First Light, page 27
“Class, we are going to the practice fields. Let’s go.” The infamous professor popped her head into the door before she issued the instructions. As she left, she put a quick sign on the door for any students who had yet to arrive.
Ven groaned and packed up her things before leaving with her friends to follow the professor. I thought next week was practical studies. This week was supposed to be the last section on Aura Theory and class abilities…and it is so fucking cold! Ven silently wondered what the reason for the change was while keeping her complaints to herself. Tayven and Brick were just as curious about what was happening, but they all had no choice but to comply with the whims of Professor Lylah vas Mithra.
After the class gathered in the chilled winter air, they noticed that the red-headed resident of the C-Rank dorm was standing at a podium next to Professor Lylah, along with an Awakening Crystal. The prince had long since made his presence known at the academy and had no shortage of followers already trailing him between classes throughout the institution. He had also exhibited his lack of sword skills in the training arena only barely being passable. At first, everyone assumed he was useless as a prince and warrior, but then he really showed his capabilities within the classrooms. Everyone realized he purchased his rank from an unscrupulous Hall Master, but he possessed a large amount of knowledge and his performance within tactical coursework was second to none at the academy. Put simply, he was a scholar, not a fighter.
“Well, it seems some of our class will be late, but that’s fine,” the professor mumbled as she began. “Today, class will occur outside, since we also have to perform an Awakening ceremony for a few of your classmates. We will also go ahead and have you all participate in some practical exercises while we continue our education on the classes of the Awakened. Prince Lestreus, please place your hands on the crystal.”
The prince did as he was asked, and put his dominant hand on the crystal, while pointing his non-dominant hand towards the target range. The crystal glowed for a few seconds before the light was absorbed into the arm of the prince. Not even a moment later, a pale wall of light formed in front of his hand.
“Shielder. Congratulations,” the professor stated without fanfare. “As the other student Awakening today is not yet here, for now, please form groups. Pulsers to the target range, Enhancers partner with a Shielder. And before anyone complains, yes, I know it is cold. If you put in effort into your practice, you can rectify that problem.”
The students quickly divvied themselves up into the groups requested and began practicing using their abilities. Most partnered with their usual training companions. Ven, of course, was a Pulser, so she was at the target range. There were a handful of other Pulsers in class, but both of her friends were Enhancers, so they were a few dozen feet away trading blows with Shielders who were practicing blocking their blows. Prince Lestreus partnered with one of his followers who was clearly holding back, afraid of possible recourse if they broke the prince’s Barrier.
“As you all know, there are three Common classes of the Awakened. The Shielder, Pulser, and Enhancer,” the professor announced, starting the lecture. “What some of you may not know is that other classes exist. Uncommon, Rare, and, in theory, something else beyond that.”
“What are those classes, Professor?”
“I was getting to that. Uncommon classes comprise what we know as Variants. Variant Pulsers lack the ability to shoot quickly or make larger shots. Instead, they take longer to form, and the projectile is rarely larger than a piece of chalk. However, their distance is increased by up to three times. Some cases show a maximum range of almost seven hundred yards.
“Variant Shielders lack the ability to make large barriers, or place them too far away from their body. In exchange, the shields they create are thicker and harder to shatter. Finally, Variant Enhancers can double the maximum strength output of a standard Enhancer. This is at the cost of double the energy required. That power is also restricted to their feet and hands, preventing them from enhancing any other part of their body.”
By the time the professor had finished her explanation on Variants, the students were panting from exhaustion. They were all still relatively freshly Awakened and did not have the stamina to continuously use their abilities for more than a handful of minutes. No one seemed to feel the biting chill anymore. Right as Ven wiped away the sweat raining off her brow, a familiar face appeared behind the professor.
