Hunters of Sian - Book 2. The Užaren Canyon

Exams Again

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Chapter Eleven

Exams Again

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Nell had really hoped Todd had been wrong about the poison studies class. unfortunately, his prediction had been true. No sooner had Nell and Jeremy entered the tower that morning did they notice the difference. All the chairs had been pushed up against the walls and small cauldrons had been set up next to the desks. Mistress Arabella was waiting for them at the centre of the room, her arms crossed impatiently over her chest.

'Whilst we're all young,' she said, her tail flicking back and forth. With all the students assembled, there was an expectant hush. The change of furniture in the room felt incredibly significant.

'As you know, your exams have officially begun. In second year, you will be tested several times over the course several weeks. Third years should already understand this process. This will be the first component of your botany exam.'

'First?' Nell heard Nigel mutter. Clearly none of the third years had bother to pass on this information.

'Yes boy, first. Did you expect these exams to be as easy as your first-year exams? No. It is time to start taking these classes seriously. Every moment from now until the final combat exam will be watched. You will be marked and graded accordingly.' Nigel didn't answer. Nell and Jeremy exchanged looks.

This explained why their exams seemed to be so much earlier this year. Instead of happening in a block over a couple of days, they were being spread out. Nell wasn't sure how he felt about this. Was this better or worse? Sure, they had more time to study between exams, but this lengthier approach would keep them on their toes until the very end.

'Today, you will follow me to the poison's greenhouse. You will each be given a poisonous plant. You must identify it and then use the plants from the greenhouse to create an antidote. As you can see, there are a few basic, common ingredients on each of the tables. Select a table and leave your bag there. You will test your antidote at the end of the class.'

'How are we going to test them?' Marshall asked, his face pale. It was a pretty stupid question. They all knew exactly how they were likely to test them. Perhaps he was hoping she would take pity on them... a fool's hope.

'By ingesting your chosen poison of course,' Arabella replied sweetly. Marshall gulped. 'Oh, don't look too devastated. I'm not allowed to kill you all this early. If your antidote is a complete dud, I do of course have the corrected brewed antidote at the front of the class. That's not to say you won't be very... uncomfortable. Naturally you will each be getting a different plant so there is no point trying to copy one another.'

'Great,' Nell heard Jeremy mutter. Nell picked a cauldron and set his bag down. He looked at the ingredients with interest. Salt, sugar, yeast, potato starch, chilli seeds, flour and milk made up a majority of the small bowls. The cauldron itself had a few cups of water in the bottom.

The class followed after their demon mistress with a resigned step. Nobody was talking much. Even the older students didn't look particularly confidant. Their instructors had always found ways to make sure the work was balanced regardless of experience. If one student found a task too easy, Cadric or Arabella would assign something more complicated. There was no easy way life for Hunters, either in the Stronghold or out in the wilds. Nell had never minded this. Each of the students had their specialities. Nell might not be too worried about his botany, he was not looking forward to the linguistics exam.

He had vastly improved from his first-year performance. This was due to the long days stuck in the cabin in the snow. Sallos was much more patient and gentle teacher then Arabella when it came to language and with his calm instruction, Nell's reading and writing had improved by leaps and bounds. He was still the poorest performing in the class though.