Audrey had never been so eager to start a day in her entire life, she woke at four in the morning after barely sleeping the entire night and was outside Charlie's house fifteen minutes early. She had packed all her clothing, pictures of her family, toiletries, makeup and her mother had left her enough money for books and other expenses.
She anxiously waited outside of Charlie's house playing with her fingers as her baggage lay beside her. Her head snapped up when she heard someone walking towards the door, it opened to reveal a very tired Charlie who looked surprised to see her waiting so prepared outside his door.
"Someone must be excited" he said as he lifted his large brown leather-worn bag and closed the door behind him.
"Well, this is all very new to me so, I'm ready to go!" Audrey said as she picked up her bags and walked towards a dusty navy coloured car that was parked outside of Charlie's house.
"Have you said bye to your mum yet?" Charlie asked as he unlocked the car and began opening the boot of the car.
"I slept beside her last night and gave her a kiss before I left the house" Audrey said as she lifted one of her bags with her arm slightly shaking from its weight.
Charlie looked at her and smiled, he was about to say something when the sound of a bell interrupted his thoughts. He looked up and saw a man in a bright coloured jacket and on a red bicycle, the post-man.
He looked young for a post-man and had dark coffee coloured skin with wide eyes, he looked around Charlie's age.
"Package for Liz Larson?" He said as she held out a brown box sealed together with thick brown tape.
"Oh that's for my mum, she was expecting it yesterday" Audrey said, reaching out to grab it.
As the post man smiled and began to move along to the next few houses, Audrey noticed a strange look on Charlie's face. Charlie was slightly pale and looked as if he was in a mild state of shock, Audrey chuckled lightly as she had only seen this look on Charlie's face once before; when Charlie was ten.
Young Charlie had received a pet bird for his tenth birthday, a saffron finch, and he would spend most of his days trying to teach the bird how to fly to him respond to his touch. One day his mother had called him to accompany her shopping and he didn't have time to properly close the latch to the bird's cage. He asked his father, Mr Binko, to do it for him before leaving and well one can say that Mr Binko had other things on his mind that day. When Charlie had arrived back home, he found the latch to the bird cage wide open and his beautiful finch had gone.
"Charlie? Are you okay, you look as if you've seen a ghost?" Audrey giggled as she picked up her other bag and placed it in the boot of the car with the others. Charlie's face remained pale as he watched the young post-man carefully.
"What, do you know him or something?" She said glancing at Charlie, then to the post man who was leaving the street on his bicycle.
"Well, I did" he said as he continued to watch the post-man who was leaving the street whistling a tune to himself.
"His name is Lucas, he was a caeli prodigy like me. We both wanted to go to Dostira, it was all we could think about after our parents had told us. Lucas was twelve and his powers were strong and stable, our parents told us because they never thought either of us would lose our powers and be wiped. Well, the next year on my thirteenth birthday I had received my letter because the regional overseers were sure my powers were secure but Lucas didn't get a letter. His powers began to fade a few months after his thirteenth birthday, and by the time he was fourteen the overseers visited him and his family with a Vingko brew."
They stood beside each other in silence, watching the end of the street as if the postman was still there.
"He didn't even recognise me, after years of being so close and so excited to attend Dostira together, he..." Charlie trailed off as his throat tightened and his eyes began to glisten with tears.
He cleared his throat and quickly threw his bag into the car and slammed the boot, he went to the driver's seat as Audrey was stuck in place, staring at him with concerned but bewildered eyes.
"Well, I have to stop acting surprised. Things like that happen all the time in my world. Come on, let's go" He quickly said as he opened the car door and sat inside.
She quickly ran over to her door, opened it and placed the package inside for her mother to see. She then locked the door and took one last look at her small house before running back over to Charlie's car.
As she sat besides him, there was tension as she could almost see his pain but didn't know what to do about it. Part of her wanted to reach out and embrace him, but another part of her shied away. There was conflict within her, as she didn't know how to comfort Charlie on something she didn't know anything about.
