Emortuus: War Sparks

Chapter 2

Seven years later

"Hoooooowlerrrrrrrrrrrr!
What did you do to my desk!?!?!" Windtail shouted angrily.
"Nothing!" Pirajypt and I sat outside of Windtail's study snickering.
"I know it was you!! My desk is frozen to the ceiling!"
By that point we were rolling on the floor laughing.
"See you at Training after Lunch!" We shouted back and dashed down the hall, laughing at our childish accomplishment.
As we raced down the hallway we could hear Windtail muttering and swearing that he was gonna get back at us one day.
My years in Training had gone by quickly. While I was there I learned that I could use Ice magic and after all my training I could do almost anything with it including pulling a few pranks every once in a while. Since today was my fourteenth birthday, tomorrow I would be given my assessment to determine if I was ready for the advanced classes in combat skills. Pirajypt on the other hand had already passed his assessment when he was twelve, but that's not very unusual for him. At this point he always had his nose in some book either full of new spells or factual information that he would apparently use on a mission later on. I on the other hand had to train hard if I wanted to succeed in my assessment, although I was still young for my level.
When Pirajypt and I entered the dining hall for lunch, I greeted my mother, Clearal, and then we sat down to eat.
"Happy birthday sweetie." She said as she hugged me. She always did this on my birthday, and every year it reminded me of my father, General Blackice.
Pirajypt changed the subject as soon as we sat down. He knew I didn't like talking about my birthday since it was a sensitive topic.
"So, are you nervous for your assessment tomorrow?"
"Of course not!" I said quickly and he just laughed at me. "Trust me, it's not that bad-" Then Windtail burst into the room, ready to explode.
I whispered to Pirajypt. "Oh no, here comes the fun police."
"HOWLER! PIRAJYPT! COME HERE NOW!" He screamed. My mother trotted up to the enraged Windtail.
"Oh, uncle. Why are you always so worked up? And on poor Howler's birthday..." She sighed.
"Clearal, are you aware of what your son and his friend have done?" He questioned her.
"No, I am not." She turned to look at me flashing the 'what have you done now' face which seems to burn right into my soul every time.
"Because of his doing, my desk is now frozen solid to the ceiling!" I could tell that after he said that, Pirajypt was about to burst into a fit of laughter. He mumbled. "At least you don't have to worry about stubbing your paw anymore." Even Clearal chuckled at the comment but it seemed to make Windtail even angrier. He stared hard at, not me, but Clearal. She stopped, cleared her throat and gave our punishment.
"Howler, you will clean up your uncle's office immediately!" Mother said sternly.
"What about Pirajypt! It was his idea, and it's my birthday!" I protested.
"Pirajypt is going to help me with something." She answered calmly.
"What?" I asked curiously.
"That doesn't matter; now go clean up your mess!"
I gave her a look, and then slowly and pathetically walked out of the room. I wasn't sure how to get the desk off of the ceiling, for I could only freeze things. So I stepped on a stool, because I am not a winged wolf, and pulled a letter opener out of the ice and began to file away at the giant block of ice. 'This is going to take a while' I thought to myself.
After I filed away for what felt like forever, I realized that once the desk was free, it would fall right on my head. So once most of the ice was gone, I used my telekinesis to pull the desk down, turn it right side up, and set it gently down on the floor. I decided that that was good enough, and trotted out of the room. It was almost dinner time now and I wondered what Pirajypt was helping Mother with. Since there was some time before my birthday celebration, I went to the training center to get some training in before my assessment tomorrow.
When I got there, I was disappointed to see that Trustin was already there. I hated Trustin. He was always so mean to me and Pirajypt ever since I moved here. I was hoping he wouldn't see me but alas, he shouted at me from behind the glass.
"Happy birthday Howie!" He said mockingly. "You looking for your father?" He laughed. I just ignored him, but he kept going. "Are you worried that you won't pass your test tomorrow? Don't worry; I'll be there to cheer you on!" I wanted to bite him so hard; he wouldn't be able to walk for a week! Instead, I put my powers to good use. I said a spell, and I froze his mouth shut. I knew he would just melt the ice, for he had fire powers, but he would be silent long enough for me to get out of there. Maybe training wasn't such a good idea. I walked out and ran into a wolf in a dark brown cloak that covered his eyes and back. He looked like he had black fur, but as he ran around me and went on his way; I noticed his paws were blood red. When I turned around to get another look, he was gone. I thought I had just been seeing things and forgot where I was for a second, then I heard Pirajypt calling for me.
"Howler, come on, we are all waiting for you!" He led me to the dining hall again where there was a banner that said happy birthday on it. There was also a birthday cake. Even though I didn't particularly like celebrating my birthday, my mother couldn't help but throw me a small party every year; and I couldn't possibly pass down cake! After making a toast, and eating dinner and dessert, Windtail approached me. Without a trace of today's earlier fiascos, he gave me a box wrapped in colorful paper and ribbon. I gratefully accepted the gift and opened it. I used my telekinesis to lift the object out of the box. It was a piece of armor; a chestplate to be exact. It was a shiny silver and very strong.
"Thank you, Windtail." I said. He replied. "You can wear it during your assessment tomorrow." I nodded. Then, Pirajypt presented me with a gift. I opened it and discovered it was tail armor made of the same silver. Finally, my mother trotted up to me with the last present.
"Happy birthday, my son." She saidsd, gently. She looked into my eyes and filled me with sweet memories of when I was a young pup in the palace in Tennicent. I slowly took the box and opened it. I gazed in and almost burst into tears. I hugged my mother and she said, "Go ahead, put it on." I let go of her and went back to the box and stared into the silver mesmerized just as I had the day my father gave his life for mine. I lifted the helmet out of the box and slipped it onto my head. My mother gasped as she whispered, "Blackice."
For a moment, everyone was silent. I couldn't believe my ears. Did my mother just call me Blackice? At last she came back to her senses and started thanking everyone for coming and Pirajypt pulled me aside. He proudly stated. "I helped her make that helmet." Realizing this wasn't my father's helmet, I became disappointed. "You did know that wasn't his right?" Pirajypt sounded uncertain. "Yeah, I know. Thank you."
I took the helmet off and put it back in the box. Then I went off to my room and flopped on the bed. As I drifted off to sleep, I questioned my training. 'Am I really ready?' I thought to myself. "What will I happen if I fail? What will happen if I pass?" Before I could fret about anything else, I fell into a deep, dark sleep.