Knight School: A Mystic Brats Novel Vol. 1

“It’s going to be alright!”

“No, Rick, it’s not!”

Rick smiled at me as his long red bangs dripped with sweat. Our home was burning down around us. The flames were a bizarre blue color and Rick’s arm was sizzling. I felt like my blood was boiling, but it didn’t matter, I knew my brother would try his best to protect me. That was what scared me the most! The men in white robes were closing in on us! Rick stood up and put his arms in front of me.

“Give us your sister!” they shouted

“Over my dead body!” Rick replied.

The robed man in the middle lowered his hood. He had black hair with grey streaks and a scar over his left eye. This was the face of our father — Zane Brooks! I watched helplessly as Dad pointed his hand at Rick’s chest and levitated him into the air. “You don’t seem to understand, son,” said Dad in an almost inhuman voice.

“Don’t call me that!” yelled Rick. “A real father wouldn’t do this to their kids!”

Dad continued as though Rick had never spoken. “We may need Julie alive... but we don’t need you. Goodbye, and may you find peace in the arms of Osiris...”

“Julie — run — GET OUT OF HERE!” Rick yelled.

“DAD — DON’T — PLEASE!”

That was when the man I once knew as a parent, as my father, did the unthinkable — a white beam of magical light shot out of his hand and blasted Rick’s chest. My brother fell to the ground dead.

“NOOOOOOO!”

I jolted awake in my bed. Nara looked over from her side of the room. She seemed scared for her safety or fearful for mine. Nara was still new to me like an unknown ally. She had proven to be the closest thing I had to a friend. I was still unsure about her true motives, though.

“Julie, are you alright?” asked Nara.

“Yeah,” I sighed. “It was just a nightmare.”

“You were screaming in your sleep again,” said Nara. “If you want, I can make you a potion for a peaceful rest.”

“No, thanks,” I said. “I think I’ll just go for a walk.”

“But it’s midnight,” said Nara, “and we have class tomorrow. What about curfew?”

Poor Nara. She seems so innocent and gullible. It’s hard to believe that might be her real personality if it isn’t just a cover. How could anyone with mystical powers be so naïve? “One of the perks of being a teaching assistant is the curfew doesn’t apply to me. Besides, haven’t you ever heard of a walk in the moonlight?”

“Oh, okay,” yawned Nara. “Need some company?”

“...I might be able to go out during curfew, but the rule still applies to you,” I replied. “I’m sorry, Nara, I just don’t want to lose my position.” That was a lie. Nara could have come under my authority, but I needed to be alone. I haven’t been by myself in ages.

“It’s okay,” said Nara. “Just be careful, Julie. I’ll keep my call phone on ring if you need me.”

“It’s called a smartphone,” I laughed. “Don’t worry, I’ll be back by morning.”

I ran throughout the woods hoping that the adrenaline would remove my fear. Ever since that fateful night when we fought the Banshee, I haven’t felt like myself. I have nightmares all the time now and can barely stand staying in one place at a time. I arrived at the archway where it happened. There was still magical residue on the grass from the monster’s demise. I took a deep breath, taking in everything that had transpired since. The thing that troubled me the most was Jason.

Jason made me happier than anyone else could. I should have known that observing him for months, learning his qualities, would lead to this. I promised myself that I wouldn’t fall for anyone, but then that jerk had to save my life from the Banshee. All these feelings rose to the surface with each moment we spent together. I promised myself that I would force the anxiety away, that I would try to feel loved again... to actually be in love for the first time in my life... How could I let this happen?

“You’re being weak, sis’.”

I turned around and saw something terrifying ― my older brother, Rick Brooks, was standing in front of me in perfect health.

“Rick? How are you here? You’re ― dead!” I looked at him in horror. This couldn’t be real. It had to be some kind of hallucination.

“Oh, I’m not dead,” said Rick. “My spirit has been stuck in between this world and... the other.”

