Chapter Twenty-One: The Kenhoro Officer Academy

Chapter Twenty-One: The Kenhoro Officer Academy

“You’re here,” grumbled the grizzled captain as Serena once again found herself standing in an ethereal fog that stretched endlessly into the darkness. “You’ve committed a cardinal sin,” the captain said, his voice muffled in the unnatural expanse. “There will be a punishment.”

Serena’s thoughts were full of Amelia, and she felt anger rise within her. Was she still drunk? She was probably still drunk. “For falling for a woman? A human?” She snapped at the illusive man, who didn’t react at all to her outburst.

“Too late... you must protect the girl...” the captain grumbled, removing his captain’s hat to reveal messy grey hair and the edges of an aged face. Serena paused, realising this dream figure was human.

“I’m heading to the ice-lands to do my part. As for you...” The human battered the side of his hat, knocking dirt and dust loose. The rhythmic beating of his palm against the brown leather sent shockwaves throughout the space. “... the pair of you must go to the desert. The old temple...”

“Why!? What if I refuse?” She challenged the old captain’s ramblings.

“I wish there were another way, but you must. To keep her safe...” The captain turned into white mist and vanished, leaving only the frothing fog that covered Serena’s vision and wrenched her into the waking world.

As she became conscious, she peeled open one eye before closing it in pain. What a terrible hangover! What a thoroughly idiotic demon she was to drink so much! She tried to remember how much she’d drank, but just imagining more alcohol made her feel queasy. Serena groaned before forcing herself back to unconsciousness where hopefully the next time she woke her head wouldn’t be throbbing like it was.

When she once again stirred awake, she realised there was something warm and soft wrapped in her arms. This felt a lot nicer than her own head and if she focused on it, it helped distract herself from her hangover. She squeezed the thing in her arms, and it made a squeak.

How amusing.

She squeezed it again and it made another cute noise. Serena felt a warm hand hold hers.

“Mmm... morning,” Amelia whispered.

“Hungover,” muttered Serena, not liking the aftertaste in her mouth. “Heal me, please... before I throw up.” She didn’t have to ask twice, and soon magical warmth rippled through her body, wiping away the awful pressure in her head. She no longer felt parched or tired. The general ache throughout her body vanished, and Serena felt like she could run a hundred klicks.

“Your magic is truly wonderful,” Serena said, blinking her eyes open. Now she saw why Amelia felt so warm. Both their upper bodies were devoid of all clothing, and Serena was wrapped around the girl. Serena snapped her eyes down, breathing a sigh of relief when she saw they still had their trousers on.

What had happened? With her head no longer splitting, she could cast her mind back to the night before. She started counting the bottles of loqua they had drunk. Two... four... six... seven hells, how much had they spent!? The pair of them had gotten one last bottle and then stumbled back to their room, only just keeping up appearances until the door was shut behind them, after which they had thrown themselves at each other in drunken passion.

Kissing. There was a lot of kissing.

When had the clothes come off?

Serena couldn’t quite remember. She propped herself up on one arm and ran a hand over Amelia’s stomach. “How are you doing?” She asked, surprising herself at how smooth she sounded. With a bitter realisation she noticed she felt pride at the events that had transpired. There was something so validating about having someone throw themselves at her with passion and desire.

To make things even more satisfying, this wasn’t just a fling, it was Amelia. It was her girlfriend. Serena internally cringed at the next thought but couldn’t deny it was a part of how she felt about the situation.

Her conquest.

“Mmm...” groaned Amelia, rolling onto her back, her left arm covering her eyes and her right was under the blanket, placed ontop of Serena’s. “I smell of alcohol...” she mumbled.

“So do I,” Serena said, turning her head and smelling herself. “When you drink so much, you sweat it out when you sleep. We’ll probably have to get new sheets and wash up...”

“Uh, no need. Here,” Amelia said before casting a spell Serena had seen the day before. It was Amelia’s cleaning spell. Immediately, Serena felt clean as every iota of dried sweat, dirt, and alcohol was magically cleansed from her body. She ran her tongue around inside her mouth and found the spell also cleaned her teeth. She no longer felt the urge to go to the toilet.

