Chapter 30 - Betrayal Exposed

Naian awoke to the whimpers and moans of Emelinia. He called out to her but she didn't respond. Naian sat up and felt for the matches on the drawer. As soon as he found them, he lit the lamp. He was surprised to see Emelinia sweating and fidgeting as she squeezed the duvet in her hands. Her eyebrows were forced down as her face cringed.

'No please,' he heard her whimper.

Naian got up and poured a glass of water. He quietly went to her side of the bed and sat beside her. Naian gently woke her up but she jolted and screamed to the point of waking up Sharumez and Akirexer. Akirexer nearly got out of bed but Sharumez sleepily held her back.

"Let Naian handle that." he told her and they went back to sleep.

Emelinia had the look of terror in her eyes as she was violently shivered. Her nightdress was drenched in her sweat. She was gasping for air with her eyes opened wide. Naian reached out for her hand and she screamed again. When she realized that it was him, she calmed down a little. Naian gave her the glass of water and she hastily drank it. Emelinia got back to her senses began to feel embarrassed.

"I'm sorry for waking you up." she said, not daring to look Naian in the eye.

"This is the second night you are having nightmares. What's wrong?" Naian asked her.

"I'm fine, it's just a reoccurring dream that I can't seem to understand." She said.

"Would you like to talk about it this time?" he asked her but she quickly shook her head sideways.

Naian thoughtfully tucked his lips and walked back to the side of his bed. He picked up the lamp. Shadows shifted and Emelinia fearfully looked at him.

"Please, don't turn off the lamp." she pleaded like a little girl.

Naian adhered to her plea and set the lamp back on the drawer. Emelinia kept her eyes off of him as he and got back into the covers. Emelinia turned her back and covered herself completely. Naian was stunned to see her still shaking in fear in the covers. He decided to stay awake until she fell asleep again.

****

The warrior students were awakened by a violently loud and obnoxious horn. They proceeded to go and have their baths. Sharaina was baffled that they had to share the bathroom with the males. By the look of things, she wasn't the only one feeling uncomfortable with the whole thing. She could see other girls looking nervous as they looked at the shirtless males in towels. Standing watch were armed military men.

Sharaina made her way to a cube shower with her basket that contained her toiletries. She flashed the curtain open and realized that the cube was bigger than she expected. There was a cement bench away from the shower and above it were hooks where to hang clothes.

Sharaina left her toiletries and rushed out of the cube. She went straight to the wardrobe that she shared with Yolin and pulled out her uniform. With long strides, she made her way back to the showers. Sharaina was relieved when she didn't find anyone at her cube. She got in and put her uniform on the bench.

Sharaina started to shower when she heard the sound of Naraygeous laughing and Zentz telling him to shut up. She wondered what they were laughing at. When she was done she turned off the shower and got dressed. She found Yolin waiting outside the shower. Without another word Yolin got in.

The other girls were impressed with Sharaina's idea. They all rushed back to the dorm and retrieved their uniforms much to the agony of the guys who were hoping to see some skin.

****

After breakfast, everyone stood outside in silence. They were waiting for their captain who was scheduled to address them that morning. They soon spotted a bold muscular man with a scar that ran down his face and blinded his left eye. He looked darkly at the new recruits and most of them felt nervous.

"Alright listen up you insects, I am Captain Shrave and I will be your commanding officer throughout your stay here! I assume you all know what you are here for so I expect you to act accordingly. I have no time for weaklings therefore I will not hesitate to kick out anyone who doesn't meet my standards." he harshly said to them with aggression.

Everyone felt tensed at the thought of having being sent home. None of them wanted to get kicked out because that would mean serious shame to their families. Dropping out was a taboo but getting kicked out was worse. Before going there, some of them were even threatened by their families that they would be disowned if they returned home as failures.

"Here are the rules..." he said again and everyone listened attentively. "Rule number one, you are not to have sex in the dorms or in the showers. Anyone caught having sex will be arrested for six months and suspended for 2 years. If you fall pregnant or impregnate anyone, you will be suspended for ten years." He said and the males began to murmur.

"We have deliberately put you together because during battle, you will be forced to camp with each other so we are breaking that social barrier of different sexes."

'Okay that will be easy to follow. What else you got baldy?' Sharaina thought to herself.

