached the staircase and followed it down to the first floor. “Ijirian history has always been a favorite of mine, though I haven’t studied it as much as I would have liked. Never had much time to read before coming here. What about you, Abi?”

“Oh, yeah, I like it enough, but I’ve already read plenty of books about it,” she replied, snapping back from her thoughts. “I know most people enjoy studying the war itself, but I’ve always been more fascinated by the lead-up. I mean, the professor didn’t touch on it yet, but it’s not like King Irik just woke up one morning and decided to risk a civil war that could rip the Empire apart. There were plenty of factors both within the Citadel and without that influenced him.”

Ryokumo frowned and glanced down at her as the two of them excited the building and made their way outside into the late-afternoon air. “Within, you say?”

She nodded. “Yeah. I remember reading at one point that Irik's Master of Rock was an avid warhawk, and he was rumored to have been eagerly anticipating another chance to show off his power and prestige. The book said that he was constantly in Irik’s ear, planting beliefs that one church or another was after him and his family, or was plotting a religious takeover of Erika, or whatever. That Master was also said to have a strong faction supporting him, and many think that without them, Irik would never have made the Proclamation.”

“Facinating,” Ryokumo mused with a grin. “And see, that’s what I love about this stuff. There’s always layers upon layers to why things happen, and I can’t help but enjoy pulling back those layers and taking a peek of my own.”

“Exactly,” Abi replied, pleased to know that he shared a similar sentiment to her. “That being said, though, I couldn’t really say what I think in regards to Professor Motton’s essay assignment. Because there’s so many layers, it's hard to pick a side.”

Ryokumo shrugged. “Yes, I suppose so, and especially given that we live in an era where religion hardly exists outside of a few underground sects. It’s hard to justify or condemn him when we can only imagine what he was dealing with. The Age of Destruction and our current Age of Prosperity couldn’t be more different from one another.”

“I know…”

As they continued on their way back towards the dormitories, Abi couldn’t help but silently dwell on Ryokumo’s point. Of the six ages of Ijirian history, the fifth age was by far the most violent and bloody, mostly due to the fact that the Empire was at war with one country or another for almost the entirety of the age. On the flip side, their current age, the Age of Prosperity, was easily the most peaceful of the six, a stark contrast to its predecessor, and she couldn’t help but wonder just how the world could shift so drastically in the span of just a hundred years.

Perhaps King Irik’s Proclamation was a deciding factor in creating that peace, but… Her lips tightened as she thought back to the many small villages she had visited and lived at over the course of her time wandering the north, and she couldn’t help but internally sigh. I still struggle to consider this an age of prosperity. After all, the only ones prospering are the people who live in cities like this, and only in the richer parts.

Abi shook her head, wanting to push those thoughts from her mind as the four dorm towers came into view just up ahead. “So, do you have any plans for tonight?” she asked Ryokumo, wanting to start the conversation back up. “Or for the weekend, even?”

He flashed her a charming grin and nodded vigorously. “Ah yes, I actually meant to talk to you about that! Seeing as the four of us are a team and that we’ll be working closely together for the next four years, I’ve been thinking that we should find some time to sit down and properly get to know each other! I mean, I realized that I know very little about you.”

“Oh, uh, yeah…I guess so,” she murmured.

Until Ryokumo pointed it out, she hadn’t even really thought about the fact that she didn’t know her new teammates all that well. In fact, Ryokumo was the only one of the three that she had any classes with, but even he hadn’t really divulged too many details about his personal life and his past. As for Nigreos, she hadn’t seen him once since the day of orientation, and though she lived in the same room as Album, she had quickly come to realize that the girl was far from talkative and preferred to spend her time studying alone in the library.

Ryokumo’s right… Maybe we should take some time to get to know each other.

“So what were you thinking then?”

He shrugged. “I wasn’t really sure, to be honest. Nigreos says there’s this really good restaurant down in the market that he’s been meaning to stop by, so perhaps the four of us could grab some dinner there tomorrow?”

“Well, I can’t speak for Album, but I’m definitely not doing anything so I’d be happy to go.”

Abi smiled to herself, for despite the fact that she had spent much of her life far from the cities, even she hadn’t failed to hear about the glory of Erika’s Market Street. It was said that if you looked hard enough, you could find anything you needed in the Market, no matter how rare nor how legal it was, and though it sounded slightly overwhelming to her, she still wanted to pay it a visit at some point. Ryokumo’s invitation was the perfect chance to do so.

“Perfect!” the young man exclaimed. “In that case, I shall inform Nigreos of our decision. He’s expressed similar sentiments as I, so I'm certain he’ll be glad to join!”

Abi chuckled to herself, having already grown quite fond of Ryokumo’s upbeat demeanor. When choosing classes, they had done their best to try and find subjects that they could take together, so he was in all three of her general classes. Because of this, they had already grown rather close, and she considered him a welcome and comforting presence in the foreign environment she found herself in. Even without her sense, she could tell that he was a genuine person, and she was happy to have him as a friend. In addition, while Nigreos and Album were still enigmas in her mind, she wanted nothing more than to properly befriend them the way she already had with Ryokumo.