“Sorry I am late, professor. I was in the clinic and lost my way to the practice fields,”
Is that… it is! It’s him! It’s really him… He looks stronger somehow… Ven could barely believe her eyes. She also found herself thankful the flush of exercise hid the blush quickly spreading across her cheeks. The person who interrupted the professor was none other than the boy she had helped examine back in Hilden. His silver hair and hazel eyes were unmistakable. His smile was also there, but it seemed a little more forced than usual. Something about him was different, and it made her heart ache.
“Rune!” Ven shouted. “I can’t believe you are here! Did you get a late transfer? Did my father approve it?”
The silver-haired boy smiled at his friend and shrugged before turning back to the professor. That’s it? What happened to him? Professor Lylah had an extremely irritated look on her face. “Rune, huh? That wouldn’t have anything to do with Arkrune vys Volar, would it?”
Rune’s eyebrow raised in shock while asking, “How did you know that, professor? My birth name is Arkrune. I was sure I registered with the Vanguard and the Academy under just Rune.”
The professor snorted with disdain. Her voice took on a nasty tone. “It was just an unlucky guess. I’ll have you know, child, that Volari do not take kindly to people casually using the story of our kingdom’s founding hero to name their brats.”
“He has every right to it!” Ven interrupted. The sudden interjection shocked even herself, but she could not let the professor insult him. She could tell that the professor’s words cut into her friend a little. She would not stand for him to be insulted. “His father is a Wanderer from Volar, so it is his heritage, too!”
Instead of backing down, the professor’s face contorted into an even more indignant look. “You mean to tell me that a Wanderer, a traitor who abandoned their name and their culture, had the audacity to name their brat after one of our greatest heroes? Such disrespect.” Everyone in class remained silent. From his practice position to the side, Prince Lestreus, who was uncaring about what the common people were up to, had a sympathetic look on his face. The professor looked around and realized what a scene she had made.
She cleared her throat before addressing Rune again. “No matter. At least you use a nickname instead. You must have at least some form of propriety. Know that you now have two strikes against you, boy. Now go, place your hand on the Awakening Crystal to find out your class. Everyone else quit your gawking and get back to work! I see several of you shivering, which tells me you aren't working hard enough.”
The professor’s tone told everyone that she would not take any answer other than compliance, so everyone quickly returned to their practice. Most of the students were still exhausted, so the Pulses of Aura were fewer, as it took longer for each person to manifest their ability. Ven watched Rune instead. She noticed that Brick and Tayven had come over to watch with her.
“Hey, guys!” Ven happily stated. “That’s my friend Rune! We only spent a little while together in Hilden. He’s acting a little off, but he’s a good guy. I should introduce you!”
Brick laughed, and Tayven winced. “We met. Intimately,” Tayven said as he clutched his side. “That’s the C-Rank that kicked my ass the other day. Though his neck tattoo doesn’t seem to be there anymore. That’s weird. I thought he had one.”
Ven was about to say something, but her jaw had dropped open and showed no signs of complying with her commands to form words. She then felt a chill run through her spine. Tayven and Brick seemed to shudder, and even the professor appeared to be in a minor panic. All of their eyes were glued to the silver-haired boy who had touched the crystal.
The crystal activated, glowing brightly; brighter than anyone had seen before. By the time it caught their attention, the light should have dissipated and forced a reaction from Rune’s body to show his class, but it did not. Aura was visibly flowing from the orb into Rune’s dominant hand. A moment later, the crystal cracked beneath his palm. The light diminished, but still glowed ever so slightly.
Ven looked up at her friend’s face and saw that his eyes had taken on a familiar purple glow. One similar to a Volari. Black lines formed along his neck, forming a spider-like web. They spread downward into his chest and upwards towards his face. Suddenly, the ones moving around the front of his neck and chin overlapped, until they formed the shape of a skeletal hand, the thumb and index finger cupping his jaw. Rune doubled over, exposing the back side of the neck where, Ven could see more black webbing move outward from the tips of the skeletal fingers and down his back.