"Rule number two, you are not to have a drop of alcohol during the week. Alcohol is only allowed over the weekend. Anyone caught with alcohol during the week or caught drunk during the week will be suspended for two years immediately!" he thundered.

'What the hell? Seriously! Okay at least things can't get any worse than this.'

"Rule number three, the inner gates are only to be opened on Wednesday and the weekend. This means that no one is allowed to go to the other campus on any other days apart from these. Should you be found on the other side, you will be expelled for your disobedience." he threatened.

'Oh wow and I thought things couldn't get any worse. So much for seeing Light as often as I want. Let's see what other rules Baldy borrowed from hell.'

"Rule number four, the external gates are only to be opened during the weekend but no one is allowed to return to their homes. You can mingle with the locals but you cannot under any circumstance return to your homes. This goes for those who live locally too." Captain Shrave continued and Sharaina scowled.

'And there we have it ladies and gentlemen. The worst rule has landed. Shit.'

"At times you may find yourselves in situations where seeing your family is close to impossible. You must get used to living without them. Anyone caught visiting home will be expelled immediately."

"Your training starts today. Meet me at the training field in fifteen minutes." he concluded, eyeballed the crowd and walked away.

"Man, this is horseshit? No sex and no alcohol?" Naraygeous whined.

"I haven't found any problem with the rules." Zentz said and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "What about you Sharaina?" he asked Sharaina.

"The only rule I am okay with is the 'no sex rule'. I don't like the rest." Sharaina answered as they walked back to their dorm.

****

Naian dozed off on a table in the work shop. The sound of Sharumez working didn't wake him up because he was used to it. Sharumez left him alone and continued working. A loud customer suddenly walked in and the sound of Sharumez and the customer speaking woke Naian up. He immediately felt embarrassed for dozing off and he got up. Nawn yawned as he watched the customer pay for his dinning set and leave.

"Son, is everything okay with Emelinia? We heard her scream again last night." Sharumez asked.

"She has been having nightmares." Naian sighed. "She doesn't want to tell me what the nightmares are about."

"That's unfortunate but I'm sure that she will open up with time. She just has to feel that she can trust you." Sharumez sympathized.

"I am worried about her." Naian confessed. "What do you think I can do to at least reduce the chances of her having more nightmares?"

"You can take her to the play that will be showing this evening at seven." A girl suddenly said and both men turned to look. "I am here to apply for the job."

She brushed her blonde hair off her left eye as she held up one a flier with her muscular hand. The vest she wore barely covered her six pack. Her right eye was hidden behind an orange dyed portion of her hair. She grinned cockily at the two men with her thin lips.

"Of course come in." Sharumez said and offered her a seat. "Son, would you mind interviewing her? I have to get back to what I was working on." Sharumez said and Naian nodded his head with another yawn.

Naian sat opposite the bold looking girl and she handed him her papers.

"Janala, it says here that you are a boxer by profession." Naian said to her and he flipped a page. "What I don't understand is why you would want to work in a carpentry work shop."

"I lost a match and now no one will hire me." She confidently answered. "I can assure you that I have experience in the carpentry field. My aunt was a carpenter before she got eaten by a Kremis. I used to help her a lot in her shop." she added with no emotion.

"I'm sorry about your aunt." Naian replied, feeling somewhat awkward.

"It's okay. She was just at the wrong place and at the wrong time." Janala said again with no emotion which puzzled Naian but he decided to brush it off.

"How far is your home from here?" he asked her.

"It is a fifteen minute walk from here." Janala quickly answered.

"Why should we hire you?" Naian asked her.

"Because I need the money and you need experienced extra hands. Word on the street is that you got a massive order and now here we are. " She spread her muscular arms whilst waving her bushy eyebrows up and down.

Naian smiled at her. He was intrigued by her confident and daring attitude. "I am impressed with your attitude Janala. However I cannot hire you just yet. I need to see your skill set so here's what's going to happen. You see that wood over there?" he pointed and Janala looked at it. "I want you to make anything out of it. If we like what you make, we will start talking about your contract. Sounds good?"

"Yes, it seems fair enough. May I start now?" Janala asked.

"By all means do. There's a tools box under the table next to the door." Naian told her and she got up.

Before heading to the table, she pulled out another flier from her back pocket and handed it to Naian. Without waiting for Naian's response, she left to work. Naian took a look at the flier and it had details about the play that was going to be showing that night. Sharumez came behind him and his eyes fell on the flier.