And despite herself, even though she had told Grunly she would only stay for a year and then decide whether to remain at the Academy or not, she found herself already imagining a future beside her three teammates—a future she was strangely excited for.

***

Immediately upon departing Professor Motton’s class, Rennigan Glaus made his way directly to the library in the southern part of campus—the place where he had been spending the grand majority of his time ever since the day of orientation. The Academy Library was a massive, five-story structure that had almost anything a student could desire. There were rooms dedicated for them to go and quietly study or work on homework while other rooms were specifically set aside for group study sessions, where they could be as loud as they wanted. The bottom level was where the library staff worked, and it even had a few shops where one could grab a drink or some food to take with them. In fact, there was such a variety of facilities that Rennigan didn’t even know them all, but since he only ever used the quiet study room on the third floor, he didn’t particularly care what else the building had to offer.

Once he arrived, he took a brief stop at one of the cafes just outside of the library, a place called “The Grinning Lion”, where he ordered a black coffee, then made his way into the building and towards one of the lifts just down the hall from the main entrance. With practiced ease, he rode one of the disks up to the third floor before stalking through the corridors until he came to the wide-open double doors that were his destination. The quiet study room was filled with bookshelves containing a large variety of texts that students could use for research, as well as a plethora of tables and couches where they could sit down and work. Since it was late afternoon at the end of a week, he figured that most people were probably off galivanting around the city or finding somewhere to relax and celebrate one week finished, so he was unsurprised at how few were currently present in the room.

Perfect. I can have some peace and quiet to get my work done.

Smiling with satisfaction, Rennigan walked inside and began making his way around the various rows of bookshelves and towards a table that he knew was tucked in the back corner of the room—one that was so out of the way that nobody would bother him. Unfortunately, not far from his favorite spot was another table that he had yet to see vacant, and just like every other day that week, that particular seat had a single young woman sitting at it, silently reading a book. When he arrived at his own table, Album Luz spared a brief glance towards him and made eye contact for just a second before returning to her reading.

Rennigan snorted and plopped himself down in his chair. Well, it’s good to see that one member of that cursed team is taking their studies as seriously as I. Though, given Luz’s rather pathetic performance at orientation, I suppose she doesn't have much of an option.

He smirked smugly before his smile faded at the fact that, even with Album’s embarrassing failure, his team still lost to Nigreos Noctis.

Whatever. It was just one duel, he told himself yet again. A duel we would have won had my team actually succeeded in holding up their own part of the plan. I only lost because Rio couldn’t keep that damn commoner at bay long enough for me to finish off Noctis. But never mind that…I’ll show them. We lost this time, but next time, we’ll win for sure.

His words rejuvenated him as he pulled a piece of parchment from his bag, as well as an ink pen, and got to work on Motton’s assignment. He didn’t even think before he started writing, for in his eyes, the answer was blatantly obvious.

Sure, the Second Civil War was bloody, but take a look around and it becomes clear that King Irik’s decision was a necessary evil. Those religious fanatics were far too interested in their own damn make-believe gods to care about the safety of the Empire as a whole, and thus, if they couldn’t set their differences aside for the sake of greater prosperity then they deserved what they got! Not to mention, it was their choice to rebel against the king’s proclamation and so they received the punishment befitting of rebels. Rennigan shook his head as he scribbled down all of his thoughts. Once those fools were subjugated, peace reigned supreme. If King Irik was wrong, then would Ijiria be as powerful and peaceful as it is now? I doubt it. What an easy prompt! I’ll be done in just a few minutes at this rate!

But as he reached the halfway mark of his second page, he heard a set of footsteps against the carpet slowly approaching him. At first, he didn’t think anything of it, figuring that it was probably one of Album’s teammates stopping by to speak with her, but when the footsteps stopped just beside his table, he let out an irritable sigh and glanced up to find his roommate, Hirokol Pafran, standing there with a cocked eyebrow.

“So this is where you’ve been running off to, huh, Glaus?” he stated, his narrowed green eyes, filled with disdain, causing Rennigan to scowl.

“Do you need something from me?” he demanded sharply, far from being in the mood to deal with anybody while he was on such a roll with the assignment. “I’m currently in the middle of my studies, after all, so if it isn’t important then I’d rather be left alone.”

Hiro chuckled softly, though there wasn’t any humor in the laugh and instead sounded like it was more out of frustration than anything. “You know, I’ve hardly seen you all week, and that’s saying something since we live in the same room.”

“Yes, well, I take my work rather seriously,” he snapped. “The dormitory is merely a place to sleep. Otherwise, I have no need of it when I have somewhere as quiet and private as this. So if you would be so kind as to leave…”

With a wave of his hand, he once again dismissed Hiro and went back to working on his paper, but to his disappointment, the man didn’t make any move to walk away.

“Well, if you’re so invested in your studies, you’ll probably be happy to know that Faye wants us all to meet up in the training grounds tomorrow morning,” Hiro told him. “After our loss in the orientation, she thinks it would be smart to start practicing together as soon as possible so we can improve our teamwork, and this weekend is a great opportunity to try and get this off on a better foot.”

