At least the pain shooting through her legs was a distraction from the heaviness in her chest. Her feet were on Langlish soil now, but the homesickness had set in before they’d even left San Irie. Every time she blinked, she saw her sister’s tear-streaked face as they said a final goodbye on the Pearl Bay Airfield. If she concentrated, she could almost feel her parents holding her close, wrapping her in the twin scents of cooking oil and cocoa butter. And when the breeze whipped across her face, her eyes burned with phantom tears like the real ones she’d cried into Reeve’s shoulder when he’d given her one last hug.
“We’ll bring you home. Until then, don’t let them diminish you,” he’d told her. “They’re good at that, and you’re better than any of them.”
Elara held the words close to her now as she watched Signey unstrap their bags from the base of Zephyra’s saddle. She couldn’t think of the past when she had to stay present, but she could at least draw strength from her loved ones until she had the chance to call them.
She hoisted one of her bags over her shoulder. “Tell me more about Hearthstone.”
Signey had grabbed Elara’s other bag, as well as her own, balancing both on her shoulders as if they weighed nothing. Her answering sigh was laced with annoyance. “Hearthstone Academy is here on Caledon, which is the largest island in the archipelago.All Riders need to be certified here before they can join the Dragon Legion.”
“Certified?”
“We get certified in the Five Fields: history, theology, politics, etiquette, and combat. And we need to pass them twice, once as a solo Rider and once with our co-Rider when we find them. Which means,” Signey said, rolling her eyes, “that even though I’ve technically passed them all, I’ve got to do itagainnow.”
It sounded to Elara as if Signey would have had to do that regardless, but she bit back her retort. Signey was actually giving her answers. Now was not the time to ruin it with a fight.
“How is that going to help me control—”
Signey groaned. “Saints, can we at least go inside before you plague me with primary-school questions? Everyone’s waiting.”
Elara tried not to look as if she’d rather swallow broken glass than follow Signey anywhere. Instead, she closed her eyes and counted backward from eighty, reminding herself that she could do this. Shehadto do this.
“Vincent! Let’s go!”
Signey was already halfway up a nearby hill; Elara hurried to catch up. On the other side of the grassy knoll was a lush valley, and in the center of that field of green was a black stone castle. Her lips parted in surprise. No, it wasn’t a castle. It was afortress.
Hearthstone Academy was surrounded by an obsidian wall that was at least twenty feet high, with four towers reaching toward the sky in evenly spread points. Flags with the Langlish sunburst topped each one, though the fabric was in four different colors—red, yellow, blue, and green—as opposed to the regular Langlish black that usually surrounded the symbol. As Signey led her inside,Elara saw that the first wall had just been the outermost defense. Within was a weather-washed gray stone keep, with thick walls lined with four more towers and a gatehouse entrance with a portcullis bearing dagger-sharp tips.
“Welcome to Hearthstone,” said Signey as they walked through the gatehouse. “Close your mouth.”
Elara did as she was told, but it was hard. She’d never been in a proper castle before. Even Pearl Bay Palace was just a three-story manor house, repurposed into the queen’s home after the Joyan enslavers had been ejected from San Irie. These stone walls likely had a history that was no less bloody but that stretched much further back than before San Irie had even existed. Bright red tapestries with silhouettes of dragons hung from the ceiling. Glass lamps with lit candles behind them brightened their path. A blue carpet rolled out across the stone floor toward a wide staircase. Everything she saw suggested new opulence covering evidence of ancient warfare.
“How long has this been a school?” she asked, eyeing a suit of armor that clutched a sword with the point stabbing the ground.
“I wouldn’t want to ruin your history class,” said Signey, “before you have a chance to fail it.”
Elara glared at her.
“Hearthstone has existed for at least a century,” Zephyra cut in, her voice as gentle as Signey’s had been cruel.“It was a fortress at first, obviously, but once the archipelago was secured, the ruling family turned it into a school for training Riders.”
“Why? What are you training for?”
Signey scoffed. “Does the Iryan military collectively take a vacation during peacetime?”
Elara ignored that to commit the details of Hearthstone to memory as she followed Signey up the stairs. She could hear voices echoing down from the upper floors, conversations and laughter. The first floor had been empty, Zephyra explained, because the dormitories were on the second floor and the classrooms were mostly on the third. Elara had trouble wrapping her mind around the fact that she would be sleeping here for the foreseeable future, and fear settled in her stomach.
“Are we sharing a room?” she asked.
Signey glanced at her through narrowed eyes before she seemed to decide this question was worth a proper answer. “We’ll be staying with our den the whole time you’ll be here.”
What’s a den?Elara buried the question, figuring out from Signey’s matter-of-fact tone that this would be another primary-school question. Her hands tightened around her bag, feeling the hard edge of the pocket that she’d wedged the queen’s drake figurine into. She drew in a steadying breath.
“All right,” she said, and this time her voice was even. “I’m ready.”
Signey paused outside of a glossy wooden door with206engraved on a golden plaque. “I doubt that. Just try not to embarrass me.”
“We’re here,” Signey called into the apartment-style space. “Jesper? Torrey? Where are you?”
A kitchenette was to the left, dishes piled high in the sink, and a table surrounded by four wooden chairs stood before it like a makeshift dining room. To the right was a recreational area, with a circular red rug beneath several couches and armchairs. Acrossfrom the door was a hallway that led to what Elara guessed was at least one bathroom and maybe separate bedrooms, because they weren’t the only people in 206.
