The Scrollrunners

Chapter 9 | Preparing for Battle

A few days after Talibah and Letes visited the temple, all the members of the secret classroom were finally back together again. It was a bright midmorning, and the sun shone into the classroom, casting its beams onto the walls now completely covered with drawings, poetry, maps, mathematical equations, essays, and sweet notes of encouragement. A few quills and loose scrolls littered the floor here and there, but the beautiful earth-colored tile was kept mostly clean—aside from the laughing bundle of children sitting upon it, staring admiringly up at their teachers.

Talibah and Letes were animatedly reenacting one of Talibah's nearly-failed escapes from the Library after stealing some scrolls. This particular heist was from about two years ago, during which Talibah broke the strap on one of her sandals and was running through the streets of Alexandria dragging it comically behind her while, unbeknownst to the young thief, her torn toga had torn open at the back and she appeared a vengeful, winged creature, as she arrived at Letes's parents' paint stall. It took some earnest pleading for Letes's parents to let her remain friends with the wild child after that.

Once the laughter died down after the best friends' comical display, the students got back to work.

Arben sat huddled next to Gaia and Hexa, the young sisters, who were chatting about the portraits they'd just done of each other, critiquing and complimenting (and Gaia complaining that her drawing of her little sister didn't look like her at all because the child could not keep still for longer than two seconds, at which Hexa merely stuck out her tongue).

Arben was writing something he'd been concentrating deeply on for about a week now. No one was quite sure what it was—because, of course, he didn't talk about it—but they were intrigued by what it would turn out to be. Talibah guessed it was research of some sort, about the arid climate, the wildlife of the desert, the city's history, or something like that. Letes thought it would be something literary such as poetry—she viewed Arben as a soulful, gentle boy.

Talen was working on math, something she was quickly getting good at. She, like little Hexa, was naturally active and often preferred to stand or pace while she awkwardly held papyri and a quill in her hand to solve equations. Everyone always waited for Talen to trip or run into things while she paced and worked (like Hexa often did) but she was a natural athlete and remarkably sure-footed.

Ketra and Lin, despite their opposite personalities, often worked together on various projects. Today, their heads were huddled together as they sat shoulder to shoulder while reading aloud some epics and analyzing the characters, themes, and symbols within them.

Nyx, the oldest of the motley secret crew, was tinkering with some random objects she had found strewn about the classroom, building a small contraption of some sort. She often did this when she got bored of the more traditional subjects such as writing or math. Her little inventions were often fun to see come to life, though they were never very useful beyond mindless entertainment.

As each student focused on their work, so did Talibah and Letes. It had been some time since things had been calm enough for them to pursue their own studies. Talibah loved to study the stars and track their movements across the sky. Letes, on the other hand, continued to research the Feather of Ma'at and the gods to see if she could find out anything else that could be useful.

Both girls continued to wear their amulets, though they decided it would be best to keep them hidden under their togas unless it seemed appropriate to draw them out; though the amulets were a symbol of solidarity, there were many who would do everything in their power to squelch the fight for justice. Alas, an opportunity for heroics had yet to present itself.

By the time dusk had begun its show of brilliant colors, the kids were getting restless, half-heartedly drawing, lazily writing, or slowly solving equations. The young teachers noticed this and gave each other a knowing nod before Talibah clapped her hands together and said, laughing, "Seems like we're all learned out for the day—I mean, Talen is literally drooling on the same equation she solved an hour ago."