I glanced at both before looking back down at my watch. A long list of names were displayed on the side while a format layed in the center.
[6am-8am System mechanics course]
[8:30am-10:30am Student's choice]
[12pm-2pm Koi studies]
[3pm-4pm Student's choice]
[4pm-5pm Student'schoice]
Followed by a lot of courses but the times didn't make sense to me. The first Student's choice class was 2 hours but the other 2 are 1 hour. Is the first one supposed to be my main choice? Then, I read down the list but only a few caught my attention.
[Path studies- 'A' rank minimum]
[integraters course- 'S' rank minimum]
[Plant origin studies- 'A' rank minimum and a plant origin required]
[War tactics- 'A' rank minimum]
[Herbology- plant origin required]
[Apprentice Forging- invite only by mentor]
6 courses that caught my attention but I could only choose 3. Looking over each of them, I knew i could knock out war tactics right away. It just caught my attention but it will only help me in the army, not after.
Then, I knocked herbology off as plant origin studies seemed like an advanced version of it. Leaving 4 left to my discretion. Finally, after a long thought out choice, I bumped off the plant origin studies and dragged the 3 classes to the chart in the following order.
[Integrators course]
[Apprentice forging]
[Path studies]
Suddenly, a little letter icon popped up, followed by another.
[Tiana Fallen, has sent a friend request]
[Tiana Fallen, has sent you a message]
I stared at it before glancing up at her talking to a group of people. Yet, every so ofter. Id catch her side eyeing me fiercely. I tapped accept and the message popped up.
[I can feel your bonded's aura. We should talk later]
Yes, thats all it said. I glanced down at the tattoo on my arm but didnt feel anything. Then, I pulled up my status.
<&#%@: locked>
Seeing the only change in my soul space, I called out to Veil.
'Are you giving off any aura?' I called out in my mind, and to my suprise, she was. Well, not her exactly.
'When I absorbed the armored bone sky glider, i also absorbed its purified dark koi, which has blossomed into a flower. She can probably feel that' Veil explained as a system notification suddenly popped up.
'What the hell is darkness koi?' I called out but something else caught my attention. The massive herd of people were starting to move towards the 2 paths on either side of the building in front, with the gold plaque of a majestic book.
I followed along, trying to stay hidden for as long as possible but it seemed fate had other plans. As I walked, gavin, Caleb, and lucia ended up closer and closer until they were right beside me. I wanted to punch them, tell them off and leave them to bleed. But I couldn't.
"Hey felix" Gavin called out awkwardly, making the figurative tension seem corporal. I glanced over before looked back towards the front.
'I get that, I understand. I just wanted to say sorry. No hard feelings, right?' Gavin's voice rang out in my head, making me rage on thr inside but I refuse to let it show. Then, things took an interesting turn.
'And this is... Gavin? No?' Veil called out in my mind, making Gavin look pale as he watched me in horror. I didn't even look over as he slowly made more distance between us.
"Thank you" I whispered as I saw where we were heading. It looked like a massive hotel and dorm room put together. The entrance was gold and red with a massive lobby. As soon as we entered, i saw a red aura coat my wrist as a red number appeared in bold lettering.
[T6]
Then, hoards upon hoards of students were ushered into the elevators while massive lines formed. Countless conversations were occurring simultaneously, making me a little nervous until I felt a hand on my shoulder. It was like the world went silent as a clear voice rang out.
"Are you ok?" A man asked, making me turn. What I saw suprised me a little too much. The man was petite to put it lightly. It felt impossible for him to draw any attention, as if he could fade away at any moment.
"Yea" I breathe out as the silence slowly fills up. He nodded before walking away, disappearing into the crowd of people. Soon enough, it was my turn. Walking in, there were no buttons, only silver walls as the red carpet looked seamlessly connected to the walls.
Then the door closed before suddenly opening. Infront of me wasn't a normal floor. There were red carpets, yet they weren't normal. There were golden fish sewn into it, like a family flowing down a river. Above me, hung crystal chandeliers wish a soft red light.