"You should go." Sharumez advised Naian. "It could be what Emelinia needs to keep her mind off whatever it is that is scaring her. It would also do you two some good to spend time together."

"Okay papa. I will get off early so that I can take her to the play."

"Your mother should be coming any minute now with our lunch. I will tell her to tell Emelinia to prepare herself."

****

Akirexer was feeling low because of Sharaina's absence so she spent most of her time in her room. Neither Sharumez nor Naian knew about this because Akirexer masked most of her depressed feelings. Only Emelinia could see the truth that was hidden behind her sweet dimpled smile.

When Emelinia had noticed that Akirexer was feeling more depressed, she decided to cook lunch for Sharumez and Naian and take it to them. She had asked Alainara for directions right before she went to school and she quickly drew a map. Emelinia was impressed with how accurate the map was.

She had walked in the sun for almost half an hour before she finally found the workshop. Emelinia held her sun hat as she double checked the address. When she was finally convinced that she was at the right place, she firmed her hold on the basket of food and she opened the door.

Her eyes first fell on Janala who was carrying wood across the shop. She then saw Sharumez and Naian talking at the counter. Sharumez looked at her and he smiled happily at her. Emelinia smiled back and gave him a little wave.

"Emelinia, what a pleasant surprise it is to see you here." Sharumez said to her.

"Mama is a little busy this afternoon so I thought of cooking your lunch and bringing it to you myself." Emelinia answered. She didn't want to worry them with the truth.

"It's funny; we were just talking about you." Sharumez said to her and Emelinia was stunned.

She put the basket down and took off her hat. The only worry in her mind was if Sharumez and Naian spoke about her nightmares. The last thing Emelinia needed was to be questioned about her dreams. She already had a tough time shoving the horrible dreams to the back of her head.

Emelinia cleared out a table and began setting the food in silence hoping that Sharumez wouldn't pursue the topic any further by telling her what they were talking about. The sound of Sharumez calling out to her made her stiff.

"Yes, papa?" Emelinia obediently answered.

"Do you like theatre?" He asked her.

'Goodness, I am glad he hasn't brought it up. I need to stop over thinking things.' Emelinia resolved with a warm smile on her face.

"Yes, I do. I really enjoy watching plays." she answered.

"Then you won't mind going with me to watch one, will you?" Naian asked her.

"No, I wouldn't mind." Emelinia answered.

"It will start at seven so be ready by six. I'll come and pick you up." Naian told her and she nodded her head.

Emelinia respectfully gestured to the table by putting her hands together and pointing at the table with a small bow of her head. Sharumez and Naian placed their hands on their chests in respect and sat down to eat.

The food looked as delicious as it smelt but what puzzled them was how plenty it was. They wondered why Emelinia would cook so much for just the two of them. Naian looked at her bewildered and she backed away nervously.

"I had a feeling that more food was going to be needed today so I went with it." Emelinia explained herself.

Naian chuckled softly. "You have strong instincts Emelinia." he said. "Janala come and join us for lunch. You will continue your assignment later." Naian said to Janala and she obeyed.

"Thanks boss." Janala said as she sat down with her legs spread apart in her baggy pants. "Is this woman your wife?" she asked Naian as she examined Emelinia from head to toe.

"Yes, she is. Her name is Emelinia." Naian answered and turned to Emelinia. "This is Janala. She may start working here with us." he explained.

"I'm pleased to meet your acquaintance." Emelinia answered.

Sharumez swallowed his food and gave a sharp and thoughtful look at Emelinia. He remembered that she told them that Akirexer was a little busy so that's why she couldn't come. Sharumez knew that Akirexer's trip to the workshop was the highlight of her day so it puzzled him so much that she decided not to come.

"Emelinia, what did you say Akirexer is doing exactly?" Sharumez asked her.

Emelinia felt a little tensed. "Papa I don't really know. She was in her room all morning so I assumed she was busy."

"Oh, I see...very well then." Sharumez answered. He couldn't help but worry.

"Wow this is really tasty, Mrs. Naian. I can't remember the last time I had a decent meal like this one. I can't cook even if my life depended on it." Janala laughed.

"Thank you, Janala." Emelinia smiled warmly at her.

