《The Split Sky Chronicles》


 Chapter 1: Departure

    Prologue


    In the deepest pit at the top of the world, madness awaits.


    Chapter 1: Departure


    Zel thought that once this night had come, she would be ready. She thought that she would be able to pack up her things and leave her town behind. But when she woke up in her bed, anxiety gripped her heart. She opened her eyes, she was laying on her side facing the wall of her room. For a while she sat alone with her thoughts. She was an anxious person by nature, but tonight her mind was especially busy.


    While laying there, Zel felt a bit warmer than usual and was, now that she thought about it, entirely too cramped in her own bed. Rolling over, Zel found her sister, Miriya, sound asleep beside her and curled up into a little ball, clutching her tail close.


    Zel''s sister had her own bed on the other side of the room, but she also had a long time habit of crawling into Zel''s bed when she was anxious. Zel didn''t blame her and found her warm fur comforting and it made her reluctant to get out of bed herself. Perhaps I can sleep in a bit, she thought, slowly closing her eyes.


    But tonight of all nights was an important one, and the pounding of her heart wouldn''t let her rest. She needed to wake up. So, reluctantly, she rolled over and began the often difficult process of waking up her sister.


    "Miri, Miri! It''s time to wake up, sis. Tonight''s the night! We''re headed to school!" Zel spoke quietly, gently shaking her sister''s shoulder as she attempted to rouse her.


    "Mrrrm," Miriya responded, gracefully. "Don''t go to school no more. Graduated."


    Zel couldn''t help but giggle.


    "That''s true! But now we have a bigger school to go to, remember? We got invited to Dream Academy, remember? Tonight''s the night we gotta go and show them our stuff!"


    "Don''t wanna," Miriya replied.


    "Don''t want to achieve the dream we''ve both had since we were kids? Become famous soldiers that defend our home, the realm, and its people?" Zel asked while trying more aggressively to jostle her up.


    "Forget the dreams, sleep time," Miriya said, not budging.


    Zel sighed.


    "Well, remember... I tried my best."


    "Hrm?" Miriya gurgled.


    Zel raised one of her fingers, gracefully whisking it through the air as if writing beautiful calligraphy before, slowly and carefully, she brought it down until it was positioned just barely above Miriyas buttocks. Once there, she concentrated on the tip of her finger until she felt a familiar tingling sensation, then suddenly from the tip of her finger a small arc of electricity loosed through the air, which briefly connected her finger and Miriya''s unsuspecting behind in glorious conductivity.


    Miriya let out a shrill yelp, her whole body tensing up and contorting before she went tumbling off the bed onto the hard wooden floor below.


    "ZEL!" she shouted from over the bed''s edge. "That wasn''t very nice of you, you know!"


    Miriya''s head popped over the edge of the bed so Zel could see her pouting expression, practiced and perfected over many blooms. Its powers, used to stop countless lectures from their parents, was wasted on Zel.


    "I tried nice first. Nice is for people who wake up when there''s stuff to do!" Zel, wagging her finger threateningly, its deadly butt-zapping charge still visible to the naked eye. "Now let''s get ready and get some breakfast, Mom and Dad are probably already awake!"


    Miriya grumbled annoyedly, rising to her feet slowly before reluctantly dragging herself to the dresser on her side of their bedroom. Zel rolled out of bed and strode over to the window. She threw open the wooden shutters and was greeted by the brisk breeze of cold night air.


    Zel looked up into the sky. Above her and impossibly far away was the moon, shining down on the nation of eternal night. Its two halves, one of a vibrant and warm crimson, the other a cool and mellow blue, shone down on her. Tonight the air between her and the moon seemed to sparkle as the gentle snow that drifted through the air from somewhere in the east caught the light and filled the sky with a unique glimmer.


    Split Sky, Zel thought, taking a deep breath of the evening air. The name of her country and place of birth, the moon as its namesake, it is the only place that Zel had ever called home.


    Children of the sky¡­ Zel thought with a nostalgic sigh. It was always what the teachers at her school and adults would call themselves, the Splitfolk, when talking to children. It was nostalgic to think of now that she was leaving home, and she thought that perhaps she would tell kids the same thing.


    But now isn''t the time to think about that, Zel thought. She shook her head and clapped her hands over her cheeks. With a slight sting and fresh resolve, Zel turned around to get ready to leave.


    Upon turning around, Zel found Miriya waiting for her. She had already dressed and was holding Zel''s favorite black dress in two outstretched hands. Miriya''s sleepiness had dispelled, and she stood bright eyed with a familiar and eager smile on her face, her tail unconsciously and happily waving behind her.


    Miriya was a Trailfolk, a people from the far side of the world who were known for having slender bodies coated in fur with pointed ears sprouting from the tops of their heads, and a distinctive fuzzy tactile tail on their behinds, Miriya was no exception. Miriya was a bit shorter than Zel, only by a smidge, she had tan fur that covered her whole body that grew darker and thicker around the top of her head. She had piercing yellow eyes, but a gentle face that instantly won over anyone who met her. Zel had always been jealous of how easily she made friends. She was skinny but muscular from spending most of her life hunting and playing outdoors with her trusty slingshot, which she had already strapped tightly to her hip.


    Her fingers ended with padded prints, and her powerful tail was well-known around the forests of their hometown, holding her up from many a tree branch while she terrorized the local fauna with her deadly accuracy and tenacity to hunt whatever it was she set her sights on.


    Unlike the dress that Miriya was handing Zel, the clothes that she wore were rather plain, never having been much of one for a stylish wardrobe. She wore a simple tan shirt that covered her top half, with some matching shorts on the bottom half. Trailfolk were gifted with durable feet, the pads that covered her palms and digits growing much thicker on the soles, and as such Miriya wore no shoes.


    Zel smiled at Miriya. Though they were sisters, Zel was a Splitfolk, people native to the land of Split Sky, a vastly different people than the Trailfolk. She had light blue skin which seemed to constantly glisten and sparkle under the moonlight. Her hair was dark and inky, a wild mop on her head that, despite her best efforts, she had never been able to fully bring under her control. Her face was composed mostly of sharp features, chin, cheekbones, all the way down to her pointy teeth, which came to bare when she smiled. She had light freckling under her turquoise eyes that, even among the Splitfolk, were abnormally radiant and almost seemed to glow as if lit from within. Pointy ears poked out from either side of her head, and she, like Miriya, was lithe and toned, but she would be the first to admit that she could not yet compete with her sister''s athleticism.


    She held the dress that Miriya gave her aloft. A twilight black dress with no sleeves and frills on the skirt that reached just to her knees. Miriya knew it was her favorite, she''d bought it for her afterall. Zel wondered if the Academy would let students wear dresses. Maybe tonight would be her last chance for a while to wear something like this. Zel''s eyes teared up at the thought.


    "Miriya! Zel! Come down stairs! We''ve got to get you two ready!" Zel heard her mother call from downstairs. She wiped the tears out of her eyes and put on her dress along with her matching pair of black heeled slippers. She looked at Miriya, who was also emotional, though she was doing her best to keep it under control. The two of them grabbed their bags they had been packing for months now and after taking one last look around their childhood room, left out the door and into the stairwell of their home.


    As they lugged their luggage down the stairs, the bags were large and hulking with most of their lives packed within, Zel noticed a wonderful smell in the air which gently floating its way up to them. She could see light pouring in from the bottom of the staircase, and was just barely able to make out the flickering movement of a shadow from the next room.


    Hopping off the last step the two rounded the corner into their kitchen together. Their family dining table, a massive and dense wooden beast covered with the scars of endless use, was completely coated with every kind of breakfast food that Zel had ever conceived. Eggs, pancakes, bacon, and everything else good in the world was laid out neatly, but in such bulk as to be spilling off the edges of the table, no matter how well organized it was.


    As soon as they walked through the door, the two were suddenly ambushed, two figures leapt out from behind the door frame, hidden just out of sight until the moment they struck. With equal numbers but the element of surprise on their side, the shadowy figures were able to capture both Zel and Miriya, one girl each, in a powerful embrace. Miriya was lucky, getting grabbed by their mother. Zel was not so lucky.


    "Congratulations, you rotten runts!" Zel''s father shouted while aggressively rubbing Zel''s hair, his strong arms keeping her head pinned to his chest.


    "Now the folks at the capital will have to deal with your nonsense, instead of us!" her mother piped in as well while tickling Miriya who was cackling uncontrollably. Maybe Zel was the lucky one.


    Together, both their parents wrestled them to the table where they pushed the duo into their seats.


    "Now eat!" their father demanded, his arms held wide to show off the incredible buffet he had made. "You won''t get a meal like this where you''re going, not for a long time. So eat as much as you want, girls! Eat until you''re sick!"


    Neither Zel nor Miriya needed to be told twice, as immediately they began to dig in.


    "Are you all packed? You''re wearing that black dress that Miriya bought you! Looking your best, just like always Zel! And Miriya, look at you! You''re so big now I can''t believe it! After all this time you guys are finally in! Dream Academy! Just like Ziek! Imagine that!" Their mom rattled off a non-stop stream of compliments, worries, concerns and everything that she could think of. They had heard it all before, but weren''t upset to hear it one last time as well.


    "We''re not in yet, mom. We passed the preliminary examinations from our old school, we still got to get there and show them our stuff!" Zel said in between bites of pancake, syrup dribbling down her chin. Perhaps she was not the picture of a fair maiden that she often thought herself as, but her father''s cooking was far too good to worry about such drivel.


    "Ahh, that exam ain''t gonna be shit!" Zel''s father yelled, one of his big hands clamping down on the top of her head, ruffling her hair around again.


    "Watch your mouth, dear!" Zel''s mom scolded. She was notoriously against senseless cursing, something that Zel herself had frequently gotten in trouble for.


    Surrounded by the familiar sounds and smells and tastes, Zel felt at ease, but it was short lived. A sense of dread filled her and the world around her grew quiet as she realized that this would be the last time for a long time the four of them would be here together, eating as a family. She would miss it. She didn''t even know what it was like to live without all this noise around her. Maybe the Academy wouldn''t be so different. She hoped so.


    There was too much food to eat, even for the starving girls, but they took their best shot. By the time the two of them were done they had put a sizable dent in the number of plates dishes on the table. Though they both wished they could eat even more, they knew that it would not go to waste. And both fortunately and unfortunately, it was time to leave.


    They got up off the table as their parents worked to clear it off for them, and they walked towards the stairwell. The two of them stood up and reached for their bags, only to notice that they had been stolen from them while they were distracted by their father''s cooking. Their mother and father had one bag each and were standing by the front door, ready to leave.


    "We''ll meet you out front," their dad said with a nod before the two of them disappeared through the door, leaving Zel and Miriya alone once more.


    They sat in silence, taking in the relaxed aura that their home seemed to emit naturally before both letting out a full and content sigh.


    "You excited?" Miriya asked after a time.


    "Of course I am," Zel said. "But you know me, I''ve never been out of here before. Out of our town, I mean. I''m fuckin'' scared." Zel wrapped her arms around herself, just barely stifling an involuntary shiver.


    "It''ll be okay. We''re going together." Miriya reassured her, placing a fuzzy hand on her sister''s shoulder. "It''s what we''ve both wanted to do for a long time. Imagine us! Becoming soldiers that defend all of Split Sky! We can be heroes. You and me! Go anywhere we want to!"


    Zel chuckled.


    "You''ve been like that ever since you rode into my life. Since the night you hopped off that train. You can go anywhere, do anything and you''ll never look back or regret anything in the least. I¡­ don''t know if I can, but I think I''ll try¡­ I''ll try to borrow a bit of that enthusiasm tonight," Zel said, she spoke bravely, but her heart was heavy.


    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    "Now come on," Zel continued, "Let''s go steal our bags back and get out of here before someone can convince me to stay." The two stood up and made their way towards the front door. Though Zel spoke with conviction, neither she nor Miriya were in any rush to leave, and took in everything they could before they stepped outside


    Once out, they found themselves in their mother''s home garden, surrounded by all sorts of beautiful flowers and edible fruits and vegetables, each organized and put in its place, selectively chosen through years of trial and error and color-coding. Zel''s mother was already a ways away from the door, going about her business in the garden as if it were any other evening. A stream of water was flowing from the tip of her finger and vaporizing into a fine mist that sparkled in the air before gently floating down over the thirsty plants.


    Their mother was a gardener by trade, and her skill had made her something of a local celebrity, able to grow many kinds of plants that had been previously thought to only grow in the warmer regions. Zel''s favorite were the Drakilais, a kind of flower that spit out orange pollen whenever it was jostled and looked as though it was breathing fire. They only grew on the far western border of Split Sky and the neighboring nation, so to have them on the eastern side was a special treat that only her mom could manage.


    Zel''s father was standing by the gate to their yard, leaning against it casually and waiting with the two bags while Zel and Miriya meandered through the garden. Eventually, though, they found their way to the gate and were shortly joined by their mother once she finished with her leafed friends.


    "You ready to go?" Their father asked, wearing a big smile, but with significantly less enthusiasm than when he had cooked them breakfast. "Train is due at full bloom, don''t have too much time left." Zel''s father gestured sharply with one thumb to the giant Tiltwilt flower in the center of their mother''s garden.


    It was a special flower that the people of Split Sky used to track time. Its pedals were a strange split of brown and purple that shimmered and moved throughout the night. Every night the Tiltwilt would fully raise and bloom as if it were the peak of the season, but then it would sink back down until it appeared to have withered and died, only to repeat the process once again the next night. They were rather marvelous flowers that only grew in Split Sky, and the one in her mother''s garden was by far the largest one that Zel had ever seen, standing taller than she did when normally they were just barely large enough to fill out the palm of one''s hand.


    "I think so, Dad. We''ve got everything that I think we need," Zel said in response to her father''s question. Miriya was next to her, quietly nodding in agreement.


    "Let''s take off then," he said. With neither their father nor their mother allowing them to carry their own bags, Zel, Miriya, and their parents began heading down the main road of their town.


    In their small town of Slipton, everybody knew everybody. As they traveled down the cobblestone road, lit only by moonlight and glittering snow, they ran into some familiar faces. Zel''s family had been there for a long time and their parents in particular were friends with lots of the townsfolk. This night had been talked about for a long time, so there were lots of folks and friends of the family who wanted to wave them a quick goodbye as they passed through the town proper.


    The town was a bustle of activity, as much as it could be for a town with such a small and niche population. Everyone who they ran into was wearing warm clothes that kept them cozy in the cool air. Being on the eastern side of Split Sky it close to the border of Lantern, the land of the cold sun, and as such it was important to bundle up, the weather was always chilly no matter what time of year.


    Most businesses in Slipton were directly tied to the train station, pretty much everyone worked by the platform one way or another and Zel''s parents weren''t an exception. Their mother took advantage of the train to ship her more exotic flora out without having to worry about it spoiling. Their father on the other hand was more directly involved with the train station. He was a talented chef, having made incredible meals like their breakfast for as long as Zel could remember. His perseverance and skill had earned him enough money to be able to buy a restaurant that could directly serve travelers on the train platform, his pride and joy from which he served customers from all around the world.


    But now Zel was leaving all of that behind. She knew she would miss it, she had known for a long time, but it had never hurt like it did now as each step brought them closer to the train station. Zel had always been proud to have parents like them, each of them making a living and following their own dream, encouraging her to do the same, even if they weren''t big fans of her joining Dream Academy. She was so proud, but now she wondered if her parents knew.


    "Are you cold, Zel?" Her mother suddenly asked from beside her, interrupting Zel''s thoughts.


    Her mom had an all-too-familiar look of worry at Zel''s appearance. The dress that Zel was wearing did next to nothing to stave off the cold and she could feel it starting to bite into her skin, but she did not mind.


    "I''m fine, Mom," Zel assured her. "I''m a bit cold but this¡­ this is how I want to look tonight. And the train ride to the capital isn''t so long, and it''ll definitely be warm enough by the time we get there!"


    "I know, I just want to make sure that my girls get there healthy! At least Miriya has that fur coat so I know she''ll be fine."


    "You know, Trailfolk furs actually help to keep us cool! It''s a lot hotter where I was born!" Miriya cheerfully piped in with a fun fact. Both Zel and their parents knew better than to believe her, though.


    Miriya had never once needed extra layers her entire life. Her fur kept her comfortably warm in the cold and happily cool in the heat. Zel was often jealous of it, but then she saw the kinds of care and maintenance the fur needed after Miriya spent more than one evening in a row outside, Zel found herself just as quickly forgetting that jealousy. She was not particularly lazy when it came to her hygiene, but she would take her smooth skin and scales over the fur any night.


    "Haha!" Zel''s dad laughed without turning around. He had taken the lead of the group, holding Zel''s bag in one of his muscular arms and using the other to stop and vigorously greet all of the people in town that he knew, something that he was known for in Slipton. Even though he looked and acted the same way that he always did in front of the townsfolk, Zel could tell that her father was feeling conflicted inside.


    Maybe someone who didn''t know him as well as she did wouldn''t be able to tell, but he was distant. He threw himself into conversations with people that he saw all the time as if it was the first time they met, bringing up topics and conversations that would keep him and the neighbor talking for a while. He made sure to stop by every shop, every store, and every building that they passed to talk to inhabitants. He would always end the conversation with the same sentence.


    "Well, I''d better be off. My girls are heading to the big city!" He said over and over.


    From the outside it appeared to be the overt bragging of a very proud father, and in some respects it was, but Zel could see through her father''s attempts to hide his true feelings. Every stop and every conversation was an attempt to slow them down, to make them take just a little while longer getting to the station.


    This didn''t mean that Zel wanted to stop him, however. Instead, she jumped in wherever she could with Miriya joining in too. By the time they were done they had said their goodbyes to almost everyone in town and as a result they found themselves in front of their destination: the train station.


    There was quite a stark distinction between the small village formed of stone and wood and the mechanical wonders that were unique to the train line. Metals of all kinds were used to form the platform, each enchanted and designed to be the most efficient for a specific purpose or, more often than not, for comfort. The metal framework that held up the majority of the platform was enchanted to be extra durable, the flooring itself, a mix of dark shadewood and gray stone, was meticulously crafted to provide an easy sensation on the feet, even if barefoot. The railings that lined the platform on all sides and leading into the loading zone were made to hold all kinds of weights and materials placed upon it so as to account for even the most absurd and unusual of riders or loaded materials. This was the kind of quality that everyone in Split Sky had come to expect from the Full Circle Railroad company. Even in a small and dingy town like Slipton that little draw for visitors was given this kind of treatment. Its construction quality was something bordering on absurd and, given that this is what was provided to a single train stop in a small town, Zel had always wondered what the stations were like in the bigger cities.


    It was to maintain this level of quality and luxury that the Full Circle Railroad rarely allowed any outside influence on their platforms, keeping everything in-house made keeping up appearances simple. Sure, they would allow the town to add a flare of their own, something to let the riders know where they were, but they would never let someone add a piece of construction that could be construed as being part of the platform. Which is why the Slipton Station was so unusual.


    When you stepped off of the train to visit Slipton, the first thing you would notice is likely the large and rather ornate wooden sign that read "Welcome to Slipton!" It was covered with all sorts of decorations that had been added over years and years of various townsfolk pitching in. Glassworks, small patches, flowers that were replaced regularly and more hung down from this little addition. But then the second thing you would likely notice was directly to the sign''s right, a building of a beautiful dark Shadewood was haphazardly attached to the edge of the railing, the only access from the platform being a small window that you could smell a variety of delicious scents wafting through nearly any night of the year.


    Above that window was a sign that was much smaller and less ornate than the Slipton one, a sign that read simply in bold and carved lettering "The Track Shack."


    This was Zel and Miriya''s father''s restaurant. The thing of which, in the entire world, he was only more proud of Zel and Miriya. It was somewhat uncommon to be able to run a successful restaurant outside of a major city, and practically unheard of to strike a deal with the train company and be able to sell directly onto the platform. Zel had not traveled enough to confirm for herself, but the number of travelers that sang her father''s praises told her that it was a rare sight indeed.


    Of course, it wasn''t technically part of the platform itself, though the customers could not care less. The convenience of hopping off the train for a single stop and enjoying a locally acclaimed meal was a major attraction for many, though meals handed hastily through a window were far from the only service the Track Shack offered.


    If one were to venture off the platform and around to the otherside they would find themselves at the proper entrance, where they could have a proper sit-down meal, complete with drinks, company, and warmth that was hard to come by on the cold side of the continent.


    It was within these restaurant walls that Zel and Miriya grew up hearing stories of Dream Academy. People from around Split Sky and even all of Tenyarn found themselves needing a place to stop and rest, and one would be hard pressed to find a better option than what Zel and Miriya''s father could offer. Folk from all different walks of life would wander into the establishment and talk about whatever was on their mind. Zel and Miriya made a habit of listening to all their stories to hear about all of the wonders of the world, but their favorites were always tales from Dream Academy.


    In particular, there was one man who had worked their imaginations harder than any other, a train worker by the name of Ziek. It was from this man that Zel and Miriya had first even heard of Dream Academy. He had seemingly endless stories of his time that he spent there before he decided to retire and work on the train line. They would sometimes listen to him throughout the night until they fell asleep and their unfortunate father had to both close up his restaurant and carry them back up the windy town road to home.


    Zel often wondered how it was that her father had been able to make such a successful business, though she suspected it had something to do with Ziek, as the two had known each other for a very long time. At least that''s what they told her.


    Zel couldn''t help herself as they reached the steps of the platform, she stopped to look at the restaurant one last time. Its doors were closed and lightly coated in a powder of white, a rare sight on any night. Normally her father would have already opened up, getting the burners ready for the early customers, but of course he wouldn''t tonight, at least not yet. Though Zel suspected as soon as they were on their way that the doors would open right up.


    It was a strange sensation, looking at those closed doors. She couldn''t even guess how much time she had spent within those walls. But tonight she walked right past it.


    Though Zel had felt somewhat relaxed while walking through the town up to this point, however when she and her family reached the bottom of the platform steps she found herself hesitating.She had climbed the steps of the station many times before and they looked now different tonight than they ever had before, but the knowledge that she would not be walking back down these steps later in the evening, or the night after, or the night after that going on for a very long time was a thought that made her stomach suddenly drop.


    She let out a sigh and felt a warm sensation on her back. Miriya had stopped with her as their parents climbed up the steps. On her face she wore a bittersweet smile, the same expression Zel found herself wearing. Together the two of them sat in silence, but it wouldn''t do to wait any longer. Zel took Miriya''s hand in her own and they made their way up the platform steps.


    When they reached the top their mother was already patiently waiting for them, both Zel and Miriya''s luggage at her feet. Their father, however, had wandered off to the edge of the platform where the train would be arriving. He stared out into the distance while standing lazily, his wide back curved and his hands in the pockets of his trousers. Zel wandered over to where he was and tried to trace his gaze.


    He was facing north, where the local Shadetree forest began just a mile or so beyond the tracks. The Shadetrees were a vibrant sea of yellow leaves that sat atop their dark trunks, dividing the horizon into layers of color. Beyond that all that could be seen on the eastern side were the Cross Mountains, a veritable wall of stone that stretched far into the night sky, too far to even hope to glimpse peaks. They stretched all the way north until they faded into the distant gloom. To the west there was nothing but the sea of trees with the track splitting the ocean in twain. Compared to other places in the world, Zel found it hard to imagine it was the most beautiful place out there, but at the same time she had a hard time imagining one that she would rather see.


    The chill of the night was more harsh out on the platform, away from the warmth and people of the town. Zel felt herself shiver and for the first time could see her breath on the air. Another time her father might have noticed, but he seemed entranced by the distant haze and after some time standing in silence, he spoke


    "You two excited to get out of here?" He asked, not turning around.


    "Yeah, we are, Dad." Zel responded truthfully.


    "That''s good. That''s good." Zel''s dad said as he reached into his jacket pocket.


    From his pocket he produced a purple cigar, long and old. Carefully he placed one end into his mouth before pulling his finger down its length to the tip. Small sparks flew from the tip of his finger urging the dry leaves to ignite, but to no avail.


    He tried a few more times with equal measures of success before Zel offered her own finger in assistance. Zel''s father smiled and leaned over, meeting Zel halfway as Miriya snuck up on his right and grabbed his arm playfully. Zel ignited his cigar with a shot of electricity arcing from the tip of her finger to the exposed leaves.


    Satisfied with her handiwork, Zel let her arm fall back to her side only to be suddenly grabbed and pulled in by one of her father''s powerful arms. Miriya was similarly trapped on the other side of him.


    "I-..." Their father stammered, tears long held back now flowing freely from his eyes, "I''m going to miss you guys so¡­ so dam-damn much!"


    Zel felt wetten again, and this time Miriya could not contain herself either. Zel''s mom appeared and joined the embrace, her own face already streaked from tears. They stayed like that for a while, and for a moment, Zel didn''t want to leave. She hoped that they could stay together forever.


    But it was not meant to be.


    It wasn''t long thereafter before a light shone in the distance, and with it came a growing symphony of sound. The Full Circle Express thundered into the station, its strict schedule ignorant of the emotional scene taking place at its platform. It came to a screeching halt in a cloud of steam, and a blast of warm air erupted from its interior as the doors opened into the cool eternal night. A conductor stepped off the train, illuminated by the natural light of the moon and the mana light of the train. His bright smile and helpful demeanor coupled with his neat, white overalls made him seem somewhat of an alien presence on the platform which until moments had just been the four of them, though surely there could hardly be someone who belonged there more. He offered to take their bags aboard for them and he sounded every bit as cheerful as he looked.


    It''s time to go. Zel thought to herself.


    After a few final moments Zel was the first to break the embrace, gently stepping away from the huddle as the other three followed suit, wiping their eyes and noses. They handed over their bags to the conductor who loaded them efficiently under one of the cars and directed them to the carriage they would be taking. Once there with everything fully loaded, Zel and Miriya turned around to say their final goodbyes


    "You two, we both want you to know that no matter what happens while you go to live in the big city, you will always be welcome back here." Zel''s mother said. "And if¡­ for some reason, this whole¡­ school thing doesn''t work out, we''ll always be here for you with the flower shop and the restaurant."


    "We know, mom, and if anything ever goes wrong you know we''ll be right back here causing trouble again." Miriya said, tears held back behind a forced smile.


    "But I think that the next time you see us we''ll be badass soldiers that protect all of Split Sky!" Zel shouted while flexing her arm dramatically, her eyes still blurry and wet.


    Zel''s father let out another bellowing laugh. "That''s my girl. You get in there and give em'' everything you got, show them fuckers that live in that mountain what for!"


    The train''s whistle blew, echoing through the night. A conductor waved at Zel and Miriya from the locomotive window, he called out that the train was departing. With one last big hug from each of them for their parents, the sisters steeled themselves and boarded the train.

 Chapter 2: The Full Circle Railroad

    Chapter 2: The Full Circle Railroad


    Zel let out a mighty yawn and opened her eyes. Out the window she could see a blur of white as the train made its way through the Shadetree forest. Zel scratched her side lazily and thought that perhaps she had never seen anything move as fast as they appeared to be moving now before another yawn took her over.


