Flight School by Julie Steimle (rocket ebook reader .TXT) 📕

With a shrug, Zormna replied, “I just grabbed him and knocked him off his feet. Pinning him was easy. I saw Alea Arden do it to an anzer in the fighting hall last week when I waited for him to help me with my homework.”

Salvar smirked. Zormna spent a lot of time following Alea Arden in her free time. And Arden was the only one who smiled just as freely at her while treating her like a person. But the seventeen-year-old Alea was like that with everyone. Personable.

“You learned that from watching Alea Arden?” Salvar's smile crooked up.

She nodded briskly.

“He teaches me lots of things. He is the best Alea of the Surface Patrol, you know,” she said proudly.

Sliding off his bed, crossing over to her, Salvar nudged her with his elbow. “You’re just saying that because you have a crush on him. Alea Penzang is the best Alea in the patrol. He’s the Zeta district commander.”

“Zeta scrapes.” Zormna shook her head with disdain, already set in her mind. “Zeta may be the fastest district, but Alea Arden will be Kevin someday, that makes him the best. You know the Kevin just made him Alpha District leader.”

Salvar knew it was pointless to argue with Zormna. She had a point especially since she knew the ins and outs of the Patrol better than most cadets, especially when it came to the quickly-rising Alea Arden. Zormna really followed the guy like a devotee.

“Whatever,” Salvar replied, tossing up his hands.

“So, you’re not mad at me? You forgive me?” Zormna asked, leaning in.

Salvar smiled.

He looked back at her and said with a sly grin, “Only if you teach me how to beat up Korven.”

She grinned and gave him a sharp nod.

Learning how to beat up the likes of Korven Bently had to be done in secret. Salvar called it project Beast Bomb. Zormna told him he was being silly.

They went to the martial arts hall during their free hour after lunch, hoping to find a free spot on the mat somewhere where they would not be in anyone's way. And they found one in the far left corner near the short balance beam and heavy kettle weights.

"It's all about balance," Zormna said with a shrug. "That's what Alea Arden says anyway. He says everyone has a point of balance and the trick is to knock them off their balance and keep them off."

A nearby master in combat paused in his exercises, listening in. One other surreptitiously watched while doing one handed push-ups.

Salvar got into fight position. "Ok. So? That's what the teacher says."

Zormna nodded. "Alright. But Alea Arden says you have to look at your opponent and find his point of balance while maintaining a way to keep yours while you knock him off his. Korven, yesterday, was not in a good fighting stance. He was just holding you and shoving you. You could have done a twist break from his hold and shoved him back."

He knew that movement. He just didn't like using it. It felt… mean.

"Practice on me," she said.

Salvar shook his head, stepping back. "You're shorter than me. I would not be fair."

"Then try on me," that one master practicing said, stepping forward, looking to them.

Staring up at him, Salvar blenched.

Zormna shrank back.

"You are here to practice, and you don't want to use her, then use me. I'll help," the man offered smiling.

They both knew he wasn't just any solider. He was one of the elite Alpha hand-to-hand combat soldiers—one of the Kevin's own bodyguard squad. They were deadly.

"I won't hurt you," he said, then smiled. "I like your initiative. If you have come to practice, then I'll help you."

"Uh…" Salvar glanced to Zormna.

The soldier reached out a hand to her. "Would you like to show him?"

Zormna nodded and stepped forward shyly.

They got into fighting stance. Zormna came up to his waist, if only a little taller. It was a little scary seeing how small she was in comparison to this man.

"So, it is all about balance," the man said. "So what are we showing him?"

Sheepishly, Zormna said, "What I did to Cadet Korven today."

The soldier blinked at her. "You got in a fight today?" His eyes trailed to Salvar also, clearly showing he knew Salvar was the Kevin's son.

Zormna nodded briskly. "There was a bully."

Salvar groaned.

"I see." The soldier nodded. "Ok. Show me what he did."

Zormna beckoned him down and grabbed his shirt front, demonstrating a simple shake and the pretended to be bopping him around. "Only he's not as tall as you."

The soldier laughed. "Got it. So, what did you do to him?"

Salvar averted his eyes.

Zormna pulled her hands from the soldier's uniform and made his hands mimic Korven's. Then she did exactly what she had done to Korven, swiping her leg under the soldier.

He tripped, and stumbled. He didn't fall like Korven did, but caught himself and rolled away. Salvar stared after him, realizing that Zormna had just knocked an expert off his feet, if only for a second. When the soldier got to his feet he was laughing.

"Good!" The soldier clapped. "So you got him off his feet. And then what?"

