Gio awoke strapped down to the most comfortable bed he had ever imagined.
Gio looked around and saw a softly lit room, covered in pristine white fur. The walls, the floors, and even the ceiling were incredibly fluffy, leaving Gio with the impression that he must be dreaming. Even more impossibly, The room was the perfect temperature despite being covered in fur. Little motes of white and pink magic flickered by.
I’m inside a cloud.
The bed was so comfortable, and he felt so good, that he was instantaneously alarmed by whatever sedative magic he was under.
The dragon!
Struggling against his soft restraints, he looked down to see several crystals stuck to his skin, with gossamer strands of magic connecting him to crystalline devices filled with all sorts of colors of liquid mana. A soft chiming sound emanated from above him, as some sort of crystal alarm went out.
“Ah! My guest of honor awakens!” said an older elven woman, striding into the room.
The doctor had slicked-back gray hair, a blindingly white medical robe filled with badges that Gio didn’t recognize, and a pink heart-shaped pin on her lapel that glittered with a large degree of life magic.
Touching Gio’s forehead with her soft hand, she clicked her tongue and made a huffing noise.
“Welcome back to the land of the living. Firstly, do you remember who you are?” asked the woman in a gentle voice.
“My name is Giorgio deGloria, may I ask where I am?” Gio replied, in a measured voice.
“Wonderful, Mr. deGloria. You are nowhere else but the intensive care unit at the Crystal Ring Academy’s life department. I am Professor March, but please, call me Lorelei.”
Feeling his trepidation deflate instantly, he switched to a much softer tone. “Profe- uh- Miss Lorelei, why am I restrained? Am I in trouble?” Gio asked.
The aged woman giggled slightly before replying. “In trouble? Oh good heavens no, you little saint. I’ll leave the rest of that answer to Eudoria when she comes by. You are restrained because you arrived at my doorstep in fragments.”
She sat down at the end of the bed, placing her palm on Gio’s hand. She looked deeply into Gio’s eyes, speaking softly, yet seriously.
“It took me and my best staff three days of non-stop work to piece you back together again and un-vitrify you. You have made a very, very good recovery from your injuries… but I'm afraid that this is not without complication. Aside from being unconscious for two weeks, I am afraid that you likely won’t be able to use magic for the next month, maybe more.” The woman said.
“A month?! And two weeks?!” Gio said, nearly shouting.
“Hush, dear boy. I understand that this will be troubling… and it may even feel like a punishment. I need you to understand that this is not a punishment, Gio. We’re going to place some items on your person to prevent mana from escaping your channels. I need you to promise me that you won’t try to remove them… because if you interrupt your healing process, it might permanently cripple your ability to cast magic.” the woman whispered.
Gio couldn’t find it within himself to summon any anger or outrage in front of this person. He sank back into the massive pillow beneath him, allowing it to envelop him.
“I… okay.” he whispered back.
“Marvelous. Mister deGloria, I shall let you rest for now… I am going to notify some people that you are awake, If you don’t mind. There’s quite a few people who want to see you.” she said, motioning to the bedside table, covered in mementos and get-well-soon cards.
_____
Chandrika
The image of Gio shattering into pieces replayed endlessly in her head. Over, and over, and over, and over, Chandrika saw the smile on his face, and the way his eyes met hers through the reflection of the wall of mirrors as he saved her life, before his head fell from his body and he burst into a pile of glittering dust.
“...Rika… Rika!” snapped Celeste, waving a hand in front of her face. “Hey, it’s okay, you’re okay.” cooed the tall elven girl.
Chandrika swiped her sleeves across her eyes, wiping away the beginnings of a tear.
“Oh, sorry… I uh..”
A soft hug from the side took away the beginnings of whatever she was about to say.
“It’s okay Rika. We’re here.” whispered Sapphire. The two second-year girls had become Chandrika’s rock, spending a great deal of their free time with her, especially since Jean had been summoned back to his family’s compound a few days ago. Jean and Chandrika had still not spoken much about the rift that had driven them apart prior to the start of the semester, but they had been spending more time together since the events of the vault.
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Besides the mandatory interviews with the inquisitors and the faculty, Headmaster Vespertine had been kind enough to issue a statement to the student body limiting the amount students could talk about the event, at least until Gio woke up- at Chandrika and Jean’s behest.
It had been a tense two weeks. The first three days were all but a blur for the two students, who were excused from classes to stay nearby the boy who had saved them. Professor A did come and wait with them, but he had duties to attend to regarding the ongoing investigations about the hidden vault, and the implications that it would have going forward.
