Part 33 (1/2)

I had fought Sir Norath, faced a room filled with people scared of me, and stood up for the ignored members of our society. There was absolutely nothing people my age could throw my way to make me nervous.

I looped my arm around my father's. ”I'm fine.”

He patted my hand. ”That's my girl.”

The foyer was beautiful-pillars etched with the scenes of the Princ.i.p.alities pa.s.sing their vast knowledge to humans, an ornate staircase that wound to the second- and third-floor balconies packed with students staring down at us. The stares didn't bother me. I'd faced all kinds-hateful, fearful, curious, adoring, even murderous. I made eye contact and nodded, recognizing faces from the beach or the shops. None were Katia or Lottius. I waved to Ravan and Skylar.

The entire teaching staff lined up to welcome us, and I couldn't help but wonder how many of them had fought the Archangels and how many knew the truth about me. I tried to keep up with who was who-the cla.s.sroom teachers and the power instructors. I was surprised to see Master Kenta. He was in charge of martial arts training.

Princ.i.p.al Kessler personally handed me the crystal with my cla.s.s schedule and school map. The cla.s.ses offered included our history, math, English, human studies, and technology. The computer lab had every gadget imaginable.

The tour of the school seemed to go forever. There were about five hundred students, two hundred of them seniors, Princ.i.p.al Kessler explained. Most of them were boarders. He pointed out the double doors leading to the dorms and the cafeteria. Most of the hallways were wide and had quotations from the Princ.i.p.alities, Queen Coronis, even my father, about feeding our minds, our powers and superiority, and of course, the school motto. Like the castle, most of the school was embedded in the mountain for security purposes.

”Where are the younger students?” I asked at the end of the tour. We were outside the cla.s.sroom of my first cla.s.s, math.

”At Mount Hermon Elementary Academy in the city. When they turn sixteen, we bring them here,” the princ.i.p.al explained.

I hadn't seen Katia or Lottius, but I wasn't worried. I could sense their energies, so I knew they were around. I was more worried about my father. Ignoring his guards, Ruby and Callum, and the princ.i.p.al, I turned and faced him.

”Okay. I'm definitely ready now.” And nervous.

”I know.” I wasn't sure whether his ”I know” meant he'd heard my thoughts or he believed I was actually ready. He put his arm around my shoulder and pressed a kiss on my temple. The open display of affection was a breach of protocol, if Lady Nemea was to be believed. ”Be good.”

”Do I have to?” I teased.

He chuckled. ”No. Just make me proud.”

I hugged him back, aware of students watching us through the open doorway. The teacher wasn't in cla.s.s yet. Be careful out there.

I will.

Don't forget what I asked.

To wake you up when I come home. How could I forget? You've reminded me a hundred times.

Grinning, I reached up and kissed his cheek, then waited until he left with his guards. I stared at where he'd last stood and felt a little, I don't know, alone and vulnerable. He was the only person I knew I could trust.

”The cla.s.s is about to begin, Princess,” Ruby whispered.

I nodded, gave her and Callum a wobbly smile, and entered the room. Guys jumped to their feet and offered me seats. I guess seating was random. One dark-haired guy introduced himself as Tannin, the cla.s.s prefect and captain of the junior varsity Earth team.

”We look forward to having you join us in the fourth period,” he said.

He had a beautiful smile, but he was no Green Eyes. I mean, no Bran. ”I warn you, though. My powers can be off sometimes.”

”We like off,” a blond said, grinning.

”Especially when we crush the varsity,” another added.

”Down, boys,” a girl said, coming to my side. She was about my height, with smooth olive complexion, short pitch-black hair, and flawless makeup. She was built like someone who could kick some serious a.s.s. ”Come sit with us, Princess Lilith.”

”Lilith,” I corrected her. I recognized her from the ice-cream shop. She'd invited me to a party just before Katia and I went to Rocky Beach weeks ago.

”And I'm Daeva. Captain of the JV Psi team. Our cla.s.s is second period, so sit with us. I mean, you can sit with us if you like.”

She stuck out her tongue at one of the guys and led me to a desk next to hers just as the math teacher walked in.

Math wasn't bad. I was actually ahead of the cla.s.s, so I spent the time studying the psi energies of the students. There were a few with strong psi, and unlike the older people, their energies weren't red with dark spots. They were bright and without blemishes.

Second period was in a non-regular cla.s.sroom, a gym with floor mats and gla.s.s walls. Soccer b.a.l.l.s of different colors lined the walls, and the student seating area was outside the wall. Daeva was explaining what they did in the cla.s.s when Skylar joined us. It was nice to see a friend. The b.a.l.l.s were made of different materials and had different weights.

The point of the cla.s.s was to channel psi energy to lift and control your own ball while knocking other ones out of the air.

We started with the lighter b.a.l.l.s and slowly progressed to heavier ones. Most of the students had moderate psi energies. A few were powerful. Daeva was one of them. She was c.o.c.ky, though. I wondered if she could wield several swords with her mind like me.

One timid guy stayed in the back of the group and always went last. His psi energy was powerful, yet for the entire period he was in a state of panic. I didn't understand why. Lifting heavier objects didn't seem to be a problem for him, yet he allowed people to knock his away with little effort.

I checked his energy just before the cla.s.s ended and saw why. His energy was fluctuating. He was pulsing just like me when I was angry or scared.

”Who is that?” I asked Skylar.

”Locke. He's a loner-keeps to himself, even in the dorms.”

”That's because he's an orphan, living with people he hasn't even known for a year yet,” Daeva said, coming to stand beside us. ”Lost his parents on the island. They were Specials, but he didn't get their powers.”

Or he didn't want people to know his energy was unstable and end up in Block C. Fear flashed in his eyes when he saw me watching him. He looked down. Part of me wanted to rea.s.sure him, but the other part knew he had reasons to be wary. I was the daughter of our supreme ruler, and Block C might be Father's brainchild.

After psi gym, I was trying to find my next cla.s.s when a familiar voice yelled, ”Lilith.”

I turned to see Katia hurrying toward me.

”Where have you been?” I asked.

”We were told to keep our distance while they were showing you around. And you're in a different math cla.s.s. What's your next cla.s.s?”

”Tech.”

”Me, too. The labs are this way.” She took my arm and steered me down a hallway. Students stared. Others smiled. We turned a corner. ”I'll help you set up before the cla.s.s begins.”

”Why do we need to understand technology? We don't need modern machines.”

”To understand humans, we must keep up with their technology,” she explained. ”Most of us are learning how each machine works. Computers, tablets, telephones, MP3 players... A few Earth Primes can recreate them, too.”

”That's impressive.”

”Wait until human studies. We use social networks to study the human psyche. Every student has accounts on popular websites.” She grinned. ”I have about three thousand followers on each of them.”

The rest of the morning went smoothly. In each cla.s.s, the teachers treated me like any other student, despite Ruby and Callum's presence outside the cla.s.srooms.

I liked the metaphysical cla.s.ses better. Earth cla.s.s had more guys than girls, and most of them had some serious powers. Five minutes with Tannin and his friends and I knew I had found the students to work on Rocky Beach.