Rennigan rolled his eyes and didn’t bother to look back at him. “I’ll have to pass. There’s far too much work to be done. But by all means, you three can go duking it out all you like. I do not need any extra training.”

“That so?” This time, there was an edge to Hiro’s voice and Rennigan smirked to himself at how easily the man could get worked up. “You don’t need training? Well that’s funny coming from a guy who lost his orientation match.”

Despite his internal decision to not bother engaging Hiro in conversation, Rennigan simply couldn’t allow that comment to pass. He calmly set his pen down once again and turned a seething glare upon his roommate. “Yes, I lost, but not through any fault of mine. If Rio had beaten Abigail the way she was supposed to then I would have taken out Noctis without issue. So please, you three should train all you can. And I would request that you get better at following orders. Once you’ve done that, we can talk. Until then…”

“Following orders, huh?” Hirokol scoffed, then leaned forward and pressed his hand over the parchment, his face now inches from Rennigan’s. “And who made you the boss, huh? Last I checked, each member of the team was equal.”

The water mage clicked his tongue and narrowed his golden eyes, meeting Hiro’s challenge with a confident expression. “You are correct that there is no declared leader, but hierarchy exists everywhere whether you like it or not. Of the four of us, I am the most experienced in combat and have the greater sense of strategy, therefore, it is only natural that you should do as I say. I know better.”

“Oh, you think you’ve got more experience than me, huh?” Hiro growled. “And what makes you so confident? Jessi and I grew up in Krato, remember—not exactly a cushy and comfortable place. Where are you from again?”

Rennigan smirked. “I am from this very city, Pafran. Ever since I was small, I have lived among the Ijirian elite. Tell me, do you know who my father is?”

“Not a clue, Glaus,” Hirokol spat.

“My father is a respected member of the Ijirian High Council,” he sneered. “And through his connections, he has provided me with a variety of experience and training to prepare me for the Academy. The one who taught me water magic was once a prospect for the Master of Water. I have dined with some of the greatest minds in the Citadel. I was educated by a lead professor from Stellareid. And of course, not to mention, I know Nigreos Noctis personally. Do you understand me? There is a clear difference in status and prestige between you and me.”

He could see Hirokol’s jaw clenching in obvious frustration and Rennigan could tell that his logic had stumped the young man. After all, in Rennigan’s mind, there wasn’t anything he could say in response that would counter his point. Finally, Hiro removed his hand from the table and straightened up, then simply shook his head.

“So you think you’re just that good, huh?” he demanded sharply, to which Rennigan simply laughed.

“I know I am.”

The wind mage nodded, almost to himself, then folded his arms across his broad chest and smiled coldly. “Fine then. If that’s the case, then why don’t you prove it?”

“Prove it?” Rennigan parroted with a smug expression. “And how would you suggest I do that? You have something in mind?”

“I do.” Hirokol then narrowed his eyes once again and Rennigan could tell that he thought whatever he had come up with would somehow disprove his point. “Two mornings from now, in the training grounds, I challenge you to duel. And not just me, but Jessi as well. If you’re anywhere near as superior as you claim then you should be able to fend both of us off and win, right?”

Internally, Rennigan couldn’t help but laugh at how cocky Hiro sounded as he made his challenge. He’s actually being serious here. He wants to fight me?

“And why would I bother participating in something so juvenile?” he demanded. “Like I said, I have a lot of work to do this weekend so I don’t have the time to spare proving something that I feel I have no need to prove in the first place. I don’t care if you believe me, Pafran, for I know I am right. You have to at least give me some incentive to accept your duel.”

“An incentive?” Hiro nodded. “Fine. We’ll make it a wager then. If you win, then Faye, Jessi, and I will accept you as the team captain. We’ll do as you say and allow you to call the shots unconditionally. Whatever you say, we’ll trust you and comply.”

Well, that does sound alluring, doesn’t it, he thought with interest. Though, I suppose he could just be lying to bait me into wasting my time. But if I could get these idiots to follow my orders then it might just put me in the position to train them properly in order to surpass Noctis. It may just be worth it…

Rennigan shrugged. “And if I lose? What exactly do you want from me? Don’t tell me you want to be team captain?”

“I don’t,” he said immediately and firmly. “No, if Jessi and I win, then we will be making Faye our leader and you will do as she says. If she decides the team is going to train then you will be there and you will train. Whatever she wants, you will obey.”

Rennigan took a moment to consider the terms. Well, of the three of them, I do have to say that Rio might just be the best option. After all, Pafran and Yuahl couldn’t even beat Caeli after they had him down two-to-one. They’re clearly incompetent, but Rio outlived even me.

The water mage grinned then stuck his hand out toward his roommate. There’s no point in even considering what might happen if I lose because there isn’t a chance I’m going to. I’ll put these fools in their place and ensure they understand just which one of us is the superior mage. Even if he’s lying to me, at the very least, it will be undeniable who among us is the best.

“Very well, Pafran,” he said. “You’re on.”