****

Sharaina quickly changed into her green uniform that comprised of a navy green vest and navy green cargo pants that were tacked into her black combat boots. She soon joined everyone looking at the sandy plain fields she had seen the previous day when she was on the dragon. She counted twenty four giant metallic machines. They had trailers that were packed with metallic balls thrice her height. Each machine had at least four soldiers around it.

Captain Shrave and his surbordinates arrived at the plain field. The five of them had serious and brutal looks on their faces. The sound of their heavy steps were more than enough to intimidate someone. One of the subordinates caught sight of Sharaina and whispered into Shrave's ear. He maintained his straight face as he listened. Sharaina felt uneasy as she looked at them.

"Sharaina, come here at once." Captain Shrave commanded her.

She immediately obeyed and when she was close enough, she waited to hear what he had to say to her.

"You will not take part in today's exercise." he further commanded.

"Yes, sir." Sharaina answered with a low bow.

Captain Shrave's decision was met by scowls and murmurs from the others. They thought that he was being partial with Sharaina because she was the youngest. No one murmured more than one pretty and slender orange haired girl. She rolled her bright eyes at Sharaina with her hands folded and her friends giggled.

Yolin stood with them but she didn't laugh with them. She had no interest in whether Sharaina took part in the exercise or not. Her attention was on the metallic machines. She wondered what sort of exercise they were going to do.

"Gosh Lalina, you'd expect the captain to give you immunity over this exercise because your father is Vice Commander Holan." one of the girls said to the orange haired girl.

"Never mind that sweetie. Whatever the case, we will not let this underaged girl take away my privileges of being rich and noble status. Don't you think so Yolin?" Lalina asked Yolin.

"I don't care. I'm just here to get this over with." Yolin answered and walked away.

"Alright! In this exercise, you will be forced to activate your powers. The instructions are as follows, you see that yellow flag over there?" Captain Shrave pointed at a flag at the center of the plain field. "You are to retrieve it and pin it at the far end of the field." He said. "Try not to get hit because one hit may send you into hibernation. Keep it in mind that if you fail to activate your powers, you will be suspended. As soon as you hear your name, go into the field."

In no time the exercise began. The sight of some of the students getting brutally knocked out made the others nervous. One girl was hit by a metallic ball and slammed by another when she was trying to get up. Her unconscious and bloody sight frightened the students next in line. One guy failed to get his flag because he was hit in the head before he could. His skull was partially opened as he laid face down on the ground. The gruesome sight made some students cry when they heard their names.

Sharaina was disturbed by what was going on. She painfully watched the paramedics rush to pick up the injured or unconscious students. When Naraygeous managed to complete the task by quickly dodging the balls and delivering the flag, Sharaina heaved in relief.

Zentz and Yolin were also amongst the ones who managed to complete the task though Zentz had a sustained a dislocated shoulder. Sharaina ran to him when he was brought back and she helped him force it back in place.

Lalina had also succeeded in the exercise. She swiftly dodged the metallic balls and got out without a scratch or misplacement of hair. When she saw Sharaina attending to Zentz shoulder, she smirked with her hands in on her waist.

"So, the underaged girl was brought here to play nurse? No wonder she has been left out of the exercise. She can't handle the pressure of being a warrior. What a joke!" She said loud enough for everyone to hear and most of them laughed.

Sharaina silently listened to everyone laughing at her. Zentz said something to her that she didn't hear. She assumed that he was telling her to ignore them so she just nodded her head at him.

"Sharaina, get into the field!" Captain Shrave ordered her.

This was much to the delight of the students.

"Why should she be spared from all this just because she is the youngest?" Sharaina heard someone say as she got up.

Sharaina made her way into the field. Before she knew it, two metallic balls came for her from opposite directions at supersonic speed. Sharaina jumped up and the two balls hit into each other with a deafening bang. She landed on one and she ducked abruptly in order to dodge the other one that was fired at her. Sharaina looked for the flag and when she saw it, she ran for it.

More balls came her way and she back flipped and dodged them all. The students were watching her in shock while Lalina watched her with disgust. Captain Shrave and Yolin watched with no emotion whereas Naraygeous and Zentz were cheering Sharaina on. Sharaina was able to retrieve the flag and she put it into her back pocket.