    She and Miriya had been on the train for two nights now and they had been on this pace for the majority of it. With the exception of a few stops that the train took along the way, it had been a smooth ride and the girls had made sure to enjoy the trip.


    The initial excitement of travel had ended after the first night on the train, but it ended up being a good thing. They weren''t able to get a proper sleep when bedtime came around for the first time, the two ended up staying up late and waking up sluggish in the early evening. But this time they had done a better job, making sure to stay up and not take any naps so they could be well-rested the next evening and it had worked. Even though it had been on the benches of the transport car, Zel could hardly remember the last time she had slept so soundly.


    Stretching her arms above her head, Zel let her eyes drift away from the window and back within the room they stayed in. The cabin was a wonder of the Full Circle''s finest furniture and luxury that they offered all of their passengers. Dark shadewood walls and benches covered with the finest leather cushions that could be found nowhere else. A button by the sliding doorway could be pressed at any time of night to call an attendant who would immediately see to any needs that the wonderful customer might have.


    At least that''s what they always tell us, Zel thought with another yawn. Zel pressed it as she was quite thirsty from the long rest. It wasn''t until after the strange white button began glowing that Zel noticed something was amiss in the cabin, or rather someone was missing. Miriya was nowhere to be seen, the seat across from Zel barren of her elegant fluffiness.


    Hmm, Zel thought while scratching her chin, maybe she went to the bathroom. Zel set her hand down and felt something unusually fuzzy where she expected her own leg to be. She looked down and found that Miriya had fallen asleep in her lap. Zel smiled. Some habits would be harder to break than others it would seem.


    Zel looked out the window while gently rubbing the back of her sister''s neck. It was the same ocean of trees that had been there when she went to sleep, except now instead of vibrant yellow leaves they were instead covered with branches full of a beautifully pure white. Zel could tell that they were, finally, nearly there.


    Perhaps I should get Miri up, Zel thought, looking down at the soundly sleeping Trailfolk in her lap.


    "...Miri¡­" she whispered, "...Miri¡­" Miriya began to stir, her pointy ears twitching and perking up as she awoke.


    "What¡­" Miriya uttered lazily, still half asleep.


    "I think we''re almost there, the Shadetrees are white now." Zel said. "This is the first time I think we''ve ever followed the colors."


    "Mmm¡­" Miriya mumbled. "Probably right. Weird trees."


    "They are not!" Zel retorted, slapping Miriya gently on the leg.


    The Shadetree was a tree that could be found anywhere in Split Sky but nowhere else in Tenyarn. It was known for having a vibrant variety of colored leaves depending on which part of Split Sky you were in. The are all the same, however, and the colors would change depending on what time of year it was, or rather, the citizens of Split Sky had decided to measure their years by this unique color cycle. Specifically it was determined by what color the leaves were in the capital of Split Sky, Dreamsquall. As Zel and Miriya began their journey to DreamSquall, the year had just turned over into a new one. When they left Slipton which lies in the east, the trees were yellow, having already turned white towards the end of last year. Seeing the trees with white leaves once again meant that they were closing in on their destination.


    "They''re definitely weird.." Miriya said, still a bit drowsy, but she managed to face her head upwards in Zel''s lap.


    "''Weird trees,'' is that all you have to say?" Zel scoffed, "We''ve been waiting for years to finally have a chance to show what we got at this school! We passed that stupid competency exam, we just said goodbye to mom and dad, and now all we got to do is take a magic aptitude test and we''re in! Fuck off with your ''weird trees!'' This is it! Mom and Dad are cheering us on back home, and I''ll be fucked if I''m going back without something to show for it!" Zel''s eyes were burning with a passion she had rarely expressed before, the words pouring out from her heart.


    However, to Zel''s general dismay Miriya began giggling halfway through her rant.


    "The second you get away from Mom your mouth starts dumping all sorts of profanities, Zel. You really couldn''t wait to get away, could you ?" she said. She stared up at Zel from her lap with a coy, and maybe a little malicious, smile.


    "You know I can''t stop it," Zel replied quickly, turning her head away from Miriya to hide her cheeks that were rapidly growing flush.


    "Well, you''re right though!" Miriya swung her head up and lifted her arms in a stretch of her own, her ears and long tail joining in. "It is exciting that we''re almost there. After all those years of boring school, we finally get to learn how to use our magic to fight!" Miriya threw out a few loose jabs and an uppercut into the air.


    "Yeah!" Zel said, joining with shadow boxing of her own, "I bet we make it to the top of the academy in no time! We''ll be the best of the best! Captain by the end of the year!"


    Miriya started laughing again. "I can''t imagine what they would make you captain of, ''captain of short temper'', maybe!"


    "Better than ''captain of afraid of heights,'' I would say!" Zel retorted.


    "Enough of that, look!" Miriya exclaimed. Zel turned around and looked out the window where Miriya was pointing. The train had finally broken out of the forest and was in the middle of a vast array of farms. The fields were chock-full of huge variety of fruits that grow throughout Split Sky. Each of the individual fields stood out distinctly, starkly coloring the landscape like cloth patches on a vast and open canvas. Each individual patch of crops was larger than the entirety of the farmland that Zel was familiar with up by Slipton


    "Woooaaah!" exclaimed Zel, "They''re so much bigger than the fields at home! Look, look! They''re growing Slipton Squash!" Zel enthusiastically pointed out a field of large, gourd-like vegetables whose tough skin was split down the middle into the vibrant colors of the moon.


    "Looks like we won''t miss that from home, at least!" Miriya said, matching Zel''s enthusiasm.


    "The farms are supposed to surround the capital, right? If that''s true then we should be able to see it soon." Zel leaned forward and smooshed her face against the window to try and see further ahead up the track to no avail. Miriya grabbed her and pulled her away from the glass.


    "No need to give the maintenance people any more work by rubbing your face all over the window, Zel!" Miriya giggled. She was fully awake now, her tail wagging to and fro behind her uncontrollably.


    "I know! Why don''t we ask an attendant how much longer we have until we reach the station? I already ordered some help before you woke up, for I thirst." Zel explained somewhat dramatically..


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    "Ask-who-a-what-now?" A voice exclaimed as the sliding door of the passenger carriage suddenly burst open and slammed to one side.


    Zel and Miriya both jumped in their seats and turned to face the doorway. There was a large figure standing in the entrance, taking up the entirety of its space. He was wearing the distinctive white conductor overalls and an oily shirt seemed dirty independently of the white cloth covering him, but all of that was mostly covered by his two massive arms that he crossed in front of him. He had the trademark blue complexion of the Splitfolk, though a shade or two darker than Zel. He wore a massive grin under his beard and he was wearing his hat too low so that it almost covered his eyes like he always did, but the duo recognized him instantly.


    "Ziek!" the two shouted in unison.


    "How are my girls?" Ziek bellowed, laughing as Zel and Miriya leapt out of their seats to embrace him.


    "We''re doing great! What are you doing here, you old fart?" Zel said while buried in one massive arm.


    "Well, I couldn''t rightly let my two biggest fans pay a visit to me school without seeing them off meself, now could I?" Ziek replied with a laugh, his big belly shaking as he did so.


    "You came all the way to the capital to see us off?" Miriya asked, puzzled.


    "Well, that ain''t all, I got business in the big city. But it was convenient, cause I heard which train you two was getting on. You been going since night before last, yeah? I just got on a bit ago." Ziek explained, releasing the girls.


    "Well that is convenient!" Miriya said, "You coulda seen us off at the station, though! Don''t want you getting in trouble with the other conductors!"


    "Ah, I''m technically here to give one of the attendants a break and take your order." Ziek explained knowingly tapping on the white light Zel had pressed earlier, "Technically, the only ones that I''m inconveniencin'''' are the other customers who ain''t getting, erm, attended to." Ziek paused to think for a moment before leaning into the cabin and speaking softly.


    "I also thought that I might come give you some advice, about the academy, that is. Since you two ain''t so little anymore," he said in a whisper.


    "Advice? What ain''tcha told us that we haven''t heard from any of your ''valiant'' deeds you''ve told us over the years?" Zel teased.


    "Well, that''s just it. I''ve told you the stories of my glorious ''dventures and you guys have always eaten that up, but I just wanted to let you know that it''s not going to be all nice. There''s a lot of stuff that you''re gonna learn here, stuff that you''re gonna like, stuff you''re gonna hate. You''re gonna to have to be stronger than you''ve ever been before if you want to hack it." He paused again, before taking off his hat. He was bald on the top of his head, and his frame was so large that his eyes, usually hidden behind the brim, seemed beady compared to the rest of him. He twisted up his hat in his hands before he spoke again.


    "You two, you''re not just going to learn how to use magic to fight¡­ You''re going to learn to use it to kill. And that''s a hard thing. Killin''. I know better than most how hard it can be. I just wanted to tell you two before you got there. You got to understand what you''re really gettin'' into." His voice was stern in a way that neither Zel nor Miriya had ever heard before. The two of them shared a concerned glance.


    "What are you talking about Ziek? Are you telling us you don''t want us to go?" Miriya asked.


    Ziek shook his head. "No, no. That ain''t what I mean at all. I''m probably just worried since I known you two since you were not but dust¡­ but you girls are much stronger than I ever was, so you''ll be fine." Ziek paused and suddenly his eyes brightened as if he had a wonderful idea. He returned his freshly scrunched conductor''s cap to his head before holding up his two massive hands out, the palms up towards the ceiling..


    "Hold out your hands, touch mine." He said. Zel and Miriya were still confused, but they did what he asked.


    "What are your affin''ties?" he asked. Zel and Miriya''s confusion continued to grow.


    "Why you asking? You know what they are." Zel said.


    "Humor me." Ziek replied.


    "Mine''s time!" Miriya exclaimed excitedly.


    "Lighting." Zel answered in turn.


    "That''s right. You remember what mine is, right?"


    "Gravity!" Miriya yelled.


    "That''s right. While you''re at the academy you''ll learn about all sorts of different kinds of magic, but nothing is more important than learning about yours. Magic is a gift that we mustn''t take for granted, it can do wonderful things." As he finished his sentence, Zel and Miriya both felt a sensation as if the weight of their bodies fell away. Zel felt her feet lift off the ground and suddenly found herself floating in the air inside the small room. Miriya was floating next to her and it seemed like the two of them were balloons, their arms the strings that kept them tethered to earth by Ziek''s meaty hands. Eventually they felt their weight begin to return in almost a ticklish sensation as they began to pull towards the floor. Miriya couldn''t help but giggle at the feeling.


    "But it can also be used for horrible things." Ziek continued. Suddenly Zel and Miriya both collapsed to the floor, their legs failing in an instant.. It felt as if every part of their bodies was being weighed down. Twice the weight, three times, four, they kept getting heavier and heavier until neither of them could breathe, their lungs crushed under the intense weight of their own flesh. Zel felt that she was going to pass out, but right before she did, the sensation ceased, and their bodies returned to normal.


    Ziek released their hands. Zel and Miriya were still gasping for air on the floor as Ziek''s shallow grin turned into a big toothy smile.


    "You''ll will be fine." He said. "You two just keep an eye on your own asses, work on getting stronger as best you can. I know you will have blast at me old school!"


    "H-hey!" Zel gasped between breaths. "You lied! You just said we were stronger than you!"


    Ziek let out a hearty laugh.


    "One last piece of advice ''fore I''m off, then." Ziek lifted one of his massive arms and pointed towards both Zel and Miriya with one finger each in one hand. He lifted the fingers towards the ceiling, then flicked them towards the seats of the carriage. Zel and Miriya were each lifted into the air as they had been before, before being flung into their seats, each forced to sit up straight and proper. Zel and Miriya looked stunned, but looked back at Ziek from their newly discovered orientation.


    "Don''t believe everything every wise-ass from the academy tells you!" Ziek bellowed before erupting with laughter, "Especially from the most handsomest wise-ass you know, yah runts!" He kept on laughing until Zel and Miriya joined in. Ziek wiped the tears from laughing out of his eyes before taking a step backwards out the door.


    "I''ll be off then," Ziek took off his cap one last time and giving the two girls a bow, "please enjoy the rest of the ride, ladies," he said with a wink before the door slammed shut by itself in front of him and Zel and Miriya were alone in the carriage once more.


    "That bastard!" Zel yelled. "Did you know that he could use his magic without touching things? He always told me he had to touch things!" She slumped down into her seat as Miriya giggled at Zel''s attitude. "He didn''t even take our order, either!".


    "He really got us, didn''t he!" she said. "I''m glad we got to see him again, though, it will probably be a while before we see a familiar face again." Miriya looked out the window, once again. Her eyes grew wide as she turned to Zel excitedly.


    "Zel! We''re here! It''s the city!" She exclaimed, she was practically shaking in her seat.


    Zel looked out the window as well and saw that they were approaching a huge mountain, the sides dotted with thousands of shining lights from the buildings that made up the capital of Dream Squall. The train was pulling to the foot of the mountain where a massive train platform appeared to be abuzz with activity.


    Before Zel could say anything, out of the train''s intercom a booming voice filled the car.


    "Dearest passengers, we are now arriving at our final destination of Dream Squall Station. All train doors will open, allowing exits from all sides, but we do ask that those of you who are here to attempt the Dream Academy entrance exams exit on the right side of the train where you will meet a representative of the school who will guide you through town. We hope that you had a wonderful ride and wish you well." The intercom made a static clicking sound as the message finished.


    Zel could feel the train begin to decelerate, her body lurching forward as the brakes began their work. Zel was filled with excitement as they pulled into Dream Squall Grand Station, but she also felt something else: fear.


    She had been nervous before, but seeing the mountainous city laid out before them for the first time suddenly made it real. She felt the cold fingers of anxiety wrap around her heart, its voice whispering in her ear to go home. Stay on the train and go right back. Miriya saw the look on Zel''s face and grabbed her hand.


    "Hey," she said smiling, "we''re going to be fine. If Ziek can do it, then we can too. That lying b-b-bastard!" She cussed with tremendous effort.


    This caught Zel off guard, and the thought of her sister cursing made her smile and start giggling all in an instant.


    "Hehe, here you were making fun of me for my nasty mouth, when you can''t even say the word with a straight face!" This time it was Miriya who looked away embarrassed, but she was as accurate and true of a shot as she had always been. She managed to calm Zel down.


    "C''mon," Zel said, "let''s go see what the big city is all about!"


    Hand in hand, the sisters stepped out of their cabin.

 Chapter 3: Dream Squall

    Chapter 3: Dream Squall


    Zel and Miriya disembarked on the right side as the announcement instructed, but both were immediately caught starry-eyed at the sight before them. The hustle and bustle of the train station was unbelievable. There were hundreds if not thousands of people moving about on the platform that seemed to glow with gilded runes and pillars and railings and tracks and trains. It was more people then Zel had ever seen in one place and they weren''t even in the city yet.


    While the Slipton station only had one proper platform for inbound trains heading west and a smaller one heading east, the Dream Squall station had dozens upon dozens of boarding zones and an equal number of tracks and even more trains. Zel could almost feel her head spin as she tried to take it all in.


    "Hey, look over there." Miriya said, pointing towards a distant part of the station. Zel followed her finger and saw a tall Splitfolk woman who was shouting something like directions as people began to gather around her.


    "That must be who we need to go meet." Zel said, and as they began to make their way towards the woman they were able to hear what she said.


    "Everyone going to Dream Academy, gather around! We do not have much time!" the woman shouted, "The test takes place all the way up the mountain and we must get you there for your examinations without delay!"


    As Zel and Miriya got closer to the representative, they got their first close look at some of the other prospective students of the Academy. There were dozens of them and they were still coming. Dream Academy was famous for offering learning to races of all kinds, but most of the people that Zel saw around were Splitfolk as far as Zel could tell, which made sense as the other nations had a physical barrier in the form of the Cross Mountains blocking them from easily being able to apply. It was difficult enough to just travel to Dream Squall from within the country, let alone from outside of it.


    Looking around, Zel noticed a group of particularly well dressed Splitfolk, long white silken robes streamed from their shoulders down to the stone platform below. Within this group there was a particularly good looking man who was a full head taller than anyone else that he stood with. He had a handsome face with pointed features, wide and muscular shoulders but not too bulky, and this all complimented by his leather chestpiece that highlighted his sculpted abs. Zel found him a pleasing sight indeed.


    Zel looked down at her own clothes, a black dress with frills on the skirt that''s length stopped at her knees. It was her favorite dress, but felt very drab in comparison to the group of attractive Splitfolk. She had also been wearing it for two nights of travel, leaving it wrinkled and given a wilted look. I''m like the world''s most average flower, standing next to a contest bouquet, she thought to herself.


    "Zel, look over there!" Miriya said, interrupting Zel''s thoughts and pointing to an approaching group. "It''s Clickfolk!"


    A group of a dozen or so hooded figures were approaching the Academy Representative. Their garb was similar to the Fancy Splitfolk, long flowing robes, but instead of two holes for arms, there were four for each of their carapaced limbs. They approached the growing group while chattering amongst themselves. Their language, Clicktongue, was also their namesake in Splittongue. It consisted of a variety of clicking and chattering noises that their unique mandibles and bodies could produce. Zel had never seen Clickfolk before and was enamored with their  dark shells that produced an interesting iridescent shimmer under the gentle glow of mana-powered lights within the train station.


    "Woah!" Zel exclaimed, surprised. "I don''t think I''ve ever had a chance to meet any Clickfolk before! They came all the way here from Beryiith?"


    "Yup! The desert nation to the west, under the Red Sun." Miriya replied. "Do you think that they''re here to join the academy as well?"


    "I don''t see why not. The academy is huge after all! Wouldn''t it be cool to have some classes with them?" As Zel finished the Academy Representative called out to the group to get their attention..


    "Alright everyone! We are going to move up towards the school now, so please follow me and stay close so that no one gets separated! Dream Squall, as the name might imply, is a mighty storm of activity especially when you lot turn up, so please stay close to me! Oh, and leave your luggage here on the platform, another representative from the train station offered to bring them to your dorm rooms later, so rest assured, your belongings will be safe." With this announcement, the tall representative turned about face and began slowly leading the pack towards the exit of the station. Zel and Miriya followed along, leaving their bags behind as instructed listening to the Representative''s explanations.


    "The train station is a short away from the entrance to the city proper" She continued. "Once we exit the station you will see the city as a whole and I will explain further." And with that she suddenly was off with a flash, the Representative''s long legs allowed carried her quickly away from the confused group of prospective students who all suddenly found themselves scrambling.


    Zel and Miriya managed to catch up to her just as they reached the exit of the station where they almost went tumbling off the platform stairs, struck by the scenery.


    Seeing it from inside of a train was one thing, but now that they were beneath the mountain and looking up at it they were each blown away by how massive it was. From where they stood at the foot, the mountain towered above them, the peak seeming to stretch and reach out to the moon far above. Between them and the peak there were millions of tiny lights that flickered, some from buildings, other from lamps, and more still from people who were out and about. There was a long and winding road that seemed to zig-zag its way up towards the peak directly in front of them, and this was the road that the Representative quickly began her ascent. Zel and Miriya had to quickly regather their senses, lest they be left behind in no time at all. They quickly ran to catch up.


    As the Representative led them up the winding path she told them all sorts of information about Dream Squall as a city and the Academy. They learned that, generally, the city is divided into layers going up the mountain, with groupings of businesses and housing situated in different layers. The first layer was the general shopping and restaurant district, where most visitors would spend their time, but as they made it further up the mountain there were more resources designed  for the permanent residents of the mountain, including housing and resources that would benefit the Academy.


    Zel noticed immediately that all around them the buildings were made out of different materials. There was wood, stone, metal, even mud buildings that were propped up sometimes seemingly at random, but with the general rule that any roads that branched off the main path from the train station seemed to remain perfectly clear. From what Zel could see these branching roads were flat and looked as though they may have wound all the way from one side of the mountain until they met back with their beginning on the other side, creating rings that hugged the stone walls.


    Each section of the mountain, including the first one, was marked with a stone archway embossed with a description or name for the district they were in. This was good news for Zel. As simple as the Representative made it all sound, the sights and sounds were making Zel''s head spin, and it was all that she could do to keep up with the group and try not to get lost.


    From what the Representative told them, Zel had gathered that there were five districts total in Dream Squall. The bottom was restaurants and food shopping, this is where the local farmers got to show off their product and entice travelers. The second was a dedicated shopping district for general supplies, you could find the bulk of stores there. The third district was for specialty stores and businesses that pertained to the Academy, that''s where you would find things like weapons or tools necessary for specific mana crafting and the like. The fourth district was where the bulk of the population lived, a mass of homes and apartments where the citizens of Split Sky recovered after a long night of work. And finally there was the top layer, which was entirely Dream Academy property. There was no particular theme to the fifth layer, other than all of the buildings, whether housing, work, or food, all existed to benefit the Academy.


    Zel tried her best to listen to the other stuff that the Representative was saying, but it was too much to take in and she began to become a little distracted. Zel took another look at the groups of people that were hoping to enroll at the academy with her and Miriya. The final group that they had left with had been indeed mostly Splitfolk. Perhaps thirty or forty of them including Zel. Then there was the group of a dozen Clickfolk. Zel was a bit disappointed that she did not see any Trailfolk in the crowd besides Miriya. Trailfolk came from the opposite side of the world, and had the furthest to travel to reach Dream Squall, but she would have expected at least one other, especially since there were so many of the Clickfolk.


    Zel was still a bit enamored with that group in particular. She knew that they were one of the three dominant intelligent races of Tenyarn, of course, but she had never had the chance to meet one before and found them fascinating. Stealing looks when she could without making herself feel like a creep, Zel noticed that they were all different shapes and sizes. The largest of the group, who was walking in front, was at least as tall as the handsome Splitfolk man that Zel had noticed earlier, maybe even taller but at least twice as wide. On the opposite end, the shortest of the Clickfolk was maybe half of Zel''s own height.


    I hope that I get the chance to talk to them soon. I guess we''ll all be taking the same classes even if I don''t! she thought with glee.


    The Representative kept prattling on about the various facilities and unique aspects of the mountain city as they passed into the third district for specialty shopping. There were merchants standing by their stalls or buildings shouting out to anyone who would listen, hoping to draw in any customer they could. Even in the first few moment spent in this district Zel already had seen at least five or six things that she had never heard of before, all laid out on a shelf or in a window or on a mat and available for sale, for a price.


    "Look over there!" Miriya cried out in excitement, "there''s a shop that sells enchanted weapons! Oh, I wonder if they have any bows?" Zel looked to where Miriya was pointing, and there was indeed a smithy with a variety of arms on display.


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    Every direction she looked there were similar shops, each with their own specialization. One salesperson caught Zel''s eye. A tall Splitfolk woman who was wearing a long and flowing dress, jet-black. The shop that she stood by was filled to the brim with garments of similar quality and it looked like it catered to all different sorts, though Zel was only interested in the dresses at the moment.


    The tall woman was calling out for customers just as the other vendors were, but she seemed extremely out of place being surrounded by mostly burly weaponsmiths, crafty mana weavers, and cunning craftsman. Zel wondered what made the store special enough to be in this district and she made a mental note to visit this store when she had some free time.


    While she was staring at this unusual clothing store, Zel suddenly felt a tug on her own dress. She turned around expecting to see Miriya pointing out another store that had caught her eye, but saw that her sister was on the other side of the street looking at a shop that claimed to sell the best enchanted bows and arrows. Zel felt the tug once again and looked down towards her skirt, finally noticing the short Clickfolk, a little over half her height, tugging at the edge of her dress. They were wearing the robes that the other Clickfolk were wearing, but now that Zel was closer she could see that the robes were outerwear, and were covering other clothing they were wearing underneath. This Clickfolk was wearing something frilly hidden by the simple cloth.


    "Oh! Hello! What is your name!" she said, surprised.


    The Clickfolk responded with a few clicking sounds and a whistle-like noise, before tugging Zel''s dress one more time with their right hand and pointing towards the dress shop with its other right hand. Zel looked at the shop and back at her new friend.


    "I am terribly sorry, I do not know your language so maybe I am misunderstanding, but do you like dresses too?" She asked.


    The small Clickfolk''s reflective eyes lit up in the moonlight, they made some chittering noises that Zel couldn''t comprehend, but they did so while jumping up and down in a fashion most excited. Zel believed that she was correct.


    "I love dresses!" Zel said to her new best friend, "Would you like to go shopping there with me later? I do not know when we will be free, but maybe we can go after orientation is finished?" The Clickfolk nodded their head up and down excitedly in response.


    "Excellent! My name is Zel! Could you tell me your name one more time, so that I can try to learn it?" She asked.


    The Clickfolk repeated the few clicks and whistle noise, confirming that that was their name. Zel tried to replicate the sounds by clicking her tongue.


    "*click*...*click*... *fooo*" She couldn''t replicate the speed at which the name was said, nor could she whistle. She lowered her head, feeling somewhat embarrassed.


    "I am really sorry." Zel explained, "I will keep trying until I can say your name, but do you happen to have a Split Sky name too? At least until I can say your real name?" She asked.


    "Her name is Jammy," a voice came from above the Clickfolk''s head. Zel looked up to see that one of the Clickfolk in their robes was not a Clickfolk at all, but a male Splitfolk wearing the same outfit. Zel felt stunned that she hadn''t noticed him before, but she had been so enraptured with meeting Clickfolk for the first time that she must have glazed right over him.


    "...And she would like nothing more than to visit that shop with you later," the stranger finished with a smile. Jammy was vigorously nodding her head in agreement.


    He was about the same height as Zel, maybe a bit taller if she weren''t wearing her heeled slippers. Zel felt that he was decently looking, round jaw covered in stubble, square glasses with rounded edges, short but wild dark blue hair. Unlike the group of well dressed Splitfolk, underneath his robes were long, loose, and breathable clothes.


    "And my name is Flint." He said with an outstretched hand. "I''m a third-year at Dream Academy. I specialize in language studies and serve as a translator in the field. I''m coming back from an exchange program and the school asked that I ease these Clickfolk students into life here at Dream Squall."


    "Wow, that is incredible!" Zel said, taking his hand and vigorously shaking it. She had never even heard of field translators before, but was already thoroughly amazed. "I did not know that there even was any exchange program at the Academy!"


    "Well, you might not have heard of it if you''re from out of town, but it''s been getting bigger and bigger!" Flint replied with a laugh, "We''re trying to get more Clickfolk and Trailfolk to come and learn at Dream Academy!" Flint gestured to the Clickfolk that Zel now knew as ''Jammy.''


    "Like Jammy here! She''s a first year student, like you are, but part of the prerequisite to join Dream Academy is a fluent understanding of Splittongue. So Jammy and all of the other Clickfolk in this group have spent years learning our language so they could come study here together with us and some of them will even have a chance to join the Academy properly instead of just as exchange students!" He explained and patted Jammy on her back. Jammy was vigorously nodding her head this whole time, enough that her whole body was bouncing up and down with the effort, confirming Flint''s story. She was now beaming with unspoken pride of her achievement.