“That’s... ridiculously helpful. With that and your healing, would you ever need to eat, sleep, or change clothes?” She asked as the utility of such a powerful cleaning spell popped up in her mind. The normal cleaning spells she knew about were more of an assistance towards normal cleaning rather than a complete replacement.

“Maybe... even so, I want to keep eating delicious things, sleep in comfy beds, and try out pretty dresses,” Amelia said, her voice sounding more wakeful. “Also, look what you did!” Before Serena could say anything, Amelia threw the blanket down, exposing her naked chest and...

The teeth marks that had bruised one of her breasts.

Oops. Serena felt herself swallow nervously. Was that her? It must have been her, right?

“Was that me?” She asked, cupping Amelia’s breast and lightly rubbing it.

“Yes, it was you,” Amelia said with a sigh, but the corners of her mouth teased upwards as she removed her arm and made eye contact with Serena. “The tongue was nice, but you were too tipsy to control your teeth, stupid demon.” Amelia put both hands behind her head and gave Serena a sly grin. “Are you enjoying groping me? I won’t lie; it’s kind of relaxing.”

“Ah, sorry,” Serena said, removing her hand as a small amount of golden light with blue flecks healed the bruise away. That was a shame, she was going to ask if she could kiss it better. Before she could do anything else, Amelia turned to her front and exposed her back.

“Make it up to me,” she said.

“How?”

“Give me a massage,” Amelia said, her voice muffled by the pillow. “Not too firm but not too soft.” Serena obliged, running her hands up and down Amelia’s back. The human wasn’t muscular, but she was slim enough Serena could identify the different muscle groups and begin to massage them with varying levels of pressure while making adjustments based upon the cute noises coming from Amelia.

“Mmm...”

“Ah...”

“Right there...”

“Ahhh!”

The last was squeaked out while Amelia violently wriggled underneath her. It turned out that Amelia’s sides were ticklish. How adorable! Serena filed that bit of knowledge away for future use before apologising and resuming the massage in a more acceptable way.

Five then ten minutes passed, and Amelia’s breathing became slow and soft. Another five minutes and Serena was sure she had just massaged her girlfriend back to sleep. That was a good thing, right? She leaned in and gave her a soft kiss on the base of her neck.

“I’m going to wash up,” she whispered before carefully clambering off the bed and heading to the washroom. With Amelia’s magic she didn’t need to clean herself, but that still didn’t stop the satisfaction of a hot shower and the smell of the fancy soaps the inn had provided them.

As the hot water rained down on her back, and the room steamed up, Serena ran the events of the night over and over again in her head. Things they had spoken about, the stories and jokes they had both shared. The warmth of each other's bodies when they returned. On more than one occasion, Serena caught herself smiling happily to herself like an idiot.

You’ve become a rather smitten demon, haven’t you? She thought to herself.

Her thoughts then turned to her dream. She ran it over in her head again and again. Something was so familiar about that human captain. Had she seen him in a book somewhere? Perhaps during a lesson in the academy? Was he the embodiment of the ship itself reaching out to her or something else? She would have to bring it up again with Anathor. This wasn't something she could just ignore.

She finished up, drying and dressing herself before returning to the bedroom to find Amelia propped up on the side of the bed, hugging a towel that covered her chest.

“Morning,” Amelia said with a smile. She hopped off the bed and passed Serena. “You smell good,” Amelia said, before opening the door, “You’ve made it so warm and steamy for me! Thank you!” The blond hair vanished through the doorway and not long after the sounds of a sweet melody could be heard.

Serena listened for a moment, appreciating the talents of her girlfriend before collecting herself. She had a few things she wanted to get done today. Serena tidied up the bedroom, before arranging some spare blankets and pillows into an impromptu futon. For now, she wanted to make it look like they hadn’t slept in the same bed. After she had finished redecorating, she pulled the cord to get the receptionist’s attention.

A minute later, there was a polite knock on the door. “Reception,” a voice sounded from outside. Serena opened the door, making sure to swing it wide enough that the attendant would see the futon. She stepped outside, closing the door behind her.

