The Chronicles of Fire and Ice (The Legend of the Archangel Book 1) (2 page)

As she stepped off the tram
, she pulled out her iPhone and opened the email of the confirmation letter she’d received. She almost couldn’t resist the urge to pinch herself. She glanced at the Blackbell coat of arms on the email and back at the same symbol that sat above the doorway to the Academy. The building’s exterior was cube-like in shape, and the facade was made entirely of square glass panels. It reminded her of a transparent Rubik’s cube. The other walls were built with dark grey or black stone that Scarlett couldn’t identify. Were the walls painted or was that their natural colour? The roof was yet another story. On top of the structure sat a crystalline glass dome with faceted sides, such that when the sun hit it, each side turned a different colour. There was nothing in Scarlett’s memory about the dome. How could she miss something like this? It was beautiful.

Impression

Dyston stood on the rooftop. The rain cascaded down his leather jacket, making a heavy sound. He didn’t mind the rain. He shrugged off his jacket and it landed in a heap at his feet. His favourite thing of all to do was to stand out in the rain and let his wings unfurl. The sensation of water running over his feathers, cool and refreshing, was like nothing else. He didn’t understand why his father and brother disliked the rain. After a few minutes, he picked up his jacket, pulled his wings back in, and walked back through the French doors into his bedroom. One of his best Traits was the ability of his body to dry itself almost instantly. He didn’t want to dry—he loved being wet—but today, he had no choice. With a knock, his door opened, and Lakyn stuck his head in, snapping Dyston out of his reverie.

“
Bro, the students… why aren’t you ready?” Lakyn’s eyebrows rose at his brother’s dishevelled appearance. He disapproved. Lakyn was five years older, and the sun seemed to shine out of him—in their father’s opinion, anyway. This annoyed Dyston immensely.

“
I
am
ready,” he inhaled. Dyston closed his eyes and the glisten on his skin disappeared. His black hair stuck straight up on his head, which he then tried and failed to flatten. His brother chuckled. He always thought his little brother’s talent was so bizarre.

“
Very well, see you down in the dining room. Oh, and be on your best behaviour!” Lakyn told him, before his head disappeared. Dyston was alone again. He sauntered to his piano in the corner of the room, sat down, and began playing.

As Scarlett pushed through the doors of Blackbell Academy
, the first thing she saw was the colour scheme. Everything was black, red, or grey, which didn’t help hush the rumours, she thought. Right of the foyer, there was a wide grand staircase with a black iron railing that twisted around half the room. It was made from black and grey speckled marble with a plush red velvet runner laid down the middle. Scarlett thought it was exquisite. Forcing her gaze away from the stairs, she made her way towards the administration desk to the left of the foyer. The desk itself was high. It came up to Scarlett’s collarbone and was made of the same marble as the stairs. Behind the desk on the back wall was the Blackbell emblem and underneath, four antique gold clocks—each showing the time of a different city around the world: London, Los Angeles, Sydney, and Rome.

Scarlett
set her bags down on the ground. She always carried way more than necessary. She tried to make eye contact with the Nephilim woman sitting behind a desk, who still hadn’t noticed her. She cleared her throat.

“
Hello, I’m Scarlett P…” she began, but the receptionist cut her off. Her dark straight hair was cut in a bob, and her face was emotionless and pale like she had never seen the sun.

“
Scarlett Porter, yes, we have been expecting you,” the receptionist said in a nasally monotone voice as she began typing at her iMac.

“
Am I the last to arrive?” Scarlett tried again.

“
No,” she replied bluntly, offering no explanation as to how many students were due to arrive after her. Scarlett wanted to ask the receptionist how she knew her name without checking the files. But before she could say another word, a shadowy figure at the top of the stairs caught her eye. She was about to turn her head away when the shadow began descending. She noticed it was a Nephilim in his late twenties to early thirties, and he had the most striking eyes she had ever seen, even more so than the boy in her dreams. These eyes were the colour of the underside of an iceberg, and as he spoke, his voice chilled her to the bone.

“
Welcome to Blackbell,” he said, reaching the bottom. Looking her over, he added with a smirk, “We hope you’ll feel very comfortable here.”

“
Thanks,” she managed, with a dry mouth. She licked her lips and bent down to gather her bags.

“
Don’t! The maids will do that. That’s their job,” he said. Then he gestured to someone Scarlett couldn’t see. A young Nephilim around the same age as Scarlett stepped out of the shadows and picked up her bags, taking them through a door to the right of the admin desk.

