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ON THE SECOND DAY OF school, another guest teacher graces us with his presence. It's none other than Nikola Tesla, the famous inventor. As he walks around the classroom, I'm a little transfixed by how long and skinny his legs are.
“When I was in the mortal world, I once said... if you want to know the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration. This is still true. If you want to connect with your human charges, you must endeavor to match their vibration.”
I'm trying to take notes, but my eyelids feel heavy. I don't know why. Without the burden of a physical body, I no longer require sleep. I think there's something about Tesla's accent that relaxes me. If he was one of my high school teachers, I'd probably fall asleep on my desk.
“As you already know...” Tesla continues, “it will be your job to figure out the wants and needs of your charges. If you're lucky, their desires will be obvious. If you aren't lucky, you'll have to get in their heads. To do this, you and your charge must be a vibrational match. There are many ways to succeed at this. Crystals are one way to facilitate the communication process. All of you will be provided with a quartz crystal wand. Holding the wand will occasionally result in a glimpse of your human's thoughts.”
I take notes, even though Tesla's lecture makes no sense to me. When I look over at Alyx, her eyes are closed. She's not even trying to make sense of it.
“If your human charge prays or meditates, that may also assist communication,” Tesla continues. “The process alters their brain waves, and you'll be able to hear their thoughts more clearly.”
“Ugh,” Alyx quietly complains—in a voice only I can hear. “This is so boring. I'd rather be playing a video game right now.”
“You can play video games here?” I whisper the question.
“Yeah. Why's that surprising? You can get anything, remember? I just manifested a copy of Soul Dragon 4 the other day. I can't play the online mode, but I'm still enjoying it.”
When Amber clears her throat, it takes me a moment to realize she's clearing her throat for us. I don't want another reprimand, so I clap a hand over my lips and focus on my notes.
“If your human reaches a state of deep meditation, you can even communicate back to them. They can hear your voice,” Nikola Tesla tells us. “Unfortunately, this is quite rare, so don't expect it to happen anytime soon.”
I wonder if it would be possible to contact my parents? Could I tell them I'm alright? Could I tell my sister I miss her? It's an interesting thought, but my family's not into meditation, so I guess I'm out of luck.
Amber rises from her chair and continues Tesla's lesson. “Every now and then,” she begins, “you will want to remind the mortals that you're watching over them. When times are terribly difficult, you want to let them know they're not alone. There are many ways this can be achieved.”
Tesla gives us our first example. “If you're in a time when radio exists, you can manipulate audio. Through white noise, you might be able to speak to your human charges. If an opportunity presents itself, your veteran spirit guide will show you this process.”
“You can also communicate through signs and synchronicities,” Amber says. “For example, one of my charges was a teenage writer. She was writing a story about a witch. I wanted her to know I was enjoying her story, so I manifested a witch on her television screen. Whether or not she understood the message... I can only guess. But synchronicities are one way you might reveal yourself to them.”
“You might encourage them to check the clock at 11:11,” Tesla suggests. “This is a sign we often use.”
“Or you can make their ears ring,” Amber adds. “A gentle ringing in their ears can alert them to your presence.”
My hand flows across the page as I scribble some notes. It's a lot of information to absorb, but at least I'm trying. Alyx isn't.
“There is one more thing you should bear in mind...” Tesla begins. When he comes to a sudden halt in front of my desk, my eyes bulge. “To borrow a quote from my dear friend Albert Einstein... the distinction between past, present and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion. In our eyes, time appears to flow like a river. In actuality, every era exists simultaneously, and each one affects the other. Allow me to give you an example...” When Tesla's dark eyes land on mine, I feel intimidated for some reason. I want to slink under my desk and disappear. “What's your name, young lady?” he asks.
“Uh... Leigh.” My voice sounds tiny.
“Leigh, at some point, you might visit the year 1770,” Tesla says. “You might be the spirit guide of... let's say... Louis XV of France.”
“Really?”
