Morningstar

Icarus is standing in front of the room, throwing an apple in the air when East passes beside him. “Another apple?” East asks.

“It is the only thing that I eat for breakfast,” Icarus answers.

“But you don’t eat it,” East says. “You only eat it at lunch.”

Icarus nods slowly. “I guess that you are right,” he says.

East sits on the back with Slier. Slowly but surely, everyone starts arriving in waves. First arrives Fey’s group. They acknowledge the existence of Icarus by waving or saying their good mornings, but nothing more. The next group to arrive is Phoenix’s group. They ignore Icarus completely. After them, Lexan arrives with Wither and, to East’s surprise, with Vil. Lexan rises his hand to high-five Icarus, which oddly enough Icarus does.

Agrion enters the room next, all alone. Hakea nor Xeon are with him, just like the day before. East is sure that something happened between them. Then Hakea and Xeon arrives. They sit near Agrion, but only Xeon greets him. Lastly, Tilray’s group arrive. They always arrive late. East knows that it is because Tilray likes to get attention.

“Well, now that you are all here, I can tell you what today’s training is,” Icarus says. “As you all know, tomorrow is the second trial.”

Beta rises her hand as if she is in a class. Icarus nods at her. “There are rumors that we will face Malefic tomorrow.”

“Ah, Kline’s group,” Icarus says. “It does not matter who we face. I think that you are ready.”

“I don’t feel ready,” Tilray says.

“But you are,” Icarus says. “I don’t know how Kline trained his team, but I am sure that I trained you well. So, for today’s training we are going to do nothing.”

“What?” Shin asks.

“You are going to waste a day?” Killam asks.

“You won’t be wasting a day,” Icarus says. “You will sleep, drink, eat, or talk with anyone. I do not care what you do as long as you rest. You will need your energy tomorrow, and you better save it.”

“But, Icarus,” East says, “everyone else will be training today.”

“And you won’t be,” Icarus repeats.

“It sounds as if you are giving us a free day before we…” Vil trails off. East knows what she means. She thinks that we will die tomorrow.

“You won’t die tomorrow,” East says. “In fact, none of us will. We are the best of the best. We can face anyone and win. We will not die because we will graduate.”

“We are not the best of the best, East,” Tilray says. East rolls his eyes at the sound of her voice. “Many other groups have others stronger than us. Kline’s group even has Odon, Tulle, and Rai.”

East does not want to admit that she makes a point. Odon, Tulle, and Rai are a group of three that are on the top twenty-five people of Morningstar. No, they are even on the top fifteen with East and Slier. Even East has to admit that they are a strong trio to face.

“Why didn’t you choose Odon, Tulle, and Rai as part of our team?” Hakea asks.

“Because they would not have worked out in this team,” Icarus answers.

“If you haven’t noticed, we do not work out!” Tilray says.

Icarus shrugs. “I already told you. No training today. Go on. Leave.”

It takes a few seconds, but everyone starts getting up and leaving the room. As East and Slier leave the room, they find Tilray and her group waiting outside.

“You know what we have to do, right?” Tilray asks East and Slier.

“I hate to admit it, but you might be right,” Slier says. Last time that they faced Odon, Tulle, and Rai, Tilray helped East and Slier. It was the strongest combination ever. Before that, they could barely keep up with them. Even if it hurts East, he knows that he needs to work once again with Tilray.

“We’ll work together,” East says. “Until after the trial. After that, I do not want to see you again.”

Tilray smiles. Her brown eyes look at his chest before looking at his eyes. She moves her blond ponytail over her shoulder. “There was a time when you could not get enough of me,” she says. She then looks at Slier. “Goodbye, Slier.” She turns and walks away to join her group.

***

Icarus takes his time to get to his dorm. He does not bother to not make sound. Demetrio should be on practice. He won’t grabbed him for another unpleasant conversation. Icarus opens the door to his room and enters before closing it. He then spots Phoenix sitting on the bed of his small room.

“Breaking into an assassin’s home is not a good choice,” Icarus says.

“I know,” Phoenix says. She moves her legs back and forth alternately and she watches them. “But it’s only three floors up. It is not that hard to climb through the window.” She raises her eyes. “What are you going to do today?”

“I was planning on sleeping for one more hour or two,” Icarus answers. He does not move from the entrance. Phoenix stands up. He knows where this is going. “Phoenix–”

“Shut up,” she says, interrupting him. “I am going to head out and say it. I hate you, but I like you and hate you. I want to kiss you, but I want to punch you. I want to have you close but at the same time push you away. I cannot comprehend what is going on in my mind.” She stops in front of him. “I want to live in the moment. I do not want to think. I do not want to think of the consequences. So, I proposed something.”

Icarus waits for her to continue speaking, but she doesn’t. He understands what she is saying. He wants to kiss her. He wants to hold her. He wants to feel the heat that she has next to him. But he should not do it. He should respect their relationship of mentor and mentee. “What are you proposing?”