"Well, off we go!" She said enthusiastically, attempting to shift the mood. But as Charlie started the car and they began to leave the street, the mood remained dismal. She looked out of her window hoping that the farther they got away from their small town, the better Charlie would feel as she hoped his thoughts would shift to something else.
⤜⤛
It had been an hour of silent driving and Audrey didn't recognise her surroundings anymore, all she could see were trees that were different shades of green and an empty, long, windy road ahead of her. Her mind wasn't keeping track of where she was being taken as all she could think about was Charlie. She didn't have many friends growing up and so she couldn't begin to comprehend what it must have been like for Charlie to lose someone you thought you never would, she slowly glanced over at him. She stared at his messy dirty blonde hair that he hid under a beanie and his maroon coloured sweater that loosely fit his body.
She smirked before swiftly pulling the beanie off his head to reveal his dark blonde curls.
"So are we almost there yet Binko?" She said as Charlie smiled and reach a hand out to try and take the beanie back, the car gently swerving as the two lightly fought over it.
"Come on Audrey, give it back" he said as he placed both hands on the wheel but looked over at her often.
"I'm cold, so just let me hold onto it for a while" Audrey said, lying through her teeth and he knew it.
"Oh yea, I think you're a liar and just want something that's mine" He said as he smiled but kept his gaze on the road.
"Nope, I'm actually freezing" Audrey giggled as tucked her neck into her jumper and held her knees to her chest for a moment.
"Sure Audrey, whatever! Go ahead keep it!" Charlie chuckled as she looked over to see her rose coloured lips smiling. Her long brown wavy hair lay behind her shoulders and against the car seat, Charlie couldn't help but stare at how it shone a golden tone whenever the light hit it as they drove.
"So Binko, you got any friends at this school or are you a loner like I expect you to be" She said as she narrowed her eyes at him and he rolled his eyes at her before looking back at the road.
"I actually do have friends! I have my best friend Nora, she's unlike anyone I've ever met and rather special at Dostira" he replied with a grin on his face.
Audrey's chest felt a slight pang of jealousy but overlooked it unsure as to why it was there in the first place, she decided to ignore the feeling and distract her thoughts as she began to tease Charlie.
"Oooh Nora! What, do you have a little crush on her or something?" She said as she forced a slight giggle.
"Oh no, it's not like that at all. You see she's a vox prodigy" he replied and Audrey felt a subtle sense of relief as those words left his mouth.
"A what? What the hell is a vox prodigy?" She asked.
"They're not heard of often because they have an unfortunate history. You see a vox prodigy is the descendant of a Siren, they can scare unwelcome enemies into a complete state of shock and disorientation with one look but can also use their voices to influence people's minds and make them do whatever deed they want. Out of fear people went to extreme measures to hunt them down, they started killing children who presented the potential powers of vox prodigies while also killing the parents who birthed them; it was basically a genocide." Charlie spoke passionately about it all as he continued.
"Nora is the only vox prodigy at the school and people often don't talk to her out of fear that if she speaks to them or even looks at them she'll bewitch them. I'm her best friend, her only friend."
Audrey began to feel pity for Nora as she sat in silence for a moment before quickly searching in her small backpack for the letter she had received from Dostira. She held it up to the light that shone through the trees as the eyes of the chimera on the school's seal glimmered a silvery blue tone and Audrey began to realise its purpose for doing so.
"The eyes, they're siren eyes aren't they?" Audrey asked as she looked at Charlie and held up the chimera stamped on the envelope, he nodded before looking back at the road.
"Well, it doesn't seem like she's going to scare me" Audrey joked as she placed the letter back in her backpack.
"It's her brother you should be scared of" Charlie said as his smile began to fade.
"You see, her brother is an ignis prodigy like their father but he is one reckless and aggressive ignis prodigy. He's also the strongest in the school besides Mr Harkness. Oh and Will doesn't like solis prodigies, that's you" Charlie chuckled as he looked over at Audrey who had a small frown on her face.
"But why? Oh and who is Mr Harkness?" Audrey asked as she looked at the road ahead, expecting to be arriving at Dostira anytime soon.