“We’d like some coffee for the room and something simple for breakfast. Does the kitchen have any soup prepared?” Even though Serena was fully healed, she still felt uncomfortable eating something too harsh on her stomach. It was probably a psychological thing, her mind was used to treating the stomach delicately after a night of heavy drinking.

“Ah, the cook has prepared a choco broth that should be ideal for hangovers. Would two portions be sufficient?”

“Yes, and some bread and butter to go with it.”

“Of course. We’ve just had our morning delivery. We have some fine sourdough with a traditional honey glaze that would pair well.”

“Good, and coffee?” Serena was wide awake without a glimmer of tiredness. Even so, if she could start the morning with a decent coffee she would.

“We have beans from the mountains of Shiloh, and the fields of Yamen. We also have a brand of Dacian coffee, although many of our customers find it too harsh.”

“Nothing from Jimar?”

Soon they left the gossiping students behind and she was led up multiple flights of stairs and through several corridors before stopping at a large ironwood door. A brass plaque on the front simply read Director. The guard rapped his knuckles against the solid wood.

“It’s open,” came a gruff voice from within.

The guard opened the door, and Serena could make out an office that was best described as chaotic-neatness. It reminded her a little of Tome's quarters.

“Speaker Halen is here to meet with you, director,” the guard informed.

“Mmm? Is that so? Well then, let her in and return to your post.”

“Yes, director,” the guard bowed and left Serena to her own devices. She stepped into the office, greeting a pair of crimson eyes and large bull horns that looked terribly familiar.

“Grandmaster Gu, it’s a pleasure,” Serena greeted, clasping her hands together in a tidy bow. “I believe we last met at my graduation in Asamaywa?”

“Mmm... come here, Serena. Let’s have a look at your hands...” The grandmaster motioned for her to approach and Serena walked over to his desk. The old demon took her hands in his own and examined them with a thoughtful expression.

“Your military life has kept you busy...” He mumered, turning her hands this way and that. “I see you’ve kept your skills, even improved them. What aura can you manifest under Narean now?”

“I... am just breaking into blue, grandmaster. I have reached it twice. Once under my control and the other... not.”

“Mmm... Narean can be demanding, can he not? You must train your will and determination as much as the sword itself.”

“Yes, grandmaster.”

“Still, to lose such an awful talent like yourself to my brother! A terrible tragedy! Can I not convince you to spend a few semesters here as an instructor?”

“I apologise, but my military duties take me elsewhere currently.”

“Gah! You’re wasted in the military, you know that, don’t you, Serena Halen?”

“I... I’m comfortable where I am.”

“Well then,” Grandmaster Gu sighed, reclining into his chair. “For what purpose have you visited me?”

“I-” Serena began but cut herself off. She organised her thoughts before beginning again. “There was a recent battle in the city centre, I trust you’re aware of it?” Someone of the grandmaster’s skill would easily detect the Spoken Words from yesterday. Grandmaster Gu nodded slowly.

“There were two trainee cadets that died. I believe it was one trainee Meng and one trainee Yin.” The Grandmaster stared at her for a moment before opening his mouth.

“Yes, two of ours.”

“They... died following my orders. They died doing their duty.” Serena took a breath, “Through you, I would like to use my Speakers privilege to communicate an official commendation for them both. I would like to recommend a bronze eagle each and, if possible, if you are amenable to it, for them to post-mortem graduate as a commissioned officer.”

The Grandmaster was silent for a dozen seconds and Serena had to make a conscious effort to avoid swallowing awkwardly.

“You... feel guilty over their deaths?” He asked her in a quiet voice.

“I cannot deny it... I do,” Serena muttered. The Grandmaster was quiet for another period before sighing. The demon reached into a pocket and put on a pair of spectacles. He fumbled around his desk, finding pen and paper.

“You really should consider becoming an instructor. The military isn’t for you, Speaker Halen. Now then... how would you like to word this? Best be polite; the Greatlord will be reading it.”