“No!” I shouted. “You died and left me alone!”

“How many times do I have to tell you that I’m not dead?” Rick laughed. “Dad just sent my spirit out of my body, so I couldn’t stop him from capturing you.”

“Then how come after two years I can only see you now?”

“Because you were only exposed to the undead a while ago,” said Rick calmly.

“The Banshee?” I asked him.

“When it exploded, it created a rip in between the worlds that only you can see,” Rick explained.

“You can’t be real ― you just can’t!” I shouted.

“You have to believe me, Julie,” said Rick. “I have to warn you about Jason Gardner and Nara Roman!”

“What about them?” I asked.

“You can’t tell me that you haven’t had your suspicions,” said Rick in a suddenly stern voice. “That Jason kid is only getting close to you because he doesn’t want you to suspect the truth about him. He’s a dangerous, demented, youth who plans to kill you and anyone else around him.”

“And Nara?”

“Don’t you think it was a little weird that she arrived while Ocron did?” Rick asked me.

“Ocron captured Nara!” I said, indignantly. “They didn’t arrive holding hands!”

“Think, sis’, think!” shouted Rick. “They came here together because Jason used Nara as bait to lure Ocron into the open, so he could get his revenge.”

“Jason didn’t kill Ocron!” I protested.

“Not yet,” said Rick, “but he will when the time is right. Jason and Nara must be working for someone who can give them everything they want.”

“Dad?”

“It’s the only logical reason,” said Rick. “Face it, Julie, you can’t trust anyone. Why else would they show any interest in you?”

“Y-you can’t be right,” I said as a tear slid down my face.

“Ms. Brooks?”

Mr. Louis had entered the clearing. I looked to my side as Rick vanished. I wiped the tear with my top. “Is everything alright, Ms. Brooks?”

“Y-yes, S-sir,” I said as I dropped to the ground.

Mr. Louis ran over to me. “Ms. Brooks!”

“I can’t move!” I said.

Mr. Louis rushed me to the infirmary and after a couple of hours of testing by Dr. Demos I was injected with a strange liquid. In a few minutes, I could move again. “What was wrong with me?” I asked both of them.

“The ectoplasmic particles that you were exposed to during your fight with the Banshee has infected your mind,” said Dr. Demos. “This infection causes you to hallucinate until all of your brain cells completely shut down.”

“Is there anything you can do?” I asked them.

Mr. Louis looked grim but determined. “I’ve talked to Ms. Markson about your condition, Julie, as you know she is a Fairy. Fairies have more in-depth knowledge about mind magic than even Dr. Demos does here. She told me that the only way to cure you was to switch your mind’s essence with another. That would destroy the infection in the transference process.”

“You mean like I’d have to switch bodies with someone?” I asked.

Mr. Louis nodded.

“Then let’s do it,” I said. “We can just switch my essence back once the transference destroys the infection!”

“There’s just two problems with that,” said Mr. Louis. “The process is irreversible, and the Fairy dust needed for the transference... was outlawed long ago. We’re not even sure that there’s any dust in existence.”

My heart plummeted. I couldn’t just die like this!

“The serum we injected you with was made from a unicorn’s horn and can heal you temporarily if you are injected once every week,” said Dr. Demos. “You can’t miss any injections because if you miss it even once... you could die that very day.”

The sun had begun to rise as Mr. Louis and I walked back to the dormitories. “I know that things seem bleak now, Ms. Brooks ―”

“Don’t give me a pity talk, Mr. Louis,” I said. “I have a handicap now, and I’ll just have to learn how to live with it. Just tell me one thing ― what were you doing in the woods so late?”

“...I was going to the confinement cells to interrogate Ocron,” he replied. “Now, if I may ask you a question, Ms. Brooks, what hallucination did you experience that could rattle my best student?”

“I saw my brother,” I said. “He told me... things...”