“
So where are the other students?” she asked the mysterious and dark stranger.

“
They’re in the dining hall waiting,” he said.

“
Waiting for what?”

“
Waiting for you, Scarlett,” he said, gesturing for her to follow him. How did he also know her name? She was beginning to freak out a little.

“
But… she said…” she turned to look back at the receptionist, but she was gone.

“
Don’t worry, Estiel doesn’t know the time of day,” he said. Scarlet thought his last remark too harsh, but couldn’t find the time to tell him. They had already arrived.

“
Enjoy,” he said, leaving her.

“
Thanks,” she muttered under her breath, entering the room.

The voices of the waiting students echoed in the expansive room
, and all eyes turned to her as she made her way to the last vacant seat in the room, muttering numerous apologies along the way. She sat down next to a brunette Nephilim girl with long straight hair who was texting someone prolifically.

“
Hi,” said the girl, not taking her eyes away from her smartphone.

“
Hi,” replied Scarlett.

Then the Brunette looked at her.
“He’s cute, isn’t he?”

“
Who?”

“
That guy that walked you in. He’s really cute.”

“
I suppose, but he’s not really my type,” Scarlett said, scanning the room to see if the blue-eyed stranger was still around. He wasn’t.

“
You’re the only one I’ve talked to that thinks that. I’m Kat, by the way.” She offered her hand.

“
Scarlett,” she said, shaking Kat’s hand.

“
Anyway, he’s off limits,” added Kat.

“
Why’s that? He has a mate?”

“
No, he’s a Professor.” Just as the word
Professor
left Kat’s lips, the room fell to silence, and a woman in a flowing black dress walked into the room.

“
Hello, students. I am Professor Beth Blackbell. This is my son, Professor Lakyn Blackbell,” she said, and the mysterious blue-eyed stranger reappeared. He was her son? Lakyn’s gaze immediately found Scarlett’s, and she turned away.

His mother continued
. “And my husband is Professor Zachariah Blackbell, who is also your headmaster.” She lovingly touched the arm of her husband who stood beside Professor Lakyn. The older Nephilim’s beard was greying and his eyes matched. Zachariah Stepped forward and took over from his wife.

“
Thank you, Beth. As first year recruits, you will learn what it means to be Nephilim in today’s society, and over the next four years, you will learn what it means to be an Angel.”

Kat whispered in Scarlett
’s ear, “Amazing speaker.”

“
Yeah,” she whispered back.

“
Classes will begin tomorrow morning at nine sharp and breakfast begins at eight,” added Beth. “You will be shown to your rooms shortly, and by that time, your bags should have arrived.”

Beth
paced back and forward at the front of the room. She looked fierce and wild with her wavy black hair and brown eyes. Scarlett had no doubt that the students were a little afraid of her.

“
Lunch will commence at noon, at which time, you will receive your class schedules. Any questions or queries about your class selections should be directed towards me, Professor Lakyn, Headmaster Blackbell, or Estiel at administration. See you at lunch.”

The hallwa
ys inside Blackbell were a maze. Scarlett was so glad to be led through them. She would have gotten lost trying to find her room.

“
Your bags should have arrived by now,” chimed the maid, Henrietta, in a musical British accent.

Henrietta
’s pace was quick across the hardwood floors. Almost running just to keep up, Scarlett’s boots didn’t grip very well. She was glad for her fast reflexes. Scarlett secretly wondered if Henrietta had the blood of a higher ranking Angel than herself or was she a lower ranked angel. She made a mental note to ask later.

Henrietta finally stopped and Scarlett
nearly crashed into the back of her.

“
Here we are,” said Henrietta. She took a key out of her pocket—a silver skeleton key on a long black tassel. It was odd in a building like this, Scarlett thought. It must have been renovated. Everything was new or modern except for the doors. Henrietta pushed the key into the lock, twisted and pushed the door inwards. Scarlett followed her inside and stopped short. Before her, in the centre of one wall, was an amazing red velvet curtained four-post bed. The curtains were tied back with gold tassels. Straight ahead was a set of white French doors that led onto a private balcony. Scarlett thought at that moment she must have done something good to deserve this because surely this was not standard living quarters.

Scarlett would have forgotten Henrietta was in the room if it hadn
’t been for her tiny musical voice.

“
Is something wrong, Miss Scarlett? I hope the room’s okay. Mr Blackbell specifically reserved it for you.”