“You were going to sleep,” she says. “I propose that we both get some sleep. You lie on one side of the bed and I lie on the other. We won’t touch. We won’t speak. That way, we won’t regret anything later on.”

He stares at her. He will lie on the same bed with her. They won’t talk and won’t touch. He will have her close. He will not be breaking any of his rules. He will be with her, but at the same time he won’t.

“All right,” he says as he nods.

He walks towards the bed. He sits down, takes his shoes off, and slides to the farthest side of the bed. She takes her shoes off and slides under the covers. They both stare at the ceiling. Icarus does not know what to do. He cannot sleep with her lying so close and yet so far. He does not know how many minutes pass before she speaks.

“Icarus?” she asks. He does not answer. He is afraid that if he does, he will say something else that he should not say. He wants to touch her, but he shouldn’t. She then whispers, “Hug me.” And it does not take a second before Icarus is holding Phoenix in his arms.

***

Xeon is heading with Hakea to the dorms. “What’s going on with Agrion?” he asks.

“We had an argument,” Hakea says.

“But when you two argue, you are usually mad at each other for a day,” Xeon says. Hakea does not answer. “Look, I am not dumb. I have seen the way that Agrion looks at you. I see the way that he searches to be next to you whenever he can. You can tell me what is going on.”

Hakea stops. He opens his mouth but then closes it. “No. I’ll tell you with Agrion in front of us.” They arrive to the dorms and quickly head to Hakea’s and Agrion’s dorm. When they arrive, they spot Agrion sitting on the floor with his back against his bed reading a book. He looks up once before looking back at his book. “Still giving me the silent treatment?” Agrion does not answer. Hakea turns back to Xeon. “Fine. I fucked Agrion. That’s why he is mad.”

Xeon does not move. He takes a few seconds thinking. At first, he thinks that Hakes screwed over Agrion on something. “Wait, do you mean that you two…”

“Yes,” Hakea says as he nods. “I fucked Agrion, and now he is mad about it.”

“I thought that you were–”

“That’s not why I am mad,” Agrion says. “You couldn’t even hear me while I yelled at you? Unbelievable.” He looks at Xeon. “I am mad because he cannot admit that he is gay.”

“Because I am not!” Hakea says.

“Wait, I need to sit down,” Xeon says. He sits down on Hakea’s bed. “Let me get this straight. You, Agrion, have had a crush on Hakea for as long as I remember. I mean, even Drew knew. And then you and Hakea had sex.”

“I wouldn’t call it sex,” Hakea says.

“Then what would you call it?” Agrion asks. “A playdate?”

“So, you two had… whatever you want to call it,” Xeon says. He is holding his head. “I am sorry. I am trying to process this. When was this?”

“It has been going on for two years,” Agrion says.

“Woah,” Xeon says. He looks at Hakea. “I am sorry, but this counts as sex.”

“No, it does not,” Hakea says. “I did not touch his dick. I am not gay.”

“Is that really your defense?” Agrion asks. “You let me suck your dick and fucked me. And you quite enjoyed it.”

“And every time I was thinking of Phoenix,” Hakea says.

Agrion lets out an exasperated sigh. “Unbelievable.”

“What do you want me to do, Agrion?” Hakea asks. “Do you want me to apologize?”

“No,” Agrion says. “I want you to admit that you are gay.”

“I am not gay,” Hakea says. “I am straight! I like Phoenix! I want to fuck Phoenix!”

“Then maybe you are bisexual, Hakea,” Xeon says. “You could like both.”

“I am not bisexual because I am not attracted to any man!” Hakea says. “I am only attracted to women.”

“But… you had sex with Agrion,” Xeon says.

“But I am not gay!” Hakea says. He turns back to Agrion. “Fine, if you want me to say that I enjoyed fucking you then fine! I did! I am sorry that I used you like an object, but I liked how infatuated you were with me, and I am sorry that I do not want a relationship with you, but I am not gay.”

Agrion stares at him before closing the book. He stands up and leaves the book on the bed. “That’s as much honesty as I would ever get from you,” he says. “Apology accepted. Now, what are we going to do today?”

Xeon knows that Agrion hasn’t truly forgiven Hakea.

***

Wither is once again in front of the wall of fallen students, watching Yenta’s name. It is late afternoon. The sun is already hiding, ending its shift just so that the moon can pick it up. Wither has spent the day how Icarus suggested, doing nothing. He, Lexan, and Vil spent their time talking around campus. He did not know how fun she was until Lexan was able to make her open up. She has a dark sense of humor, which it is a relief to Lexan’s bad jokes.

“Tomorrow is the second trial,” Wither tells Yenta. “We have a strong team, I can feel it, but it could be stronger. I do not know if we will make it. I don’t know if I will join you tomorrow, but I will try my best. You won’t be disappointed of me.”

He hears a bush ruffle and he turns slowly, expecting Icarus to be behind him. Instead, he finds a group of four people jogging around. They are searching for something or someone. When one of them spots Wither, he tells the other and they stop. One of them heads towards him.