“You have to remember that wasn’t him,” said Mr. Louis. “Nothing can bring back a pure dead soul, Ms. Brooks. Only the darkest evil can be resurrected, I’m afraid.”

I entered mine and Nara’s room and saw her getting ready for the day. She smiled at me cheerfully. “How was your midnight jog?”

“Oh... just the usual...”

As days passed by nothing abnormal happened. I continued to do my homework while assisting Mr. Louis with grading his papers. I never missed an injection either. The serum was working better than expected. I hadn’t experienced another hallucination since that night, but it still didn’t stop me from worrying about the future. Even if these treatments kept me alive, how could I ever be a member of Legend when I was so dependent on one thing... or one person? Jason had become my crutch. I leaned on him more now than I had in anyone before. Take this one night for example...

I had fallen asleep in the arena after training when he found me. “Man, oh man, this is a strange sight. Julie Brooks, our very own overachiever, slacking off? Tell me, it’s not true.”

“That was so funny I forgot to laugh,” I yawned.

“Come on,” Jason laughed. “It was a little funny.”

“Very,” I smiled. “But what brings you down here? I don’t remember scheduling a sparring session today.”

“I wanted to show you something,” said Jason.

“What is it?” I asked.

“It’s a surprise,” he smiled.

We walked outside to the closest lake as a wonderful sight met my eyes. A thousand glowing lanterns hung around the dock, showcasing a picnic basket on top of a blanket.

“Jason... it’s beautiful,” I said, nearly speechless. No one had done something so romantic for me before.

Jason smiled happily at me. “I thought it was time we had our first date.” He outstretched his arm. “Shall we?”

“I honestly couldn’t think of a better way to spend my time,” I said, letting him take me by my arm.

We sat down on the blanket as Jason opened the basket. The wonderful smell of smoked ham and sausage filled the air.

“I raided the school kitchens,” said Jason. “I took a few bottles of fruit juice, some chocolate, and when I saw your favorite smoked foods... I thought, what the hell.”

“Jason, you could get into so much trouble for this,” I said.

“Yeah, I could,” said Jason, “but some things are worth taking risks for.”

“...You know, I think I’m starting to figure that out,” I smiled.

“Really?” asked Jason. “How so?”

“For as long as I can remember, I’ve tried to obey the rules and never step out of line. But now I see that if I never had taken a risk...”

I was going to say I would have never truly gotten to know him, but then I remembered my mind wouldn’t have any problems if it hadn’t been for that night.

“Julie, is everything okay?”

“Do you ever worry about the future, Jason?” I asked.

“She said avoiding the question,” said Jason.

“I’m serious, Jason,” I sighed. “Don’t you ever worry about what life will be like when we graduate?”

“All the time,” said Jason. “I wonder if my mom will wake up by then... what fighting the Order in all-out war will feel like... if we’ll all survive...”

“Doesn’t any of that bother you?” I asked.

“Yes and no,” said Jason. “I look at it this way, Julie, the future shouldn’t matter as long as we make our mark on the present. I guess what I’m trying to say is — these next few years in the Academy are more important than what comes next. This is our time to learn about life, make friends, and enjoy what little innocence we have left.”

“But what... what if something happens where we can’t join Legend?” I asked.

“To be honest... I couldn’t imagine not being part of this fight,” said Jason. “But part of me knows that even with all the changes that happened in my life, I’ll still be that little boy who just wanted to be normal. So, as long as I have good friends and a good girl by my side...”

“Yeah?”

“Oh, sorry, I was pausing for dramatic effect,” laughed Jason.

“Can you stop being a jerk for two seconds?”

“Haven’t we been over this before,” Jason smiled. He leaned in to kiss me.

“I think we both know the answer to that,” I said as I leaned in too. Our lips touched softly against each other’s as my emotions all melded together to form pure happiness for this one moment in time.

“We’re going to be fine, Julie,” said Jason. “Our lives are going to be good.”

“You promise?”

“I promise.”