    "That is unbelievable!" Zel said, her excitement and wonder only growing with every word that poured out of Flint''s mouth. "Can you speak the Clickfolk language?" she asked.


    "Not yet, no." he began to explain, "Clicktongue isn''t something that most Splitfolk can master, we just don''t have the mouthparts for it. I understand it fluently, and I can say some words like you tried with Jammy''s name earlier, but as far as holding a conversation it is nearly impossible for me. Some Splitfolk can speak the language due to their affinities, people with sound affinities are especially successful and tend to perform well in language studies. My affinity is something else, unfortunately, and it hasn''t helped me so far." Flint shrugged his shoulders, "maybe I''ll figure it out soon, though. Who knows."


    "Either way, we make it work." He continued, "The Clickfolk can''t speak our tongue either, so when they are paired with Splitfolk it is almost always on teams that can understand each other''s language. There are also a few hand signs that the Academy has developed that make it easier for general communication."


    "Oh, wow! Will you teach me some? I would love to learn!" Zel said.


    "Haha!" Flint laughed, "Another language lover? I would be happy to teach you some stuff later. I can even introduce you to my teacher if you would like."


    "That does sound interesting! I am not sure how much I love languages, but I cannot very well go dress shopping with Jammy if I do not learn at least what colors she likes." Zel said, giving Jammy her brightest smile.


    Jammy was ecstatic, and moved her mandibles out of the way and began producing a buzzing sound.


    "*Zzzzzz* *uuuuuuu* *rrrrrrr*" she buzzed.


    Zel realized that Jammy was trying to say her name. She felt moved that Jammy was putting in such an effort and bent down to give her new friend a hug. However, as she knelt the largest Clickfolk of the group chattered at them aggressively while aggressively walking towards the three of them. Jammy seemed a bit panicked and pushed Zel away, keeping her at an arm''s length.


    "Ah. They want us back with the group." Flint said. "We''ll talk later Zel, it was nice to meet you, and welcome to Dream Academy!" Flint gave Zel a wave and walked away. Jammy also regretfully released Zel''s dress and walked back with him, waving with all four of her arms.


    Zel waved back and then felt a great weight fall on her shoulders.


    "Look at youuuu, shy little Zel making new friends." Miriya suddenly whispered in Zel''s ear, "You know, it''s funny how when you meet new people you talk all formal-like, when in reality you''re real rude," She continued sniggering.


    "Oh, come off it!" Zel snapped, turning around to grab Miriya, but she was already out of reach.


    "C''mon, let''s go! The Rep says we only have one more layer of city before we''re at the academy. We can make friends there!" Miriya said before pausing and continuing with "And you better take me shopping too!"


    "I don''t know, Jammy seems a lot cooler than you are, three''s a crowd after all!" Zel said, grumpily.


    Miriya did nothing but laugh.


    They continued their climb and began passing through the main residential district. Despite the organization of each individual layer, the way that Zel would describe the whole of Dream Squall was one big sprawl, even when in the district where the majority of people lived it seemed that organization was an afterthought rather than the focus, and Zel could imagine herself easily getting lost. Again she was thankful that, at least at the moment, she had someone to guide her way.


    As they reached the top of the residential district, however, Zel noticed something a bit odd about their destination. Up to this point the mountain had been a consistent slope heading towards the top, but now the slope ascended straight into the sky, creating walls of stone that were perfectly flat and carved that seemed to block their path. There was no sign of the supposed fifth district that had been mentioned before.


    It was at this point that the Representative stopped and gathered all their attention.


    "We will now enter into Dream Academy. Please stay close behind me as we pass through to the campus. I will explain more when we are on the other side." She announced before resuming her march.


    Zel wondered how exactly they would be able to accomplish such a feat, pass through to the campus, before she noticed that the Representative was leading them to a hole in the side of the wall.


    It was a tunnel big enough for maybe two people at a time, and as the students crammed inside it Zel realized that it was filled with stairs. All together, they began to climb


    It was intensely dark within the tunnel, but Zel''s Splitfolk eyes were more than enough for the job. Miriya on the other hand was having a difficult time, but even she managed rather well, having been raised in Split Sky. The group that was really suffering was the Clickfolk, who were continually tripping over their feet or bumping into the cool stone walls.


    Zel noticed a few steps in front of her that Jammy was having some serious difficulties as well. She bounded up behind her and grabbed Jammy''s hand.


    "Come on, Jammy! Let''s head up together!" She said enthusiastically. Just then, she felt a sharp pain in her hand and a loud noise.


    Zel yelped, recoiling from the pain. She looked at her hand, there were no injuries, but it did sting, and then she looked up and saw that the large Clickfolk, the same one that had ended her conversation with Jammy back in the third district, had come back down the stairs and slapped her hand away. Zel felt a bubbling rage from within and wanted to retaliate, but by the time she found the words the large Clickfolk had already continued up the stairs. INstead, Zel looked at Jammy, who seemed quite crestfallen from the interaction but remained silent. She bumped into the wall once before regaining her bearings and continued up the stairs without Zel''s help. Zel''s anger had not subsided, however.


    How dare they hit me, she thought, But worse than that, why wouldn''t they let me help? While she silently fumed over the interaction, a loud laugh echoed up the stairwell from behind her. She turned around, eyes ablaze ready to lash out against whoever was laughing, but she found no one. Behind her was the group of well dressed Splitfolk, and she was certain that it had to have been one of them, but it was impossible for her to try to find the culprit in the dark and narrow passageway. Zel gripped her hand as the pain began to fade, but tears of anger beaded at the corner of her eyes.


    "Lousy¡­assholes," she whispered to herself. At this point Miriya grabbed Zel''s hand and pulled her up the stairs.


    It wasn''t worth it, both she and Zel knew that. But even as the pain in her hand faded to nothing, Zel still stubbornly held onto an ember of the anger she felt. Perhaps she would have a chance to use it later.


    The long stairway inside the walls of the mountain seemed never ending, they ascended step after step without ever seeming any closer to the top. While Zel''s mind was still a storm of emotions after the encounter, she managed to remain calm for the remainder of the journey in the dark. Though the staircase was long, they were getting closer and eventually, they saw a light in the dim distance. Then the light grew from a dot, to a window, to an exit, and the students began to pour out in front of them. Zel and Miriya reached the top as well and stepped out of the darkness of the tunnel and into the light.

 Chapter 4: Dream Academy

    Chapter 4: Dream Academy


    Stepping out of the dark tunnel Zel''s eyes took a moment to adjust and even one moment longer to truly understand what exactly she was looking at. She had expected a large building, or maybe a castle, or something tremendous at the top of the mountain, but instead what she saw was nearly the complete opposite.


    There was no ''peak'' at the top of this mountain, instead the group found themselves standing in an enormous crater, its edges jagged and higher still than where they stood, surrounding the edges of the indentation completely. Within the crater itself there was a large field of tall, waist-high white grass and equally tall white flowers that seemed almost to be glowing under the moonlight.


    Other than that there was, far out in the middle of the field, a single small building that looked odd from this distance, though Zel couldn''t quite place why. There was no ''academy'' or facilities that Zel could see and everyone else around her seemed to share an equal amount of surprise and confusion. They all looked to the Representative, their disappointed faces expectantly awaiting an explanation.


    "Welcome to Dream Academy''s main campus. This is not the location that you will be taking most of your classes." She said, quickly addressing the group''s concerns. " This field is commonly used for outdoor activities such as combat exercises, but it is also used for a variety of observations and, if you look closely at the sides of the crater walls, you can get your first peak at some of the classrooms here at Dream Academy."


    Zel and the others took another look at the edges of the crater. This Zel noticed that there were specks on the walls in the distance. Little lights that shone like gemstones in the jagged stone. They could be seen anywhere in the crater walls and Zel realized after seeing one closer that each of the sparkles was a window or a doorway, though they were too far to see any of them properly. It seemed that they really were finally on campus grounds.


    "But you will have plenty of time to visit those during your classes later." The Representative continued,  for now we must continue. Quickly now, follow me." And with that she was off like a flash into the field of white with the students hurriedly catching up to her once again.


    The group made their way through the field and as they did so every flower or blade of grass that they touched would glow lightly as they were jostled, creating a wake of light behind the group as they went. Zel had never seen plats like this before and was curious as to what they were. She found them very pretty.


    "How d''ya think all this grass is growing straight out of the rock?" Zel asked Miriya."


    "I don''t know. Maybe these plants don''t need dirt? I''ve never seen anything like them before." Miriya responded, she grabbed the end of one long blade and gave it a healthy tug, but the plant did not move at all, seemingly rooted solidly into the ground.


    "I can''t break it!" Miriya said, giving it another tug. The grass was entirely resilient to her efforts to remove it from the stone. Zel wanted to give it a try as they were walking, but she was disappointed to find that they had already reached their destination, the strange building in the center of the field. There was no grass or flowers directly around it, and Zel resigned herself to checking out the strange plants later.


    The building itself was very odd indeed. It was a large and circular structure made of two rows of pillars that wrapped around from where the students entered to the opposite end with a large courtyard between them, almost mimicking the crater around them. There was a roof that connected the two rows of pillars, but no roof in the courtyard, allowing the moonlight to shine down on the one feature of the courtyard: a pit. It appeared to be a hole that dropped straight down, and looked out of place in the structure.


    The Representative strode toward the pit with confidence, causing no small amount of worry in Zel and the others as she precariously approached the edge. They all then watched in horror as the Representative stepped out over the pit without a care in the world, and they were all surprised as the Representative did not fall, but rather bobbed as if she were climbing down stairs. The group gathered around the edge of the pit and collectively took a look down. Zel and Miriya manage to navigate around everyone else and get a look. Zel couldn''t help but gasp.


    Below them was a sheer drop, hundreds, perhaps thousands of feet down, but between them and the ground there was a massive spiral staircase that spread out wider as it went further down like a massive cone and they were at the tip. On the walls all throughout there were doors and hallways and lights and odd devices that Zel couldn''t even recognize, and more people than she had ever seen before wandering about. Even more than any layer of the city of Dream Squall. It almost didn''t make sense when she looked at it


    "This is Dream Academy," the Representative said, dramatically, bringing Zel and the other''s attention back to her. "When the academy was founded they began to make use of this mountain as a structure and campus for learning. Over time they expanded the campus from the top of the mountain''s peak, the crater which you were just standing in, all the way to the very bottom, utilizing the entire mountain as Dream Academy''s main campus. The truth is that there are hundreds of entrances to the campus all along the side of the mountain, you can enter from almost anywhere on any layer, you only need to know where to look. Now follow along, I''ll explain the rest as we go."


    The Representative led the group down the spiral stairs, the only thing protecting them from a deadly drop was a stone handrail that was seemingly carved from the same rock as the floor, as if the entire structure had been synthesized from the mountain. The Representative did as she promised and explained exactly where the students were and what they were seeing.


    Dream Academy had originally been founded by itself on this mountain, a place for mana users to come and hone their skills and share their knowledge with others, but as the Academy grew, so did the population, and as the population grew, it no longer made sense to just have the Academy be a standalone institution, and Dream Squall was erected around it, utilizing the space on the outside of the mountains and leaving the core of it for the Academy.


    She also explained that, as a result of this unusual construction, there was a need to expand the Academy''s entrances to places all throughout the mountains corresponding with the district they poured out into.


    "The entrance we came through is the first entrance to the top of the crater and Dream Academy that was ever constructed." The Representative explained. "I felt it appropriate that prospective new students should enter from there."


    "So we climbed all those stairs for nothing!?" Miriya complained after hearing this news, not quite loud enough for the Representative to hear.


    "Ah, shut up. Not like you can''t use the exercise! Just look at all the flab building up on your tail!" Zel exclaimed enthusiastically before grabbing the base of Miriya''s fluffy tail, giving it a squeeze.


    "Eep!" Miriya jumped from the contact before turning around and wresting her tail from Zel''s grip. Instead of coming up with a retort, she simply extended her long tongue at Zel before turning away, hugging her tail close. The betrayal was still fresh in her mind.


    Zel laughed as they continued further down into the mountain. She again tried her best to learn as much as she could from the Representative, but found her eyes wandering. Most of the rooms were simply designed, a door with a sign on it or next to it that explained the internal workings of the room, many of them intrigued Zel. Things like ''Allied Enhancement Practice, Liquid Specialization Techniques, Advanced Principles of Magical Flexibility, Familiar Summoning'' all caught her eye, and those were only a drop in the ocean of how many different and unique rooms there were. There were also some rooms that were ominously left unmarked, one in particular had a massive metal door nearly twice as tall as the ordinary wooden or stone ones, a telling dent punched into the center of it from within the room.


    Most of the classrooms were devoid of windows to see through, but occasionally there was a doorway that allowed the students to see inside a classroom. From within these rooms Zel noticed all sorts of magical devices, scrolls, clothing, and other items that she could either not determine the function of, or she felt like she could easily, which was probably worse given how little she knew about enchantments.


    One room had a Splitfolk gentleman who was working with what appeared to be a glove with a layer of indistinct foam floating above it, its purpose entirely alien to Zel. Apparently the unfortunate man in the room had the same understanding of the device as Zel, when the group walked by, he gave them a wave before the glove suddenly glew very bright and the entire room was instantly filled with the floating foam. The Representative assured the group that the man was alright. Probably.


    I think I should do my best to not touch anything, Zel thought. It was a terrible thought to have due to the sheer amount of touchable things in the Academy, but a prudent thought nonetheless.


    Zel was lost in the sights and giggling with Miriya when the two of them almost crashed into some others in the group as suddenly the Representative abruptly stopped her rapid tour of the school in front of an odd room with huge and ornate wooden doors.


    The room was odd because of the stone that it was made out of. Most of the mountain was the same gray stone from the top to bottom, but this room seemed to be made out of something translucent, Zel was just able to make out some shapes through the walls and she could tell easily that the room within was dark.


    "We have arrived." The Representative said. She walked up to the large doors and with a single, effortless motion, swung one open, revealing the room within.


    "Enter, please." She said, and the prospective students did so, filtering in one by one.


    It was quite dark within the room, even for the Splitfolk. Zel couldn''t make out anything past a few rows of what appeared to be benches. As the students filtered in there was less room by the doorway, forcing some into the darkness. She heard a crash followed by an annoyed clicking and whistling sound, clearly a Clickfolk had gotten into some kind of trouble in the dark. She did not envy their lack of vision in the dark. To them it was probably pitch black in the space. As soon as the last of them trickled through the door slammed shut behind them, making it darker still. The voice of the Representative echoed through the darkness.


    "Stay where you are for just a moment!" her voice boomed. The group did so, save for the one poor Clickfolk who was struggling to their feet somewhere in the darkness. The prospective students could hear a steady clicking getting further and further away as the Representative moved about in the dark.


    Eventually the footsteps stopped and Zel could just make out a couple of voices in the distant dark, though what they were saying she had no idea. Then the room grew quiet and the students waited in anticipation for further instruction or anything to happen in the blackness. They did not have to wait long as the walls of the room started to change.


    The room began to get brighter. Zel thought initially that her eyes had finally started to become accustomed to the darkness but she just as quickly realized that this was incorrect. The room was rapidly growing brighter, with no discernable light source. Someone let out a laugh, and now that they could see more clearly Zel recognized that it was Flint.


    "That old coot sure does like to put on a show!" He exclaimed. He was in the center of the room and seemed to be focused on the far side of the hall. Zel followed his gaze across the room where she noticed the Representative was standing with a hunched over and cloaked figure. The figure''s spindly hand was gently touching the furthest wall of the room.


    "Zel! The room is getting brighter! Look!" Miriya held out her arms gesturing in every direction. Zel thought that her sister was just pointing out the obvious, but then she realized what Miriya meant.


    Rather than the room being lit by a single light source, it was the entire room itself that was now producing a gentle light that was rapidly growing in intensity. It became brighter and brighter to the point that it became difficult for Zel and the other students to see anything at all, but right as it reached that point it stopped and settled down to a comfortable glow for the Splitfolk at least, though it may have been a little dark for the others.


    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    As the students got their first look at the room, a large hall filled with dozens of rows of wooden benches that lead to an ornate podium at the far end, the figure that had been touching the wall had separated from it and was now making their way down the center aisle with the Representative by their side.


    As the cloaked figure approached, it became clear to Zel that he was a Splitfolk as well. He was hunched over, so it was difficult to gauge his height, but Zel determined that when he stood up straight, if he could, he would be quite tall, but for now he relied on a cane to hold himself up even to the poor degree he managed. He was entirely bald with fair blue skin. On top of his head he wore many different tattoos, though Zel could not recognize any pattern among them. The tattoos continued even onto his face and arms, though interestingly, his right arm, the one that he had placed against the wall to light the room, was entirely devoid of tattoos, but that seemed like the only part of his body like this. As he and the Representative reached the group, he stopped and placed both his hands upon his cane before addressing them.


    "Welcome," he said in a raspy tone, "I am the headmaster of Dream Academy." He smiled a wrinkly smile and his arched back moved down and back up in a nearly imperceptible motion that Zel supposed was most likely intended to be a bow.


    The headmaster''s introduction caused an immediate change in the atmosphere of the room. The group of well dressed Splitfolk suddenly dropped down on one knee, each of them placing their hands across their chests. The group of Clickfolk did their own demonstration of respect. Placing their two lower hands behind their back, clasping them together, while their two upper hands did the same but with the tips of their fingers facing up towards the ceiling. Some of the other Splitfolk had their own acts that they used in reverence to the headmaster, but luckily for Zel and Miriya, there were several others like them, who had no idea what to do at all.


    "Soooo, should we be doing something?" Miriya whispered to Zel, panic in her voice.


    "Uhhhh¡­" Zel responded, thoughtfully.


    The moment passed before they could decide.


    The headmaster observed the disorganized group of prospects with patient eyes, and by the time everyone had done whatever they wished to do, he laughed.


    "Everyone rise, please. We have much to discuss." He said, with an amused grin that seemed to be at least a little bit younger than moments before.


    Everyone in the group stood back up, save for the few like Zel and Miriya, who were still very much confused and already standing in the first place.


    "Excellent." The headmaster began, "Allow me to continue with my introduction. My name is Bellius Whitethrow. As I have already explained, I am in charge of the Academy each of you is hoping to join. At least I hope you want to join. Normally, this room would already have been well lit with several of our teachers having already prepared for your arrival. But I can see that Miracle did not take her duties of ''show the new students around town before orientation.'' to heart. Your arrival was not scheduled for some time yet." He explained. He looked at the Representative with a disappointed scowl, when he did this his tattoos remained in place, almost as if his skin moved independently


    "I showed them around all the parts of town that I deemed relevant, Sir." Miracle responded, showing no emotional change despite being reprimanded.


    "Then I''ll bet you showed them around all the relevant first year classrooms as well to give them a grasp of what kinds of activities the Academy partakes in, and did not just let them observe through the windows our various empty facilities without any sort of context?" the headmaster asked pointedly, letting out a sigh in anticipation of the response he knew was coming.


    "I did not, Sir." Miracle replied, still showing no concern.


    The headmaster followed this up with an even more defeated sigh. "Next time you bring in a group of prospective students, please give them a more proper tour. This is a big city we live in, and we want everyone to feel welcome. I just don''t understand how I could make it more clear¡­ Anyway!" the headmaster changed his attention from Miracle to the students.


    "Our teachers will be arriving relatively shortly, and I need to give a speech either way, so get comfortable and bear with me, there is a lot of information I need to get through." He began, "As I''m sure most of you are aware, Dream Academy is a unique institution that focuses on improving the magical ability and comprehension of its students. It is also unique in that it is not a university that focuses on classical magical studies such as agricultural applications of magic or perhaps cooking applications that a normal citizen would make use of. No, while we do have such classes available, the bulk of our courses are combat oriented, and in fact, our students are expected to participate in various combat groups that specialize in eliminating dangers in Split Sky. For second year students and upward participation is mandatory. For this reason I am also in charge of managing the labor services that students and faculty of Dream Academy provide to Split Sky. This can include, well, anything really. Combat, construction, negotiation and others are not uncommon. Should you be successful in entering Dream Academy, I will be directly or indirectly responsible for your education as well as these other duties."


    "Furthermore," he continued, "The Academy is something of a meritocracy. Most of you in this room are beginners, and while there will be some standouts among you just as there always are, you should understand that every position at Dream Academy can be earned through hard work and accomplishments. This is especially true in the field. You will learn more about the specifics as you begin your education here. But there is at least a basic example you should be aware of to start with." The headmaster seemed to grow weary for a moment, pausing before he continued.


    "Dream Academy values individual excellency over mass adequacy, a philosophy that makes us unique throughout Tenyarn. Ranks and responsibilities are given to those who prove themselves to be exceptional among their peers, the first rank of which being that of ''captain,'' the minimum rank required to teach courses."


    "Most captains have around five to seven years of experience before they are promoted, some never make it that far." The headmaster scratched his chin as he spoke. "But it is not unheard of for individuals to be promoted sooner. There is a captain who was promoted recently that stood where you stand now exactly one year ago.


    A wave of whispering rippled through the crowd.


    "You''re saying that they''re a second year!?" Zel blurted out.


    "Correct." The headmaster said cooly, "The individual in question has demonstrated an abnormal mastery of the qualities that are in high demand in our business, and has put in the work to truly earn their position and the benefits therein. The point that I am making is that if you are here to work hard and improve yourself, then you will be successful at Dream Academy." Again he smiled a wrinkly and toothy smile, perhaps meant to put the students at ease, but for Zel it made the scales on her arms tingle.


    As the headmaster finished speaking the door behind the group of students opened with a whoosh and a new voice was heard from the other side.


    "Aw, damnit." The voice spoke.


    "Ah, speaking of your instructors, here they come now." The headmaster said, raising one spindly hand to the newcomers.


    Five people entered the room one after another, the students making room for them as they came through. They made their way to the headmaster, who seemed more than happy to receive them.


    They were an odd bunch, or at least they seemed so to Zel. Between the five of them there wasn''t a single shared article of clothing or accessories or anything at all that would suggest that they were affiliated with Dream Academy or each other. Beyond that, each of them were so totally different from one another on a physical level that it was almost comical.


    There were two Splitfolk among them. One was very short, almost as short as the Clickfolk Jammy that Zel had met earlier, and fully clad in what appeared to be heavy plate armor that shone white, however, she had a round and plump face that looked kind. She also wore some kind of weapon on her back that Zel could not get a look at, only able to see the handle of it which rose into the air at least twice the Splitfolks height.


    The other Splitfolk seemed oddly familiar to Zel, though she couldn''t quite place it, but right as the thought seemed to escape her she latched onto it. He was a tall and handsome Splitfolk man and he was wearing the same robes as the Fancy Splitfolk group from earlier! A quick glance at the both of them confirmed it. Zel also noticed that the new handsome Splitfolk man looked rather similar to the one she had seen earlier.


    The three that remained were the ones that felt most out of place, at least in Split Sky. One of them was a Trailfolk woman about the same height as Zel or Miriya. She was wearing very breathable clothing like Miriya was and even gave Miriya a wave when she saw that there was another Trailfolk among the clustered students. Zel''s sister seemed practically giddy to see another of her kind for the first time in a long while.


    One of the remaining two had already broken away from the other four that surrounded the headmaster, and they were walking towards the wall. There was something entirely bizarre about this person, and Zel found them hard to focus on. They were wearing a red hood and scarf that mostly covered their face while the rest of their clothing was black but seemed almost taught around their skin, like bandages. When Zel tried to see what they looked like it felt like her eyes weren''t working, becoming blurry and unfocused. She tried to rub them away, but it didn''t change anything. She gave up and looked at the last one of the group, the person leading the pack and whom she presumed had spoken when they all entered.


    Zel had never seen someone quite like him. He was tall, very tall. He towered over the next closest in the room by almost two full heads and he was very skinny. That isn''t to say he wasn''t muscular, but the muscles that he did have were wiry and chorded. HIs clothes were a bit odd, pants covered his long legs and a shirt that was probably a size or two too small. He wore a wide-brimmed hat that covered a head full of greasy looking brown hair.


    But the part that was the strangest to Zel was that she didn''t know what he was. He was shaped like a Splitfolk, but there was something off. His skin was a sickly pallor, almost beige or even white at some points and was pocked all over with little dots of various colors. He also didn''t have pointed ears of Splitfolk, which wasn''t entirely unheard of but definitely not common, they were rounded and small. But the strangest part to Zel was the complete absence of scales. All Splitfolk had scales to some degree. Some had them growing like wild and all over their body, giving them a kind of shimmer coat throughout, some were closer to Zel where they just had a few scales sprinkled around their bodies, but Zel had never heard of a Splitfolk who had none at all, and she had certainly never heard of one that looked like this man.


    Hmmm, but I guess some Splitfolks have tails, Zel thought with a shrug. She doubted that this would be the strangest thing she saw at Dream Academy.


    "Hey Chief, are we late? It kinda looks like we''re late?" The tall man asked the headmaster, he wore a broad smile across his face.


    "No, you are perfectly on time, just as you always are, Crans. It was Miracle who brought the students here early that has made for this unusual¡­ arrangement." The headmaster said, casting another glare in Miracles direction. It bounced off her like a ball against a brick wall.


    "Well right on! Where are we then? You already get to the gist of what our pretty little academy here is all about?" The tall man, who Zel now knew as Crans, inquired.


    "I have." The headmaster said with a nod. "In fact, your timing is quite impeccable. I have just finished the explanation as to the basic function of the academy. Would one of you be so kind as to tell the students what they are going to do now?" The headmaster then raised his eyebrows if having a very important thought and turned to address the students.


    "Excuse me, I seem to have forgotten something important." He said, seeming rather disappointed with himself. "These five people here are all Captains of Dream Academy, several of whom will teach your main classes this year. Please, give them your full attention, and please, ask any questions you need to as they will happily answer. You may introduce the exams, Captains." The headmaster then hobbled over to one of the many benches in the room, taking a seat and leaving the floor to the Captains.


    "Well, I do think that Miss Skylee might be the best amongst us for that." Captain Crans said. He gestured to the Trailfolk woman with his hat before returning it to the top of his head. The woman, Captain Skylee, stepped forward.


    "Just as the headmaster said we will now begin the first of the two examinations," she began. "The first test is an affinity test. For some of you this test will be something of a formality, but please take it seriously."


    Zel hadn''t known what to expect of Captain Skylee before she had begun talking, but her voice took her a bit by surprise. Zel had thought that she would have a high and quick voice like Miriya''s, but Captain Skylee spoke in a very calm and controlled fashion, her voice was deeper and solid like stone.


    "Affinities, as you should all know, are the types of magic that our bodies are most compatible with." Captain Skylee continued. "We discover what they are at a young age and gradually grow accustomed to them throughout our lives. This test will give us an idea of how in-tune with your mana you are via the use of your affinity. Now, please line up on the wall behind you and I will call each of you forward. I will ask your name, your affinity, and then you will give a demonstration. Crans, if you would be so kind, could you act as our dummy during this trial?"


