Read Summoner: Origins The Prequel for Free Online

sends students as a punishment if they break the rules. Solitary confinement and all that,’ Ulfr replied, turning into another stairwell at the end of the corridor.
    â€˜What’s a Provost?’ Arcturus’s voice echoed in the tight confines of the staircase.
    â€˜A headmaster of sorts. He runs the academy, decides who graduates and sets the curriculum. You might say he’s the highest authority at Vocans.’
    â€˜When do I get to meet him?’ Arcturus asked. Ulfr ignored him and turned into an empty chamber with two doors. He took him down the left one and they entered a narrow corridor.
    â€˜Storage rooms,’ Ulfr grunted, pointing at the identical doors on either side. He pushed open a door at the very end and showed Arcturus a bare room with a thin pallet bed in the corner, with a simple desk and cabinet crammed against the far wall. An arrow slit allowed a cold gust of wind into the room and Arcturus felt the hair on his arms stiffen with gooseflesh.
    â€˜Home sweet home. If you need anything, keep it to yourself. I’m paid to serve the noble born children, not freaks like you. Common summoners. It’s not natural!’ Ulfr shook his head and began to walk away.
    â€˜I want to tell the Provost how poorly the servants are treated here. When do I get to meet him?’ Arcturus asked again, hoping to make peace with the dwarf.
    Ulfr turned and gave Arcturus a bitter laugh.
    â€˜You’ve already met him. The Provost is Obadiah Forsyth.’

6
    Arcturus woke feeling refreshed. Despite the cold draughts of wind that gusted through the glassless window, Sacharissa had wrapped herself around him like a slightly smelly fur coat, keeping him warm and comfortable all night.
    She whined in complaint as he extricated himself from her embrace and stood shivering in the room. He yanked the threadbare blanket from beneath her and wrapped it around his shoulders.
    â€˜Come on lazybones, we’re going to go find the baths and get ourselves cleaned up. First impressions are important.’
    Sacharissa rolled over, then blinked her four eyes at him sorrowfully.
    â€˜None of that,’ Arcturus grinned. ‘Your puppy dog act won’t do you any favours here.’
    She snorted with feigned annoyance, before padding to the door and nudging it open with her nose.
    Arcturus followed her out into the corridor, past the storerooms and down the stairs. She snuffled at the ground, as if she was hunting for something.
    â€˜I hope you’re not taking me to the kitchens,’ Arcturus murmured, trailing behind her. ‘We need to find the baths.’
    As if she could sense his meaning, she turned and looked at him. When his eyes met hers, he felt the connection between them flare, and for a brief moment his senses swam with a new awareness. Sounds became more acute, smells were intense and vivid. Only his vision suffered, the blue-white light of the morning outside turning into shades of grey and shifting strangely in front of his eyes.
    He staggered at the sensation, steadying himself on the wall. As quickly as it came, the feeling left him, but not before he sensed the scent that Sacharissa was tracking. Water.
    â€˜Lead on,’ Arcturus smiled, shooing her forward. He grinned, relishing the memory of his new power. It was fascinating to learn that Sacharissa might not be able to see colours. Who knew?
    She turned down the spiral staircase, taking him down to the Atrium while snuffling at the ground. It was obviously still early, for the castle was as lifeless and silent as a tomb.
    It was for that reason that he almost jumped out of his skin when a voice hailed him from the balconies above.
    â€˜Arcturus!’ Obadiah Forsyth snapped, his face peering over the metal railing from the floor above him. ‘Who gave you permission to leave your quarters?’
    Before Arcturus could answer, Obadiah’s head disappeared and footsteps echoed in the stairwell behind.