“Perhaps. Bear in mind, this is merely an example.” When Tesla leans over my desk, I can feel my shoulders shrinking. “However, when Louis XV crossed over, he could have been your spirit guide as well. You affected his world in the perceived past, and he affected yours in the perceived present. In reality, it was all concurrent, and neither event could have occurred without the other. Do you understand?”
“Um...” I should give him an honest answer, right? “Not really.”
“Does anyone understand?” When Tesla glances around the room and sees a few nodding heads, he looks a bit more satisfied. “In time, I hope you will understand the concept.”
I don't think I'll ever understand the concept, and I definitely know Alyx won't. Oh well.
At the end of our long lesson with Nikola Tesla, Amber steps forward with important news.
“And that concludes your classroom education... for now. If you successfully complete five field tests, you will return for a final oral exam. Does anyone have any questions?” When no one raises a hand, Amber gathers a stack of papers from her desk. “Good! Now it's time to meet your spirit guide instructors. On this page, you'll see your guide's name, their mortal occupation and age, as well as their previous experience as a guide. You will also be given information on where to locate them.”
Amber drifts around the room, handing out papers to her students. When she lays a sheet on my desk, my hands tremble as I reach for it. Apparently, I'll be spending a lot of time with this new instructor. What if I can't stand them?
Oh god. I'm almost afraid to look.
Name: Taishi Nakamura.
So... it sounds like my spirit instructor is Japanese. That's interesting.
Last Mortal Age: 19
Taishi was nineteen when he passed away. Like me, he died young. I wonder what happened?
Occupation: Samurai
I think I remember seeing a samurai the other day, but I don't think I paid much attention to him.
Previous Experience: Taishi Nakamura has been a spirit guide for over 150 years. He has been an instructor for 53 years. He has successfully completed 3,174 missions and has guided 334 mortals. He is 159 credits away from Angel status. His current rating is 9.86/10.
Rating? We're going to be rated? That stinks.
“Who'd you get?” I whisper to Alyx. Judging from the sour look on her face, she's not happy with her instructor.
“I got some eighty-year-old lady named Wilma Dawes,” Alyx groans. “Oh god... was that the old lady with the flaming red hair? Kill me now.”
“Maybe it's not so bad?” I try to reassure her. “Maybe she'll be a really nice lady?”
“Uh huh. Or maybe she'll bore my ass,” Alyx grumbles. “Who did you get?”
“Taishi Nakamura,” I answer with a shrug. “He's a samurai, apparently.”
“Oh my god... you got the samurai? No fair!” Alyx's elbow jealously jabs my arm. “I remember him. He was hot.”
If he was hot, why can't I remember him? At the time, I must've been too obsessed with Jophiel to notice anyone else. “Sorry,” I murmur.
“You get to hang with a hot guy, and I get stuck with an old ass lady. How and why did this happen?” Alyx drags her hands down her face in despair. “Is it because of my crappy behavior yesterday? It's because I was bad... wasn't it? Amber screwed me over.”
“I don't think it was intentional. I think it was supposed to be random.”
“Random my ass!” When Alyx's fist bangs her desk, a few students turn around to give her a nasty look. “Amber wasn't happy with me, so she stuck me with the old bag. I guarantee you, that's what happened.”
Under Taishi's stats, there's a map. Apparently, I'm supposed to find him in the Archangel Training Garden. It's over a mile away, so I'm glad I'm wearing good shoes.
Wait—can I even get blisters anymore? I don't think I can.
“Well, I guess I'm heading off to find Wilma frickin' Dawes...” Alyx announces with a groan. “Wish me luck.”
When class is officially over, I leave to find Taishi. It's a long way to The Garden, but at least I can do some sightseeing along the way. This world is still extraordinarily strange to me. On the way to my destination, I pass an old guy riding on a winged horse. It doesn't get much weirder than that, I'm sure.
I have to pass through a tall, silver gate to enter the Archangels' Garden. The entire gate is covered in thick, red vines. When I step into the garden, I try to suppress my awe. The garden is a riot of color. The roses are redder than usual, the pink sweet peas almost knock me over with their honeyed scent, and there are cherry blossom petals tumbling in the breeze. I'm not sure I've ever seen a more beautiful sight.
