Myrkr was in the library, alone, studying the back of her right hand. The Mark was there, though her flesh stopped feeling burnt as she had made her way to the library. Ysamaldrí said I would have trouble with a quest my brother and I shared. She also said she killed the previous Emerald of Ysamaldrí due to greed, and that he was a Cí'mehia. There was a magic sections with a practice area, and books on enchantments, spells from different Mythic races, and natural magic abilities. Myrkr made her way over to it. Eventually, when she looked, Myrkr found a book titled Ysamaldrí's Gemstones that she pulled out. It looked non-descript, just a leather-bound and covered book with white pages, obviously new. The lettering on the side was dark, nearly the color of the red-brown leather, and hard to read.

Skipping a few different Gemstones, she found the Emerald of Ysamaldrí. She read it in full detail, not skipping anything.

Emeralds of Ysamaldri tend to be the Cí'mehia, an emerald-centered Mythic race that resemble humanoid cheetahs, or cheetah-oid humans. Because of their vast emerald availability, Ysamaldrí often choses Cí'mehia, but emerald dragons can also be chosen. In recorded history, never has there been an Emerald not of Cí'mehia or emerald dragon origin or descent.
The abilities of an Emerald are similar to any Gemstone, except they have stronger and easier control over emeralds, mostly green ones. Emeralds can be shifted into objects, such as art, weapons, and shields. The objects crafted can be deconstructed, though typically art is left as is, unless in dire straights. Weapons, shields, and armor can be shifted and made, but with each hit absorbed, the Gemstone must use his energy to keep the gem together, whether sturdy diamond or flimsy gold, it is all dependent on his strength, physical and magical.
     Like other Gemstones, Emeralds have specific fighting styles, unique sometimes even to their Isle. The Emerald's style is typically stealth and/or physical combat. The Cí'mehia are naturally a stealthy race, due to their feline chimaera origins, but emerald dragons are more suited to normal physical combat, won with brute strength.
Emeralds, like the other gems, can be imbued with vitality to use later, mainly from the user (for more information, turn to page three).

Myrkr turned back a few pages to learn more about a general Gemstone's abilities. She skimmed a few paragraphs to find where the excerpt from the Emerald topic left off.

There have been moments when a Gemstone's opponent's vitality has been partially or even fully transferred into a gemstone, dust, or other object created by the Gemstone.
However, that is but one use for a Gemstone's ability. Others include a race's ritual leader, protector, and warrior.

Myrkr closed the book and put it back. I can shift emeralds into dust and back again? I always had an easy time of creating rune bombs from emeralds when Azure Star tried teaching me, but I never knew that would be because of what happened when I was young.

Reaching into her emerald mist bag, Myrkr grabbed one of the strange circular-cut emeralds she found on the transport. There had been a bag of them, and in the emeralds was a golden cat eye engraved on each. She placed it on a desk in the corner of the practice area and focused on nothing else. When nothing initially happened, her arm lifted from the desktop seemingly of its own accord. Surprised and alarmed by the action, Myrkr didn't notice the emerald turn to dust and raise with her arm. Only when the gold design of the emerald a second later clinked to the desk surface did she look at what she had done. The emerald dust was floating above the desk and the golden eye design.

Experimentally, Myrkr moved her arm and hand in a manner she had been taught by Azure Star. The dust followed. "How about I try something more complex?" she murmured to herself, standing. Moving to the center of the practice area, the dust following, Myrkr started doing the drills Azure Star had had her memorize when she was younger. As the Cí'mehia moved from drill to harder drill, she found that each pose and movement felt natural. More natural than it had when she learned it. The dust followed, occasionally forming arrows or other solid objects.

Finished with the drills, though still curious to the power she had gainned, Myrkr tried creating anything and everything she could, using more and more of the emeralds as she went. She formed knives, a bow, and managed the grip, cross guard, and pummel of a sword. Myrkr did this until she heard the library door creak open. Oops. Class is going to start soon, and today we have combat training with a dragon! I hope he's not overly strict. Clumping the emerald dust into two green spheres that were half a foot each in diameter, and grabbing the leftover golden cat eyes, Myrkr threw the valuables into her green dust bag and made her way to the dorm area, following other students to the combat training room.

     Myrkr was far from late to the combat class, but her nightly magic practice took a toll on her concentation. She had a hard time not dozing, even when standing up. She was in the back-most row on the left side, which left her open to be yelled at by the dragon instructor.

     "Mkhoal!" The growled call came again, loudly, hurting Myrkr's ears. "Strafe left!" To the best of her ability in her tired state, Myrkr did as she was ordered. The instructor, Waterfall, a water dragon, was very strict. If his size and the occasional scarred scale was anything to go by, he was at least half a century or more in age, and a strong fighter. "You call that strafing, Mkhoal!? I call that stumbling!" The water dragon made his way over to where Myrkr was standing, verbally nipping at her every time she made a mistake. "How did you even get in this class with such poor balance?" he demanded.

Myrkr half thought that Waterfall was trying to get a rise out of her, his words as bait. Throughout the class, Waterfall kept one of his green eyes on her, nearly roaring the mistakes to all the Isles as he did so.

When the two hour break for lunch came around, Myrkr almost blindly followed Sanguine's voice and scent to the cafeteria. After finding where they all planned to sit, Myrkr half sat, half fell into one of the chairs and laid her head on her arms on the table. Not knowing nor trusting a whole bunch of other recruits, Myrkr went into a half sleep as she waited for her friends to come over with their lunches. It took a while for them to return, and even when they did, they hardly spoke. Within her half-conscious state, Myrkr thought she heard one of them say the combat training made them hungry.

