Maximus sat by the tree; the baby wyvern ran around him, its wings spread and shrieks low. “It’s not as bad as I thought it would be.” He shook his head as it climbed onto his shoulder. “I should still be careful.” He stood and walked back toward the academy. The birds flew away as it shrieked at them; the leaves crunched under his steps. He halted. Staring at it, he squinted his eyes. “Wait. Should I take it back with me?” He crossed his arms, scratched his chin. “I should talk with the headmaster first.”

  He followed the path, choosing a lengthy route back, halting only to hunt a fowl for the wyvern. Teeth popped out of its gums as it bore them into the fowl’s flesh and began tearing it apart, right on Maximus’ shoulder.

  Back at the academy, Ray sat on the wall, holding his breath. His ears perked up, and he turned and jumped down, running into the forest. He climbed a tree and stared into the distance, spotting Maximus and the baby wyvern. A smile crept up on his face as he jumped down to rush toward him. “That is definitely a wyvern.”

  Maximus stopped in his tracks. “Is that Ray?” His footsteps grew louder, the leaves bristling around him, and soon he landed before Maximus. They both stared at each other. The baby wyvern screeched at Ray climbing behind Maximus.

  Ray circled around him, trying to get a good look at the wyvern, but it also circled around Maximus, hiding from him. A frown appeared on Ray’s face, and he narrowed his eyes. “Are you serious? Can you hold it for me?”

  Maximus raised his palm. “Not now. I have to discuss it with the headmaster first.” Ray let out a deep sigh. “Alright.” He shifted, and they proceeded through the woods toward the academy.

  Meanwhile, at the academy, Michael and some nobles stormed off to their rooms, leaving Brant shaking his head. “How does she keep them in check?” He and the remaining apprentices kept meditating.

  Near the stage, the headmaster chatted with Brant’s apprentices, who were supposed to be trained by Maximus. They asked him questions, and he answered.

  “What does mastering touch do?” One girl among them raised her hand and asked. The headmaster glanced at her, a soft smile playing on his lips. “It hardens your skin like steel, allowing you to punch through walls, and block other weapons with your fists or body.” He paused for a moment and rested his hand behind him. “But knights use weapons and wear armor; they don’t find the need to master it. Even scholars avoid mastering touch as it is an arduous path.” The apprentices listened intently, sitting around.

  On the other side of the academy, Iuna attacked the blindfolded apprentices. Only Sera had her ears covered. Iuna had tasked her with figuring out what she was saying while she attacked them. Sera’s eyes moved through the apprentices, unable to keep up with Iuna’s speed. The apprentices ran around, jumping, crouching, trying to avoid her.

  Maximus and Ray entered through the gates. Iuna rushed towards them, leaving the apprentices alone. The baby wyvern screeched at her as well. Sera squinted her eyes, her ears still plugged. What is that? She thought while Elaira, Jon and the others kept dodging and running around, not knowing Iuna wasn’t anywhere near them.

  The wyvern’s screech caught all their attention, and they took their blindfolds off. They all spotted the wyvern on Maximus’ shoulder. The headmaster strode toward him, his eyes fixed on the wyvern. “It is a truly fascinating creature.” He touched his chin, a smile playing on his lips. “Hard to believe such small, fragile life grows to become a monster terrorizing the skies and land.”

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  Before Maximus could say anything, the headmaster turned around. “I’ll allow you to keep it here, as long as it doesn’t harm the apprentices. If it does, you’ll have to kill it,” he said, walking into the academy building.

  Sera and the others now surrounded Maximus, staring at the wyvern. It stopped screeching and crawled into his shirt. Iuna jumped in front. “You should name it.” Maximus scratched the back of his head and took a moment. “Black.”

  Iuna and the apprentices’ faces dropped. “No! Absolutely not.” She slapped his back. “If you want to call it black, let’s call it Noir.”

  The apprentices agreed and cheered, but it died down when Iuna and Maximus stared at them. Iuna continued their training, this time attacking with more speed and precision. Maximus took Iuna’s apprentices and told them to attack each other, blindfolded. Ray stood by him, staring at the movement inside his garments. Man, it’s so slippery. I just wanted to see it. He shook his head and shrugged, walking off and holding his breath.

  Over the next two months, the apprentices continued training. Aidan and Victor, having already trained in sight, had it easier after finishing hearing. Sera was the only lowborn able to keep up with the two of them. Elaira and Cassandra, after hearing, moved on to sight. Jon, contrary to all their expectations, mastered hearing. He could now hear things from quite far away and filter out voices that weren’t Mei Zhi’s.

  The others still need a lot more training to completely master both sight and hearing. In the last week, the instructors told them to continue training on their own and to ask them any queries. Ray now could hold his breath for four hours while training and resting both. He joined the group’s daily sparring session and lost only to Mei Zhi. The baby wyvern, Noir, had grown to be as big as a mule. It ran around playing with the apprentices, flying around. Maximus always kept it in check, not letting it fly further away from the academy grounds.

  Inside the academy, Maximus entered the headmaster’s cabin. “I wanted to talk about Lysa. She must have reached Vargard by now.” The headmaster standing by the window turned to him. “What concerns you?”

  “Will the eggs have survived the journey?” Maximus asked quietly. “The cold of the Icyk Ocean and Vargard will have slowed their life to a near-stop,” the Headmaster replied. “It gives Lysa time, but it is not a preservation. It is a slow, fragile suspension. She must find a buyer before the internal spark winks out.”

  He walked to his chair and took a seat. “Lysa knows this as well; she will not fail; she never has.” He crossed his arms. “Get the selected second years to prepare for their departure to Nyxia tomorrow. They cannot be late.” Maximus bowed and left the room.

  Far to the north, across the Icyk ocean, under cloudy skies, Lysa landed. She stretched her arms, the snowy wind pressing on her face. She turned to thank the man and left, continuing through. Her footsteps never sank into the deep snow as she walked, carrying the bag on her shoulder. “The continent of snow and blood. It’s… beautiful.” She stared into the distance covered in a dense snow-covered forest and a city on a frozen lake surrounded by large icicles filled with people riding on various beasts: snow bears, leopards, tigers.

  As she kept staring, a screech rippled through the sky above the clouds. They parted, and a giant bird, covered in dark red feathers and leather reins, hovered over her. A few other birds covered in leather reins followed, not as big as the first. It slowly descended, landing in front of her, letting out yet another screech. She stared at it unimpressed. “A skywyrm…”

  “Oh? Ya aren’t scared? Wonderful.” A gruff voice echoed through to her, and a large bulky man, decked out in fur-covered armor, jumped down. He towered over Lysa, twice as tall as her. “Welcome, brave outrider. Who’re ya I may ask?”

  The man who sailed her through the ocean jumped in. “Ragnnar! How’ve ya been, ya hear?” His face lit up as he hugged and picked up the sailor. “Iskar, long time no see, ya bastard!” The other birds descended, and people jumped down, greeting Iskar.

  Lysa stared at them, then looked around at the creatures. The skywyrm spread its wings, spanning a few feet, and flapped into the sky; the other birds followed. Ragnnar patting Iskar’s back, asked, “Ya said ya wouldn’t be able to get here cause a seawyrm? What happened? How’re ya here?”

  Iskar pointed at Lysa. “This lovely lady skewered the seawyrm in two, ya hear?” Ragnnar blinked, his eyes gauging her. “This little lady?”

  Lysa’s eyes narrowed, then she shook her head, letting out a deep sigh. “It’s going to take some time.”