    "Aww, you always find some way to call me a dummy, dontcha Sky?" Crans said as he stepped away from the other four. Captain Skylee did not respond to his complaint.


    The students moved towards the back wall, save for Flint who went and joined the Captains who were not participating, having already passed this exam two years ago. The room was large, but it was difficult to line up on the wall unless they stood shoulder to shoulder. Zel and Miriya found themselves on the far end of the room to the left of the door, nearly towards the very end.


    "Excellent," Captain Skylee said. "Now we will have each of you come up after another and direct your magical affinity towards Captain Crans, and please don''t be afraid to go all out. The stone in this room is easily repaired." The short captain in the plate armor walked up behind Captain Skylee, handing her a clipboard before returning to her spot.


    "What about me?" Captain Crans said in a dramatic and worried tone.


    "You can take it, dummy." Skylee said, without looking up from her clipboard.


    Captain Crans let out a depressed sigh before pulling up his sleeve and swinging one of his arms in a circle as if he were winding it up.


    "Alright, come on!" He barked aggressively. "Who''s up first?"


    "You on the far wall, please step forward." Captain Skylee beckoned one of the prospects to approach.


    The exam had begun.

 Chapter 5: The Exam

    Chapter 5: The Exam


    The first student who was up was the tall and handsome Splitfolk man from the Fancy Splitfolk group. Captain Crans awaited eagerly, a look of pure glee on his face as his hands grasped at nothing in anticipation


    "Your name and affinity, please." Captain Skylee requested as the Captain and the prospect squared off.


    "My name is Cleinz Duphor, of the Duphor house" he exclaimed, "My affinity is with stone! A Duphor family specialty!" Cleinz''s chin was held up high, and proud. He did not sound nearly as attractive as he looked, coming off arrogant to Zel. He also seemed to favor one of the captains. Zel caught Cleinz stealing glances at the tall Splitfolk captain as he spoke.


    However the captain did not share the same enthusiasm, simply observing Cleinz with cold, silvery eyes. Cleinz'' arrogant facade was ever so slightly cracked by this indifference, the edges of his smile sunk. He turned away from the Splitfolk Captain, his expression serious as he focused on the target before him.


    "Rightio, hit me with watcha got then!" Captain Crans was greedily grasping at the air with his fingers in anticipation.


    Cleinz did not seem nearly as excited as his opponent. To Zel he seemed almost annoyed with the man before him who was nonchalantly anticipating Cleinz'' attack.


    Zel had met people with the stone affinity before, there were some locals in her town that ran businesses building and repairing homes with their stone magic, but she had certainly never seen someone with that affinity fight before. She was curious as to what it would look like and closely observed Cleinz as he went down to one knee before placing both of his palms on the floor. Then Zel had the chance to witness something amazing.


    After firmly placing his hands on the floor Cleinz stood back up, but the floor came with him. The strange translucent stone of the room flowed up his arms and from beneath his feet as he rose, moving like liquid. Wherever it touched on Cleinz body it began to solidify back into a solid structure and around Cleinz body started to take specific shapes. His feet became encased in boots of stone, his legs and torso covered in thick plate armor and rivers of stone formed a helmet around his head.


    But that was not all. Cleinz raised his hands out in front of them as the stone gushed from the floor into them, each taking a different form in his palms. From the left hand sprung a large and rounded shield that Cleinz held aloft effortlessly, despite the weight of the stone. In his right, a stream of stone formed into a long shaft and blade, a spear taller than Cleinz was taking form.


    Zel was stunned, practically slack-jawed as she observed this display. Every preconception that she had about stone magic was dashed in an instant. The Slipton stonemasons were able to change the form of rock, transforming jagged stone into more useful shapes over time, but Cleinz magic was on a different level. His speed and skill was unbelievable, able to create in moments what professional stonemasons would take weeks to form, and that couldn''t have been of remotely similar quality. Cleinz equipment even had ornate designs across it as if it were a suit of armor intended for display. He stood there and seemed out of place, more fit as a guard for royalty than as a candidate for an Academy.


    Most of the other students in the line were equally impressed as Zel, except for the students of the Fancy Splitfolk group. Instead of looks of surprise or shock, they wore smug grins and knowing looks. Clearly, this was nothing special for Cleinz.


    But now the showboating was over, and Cleinz wasted no time. He charged forward with his new equipment, moving as swiftly as if the stone was no burden to him at all. He reached Captain Crans quickly and as he came in range he gave his spear a powerful thrust aimed right at the Captain''s torso.


    Zel found herself wince as the point almost made contact, but right as the spear would have connected Captain Crans moved to the side and out of harm''s way.


    The motion was so quick and smooth that even Cleinz was surprised. Instead of finding his spear embedded in his victim his weapon met no resistance. He stumbled forward slightly, unable to correct for the strange sensation. Captain Crans, however, used his long legs to quickly close the remaining gap between them. He was now towering over Cleinz


    "Here, let me give you a hug." Captain Crans said with a devious smile. His long arms wrapped around Cleinz in an instant and lifted him into the air. He held him there for a moment as Cleinz'' spear and shield hung uselessly in the air beneath him.


    "Ha ha!" Crans laughed, "You''re a Duphor, alright. Your family''s stone magic is always a wonder to see! Though I have a feelin'' big bro over there might have a thing or two to say about your form!" Captain Crans nodded at the handsome Splitfok Captain. He was too far away to know for sure, but Zel could have sworn she saw the other Captain smirk.


    Cleinz was not happy, however. Suspended in the air without being able to do anything about it frustrated him, a sour expression on his face.


    "Good job, little Duphor," Captain Crans said as he set Cleinz down gently as a baby. "A fine demonstration if there ever were one! Go ahead and get back in line."


    As Cleinz ''feet returned to the ground, so did his armor return to the floor, melting away from him just as smoothly as it had come. Captain Crans gave him a slap on the back as he turned away that was so hard it might have knocked him over, but Cleinz managed to stay on his feet. He said nothing as he lined back up on the wall, but his quiet demeanor was betrayed by his body language and flat expression. He was quite upset.


    It''s no wonder, Zel thought,  this is probably the first time someone like him has ever been made a fool of. Even if it is a Captain, it has to hurt.


    That didn''t sully Zel''s wonder at the display, though. The skill that Cleinz displayed with his magic wasn''t something that Zel had ever encountered before, she barely even knew that mana users that powerful existed in the first place. It made her feel almost inadequate to be standing in the same pool of candidates as that man. She did her best to distract herself from the thought as other students took their turn at the examination.


    It became immediately apparent with the next students who were selected that Cleinz was something of an outlier, much to Zel''s relief. There were a variety of different skill levels present and the captains showed no sign of preference for the students who seemed more advanced than the others, they were genuinely judging all of the prospects as equals as long as they were able to show off their affinities.


    Captain Crans, however, seemed to be a very unusual mana user. With Cleinz he had demonstrated his skill in combat without the use of magic because Cleinz'' use of his affinity was more physical in nature, but as other students came up and used different affinities it quickly became clear the gap between Captain Crans and the rest of them.


    Zel was certain that for the more intangible affinities that the captain would be forced to show off some of his own magical talent, but it never happened. A beautiful Splitfolk woman with white hair went up for her turn and announced that she had an affinity with fire. She let loose a dazzling display of flames and spark where the captain stood so that he was entirely engulfed, only to appear moments later, entirely unharmed and without even a mark on his clothes.


    Miriya and Zel were whispering quietly trying to figure out the trick to it when the Clickfolk began going up. The first among them Zel recognized. It was the large Clickfolk who had slapped her hand away earlier. She was still upset about that, but willing to set it aside to see what kind of magic they used.


    "Please state your name and affinity," Captain Skylee repeated at their approach. The Clickfolk responded in Clicktongue. She gave a curt nod.


    "A water affinity. Understood, please give it your best." Captain Skylee jotted down some notes on her clipboard as the big Clickfolk took his position opposite of Captain Crans.


    Like Cleinz, this Clickfolk wasted no time, but had a much different method of attack. They held out all four of their hands in front of them, creating a box with their chitinous fingers. Once in this position a small droplet of water appeared in their hands and it began growing in size. As the ball grew, Zel found herself wondering if the Clickfolk would hurl it at the captain, or if perhaps they had some other plan. She did not have to wonder long as a sharp screeching began to emanate from the liquid, causing everyone in the room to cover their ears. Then, as if heralded by the noise, a jet of water shot out in a beam towards the Captain, moving too fast to even see.


    Where Captain Crans had been standing burst into mist, dust, and stone as the very ground they stood on crumbled under the stream of liquid. The barrage continued for several seconds before the Clickfolk put their hands down and the water ceased. Zel watch in anticipation as the dust began to settle on the other side, sure that this time Captain Crans would have either played his hand or been seriously hurt.


    But to her surprise, he stood exactly where he had been before, unbothered even by the particulates of stone that rained down upon him from the blast.


    "That was mighty interestin''!" He exclaimed, "I can''t remember the last time I saw that technique up close, an excellent rendition if I do say so myself."


    The large Clickfolk quietly returned to the line even as Captain Cranssung his praises. Zel didn''t know how to read the Clickfolk''s emotions, but if she had to guess she thought the Clickfolk looked satisfied. Then, it was finally time for a familiar face to take the exam.


    Jammy stepped away from the wall and got into position. Zel was very excited to see what her new friend''s affinity was and how she used it.


    "Your name and affinity, please." She said.


    Jammy responded with the series of sounds that Zel recognized as her name, followed by some others that she did not understand.


    "A plant affinity, unusual," Captain Skylee said. "Understood. Please give us a demonstration of your offensive ability on the target." She gestured casually to Captain Crans who was casually picking something from beneath his nails.


    Jammy nodded. She reached into her cloak and produced a small leather bag. She poured out its contents from one hand on her right to the other, revealing an assortment of small seeds. Then she scattered the seeds out on the floor between her and Captain Crans before putting the bag away and holding out all of her hands. With the movement of her limbs the seeds responded in turn, and suddenly the floor of the great hall was alight with activity.


    The seeds jumped and shook as if they were boiling. An explosion of color burst from them as the seeds opened up and grew into fully matured plants in an instant, but even then they did not stop. They continued to grow until there was a towering mass of plant life that nearly reached the ceiling.


    Jammy gave a flick of her wrists and the mass came tumbling down towards Captain Crans. With a thundering boom they smashed into the stone floor, shaking the ground beneath everyone. But, just like the times before, Captain Crans was completely unharmed and unbothered, standing next to the pillar of plantlife almost as if it hadn''t nearly flattened him against the stone. He even leaned on it as if it were a wall that had always been there.


    Although Zel found it difficult to read the emotions of her new friend, Jammy was emitting a low buzz which Zel suspected was an indicator that she was a bit upset. Jammy used all of her four hands to make a scooping motion up towards her head, and the vines moved in turn. However, Jammy failed to make the vines move where Crans was leaning, instead the ends floundered around harmlessly , unable to follow her wishes.


    "Sorry to say that you seem like you''re at a bit of a disadvantage compared to some other students here, my friend." Captain Crans said, "There ain''t nothin'' for your plants to take root in down here, makes it a bit harder for you. A bit nicer for me, though." He hopped onto the bulk of the vines and laid down on them as if they were a hammock, his smug grin visible beneath the shadow of his hat.


    Jammy let out an exasperated buzz and snapped her fingers. The vines rapidly detracted, leaving Crans suspended in the air for a moment before he skillfully whipped his weight around and landed on his feet.


    Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    "Well, you''re no fun at all!" He said, the taunting smile clearly visible now.


    The trials continued as the number of students was slowly dwindling, inevitably getting closer to Zel and Miriya''s own turns. Zel was excited, but her excitement was overshadowed by a growing sense of dread.


    She had realized something as she watched the other students, something that made her more nervous than ever before. Cleinz was pompous but clearly amazingly skilled, Jammy was incredible too, Zel had no idea that there were plant magicians that could work with seeds alone, she had only ever seen that kind of magic work on larger plants. And they were far from the only amazing students there. As hard as she tried, Zel found it impossible to shake the feeling that she wasn''t good enough, that she didn''t belong here.


    But what made her the most nervous was Captain Crans. During every student''s trial up to this point he had not made use of his own magic even once. Even students who had dangerously fast magics like the large Clickfolk were unable to even touch him before he thoroughly embarrassed them by either putting them into the floor or disabling their efforts as he had done with both Cleinz and Jammy. He was a pompous ass, incredibly insensitive, and absolutely unbelievable to watch.


    Perhaps she could imagine herself standing next to the other candidates, perhaps even as a student of Dream Academy, but she couldn''t imagine becoming as strong as someone like Captain Crans, his very presence felt daunting to her. He inspired in her a fear that she had never felt before, something innate like her body knew that what she was seeing was in some way unnatural. But she also had another feeling, a strange one that she didn''t recognize.


    Zel hadn''t noticed, but she had actually started shaking while watching the students go up. She stopped when she felt a comforting hand over her shoulder and found herself trapped in Miriya''s embrace


    "Don''t worry. You''ll do great. Let me go first so I can get him warmed up for ya''!" She said with a bright smile.


    Zel sniffled but managed to regain her composure.


    "You''re right, go out there and give him the business!" Zel said. Her sister always knew how to cheer her up, and it wasn''t long until she felt fully rejuvenated once more.


    Soon enough, it was Miriya''s turn, and she walked forward to her spot standing tall and her tail straight. She looked as prepared as Zel had ever seen her.


    "Name and affinity, please." Captain Skylee repeated once more.


    "My name is Miriya, and my affinity is time!" Miriya responded enthusiastically.


    This announcement made the crowd go silent briefly, but it wasn''t long until whispering sprung up once more. This time, however, it wasn''t random chatter and gossip, but discussions about what they had all just heard. Miriya was the most confused of all, however, and she turned towards the captain with her head cocked, a puzzled expression painted on her face.


    "Are you sure that you have a time affinity?" Captain Skylee asked Miriya, "If so, that is extremely unusual. It''s a rather rare affinity."


    "I''m pretty sure, but why don''t I show you?" Miriya said, pulling out her slingshot from her back pocket and holding it out playfully.


    "Yeah, why don''t you show me." Crans said. He suddenly appeared towering directly over Miriya, startling her and making her jump away. No one had noticed him move during the conversation, but he had crept across the room in anticipation as soon as Miriya announced what her affinity was. He was licking his lips and looked as though he were almost drooling with excitement. Maybe the strange sensations of fear that Zel felt were not so unfounded.


    "Sorry," he said, holding up a hand and taking a few steps back. "You like ranged weaponry? I''ll get in your range then." He continued walking backwards and facing Miriya until he clumsily collided with the far wall.


    "That ought to be far enough for that little thing. Show me whatcha got!" he said. He stuck out his chin and put one finger to his cheek as if to say ''aim here.''


    "Alright, here it goes!" Miriya shouted. She took a pellet out from her pouch she wore on her belt and pulled it back in the band of the slingshot.


    Once she was satisfied with her aim, she let the shot rip.


    The hall again shook violently as an incredible thunderclap of noise echoed throughout the hall. The pellet had blasted across the room in an instant and burst the stone wall that it came into contact with just as quickly, a violent rain of glowing rock flew out in the room with such force that some of the shrapnel managed to reach the students and other captains.


    Looking at the cloud of dust, none of the students were hopeful. This was the one, surely this was the attack out of all of them that actually managed to harm the captain, many of them even feared the worst as the cloud finally calmed down.


    It was almost just as shocking as Miriya''s attack to see that, once again, the Captain was entirely unharmed. He was crouched down next to the massive hole in the wall a glimmer in his eye as he looked back and forth between the crater and Miriya. He let out a long whistle.


    "Girl, that is what I am talkin'' about," he said, turning towards Miriya, "That''s the kind of thing that I like to see!" He pointed to the shattered wall as he spoke. Never had Zel heard someone so excited by something that could certainly have killed them.


    "If I had my way, you''d be in right now!" Captain Crans continued. "Unfortunately we got that one more exam, but forget that one anyway. You''re in!"


    Miriya, who was still a bit surprised at her own strength, didn''t know how to respond to what the Captain had been saying.


    "R-really?" she managed to stutter out.


    "I ain''t the final judge," Captain Crans said, "But I ain''t letting these fools let you get away." He gestured with a single thumb to the other Captains who were still calmly observing. "Welcome to Dream Academy, Miriya."


    The line of students erupted with applause at this announcement. Zel, who had been slack jawed like many of the other students, was jumping up and down with her arms raised, cheering on her best friend and sister. Even though they were still all competing with one another, it felt as though for a moment all of them had gotten to witness something amazing.


    Miriya herself was very flustered and covered her face with both her hands before quickly returning to the line where Zel met her with a big hug.


    "Alright, that''s quite enough you guys. We still have a few more people to get through and a whole other test for everyone. Let''s keep it moving. You over there, you''re up next!" Captain Skylee shouted, pointing at Zel.


    "Oh shit, here we go." Zel whispered to herself, her excitement for her sister immediately quashed. Miriya gave her two thumbs up as Zel moved over to her position.


    "Say, are you friends with that lass over there?" Crans asked her from across the room as she reached the appropriate spot.


    "Yeah! That''s my sister!" She proudly exclaimed.


    "That''s what we like to hear!" Captain Crans exclaimed. "You got quite the act to follow."


    "Name and affinity, please." Captain Skylee''s voice rung out from behind Zel.


    "Z-Zel. My name is Zel, and my affinity is lightning." Zel stuttered out.


    "Alright Zel, please feel free to begin whenever you are ready." Captain Skylee said.


    Captain Crans stood across from Zel, the same stupid grin on his face as before. If anything it was even bigger than it had been now that he had found a student that he really liked. Now that she was face to face with him, Zel felt the odd sense of fear creep back into her heart. She felt herself begin to shake again.


    She didn''t understand it. Whenever she looked at him it felt like there was something wrong with him. It wasn''t just his looks or his skill, but something deeper than that. It made Zel''s head fill with thoughts that overwhelmed her.


    She wasn''t like her sister. She had never used her magic to hurt something else, she had always been afraid to do so. When she was young and didn''t know what her affinity was yet Zel had nearly burned down their family home when she awoke violently one night, sparks flying off of her. She had been terrified of her mana for years after that, and had never considered trying to hurt someone with it.


    Despite that, she had wanted to become a student of Dream Academy for a long time, almost as long as she could remember, even longer than she had known her affinity. She thought that maybe as she grew older she would learn to not worry about it, or maybe she would get used to it. She never had. But now she had to.


    She couldn''t get the thoughts that plagued her out of her head, the presence of the captain seemed to compound the doubts that she felt as she stared down someone she knew was far stronger than she ever could be. She turned her head away from him and by chance saw Miriya on the wall.


    Miriya pointed at Zel, then at herself. She took a deep breath, lifting her whole body up and puffing out her cheeks with how much air she took in before letting it all out slowly and giving Zel another thumbs up.


    Zel couldn''t help but smile. She looked back at her hands and took a big breath as well, and when she was done the shaking had stopped. She could do this.


    I just need it to reach him, she thought, just once. Zel closed her eyes.


    She held out her arms in front of her and imagined in her mind. She imagined them welling up with mana, filling her body with lightning from within. She could feel the scales and hairs on her arms tingle and spark, the air around them growing volatile as she focused. The sensation continued to grow until the rest of the students in the room witnessed as Zel''s arms began to glow brighter than the room around them, an eerie hue of blue that matched her own skill.


    Zel felt the tingling and crackling of the electricity from within her skin. It was something that she knew well, better than almost anything in the world, and, as her eyes slowly opened, she let it all go.


    A bolt of lightning arced from the tips of her fingers, lancing across the room towards Captain Crans. It violently surged forth in an instant, but right before it reached its target the lightning veered off, crashing into the wall up and to the right of Captain Crans. Zel stared at the black mark as if she were surprised it were there. Zel''s arms were still charged and tingling, eager to loose another bolt.


    "Interesting¡­" Captain Crans said, while scratching his chin. "Alright, Missy, hit me again."


    "O-okay." Zel said. She closed her eyes and imagined the sensation once again. When she felt it peak once more she loosed another bolt with the same intensity as the last. Once again the lighting rapidly arced towards Crans before violently veering off, this time crashing into the ground to the left of Captain Crans'' feet.


    "Seems like you might have a control issue. That''s okay, we can work out the kinks. Hit me again." Captain Crans said with a shrug. "But before we can do that, I need you to hit me, Zel." Captain Crans began to move towards her with the speed and intensity of someone on an evening stroll.


    Zel could feel the fear mounting again.


    She released another bolt that veered wildly off course.


    "Again."


    Another, this time flying into the ceiling.


    "Again." His voice changed again. Zel shot off another that went wild.


    "Again." He kept getting closer. Zel missed another.


    "Again." Zel was terrified.


    No matter how many times she let the lightning flow from her fingertips, no matter how many steps Captain Crans got closer, she couldn''t hit him. It continued until he was standing directly over her. She was nowhere near as tall as Cleinz who was still dwarfed by the captain, Zel felt microscopic as he towered over her.


    "You said your name was Zel?" he asked.


    "Y-yeah, that''s right." Zel responded.


    "You have a lightning affinity?"


    "I¡­ lightning¡­ lightning is my affinity¡­" Zel said nervously, Captain Crans did not seem to want to wait around to hear her answer.


    "You do know that you need to hit me to pass this exam, right?" The captain waited expectantly for her answer.


    "I-... I don''t¡­" Zel struggled to speak.


    Crans grabbed Zel''s arms and held them up. Zel, startled, began to withdraw her mana from her arms.


    "Hit. Me." Captain Crans didn''t sound the same anymore. There was something wrong. He sounded distant and loud, but the words that he spoke echoed throughout Zel''s head.


    Hit me. Hit me. Hit me.


    Zel pulled her mana all the way into herself, hiding it away in her body. She completely withdrew into herself and struggled to escape from the captain''s grip. She pulled her mana tight into a ball within her, determined to not let it out. She squeezed it and squeezed it


    Crans sighed and let go of Zel''s arms, causing her to fall to the ground. He turned away from her and began to walk away.


    "Miracle, we have our first dropout," he announced.


    But Zel couldn''t hear him. She was somewhere else.


    She didn''t know where she was, but she knew the place. She was in a hole somewhere. It was deep and dark. But there was light somewhere far above. Three bright lights and a gentle one. One was red, one was yellow, and one was blue. The gentle one was the lightest of purples. But that was far away. Too far for Zel.


    She wasn''t alone in the hole. There was something else. It was small and odd, not fit for, well, anything really. It was also lonely in the hole. It had no friends to keep it company.It wasn''t long until it noticed Zel.


    When it became aware of her it was so happy. It told her things. It told her that she and her were the same. It was alone and she was alone. Zel tried to tell it that she wasn''t alone, but it wouldn''t listen.


    It told Zel that it knew her. It had known her for a long time, but never knew how to talk to her. It told her that she was special, that she was different. Zel didn''t believe it, but it didn''t mind. It knew better.


    The final thing that it said was how happy it was to see her. It was so happy, and Zel felt happy too.


    She felt happy and warm.


    Zel leapt up from the floor and latched her hands around one of Captain Crans'' arms. A scream escaped her lips, but she couldn''t hear it. She wasn''t somewhere else anymore, but she wasn''t all there either. Her grip tightened around the captain''s arms as a torrent of mana welled up from within her, everything she had pouring out of her all at once.


    The room was filled with a blinding light and nobody could see what was happening, but when the light faded away all of the students could see Captain Crans with Zel still on his arm, both of them with wild smiles on their faces.


    "D-did I hit you, sir?" Zel asked. She felt dizzy and confused. She could hardly speak.


    "You sure did, Zel. Welcome to my world." Crans responded, the terrible smile on his face growing even wider. Zel wasn''t afraid of it anymore.

 Chapter 6: The Second Half

    Chapter 6: The Second Half


    After getting the passing grade from Captain Crans, Zel managed to pick herself up and hobble back over to Miriya, who was about to explode with excitement.


    "That''s my sister!" Miriya squealed, her arms locking around Zel like a vice as she got back in the line. "I knew you could do it! I never doubted you for a moment!"


    "Thank you, Miri¡­" Zel said with a weak smile. She was exhausted, except that wasn''t quite right. Physically she felt fine, her mind, however, was a different story. She was barely able to walk straight and felt as if there were a wet towel thrown over her thoughts. Everything was sluggish and hazy. She leaned against the wall for support until things started to come back into focus.


    "You okay, Zel?" Miriya asked upon seeing this.


    "Yeah, I''m alright¡­ Just a bit worn out."


    "I''ll bet. That was a lot of lightning you slung."


    "Yeah¡­" Zel went quiet. She was having a hard time remembering. There was something clawing at the back of her mind like it was trying to dig its way out of her skull, but she couldn''t grasp it. All that she remembered was that she was scared, and then she wasn''t.


    It didn''t take much longer for the strange sensation to fade. As the fog lifted, Zel felt normal once again, better than normal. She felt like energy was flowing through her, her mana practically full to bursting despite having just exerted a lot of her reserves. She couldn''t understand it.


    "Hey, Miri," Zel said.


    "Yeah? What''s up, sis?" Miriya asked, she was focused on one of the other prospects who was taking their turn at the exam, somebody who had a wind affinity.


    "Did¡­ did anything weird happen while I was up there? Or did you hear anything weird?" Zel asked.


    "No, nothing happened at all, besides you kicking Captain Crans butt!" She said. "What? Was there something that I missed?"


    "No, no. I guess it was just me¡­" Zel said quietly. "Nothing really happened? Nothing at all?"


    "I mean, you missed a couple times, then you grabbed him? Are you alright, Zel?" Miriya asked, clearly concerned now.


    "Yeah, I''m fine. It was nothing. Really. I just thought something was a bit weird, must have been my imagination." Zel said, dispelling the thoughts with a wave of her hand


    "Okay. But tell me if anything is wrong. Alright?" Miriya said with a smile. Zel smiled back before bringing her attention back to the exams.


    Coincidentally, Zel and Miriya had been among the last chosen for the first exam, so they did not have to wait long until the last of the others finished up. After the first round was over, the Captains conferred for a moment before Captain Skylee came back to address the students


    "That is the end of the first exam, congratulations on all of your efforts up to this point. From here on you will be working with Captain Ceres Duphor." Captain Skylee announced. "Captain Ceres is a master at magical manipulation and will give you each individual instruction on how to complete the test, so please listen closely to what he has to say."


    The captain that looked like Cleinz stepped forward while Captain Skylee and Captain Crans both joined the headmaster on one of the benches now that their roles were complete. Zel remembered that Crans had mentioned that this person, Captain Ceres, was actually Cleinz'' older brother.


    "I would like to once more give you my heartfelt congratulations on passing the first round." Captain Ceres began, his was shockingly similar to Cleinz,  however, he spoke in a much more reserved manner.