“Ah,” Serena felt a burden lift from her. She couldn’t resurrect the dead. No-one could. What she could do was give the fallen a little honour and something for their families to ease their grieving. Over the next few minutes, she worked with Grandmaster Gu to word the recommendation properly.

“Thank you for your assistance, grandmaster,” Serena said, standing up after signing the final version. “There is one other matter I wish to cover.”

“What is it?”

“Is the academy private training grounds for instructors, free for use? I have another Speaker with me, someone I’ve promised to teach the sword. With your permission, I would like to make use of them.” Officially Serena didn’t need the grandmaster's permission. She even had the right to eject any non-Speakers from whatever training session they were in, but that was not a power she would abuse, especially in front of someone she respected so much.

“Another Speaker? This wouldn’t be a certain Miss Thornheart whose name I’ve been hearing here and there?”

“That... would be correct. I have employed her under my name for House Halen. She’s an excellent healer and has taken an interest in the sword.”

“Oh?” The grandmaster’s bushy eyebrow rose. “Does she have any talent?”

“It...” Serena thought about the question a little longer. “It’s hard, she’s an amateur in the sword, but being a Speaker, her constitution far outstrips even the most talented non-Speaker. It’s too early for me to tell if she has any real talent.”

“What’s her disposition?”

“She’s compassionate, excitable and optimistic. However, she is a little naive,” Serena said, giving a blunt and honest overview of Amelia’s personality.

“Mmm... so unsuited for the military?”

“That may be so, but she’s not in the chain of command. She’s merely under my employ.”

“Have you ever considered sponsoring her for the swordsmanship courses here? Being human, she won’t be able to become an officer. I’ll never turn down a soul that’s passionate about the sword, even if they’re a human Speaker.”

Serena gave the grandmaster a wirey smile. “You haven’t even met her, and you’re already trying to pull her into your tutelage?”

“Tsk!” The grandmaster clicked his tongue, “I’ve lost one talented Speaker to my brother! Before I know it, he’ll take another!”

“I’m afraid I’ll have to decline for now,” Serena said, inclining her head as she politely refused the man. She tried to imagine Amelia as a student; her blond hair bouncing in a sea of horns as she rushed to class. It was... surprisingly easy to picture, actually. Nevertheless, she couldn't envision a pathway that would end with Amelia attending an academy. Not yet, anyway.

“Stubborn...” mumbled the grandmaster. “Very well. I’ll let you use one of the private training halls. Only... I’d like to watch the session. You can’t get me excited over a prospective talent in my halls and then deny me the opportunity to witness it myself, right?”

Serena took a moment to think. It was a fair request and she had no real reason to deny it. “Alright,” she said, “What training hall is free?”

“Ah,” the grandmaster waved his hands dismissively. “I’ll come with you to get her, and then we’ll go together and find a hall. Where is she now?”

“I left her at the gate with the guard. They weren’t willing to let a human Speaker onto the grounds without your permission.”

“Damn straight,” the grandmaster snorted. “We’re at war. Can’t be too careful. Come on then, Speaker Halen. Let’s get these old bones moving.” The old demon clambered up. His clothing hid his body but Serena could tell from his movements that underneath he possessed an iron body that would rival any younger demon’s effort.

Together they left the office and returned to the gate. There they found the gate guard sweating nervously. Amelia stood nearby, idly kicking rocks and pebbles and whistling awkwardly.

“Uh, hello,” She said, “A little problem...”

Serena took a moment to mentally prepare herself. “What’s happened?” Amelia gestured to the side and Serena turned her head to see a demon encased in the ground. Earth magic had been used to wrap him in stone, leaving only his head sticking out. Serena grinned before taking her time to pace over to the grumbling demon.

“Serena!” The trapped demon begged, “Tell her I’m not an assassin! This is very humiliating!”

“Hrmph!” Amelia folded her arms, looking away. “You might not be an assassin, but you’re definitely a weirdo! What kind of strange man tries to give a young, innocent girl like myself alcohol in broad daylight? Creep!”

Serena tapped her foot against the stone encasing the poor demon. “Why did I never think to do this myself?” She pondered out loud. “So, what can we do for you, Officer Adachi?”