With her friends around her, Myrkr let down her mental barrier between her and a full sleep, and a quiet blackness overtook her other senses.

✦ ✦ ❦ ✦ ✦

Sanguine was the last one to sit down at the table. Myrkr had obviously been there a while since she was asleep, with Luna and Cedric on either side of her. Shimmer sat in front of Luna, so that basically left the spot in front of Myrkr or Cedric. In the end, Sanguine chose the one in front of Myrkr.

Luna was the one to break the silence. "That combat class is more vigorous than I had imagined."

"Definitely," agreed Sanguine, nodding. "The training was demanding. It made me feel as if I hadn't eaten for a day." He glanced at Myrkr, then Luna and Shimmer. "Did she not sleep well?"

Shimmer shrugged. "Beats me. Cedric had just left when Myrkr came in and actually fell asleep. Maple wasn't in the room with us when we decided to sleep, but the opposite was true when we woke up. Maple was in bed, but Myr was gone. We didn't see her before combat training this morning."

     Sanguine looked at Luna, a silent question of Is there anything more you would add? When she shook her head, he sighed. Then, having an idea, he noticed Myrkr's mist bag. "Hey, Cedric, hand me her bag, would you?"

     After a slight hesitation, Cedric grabbed the bag and handed it to Sanguine. "What do you hope to find?" He obviously was skeptical about going through someone else's belongings without permission. Not to mention that Myrkr was a girl and that Sanguine was a guy.

     Sanguine looked through the ivory and emerald runes Myrkr had packed for the mission. He found weird golden designs and two emerald spheres, too, but aside from not recognizing them, found nothing but a map of the academy and chiseled gemstone runes. "Well," Sanguine started, "I was looking for something to show what she did last night. But nothing here can tell me that."

     Shimmer snorted and rolled her eyes. "If the curiosity is killing you, just wake her up and ask her. It's not that hard to do. Watch." The silver girl moved to tap or push Myrkr, Sanguine couldn't tell. He definitely didn't let Shimmer's action continue as he slapped her arm away from his sleeping friend.

     "Leave her be," he growled. "Did you see how much Waterfall ripped on her for being slow and uncoordinated? I'm not disrupting her apparent much-needed sleep just to sate my curiosity. And I won't let anyone do likewise to you, Shimmer."

     "Fine, fine." Shimmer rose her hands in front of her in defeat. "If you don't attempt to change something, then stop complaining."

✦ ✦ ❦ ✦ ✦

     Myrkr wandered in an unmarked land. She sensed that she should not have gotten here, not that she knew where 'here' was in any case. In the distance she heard water, so she thought it safe to assume she was in the Isles of Ysamaldrí still. With nothing to do, Myrkr started wandering the bland land, catching no scents nor any sign that other Mythics lived here.

     Many times the Cí'mehia resisted the classic urge to call out. Her ears swiveled back and forth, no sound so much as tickled her ear. Where in the Isles am I? She kept wandering before she heard the mighty flaps of dragon wings getting closer, a shadow settling over and around her.

✦ ✦ ❦ ✦ ✦

     By this time, Sanguine, Luna, Cedric, and Shimmer had finished their lunches. Maple had joined them, taking the spot across from Cedric, much to the lycanthrope's displeasure. Maple didn't ask about Myrkr, and Sanguine belatedly remembered Cedric hadn't asked, either. "Hey," Sanguine said. "Maple, Cedric, do you know why Myrkr is so tired? You two never questioned it."

     The two looked at each other, Cedric seemed to hesitate. Maple spoke. "She was in the courtyard with Cedric and I last night. I like nature, so Cedric invited me to meet him in the courtyard. He also invited Myr, though she left us early in the night. Other than that, we can't tell you what she was doing, or where she was."

     "And Cedric?" Sanguine prompted.

     Cedric shrugged, not meeting his eyes. "You heard Maple's story."

     Luna looked somewhat uncomfortable, glancing at Maple. She said something under her breath, quickly, then donned a calm expression. Something about truth? "Well, we can ask later. Before class, after or at the evening meal, or before bed. Now is not the right moment, since she needs rest. Maybe she'll be more awake and alert when she wakes up, and that alone will be good for her reputation in classes."

"Waterfall is more strict with the new recruits anyway, and especially on the first day," Cedric said. "He didn't favor anyone last year, in my class. Many messed around until he berated them, either with his words, fangs and talons, or even in a full-out fight. Needless to say, anyone who was an unlucky fool got some kind of scratch or bruise to be a reminder of their mistakes."

"That makes sense." Shimmer glanced at Myrkr. "Maybe he thinks she is one of those students who goof off. Well, soon I believe Myrkr will prove him wrong. I know that as fact, as with winter comes snow."

Waiting for Myrkr to wake up, the five friends chatted until the break time was over.

☠ ✎ ⌨ ✎ ☠

Hey guys!
I know I ask this every time, but...
What do you think will happen next? Will Myrkr get the rest she needs, and who or what is the dragon, and where is Myrkr while she is sleeping? Will she use her new gift in her combat class, openly using her new strength?
I really want to know what you guys think! As of right now, I have Chapter Thirteen in the works, and many more to come!