“Let go!” Professor Lylah shouted. She activated her eyes. Several stones along the ground vibrated, shaking off a loose smattering of snow. It seemed she wanted to launch them at the crystal. She tried to forcibly remove Rune’s hand, but it resisted as if glued. Her eyes somehow grew even larger as she realized her ability was not activating. The vibrating stones uselessly dropped to the ground.
Ven’s eyes darted around to the other students after hearing several weird complaints. Something strange was happening to them. Pulse shots dissipated moments after being released, Barriers flickered in and out of existence, and Enhancers lost their bursts of speed and strength. Those who had not noticed before, now turned their attention toward the source of the problem and saw Rune doubled over with his hand touching the broken crystal.
“Rune!” a voice suddenly cried out from the entrance to the practice field. A beautiful young woman with purple eyes ran toward Rune and placed a hand on his back while trying to pry his hand off the crystal. A purple mist soon began to emanate from the young man.
“Shit. Overheating. Brick! Get your overgrown ass over here and shatter this crystal before this monster kills us all!” The professor had abandoned all cares for propriety and simply wanted to keep them all from dying. Ven was at a loss for what was happening. Brick was just as confused, stunned momentarily.
In that moment of confusion, Tayven shouted at his friend, “Do it, Brick! He’s a Reaver! If he keeps absorbing the Aura from that crystal and overheats, he could go feral and kill us. Crush it now!”
Brick shook himself free from his stupor and ran towards the podium. Rune’s head snapped up. From his hands, he released a ball of energy. “Pulse: Rapid Fire.” Dozens, then hundreds of small orbs of light shot from the palm of his hand, decimating the target range. The students currently stationed there were thankfully out of the firing line. Those closer to the impact ducked from the showering debris.
“Shield: Area Barrier.” A dome of purple energy exploded outward with Rune at its center. As the light came into contact with people, they found themselves pushed back. The only two people who were not were the two closest to Rune, Professor Lylah and the other girl that Ven thought looked familiar.
“Goddess of Fate, guide my hands. Keep at bay the Lord of Death, but should he call me to the shores of the Sea of Chaos, may my end be swift,” Lylah prayed before she once again attempted to shatter the crystal with stones.
Her eyes glowed once more. This time, however, Ven and the other students could see as the Aura within the stones, and the string that connected them to Lylah’s hands became visible to the naked eye. This was a phenomenon that non-Volari should never have been able to see. Normally, Volari Weaving was invisible to non-Volari. Only when an Awakened human used Aura was it visible to the naked eye. None of that mattered at that moment. Professor Lylah’s efforts were in vain as the Aura strings vanished and the stones once more uselessly fell to the ground.
“You idiot! Stop trying to use Aura around him!” the girl who was trying to cradle Rune shouted. “His abilities are special, Area Disruption and Area Drain. I don’t know which one is being used right now, but if it’s the latter, you’ll kill us faster!”
Lylah dropped to her hands and rushed over to the crystal. The barrier was still up, but the boy showed no signs of exhaustion from this intense use of Aura. Lylah pulled out a simple dagger and struck the crystal repeatedly. She tried aiming for the cracks on its surface, but the strength she possessed was not enough to destroy it.
“Rune,” The girl stated calmly, “I need you to clear your head, just for a moment. Please. I need you to help us break this crystal.”
What happened to you, Rune? Come back to us. Ven watched helplessly from the side while some unknown woman gently ran her fingers through Rune’s hair. A sickening, twisting feeling formed in the pit of Ven's stomach. For a split-second, clarity came to the boy’s face, which was covered in the webbing that had originated on his neck.
“Enhance: Grip,” Every vein in Rune’s hand and arm glowed brightly, his muscles instantaneously flexing at once. The force generated by his grip was strong enough to turn the crystal into a fine powder with a single squeeze.
The mist was still falling off him, though considerably less so now, but the Barrier at least had dropped.
“Rune, listen to me.” the whispered. Ven had also run up and placed a hand on her friend’s back. The professor backed away so quickly that she fell on her posterior. The girl eyed Ven with caution before continuing, “You are overheating. Just like Karl warned. You need to quickly discharge as much Aura as possible as quickly as possible. Can you do that for me? Remember what it felt like to use the Pulser ability. Do that for me. Please.”
