Chapter 9:
The Fifth Horseman of the Apocalypse
“Gaia! I missed you so much!” Mia fell to her knees and wrapped her arms tightly around Gaia’s strong neck. Tears of happiness welled in her eyes, but luckily, they never spilled, soaked up by the warmth of the crimson fur pressed against her face.
“C’mon, we were only apart for an hour and a half at most,” Gaia said with a hint of amusement, her fluffy rouge tail wagging in the air. It was true: Mia had only been in the Garden of Athermane for about ten minutes. It was the waiting that took the longest, though Mia didn’t feel it that way. After Ami’s sudden outburst, Mia had run straight back to Gaia, who was waiting for her just outside the hall.
“Not to me! It felt like forever... I… I really…I thought I’d never see you again.”
“And here I thought you were too shy to even come near me,” Gaia teased, a small, victorious smirk playing on her lips. In the end, she had won Mia’s heart.
But Mia didn’t rise to the bait. She remained buried in Gaia’s fur, like a child clinging to a mother’s warmth.
“Thank you for choosing me, Gaia. I won’t let you down. I’m going to train hard, really hard with Rierie. I’ll become so strong, the strongest! Strong enough to defeat the Four Horsemen!”
Gaia nodded, proud.
“Congratulations, Mia. I am proud of you. But don’t get ahead of yourself, child. This journey won’t be easy. And Rierie, huh?”
“Yes! Rierie! Have you met her before?”
“No. No one meets a High Horse beforehand. Unlike normal horses, they’re not exactly... social.”
“Oh...” Mia blinked.
"Until they find the chosen one, that is. I see you're already imprinted."
"Imprinted?"
"That is so. Look at your hand."
There is was.
A small circle, the exact size of a ring, was marked right in the center of her palm.
Almost like a faded scar.
Just like the one that had appeared on Rierie’s forehead after eating the white fruit.
"Oh my..."
She let her index finger glide over the skin with the delicate grace of someone caressing a baby’s cheek. The mark shimmered faintly beneath her touch.
“That is a Vowing Bound,” Gaia clarified “That's the formal name. It's like… an umbilical cord between the horse and the rider.”
“I see… so everyone has the same mark on their right palm?”
“Yes.”
“How many of us are there, by the way?”
“Six hundred promising students. Well… three hundred now, after the Selection of Athermane.”
Mia cleared her throat. “Actually, three hundred and one.”
Gaia's ears twitched in confusion, and Mia continued.
“Don't think I'm crazy… but… me and another girl, we were both selected.”
“That’s impossib—” Her tail stopped wagging.
“It is not impossible. Didn’t the same thing happen in the other two days?”
“Of course not! Professor Estel would never allow such a thing.”
“Well, he and Professor Aze agreed that it was, indeed … unexpected. But if it was the will of the horses, then…” She shrugged. “They get the final word.”
Gaia took a moment to study the expressions shifting across Mia’s face. The enthusiasm in her voice had vanished as well.
“You don't seem really happy about it. ”
“Yeah, I am not exactly on cloud nine. She has a… difficult personality”
“I see… Do you know the name of the classmate who was chosen with you?”
“Ami.”
The name barely left Mia’s lips before something changed.
It was subtle, but unmistakable. It was almost as if the red glow of Gaia had faded with Mia’s emotion. For a moment, she looked... young. Like a pup who’d just heard thunder for the first time.
“Ami…” Gaia echoed softly, as if speaking the name aloud might make it easier to take it.
She paused. Her gaze sharpened, though not with anger, but with caution.
“Mia… you mustn't speak of that to anyone else. If people heard that two were chosen at the same time, they’ll start drawing lines, assuming you were favored or special, that you hold some hidden advantage; and in an academy like this, reputations can be dangerous things.”
Mia opened her mouth to ask why — why Ami’s name had drawn such a reaction out of her — but the look in Gaia’s eyes stopped her cold. Reluctantly, she only murmured:
“Yeah… you’re right,” The poor girl had learned her lesson: she remembered too well what fame had cost her in her old life. She wasn’t about to make the same mistake twice.
Gaia turned toward the fading light outside the arched window:
“The sun’s going down. How are you holding up? Got enough energy left in that body of yours to meet your classmates in the dining hall?”
“Honestly? Not really. I nearly died today. Kind of kills the appetite…”
Gaia huffed a soft, amused breath through her nose.
“You’re not the only one. Most of the others who were sorted today went straight to their rooms. It’s been… a lot.” Her voice lowered, touched by something unspoken. “You’ll have plenty of time to meet the competition tomorrow.”
Mia raised an eyebrow. “Are you always this serious?”
The wolf smirked at her with a flash of fangs.
“Only with those strong enough to handle it.” Then turned, motioning with her head. “Come on. I’ll walk you to your room.”
___________________________________________________________________________
After everything that had happened, the long corridor Mia had once found eerie and intimidating no longer felt that way. Now that they weren’t in a hurry, she and Gaia took their time, pausing in front of the tall stained-glass windows that lined the hall.
The sunset poured through the vibrant panes, deep reds and luminous blues casting patterns across the rosewood floor. But what caught Mia’s eye wasn’t her reflection in the glass. It was the view beyond.
The training grounds stretched out as far as the eye could see. Just watching them made her thighs ache in anticipation.
It was intimidating, yet exciting.
Still, with Gaia by her side, Mia couldn’t shake the feeling that she was walking on eggshells. Every few steps, she made an effort to break the silence.
“So… in this world, wolves like you are kind of like humans?” Mia asked, her voice soft. “Do you stay active during the day and sleep at night?”
Gaia’s golden eyes flicked toward her, who had been immersed in her own thoughts.
“There are two types. Some are nocturnal, like in your old world, and some are diurnal. I can adapt to either cycle. I don’t have a preference… but since I’m your Guardian now, I follow your rhythm.”
Mia gave a faint nod, still trying to process everything she’d learned since arriving.
“So… where do you sleep now? In my room?”
Gaia gave a low huff “No. Guardians are housed in the same wing as the Professors. It’s regulation.”
“Oh.” Mia looked down, feeling a little awkward. “I’ll see you tomorrow, then?”
“Of course,” Gaia replied. “Be outside of your room at 8 a.m. Sharp. Someone will escort the students. Rest well.”
Mia had wanted to ask the wolf one more question. But Gaia simply continued on her way, her padded footsteps utterly silent — just like the night they first met.
There was nothing Mia could do. She watched the great wolf vanish into the shadows.
What is going on…?
“Well, I’ll find out soon enough,” Mia muttered to herself, trying to sound braver than she felt. With a deep breath, she turned to the door of her assigned room — just as Professor Aze had instructed.
“Simply rest your palm on the doorknob for a few seconds. It will scan you and check your bonding circle.”
Yeah… adjusting to life at Cholagus Academy was going to take some time.
“If the door doesn’t open, it probably means someone’s already insid—”
“Ami?!”
Yes, in flesh and bones, standing right in the doorway. Still dressed in her uniform — slightly rumpled, her hair just as messy. That’s when Mia remembered: there was a second bed in the room. She must’ve been lying under the covers.
Ami, for her part, didn’t look the least bit surprised to see her. Just... mildly annoyed. What else was new?
“Are we... roommates?” Mia asked.
Ami gave her a long, slow once-over, like Mia had just stated that water was wet.
“Don’t take it personally,” she said, flatly. “I’m just not in the mood to share a room.”
She stepped closer, leaned in by Mia’s ear, and whispered:
“I carry very heavy luggage.”
“But this is also my—”
Before she could finish, the door slammed in her face.
“—room…”
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