"What the hell!" I scream and wake up as someone empties a whole glass of cold water on me while I am deep asleep.
"It's almost dawn, come on, get up now, you have to start your training today, remember?" And it's no one other than Gloria. I should have guessed.
"Are you serious? Is this how an alarm clock works here?" I ask her frustrated.
"I don't really know about alarm clocks, but this is how I wake people up." She answers
"Do you take suggestions? If yes, then please change your way." I grunt.
"Okay I'll remember it, now go get ready, I saved your time for taking a bath." She replies
"Are you expecting a 'Thank you'?" I ask her annoyed.
She smirks closing the door behind her.
Such an amazing start for the day.
Even the rooster isn't up yet, but I am. I jog towards the training ground and see Victor waiting for me.
"Impressed." He says checking his watch. "Right on time."
"You might want to thank Gloria for it," I reply.
"Indeed, she's good at it."
"I might like to add 'very' to the sentence." I scoff and he laughs.
"By the way, I had a question about my schedule, may I ask?"
"I'm listening."
"Well, my schedule has been divided into three parts, right?"
"Mhm." He nods.
"The first is training, then studying and then war combat practice, What's war combat practice?"
"Nothing but learning how to fight without your powers."
The look on my face clearly states that I'm in more confusion than before and he gets it.
"In simple words, learning to fight with blades and swords." He replies.
My eyes grow wide, with fear or excitement I can't name it.
"Swords and me? Bad combination." I let a little laugh out of me.
"We'll see about that later, first you need to learn about the powers you are born with." He says. "Ready to start?"
"Dying."
He leads me towards the direction of the fence. "You have to complete thirty rounds . . . and your time starts now."
"Wait, wha-" But he cuts me off.
"Go, you are wasting your time."
And I do, god he didn't even give me some time to think about anything. As I start with the first round, it feels good, free, light just like a feather. The morning air makes me feel alive. But as I reach the tenth round, all the excitement is killed. My feet feel like they are on fire inside my shoes, my legs go numb and my breaths come in short intervals. Damn, more twenty are yet to come.
"Hey." I say panting and still running, "Can I take a break?"
"Really? It's just your tenth round, come on, this is just the start, tomorrow you have to run 50."
Did I hear fifty? Or are my ears ringing? Why did I ever say I'm dying to start my training?
After completing all of the rounds, I go and sit on the ground folding my legs near him, panting all the way.
"Congratulations, you have earned a break for five mins." He says and I feel like punching him in the stomach.
"I'm blessed, your Royal Highness." I tease him, rolling my eyes. I close my eyes and stuff my face in my palms, maybe it will help ease the pain.
"Come on." He says after some time.
"Are my five mins already over?" I murmur through my palms.
"Yes they are your Majesty, now come on." He stretches out his hand and I grab it, taking his support to get up.
"I guess, we've got nicknames for each other." I smile as he guides me towards a tent, there are many tents here, for what reason, I guess I'm about to find that out.
He chuckles. "Indeed, your Majesty."
Somewhere between our little joke, it reminds me of them, my birth parents. Maybe that pain too will fade away with time or so I hope.
As we enter the tent, I'm filled with a sweet smell around me. Looking, I find almost every kind of flowers here, all of them beautiful with wild colours, but I don't recognise any of them. I glance at my uncle in confusion.
"These are medicinal flowers and plants, which helps us heal. When mixed with our powers, they make a perfect blend." He begins to explain to me. The flowers are divided and kept in two rows. Each row has approximately three to four different kinds of them. "You might want to write this down." He points towards the piece of paper and a pencil over it. I grab them.
Then he gestures towards the first row of flowers. "These help us heal." And then gesturing to the next row he says, "And these, they help us kill."
I shoot a glance up at him, "Kill?" I say.
"Every coin has two sides, so do they." He says. "Let's start with the healing one's shall we?"
I nod. He then lifts a flower pot which has a big, single green bud, some leaves and places it on the other table next to me, which all has gardening tools on it.