Looking ahead, I saw a row of doors but they all felt... different. I walked down to the one that said, T6, and placed my hand on the smooth wall below it. Slowly, a Crack formed and openned up, revealing a meadow like space. A clear sky with a full moon projection above while massive pot of soil layed in the center.
Walking in, I heard something behind me but Veil reacted before I did. Vines grew out of my shirtless back, forming an armor of vines.
"Ooh? What an attentive bonded" a vaguely familiar voice rang out. Turning around, I saw Tiana with a woman I didn't recognise, but the black blade in her hand was coated in a red aura.
"What do you want? How did you find me?" I called out coldly, feeling my koi surging in it's cycle. Tiana sighed as she waved to the door, which thr other woman closed it swiftly with a practiced manner.
"I am here to inform you. With the aura your bonded gave off earlier, i have no doubt that you got an, 'S' ranking. Take integraters course. You'll need it. Thought I'd be nice to a peer" Tiana called out before she suddenly walked out with her friend.
As soon as the door closed behind them, a deafening silence spread out over the mini meadow. Slowly, I openned my watch and looked at my schedule one last time before hitting the big red, confirm, button.
Time passed slowly but it wasn't all bad. Veil moved out of my arm, into the pot in the room while I studied the room carefully. Funny enough, the walls were some sort of optical illusion, there were really 4 rooms. This big meadow being the main one, then a bedroom off in the corner, a bathroom in the opposing corner, while a third room held something I didn't expect.
A forge and anvil. How did they know I was going to choose that course? Or did they give it to everyone student? Or maybe it would only be here if it was an option from the start? The possibilities were endless so I did my best to stop thinking about it.
After an hour of doing nothing but pacing, I finally figured out why I couldn't relax. I was used to the constant threat of spirits and my subconscious couldn't adjust as fast as I wanted. I openned my watch as I layed on my bed. On it, there was 2 friend requests up front.
[Gavin Hearts, has sent a friend request]
[Brandon, has sent a friend request]
I stared at both for a moment before ignoring them. Then, I spotted an info packet in the first windows my watch showed. Tapping on it, slides upon slides of text popped up. Sighing, I started to read them in depth.
One of the longest hours later, it can be summed up info a handful of points. The first one being the currency used thankfully isn't sparks, but merit points. Yet these merit points weren't simple.
They could only be earned through academic or military achievements. They can be used to redeem countless things, things I can't even imagine yet.
Second point, sparring was allowed on campus, but only if formally challenged with the school's A.I. no killing allowed or youll be expelled pending charges.
Third point, classes weren't mandatory, but if you failed the mid term, you woulf be a dishonorable discharge.
Then, the final, most important rule. Don't trust anyone. While it seemed comical, it held immense value. You see, there was a social hierarchy of students from families and those who weren't. The easiest way to tell was last names. Those who aren't from a family don't have one.
This social hierarchy has led to the demise of many who trusted to readily. Thankfully, every group that I joined left me so I never had to worry about it. Well, Tiana's name still read under my friends list but nothing will come of it.
Then, the things I've been putting off. I looked into my soul space and spotted the 2 floating sparks flying freely until my eyes locked onto them. Slowly, they faded together and an intense burning sensation radiated in my head. By this point, you'd think it got easier...it doesn't.
Time passed slowly until the pain finally faded into bliss. My koi doubled again, bringing my progress from 2 to 4. Suddenly, I felt a rumble of hunger and pulled out a pound of deer meat, bringing it to the forge. I found a metal poker near it and skewered the meat on it.
Roasting the deer meat made me hungry every time but soon, I dug in, eating it all, leaving now scraps. Then, fatigue finally got the best of me, sending me into a dream haze.
In a room adjacent to felix's Tiana stood on golden marble tile as she glanced up at a white sun high in the sky. There were 3 things laying on her table in the center of her room.
The stone heart from the giant, a soul of a weird looking bird, and an old piece of paper that was yellowing all over.
"Will this be enough?" She whispered to herself.