Chapter 8
“The first Trial has to do with candles and oils? Are you serious?” I asked.
Oggie looked back at me with a dark and broody stare. “The Trials are derived from the various forms of the Voodoo arts. Each of your general education requirements, if you will. In each Trial you must use the skills native to the discipline associated with it.”
“I’m so screwed,” I said. “I’ve spent more time asleep in my Candles and Oils class than awake.”
“Hasn’t Isabelle been paying attention?”
“Yes, but is she allowed to give me the answers?”
Oggie shrugged. “You’re soul-fused. If you’re competing, so is she. Besides, no one else can hear her talk.”
“Not totally true. Pauli can hear her. Since he became a snake, anyway.”
“But the Loa cannot, and neither can your fellow classmates. No one will know she is speaking. Not like you should have to justify it. She is as much a part of this as you.”
“I thought these Trials were dangerous. What’s the worst that can happen with candles and oils?”
“Hot wax…”
“Sounds exciting.”
“Not like that… but if you enjoy that kind of thing…”
I smirked. “Are you flirting with me again? What would your wife think?”
Oggie shrugged. “The Loa of a thousand lovers is hardly one to judge another’s fidelity. Besides, the Loa are not monogamous.”
I smiled. “Don’t tempt me, Oggie. But I’m not inclined to be one of a thousand lovers for any Loa.”
“I don’t have a thousand. You’d be the only one. Erzulie and I have not been together for some time. Whenever love and war come together, the result is almost always a tragedy.”
“Like the Montagues and the Capulets?”
“Ever hear of Helen and Paris?”
“Helen of Troy?”
Oggie nodded. “That’s what happened the last time Erzulie and I came together.”
I looked at Oggie with a blank stare. “You mean to tell me that a little hanky-panky with your hot Loa wife caused the Trojan War?”
“To them, she was Aphrodite and I was known as Ares.”
“Gods of love and war,” I huffed. “That makes sense. I didn’t realize you Loa were a part of all that.”
“We are known by many traditions in many different ways. Our lore is varied, but love is love. War is war.”
“So you mean to tell me that the last time you got in the sack, it resulted in the fall of Troy?”
Oggie nodded. “I don’t take my trysts lightly.”
“I should think not! Forgive me if I’m a bit hesitant to reciprocate your flirtations. Not that I don’t want to… but I’d rather not be responsible for destroying an empire with a kiss.”
“It would take more than a kiss,” Oggie said, locking his eyes with mine.
“I’m sure it would,” I whispered. My breath deepened and my hands went clammy.
Stop it! Isabelle interrupted, arresting my attention. You heard what he said.
I laughed.
“Isabelle thinks we’re playing with fire.”
“We are,” Oggie said. “But fire can be fun. Almost as much fun as hot wax.”
I giggled. “Fire? Seriously? That’s a bit extreme for my taste. Remember, I’m still innocent and pure!”
Oggie smiled. “You might be a virgin, but you’re hardly pure!”
“Who told you I’m a virgin!”
Oggie shrugged. “It’s kind of obvious.”
“Obvious? How is it obvious?”
“The way you flirt. You’re hot and cold. You tease, then you pull away. You’re reluctant to give yourself to anyone because you want that first time to be special.”
I laughed out loud. “That’s not it at all. But I’ll give you a participation trophy for trying.”
“Then what is it? A girl as beautiful as you is not a virgin unless she wants to be.”
I bit my lip. “It’s a matter of respect.”
“You respect yourself too much.”
I shook my head. “Respect for Isabelle. What I feel, she feels. I could be with someone and enjoy myself, it could feel right to me. But if she doesn’t feel the same way, can you imagine how awful that would be?”
Oggie nodded. “I think I understand.”
I straightened my shirt. “No matter. We need to focus. So the first trial has to do with candles and oils. What else do we know?”
“You know how to dress a candle, correct?”
“I think… you just pour the oil you want over the candle as it burns.”
Oggie nodded. “And you understand how different oils can interact to target an individual for whom you light the candle?”
I scratched my head. “There are a lot of oils…”
“And by now you should have covered most of them. Doesn’t Mambo Hannigan teach that class?”
I shook my head. “She teaches Dollcraft now.”
“Asogwe Jim?”
I laughed. “No, he teaches Philosophy of the Arts.”
“Then who teaches Candles and Oils?”
“Scuba Steve,” I said.
“Who? You mean Hougan Steve?”
“Yeah, him.” I smirked. “Scuba Steve, same difference.”
“He’s a scuba diver, too?”
“No. Old movie reference. I guess you wouldn’t get it.”
Oggie raised an eyebrow. “Nevertheless, haven’t you been listening in class?”
“Sure,” I said. “But all the oils seem the same to me.”
“Mikah should be preparing you for this trial. He’s always excelled in oils.”
“And herbs,” I said.
“Related to oils,” Oggie said. “Still, this is his forte.”
“We should be fine. Isabelle aced all our tests in that class. I mean, I filled in all the bubbles on the test. But she had the answers. I just need to practice using them.”
“That’s more of a second-year skill,” Oggie said.
“Which is another reason why it was foolish to choose me for this. I might be able to wield my aspect better than most fourth-years, but when it comes to gen eds…”
Oggie nodded. “All you have to do is avoid coming in last place. Only one student will be eliminated each round. When you get to the final trial, your aspect will be tested. That’s how the winner will ultimately be determined. All you have to do is make it past the first two trials.”
“So there are three trials in all?”
Oggie nodded. “The first will cover magic associated with candles and oils. The second will cover dollcraft—at least that’s the tentative plan. Erzulie and Agwe could change these things up, so we’d best be prepared. The final trial will allow you to utilize any Voodoo art, including the unique benefits of your aspect. If you get past the first two rounds, you should be a favorite to win the final round.”
“Okay, so the plan is to sneak into the final rung as a dark horse, and then unleash Beli on all of them?”
Oggie laughed as he nodded. “If only the Trials were held in Guinee…”
“Then I could evoke Beli in all her glory!”
Oggie smiled widely. “But no matter, your soul blade and other elemental weaponry should suffice to give you an edge over the competition.”
I snorted. “Did you do that on purpose?”
“Do what?”
“My blade will give me an edge… get it?”
Oggie stared at me blankly.
“Never mind.”
“Here’s your strategy for tomorrow,” Oggie continued. “Focus on one spell with candles and oils that is sure to eliminate one of your competitors. All you have to do is eliminate one.”
“If all anyone needs to do is eliminate one competitor, then why would anyone else keep competing after that?”
“The ultimate victor is chosen by Agwe, at the conclusion of the Trials. The key is to make a strong impression at the right moment. To win one of the first two events will give a competitor an edge if there is no clear victor in the third.”
I nodded. “So focus on eliminating one. Then, focus my energies on making a big splash in trial three.”
“That’s your best chance,” Oggie said. “I’m not saying give up after one is eliminated. If you manage to eliminate even one competitor, however, Agwe will notice. Even if you do not win the round. When Marie Laveau won the trials, in fact, she didn’t win any of the three rounds.”
“Not one? How did she win?”
“She demonstrated valor and insight. She exemplified a form of wisdom that transcended the terms of the competition itself. The winner is more than one who wins the events, strictly speaking. The winner is the one who best represents the Arts.”
“How can you do that without winning?”
Oggie smiled widely. “In matters of war, have you ever heard of a Pyrrhic victory?”
“Isn’t that when an army wins a battle but at the cost of so many lives that they end up losing the war?”
Oggie nodded. “A wise general is not the one who knows how to win every battle. Sometimes the greatest generals are those who know how to retreat. A great general keeps the whole war in sight, not the battle, not the moment.”