    No, reserved isn''t the right word. Regal. Like proper royalty. Zel thought to herself


    "This second examination will determine your aptitude with mana." Captain Ceres continued. "Affinities are the magics that individuals are gifted in and are seen as an expression of the user''s mana given life. They are the form that your mana takes when touched by who you are."


    "What we will be testing now is your mana directly." Captain Ceres continued, "Allow me to demonstrate before I continue."


    Captain Ceres knelt down and placed one of his hands on the floor as Cleinz had done earlier, except he did not manipulate the stone as Cleinz had done. Instead, the floor began to glow brighter than it had before. Starting from where his hand was placed and spreading outward, a new light appeared beneath the students feet. Captain Ceres stopped after a short time and continued.


    "This hall is made of Manastone. It is a material that, as you can see, absorbs mana and ,from that energy, emits light. This is what we will be using to test your mana."


    "Mana is one of the driving forces of our world, and there is almost nowhere in Tenyarn that exists without mana," Captain Ceres continued. "Of course, it will also be vital to the work you will conduct here at Dream Academy. A foundationally sound pool of mana is essential."


    "The second exam will consist of an endurance test of your mana where you will expend everything that you have." Captain Ceres said. "This exam will take place in the same order as the previous one to keep the time of rest consistent among all students. And if you feel as though you have already exhausted your mana, I apologize, but that is part of the exam. Let us begin!"


    As Cleinz was the first student in the first exam, he once again stepped up first for the second exam. He approached his elder brother enthusiastically, as he had done before. Ceres, however, did not seem so excited to see Cleinz, Zel noticed him sigh as his younger brother approached.


    Cleinz greeted Captain Ceres heartily as they met, but Captain Ceres'' somber expression was unchanged, nor did he give his sibling an enthusiastic greeting. Cleinz appeared taken aback by this and the two of them began to whisper. Neither Zel nor Miriya nor anyone else in the room could hear their exchange, but they saw the aftermath. Cleinz came away from their private chat with a look of rage on his face, his visage twisted and flushed. He quickly moved away from this brother and got on with the exam.


    Cleinz knelt down and placed both of his hands on the floor. Almost immediately a glow could be seen emanating from his hands that began to expand all across the floor, almost reaching the walls. Cleinz began to strain harder and harder, his handsome brow furrowing and face contorting as he approached his limit. The light continued to expand towards the walls, but did not quite reach before Cleinz released the floor and leaned his head back, gasping for air.


    "Well done." Captain Ceres said, flatly. "Exelcia, please take care of this applicant."


    The shortest of the captains with the large weapon stepped forward.


    "Of course!" She said, more than happy to help as far as Zel could tell. "Come here, dear. I will help you up." Captain Exelcia gently lifted Cleinz to his feet and offered him her shoulder before he violently wrested himself from her grip.


    "Get off me!" He said through clenched teeth, before he began to hobble his way to the door. Captain Ceres sighed, and pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers.


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    "Please lead that¡­ please lead him to the appropriate room. Thank you for your hard work Exelcia." Captain Ceres said. He had the briefest flash of anger as he spoke, but regained his composure quickly.


    Exelcia was unphased. She still cheerfully dashed over to the door and held it open for Cleinz before he could reach it himself. He, exhausted, resentfully accepted the assistance and disappeared out the door.


    "Be right back!" Exelcia said chimed before darting out of the room after Cleinz.


    "Man, what a dick!" Zel said, obviously a bit louder than she had intended, as she drew several looks from surrounding students. Zel shrunk back a little, hoping that maybe it would disappear. Miriya, however, laughed and laughed.


    Cleinz'' mana was still floating around on the floor. Zel noticed that from his initial effort, Cleinz'' mana had actually spread further than he was able to push it, spreading like a liquid through the stone and it gradually began climbing up the wall of the room. It was mingling with the other mana that had been thrust into the stone before and now it was quite unclear whose mana they were looking at at all. Captain Ceres clearly noticed this as well and turned to the last captain yet to be introduced, the one that had wandered away from the others when they arrived.


    "Captain Kartave, if you would?" Captain Ceres asked.


    The strange captain who Zel had had a hard time looking at earlier simply nodded in response. They placed one of their gloved hands on the wall and, in an instant, the entire room went pitch black. It was as dark as when they first entered the room and the students could hear Captain Ceres call out from the murk.


    "Would the next student step forward, please."


    Zel and the others could hear shuffling footsteps heading out into the room. Not long after that the floor began to glow once more as a new student took their turn at the exam. Their mana was not as voluminous as Cleinz, and only filled about a quarter of the area of the floor whereas Cleinz had managed to fill it up almost entirely, though it was enough to give light to most of the room.


    After a short while this student collapsed and the process repeated. Captain Exelcia escorted them out, Captain Kartave turned the room to pitch blackness, and a new student made their way into the shadows.


    Unlike the first exam, Zel was not as intimidated by the level of her peers. It seemed that, like with the first test, Cleinz was a standout in this category. By the time the test had reached Jammy, no one had managed to fill the room to the extent that Cleinz had. While each student was at a different level of mastery of their affinity, it became clear that the amount of mana that everyone could produce was something of an equalizer. Even the large Splitfolk was only able to produce enough mana to fill out less than half the volume of the floor beneath them, which seemed to be the average. Zel hoped that she could at least manage that.


    When it was again Jammy''s turn, Zel was excited to see how large her mana pool was. After such an impressive demonstration with her plants, Zel was sure that she was at least a match for Cleinz or maybe even greater. But Zel''s expectations were thoroughly thwarted as Jammy only managed to make a small portion of the floor directly beneath her glow, one of the weakest performances among the candidates.


    One by one the students walked into the darkness and completed their second exam and before they knew it, it was again time for Miriya and Zel''s turns.


    "Get out there and knock ''em'' dead, Miri!" Zel shouted, giving Miriya a powerful slap on the back that pushed her forward into the darkness. Miriya gave a single thumbs up as she disappeared into the shadows.


    Just like the others, after a few moments Miriya began her test and the floor began to glow as she pushed her mana into it. It expanded from the starting point reaching to about three quarters of the way to the wall before it began to peter out and she collapsed. Exelcia helped her up, and with one more weary thumbs up for Zel she was escorted out of the room.


    Zel was impressed with Miriya. Just as I always am, she thought. No one had approached Cleinz'' record even though they were almost through every student, as far as Zel could tell Miriya was the closest.


    She''s so amazing, she thought, as Captain Kartave darkened the room once again.


    "Next student, step forward." She could hear Captain Ceres call from the darkness. She walked forward over the cold stone floor and soon she could make out his figure in the dark. She approached the Captain who greeted her with a gentle smile, just barely visible in close quarters.


    "Hello, Zel. As you know, my name is Captain Ceres Duphor, it is wonderful to make your acquaintance," he said, holding out a single gloved hand. Zel was a bit taken aback. Captain Ceres was very different from his brother.


    "It is very nice to meet you as well, sir!" she said and shook his outstretched hand.


    "Your sister Miriya is very impressive. I bet you are proud to have such a skilled sibling." Captain Ceres said. His words were kind, but Zel could detect a hint of annoyance in his voice. She suspected that his brother Cleinz may have had something to do with it.


    "Yes, she really is incredible," Zel responded sincerely. "I feel like I''m always trying to keep up with her."


    "Well, this is the next step," Captain Ceres said, smoothly motioning to the floor. Zel nodded and Captain Ceres continued.


    "I was watching you earlier during your affinity examination. I noticed that before you used your lightning you pushed all your mana that you could muster into your arms and controlled it from there. Does that seem correct to you?" He asked.


    "Yes, I always try to push it to where I want it to come out." Zel said with a nod.


    "Interesting. That may be a habit that we will eventually have to work through. One of the basic principles of magic control is that you only use as much magic as you need to, not all of it when attacking." He spoke as if he were lecturing in a classroom. Zel could tell that Captain Ceres was an experienced instructor.


    "Well, I do not use all of it. Like you said, I try to just use enough to do what I think I need to."


    Captain Ceres frowned.


    "When you had your first examination, you used all of your mana at your disposal to fill your arms with electricity, did you not? Ah, you must mean you did not use it all to attack! You were able to portion it off for each of your bolts and still have some in reserve for when you latched onto Captain Crans. I understand." The captain seemed satisfied with this answer that he came to himself.


    "Umm, well no, sir," Zel said, "Even after I managed to hit Captain Crans, I still hadn''t used all of my mana."


    Captain Ceres'' frown grew a bit deeper and he had begun to furrow his brow as well.


    "That is interesting. Well, either way, your habit of pushing your mana around your body will be useful here." Ceres moved on quickly, "when you move your mana in your body, you can direct its flow and when it leaves your body it comes out as electricity. In this case, the stone will serve as an extension of your body. When you allow the mana to enter your arms and your fingertips as you always have, instead of releasing it like lightning, imagine pushing it further. Through your fingertips and the palms of your hands down into the floor as if there were more of your body to work with. Please take your time, I can give you further help if you need it." By the time he finished his explanation the frown he had worn had disappeared.


    "Okay." Zel said. She knelt down as she had seen the others do.


    She placed her hands on the floor and tried to envision what Captain Ceres had explained to her. She thought about how she wanted to draw her lightning to the tips of her fingers. She could feel her arms and fingers tingling as the charge built up, but instead of releasing this time, she continued pushing. She imagined that more of her body was just beyond her fingertips and pushed the mana there. As she did this, the floor began to glow beneath her.


    "Good, good." Captain Ceres encouraged, "Remember to push everything you have into it."


    Zel pushed harder, the light growing from a small puddle to a vast pool that began to reach towards the corners of the room. She was starting to feel the fatigue as she pushed herself further and further, but she also felt something else. It was the same warm sensation from earlier and she began to remember.


    Zel felt a smile creep across her face as she thrust her mana into the floor with a new gusto. The tide of mana beneath her surged forth with ever greater force, and as Zel filled the stone with mana she felt a sense of pleasurable joy tingling within her. She couldn''t help but laugh.


    It didn''t stop the sensation, however. She had never felt like this before. Using her mana filled her with a sense of pleasure she had never experienced before, and she felt herself getting lost within it. She lost where she was, forgotten in the euphoria, she almost forgot who she was too, except that suddenly she was ripped from her high by a loud sound and a stinging pain.


    She had run out of mana, and collapsed, her head bashing against the stone floor. She managed to pull herself back up to her knees, holding her injured head with her hands. Captain Ceres, who was still next to her, was not paying her any mind, instead he was looking up to the ceiling of the hall.


    That''s when Zel noticed that the entire room was ablaze with light. The hall from where Zel sat all the way to the roof was glowing intensely, the mana inside the stone unevenly raging like a wildfire. It was far brighter even than it had been when the headmaster had lit the room.


    Captain Ceres looked down at Zel from where he stood, a spark of excitement in his eyes.


    "Unbelievable." He said, his voice shaking.


    Zel heard a long whistle from behind her. She looked back and saw Exelcia walking towards her.


    "We got us a keeper, don''t we Ceres! My my, where are you keeping all that stuff." Exelcia poked at Zel''s belly while lifting her to her feet.


    "Let''s get you some place you can rest. Good luck with this one Karty!" Exelcia yelled at Captain Kartave who gave a silent nod as they walked out of the room into the halls of the Academy.

 Chapter 7: The Results

    Chapter 7: The Results


    The two of them walked into the great pit and began walking down the massive spiral staircase. Exelcia was quite chatty, and while Zel was still very out of it, she did her best to answer any questions that she had.


    "That was mighty impressive, young lady, mighty impressive indeed. I don''t know if I''ve ever seen a new student with as much man as you got in there. Really, where are you hiding it?" She poked fun at Zel as they descended.


    "I really don''t know, ma''am," Zel responded, feeling a bit dizzy, "I guess it''s in here somewhere, though." Exelcia laughed.


    "That it must be. Say¡­ you said that you were sisters with that time girl right? Any other friends or family that you got in the Academy?" Exelcia asked.


    "No, we are the first ones of our family to ever go into any kind of advanced magical schooling I think. My mom is a florist, and my dad is a chef, so they just know the basic stuff. As for friends, I just made one earlier today. That Clickfolk named Jammy, she''s really nice."


    "Aw, that''s sweet. If you pass the exams, and odds are looking pretty good, you''ll make a lot of friends at Dream Academy! That''s basically all I did my first year!" Exelcia''s radiant attitude was infectious, and Zel felt the pounding in her head begin to recede as she spoke. "Oh, look at that! Here we are." Exelcia stopped in front of an entranceway that didn''t have a door on it and walked inside.


    The room that they entered was large, but nowhere near the size of the grand hall. It appeared to be some kind of medical room, it was filled with beds and curtains that gave a bit of privacy to the occupants, but otherwise was very sparsely decorated. Zel could see that there was another door carved into the mountain on the far side of the ward that was closed that had "Supplies" written upon it. Most of the students that participated in the exam were in this room in various states. Some were laying down in beds sleeping, others sat up and talked amongst their bedmates, and others still were wandering around the room, seemingly unphased by the intense exam.


    Zel spotted Miriya waving at her from one of the beds and Exelcia walked Zel over to her.


    "Alright, I''ll leave you right here. Now you get some rest, I have to go help the last few, but we won''t be moving you guys to your dorms for a bit longer, so just relax here, yeah?" Exelcia said.


    "Thank you, ma''am," Zel responded before flopping down onto Miriya''s bed, exhausted. Exelcia disappeared from their sight in a flash, they could hear her heavy armor clanking as they walked away.


    "How''d you do?" Miriya asked.


    "Good, I think. Something strange happened while I was taking the exam, I can''t remember what was going on around me. Something similar happened in the first exam as well. I don''t know what to make of it. I think I passed out, or nearly did, but when I came to the entire room was aglow and Captain Ceres said that it was unbelievable" Zel explained as she rubbed her head where it had smashed into the floor.


    "Oh no! Maybe you just over exerted yourself? You''ve never taken a test like this before, so maybe it was just your body not listening?" Miriya said with a concerned look.


    "...Yeah¡­ Maybe you''re right." Zel had an intense headache, not made any better by the welt that was forming on her forehead. She wanted to tell Miriya more about what happened, but she was having a hard time remembering herself. She decided that for now they should just rest until the other students were done.


    "Did the captain really say that your mana was unbelieveable?" Miriya suddenly asked.


    "Yeah, that''s what I heard, at least. I had just gotten up from smashing my head against the floor though, so take that for what you will." Zel replied.


    "That''s incredible, Zel! Do you really have that much mana?" Miriya asked.


    "Of course she doesn''t." Zel and Miriya were both surprised by a bitter voice coming from a curtain next to them. A hand reached around the curtain and pulled it back, revealing a certain Cleinz Duphor with a ghastly look upon his face.


    "She should not even be here with us." He continued, "She almost failed the first exam because of her cowardice. You, Trailfolk, I will abide. If only because your powers will prove useful to the Academy, but your sister over here is clearly worthless."


    Miriya opened her mouth to defend her sister, but Zel was quicker.


    "And who the fuck do you think you are, Cleinz," Cleinz was taken aback at the sudden attack, "We saw you out there with your fancy rock magic. Good for you, get off our backs! We took the tests, same as you, so leave us the fuck alone."


    "How dare you talk to me that way! The Duphor family has been part of this Academy for generations! We have been weaving magic since the naming of Split Sky! You are a commoner who should not even be given the chance to walk among us!" Cleinz shouted back. The two''s raised voices began to attract the attention of the other students in the ward.


    "Oh, is that what this is about? Your whole family knows how to twirl rocks around, that''s fantastic. Why don''t you go tell on me to your big brother then. Go talk to him about how some ''commoner'' from out in the boonies has got more mana in one finger than his little brother has in his whole body." Zel shouted back at him.


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    Cleinz'' face grew dark, he stood up, and began to walk away, briskly brushing by their bed frame as he went  Before he passed behind the curtain and out of sight, he turned to face them once more


    "Tonight I witnessed your incompetence several times. From the moment I first saw you on the platform I knew that you would never be of any use to this Academy. Then I saw your total lack of cultural awareness on our way to the top of the mountain, making a mockery of the Clickfolk people. I see you for what you truly are. Nothing more than a burden. Perhaps you can fake it now, but eventually everyone will see what I have seen." He spoke in a grim and certain tone, his words chosen carefully. As he finished his speech he turned around quickly. He left them to their enclosed bedspace, his robes fluttering dramatically as he went.


    Zel, however, was unphased.


    "Maybe that will be the same night that everyone sees you for who you really are, you prick!" Zel yelled after him. "What an asshole! I can''t believe I thought he was hot!


    "Yeah!" Miriya piped in, with forced enthusiasm, her eyes darting around the room. There had been several student onlookers who became interested in the argument, and each of them came to their own conclusions. With Zel feeling a little too heated to worry about the embarrassment of the scene she just made, it was Miriya who held down the fort and felt the sting of shame for both of them.


    After that, though, Zel and Miriya were left alone once again, allowing for some blissful moments of peace while they eagerly awaited the Captain''s call. Zel and Miriya talked about various things together to pass the time, keeping their mind off the exams, as the last few students slowly trickled in one after another. However, before the exam ended they eventually got another visitor.


    "Zel! Look! It''s your new friend!" Miriya exclaimed as Jammy revealed herself around the curtains. It seemed she had made a fool recovery from their exhaustive efforts, looking rather peppy indeed.


    "Hey Jammy! You were amazing in the test! I can''t believe your affinity is plant magic. That was so cool!" Zel hopped off the bed and knelt down to give Jammy a hug, but stopped short.


    "You¡­ wouldn''t mind if I hugged you, would you?" She asked. She remembered what happened last time she had touched Jammy.


    Jammy shook her head, holding her arms wide to jump into Zel''s arms to give her a big hug of her own.


    "So you carry around seeds that let you use your magic anywhere?" Zel asked as they ended their embrace. Jammy gave her a nod. "That''s really smart! Miriya and I got a bit lucky, both of our powers can be used with just our bodies, but you have a really creative fix to make sure you can fight!"


    Jammy nodded enthusiastically. She then pointed at Miriya and motioned as though she was using a slingshot, holding one of her hands forward and drawing back an invisible band with another. She then released the invisible band and made a loud crashing sound with her mandibles. She turned back towards Miriya, nodding and clapping with all four of her hands.


    "Oh, thank you!" Miriya said. Zel could tell that she was riding the high from all the compliments she had received tonight, probably more than ever before. Miriya''s tail bounced back and forth ceaselessly.


    Jammy then pointed towards Zel and held both her arms out. She mimicked the way Zel held her arms during the first exam and started making crashing sounds. Then she motioned as if she were grabbing something and made an even bigger explosion sound. She finished the display off with another round of nodding and an applause for Zel.


    "Thank you so much, Jammy!" Zel said, "But I''m not really proud of my performance during the exam. I was afraid of hurting him, and then I was just afraid. And then¡­" Zel trailed off as she tried to remember, but the haze was still there.


    "But who could blame you for being afraid to hurt someone after that display! You might have fried him!" Another figure walked around the privacy curtain of Miriya and Zel''s bed. It was Flint, he wore a broad grin on his face


    "I can''t believe you have all that mana Zel, what you did back there was unreal! There are people who train for years and years to have the level of mana that you have right now! It was unreal, you two. The whole room was glowing bright, you couldn''t see a single shadow being cast over anything! Captain Kartave even had trouble getting the room dark again! You know how it got dark instantly for everyone else? It took him-" Flint was all over Zel, an amazed sparkle in his eyes. Seems like they had found another lover of magic, not just language, as Flint was practically gushing over Zel''s examination demonstration. As he continued to prattle on, Jammy pulled on his cloak to get his attention.


    Jammy spoke in Clicktongue to Flint who''s eyes widened.


    "I forgot Jammy, you weren''t there! You totally missed Zel''s performance! Oh, you should have seen it, she was down on the floor like this-" He continued his unstoppable shower of praise, much to Zel''s embarrassment. Now Jammy''s eyes were glowing with excitement too as Flint put all sorts of grandiose ideas in her head about Zel''s performance. She looked at Zel with that glowing expression and she made another round of applause for Zel, more enthusiastic than ever before.


    "Alright, alright. Thank you Flint and Jammy." Zel said, finally putting a stop to their silliness, "Flint, does you being here mean that the examinations have wrapped up?" She asked.


    "It does indeed," Flint said, finally managing to calm down, "The captains should be wrapping up any additional deliberation they''re having now. Then they should be coming here to explain what else needs to be done."


    The four of them continued to chat until the last of the students entered the room along with Miracle, the headmaster, and all five of the captains. Miracle called all of the students over into a bundle once again.


    "Congratulations! Everyone who is in this room passed!" The headmaster announced.


    Nobody in the room reacted, each of them thinking that perhaps they misheard him.


    "You will select your classes in two nights time. Please, follow Miracle to your dorms and enjoy exploring the campus until then." And with that, the headmaster hobbled out the doorway and was gone.


    Everyone remained still in a stunned silence, nobody dared to make a move, lest they break whatever illusion they were all taking part in. Nobody until both Flint and Captain Crans both let out hearty laughs, then the dam burst.


    The students all cheered and screamed and cried, overwhelmed that they had passed the exam. Zel and Miriya hugged one another and Jammy jumped up and down in joy with the other Clickfolk. It took a while for the room to calm down, but it was eventually Miracle who brought everything back to normal.


    "Will all of the new students of Dream Academy please follow me to the dorm rooms on the bottom floor." She thundered over the raucous group.


    Their worries behind them and forgotten, Zel, Miriya, and the others all followed Miracle, excited to take the first steps into their new life and home at Dream Academy.

 Chapter 8: Humble Beginnings

    Chapter 8: Humble Beginnings


    After the exam, Miracle took charge of the group for the last time, leading them further down into the heart of Dream Academy. The further that the group went down, the more people that they saw as they went. They went from being met by one or two people on each level to the entire hallway being taken up by a mass of people, their large group only adding to the chaos as they went. Miracle explained that, with the exception of the very top of Dream Academy which was used for combat trials and other outdoor activities, most of the commonly used facilities were towards the bottom, which made it very crowded indeed. Because of this, though the students were excited to begin exploring and learning more about their new school, it was fruitless to gain any further information from Miracle after a certain point. They were lost in the tide of people and it was all they could do to keep up.


    Even so, Zel and the others couldn''t help but be in awe at the scale of it all. The Academy truly did stretch from the top of the mountain to the bottom, wasting no space in the strange architecture for innumerable classrooms, combat rooms, and other unique rooms like a gymnasium, the likes of which neither Zel nor Miriya had ever seen before.


    It was actually quite the journey to reach all the way to the bottom, but eventually they started seeing flickers of it through the gaps in the bridges. One could just barely make out some of the shining lights, the shadows cast by individuals walking by. It wasn''t until they were near their destination that Zel was able to take in fully what was happening.


    Down in the deepest part of Dream Academy there was a flat and ornately tiled stone flooring, seemingly given special care for the tremendous amount of foot trafic that it no doubt had to deal with as hundreds upon hundreds of Splitfolk, Clickfolk, and Trailfolk all made their way across the surface going about their business under dazzling orange lights that were hung every few feet from poles, which let no shadows form on the bottom of Dream Academy.


    The main feature of the bottom floor, however, had nothing to do with the people who were ambling about, but rather two sets of perpendicular train tracks that divided the layers by the cardinal directions. Outbound and inbound tracks led in and out of tunnels at the edges of the mountain and there were workers on all ends who were making sure that people quickly passed over the tracks and stayed out of their way, as if they were expecting a train any moment. Zel wondered what a train pulling in would look like.


    As if she thought it into existence, suddenly there was a burst of activity and a thunderingly loud sound like a blast from a horn that shook the halls. One of the tunnels suddenly lit up as workers shouted and corralled the crowds out of the way. A train came flying into the center of the mountain at blistering speed. It looked like it was going to tear right through the mountain without stopping before it came to a jarring halt at the very center of the plaza. The students watched in awe as a dozen people jumped off the train, looking no worse for wear than those around, and another dozen hopped on before the train let out another tremendous blast of its horn and launched itself just as quickly out the other side, gone as quickly as it came.


    Miracle led them onto this bottom floor and hugged the walls, coated with doors just as everywhere else in the mountain was, until they came along a somewhat discreet doorway underneath the other side''s spiral staircase, almost hidden from sight. She opened the doors and beckoned the students to enter.


    The students found themselves in a drab little space made of the same stone as most of the rest of the mountain, gray and uncaring. There was a decently sized room that they stood in that had a few amenities like chairs and tables, but beyond that there was a long hallway with dozens of doorways. In the center of the first room was the luggage that the students had abandoned at the train station, it seemed that Miracle had kept her word.


    "Here we are, everyone." Miracle announced once the students were all in the confines of the walls. "The final stop of our guided tour for the evening. Each room is equipped with little more than a bed. The toilet is at the very end of the hall. There are no room assignments, you may arrange yourselves however you wish as there should be more than enough beds. You are also all adults, and as such will be expected to manage your own sleeping schedule, there is no curfew. However, if you cause issues for the other students that cause complaints to be filed then you will be asked to stop your bad habits, and eventually be disciplined. Please report to the room that you took your examinations tomorrow by the Tiltwilts three quarters bloom. Good night!"


    Miracle expressed this large amount of information very quickly, the words practically pouring out of her mouth as she spoke. As soon as she finished her explanation she slipped out of the front door and slammed it behind her, leaving the students stunned.


    Guess she got tired of us, Zel thought to herself.


    The students were left a bit awkward at finally being left to their own devices after the long night, but soon they all broke apart and began staking claim over rooms. Zel and Miriya followed suit, grabbing their baggage and looking for a room of their own. They found that almost every room had more than two beds in it, and the smallest number of beds in a room that they were able to find was three, which they decided to settle for. Luckily for them, Miracle was right, there were more than enough beds for everyone, and the students divided themselves up into whatever groupings that they were comfortable with.


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    The room that Zel and Miriya found was rather bleak and barren, though not particularly different from any of the other rooms. It would seem that bleak and barren was a feature of being a first year dorm student. It had two small tables that were placed at the top of two of the beds, the last bed was flush with the back wall and touching both the tables. Other than that, there was a small lamp on each of the tables and that was it. Two tables, three beds, two lamps. The lamps were simple flame lanterns that were common throughout Split Sky. Zel lit both with her lightning as they began to unpack their suitcases, unfurling themselves into their new living space when Miriya had a thought.


    "Do you think we should invite Jammy, too?" Miriya asked.


    Zel was surprised. It hadn''t occurred to her to ask. They''d known each other for less than a night afterall, but Zel definitely did enjoy Jammy''s company, despite the fact they could only communicate verbally one way.


    But I also want to learn how to understand her! Zel thought. She wasn''t sure how motivated she was to learn a new language as Flint seemed to be, but she knew that she wanted to be able to better understand Jammy.


    "Yeah, let''s go ask her!" Zel said. The two of them ventured out into the hallway, where they stumbled into Jammy who was gathering up her own luggage.


