CORAA BEGINS

"He who is learned learns

He who learns is learned"

[By Abe GerryStock the 1st, Reknown Kohve` Reformist of the 3rd Century, After Unity.]

"Is this the one?" One of the five guards at the gatehouse asked a third time. "She's scrawny, and her eyes are like those of the faah'isul (lost souls). Are you sure this is the one that's been recruited?", as the other worked at sending a message through some strange device to one of the people on duty inside the school grounds. The rest watched on silently.

"Look Sir. I am nothing more than a delivery man," the girl's minder -Master Grimshake- said clearly exasperated. "I was simply hired to transport her to this destination. Whether she looks like the one you were expecting is no concern of mine. I was told to make sure I hand her over to Master Orwell. No one else!"

They had been travelling on horseback for close to a week and the girl felt as though she was constantly tired. Her muscles ached tremendously. She was looking forward to some form of respite. And now, the guards wouldn't let them on to the school grounds without someone higher-up approving their entry. At least that was what she could glean from her minder's interaction with the guards. She was still learning the common language- learning to decipher it that is.

Her tutor from before taught her that languages were like a neat puzzle. Learning them was like problem solving; you had to go to the beginning of the problem. And in this case, it was the intention for communicating. It was always the origin. The sounds, gestures, and postulations were the solution. So to find out what people were saying in whatever language, all she needed to know was their intent. Her minder's intention was clear enough to her; to safely deliver her into the hands of Master Orwell just as Master Genghis had instructed him to do. She herself had heard Master Genghis giving that instruction to Grimshake. Her minder was a fully trained Kohze` too.

She was imagining the guards' intentions were to keep the school safe and so they couldn't just let anyone in. And so, from what she knew of the common language, she could safely conclude that they had to wait outside the gate until someone confirmed that they were expected.

She couldn't see any of the school buildings behind the gate. All she could see were trees, tall lush and green, like a forest. The school grounds were surrounded by a magical perimeter made up of intertwining vines and creeping plants with vicious-looking thorns. The gate was the only break in the sturdy wall of greenery for miles as far as the eye could see.

"The Master on duty just got back to us", said the guard who had been fiddling with the communication device. "He wants to know yours and your charge's name."

"Tell him Grimshake is here with the young Coraa on behalf of Master Genghis", Grimshake said. "Also tell him I have to come in with the rest of my guard. My job is not complete until I deliver Coraa here to the Master Orwell", he added sparing a brief glance at Coraa.

She was curious about how their communication device worked so she watched keenly as the guard wrote out the information on a white piece of paper using a special ink that glittered like some shiny viscous substance, and then slipped the paper into a false bottom of a small wooden chest that could be perfectly enclosed in his palms. The false bottom opened up at the side like a slot. How the whole thing worked wasn't quite clear but it seemed that this was an effective way of delivering long-distance messages without even lifting a foot. They waited a few more minutes. Grimshake's guard of four as stoic as ever. None of them moved to make conversation and exchange news as most common folk they had met along the way usually tried to do with their small group.

The hidden slot finally popped out as she was watching. The guard quickly read the message and signalled to one of the other three guards who had stayed within the safety of the gatehouse to let them through.

"You may go," he said. "Someone will be waiting to welcome you and take you straight to Master Orwell's office. And all the best to you young Coralline. It would be a good thing if I didn't see you soon" he said grimly. Then they were off riding again, through the school gates. Grimshake rode ahead of her with one of the guards while the other three surrounded her in the usual format; one to her left, another to the right and yet another at the tail end of their party.

The road was dusty and wide enough for two carts to ride alongside each other. It ran in the midst of the forest. She wouldn't want to travel this stretch of road alone because she felt like there was something or some things watching them go through from within the cover of the woods. They went at a gallop for a stretch of about three miles before they started seeing signs of trees receding and some outer buildings at a distance.

And finally, what she assumed to be the main school building was before them. It was imposing. There was no other way to describe it. It was simply and utterly imposing. Whoever built it was something else. The main school's building was of unusual proportions and dimensions. It was semi-circular, and tall. Just looking at the shape hurt the girl's head. It looked to be about five stories high, give or take. And it seemed like it was carved out of stone but looks could be deceiving. This was after all a building that was purported to house a large number of kohze` minds.

There were a few out buildings scattered all over the grounds, as far as she could see. And a marked boundary from where the tree line stopped. There were no other trees on the island that was the main school grounds, except for a peculiar old wizened and misshapen tree. It looked to have once been a sturdy oak that had later been swallowed up by some kind of creeper. It was situated a few feet from an imposing giant statue of a well-dressed man with a bowler hat on his head looking up to the sky with one hand in his pocket and another rested over his brow as though to wipe off sweat; in salute? Or perhaps to indicate a severe headache? The hand upon the brow could indicate any number of things.

They slowed down and drew to a halt by the granite steps leading up to the school building's main entrance right behind the giant statue. They were met by an unnaturally cheerful young kohze`. A student most probably.

"Master Grimshake . . . Miss Coraa, Call me Ella," she said the moment they dismounted almost bouncing off her feet with excitement. "I am here to bid you welcome. You can have a moment to rest and refresh yourselves before you go in to meet Master Orwell. Your men can lead the horses to the stable where they will be taken care of", she added smiling a little bit too wide.

"I will see Master Orwell now. Lead the way", Grimshake said gruffly, frowning a bit more than usual when it seemed the girl Ella was about to protest. "Shall we be off?"

"But Of course Master Grimshake. Right this way", Ella replied sweetly, leading them up the steps and right through the wide open doorway at the top.