“You are in Draconic, aren’t you?” he asks. Wither nods slowly. “Do you know where Kobo might be?” Wither wonders what they want with Kobo. He shakes his head. “Well, you will have to do. Get him.”

Wither widens his eyes when he sees the woman and the other two men make their way towards him. Wither pulls his sword from his back. As he does, the woman kicks him on his legs and he falls, dropping the sword. He tries to stand up, but the other two men are already pinning him down.

“What do you want?” Wither manages to ask as he tries to break free.

“We want to win,” the leader says, and that’s when Wither feels the pain on his knee.

***

Rin is running as fast as she can. The sun has left already. She is supposed to be getting ready for bed, but she cannot. No one in their team can. She arrives to the mentors’ dorm and goes directly to the third floor. She knocks on the door several times.

Icarus opens the door a little, only for his head to be visible. “Rin,” he says. He sounds surprised. “What are you doing here?”

“You need to come with me,” she says. She knows that she sounds desperate. “It is Wither. Something has happened to Wither.”

“What?” she hears someone else react. Someone opens the door wider and Phoenix appears.

“Phoenix? What are you… Oh…”

“It is nothing like that,” Phoenix says. “What happened to Wither?”

“It is bad,” Rin says. “You better come and see.”

Phoenix steps out of the room with Icarus and he closes the door. They run downstairs and out of the dorm as fast as they can. Rin leads them to Draconic and back to room 23 where everybody of the team is. They all move to reveal Wither lying on top of a table.

Icarus and Phoenix stop by the table. “What happened?” Icarus asks.

“Someone broke Wither’s left knee,” Rin says. “I tried to do what I could. I placed two strong branches on the side of his legs and tied them to not let Wither walk. His knee will heal but not by tomorrow.”

“What are we going to do, Icarus?” Lexan asks. “He cannot compete on the second trial with a leg like that.”

“Who did this to you?” Icarus asks Wither.

Wither opens his mouth to speak, but Kobo is already speaking, “It was Heigl, Kimber, Miles, and Zarf. They wanted to do that to me, but they did not find me. They ended up doing it to Wither instead.”

“That’s cheating, Icarus,” East argues.

“What are we going to do?” Hakea asks.

“You, nothing,” Icarus says.

“Are you crazy?” Killam yells. “They broke the knee of someone from my team. We should break all of their knees. An eye for an eye!”

“No,” Icarus says. “Even if we tell Morning what happened, there is no proof. He won’t believe us. And breaking everyone’s knees will only make things worse.”

“Then what do you suggest we do?” Tilray asks.

“Nothing,” Icarus says. “We cannot do anything.”

“What do you mean?” Fey asks.

“Every trial is different,” Icarus says. “Things like that happens before trials. The thing is that everything is possible. We do not know if Morning sent them as a test to see how we react.”

“Is that possible?” Slier asks.

“Everything is,” Icarus says.

“But we cannot do nothing,” Killam yells. “We have to do something! They cannot get away with this!”

“We cannot do anything,” Icarus says. “You won’t do anything. I will get this sorted out. You will all get some rest for tomorrow.”

“No,” Killam says. “We must do something!”

“I said no,” Icarus voice resonates through the classroom. It sends a chill through Rin. It reminds her of the assassin at trial, not of Icarus. “I will get this sorted out. You will not do anything. That’s final.”

No one speaks. Phoenix clears her voice. “What should Wither do?” she asks. She is the only one brave enough to speak after that.

“He should not move that leg at all,” Icarus says. “Lexan, do you have a free bed in your room?”

“I do,” Lexan says. “It belonged to someone who passed away at the trial.”

“Then Wither will stay in your room tonight,” Icarus says. “If he needs to do something, help him.”

“All right,” Lexan answers.

“The rest of you, get some sleep,” he says. He leaves the room without waiting for anyone else.

***

Icarus makes his way towards the mentors’ dorm. He knows everyone’s room. He memorized it the first day. He goes to the second floor and knocks on the door that he knows where he might be. The door opens to reveal a man. He is about Icarus’s height. He has long brown hair and a lighter skin that Icarus’s honey skin. He wears glasses and looks as if he has not laughed in years.

“To what do I owe this pleasure of the assassin visiting me?” Kline asks.

“It is not a pleasure,” Icarus says. “Four of your students broke one of my student’s knee.”

“Ah,” he says and smiles. Icarus thinks that his smile seems out of place on his face. “I would not expect any less from my team.”

“I figured as much,” Icarus says. “Let me make something clear, Kline. The move that your team has done is a cowardly move. You have taught your team to be cowards instead of teaching them how to survive.”

“Icarus,” he says, “everything is valid when it comes to surviving.”

“Indeed,” Icarus says as he nods. “Hear me out, Kline, and listen closely. We won’t do anything. We will play with that disadvantage, and not only that, we will win also. Just remember this when I am standing over you with a dagger and as you plead for mercy.”

Icarus turns and leaves before Kline can answer.