    "Hey Jammy, would you like to join us in our dorm? We have three beds so it would be perfect." Miriya asked Jammy. Zel noticed that in addition to a suitcase that Jammy lugged on the ground behind her, she also had a very cute purse that had a floral pattern on it. Zel briefly entertained the thought that Jammy and her mother would get along very well.


    Imagine my mom''s garden if Jammy could get ahold of some of those plants!


    Jammy nodded enthusiastically at Zel and Miriya''s request but as soon as she did there was a familiar aggressive chattering that echoed down the hallway at her. The large Clickfolk had seen that Jammy was talking to them again. They were angrily approaching them, and the closer that they got, the more aggressive they sounded. Jammy winced as the large Clickfolk got within a few paces of her, where they stopped and violently pointed at her with one hand while pointing at the room that the other Clickfolk had claimed with the other. The Clickfolk then turned around and stormed off. Jammy looked at Zel and Miriya, totally crestfallen. With her head drooping low she made a low whistle noise that Zel and Miriya understood without any need for translation.


    "I can''t," Jammy said.


    Zel was steaming. She had had an emotional night, an emotional couple of nights even. She had been on a train for two nights straight, gotten off it in her smelly two night old clothes, climbed a mountain, climbed down a mountain, gotten made fun of, gotten into arguments, did amazingly well in an exam, made several new friends already, and was generally just having a time. She couldn''t stand seeing the large Clickfolk walk away like they had done nothing wrong, thinking they made no one upset. Or maybe it was that they didn''t care about who they upset. Zel wanted to give the Clickfolk a piece of her mind. But she didn''t. She took a deep breath and tried to hold herself back.


    Not tonight. I don''t know enough, I need to calm down. Not this evening. Zel felt a twinge of annoyance from the fact that she had actually learned something from Cleinz during their argument. She can''t speak Clicktongue and she doesn''t know much about them as a people, she doesn''t have all the pieces to the puzzle. Against every part of her screaming to go give the big Clickfolk a piece of her mind, she managed to stay calm.


    However, Zel also felt horrible for Jammy, seeing how defeated she was as she melancholically drug her suitcase down the hall heading towards the room the other Clickfolk had claimed. Zel suddenly had an idea. As silently as she could so as not to cause the large Clickfolk to turn around, she snuck up behind Jammy and leaned over close to her.


    "After we pick our classes tomorrow, why don''t we all go shopping tomorrow?" She asked in a whisper.


    Jammy gave a discreet nod, and they were all set. Jammy walked to her room, and Zel and Miriya returned to their own as though nothing had happened. Miriya gently closed the door behind her before collapsing to the floor in a pile.


    "Ohhhh, maaaaaaan, what a night," she let out a massive sigh. She then got up and recollapsed on the bed that she had claimed with her luggage earlier.


    Zel agreed. It had been a long time since it felt like they had any real chance to rest. So much had happened in such a short time and she didn''t feel like she had time to process it all. She looked at the room around her and decided that the first thing she wanted to do before resting was brighten the place up a little bit. She got to work unpacking and setting up the room the way she wanted.


    There was little way to make it feel like home, however. As thing stood they would be mostly living out of their luggage with clothes and such, but Zel had also brought a variety of books and other small trinkets that they could at least put on the tables to brighten up. As she was getting them out she found a pen that she had brought with her and a journal, brand new for her trip. She picked it up and placed it on her bed.


    Once Zel had finished setting up the things in her bags the way she wanted, she hopped into her own bed. By this time Miriya had long since fallen asleep, she was curled up on her own bed, her body gently rising and falling with her breath. Zel snuffed out one of the lanterns to give Miriya some darkness for her rest, but she left the lantern on her side, pulling up the journal and pen.


    Zel thought about what she should write. About the train ride, about the Academy, about the people she had met, about how the exam had gone. It all bounced around in her head as she tried to decide where to start, but in the end she didn''t choose any of these. There was something else that was burning at the back of her mind that, now that she was alone, she could not ignore anymore. She put her pen to the paper and wrote.


    "Tonight something happened to me that I can''t explain. I was taken somewhere far away and there was something that knew me. It told me its name¡­"

 Chapter 9: Course Selections

    Chapter 9: Course Selections


    Zel woke the next evening with a start. Miriya had woken up first on this night, much to the dismay of Zel, and she had decided that the best possible way to wake up her loving sister was to take a running leap from her side of the room and pounce on the still sleeping, very vulnerable Zel. She was right, it was the best way.


    "Ouch!" yelled Zel, at the shock. "What was that for?"


    "That," Miriya said with a finger pointing at Zel accusingly, "was for how you woke me up when we first started our journey over here!"


    "Fair enough," Zel gasped, clutching her belly where Miriya had landed.


    "Anyway, it''s time to get up. I heard a bunch of the other students shifting around outside." Miriya said, indifferent to Zel''s pain.


    "Alright, gimme a minute and we''ll get going." Zel did her best to raise herself, still crumpled from how hard that her sister had hit her. She looked around, they were in the same drab, and slightly damp, room as they had gone to bed in, bare gray walls in every direction. She reached over the edge of her bed into her bags and searched out some clothes for the night. Her favorite dress was now in desperate need of a wash, having been worn for three nights straight, but luckily she had plenty others to go through. She put one on and asked Miriya how she looked.


    "Same as you always do¡­" Miriya said with a morose expression and tone. "...amazing!" Miriya shouted, suddenly changing her tone. She and Zel hit a pose together before both bursting into laughter. Zel gathered up the rest of her outfit as well as some school supplies and was ready to depart.


    "I''m good to go. Let''s go pick some classes!" Zel said and they made their way into the dorm hallway.


    They found the hallway to be as equally drab as they had left it yesternight, but there were some changes. Miriya was right, several students were already making their way outside, they appeared in a much more lively state than they were after the exams.


    When Zel and Miriya reached the front door they saw Jammy with her group of Clickfolk as they gathered preparing to head to the meeting spot. Jammy saw them as well and gave them a wave. Zel nudged Miriya to get her attention and both of them waved back. The group of Clickfolk was rather well organized compared to the other cliques that had made it into the Academy, and they always walked in a kind of formation with the largest Clickfolk at front.


    Once they were organized, the Clickfolk all left at once, with Jammy trapped somewhere in the middle. Zel and Miriya decided that it would be best if they followed this group, that way neither of them would have to use their brains to navigate the labyrinthine mountain. They were expected to return to the same large room that they had spent the evening testing in, the Manahall as Zel had dubbed it. The headmaster had told them they would get a chance to select their classes, and both Zel and Miriya were very excited to see the options.


    The plaza that doubled as a train platform was even busier than Zel remembered. Despite their experience with it now, it was difficult to keep up with the group of Clickfolk, luckily the leader of the group was not one for politeness as they pushed their way through, and Zel and Miriya could tuck in behind the group''s wake.


    It wasn''t long until they made their way back to the Manahall, doors open wide in greeting. Once inside, they found the headmaster, who was sitting patiently for his students to arrive and they could start class selection, and Miracle, who was standing impatiently by his side, waiting for things to get started. Students were filtering in slowly, but the scheduled meeting time came and passed and they were still coming. Once the headmaster was satisfied with the attendance he stood up and addressed the students.


    "Hello, everyone." He began, "It is good to see so many of you passed the entrance exams this year, it is a very large class compared to some. Tonight, you will be selecting your classes. As some of you might suspect, as first years at the Academy, there are several courses that you are required to take and pass before we can allow you to take more advanced courses. I will now list the required curriculum." The headmaster stuck a hand into his robe, shuffling it around for a moment before pulling out a small card that he began to read aloud.


    "First is your home room class, which will start around this time each evening. In this class you will learn principles and techniques that will be the foundation for your other courses. This class is rather unique compared to most of the other courses that you will be taking, as it is taught by multiple teachers. Hopefully this will excite you, as it is an amazing opportunity to learn from several experienced people," the headmaster gave the students one of his creepy toothy grins before he continued.


    "The second required course for first years is unit training, where you will be doing most of your combat practice. Combat units that focus on magic for their main means of offense are volatile by nature. When you have several individuals in a group who have different magic affinities, unless those individuals are able to coordinate properly, they can often be more dangerous to themselves than the enemy. This course will teach you the basics of teamwork, magical combinations, weapon training, and other useful skills that will lead to your success at Dream Academy. It is taught by Captain Exelcia, whom you have already met." Zel thought of the delightful woman that had taken her to the medical ward.


    A personality like that might even make someone like Cleinz manageable eventually. She thought.


    "The final required course for first year students is magic flexibility training. Magic is like a muscle that needs maintenance, and when maintained properly magic can be a powerful muscle indeed. Captain Ceres teaches this course and will guide you to be able to use your magic in ways that you never imagined before, so please listen closely to him." The headmaster took the card in his hand and tucked it back into his cloak, "Those are the main three required courses for all first year students."


    Zel was surprised, she was expecting many more required courses, seeing as how several of the students like her had never been formally taught how to use their mana before, but she was also relieved.


    Three courses leaves plenty of time for anything else I want to learn, she thought.


    "However," the headmaster continued, "There are also courses that have been decided for each student in addition to the required courses."


    Damn.


    "Each of you did excellent in the exams, but nobody is perfect. The Captains have assigned at least one additional course for each of you that will focus on targeting your weakest areas, whether magical or otherwise. These courses are unique compared to your other required ones, and may be more or less advanced than them depending on what the Captains have decided." As the headmaster explained, Miracle picked up a stack of paper that was piled on one of the benches in the Manahall.


    "Miracle will now hand each of you your current course sheets with your classes on them. Please take a look at them and then we will discuss what additional courses you may take." As the headmaster finished his explanation, Miracle began to walk around the Manahall and hand out the paper class lists. As Zel watched her she noticed that miracle never asked any students names, but managed to give each student their correct papers without any complaints.


    She must have an amazing memory, she thought.


    Miracle handed Miriya and Zel their sheets and they took a look through. The first three required courses were all grouped together, one after another, in the same order that the headmaster had listed them in. Zel founded her additional class on the bottom below these first three.


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    "Magical flexibility?" Zel asked, confused, "That''s already one of the required courses. Why do I have it twice?"


    "I don''t know," Miriya said with shared confusion, "Mine is the same however. I guess Captain Ceres wanted to help us with it more? They did say that it would be chosen to cover our weaknesses."


    The two of them heard a series of clicks and whistles behind them and turned to see that Jammy was approaching them while waving. She seemed to have managed to give her group of Clickfolk the slip for now.


    "Good morning, Jammy! I hope you slept well and had a less rude awakening than I did!" Zel enthusiastically greeted her friend, earning a punch in the shoulder from Miriya who was politely waving back.


    Jammy simply nodded and held up her sheet. She pointed at the extra class and cocked her head, clearly asking a question.


    "Ah! Yes! Maybe we have the same extra course?" Zel asked before looking at the sheet.


    Unfortunately it was not to be, as Jammy''s course sheet said "Magic power training," in this slot.


    " Ooh, magical power training, that might be an interesting one to take," Miriya said, "We''ll have to see what the other options are, but maybe we''ll pick that one as an elective."


    Jammy responded with a happy nod. They chatted together for a little while, trying to glean as best they could how Jammy''s evening had gone with her group, but before they could learn too much the headmaster began to speak again.


    "Hopefully you are all satisfied with your course selections and we can now move on to how you will select additional courses." The headmaster gestured for Miracle to pick up another large stack of papers, but before she could begin to hand them out a shout was heard from within the students.


    "I am not satisfied," a familiar angry voice rang out. Zel looked over to see that Cleinz had broken out of his group and was storming towards the headmaster in a fury.


    "I have been assigned double magical flexibility courses, are the Captains mad?" He shouted, "I demand a reason that I, the most flexible weaver of magic in this room, should be expected to take an additional course in a category of magic that I have already mastered!"


    The headmaster had been patiently waiting until Cleinz finished complaining before he took his turn to speak.


    "Ah, Cleinz. We suspected that you might have an issue with the class that was assigned for you, but-" The headmaster began to explain before Cleinz interrupted him yet again with venom on his tongue.


    "You are correct, that I have an issue with this is an understatement! I demand that I am assigned to another class immediately! Or better yet, allow me to choose any class that I wish, as there was and is clearly nothing wrong with my magic!" Cleinz aggressively pushed his way into the headmaster''s space, getting so close that he bumped into the headmaster''s cane, nearly knocking it out of the frail hand that held it.


    "However," the headmaster continued to speak. His voice suddenly rang throughout the hall with an authority that the students had not seen of the headmaster yet. Cleinz'' mouth zipped shut in an instant. "This was a personal request of Captain Ceres who, I shall quote, said ''Watching Cleinz manipulate stone was akin to watching a bricklayer attempt surgery, an utter disgraceful display to the complex Duphor magical lineage.''"


    Cleinz could not utter a word, thrust into a stunned silence. The students behind him, however, were not. A ripple of laughter broke through the crowd as Cleinz, his eyes filled with a fiery rage. He turned back towards the headmaster, ready to state his case once more, but was interrupted before he could do so. This time not by the headmaster, but by Miracle.


    "Mr. Duphor. If there is anyone you should take this up with, it is Captain Ceres. Please, drop the issue for now so that we may move on. We have more to discuss." She said, with an icy glare to match the fire in Cleinz'' eyes.


    It seemed to Zel that this only further aggravated Cleinz, the fire in his eyes was still burning hot. But, to her, Cleinz managed to calm himself. He closed his mouth, relaxed his shoulders and, without another word, quietly returned to his group of fancy Splitfolk, defeated. Zel felt an odd sense of joy at the sight, the kind of joy brought on after hearing some very good news.


    "Now," the headmaster continued, sounding as relaxed as could be, with no indication that he had just been screamed at by someone far beneath his station nor any of the thunder he had moments ago, "If there are no further objections to the classes you have been assigned to so far, allow me to speak on the other classes offered at the Academy. Miracle, if you would." He gestured to Miracle who gathered the other large stack of paper and handed it out throughout the room.


    Zel and MIriya received their papers and took a look at the classes. There were a massive number of them. The sheet listed all of the classes that were available, the teachers who taught them, and the times that they were scheduled all in a text that was extremely tiny so that all of the information could fit onto one sheet. Zel was already overwhelmed by the amount of choices. She did her best, however. Zel noted the categories seemed to fall under three general types, with more specific subcategories. The big ones were magical, physical, and academic. From what she could tell, academic courses were entirely separate from the bulk of the academy''s focus, which tended to be on combat oriented courses. Instead of teaching about techniques or skills that would be useful for fighting, these classes were more well rounded, more like the curriculum of a university rather than the famous Dream Academy. One of these courses in particular drew in Zel''s attention.


    "Split Sky Geography and Magical Techniques to Find Your Way!" she said aloud, "That sounds pretty interesting."


    "I saw that one too, but didn''t we already cover stuff like that in regular school? I think I''ve had enough of it myself," Miriya said.


    "Fair enough, I might check it out, though. I only remember some of the basics, and I don''t know what "Magical Techniques to Find Your Way" even means. It also says that it''s taught by Captain Kartave! That''s sure to be at least interesting." Zel said. The two continued to browse until the headmaster spoke again.


    "You are allowed to take as many courses as you feel your schedule will allow. I would suggest only taking two beyond your current load, as first years are also required to participate in one of the Academy''s clubs, but we will discuss those more later this week." The headmaster explained. "For now, you are all dismissed, the rest of the night is yours. Miracle and I will remain here for a time to answer any questions you might have about your schedules."


    After that the students dispersed. Jammy returned to her group of Clickfolk after waving goodbye. Most of the students stood up and left while discussing their courses, or being totally lost in the sea of options. Many stayed behind, however, asking Miracle and the headmaster questions about their courses. Zel and Miriya were in this second group, they stayed behind to brainstorm what kind of classes they wanted to take. They were both invested, wanting their first class selections to be ones that they wouldn''t regret.


    "Oh, we should sign up for a Clicktongue course as well, shouldn''t we?" Zel asked Miriya, who was staring puzzledly at her paper. "I really want to start learning so we can communicate with her better. It sucks that she can understand us but we can''t understand her."


    "That''s true, let''s take a look," Miriya agreed, pulling up the list of courses. They found the Clicktongue courses in the academic section of classes, but unlike most of the other classes, each of which were surprisingly unique despite the large number of them, the Clicktongue courses numbered at least a dozen, each with different instructors. Normally, Zel would have picked a random one and hoped for the best, but she remembered that Flint offered to help them select a course, so she figured that they could just wait and ask him which one he thought was best. They locked in on the classes that they felt they would enjoy and decided to take a break.


    They were among the last students to leave the Manahall, but Zel noticed that there was one other student who had yet to leave as well. Cleinz had moved away from his group at some point and was sitting in the bench seating of the Manahall. He was intently staring down at his lap as if he were waiting for something. As Zel and Miriya exited the hall, Zel whispered to Miriya to stop her from going too far.


    "Hold on. Let''s see what Cleinz does," she whispered. Zel was curious. After that display back there, why would Cleinz have anything more to say to the headmaster or Miracle? Zel felt a burning desire to know. Sure enough, not long after they walked out Cleinz stood up and walked over to the headmaster who, lost in thought, was surprised when Cleinz approached him.


    "Ah, Cleinz. Did you have further complaints about your schedule? I would take them up directly with your brother at this point, I trust my captain''s judgements with certainty," the headmaster said calmly in anticipation of Cleinz ''anger.


    "No, headmaster. No," Cleinz began, "I-... I wanted to apologize for my outburst. It was¡­ wrong of me to get upset. I will take the additional course with no further complaints. Again. I am sorry." After saying this Cleinz quickly turned on his heels and made for the door.


    Zel could hear him getting closer, she and Miriya quickly jumped into a passing group of people to hide. Cleinz came out, sighed and wandered off down the staircase.


    "Huh, look at that. The asshole can learn." Zel said, somewhat surprised.


    "I guess so," Miriya replied, equally in awe, "still sucks, though."


    "True that," Zel agreed.

 Chapter 10: A Night On The Town

    Chapter 10: A Night On The Town


    Neither Zel nor Miriya were certain about their classes yet, but they figured that they had five nights to make any changes they wanted, so they went to turn in the list. They followed the headmaster''s instructions and managed to find their way to Miracle''s office. They knocked on the door and went inside.


    There they found Miracle sitting at a desk with a pile of neatly organized papers that she was working through, and a single photo frame that Zel could not see from their side. Everywhere else in the room was filled with filing cabinets, all the way to the roof. Miracle was mid-sip of some drink as they entered.


    "Hello, girls!" Miracle said, absolutely aglow compared to every other time that Zel had seen her, "Are you here to drop off your papers? Give them here, I''ll gladly take them off your hands and get them organized. Don''t forget that you can change your mind anytime for the first five nights of classes, but after that you''re locked in!" Miracle''s tone and body language had completely changed from any other time Zel and Miriya had seen her.


    The girls were blown away by Miracle''s attitude. She was so happy and chipper that it was almost creepy. Miriya couldn''t resist the urge to ask about it.


    "Yes, thank you for your help Miracle," Miriya began, "If you don''t mind me asking, why are you so happy? Not that you shouldn''t be, but every time we''ve seen you so far you seem to have been on edge? If that makes sense?"


    "Ah," Miracle said, no less chipper than before, "I thought I had kept my true feelings under the mask, but I guess I failed."


    Mask? What the fuck, Miracle. Zel thought.


    "The truth is that this is my favorite part of my job," Miracle continued, "it was nice meeting you a lot, but where my heart truly lies is in organization! I love making sure every gear is greased and the ship is running smoothly! The headmaster normally allows me free reign in organizing much of the paperwork for you students, but this year he asked me to help with his induction of you all. Oh, it drove me mad, I just wanted to return here and get back to my paperwork, but it''s all over now! I can go back to doing what I love."


    "Do you know what my official title is?" She asked this question suddenly, neither Zel nor Miriya knew how to respond, so they just shook their heads, "It''s commander in sheet! Haha!"


    Both of the girls got the creeps from the way that Miracle was acting. They quickly handed over their papers and left the room just as rapidly, distancing themselves from the commander in sheet. They could hear Miracle giggle and furiously scribbling something on the pages that they handed her as they left.


    Now that that was dealt with, the rest of Zel and Miriya''s evening was truly free, and that coupled with being well-rested and energetic meant that it was finally time. Zel had been thinking about this moment for a full night now, the moment where she and Miriya snatched Jammy away from her clique of Clickfolk and went shopping!


    Zel was not a particularly big shopper, but tonight was an exception. It wasn''t every night that you were in a big city with new friends that you wanted to get to know better. That coupled with the gift money from her family that was burning a hole in Zel''s wallet, it was time to go spend.


    The two of them guessed that the Clickfolk Clique likely returned to the dorms after they left. They seemed really uniform, so Zel doubted that they would be anywhere alone so soon, so the dorms seemed like the best bet. They were in luck. The Clickfolk were indeed all back in the dorms and some of them were even using the small common area to chat amongst themselves. Jammy was amongst these. Zel cleared her throat as she walked by to get Jammy''s attention and, once she had it, she subtly nodded to the door as they walked by. Jammy got the message, and after a moment she said goodbye to her friends and disappeared into the Clickfolk rooms at the end of the hall while Zel and Miriya went in theirs.


    They had nothing to do in their room, but to give Jammy the best chance of slipping away, they figured they had better do something. Zel changed a dress for another of her favorites, something a little more breathable and casual than what she usually wore. Miriya changed as well, but you couldn''t tell. Most of her clothes were practically identical.


    After getting changed, the two set out to leave the dorms. They stepped outside with purpose as if they were heading somewhere immediately, and as soon as the door closed they lazed around, waiting for Jammy to come out.


    They stood out and waited for quite some time, long enough that Zel began to worry whether or not Jammy was coming at all. There had been several other students coming and going, Zel even noticed several of the Clickfolk leave, though not the largest one, but soon enough their patience paid off. Jammy discreetly exited the dorms with her floral purse in hand and a different change of clothes. No longer garbed in the cloak of the Clickfolk Clique, she was wearing a white frilly dress that had black highlights on the skirt along with four armholes. Zel was immediately all over her.


    "Wow, Jammy! You look amazing! Is this what you were hiding under your cloak all evening? It is so beautiful!" Zel said, practically smothering Jammy with her interest.


    Jammy let out an excited buzz and twirled around so that Zel could see the rest of the dress. It was elegant from front to back, amazing floral patterns similar to the one on her handbag ran up and down its skirt. It was made of a material that Zel didn''t recognize


    "Did you buy it back in your hometown? Somewhere back in Beryiith?" Zel asked.


    Jammy shook her head.


    "Oh? Where did you get it?"


    Jammy pinched together two of her carapaced fingers in one hand and then made a swooping motion with it through her other hands, as though she were using a needle and thread. Zel''s eyes lit up.


    "You made it!? You can make dresses, Jammy? Are you a seamstress?" Zel asked. Jammy was vigorously nodding her head.


    "Oh wow, Jammy! That''s amazing! I know how to do a bit of sewing, but I could never make a whole dress. That''s really cool!"


    "What is it made out of?" Miriya asked, "it''s a beautiful white. Do they have white-furred animals that you can sheer in Redsun?"


    Jammy nodded, they did indeed have white furred animals, but then she pulled on the edges of her dress to present it to the two of them better. Once they had gotten a good look at it, she pointed at the dress in her hand and shook her head.


    "What do you mean, ''No,''" Miriya asked. Jammy rubbed the material of her dress with her fingers. Then she made a motion with two fingers like they were scissors, using them to sheer an invisible animal. She pointed at the dress and shook her head again.


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    "They do have animals like that¡­ but this dress isn''t that?" Miriya asked, unsure. Jammy nodded enthusiastically to Miriya''s relief.


    Jammy reached into her small bag that she was carrying around her shoulder and pulled out some seeds that Miriya and Zel recognized from the exams they had taken earlier. Jammy pulled a single one out of the bag and placed it into the palm of one of her lower hands. She placed her top hand over her bottom hand, hiding it from view, when she pulled them apart again the seed was still there, but coiling out from it was a single wispy thread that led from the seed to where Jammy was pinching it between her fingers in her other hand.


    "Made out of plants then?" Miriya asked again, Jammy was already nodding.


    "That''s amazing! I bet you can make all sorts of cool stuff with your plant magic." Zel said, her eyes still aglow in wonder.


    Jammy made a few whistling noises and gave herself a small round of applause, obviously enjoying the compliments. She took her newly formed thread and closed her hands around it and the seed once more. When she revealed her hand again the seed had returned to its original state with no thread in sight. This time Zel and Miriya gave their own applause for Jammy, who gave a cute curtsy at the end of her performance. They chatted for a few moments more before they decided it was best that they leave before their little outing became discovered.


    The three of them began their ascent back up, aiming for the third level of the town. The vast array of rooms and tunnels that worked their way up throughout the mountain were, luckily, rather well labeled for the most part. Eventually they found a tunnel that mentioned it exited in the third district and began making their way outside.


    As they walked down the tunnel, dimly lit just enough to see the ground beneath their feet, Zel remembered something important. Now that they were a ways away from the prying eyes and ears of their dorm room, Zel felt that it would be a good time to ask Jammy what was going on.


    "Hey Jammy. I''m sorry if this is a bad time, so we don''t have to talk about it if you don''t want to, but we were serious earlier. We really do want you to room with us if you can. But that big Clickfolk won''t let you, right?


    Jammy''s crestfallen look from earlier returned, and shook her head.


    "You do want to stay with us, right? We aren''t making you uncomfortable, I hope." Miriya said.


    Jammy shook her head and waved her arms, they weren''t making her uncomfortable at all. Zel was still confused. It seemed like the big Clickfolk was in charge of Jammy for some reason, which didn''t make any sense to Zel.


    Why would they send a bunch of transfer students over here just to have them be bossed around by one of the other students? She wondered. Shouldn''t they all be here to learn?


    "That big guy doesn''t want Jammy to talk with us, but obviously his orders aren''t totally absolute if you decided to come with us, is that right?." Zel asked, Jammy responded with a single nod, though Zel wasn''t sure if Jammy really believed it.


    "Well, we don''t want you to get into any trouble because of us, Jammy. Maybe when we see Flint next we can get these issues cleared up and see if we can come up with some kind of solution, but for tonight, why don''t we just go check out that dress shop and see if they have anything that catches our eyes?" Zel said with a devilish smile, rubbing her hands together at the thought of getting them on a new dress.


    Jammy''s eyes lit up at this, breathing life back into her. She enthusiastically nodded and put some pep back into her step.


    It wasn''t long after that they reached the end of the tunnel, finding themselves on the outside of the mountain. They were in luck, too, because they were close enough to the path that Miracle had led them up the mountain that the girls recognized where they needed to go.


    As they made their way down the streets, they were again accosted by the crowds, the salespeople, and the din that came with them. Zel could feel herself getting overwhelmed again, and if she were alone perhaps she wouldn''t be able to find her way, but with Miriya and Jammy by her side they forged ahead. However, it was still difficult. The sea of people was giving her a pounding headache and telling her to turn back inside, and she was harboring an anxiety that she didn''t know that she had. The crowds were just too unlike anything that she had ever experienced before. At least within the Academy walls the people seemed relaxed, like there was no rush, but out here it seemed like everyone was pushing and shoving others out of the way as if their life depended on reaching their destination as quickly as possible.