Making a face, Zormna sighed. "Well… He didn't roll like you did. But I got his arms and…." She made a grabbing and holding gesture as if she were imagining pinning Korven to the ground right there.

The soldier nodded to her. "Bravo. That's a third level skill. Who is your fight trainer?"

Shrugging again, Zormna said, "Alea Friinz."

"He teaches all the beginning cadets," Salvar explained, his face coloring.

"I see…" The soldier smirked in thought. "But you would not learn that from basic fight training. Who taught you the swipe and lock maneuver?"

Zormna shrugged once more.

Moaning, Salvar said, "She said she learned it from watching Alea Arden practice."

A knowing look rested in the soldier's eyes. He nodded to himself. "Alea Arden…. He is an exceptionally good fighter. He could have joined us in the guard, but I do believe that he truly does want to become Kevin… and that requires a more rounded practice. Hm."

"She learned that from just watching Arden?" another one of the soldiers interjected, joining them.

Salvar nodded wearily.

"What is your name, Cadet?" that soldier asked Zormna.

Zormna squared her shoulders and said, "Cadet Zormna Clendar, sir."

The soldier chuckled, nodding. "Another Zormna Clendar, huh?"

"There's hundreds of them…." Another soldier called over.

But they looked to Salvar, their eyes taking in him familiarly.

"You're the Kevin's son, right?"

Salvar sighed, nodding.

"Do you really want to learn how to fight?" that soldier asked him.

"I want to be Zeta District leader someday," Salvar replied.

They laughed, nodding.

"Ambitious," one said.

"You have to be more than just a fighter to go into Zeta," one of them said. "You have to be an exemplary pilot."

Salvar glanced at Zormna who was the best in their class. She was more likely to go Zeta, if only she could learn to control her temper and get on with people. "Yes, sir."

"Can we learn here?" Zormna asked. "Is it ok if we practice here?"

They smiled at her. One soldier patted her on the head. "It is more than ok."

"If you two seriously want to learn combat, we'll show you things that will bring you at the head of your class," the first one said.

Salvar's eyes widened on them. His heart pounded in hope. "Really?"

"But first," that one said. "Let's teach you how to deal with this kid Korven."

Korven avoided Zormna who had humiliated him and he was sure would not hesitate to humiliate him again—but he hunted down Salvar for the moment when the Kevin's son would be vulnerable. Girls were not allowed in the boys' showers. And there were no teachers there to watch him. And when it was all over, everyone would chime in and say Salvar the Kevin's son had slipped on a bar of soap.  

At least, that was what he had planned.

Cadet Salvar had entered the showers to prepare for bed that evening expecting what Zormna had predicted. And he was ready for Korven. Korven had tried to corner him. What he succeeded at what getting an achy bruise on his back for the second time, a lump on the back of his head and another wrenched arm.

And Salvar hissed into his ear, "I'm training with the guard squad now, so you had better watch it."

"Cadet Salvar!" Anzer Gurn, who was wrapped in a towel around his waist with a damp head of blonde hair, glowered on him. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Self-defense, sir," Salvar replied, rising—and stepping out of Korven's reach in case he wanted to grab his ankle and fight him again.

"Really?" Anzer Gurn glared down on him. His eyes were filled with jealous determination to doubt that.

"Really."

But it wasn't Salvar who had said it. It was Aver Tellovii, who despite not liking Salvar much was mostly fair. He just was an incredibly vain solider with red hair a lot like Salvar's, who enjoyed his influence around Alpha district while claiming to love justice. He mostly liked catching people with their pants down, so to speak. Zormna secretly called him a control freak—a phrase way too adult for someone their age. But he always stuck by the truth. The guy despised lies. He came out from the changing hall, hair glistening with gel, perfectly styled.

Anzer Gurn raised his chin. "Oh. And you saw it?"

"We all saw it," Aver Tellovii said, passing through with hardly a look at the other cadets and teaching assistants. "And I would like to remind you that the Kevin will not be pleased if you continue to allow this sort of ganging up on his son."

The Anzer bristled, meeting the Aver's eyes as he passed by to the door. It was clear Aver Tellovii seemed prepared to inform the Kevin—which on the whole would be a change in policy.

"Are you getting soft on him?" Anzer Gurn said.

Chuckling, Aver Tellovii replied with a disdainful glance at Salvar. "Nope. But Alea Arden—who is now head of Alpha—is."

Salvar drew in a breath, surprised. He watched Aver Tellovii go. Alea Arden was always nice to him, but… soft on him?

Anzer Gurn cringed, however, glancing once at Salvar. He shook his head and walked away.

Salvar continued on his way to the showers.

He washed without interference.

No one touched him. No one bullied him.

Salvar went to his shared quarters with this heavily on his mind.