"I don't know, he never says why. Oh and Mr Harkness, you'll like him. He's a teacher at our school and is basically like the headmaster, he's one of the regional overseers" Charlie replied as he began to reduce the speed of the car.
"God I have so many questions" Audrey sighed before lifted her head expecting to see a huge majestic castle ahead of her; instead she saw a dead end of trees.
"Where the hell are we?" She asked looking over at Charlie.
"Shhh, wait" he responded as he looked around him nervously. His eyes darted all around the car looking for something.
"I don't like this, you're making me nervous!" She whispered as she began looking around her as well, not knowing what exactly she was looking for.
Emerging from the darkness within the trees that blocked their path was a creature that Audrey at first mistook for a shadow, the creature was large and as dark as night. They both held their breath, staring at the creature and refusing to blink. The creature was shaped like a bear but had the face of a human, a face with hollow pits for eyes and without a mouth. The creature had large claws and a black mist surrounded it, it was trailing black fog as it moved towards the car.
"Audrey, you have to trust me. Get out of the car" Charlie said as he and Audrey stared at the creature.
"I'm not getting out, you get out! What the hell is it?" Audrey half whispered as her heart was beating so loudly that she was sure Charlie and the creature could hear it.
"It's one of Dostira's guardians, it won't harm you. It's here for protection against humans and trespassers. I've done this loads of times, and I'm just as scared as you but you have to trust me." He whispered, leaning towards Audrey as they both kept their eyes on the creature.
"Now get out of the car." Charlie's hands felt around beside him for the unlocking button near his window and he gently pressed it.
Audrey gulped as her quivering hands opened her door, Charlie did the same and they both slowly stepped out of the car.
"Now just let it get super close to you and scratch you on your arm, okay?" He said as calmly as he could.
"What. The. Fuck?" Audrey responded, frozen in place as she could feel her throat beginning to tighten and close.
He took five steps towards the creature and its head snapped to face him, as they were soon almost chest to chest. Against the creature, Charlie looked like a child which only heightened Audrey's feae as Charlie was already much taller than her. The creature lifted its claw and swiftly scratched Charlie, he winced in pain and the creature looked down at Charlie's arm as it began to rapidly heal.
"Audrey, it's not that bad. Just relax and be brave" he said as the creature began to slowly walk towards her.
She felt every muscle in her body stiffen as she began to tremble, she was utterly terrified and in fear for her life. Her insides twisted and warped as the creature made it's way towards her, she could see the black mist sway with every move it made. Fear was breathing on the crook of her neck, clouding her thoughts, and so she did what she shouldn't have; she ran.
Audrey began to run into the forest, unsure of where exactly she was running to. She could hear Charlie calling out for her stop and yet was too scared to look back in case the creature was chasing after her, she soon found herself surrounded by trees and alone. She stopped running and while panting, she looked back to see the creature was no where in sight.
She exhaled and uttered the words, "If it's not chasing me, where is it?".
Spinning around all directions and rapidly looking for the creature, she could feel her throat beginning to burn. Lurking in the darkness ahead of her, she saw the creature. Her fear had transformed to a need to fight as she looked deep into the creatures blackened figure and felt her whole body light aflame. Her eyes burned a luminescent blood orange and she stood her ground, prepared to attack. As the creature walked towards her, she reached out to hit it but her fist felt nothing but cold emptiness. She saw her hand, surrounded by the creatures black mist as it growled slightly making stumble backwards. However, the more her fear grew so did her will to fight.
Charlie ran into the forest, looking frantically for Audrey. Ahead of him he saw smoke and an orange glow, he ran closer to it and when he did he saw Audrey attempting to battle the creature; she was failing. The creature appeared unbothered as Audrey's body was outlined in fire and burning almost everything around her, Charlie was surprised at her appearance and somewhat in awe but that quickly faded. He needed to intervene as he started to notice smoke rising from the surrounding burning trees that crackled and began to blacken by the heat.