Rune nodded swiftly and moved to stand up, causing him to nearly fall over. The black webbing had taken over a considerable amount of his body. Ven and the girl caught him together and finished bringing him to his feet. Rune looked at his hands, brought them together, and pointed them at the sky. The veins in his shoulders glowed, hurrying down the length of his arms before concentrating on his palms. “Pulse: Overshot,”
First, an orb the size of the Awakening Crystal materialized between his hands. Rune leaned back while pointing his hands toward the sky. A massive beam of light erupted from the orb and shot into the air. Everyone’s jaws hit the ground as the solid beam of light split the clouds, piercing the very heavens above. Pressure created by the massive concentration of Aura rolled outward in waves intense enough to force Ven’s body to subconsciously quiver in fear and fight to retain consciousness. The light forced them all to avert their eyes.
Five seconds later, the beam ceased and Rune collapsed to the ground, panting. His consciousness abandoned him. Ven moved to help, but the unknown girl quickly cut between them by pulling Rune’s head into her lap. Once again, she was running her hands through his beautiful silver hair.
“Professor, with all due respect, what the fuck was that?” a student asked.
“A near death experience.” Lylah answered between gasps.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Fate weaves her threads together, spinning the tapestry of our journeys. She is our beginning and our future, but her husband, Death, is our end. When our time has come, Death receives these gifts from his lover to then pass on from life. Jealous of Fate’s artful designs, Chaos pulls at the loose threads he finds and weaves in new pieces unintended by their creator, leaving his own mark on those he finds the most interesting.
Path of Volar as written by Arkrune vys Volar
Lylah
“Professor Lylah vas Mithra,” a voice boomed with ferocity. It echoed through the large space that the poor woman found herself in. “What do you have to say for yourself regarding the incident that disturbed the peace of my city?”
Lylah’s leg cramped from being crouched on one knee for such a prolonged period. Still, she did not dare shift while in the presence of Lord Jelmoore. He was an elderly man, in his seventies, but looked many decades younger. His stature was still that of a proud warrior who appeared ready to enter the field of battle at a moment’s notice. He was known for his domineering personality and commanding voice.
The impact of his booming voice was enhanced by the wide stone walls and high ceilings of the lord’s audience chamber, the only decorations being a few tapestries representing the lord’s family, the Kingdom of Volar, and the Vanguard. Bold statements of the aging lord’s loyalties. Beneath her was a simple red carpet that led straight to Lord Jelmoore’s massive oak chair.
“Your lordship,” Lylah squeaked, “I assure you that what occurred today at the Vanguard Academy was something wholly unforeseeable. Had we known then—”
“I care not for your excuses, Professor!” the lord shouted, slamming his powerful fist on the arm of his chair, shattering it. “Tell me, what was that light?”
Lylah looked to the left of the chair and saw the master of both the academy and the Vanguard of Jelmoore, Vincent. He nodded his head, as if to give her permission to speak. She nodded in return. The lord noticed this interaction and gave an annoyed snort.
“My lord, the light was an Overshot… well beyond its normal capacity, of course,” Lylah cautiously answered.
The lord eyed the woman carefully before calling her out, “Bullshit. No Pulser on this plane can create a prolonged Pulse, let alone one that large. It split the sky, dammit! You expect me to truly believe that a mere Pulser did that?”
“No, no! Lord Jelmoore,” Lylah stammered. “The skill used was Pulse: Overshot but the source was not a Pulser. The source is a new entrant to the academy…a Reaver.”
Vincent’s eyebrow arched out of curiosity. Because of his lack of surprise, the woman believed that he might have had suspicions about Rune’s Class prior to admitting him to the academy. After the incident, she had spoken directly with Vincent and learned that Rune had been granted an exemption and enrolled outside the standard timeframe.
