The Whisper of the Nightingale

Chapter 53: Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Almost every person in the auditorium drew a collective breath of shock as they witnessed the fine powder of the crushed stone falling to the ground, like a small river of dust. They simply could not believe their eyes.

Raven's lips twitched slightly while she lowered her gaze towards the newly formed dust pile below her hand. Although the Frozen Onslaught was based on a martial technique very similar to one she already knew, without the added benefits of the spirit essence the destructive force had never been that great. Nor could it be executed while in actual contact with the target - one would have needed at least an inch to gather some momentum for the strike to have effect.

'Spirit essence is truly wondrous,' Raven thought, pleased, to herself as she relaxed her body.

Only now did Raven take note of the oppressive silence in the hall. As she lifted her head, her eyes met with Gadwall's and, for a brief moment, Raven thought she saw a shimmer of black light flashing across his otherwise golden eyes. However, the vice headmaster soon looked at her with same fresh curiosity as always, only perhaps more intently now.

Off to the side, Dunlin stared at the spot where the stone had previously been held in unbelieving shock. He, more than any of the other students, could clearly tell that what Raven had just pulled off was a perfectly performed Frozen Onslaught. Almost subconsciously, Dunlin's eyes shifted to size up the reactions of the various Elders gathered on stage. To his malcontent, he noticed that the previous looks of quiet approval towards him, had been replaced with wondrous awe for Raven. Even the headmaster seemed genuinely impressed by Raven's performance.

As for the other students, none of them had even had the chance to process what they just witnessed before Raven turned to the Headmaster and gave a shallow bow, with that same motionlessly cold look she always wore. "I ask for the Headmaster's guidance," she said as she straightened out.

Swan blinked a few times; for a moment he seemed to have forgotten the reason behind Raven's words, but his grey eyes soon soon cleared and he smiled warmly at her. Slowly he shook his head. "Most impressive, Junior Student Night, but I'm afraid I have no further advice to give; that Frozen Onslaught was perfectly executed."

With their headmaster's statement, the rest of the students finally accepted what they had previously thought impossible; Raven had mastered the infamously impossible skill. This caused an uproar of murmurs to explode in the auditorium but they were, however, quickly surpassed by Dunlin's angry voice.

"How is that even possible?" he shouted. "Clearly he must have cheated somehow!"

Headmaster Swan frowned but before he could say anything Raven spoke first; "and how do you propose I cheated?" she asked giving Dunlin a cold glare. "You can't get away from the fact that I just performed a mastered Frozen Onslaught, or do you doubt the Headmasters judgement as well?"

Dunlin swallowed. "Of course not, but you . . . you must have learned it before enrolling at Sky Academy! It shouldn't count to our bet!"

Raven was about to speak again when, this time, the headmaster stepped forward instead. "Now, now, students, let's not argue about details. As I understand it, the bet was regarding whether or not Student Night could master the Thunder Lock before Student Talon mastered the Frozen Onslaught, correct?" Apparently Swan thought the question rhetorical, because he continued speaking without waiting for a reply; "I think we all can agree that Student Night succeeded in this."

The other Elders nodded in agreement, and yet Dunlin wasn't willing to give up. "But Headmaster," he shouted. "This sla-. . . I mean, Student Night must have learned the Frozen Onslaught before coming here, what's to say he didn't . . ."