Hall of Games [ REWRITE ] | The Varya Chronicles #1

Chapter Sixteen

Media: Ales Sanrovo

Music of the chapter: Discovery of Power, Audiomachine

The next class on Cadence's schedule made her regret running out of the infirmary so fast. Perhaps she was feeling good, extremely good, to be exact, but she wasn't prepared for sparring lessons, especially not with the Varya.

Varya. She remembered the disdainful looks the group of Varya recruits had cast her when she approached them and asked a harmless question.

Murka pig. Pig. Vile. Loathsome, Orisha-unwanted creatures.

Why were they the pigs and Varya the swans?

Cadence was distracted from her thoughts by the Swans entering the training hall. There were an estimated twenty of them, far fewer than bunch of Murka recruits. They held their heads high, the contrast of the colored bands on their sleeves and their white robes was blinding, and they walked with grace and class, making them seem more pompous than ever. Elijah, Cadence noticed, kept his distance from the rest of them, his chin titled in a prideful manner.

"Ow," Misha said, picking at her toenail. She was barefooted. All recruits were required to be barefooted when training physically. "There is a thorn in my eye."

The boy who led the Varya pack was the one with the piggy eyes and dark hair. Piggy boy pretended to cough violently, then looked up, eyes watering. "Someone please get the Healers and disinfect this room at once. Too many pigs in here."

Misha stood up and squared shoulders with piggy boy, but Cadence had eyes only for the boy at the back of the pack, the boy with soft, black curls that badly needed a trim.

"Cole."

In that instant, nothing mattered anymore to Cadence. Murka or Varya, Pig or Swan, she dived right into the pack of Varya and threw her arms around her brother.

"Cady."

He hugged her back, tighter than ever. "I'm sorry I didn't come to see you. They wouldn't let me leave, saying that the Murka section is off limits to Varya. Can you believe how badly they speak of you and your friends? They call you-"

"Pigs," Cadence said into her brother's neck. "I know. It doesn't matter."

"Oi, pig," piggy boy drawled. "Get your filthy hands off newbie."

"She's my sister," Cole said angrily. "And her name is Cadence."

Piggy boy opened his mouth to voice his rebuttal, but the Mistress of Arms entered the room at that very instant, silencing him with a flick of her finger.

Cadence stared at bespectacled Mistress with an expression of awe. She must be an Oracle who didn't follow the Healer's path. Normally, Oracles born with gifts of manipulating organs were trained to be Healers like Kashimi, but this Mistress must had chosen the fighter's path.