"Can you please hand me the plucker?" He says and I do. Taking it, he starts opening the bud carefully, layer by layer and as he does it, I cannot help but look at it without taking my eyes off even for a second. After removing multiple layers, I see a black flower with a sparkling red outline on its edges, I simply stare at it, admiring its beauty. But something pops out from it, as I go near to examine, the fact strikes me like a blow, it's burning. . . like embers of the flame. I turn back towards the flower. . . the whole flower is sizzling.
"It's called 'Coalflower.'" He says noting my expression. "As beautiful as it looks, as dangerous as it seems, but it has healing qualities. The truth is always the opposite of what it looks."
"This flower helps us heal?" I ask, "It seems more likely to burn someone."
"It helps stop bleeding."
"Won't it burn the infected part?"
"When mixed with our power, it won't. If touched without them, it will just work like a lump of burning coal."
Then again taking the help of plucker, he plucks out a petal and it sizzles from the part now open to the air around. With a small, round stone, he starts crushing the petal and it starts to sizzle more furiously. He then takes all of it into his palm.
"Hey! Careful there, you will burn your palm!" I yell.
"You think?" He questions me back.
Opening his palm he lets me take a look at it. There's not even a single burn on his palm and on it's opposite, the crushed petal glows now making it look more beautiful than it was before.
"Enchanting," I whisper never taking my eyes off it.
"It is." He replies. "Now if you apply it on the affected area and bandage it for at least a day, as I said before, it would help stop bleeding. Here, now you go." He hands me the plucker.
"You sure I can do it?"
"Positive."
"Alright, if anything happens, it's on you." I laugh and he does too.
"Yes, your Majesty."
I try to imitate the actions of Victor, gently plucking it, then crushing the petal but before the next step, I hesitate.
"Close your eyes, take a deep breath, concentrate." He guides me. "Feel the power inside you, feel the energy inside you." I follow his instructions.
I open my palm and grab the powder, instead of burning my hand it glows just as Victor's did. A wide smile spreads across my face and I jump a bit laughing.
"See, there you go." He says. "Believing in yourself gives rise to miracles." Indeed it does.
We spend almost over an hour there practising, Victor explaining me every bits and piece of different flowers, plants, the information I should know and me pouring it in the paper to remember all of it later while studying and revising.
Just like the 'coalflower', there is a 'snowflower' which helps in healing the cuts and scratches once the bleeding is stopped. He explained that after applying the mixture, there still remains a faint scar or mark which fades in a couple of days. I guess this is the first time in my life that I'm studying something with all my attention and curiosity in it.
After I complete my training with him, I head outside the tent. He has given me some homework to do as it's the birthright of every teacher and I have to submit it tomorrow, it's nothing but to collect some more information on the plants and flowers he taught me today.
I see Sam doing her stretches and walk towards her.
"Morning Evy." She greets me with a smile and I do the same.
"Looks like someone's training a bit early," she says.
"Don't get me started on it." I raise my eyebrows at her and she laughs.
"So where are you heading now?" She asks.
"Well, now towards the library hall, Victor gave me some homework, also I have to study some history of this land or so Gloria told-" I stop in the middle as her gaze shifts behind me and her eyes go wide as if she just saw a dragon.
"Don't turn and react quickly, but he's coming." She whispers.
"Who?" I whisper back.
"Evy." His voice sends a chill down my spine. Rick.
I turn and reply. "Yeah."
"We will start in the evening, okay?" He says.
"I'm sorry?" I frown.
"Our war combat practice, I'm your trainer, didn't Gloria inform you?"
I shake my head so fast, I fear it will break free.
"Oh, so now you know, see you in the evening then." He says and walks away.
"Did you just hear what I heard?" Sam asks me from behind.
"Pinch me, will you?" I request and she does it.
"Ouch!" I scream.
"Oh my god, it's happening." She says shaking me.
So, this was left to happen in my life, I can't digest the fact, Rick is my. . . trainer.