Page 22 of Creatures of War
“Enough!” a man boomed, causing the room to go silent and everyone to freeze.
The person who grabbed me, released me and rounded toward me, face to face. He wasn’t someone I recognized, but it was clear he was most likely a teacher. I gasped, noting that everyone was watching us, including the dragons.
The dragons were practically pushed against the glass partition, watching the show with wide eyes, their excitement clear as they grinned and nudged each other. Most likely, they had bets going.
“Who the hell do you think you are, hurting another student?” the man asked, getting in my face.
“But she—”
“I don’t give a fuck what she did. You had no right to hurt her.”
“She hurt me too.”
“Enough!” The man turned to Coral. She was crying, holding onto the female teacher as if she was the clear victim. The man’s expression softened. “Take her to medical. Afterward, she is to go into reflection for the rest of the day.”
The woman quickly began guiding her away. Coral turned just enough so I could see the triumphant smile on her face before they disappeared out the door.
The man looked back at me. “If you like making such a big spectacle of yourself, then I’ll give everyone something to watch. Ten lashings, right here and right now.”
“What?” I screeched.
“You beat a student, so your punishment is only fair. Be glad we aren’t kicking you out of the academy.”
Murmurs broke out, but no one tried to defend me. Someone moved, and a pale-faced Aylia tried to step closer to me. I shook my head, swallowing my dread. I didn’t want to get her in trouble too. This teacher didn’t seem like he wanted to listen, and I didn’t want her pulled into my drama.
She froze, clearly hating that I wasn’t going to let her help me.
Two guards came in and forced me on my knees. I rested my hands on the floor, my entire body shaking.
Why was this happening? What did I do?
I felt a bit numb, like whatever had snapped inside of me hadn’t had a chance to reconnect.
Before I could prepare myself, I heard a snap in the air, and very quickly afterward, hot pain broke out across my back. My clothes did nothing to act as padding. I was just proven wrong, felt proof that I wasn’t as numb as I thought I was. I let out a grunt as those around me gasped.
I was being whipped. Actually whipped. In front of everyone. And why? What for?
Another. My eyes burned as a small gasp broke out from me.
For the third and fourth one, I cried through them. Then, it turned into screams. I lost track of how many. Ten ended up feeling like too many, like an eternity. My mind went hazy, everything grew dim, and I became a ball of pain.
The only relief I felt was the fact that I knew the guys wouldn’t feel this. They didn’t need this pain while they dealt with their own issues. I focused on that until everything went completely numb and hazy.
Chapter Thirteen
I wasn’t sure when it ended. All I knew was that my back burned, my legs hurt from the kneeling, and I felt wet all over. Sweaty and bloody. A gentle hand grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet.
“We need to leave,” Aylia said, her voice sounding oddly tight.
Was she mad at me?
I blinked through the tears, trying to see her expression, but it was too blurry.
She helped me to my feet. My legs wobbled, barely holding my weight. Aylia whispered softly to me, but I couldn’t focus on her words as the pain kept pulsing through my back.
“We’re here,” she said.
I wiped at my face and realized we were in the med office. A woman jumped to her feet and came over with wide eyes. She helped to lead me to a bed, laying me on my stomach.