"Audrey stop, what the hell are you even doing!" He screamed out.
Audrey was fighting relentlessly, as each hit went through the mist of the creature. The immense black figure stood still, only occasionally walking towards her when she would stumble back.
Charlie didn't know what to do until he heard the sound of branches breaking behind him, he turned around and a man emerged from the trees. He was dressed in dark blue suit pants with a white collared shirt and his brown hair, that was so dark it appeared black, was slicked back. The man held a long black cane in his hand and was much taller than Charlie, he gave Charlie a wink before standing beside him.
"Mr Harkness, sir I don't even know how this happened, she was scared and..." he began until the man cut him off.
"She will be taught to control her fears, but for now enough damage has been done" Mr Harkness said in a firm and low voice.
He walked towards the creature and as he did the creature's focus shifted from the solis prodigy in front of it to the man. Mr Harkness lifted his cane and gently hit it on the ground near the creature, the sound of the cane hitting the dirt sounded like a bell that was ringing out. The sound transformed the dark figure's unbothered body language as the creature's misty figure solidified and charged at Audrey. It lifted Audrey's flaming body off the ground, gripping onto her shoulders as she squirmed under its grasp. The creature slammed her into the dirt on the ground and her body altered back to its original state as the flames around her vanished, she appeared weak and her defeated body lay still on the ground. The creature reached down and held her arm, it scratched it as Audrey quietly whimpered at the sting until the cut began to quickly heal.
She slowly opened her eyes and looked up to see a handsome and tall man peering over her before Charlie rushed to her aid, helping her up as she weary eyes tried to stay focused on the tall man.
"I'm Mr Harkness, I'm a teacher at this Dostira. You must be Audrey Larson." He said as he tilted his head, looking at her frail body attempting to stand up straight.
"You see Ms Larson at Dostira we don't fight guardians, well at least not that kind. That was a Noctissian, and they obey overseers like me. If a human sees it, the Noctissian scratches said human and they..." he paused for a moment.
"Charlie would you like to finish the sentence based on your third year test?" He asked as he looked at Charlie with a small but slightly sinister grin on his face.
"They would quickly fall unconscious and awake with a small scar or bruise but no memory of how they received said scar or bruise. For the Noctissian has a particular brew of Vingko venom in its claws that are particularly for humans, not prodigies" Charlie continued before smiling at Mr Harkness.
He looked at Audrey and moved a strand of hair from her face as she leaned against him looking at Mr Harkness with half open eyes.
"I'm not falling unconscious now because I'm human? Am I?" She asked with a tired voice as she tried to keep her eyes open.
"No dear girl, you're going to fall unconscious because the Noctissian slammed you into the dirt on my orders." Mr Harkness said with a straight face before grinning slightly.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like small candy in a silver wrapper, he handed it over to Audrey.
"Here" he said, "this should help you rest and ease the pain".
She held it in her hand as Charlie helped walk her back to the car with her feet occasionally dragging against the dirt.
Mr Harkness walked beside Charlie, "I think I should drive you both the rest of the way, you should comfort her" he said as he raised an eye brow.
Charlie nodded and as they arrived at the car he helped Audrey lay down in the backseat with her head resting on his lap. Mr Harkness walked to the collection of trees that blocked the road ahead of the car and with the tap of his cane on the ground below him, the Noctissian appeared. It's claws scratched at one of the trees and the blocked pathway ahead began to transform, the trees moving as if they had feet as they separated to a reveal a large path ahead.
What Audrey couldn't see were the vast silver gates with the words 'Dostira: Novis et Fortis' ahead of them with a large grey stone castle emerging as they drove forwards.
"Thank you sir" Charlie said as Mr Harkness had his hands on the wheel.
Charlie stroked Audrey's head gently and unwrapped the silver candy for her, he placed the small toffee coloured ball into Audrey hand before handing her his drink bottle. Her hands were shaking as she struggled to hold onto the weight of it, but as she gulped down the small tablet she felt her muscles relaxing. With her body beginning to feel at ease, her mind slowly drifted into a deep sleep.