“Students such as yourself shouldn’t have had to deal with this mess. This fiasco is the sole responsibility of certain disgraced houses of the gold ring.” Professor A had let slip, when asked about what would happen next.
Chandrika looked up at the art deco paneled ceilings of the private room in the Emperor’s New Cafe. Marie’s new chic caffeine speakeasy served incredible crepes, and was only accessible by knocking on a stained glass window down an unassuming alley in Shimmerstone Street. Chandrika had received the instructions to get into the exclusive club inside a fortune cookie that came with the udon she had cried into at 2AM the other night.
Marie is too kind. If I didn't know better, I’d say that she set this cafe up just for me. Realistically, she probably has hundreds of restaurants squirreled away in the academy.
A soft glow on her wrist alerted her to a message from Doctor Lorelei, who was kind enough to keep her updated on the status of her first friend at the academy. The temporary communication charm blinked, the small crystal displaying two words. “He’s awake.”
_____
Jean
Footsteps echoed through the marbled halls of the House of Castallane. Jean had been summoned back to his family’s estate two days ago and besides some concerned checkups from his mentors and minders, had been unable to attain an audience with the ever-busy head captain of the royal guard corps.
“Honey, your father is concerned about you, which is why we called you back!” his mother chimed after him, clearly distressed.
Isadora Castallane was an incredible force among the socialite circles that governed a large portion of the way that the house ran business, but when faced with her ornery eldest son, she found herself ill at ease.
“Mom, I love you, and you know that. I’m just a touch frustrated that I was summoned away from the academy just to wait for an audience with my own father. I apologize if this comes across as ungrateful, but he’s either going to see me today, or I am going back to school. I’m not budging on this.” Jean huffed, stomping down the hall towards his father’s office.
“-acceptable… No! I need a memorandum posted now detailing the appearance of the Ataraxian fugitives. Yes, she looks just like the princ- NO! You will not put that detail in print! Do you want a large-scale national incident? Look, there’s certain th- Excuse me for a moment.”
Javier Castallane turned to face his son, with a pained expression on his face, dismissing the image of a meeting room upon a scrying plane. “Jean… I’m sorry, it’s just now-”
“Father. I apologize for my interruption, and I understand that you are a very busy man, but If now is not a good time, then I regret to inform you that my presence is required back at the Crystal Ring Academy, on account of the man who saved my life waking up from his coma.” Jean uttered, his voice barely managing to contain a sea of venom from escaping.
The imposing man studied his son for a moment, and turned back to his scrying plane. The image flicked back on. The muscle bound man brushed back his jet black mane and facial hair, speaking into the image.
“I apologize, but something urgent has come up at home. This meeting is adjourned for now.”
Getting up from his chair, the hulking captain of the royal guard, and national defense coordinator of the Ringed City, walked over to his eldest son.
“Walk with me, my boy.”
_____
Walking through the gardens, and having relayed the tale from his own point of view, Jean waited for whatever judgment his father had in store for him.
Javier Castallane looked out through his wife’s garden, and over the pond where his favorite egrets danced upon the surface of the water.
“Well, I am relieved that you are unharmed. I… regret that summoning you home did not have the relaxing effect on you that I had hoped it would. I must have forgotten the restlessness that I felt at your age, always looking to improve.”
“If I had one question, this Copper-Ring boy… you have spoken well enough about his character, but you trust him enough to hand him Castallane magics?” the man said, raising an eyebrow.
Jean’s face twisted with irritation, threatening to break his composure.
“That Copper-Ring boy is currently the top of our class in several regards. In fact, the only area I currently have the lead on him is in dueling. He is a prodigy, and I have no doubts about his intentions with a middling, proprietary, higher-uncommon level cleansing spell. The way that the nobility looks down upon commoners as if they are some kind of lesser species is idiotic! Honestly, father- you spent years hammering the ‘Castallane family values’ into me, and then when the time comes for me to embody-”
Holding up his hands in a show of surrender, Javier chuckled at his impassioned son.
“I apologize for my wording, I merely meant to say that I met some of my brothers-at-arms during my time at the academy. You may recall that your godfather Vladimir isn’t native to the Gilded city… perhaps you should invite Giorgio to dinner here. Your mother is a fabulous entertainer, after all.” the bearded man said, through a jovial smile.
“I digress… I shall summon a carriage for you. For what it is worth, Jean-Claude, I am incredibly proud of the man you've become. You are a credit to our name.”
Hugging his son farewell, Javier returned to a busy day of paperwork.