Judging from the size of the map, the Archangel Training Garden is huge, and I have no idea where to find Taishi. I guess I'll just wander around and hope I bump into him eventually. To my surprise, my feet actually can ache. After over an hour of walking, I sit on one of the benches, slip off my sandals, and rub my overused feet.
As I stroke my heel, I hear commotion in the distance. The loud clang of metal striking metal sends a shiver down my back. Taking a deep breath, I rise from the bench and follow my ears to the source of the ruckus.
I head down a cobblestone path and eventually reach a large clearing, where six men and two women are training with swords. My eyes are drawn to Jophiel first, and then to the flaming blade in his hand. He looks beautiful—and deadly.
His opponent, I assume, is Taishi Nakamura. His blue kimono is tatty and dated, while his hair is short and modern. When he draws his katana from its sheath, he does it so quickly, the blade looks like a blur. Flames scurry along the sword's sharp edge. With flaming blades, these guys look even more impressive.
Taishi slashes at Jophiel, who pivots away from the samurai's sweeping blade. Jophiel counters with a lunge, which is deflected by Taishi. As I watch them fight, I'm mesmerized. I've never watched a real sword battle before.
When Jophiel's elbow slams into Taishi's nose, the samurai staggers backward. The blow actually draws a little blood.
Blood? I didn't realize it was still possible to bleed. I'm always learning something new in this crazy, unfamiliar world.
A few seconds later, Taishi gets his revenge. He sticks his sword through Jophiel's stomach. At first, I'm horrified—and then the wound instantly heals.
“Well done, Taishi!” exclaims Jophiel, who offers a hand to his smug, smiling student. “You're always improving. I'm impressed.”
Taishi doesn't respond. He just nods.
“You're certainly well on your way to becoming an Archangel.” Jophiel glances over Taishi's shoulder and catches my gaze. He gives me a tiny nod, then turns his attention back to his student. “You're already better than me.”
“No, I'm not,” Taishi quietly objects.
“You are. And if you aren't better than me now, you'll be better than me soon,” Jophiel says. When he sheaths his flaming sword, the fire is immediately extinguished. “You'll have to teach me Iaijustu.”
“I can...” Taishi softly agrees, “if you want.”
“I believe that's your new student over there,” Jophiel tells him. “You should probably greet her.”
“Mmm. I guess.” With a bored shrug of his shoulders, Taishi turns in my direction. His expression is stony as he shuffles forward. “Are you... Leigh Riley?” he asks. His English is heavily accented, but pleasant to my ears.
“Yep. That would be me,” I reply. I can totally understand why Alyx thought he was hot. His eyes are intense, his cheekbones are chiseled, and his ebony hair hangs over stern, pinched eyebrows. For some reason, he doesn't look too impressed by me. “And you're Taishi. Obviously.”
He gives me a slight nod, but he doesn't say a word. When I try to stick out my hand, he doesn't accept it.
“You're not going to shake my hand?” I ask.
After a brief pause, he finally replies, “No.”
Wow. How rude! He's single-handedly obliterating my foolish belief that all spirits are nice.
As I retract my hand, I ask, “Do you have a problem with me?”
“No.”
His answers are irritatingly terse. I'm so annoyed right now, I wish I had Wilma instead.
“So, I guess we'll be working together for awhile, huh?” I note. “That should be... interesting.”
“Maybe,” Taishi answers, shrugging again.
I have nothing left to say to him, and he apparently has nothing left to say to me, so I decide to dismiss myself. “Well, uh... I guess I'll see you tomorrow?” I ask.
This time, he doesn't even bother to speak. He just gives me another one of his bored, obligatory nods.
“Okay. Uhhh... bye then.”
As I head off, I expect him to say something. Even a single word of farewell would have been better than total silence.
I stomp away from the clearing with an exasperated huff. This is basically the worst case scenario.
My instructor is a jerk.