    Neither Miriya nor Jammy seemed to be faring any better, however. Both of them were being jostled by the bustle of the street and were having a hard time maintaining any sense of direction. Jammy especially was having a difficult time keeping up with Zel and Miriya. She was much shorter than the average person in the crowd, and was being unforgivingly slammed into as busy Splitfolk practically ran her over, unable to see her until it was too late.


    The original plan had been to make it to the dress shop that Zel and Jammy had spotted on their first night there, but the crowds were simply too much, and they instead began looking for the first shop that seemed interesting to head in and take a break. In the end they chose an archery shop that Miriya had spotted earlier. It was a distinct blue-brick building, and the sign over the doorway read "Loosed Arrow Emporium." Zel could see all different kinds of weapons through the front windows of the store and, true to the name, almost all of them were archery equipment of some kind or another.


    They fought their way to the entrance, opening the doorway and diving inside where they could catch their breath. After stumbling through the raucous crowd, the shop was blissfully quiet. It seemed almost alien to Zel after just having gotten used to the white noise of the street. A curtain opened from the back of the store and an attendant welcomed them.


    "Welcome in! Welcome!" An older male Splitfolk shopkeeper beckoned them in, "Welcome to the Loosed Arrow! Are you looking for something specific this evening?"


    "No, no. I was just hoping to take a look around," Miriya said, "We''re new students at the academy, so we felt it might be nice to take a walk around the third district to see if we could find any vendors for whom we might become regulars." Miriya''s eyes shone as she looked up and down at all of the various ranged weaponry around them.


    Deftly maneuvered, thought Zel. She always hated going into a shop and not buying anything, but it would make the salesman happy if he thought they would come back. It seemed like it worked, too, as the shopkeeper''s eyes darkened when Miriya mentioned that it was unlikely that she would buy anything, but lit right back up at the possibility of new regular customers


    "Of course, we do love the students here!" he said, suddenly swooping besides Miriya, clearly identifying her as the most likely customer, "So, what kinds of equipment are you interested in?"


    "Well," began Miriya, she was clearly uncomfortable with how close the salesman got to her, "I am mostly interested in bows. I already know how to use a slingshot, you see? I never had the chance to use a bow in my home town because the game wasn''t large enough, never had the need." Miriya pulled out her slingshot to show the salesman, who had no interest in it at all.


    "Of course, of course. You will find that we have a large variety of equipment that is well designed for taking down large games, but for use at the Academy¡­ it might be better to get something with a little more¡­ stopping power." The shopkeeper explained, wrapping one arm around her shoulders before leading Miriya over to a large bow with a massive price tag. Zel saw Miriya flinched as his hand touched her fur, but she didn''t react any further.


    "Something like this would never go out of style at the Academy, and would without a doubt accelerate your climb up the ranks¡­" He said, with a sly smile. Miriya began to look nervous. She still had the glimmer in her eye from when she first saw the shop, but it was clear that she was not comfortable with the shopkeeper. Zel was also annoyed with him for not removing his hand from her sister. Zel was going to step in to separate the man from Miriya, but just as she was about to do so the door opened up behind them. The sound of a small bell attached to the door was made redundant by the roar of the streets that flooded in before dwindling away as the door gently closed. The shopkeeper finally released Miriya, her body immediately relaxing as he did so, he turned to greet the new customer that had entered the shop.


    "Welcome in! Give me but a moment and I''ll be ri-" he froze, the rest of the words caught in his throat. The shopkeeper''s customer service visage fell away, leaving a bitter grumpy old man who uttered a single word: "Crans."


    Zel turned around to see the familiar and towering shape of Captain Crans looming over her so high that his hat was almost scraping the ceiling, his trademark smug grin on his face.


    "Hey, Corks!" He said with a sly grin of his own, "Long time, no see, friend."

 Chapter 11: Big City Shopping

    Chapter 11: Big City Shopping


    "I hope you are treatin'' these fine ladies well. They are hand-picked students of the academy afterall, we wouldn''t want them getting scared off on the first evening!" Captain Crans said as he began wandering around the store.


    "O-of course, Captain Crans. You should know that I treat all of my customers with the utmost respect." The vendor Corks replied. He was nervously fidgeting with his thumbs and flinched as Captain Crans picked up a strange orb from one of the dozens of shelves surrounding them.


    "Well, that''s true. I ain''t never heard of anyone complaining about how you treat them," Captain Crans agreed with a knowing nod as he set down the orb, "Y''see, what I''m more worried about is your business practices. For example." Captain Crans approached Miriya and snatched the expensive bow that Corks had been leading her towards, his stature making it look like a toy in his grip.


    "Trying to convince a brand new student to buy a bow that even a Captain such as myself would have a hard time pulling back sounds like your exact type of connin,''" he said. He put one hand around the handle of the bow and drew back the string with his other. Zel could see the muscles in his arms ripple as he dragged the string back towards his head. Once he had it fully extended, Corks interjected, sounding terrified.


    "Alright Crans! Just let it go carefully, I understand I''ll leave ''em be!" He said. Captain Crans looked at him out of the corner of his eye and let out a single laugh before releasing the bow string.


    A tremendous crash echoed throughout the small shop as the string whipped through the air back into its natural position. The shockwave rippled through the building, causing various items and weapons to fall down, raining over Corks, Crans, and the three girls, who covered their heads to protect themselves. Once things had calmed down, Zel lifted her head up to see that Captain Crans was tossing the bow back into Corks'' arms, giggling to himself as he did so.


    "O-okay, okay, Crans. I get it. These ain''t no marks. Just, go on and get outta here!" Corks said, his whole demeanor, even his voice, transforming suddenly. Any vestige of the salesperson they had been talking to was suddenly gone, as Corks pointed aggressively towards the door.


    "That''s a right fine idea, Corks! Finest thing that I''ve heard you say since I met you! We''ll go ahead and get on out of here." Crans said, turning towards the door, " Why don''t you three come and take a walk with me real quick. I might be able to show you a thing or two about these here shops."


    The group of three looked at each other nervously as the Captain beckoned them to follow him to the door. Exiting the now disheveled shop, they were again immersed in the hoards, their brief reprieve from the outside having been rather short-lived. Captain Crans stepped forward into the crowd, undeterred. His height was a blessing that the three girls did not have, as the sea of people seemed to part easily before him, and the girls were able to easily tuck in behind him.


    "Dream Squall is a wonderful city!" Captain Crans yelled over his shoulder after the three did their best to follow him, "people come from all over to sell all sorts of different things. It makes for a real cluster, but I think there''s something beautiful about all these people comin'' together to one place."


    "But with the beauty comes the dirty," he continued, "and if you don''t know what you''re lookin'' for or who to talk to then you''re sure to get burned." Captain Crans didn''t even seem to be looking where he was going, but was having no issue plowing through the crowd regardless


    "Captain Crans," Miriya said, ever curious, "You said that guy was trying to con me, right? Was there anything wrong with his stuff?"


    "Nah, that ain''t it," Crains said, "That''s what I can''t stand about old Corks. He makes amazing stuff, some of the coolest and most useful equipment that you''ve ever seen, but he tries to sell it to people that can''t handle it. Dream Academy, more specifically me, approached him with a contract years ago. We wanted him to be a direct supplier for Captains equipment, ain''t no shortage of archers and ranged specialists in our business. But he doesn''t trust big organizations, just wants to do his own shady thing, that''s how he grew up, I think. A shame really. He wasn''t lying about that bow, if I were the type to use such a thing then I would be hard pressed to find a better weapon in this entire city. But instead, he tries to load it off onto people who can''t handle it." Captain Crans sighed and shook his head. He seemed genuinely disappointed. It was the first time that Zel had seen him


    "You''ll find lots of people like that in this city," he continued, "those who are just trying to part you from your hard earned coin, regardless of whether or not you need what they''re sellin''. But it ain''t all bad. Teaches you what to look for and what to look out for. Who knows, maybe a couple years down the line you''ll find yourself in Corks storefront once more, ''cept actually able to handle what he makes."


    "How did you find us anyway?" asked Zel. She had been wondering this from the moment the Captain walked through the door. She thought that it may have been a chance meeting, but it felt a little too convenient for that.


    "I just happened to see you walk through Corks'' door." Captain Crans explained. "I was in the area, lookin'' to buy some new equipment for a friend of mine that''s been out on a mission, too busy to shop. Thought I would come to make sure that everything was alright, now I''m glad I did. Why are you three out and about? Don''tcha have to be up early tomorrow for your class selections?"


    Zel didn''t know what response she expected, nor did she understand why she felt suspicious of the Captain. There was no reason to be, at least none she could remember. She wrote the thought off in her head.


    "Well, Jammy and I were hoping to visit a dress shop that we saw here earlier, but we also wanted to explore the town a bit to get more familiar with Dream Squall," Zel Said.


    "A dress store? You must mean Kitty''s!" Crans said with a laugh, "I''d be willing to bet that you and Kitty would get along well. How ''bout this. I''ll take you right over there and introduce you after we give your sister here her archery fixin''? Seem fair?"


    "That would be perfect, sir!" Zel said, happy to learn that Captain Crans knew the place she wanted to visit. Thought she was somewhat curious why he would know it, not seeming the type to wear dresses.


    As they worked their way through the busy street, Zel saw their next destination. An old and gray building with no defining features, not even a sign, and, even stranger, no salesman prattling on about its wares outside. When they reached it, Captain Crans held the door open for the three of them and they made their way inside.


    It was another weapons shop, but immediately it differed from Cork''s armory. All of the weapons that were on the wall were normal, no magical glowing, no enchanted writing. In fact, compared to the previous shop there was not a single unique weapon on the wall. What they lacked in uniqueness, however, they made up for in quantity. The walls were entirely coated with seemingly identical weapons stacked in cases, drawers, and even hanging from the ceiling. On the far end of the shop was a burly Splitfolk, bald with massive arms as wide as tree trunks. Zel thought that he looked a bit like Ziek, but he was missing the beard.


    Disappointing.


    The man was working on something at his counter that Zel couldn''t see, the view obscured by his burly forearms,


    "Dirk! My good friend, how''s the wife treating ya?" Captain Crans greeted the shopkeeper like an old friend.


    The man lifted his head, revealing that he was wearing some kind of magnifying glass apparatus, his dark pupils looked like saucers through them from the girls'' perspective. He lifted the strange glasses off his face, finally recognizing Captain Crans.


    "Ahh, she''s just fine, Capn''," Dirk said with no enthusiasm. It seemed to Zel that he wasn''t happy to see Captain Crans, which is why she was confused when he continued. "She tell you we got to see the opera last week? That traveling Trailfolk group sure can sing. We were going to try to catch them one time before they leave town, you want to come?"


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    "That sounds right amazing, you tell me what time and I''ll be there." Captain Crans said with seemingly genuine enthusiasm, "But right now I''m here on some business, I was hoping that you could take a look at this woman right here. New student at the academy, you see." He grabbed Miriya by the shoulders and gave her a little shake to show who he was talking about. Miriya flinched yet again at the touch of someone unfamiliar. Zel made to separate her and the Captain, but Miriya stopped her with a shake of her head.


    "I do see," Dirk said, giving Miriya a quick look up and down. "What were you hoping for?"


    "She''s interested in some archery," Crans started, "but she has some unique needs. You see this wonderful woman right here happens to have a time affinity." Crans with his hands still on Miriya''s shoulders shook them again, more enthusiastically than before. This time, Miriya took the opportunity to worm herself out of his grip as nonchalantly as she could manage. Dirk raised a single eyebrow when he heard Miriya''s affinity.


    "A time affinity?" He asked. "You sure?"


    "Sure as shit!" Captain Crans responded, he pointed at his head as he explained. "Damn near blew my head off with that little slingshot she''s got. Couldn''t hardly see the pellet at all, it was moving so fast!"


    "Still didn''t hit you though," Miriya said, in a pouty tone.


    "Aw, don''t be too shaken up about it," Dirk said, "There might not be anything from here to the peaks of the Cross Mountains that can lay a finger on this man. He''s a slippery one, to say the least."


    Zel was surprised to hear this. She knew from the exam that Captain Crans was exceptional, but she thought that was just because he was a Captain. perhaps there was even more to this strange man than met the eye.


    "Alright, alright," Captain Crans said, bringing the conversation back to the business at hand, "you think you got anything that she can take a look at?"


    "Hmm¡­" Dirk said, contemplating while giving Miriya another once over. For a moment, Zel thought that he were going to put on his strange glasses to get a closer look, but to her slight disappointment he just asked her a question.


    "Have you ever used a bow before?" He asked Miriya.


    "No, sir. Never had the chance to back home." She said.


    "Alright. When you use your magic, that time stuff, Crans said that you use it with your slingshot? What do you do?"


    "That''s right. I can accelerate the pellet to make it go very, very fast." Miriya said, proudly, "In fact, Captain Crans is the first thing that has ever managed to dodge one."


    "Does that include the ones that you missed, like not managing to hit a single Prin in a whole swarm of them when we were kids?" Zel asked, poking a bit of fun.


    "Hush, you!" Miriya snapped back.


    "Well, you certainly got the trappin''s for an archer." Dirk continued while looking at Miriya''s arms, "Do you know how long your reach is? Your wingspan?"


    "I do not, sir." Miriya said, "Not sure I''ve ever had to measure it."


    Dirk nodded and grabbed a loose measuring tape from behind the counter. He walked around it to where Miriya and held it up to take her measurements, but he stopped.


    "Do you mind if I touch you?" Dirk asked. Miriya shifted a bit in place before responding.


    "I would rather¡­ you not." She said, looking down at the floor while hugging herself with her arms. Zel noticed Captain Crans goofy smile fade as he heard Miriya say this. He stepped away from them and pretended to look at something in the store as Dirk continued.


    "That''s fine" Dirk said with a smile, "What about one of your friends? Would you mind if she got your measurements?" He continued, pointing at Zel.


    "No, that would be fine, thank you." Miriya said, she loosened up after hearing this possibility and let her arms drop back to her sides.


    Zel took the tape measure from Dirk. After explaining how to do it, Drik wrote down the measurements and walked into the back of his shop out of sight. Meanwhile, Captain Crans had sulked off into the corner of the store, leaning against one of the only spots on the wall that wasn''t covered with weaponry. Miriya noticed and went to go check on him.


    "Hey, Captain. Are you doing alright? Is anything wrong?" She asked, a concerned look on her face.


    Captain Crans let out a sigh and rubbed the back of his head with one big hand before he spoke.


    "Hey, Miriya. Sorry that I had my hands on your shoulders earlier. I, uh, I didn''t realize that it made you uncomfortable. Won''t happen again." He said in almost a whisper, but it was in a voice that sounded strange to Zel. Miriya didn''t seem to notice.


    "It''s okay, Captain." Miriya said, with her usual chipper smile, "You didn''t know, and now you do! Can''t know everything, right?"


    "Yeah, but I ought to know better," Captain Crans said. "I of all people in the world really should know better. And I, at the very least, can promise you it will never happen again."


    "It''s really okay, sir. But how about we talk about something else? Like your hat! I don''t think I''ve ever seen anything like it? Where did you get it?" Miriya said, completely changing the subject. Captain Crans'' smile returned.


    "Oh this thing?" He said, grabbing the brim of his wide leather hat, "it is a pretty funny story how I got it. You see I was out on a mission for the academy¡­"


    Zel couldn''t help but smile as well. She was happy that they were able to figure this out without having to go any deeper. Zel knew how much Miriya hated to be touched by strangers, or anyone, really. Zel was the only one that Miriya was always okay with touching her. But something was bothering her.


    Captain Crans really sounded different for a moment. Like he was someone else, she thought. She didn''t know why this kept happening, but for whatever reason being around the Captain felt strange to her. It didn''t seem like anyone else felt the same way, so maybe it was all in her own head. Even thinking about it made her head hurt for some reason.


    Luckily for Zel, her train of thought was interrupted by a tug on her arm. She looked down to see that Jammy was pointing at the various weapons on the wall with a gleam in her eye. She pointed at Zel''s hand and then at the huge wall of weapons and looked up at Zel expectantly.


    "Oh, I''ve never thought about what kind I would like to use. Maybe a big sword? Do you think that would suit me?" Zel raised her arms and flexed her biceps as she did so, not a particularly impressive sight, but Jammy seemed entertained. She clapped and nodded in agreement and the two of them explored some more of the weaponry around the shop while Captain Crans and Miriya continued their own conversation. After a short while longer, Dirk came back from behind the counter with a shortbow in hand.


    "Here''s what I''m thinking," Dirk began to explain as the group gathered back around, "You can accelerate some objects, right? That''s what you said you could do with the pellets of your slingshot." Miriya, Zel, and Jammy all nodded in unison to his explanation.


    "If that''s the case," Dirk continued, "It shouldn''t really matter what the draw weight of the bow is, at least not for now. As long as it can start the arrow moving in the right direction, you can get your magic to do most of the heavy lifting!" He placed a shortbow on the counter in front of them. He gestured for Miriya to pick it up.


    "Is there anything¡­ special about it?" Miriya asked as she lifted it in the air to inspect it.


    "Naw, right now it''s just a plain ol'' bow." Dirk explained. "That''s what I do here. I get the customers comfy with something that they like, then we worry about all that fancy stuff later. Don''t be shy. Give that thing a pull! I got one that you should be able to draw just fine, even as a beginner."


    Miriya pulled the bowstring back and was delighted by the ease with which the string pulled back in her fingertips. She held it up and inspected it further, half expecting there to be some kind of magical carvings in it, but Dirk was telling the truth. It was just a regular bow.


    "I like it, I think." She said with the resolute certainty of someone who had never held a bow in her hands before.


    "That''s good, that''s good." Dirk said, nodding "Well then, you can have it!"


    Miriya looked shocked. Dirk stared at her unflinching in what he had said, clearly having made no mistake.


    "I can have it? What do I owe you?" She asked.


    "Don''t owe me nothin''!" Dirk exclaimed flatly, "That bow is a training bow for children, but she be just about perfect for using with your magic. It''ll be a great start for you to get used to shooting a bow, so just go ahead and take it out of here. Just remember to come back soon as you feel you need something bigger that you can grow into." Zel knew that this wouldn''t sit right with Miriya, but before she could protest Captain Crans broke back in.


    "Thanks, Dirk! You always know just how to take care of me. Now, ladies. I believe you said you had one more place that you wanted to check out before your night would be complete? Let''s head over to Kitty''s place and look at some fine garments." Crans paused, "Assuming you guys don''t mind me going with you?"


    Miriya, Zel, and Jammy all spoke in unison.


    "Lead the way."

 Chapter 12: Kittys

    Chapter 12: Kitty''s


    Unlike Dirk''s unusually inconspicuous store, there was a saleswoman on the outside who was, like many around her, very vigorously espousing the fine wares of their store. She was very tall, even approaching Captain Crans height. Zel suspected that she was hiding some seriously tall heels or even stilts under the beautiful dark blue dress that she wore. The saleswoman noticed Captain Crans and the three of them as they approached and beckoned them closer. It became clear as they got within speaking distance that she too knew Captain Crans.


    "Well if it isn''t The Captain Crans himself!" She began, "What are ya here for tonight? Come to give Kitty a visit?"


    "You could say that, Belle, two out of these three women here have, as you might be able to tell, a keen interest in dresses." Crans said, pointing out Zel and Jammy''s clothes, "And as such, I thought I would make sure to put them into the right hands."


    "Well, you know Kitty will be excited to see you," Belle said, "we''ve had a pretty slow one, so I''m sure you''ll cheer her right up."


    Belle led them over to the front door of the business simply called "Kitty''s." Now that they were closer, Zel could see through the window the large variety of dresses that the shop had both on display and further in the store. It was unlike any other shop that Zel had seen before, however. The ones she had been too had little cards beneath them that explained what material the dress was, or the name of the color, or where it was from. Here there were cards, yes, but they had different kinds of information.


    There was a beautiful white dress that claimed to enhance the physical prowess of the mana user who wore it, another exquisite black one that promised additional control of stone magic, and yet another that was a brilliant orange that was simply described as "lucky." One of the dresses that was a smoldering red caught Zel''s eye. The card beneath that one in the window listed it as "100% fireproof!" She wondered what kind of person would need a fireproof dress.


    Belle led them inside and gently closed the door behind them, before spinning around on her hidden heels and returning to her post, redoubling her effort to draw more customers to their doors.


    "Hello, welcome in," A dreary looking Splitfolk woman was sitting behind the counter of the store. She was leaning on one arm and distracted while lazily reading a book that was held at a distance in her outstretched other arm, "let me know if there''s anything that I can help you with," she said without looking up from her novel.


    "I don''t think we''ll need any help at all, just take a look around before getting out of your hair," Captain Crans said, casually strolling to one of the walls of the store, eyeballing the various dresses and garments that were on display.


    "Sounds good to-" The woman''s sharp ears perked up as she recognized the voice. She turned around and saw Captain Crans, looking enthralled by a particularly lacey skirt on a dress. A huge smile crept across her face as she saw him.


    "Crans!" She yelled as she vaulted over the counter in an instant. She got a running start before jumping into him and giving him a huge hug. Captain Crans was laughing as he hugged her back.


    After holding the hug for a moment, Kitty suddenly pushed Crans away and reeled back with one of her fists. Kitty ripped a vicious right straight into one of his shoulders, she was definitely punching up, though, awkwardly aiming her fist diagonally to even reach the spot she wanted to hit.


    "Ouch! What was that for?" Captain Crans asked with a tone that Zel now recognized as the voice he used when he was being an ass.


    "That¡­ was for never visiting me!" Kitty scolded, "Where have you been? You disappear for forever at a time, on missions or who knows what else. I know we don''t get to see each other like we used to, but you live in the same damn town for fuck''s sake. You gotta get down here more." As Kitty tore into the Captain more and more, Zel began to feel the creeping sensation that she would, in fact, get along with Kitty quite well.


    "Aw, C''mon, Kitty. I''m a captain of the Academy, you know that I''m busy," Captain Crans said, quickly throwing together a weak excuse. "I got responsibilities and look! This year I got students too!"


    "Fuck off, you tall flake!" She lashed back in response. Zel definitely liked Kitty.


    "Alright, that''s enough bullying for me," Captain Crans deflected, "I got some potential customers for you here, in case you hadn''t noticed while beating me up. I was hoping you could take a look at them."


    Kitty seemed to finally notice the three girls who had entered her shop along with Captain Crans. She saw Miriya, who was leaning against the wall in a corner of the room admiring her new bow, then looked at Zel and Jammy and noticed their dresses. She nodded to herself, confident that she had determined the two out of the three who were likely to be the actual customers. When she spoke it was suddenly and in a very serious tone that caught Zel and Jammy off guard.


    "I can tell two things by the way that you two are dressed. One, you both have excellent taste and look amazingly cute in those dresses. Two, you''ve come to the right place. My name is Kitty. I''m an old friend of this massive lug over here, and an expert seamstress, if I do say so myself, and I do. Pleased to meet you." Kitty held out her hand and shook both Zels and Jammy''s in turn.


    Now that Zel had a better look at her, she was very pretty. She and Zel were almost the same height and Kitty only appeared to be a few years older than Zel was. Kitty had beautiful and flowing long dark-blue hair that reached down to her waist with colorful yellowish tips towards the end of the hair. It practically looked like a dress in of itself. The dress that she wore was unbelievably well made, not a single thread was out of place and if you told her that it was brand new Zel would believe it. It was a dress similar to Zel''s, its black top hung loosely on Kitty''s shoulders, Zels fitting in the same way. It seemed to be made out of some kind of silk and had intricate floral patterns all the way down to the skirt which stopped at Kitty''s ankles. This is where Zel noticed something strange. The edge of the skirt where the dress should have stopped there seemed to be some kind mist beneath it. A moment longer of staring and Zel realized that it wasn''t that the mist was beneath the dress, but rather that the dress was producing a steady stream of a blackened vapor. It blurred whatever it passed in front of, making it difficult to see Kitty''s feet. It reminded her of the shroud that Captain Kartave was wearing during the exams.


    Maybe they shop here too? Kitty noticed what Zel was looking at and smiled.


    "Cool, isn''t it?" She said, "my own little invention." She lifted up her skirt so Zel could get a closer look.


    "The edge of the skirt is enchanted to produce an obscuring mist." She explained, "It takes a bit of mana from the wearer and makes it so your opponent can''t see your feet. That''s what I specialize in, clothing enchantments. Though more specifically, I like to enchant more formal clothing for those who want to present a certain style while in combat."


    Zel was totally in awe, she had never seen a dress that was so well put together, nor had she ever heard of stylish combat. The dress that she wore was from her hometowns own seamstress who, while skilled, could never have made something like this.


    The big city is truly full of infinite wonders, Zel thought to herself, her heart thumping with excitement. Then another thought occurred to her.


    "Captain Crans," She began, "does the academy have some kind of dress code? Uniform? Anything like that?"


    "Naw, despite our reputation, a lot of what we do can be a bit secretive. We don''t really rule over Split Sky with an iron fist, we just go where the people need us. So we get to wear what we want. Case in point," Captain Crans gestured to himself and his unusual clothes that seemed barely able to fit at the best of times.


    "We do have a badge and some official clothes for formal events, however," He added. "But if you want to fight naked, ain''t nobody gonna stop ya."


    "So I could fight in a dress?" Zel asked, she had never even considered the possibility before, consigning herself to the idea that soldiers would wear what they were required to and nothing more.


    "If that''s what you feel most comfortable fighting in. I don''t see why not." Captain Crans said with a shrug.


    "That''s what I used to do," Kitty said, "I may not look it, but I''ve been in a fight or two over the years. I always fought in a dress like one of these, ever since I was a little girl."


    "Why were you fighting as a little girl?" Miriya asked from across the room. She was still distracted looking at her new toy, but she had clearly been listening to their conversation.


    Kitty seemed a bit hesitant to respond at this, suddenly going silent and her smile fading. Captain Crans quickly jumped in and changed the direction of the conversation.


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    "A story for another time!" He said, "how bout you just let kitty show you some dresses that you two might like?"


    "Excellent idea," Kitty said, clapping her hands together, "I think I have a rough idea of what both of you like, based on what you lovely ladies are already wearing, but why don''t you tell me some of the things you appreciate in a dress and I can lead you in the right direction."


    Zel and Jammy brainstormed together what kinds of things that they liked to have in a dress. Kitty could not speak Clicktongue, but with plenty of dresses in the shop to use as examples they were able to communicate effectively anyway. Zel preferred simple dresses with dark colors, little to no pattern with the lace being the one exception. Jammy was nearly the opposite. She loved bright colors with complex patterns. As they perused through the shop, both Zel and Jammy had all sorts of questions that they asked Kitty. She was clearly well equipped to deal with the curious customer, as she skillfully navigated the many questions that the two of them had. Zel was particularly amazed by her deep explanations of how her dresses were useful in combat, something that Zel had never even considered until she had walked into the shop.


