Shcielle (Draeyer Academy 2)

Chapter 23-Gardius

Icefall City
Arktis Skyland
Northern Space

Gael strode through the quiet hallways of Recessa tia Kyana with his fists clenched at his sides. His mind kept wandering back to what happened earlier at Sky Racer. He would never forgive the bastards who did such an atrocious deed toward the Draes. Behind him, he could feel Kreis' intense stare on the back of his head and hear his faint steps.

"What did the headmaster want to talk about?" Gael asked.

"How should I know?" Kreis said. "He's as secretive as he was back then."

Gael twisted his head to look back at him, knitted his brows, before turning his attention back to his front. They increased their pace and before long, they stood in front of Headmaster Donovan's room. Kreis knocked his fist against the wooden red door. For a moment, nothing but silence came from the other side of the door until the old man told them to come in.

"Good, you're both here," Donovan said the moment they entered. He sat with a teacup in one hand on a large brown couch. A smile lit up his bearded face after he took a sip of his tea. "Do you two want some tea?"

Gael stared at the headmaster, wondering why he looked to be in such a good mood. He locked gazes with Kreis and saw that the man was probably thinking the same. They shook their heads at Donovan and the old man motioned them to sit on the couch opposite his.

"Did you find out what happened to Atrius and the other two Draes?" Donovan asked. Gael was unable to see the headmaster's face as he said those words because the old man bent to pour more tea in his white cup. However, he could detect the grave edge in his voice.

"The Drae Doctors tested for poison," Gael paused, "and it was positive. However, they can't identify what poison it is."

"I had some of my men look for anything suspicious in the racetrack and the stables the Draes stayed in," Kreis said. "So far, nothing has come from it."

Donovan nodded before he took another sip of tea. His free hand stroked his beard as he stared at the steaming surface of the clear green liquid. "How is Ceiver?"

"He's worried sick," Gael said. "But the others are with him, so he'll be all right."

Donovan gave out a relieved sigh before placing his cup down on the center table separating him from them. Gael's gaze drifted to two thin brown folders on the table when the old man picked them up and handed them one each. "Open it. It's the reason why I called you here."

Gael flipped the folder open and his eyes were greeted with an image of a man in his late 30s. Muddy brown eyes stared back at him, devoid of any emotion. Around his mouth was a well-kept beard. Gael squinted when his mind found a sense of familiarity on the face presented to him.

"His name is Janz Gardius," Donovan said. "He's a former resident of Gelun. He moved here to Icefall when he got an offer to work for Ordinacian Bank."

Gael took the time to read the very few information written next to the picture. From the corner of his eye, he saw Kreis doing the same with furrowed brows.

"What about him?" Kreis asked. Gael looked up from the file folder to look at the headmaster with curious eyes.

"He will lead us to the Shcielle if we keep a close eye on him," Donovan said with a shrug. He took his cup in his hand once more and drank it like he had previously spoken about the weather instead of something serious.

Gael and Kreis both stilled and regarded the headmaster with wide eyes. The former looked back down at the file and stared at the image of Janz. The man looked harmless to say the least. He wondered how something powerful like the Shcielle got into his hands.

"Does he have...connections? If you get what I mean," Kreis asked with his eyes darting to the floor and to the old man every now and then.

Donovan shook his head from side to side. "He's clean. He has a good reputation in his neighborhood and career. A good son. A great single father to his child. He's one of the very few decent men still around."

A crease formed between Gael's eyebrows as he stared longer at the image of Janz. There was something familiar about him but he can't point it out.

"Wait, wait, wait," Kreis said, snapping him out of his concentration.

"Yes, Kreis?" Donovan asked.

"I know you told me that the Shcielle is―I quote from you―the most powerful creation that Kosmos had given to us humans," Kreis said. "But can you please tell me what it looks like. Sometimes I feel like I'm searching for something that doesn't even exist. I swear with all my heart, soul, and my position as Head Ryder that I won't tell anyone unless you grant me permission to."

Silence greeted Kreis the moment his words stopped flowing like the current in a rapid river. Gael looked to the headmaster. When he did, the old man locked eyes with him and gave him a nod. Taking the signal as a go, his gaze fell on his best friend.

"The Schielle looks like a stone," he said without preamble. "It's a big grey stone that has carving which resembles a Drae Egg. It's also the same size as one."

Kreis blinked at him. His brown eyes did nothing but that for the next minute before his jaw fell ajar.

"What?" was the first word to come out of his mouth. "The 'most powerful creation' is big cold lump of stone? You're kidding, right?"

"Never judge a book by its cover, Kreis. You are well aware of that," Donovan said before taking a sip of his tea. "That 'big cold lump of stone' contains power enough to destroy you in a second and leave nothing behind―even your ashes. It will be much more dangerous if the Shcielle is already in its true form and when its Awakening is finished."

Gael suppressed a chuckle when he saw Kreis gulp at the headmaster's chilling tone and words. "All right, I believe you," he said. He spoke so fast Gael barely managed to understand him. His head shook lightly at his best friend's behavior.

"The Shcielle has been in Draeyer Academy for a very long time," Donovan said. "The stone Drae Eggs in the glass pedestals in Ruby Tower were effective decoys for decades. But Herce apparently knew where the real one was."

Donovan sighed. "Anyhow, I have few men observing Janz. As I've said, there's nothing suspicious about him. He's not home often since his busy working in the bank," he said. "He currently lives in the neighborhood a short walk from here. It's the same neighborhood where we learned that Alec and his brother previously lived in."

"Anything else about him?" Gael asked.

"He lives with his mother and his little boy," Donovan said. "His mother is Rizza and she spends most of her time taking care of his child."

A picture fell to the floor from the folder and Gael bent to pick them up. A smile lit up his face when an image of a boy no more than 10 years old greeted his sight. He had the same eyes as his father but they were bright and full of mirth. That's when he realized why Janz looked familiar.

"Kreis, do you remember what happened before we left Arktis to take Alec to Draeyer Academy?" Gael asked.

"Of course, I do. There was a little kid who petted Asher. Then Asher sneezed on him and Alec wiped him clean of the saliva. But then the child's father appeared and yelled at Alec not to touch his child," Kreis said. "I can never forget it. It was the first time realized how lonely Alec was and learned that no one in Gelun accepts him."

Gael stared at him in disbelief. He found it hard to believe that Kreis had actually perceived that much from just that encounter.

"I know what you're thinking, so don't look at me like that. I'm sensitive too you know," Kreis said while glaring at him. Donovan's laughter filtered through his ears and he turned to the old man's direction.

"It's a small world," Gael said. "We've met Janz before through his child."

"The child's name is Krizton," Donovan said. "The men guarding Alec and Areisha told me that the two had met the little one a few days ago, when Alec went to see his old house."

"Small world indeed," Kreis said.