Mad men! There's no way I'll be able to attain any of the given criteria.
"What are you thinking?" Furuno asks.
"That you look like a Camel's arse".
We had left the man behind at the strip club. The environment was too nauseous for my liking.
Furuno smiles tightly.
"I can only tolerate so much, pal".
I stop in the middle of the dark street.
"I'm not your pal".
I can't exactly see his face but I can feel his gaze.
He says nothing.
"You really have no choice. For the duration of all this mayhem, we are going to be stuck together. Deal with it".
I have finally ruffled his feathers. I always wondered what was beneath his lively and friendly facade. He is always so calm and ready to poke humour into any situation, which is good, but very annoying.
"Do we really have to start taking classes with that pimp?" He asks after a while.
I find myself deciding whether I should simply ignore his question or answer in the most annoying way. I choose the latter.
"I'm paying for it. It's not really a matter of choice anymore".
"What if he's a fraud, a fake?"
"He should know that two assasins are on his tail".
"He doesn't know that".
"He would, by the time I'm done with him".
I start walking again. Furuno easily falls into step beside me. The street lights are visible now. It seems that the streets leading to the strip club joint are badly maintained.
"I never knew you as the kind to torture. Your assasinations are always quick and meticulous".
"I can make an exception for you". I respond in a low voice.
"What dojo did you learn from?"
"If at all I were into the business of talking about myself, you're the last person I'd tell".
"Fine. I respect boundaries. So, let's assume that we might be able to summon Mana from our core, do you believe that we can cast spells?"
"If you ask me, I'd say no. But with all I have seen in the past week. I am open to any and every possibility".
The man had said that there is an amount of Mana - a source of power - in every human being. If they are successful, they might discover hidden talents.
The thought of sorcery makes me feel closer to Arya in a strange way. It does not guarantee anything, but it is a bold step.
"So are we leaving the monsters to do their worst while we join an academy?" He asks, mirroring my fears.
"I'm afraid we can't do much for anyone with our little information".
---
We settle down on foldable metal chairs in front of a medium sized marker board. I feel like I'm supposed to be a high school student.
I had left Clara in the suite, but I made sure to hide my weapons where she would not find them.
He scribbles something illegible on the board. Furuno is writing something down on his sketchbook. I smirk. The ever-serious student.
When I catch a glimpse of what he is writing, I discover that he has been sketching all along. He had been sketching a pretty good comic version of our make-shift classroom.
"I've never taught before, so please condone all and any discrepancies". Pablo says.
Furuno nods absent-mindedly.
"I wrote my name on the board. Pablo Fernandez. You can copy-"
"Look here, Mr. Fernandez, we are not high school brats. Get to the point already".
"Chill, Toshiro-kun. Let's not work him up before our first lesson. If it turns out to be shit, you can do whatever you like then".
Fernandez turns back to the board and writes 'Basics of Sorcery'.
"Sorcery is an ability-"
"We know what sorcery is! What are we? Five year olds?" Furuno almost yells.
I turn to him and give him a 'what happened to chilling and not working him up' glance.
If Fernandez were to be in a cartoon, steam would be oozing out of his head.
His face is red with both embarrassment and anger.
"I'm not being paid enough to take insults from men that are ten years or more younger than me. If you know so much, why don't you write the exam yourselves!"
None of us are cowed by his show of anger. He slowly cools down as we continue to watch him like one would watch a ranting house wife.
"If it is to be like this", he continues in a calm voice, "I ask that you double my payment".
Furuno laughs.
"The only thing you've taught us is your name. You haven't taught anything, yet you're demanding for a top up? In. Your. Dreams".
I look at Furuno. He is even the one working the man to his spilling point.
"Deal. I'll double your pay. Just get on with the damn lesson".
Both men stare at me with open mouths. Fernandez is giving me the 'oh, I didn't actually expect it' glance while Furuno is giving me the 'what the hell is wrong with you' glance.
Fernandez plasters a smile on his ruddy face and smooths his rumpled jacket. He is wearing the same clothes he wore the previous night - a faded brown leather jacket with an unbuttoned T-shirt and faded jeans. His sneakers look like they haven't seen a brush since they came into his possession.
I look down at my own polished shoes. Arya always had a special way of making my shoes shine until you could see your reflection. God, I miss her.
I shake my head and return my attention to the board.
"Sorcery is the ability to conjure energy from the core of your body. This energy is supplied by what we call Mana. Not everyone has the same quantity of Mana and not everyone can use it the same way.
Some people can conjure the heat in the bodies and form fire. Some can summon the energy to control the elements like water, earth, wind, plants, metals, ice, fire and many others. Some possess manipulative powers such as shape shifting, mind twisting, mind reading, camouflage, copy cat, illusions, teleportation, telepathy and many others. You would discover your gifts in the process of this session, if you have any-"
Furuno moves his desk just then, and it makes a loud scraping noise.
Fernandez looks utterly irritated. If we were back in a high school classroom, Furuno would be dubbed as the class troublemaker.
Funny enough, I never attended high school. I learnt everything from the tutors we had at the dojo. I went to the university, though.
"What do you mean by 'if we have any'?" I ask.
"Like I said before, sorcery is only learned by purebloods. Purebloods are descendants of sorcerers. It doesn't mean that no other persons can cast spells, it just lessens the probability that normal people can cast spells. But, you never know, you might just be lucky".
"We'll take our chances. If you don't succeed in turning us into sorcerers by any means, we are going to demand a refund".
The man gulps and writes something else on the board.
He goes to his leather bag and extracts a big heavy book with a leather casing. The spine of the book is decorated with coloured stones that sparkle in the sunlight coming from the open window. The rays of dust swirling in the dispersion spectrum gives it an ethereal look, like something celestial.
He opens the book and dust comes out and saturates the air.
I and Furuno exchange glances.
"Forgive me, it's a very old book". He explains when he sees our somewhat comical expressions.
"Aha! This is what I was looking for!" He exclaims.
We exchange glances again.
"I'm going to make a little concuction for both of you to drink-"
"You'll have to drink it first, in case it's toxic". Furuno says.
I know he actually meant to say 'poison'.
"Is it really necessary?" He asks glumly.
We both nod at him.
He pulls out two viles and three shot glasses. He empties the contents of the viles into the three tiny glasses and shakes them.
He hands two to us and holds one for himself.
"What's this?"
"It's a sort of contraband that cheaters like you take to awaken your abilities quickly. But mind you, there's is a good possibility that after drinking it, nothing would happen".
I look down at the drink in my hand.
"You first". I say to him.
"Cheers!" He says and drinks every thing down.
I watch his throat for signs of swallowing. His adam's apple bobs up and down and his throat constricts slowly. I'm so used to looking at people necks, because it is the best place to sink your dagger. It brings instant death and relief at the same time.
Furuno clinks his glass with mine and downs everything in one single gulp.
His face tightens in disgust.
"What is it?" I ask, alarmed.
"The damn thing tastes like shit!"
I fight the strange urge to smile, or worse, laugh. Furuno's face looks so funny.
I tip my head back and drink it all down. God, its awful.
My vision starts blurring after a while. I look at Furuno. He keeps multipying until I can see so many Furunos beside me. I turn to look at Fernandez.
What the hell is happening to me? I try to stand up and I end up tossing the chair backward. It clatters to the ground with a loud noise.
Fernandez gestures for me to stay put, but my senses keep screaming for me to run.
The next thing I know, I am sinking into oblivion.