The Shadowseeker - Victor Kloss Page 0,41

over, hands on knees, panting heavily. “I can't believe we lost to a broomstick.”

“Ahah! Your first mistake,” Zadaya said, raising a slender finger. “I told you: never underestimate your enemy – even a broomstick.”

“Good advice,” Ben said, standing up straight. “So was that a test to show us how useless we are?”

“A test, yes, but not to show you anything. It was to show me what natural talent you have.”

“Absolutely none, as I'm sure you can see,” Charlie said.

“Not so!” Zadaya said. “You both have heart – that is good. Come with me.”

They followed Zadaya back into the lecture hall and to the wall on the far end. On it was a large poster that went up to the ceiling, and on that poster was a chart of monsters. There were pictures of each enemy from the weakest at the bottom to the strongest at the top. Next to each enemy there were small labels, each scrawled with initials.

“Write yours here,” Zadaya said, handing them each a label.

Ben scrawled “B.G.” on his and then, with a rueful smile, stuck it at the very bottom, next to the broomstick. Thankfully there were a couple of other names there.

“Good!” Zadaya said, clapping his hands. “Now, let us learn how to fight properly.”

Ben had a natural distaste for lectures, but he had never had one with Zadaya before. Rather than the painful drone of the teachers he was used to, Zadaya was all exuberance, often dancing around the floor demonstrating a skill or principle. Several times he had them come up and duplicate an action he was demonstrating. They studied the key basics, from stance to poise and balance. By the time they had finished, Ben felt ready to give the broomstick another go.

“That wasn't too bad, was it?” Ben asked, as they left the combat room a couple of hours later.

“No, I quite enjoyed it actually, other than the humiliating defeat to the broomstick,” Charlie said.

“Yeah, that was a bit— what was that?”

Ben threw out a hand and stopped both of them in their tracks.

“What?” Charlie asked.

Ben stared at the end of the corridor for a full twenty seconds before relaxing.

“Nothing – it was nothing.”

Charlie didn't believe him for a minute. “Was it another sighting?”

“Possibly.”

Ben's senses were on hyper alert since the incident in the diplomacy room and he was beginning to believe someone might be following him. At first it was nothing more than a hunch, or a faint movement from the corner of his eye – something he would have discarded before the diplomacy room incident. But as the week continued, they became more noticeable: a shadow in a window; a buffering of a curtain; a soft footstep when nobody was about. Both Ben and even Charlie had been buzzing from their combat training, but Ben's sighting put them back on alert for the rest of the day, until they had left the Institute and were on the Dragonway heading home.

The following afternoon Ben, Charlie and Natalie all had practicals in the Department of Wardens and set off up the stairs together.

“The one good thing about this staircase,” Charlie said, breathing a little heavily as they climbed, “is that it's too busy for our spy.”

“I know we said not to tell anyone, but I'm wondering if we made the wrong choice.”

“Absolutely not,” Ben said firmly. “The Institute are on my arse enough as it is. I don't want them freaking out about someone spying on me, especially as he's not made any move to do anything.”

They made it through the Warden doors and circled round the hallway until they reached a room with the words “Rogue Goblin Control”.

“This is our stop,” Ben said, his worries fading as his attention turned to the upcoming practical. “We get to track a rogue goblin somewhere in Taecia. Should be fun.”

“I'll see you guys at three,” Natalie said, giving them a smile and a wave.

Ben made to return the wave when something brushed his shoulder. He lashed out instinctively but caught only air. Ben whipped his head round to follow the intruder's path, down the luxuriously appointed hallway. Just before the corner was a door. Ben saw it open a fraction, and then shut soundlessly.

“There!” Ben said, pointing. “Did you see that?”

Both Charlie and Natalie nodded.

“What should we do?” Natalie asked.

“We go after it,” Ben said, rubbing his hands together.

Charlie gave him an incredulous look. “Are you serious? That thing could be a killing machine.”

Natalie looked torn between the two. “It would be good