She watched one ball come her way and she positioned herself. The ball hit and she used all her energy to stop it. Her feet sank into the ground with the impact and it dragged her feet back. Sharaina gritted her teeth as she held her breath. She then lifted the ball up and threw it at one metallic machine. The warriors that were loading it scampered and it exploded upon contact. Lalina's jaw dropped and everyone began to murmur. Sharaina caught the other ball and rolled it over four other machines.

In order to stop her from destroying any more of the machines, the soldiers stopped loading them and Sharaina made her way to the end of the field where she pinned the flag. Everyone started cheering for Sharaina and this irked Lalina.

"Lalina!" Captain Shrave called out to her.

"Yes sir!" She answered.

"Do you think that I am an idiot?" he asked her.

"No sir why would you say that?" she refused.

"I say this because you questioned my decision to leave Sharaina out of the exercise. Now let me ask you again, do you think that I am a fucking idiot?" he asked her again.

"Not at all, sir." she answered.

Captain Shrave turned to everyone. "I decided to leave her out of this exercise because this is a power activating exercise. She has already activated her powers so there was no need. While the rest of you avoided as many balls as you could and others feared getting hit by the balls, she faced the balls head on and took down the source of the balls. If anything, she is the only one who has impressed me today."

"But sir, how were we to think of destroying the machines, aren't they property of the academy?" Lalina asked Captain Shrave.

"I don't like how you are questioning my judgment, girl. I have trained over a million killing machines. I know what I am doing. Don't think that you can say whatever you want just because you are of the upper class. I don't care who any of you are, as long as you are under my care, you are insects! So shove that rich girl attitude right up your ass!" he yelled at Lalina and she frown humiliated.

"What happens to these machines during training does not matter. They can easily be replaced. What matters is producing skilled warriors fit for combat." He said to all of them. "For your insolence Lalina, you will have to clean your dormitory alone for the next two weeks."

****

Queen Lavila sat smoking and naked on a bed with a grin on her face. She was sweating and her hair was shaggy. She watched a young guard get dressed. When the guard was done dressing up, he bowed and left Queen Lavila laughing.

A maid knocked on her door and Lavila allowed her in.

"Lady Reena Sevilon is here to see you my queen. She is at the white terrace." she humbly said.

"Tell her that I'll be with her soon." Lavila instructed and the maid left.

Lavila went into the bathroom to take a bath. When she was done, she poured a green herbal mixture of vini leaves and eggs.

****

"It took you long enough to get here." Reena smiled at her.

"I was a little busy." Lavila said as she sat down.

Reena smelt the herbal mixture and she gasped. "Lavila, please tell me that isn't what I think it is." she said with her eyes wide open.

At that point King Raglan saw the two women talking at the terrace. He hadn't seen Reena in quite a while so he figured that he would greet her and ask how things were going at her house. When he heard Reena question Lavila about the herbal mixture, he stopped and hid to listen. He knew that he hadn't touched Lavila since the previous night so he didn't understand why she would be drinking it.

"Aren't we supposed to take this soon after sex in order to avoid getting pregnant?" Lavila grinned deviously.

"I saw King Raglan on my way up here. Therefore I know that you haven't met with him so why are you taking this?" Reena asked her and Lavila just laughed. "Lavila when will you stop doing this? You can't seriously expect to keep cheating on your husband and not get caught." Reena scolded to King Raglan's astonishment.

Lavila laughed softly. "What can you expect me to do when my husband can't fulfill my desires huh? Oh you should try it too sometimes. I know Sevilon starves you when he is out. I can hook you up with a cute boy. I won't let you have the one I'm using now, he is amazing."

"Oh shut up Lavila. Stop saying such nonsense for goodness sake." Reena was disgusted. "Stop all of this before it is too late." she harshly whispered.

"Know your place Reena. You might be my best friend but don't forget that I am the queen of this Kingdom. Stop telling me what to do." Queen Lavila said coldly.

King Raglan could not bear to listen to her words anymore and he quietly walked away. The more he thought about what Lavila said, the angrier he became. He remembered how she demanded a separate room where she could meditate on her powers privately. He felt foolish for agreeing to her demands. He felt so stupid for not having seen it.

He thought back to the previous night when he met with her and she was unusually wet. He got furious when the thought of what caused it crossed his mind. He felt disgusted by Lavila.

"Send in my shadow spies. I have a job for them." he ordered his castle general.

"Of course, your majesty." he complied with a bow.

Oooooh what will become of Queen Lavila now?