°° The shadows Of Skotia°°

Chapter four

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“It's… wow,” I gasped, the words getting lost in my head. I'd never seen any school as grand as this.

Madeline began walking towards the entrance, her strides quick and determined. I snapped out of my daze and followed along.

“Wait… wait, this is all moving too fast,” I said, hurrying behind her.

She sighed and turned to me, pulling out her pocket watch. “There's no time, we need to be inside. Let's go, I'll explain everything. Trust me.”

That was it. “I'm not going anywhere,” I snapped, all the frustration and confusion I'd been bottling up erupting.

Madeline turned, shocked by my tone. Her face was scrunched up and disagreeable. “What are you talking about? We’re—you’re needed inside.”

I shook my head, trying not to explode. “I'm not going anywhere until I get an explanation.”

“Haven't I said I'd explain to you? All I ask is that you trust me—”

“You keep asking me to trust you. First, you brought me to this magical world without warning. Then, you transport me to places I don't know and tell me I'm some demi—”

“Don't say it!” she yelled suddenly, startling me. A few birds flew away in fear and for a moment my entire body went rigid.

She took a deep breath and regained her composure, although her eyes were still beaming. She was still angry. Good, I thought. I wasn't done either.

She took two steps closer to me and spoke in my ear, her voice surprisingly soft. “You can't let anyone know you're a Demimagnus.”

“Why not?” I asked.

She looked around frantically as if she was scared someone might overhear us, although the school seemed completely empty.

“Let's go inside, please. This is not a conversation to have in the open air.”

Reluctantly, I followed her through the grand entrance. As soon as we stepped inside, the air changed, thick with an ancient, unspoken power. The hall before us was breathtaking—high ceilings adorned with gold and diamond chandeliers, marble tiles that gleamed like water under moonlight, and statues at every corner, their icy forms almost lifelike.

“How old is this place?” I asked, my voice echoing softly.

“Centuries,” she replied, her tone a mix of awe and urgency. “ Nothing has changed since I was a student here.”

That caught my attention. “You were a student at Duskmoor?” I asked.

She nodded. “That's why I was so relieved that Duskmoor had accepted you, yet so scared for you.”

We began walking through the hall. There was something different about being inside the school. Outside, I felt I was being watched by many invisible eyes, but inside, it felt oddly familiar.

“Why would you be scared for me?” I asked as we made our way through an arched door and began taking the stairs.

“Because Duskmoor offers the best security and training in the country, but unfortunately it's completely biased. You might find teachers or students here tend to ignore the less outstanding ones,” she said, her voice solemn.

That was it? I thought. All my life, I'd been ignored and treated like dung; it was something I had come to terms with.

We got to the last step and stepped through an arched door into a classroom. There was nothing out of the ordinary about it except it was dimly lit, with candles as the only source of light, and the windows were draped by long curtains. In the corner, there was a shelf of books.

Madeline looked at her pocket watch and tapped her foot impatiently. “They should be here by now.”

She turned to me and sighed. “I suppose I owe you an explanation, don't I?”

I didn't say anything but took a seat on a bench.

She cleared her throat and began. “Centuries ago, Orion Duskmoor founded this school on the outskirts of what is now known as the Arcana. He created this school with the intention of training the best sorcerers to ward off any enemies or threats.”

As if the world was listening, the candles got dimmer, and through a small window, I could see the weather changing.

“He passed the school to his son Oliver Duskmoor, and he passed it on to his son, and the legacy continued.” She stopped to look at me. “Do you have any questions?”

I blinked rapidly, trying to gather my thoughts. “Why can't I tell anyone I'm a demi? It's kind of obvious I don't know anything about the magical world.”

“You'll go by the story that you had no idea who your parents were and were raised in the normie world by your adoptive mother—bless her soul.” She leaned in closer and her voice dropped. “No one but the headmaster, you, I, and the higher-ups are aware. It is crucial you keep this to yourself. You are just a sorceress, okay?”

Just then, the shadows pulled together and in front of us were three figures. A tall man with dark hair and a barrel stature in a black suit, a woman with bright silver hair and piercing blue eyes in a trench coat, and finally a man with auburn hair in a purple suit. He was the tallest and had a strange aura around him.

Madeline straightened up and so did I. “Good morning,” she said simply, and I did the same.

“Sorry to have kept you waiting, dears,” the purple man said. He dropped his gaze to me and I resisted the urge to hide away, but then he smiled and all was right again.

“I believe you are Catherine Nayver,” the man in the black suit spoke this time, his voice cold and drawling. I averted my eyes as his cold, soulless eyes scanned me.

“Y… yes sir,” I stuttered.

“What a pretty thing you are, darling,” the woman spoke this time. Feeling embarrassed, I bowed my head to hide my blush.

Beside me, Madeline cleared her throat, and both women made eye contact. It might have been my imagination, but there was something about the way they looked at each other that made me want to run out the door.

“Catherine, I believe you know why you're here,” the purple-suited man spoke to diffuse the tension.

No, not really.

“Yes,” I said despite myself.

“Good.”

That was the last thing I heard before everything—Madeline, the three figures, the classroom—everything turned black.

I was standing in absolute nothingness. Panic seized my throat as I began to scream. “Where am I? What's happening?!”

I tried moving; somehow, I could walk, I could see, I could hear, but there was… nothing.

I counted from five as I tried steadying my breathing.

Then suddenly, I had a striking pain at the back of my head. Falling to my knees, I watched as the ground slowly began to morph, and before my brain could grasp what was happening, it had completely changed to grass and stones.

My head throbbed faintly as I looked around: tall trees, birds singing, and humid air. With a sinking feeling, I realized where I was.

I managed to get up to my feet but stumbled forward into a tree.

I trudged forward, leaning on the trees and rocks for support, heading towards a path I knew too well with a twisted feeling in my gut.

I knew I'd gotten to my target when I heard the rushing of water and the croaking of frogs. My heart pounded as I looked through the bushes.

I could not believe my eyes.

No, how is this possible?

There I was, sitting on a smooth rock, my head in my hands, weeping as quietly as I could.

I was looking at myself… from two years ago.

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Hi everyone ☺️, sorry it's a bit shorter than usual.
Thank you to everyone that supported my book it means a lot 💙
Expect the next chapter on Thursday 😉