    "The mist dresses are an invention of mine that takes the disadvantage of a dress in combat, which is mainly an issue with mobility, removes that and adds the strength of your opponents being unable to watch your feet." Kitty explained, "The obscuring mist looks like it starts towards the skirt of the dress, past the knees, but it actually starts further up, towards where the dress connects with your waist, the whole thing is made of mana. Here, watch my legs."


    Zel and Jammy did as they were told, looking down at Kitty''s dress that hung low by her ankles before melting into mist. They didn''t know what they should be looking for, but it did not take long for them to see. The mist began to fade away, but the dress went with it as well, revealing the slippers that Kitty was wearing. Slowly but surely the dress continued to deconstruct itself, climbing all the way up to Kitty''s waist where it stopped, creating an obscuring mist like a belt. Kitty''s bare legs were now exposed, and the absence of a dress revealed underwear as well as a strange disk of mist where the waist of the dress had been.


    "So you see? There actually is nothing for your legs or feet to get caught on when you wear one of my dresses. It can make for some interesting options in combat if you''re creative enough," Kitty explained, clearly very proud of her work.


    "That''s really amazing!" Zel exclaimed. Jammy was in a stunned silence, equally blown away. "What exactly is it, though?" Zel asked, looking at the belt of mist that was now obscuring Kitty''s waistline.


    "Give me just a second!" Kitty said, suddenly leaping over the counter top before hopping right back over with what appeared to be a solid black elastic band.


    "This is what it looks like without any mana. I weave in some enchantments using mana infused silk, and then the wearer puts a little bit of mana into it and voila!" Kitty exclaimed and as she did so the band began to produce a mist that slowly fell to the floor, forming a new dress as it went, this time it was green.


    "You can wear anything under it, really, and it will work just as fine either way. If you put enough mana into it, you can actually make the dress solid all the way down. Like this." Kitty closed her eyes and as she did so the dress that she was wearing began to regrow, the mist expanding down her legs once again. It crept down towards the floor, recreating the same pattern that it had when they first saw it. Just as she had said, it did not turn into mist around her ankles, instead appearing solid and completely obscuring Kitty''s legs and feet.


    "Woah!" Zel exclaimed while Jammy clapped next to her.


    "As far as applications of that, though, it would mostly be for something covert, maybe you need to be seen by people who don''t know the full extent of what you can do." Kitty continued. "It will look just like a normal dress to them. The only people who would be able to tell that there was something unusual are those with advanced manavision. And even then, they would only be able to tell that your dress was made of mana, not be able to see through it." Her dress returned to normal with the mist wrapping around her lower legs and feet.


    "That''s so cool! You''re so cool!" Zel exclaimed, in a moment of embarrassing sincerity.


    "Thanks! I''ve worked on it for a long time!" Kitty said, beaming. No doubt appreciative of having someone who was so enamored with her work. "Now, any idea which one you would like?"


    Zel could not help but admit that it was the mist dresses that she was the most interesting, but it became quickly apparent that those, and most of the others that were special features in the store, were far beyond her price range.


    "So what''ll it be? Do you want to buy something cheaper tonight to get your dress fix, then come back for a different one once the academy money starts rolling in? I like you two, so even if you don''t buy anything tonight, feel free to come back anytime. Even if it''s just to chat." Kitty explained, giving Zel and Jammy a genuine smile that felt as though it were going to melt their hearts.


    Zel and Jammy looked at each other and both nodded in a silent agreement.


    "We''ll each buy something tonight. Show us some dresses that we can afford. I think Jammy is in the same price range as I am." Jammy nodded, pulling out her wallet from her bag.


    "Excellent," Kitty said, rubbing her hands together. "Then allow me to show you what we have in stock tonight."


    Kitty, as they had requested, led them to the cheaper part of the shop that had normal dresses. It was quite the collection and difficult to choose, but eventually both Zel and Jammy had found two pieces that they liked. Zel decided on a dark blue dress much like her favorite black dress, but made out of a higher quality silk and it was a little bit longer, it reached the absolute extent of her budget, the last of the reserves her parents had gifted her before departing. Jammy apparently had a little bit more coin that she was willing to spend, and she opted for a yellow dress that Zel thought highlighted her dark and iridescent carapace well. After they finished shopping, it was time for them to head back to their dorms. They said their goodbyes to Kitty, who was sad to see them leave.


    "You three have a wonderful rest of the evening out there! Remember that you can come back at any time! And tell Belle to get her butt back in here! It''s closing time and I want to go home!" She shouted after them as they exited the shop.


    Out in the specialty shopping district again, the girls were relieved that the busy street had calmed down significantly in the time that they had spent in the dress shop. Zel suddenly felt exhausted. It hadn''t been the most intensive evening, but just walking through the city was draining on her. It was overwhelming even still. She wanted to return home and get some sleep, but she had one more thing she wanted to do first. When the crowd before the Captain cleared enough, she took the opportunity to dive in his way before they got too far.


    "Captain Crans¡­ thank you for all you''ve done for us tonight!" She exclaimed with a polite curtsy to the tall Captain, at least as best as she could manage with her hands full. As usual, the Captain''s reply began with a hearty laugh.


    "It weren''t nothing at all, Miss. Like I said earlier, it was but a chance meeting. Though I am glad I caught you three."


    "I don''t want to just thank you for that though, Captain. I want to thank you for everything that you''ve done for us so far. The exams, helping us out here, we''re just new students, so it''s really nice to have a Captain welcome us like this," Zel explained, both Miriya and Jammy nodded in agreement.


    "Well I''ll take your thanks without quarrel, then," Captain Crans said, "Dream Academy is a bit of a weird place, I''m not sure that there''s anywhere even a little bit like it all around the world, and I should know. I''ve been around most of the world! But I think you three will fit right in, no problem. Now, you should all go get some sleep, it''ll be a long one tomorrow. I''ll see you all during class and club selections, or better yet, maybe I won''t!"


    With that cryptic statement and one more hearty laugh for the road, Captain Crans broke off from them, peeling down the thinning street with a purpose, as if there were more shopping to be done. The three of them watched as he disappeared in the distance, leaving Zel, Miriya, and Jammy to themselves once more.


    "He''s right, we really should head back," Miriya said, looking at some Tiltwilt flowers planted along the side of the street that were fully wilted, their petals drooping sadly.


    The three of them began the long trek back to their dorm rooms, but even exhausted the trip did not take long, and they were standing in front of the entrance to their dorm soon enough.


    "So you won''t be joining us tonight, right Jammy?" Miriya asked as they prepared to enter.


    Jammy shook her head.


    "Even if you don''t come tonight, remember that we''ll keep the bed warm for you. Hopefully there isn''t any need for it for someone else," Zel said. Jammy nodded, but seemed sad.


    She really does want to stay with us. Damn that big bastard, Zel thought to herself.


    She really needed to find a way to figure out what was going on with them. What was their relationship with Jammy? Obviously they came from the same country, but why was he in charge of her? Zel didn''t know what the correct way forward was in dealing with the large Clickfolk.


    "How about we pay Flint a visit tomorrow so we can better understand why you can''t room with us?" Miriya asked, almost reading Zel''s mind.


    Jammy seemed nervous to respond, however. After a moment, she nodded stiffly in agreement, and the three of them decided they would try and meet with Flint after they were done with tomorrow''s activities.


    Then it was time for bed. Zel and Miriya let Jammy enter first before following suit a while later, hoping the gap between their arrivals would keep Jammy out of any trouble. After they felt they''d waited long enough, the two returned to their dorm where, upon entering and closing the door, Miriya immediately crumpled to the floor.


    "Ugggh," she said, as eloquent as ever.


    "Good. I thought it was only me." Zel said


    "Not built for the big city, sis. Gotta get back out to the woods," Miriya said, slowly inching her way across the floor, like some kind of fuzzy slime-creature.


    "It was a lot," Zel agreed.


    As Zel finished her bedtime preparations and got her sheets in order, she laid down and got comfy, only to hear a voice from just below her.


    "...Hey Zel¡­" Miriya''s voice crawled over the edge of the bed.


    "Yeah Miri?" Zel asked.


    "Do you mind if we sleep together tonight? I''m feeling a bit¡­ anxious¡­"


    "Of course, Miri." Zel remembered that, beyond the town itself, Miriya had had somewhat of an uncomfortable evening. Zel lifted up the covers for her sister. Miriya crawled up over the edge of the bed and snuggled up to Zel. Zel put the covers back down as Miriya got comfortable, and they laid in silence for a little while. Zel thought that Miriya had drifted off to sleep when she heard her voice again from under the covers.


    "...Even though everything is new and scary, at least we still have each other, right Zel?" Miriya asked softly, half asleep.


    "We''ll always have each other, Miri. Always." Zel said.


    After a while Zel could hear Miriya curled up at her side as her breath settled down and she fell asleep. Zel snuffed out the light and laid down. She looked at the ceiling, staring at nothing in particular and thought about everything that had happened.


    She was tired, but her head was abuzz. The new school, the new places, the new people, everything was flying around her mind and it made her feel overwhelmed. She took a deep breath and told herself that everything important could wait, at least until tomorrow. Curling over on her side and facing the wall, Zel went to sleep.

 Chapter 13: Dark Encroaching

    Chapter 13: Dark Encroaching


    Zel woke with a start to a sharp rapping on the door.


    She turned over and lit her lamp once again. The light revealed that Miriya had woken as well, and was already lazily moving towards the door. Zel, fearing that perhaps they were late to their first classes, looked at the Tiltwilt by her headdress. It was still wilted, they were not due to class for a long while yet.


    Miriya reached the door and opened it, slowly. Standing outside was Jammy, who was making a noise that neither Miriya nor Zel had ever heard a Clickfolk make. It was a repetitive tapping noise, three taps and then a pause, then three more. Jammy had her head hung low and was looking down at something in her hands.


    "Jammy?" Miriya asked while rubbing her eyes, "why are you up so late?" Zel walked towards them with the lantern held aloft. As she approached she became able to see what was in Jammy''s hands and she gasped.


    Jammy was holding the remnants of the dress that she had bought at Kitty''s. It was entirely ripped to shreds as though by a wild animal. Zel was shocked but moved quickly to get on her knees and give Jammy a hug.


    "Are you hurt?" She asked after a moment in the embrace. Jammy shook her head no and the tapping sound continued.


    "Did the big Clickfolk, do this?" She asked, her grip tightening around Jammy. Jammy took a second to respond between the tapping sound, but she slowly nodded her head. Zel shot up and walked out the door.


    "I''ll be right back." She said, her voice was calm, but a fire was lit in her eyes. Miriya brought Jammy into their room as Zel marched down the hallway. She was still wearing her nightgown that she wore to sleep, but she didn''t care. The air around her crackled and sparked as she made her way to the end of the hall, she was producing a purplish light that dwarfed that of the lamp she held. Her hair stood on end as she reached the room the Clickfolk had been using. She smashed her fist into the door several times and waited. Just as she had hoped, the largest Clickfolk answered the door.


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    "Who the fuck do you think you are, asshole," she yelled in the massive Clickfolks face, "what the fuck is wrong with you? You''re some kind of racist fuck who doesn''t like Splitfolk? So you don''t let anyone else hang out with any of us? You fucking hit me when I tried to talk to Jammy! But you know what? I would forgive all that, all that other shit that makes you a dick, but whether you like it or not, scumbag, Jammy is my friend, and if that means that you think she can''t have a nice dress that she bought from a Splitfolk vendor then you have to fix something in that fucking thick skull of yours! Jammy is staying with us, tonight and forever, and if you ever do something like this again I won''t be so fucking nice about it!" Zel stormed off as the large Clickfolk remained at the door and watched as Zel left before quietly going back in their room without a sound.


    Several of the students in the hallway had come out to see what the commotion was, but each of them quickly ducked back into their rooms as Zel''s lightning was arcing out from her body indiscriminately blackening parts of the walls. She stormed back into her room and slammed the door violently before she finally tried to calm herself down. It took some concentration, but she was able to bring herself under control. Her hair loosened and the room grew dark as Zel allowed her mana to subside. Miriya was on her bed comforting Jammy who was making the same tapping sound, but quieter and less frequently.


    "Did you hear all that?" She asked, already knowing the answer. Both Miriya and Jammy nodded.


    "Is everything I said fine with you, Jammy?" she asked. Jammy looked at Zel, her eyes shimmering in the gently light of the lantern, and she nodded.


    "Then you don''t need to be afraid of that loser anymore," Zel said, "Stay away from that fuck and we''ll go find Flint as soon as we can after classes tomorrow to sort this out. Here, this bed is yours, I have extra sheets in my bag¡­"


    Zel prepared the bed for Jammy who was still tapping quietly. After Zel was finished, Jammy whispered something in Clicktongue that Zel could understand, a quiet word of thanks, before she climbed underneath the blanket that Zel gave her and the three of them went to sleep.

 Chapter 14: Night Classes

    Chapter 14: Night Classes


    When Zel next woke she quickly turned over and was relieved to see that Jammy had stayed with them through the night. She had been worried about the possibility of the large Clickfolk coming to pay them a visit before they woke or, even worse, the idea that Jammy might blindly return to the group despite the way she had been treated. But Zel''s concerns were unfounded, as Jammy was still sound asleep right where she had left her the night before, which meant Zel could focus on what was most important right now: their first night of classes.


    While she was still furious about the incident she was also excited to finally start her education. Though they had been in town only a short while, it felt like a long time between passing the exams and now.


    I wonder who will lead the combat courses the first evening, she wondered while getting dressed. She had her guesses, but it wasn''t something she could say with certainty, as she had never even seen a class like the one they were to attend.


    A short time after Zel, Miriya woke up and began to get ready to go as well, they shared a concerned look over Jammy, who had yet to stir. Eventually once both Zel and Miriya had finished their waking routines they decided to try to wake Jammy up.


    "Hey, Jammy," Zel said while giving the mound of blankets under which the Clickfolk was hidden a gentle rub, "it''s finally time for classes! I know that you had a rough night, but I don''t think you should let that jerk control you and ruin your mood. We''re students of Dream Academy now! What kinda students would we be if we didn''t make it to class on the first night." After a few moments, the mound moved as Jammy crawled through the blanket and her head poked out one end. She still seemed to be in a bad mood, but she got up out of bed quickly enough. Zel realized that Jammy did not have her bag with her when she moved in with them the night before, Zel offered her some of her clothes.


    "They might be a bit big on you, but I have some pins that we can hold up any loose bits with," she said as Jammy selected a dress from Zel''s suitcase, "We''ll go get your bag back later, so until then these clothes will have to do! And look, now we both match!" Virtually all of Zel''s clothing were dark colored dresses with the occasional shirt and shorts combo, Jammy had chosen one of the ones with the shortest skirts and, while they had managed to get the skirt to a position that it wasn''t dragging on the floor, they could not get Jammy''s four arms through the holes. Zel was unsure of what to do when Miriya came up with a solution.


    "Jammy, if you don''t mind looking a little less fabulous than you usually do, I think one of my shirts would fit you like one of your dresses. We could cut off the sleeves and your arms could fit through," She picked up a shirt of hers and showed it to Jammy who was shaking her head and all four arms, "Oh don''t worry. It''s just a shirt. I can get more, and you''ll have your stuff back tonight. Really, don''t worry about it!"


    Jammy reluctantly nodded and they did away with the sleeves. As Miriya had hoped, it fit almost exactly the same as Jammy''s dress and they also gave her a pair of Miriya''s shorts that fit fine as well.


    "Alright," Zel said, satisfied with their work, "We should head out! Miriya and I still haven''t found a place to eat, maybe there is a mess hall somewhere? Anyway, I think last night and this evening''s little kerfuffle hasn''t left us much time to eat anyway, let''s just head to class and hope we can hold out till lunch."


    With that, the three of them set off to their first class which was located on the second floor, they did not need to go far. Luckily on their way out they did not run into any of the other Clickfolk.


    Maybe they''re already in the classroom, we''ll have to sit far away from them Zel thought.


    They found their classroom without issues, a room with the words "First Year Combat" embossed above the stone frame. They entered together.


    Unlike the Manahall there was nothing special about the stone it was produced from. It was a large lecture hall that had seats with long shared desks in front of them set up in tiers that led from the middle of the classroom to the back, with small walkways in the middle and sides.


    There was a large board that looked like it was for writing in the front of a classroom and a large gap between it and the students, this area taking up a large bulk of the lecture hall. There were shelvies in the room as well that held a variety of books and interesting equipment the use of which Zel could not determine, though she secretly hoped that she would get to play with them soon.


    Most of the students were already in the room when they got there, having picked their seats with most of the cliques sticking together. The group of Clickfolk were sitting in the far corner of the room towards the front, in a big clump like they usually were. If they noticed Zel and the others entering the room, they did not show it. The three opted to stay on the far side and steer clear from them. Zel still wanted to sit near the front, however, and with all the front row seats taken, they were forced to sit a few rows back, much to her disappointment. As they found their seats, Zel noticed that they were sitting in the same row as Cleinz and his group of fancy Splitfolk, he was sitting with his arms crossed looking directly forward, seemingly lost in thought.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    How did I get into it with two different people before school has even started? Zel thought to herself.


    Despite the proximity to Cleinz, they decided these seats would work and talked amongst themselves. Eventually the door swung open once again and the five captains that had administered their exams entered. The students grew quiet as the captains organized themselves before Captain Ceres started the show.


    "Welcome, students, to your first official class at Dream Academy," he announced to the sound of applause from the students before continuing.


    "This is your magical combat course. A course where you will learn how to fight using your various affinities, to keep it blunt. There will be quite a bit of nuance to this course and, as I am sure the headmaster told you, this is a jointly instructed class. You will have the chance to work with all five of us throughout your first year at school and several other professors who have offered to come in as guest lecturers. I believe that most of you know our names by now, but allow us to formally introduce ourselves. I am Captain Ceres, I specialize in stone magic and magical manipulation," after introducing himself he gestured towards the other captains.


    "Hey everyone, hopefully you remember me. I''m Captain Skylee, I specialize in close combat magic, my affinity is wind." She said with a smile.


    Then it was Captain Exelcia''s turn.


    "Hello again, everyone. Glad you''re all looking healthy after that grueling exam. My name is Captain Exelcia, and I specialize in close quarters combat, but more specifically defensive magic. My affinity is water."


    Then it was Captain Kartave''s time to speak, everyone waited in anticipation to hear what they sounded like, but to everyone''s dismay Skylee spoke for them.


    "This is Captain Kartave, they specialize in stealth and sneak attacks, and they actually have their affinity under classified information. So that''s all you get." The students gave a collective disappointed groan.


    Finally, it was Captain Crans'' turn to introduce himself.


    "Hello again! My name is Captain Crans!" He exclaimed with a satisfied nod.


    The students waited expectantly for him to continue, but they were left hanging as Captain Ceres continued.


    "Now that you are all formally students of Dream Academy, you may begin your education in earnest," he said. "We will do our best to ensure that each and every one of you has the tools to survive and thrive as members of this institution, and that starts right here, tonight!" The students all cheered in excitement, the wear and tear of the exam long gone, they were finally ready to become fully fledged Dream Academy students.


    "...Of course, that will be after a little more clerical work." Captain Ceres added, his face a disappointed grimace for having to break the bad news. The students let out a collective groan.


    "Oh, it is not that bad!" He exclaimed. "It will pass in a flash!"


    Captain Ceres then went on to explain what would be expected of the students in the following year. Each of their individual classes would be graded separately and failing on would not influence another, but many of the skills they would be learning would be necessary to pass all of their courses. Whether or not they passed was entirely up to the discretion of their instructors and contingent on the students demonstrating notable improvements in any area the captains deemed fit.


    Beyond that, there were several major milestones. The first of which was known as "The Binding Ceremony." It was an event where students, having undergone intense courses and mana training, would have a magical item bound to them that was created by some of the merchants around the school. This was not an event that was graded, but Captain Ceres impressed the importance of it on them as one of their first opportunities to show the public who they were and properly represent the Academy.


    The next major milestone was required and would result in expulsion from the program if the students did not participate, and that was the Dream Academy First Year Tournament. Captain Skylee explained this one with glee. It was a tournament in which all the students in the classroom would participate, giving them a chance to face off against one another one on one to see the general strength of every student in their class. It would be their first real taste of combat and was an event that many people throughout Split Sky and beyond came to watch.


    The final and most important event of the year was the final exam. It would take place as the very last part of their first year of education, and would be announced at a later date, though Captain Ceres promised that it would test everything that the students had learned at every level. Despite not knowing the details of the exam, it immediately made Zel nervous, as Captain Ceres mentioned that anybody who failed to pass the exam would have to file an appeal, otherwise they would fail out of Dream Academy.


    "Beyond that, there will be opportunities for students to join Captains and other seasoned veterans on real missions to get a taste of what it is like outside of the classroom," he concluded. "But those opportunities and the exams are a ways off yet. Now, as promised, Captain Exelcia will handle your first magical combat training."


    Captain Exelcia stepped forward and produced the weapon that she wore on her back. Zel could now see that it was a massive war hammer, at least as long as Captain Ceres was tall, and nearly twice as tall as Captain Exelcia herself. She brandished it menacingly while speaking in her sweet tone.


    "A pleasure to be working with all of you! Now prepare yourselves. We have a lot of work to do."

 Chapter 15: Useful Lessons and Bad News

    Chapter 15: Useful Lessons and Bad News


    "This course is about learning how to fight and survive," Captain Exelcia said. "It''s not about winning or losing anymore. The most important thing in any combat situation is that you and your allies live to fight another night. And to that end¡­"


    Captain Exelcia took one of her hands off her massive hammer and held it out before her. In a flash, a bubble of water appeared from the palm of her armored hand and slowly grew, descending to the floor. It dropped to the ground with a loud pop.


    "As you might remember, my affinity is that of water," Captain Exelcia continued. "But I''m also a defensive specialist. Captain Skylee, would you mind helping me out real quick?"


    Captain Skylee stepped forward from the back wall where the other captains observed Captain Exelcia''s lecture. The bubble of water continued to grow larger and larger until it was bigger than a person. Zel could have easily fit inside it. Once Captain Skylee approached the growing orb she waited for further instruction.


    "Just give it a good ol'' thwack!" Captain Exelcia exclaimed.


    Captain Skylee delivered. She presumed a fighting stance and, after only a moment''s hesitation, twisted and delivered a blistering wheel-kick to the water''s surface. As her blow connected with the bubble there was the sound of an impact in the classroom, but to the student''s tremendous surprise, Captain Skylee''s foot remained distinctly outside the confines of the bubble, unable to punch through.


    "One might not think of the water affinity as being useful for physical defense," Captain Exelcia continued, "But our affinities allow us to manipulate and change things about mana as it represents itself through us. For me, that means I can produce water that is as hard as stone. Some people can make stone like liquid, as the Duphor family does. Others still are able to change the very basic properties of what we would consider the norm of their affinities, such as making cold fire. Some people even are able to enhance their own bodies using their affinities."


    "The ability to do any or all of these things depends greatly on the user''s magical flexibility, Captain Ceres'' specialty." Captain Exelcia said. "But generally once a mana user has reached the skill level that you are at, there are some things that tend to stand out about your magic. Things that make you unique. The entrance exams taught us what your magic looks like and some of the things it can do, now it''s time for us to figure out what you''re good at."


    "We''ll get into the meat and beans of general mana manipulation later." She continued. "But to make sure that you all have the skills needed to stay alive out there, we''re going to focus on what you''re good on first. And to that end, we''re going to take advantage of this." Captain Exelcia gave her bubble a loving tap.


    "When in the field, offense is your best defense," she explained. "When you don''t know who or what you''re fighting, as will often be the case, it is best that you hit hard and fast first rather than get hit hard and fast first. Now, she may not have pierced my bubble here, but Captain Skylee ain''t no slouch. The kick you just saw had no mana behind it, she didn''t use her affinity at all, but still she nearly managed to poke a hole through. This is one of my personal signature techniques, and this bubble right here is just about strong enough that someone in their first or second year should be able to break through it no problem, so long as they hit it hard enough. And therein is the lesson we''ll be learning tonight."


    "Each of you will come up and hit the bubble with your best shot, just like you did with Captain Crans, but this time we''ll get some physical feedback. As you watch your fellow students come up, make sure to think about your plan of attack. Let''s go, you first!"


    To her surprise, Captain Exelcia was pointing at her. She got up from her spot and made her way to the bubble.


    "So, I just hit it?" Zel asked.


    "That''s right," the captain nodded. "You were having some trouble hitting a living target during the exam, maybe hitting something else will allow you to let loose a little more."


    Zel looked at the bubble. It wasn''t iridescent like soap bubbles, it was literally just a mass of water that was gently flowing around a big air pocket beneath it. The water itself could not have been more than a knuckle length deep.


    Zel didn''t particularly like being picked as the first example, but she''d used her mana in front of all these students before. There was no reason to be nervous. She took a deep breath and felt the familiar tingling as she filled her arms with mana. Just as Captain Exelcia said, there was no one to worry about hurting this time, so Zel let loose. Arcs of white lightning tinted with blue and purple arced from her fingertips, making contact with the surface of the orb instantly. Zel put quite a bit of mana behind her attack, but to her surprise when she let her mana relax the orb was entirely unharmed. There wasn''t any indication that Zel''s lightning had touched it at all.


    "No good." Captain Exelcia said bluntly. "You''ve got a lot of mana, like a lot a lot, but you aren''t any good at focusing it. Your attacks come out spread and it feels like you can''t control them. Those kinda hits are worthless against a barrier like this, I barely felt anything at all when you hit the bubble."


    Captain Exelcia''s normally cheerful and sparkling attitude was quickly replaced when it came to giving criticism. She spoke in a flat tone of voice as if the words she spoke were the hard truth, and there was no room to retort. Zel felt a bit hurt.


    "Go ahead back to your seat, Zel. As you watch the other students come up, go ahead and brainstorm some ideas to make your lightning more focused." Captain Exelcia concluded.


    Zel returned to her seat feeling somewhat defeated. Miriya did her best to cheer her up with a thumbs up, but this wasn''t a sensation that Zel was going to get over too easily.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Not really supposed to, I suppose, She thought to herself. It was just like Captain Exelcia said, they were learning for real now. Sure, they would be graded and assessed to make sure that their skills are up to snuff, but at the end of the night, it was more about learning to survive than it was about getting good marks. There is no room for soft words when one''s life is on the line.


    From that point for the rest of class, the experience was reminiscent of the exam. The students all took turns heading up one at a time and trying their best to pierce Captain Exelcia''s bodacious bubble barrier. Luckily for Zel, she was not the only one to receive the scathing words of advice from the Captain. Most students received advice similar to Zel, needing a more focused approach to the barrier to have a chance of being able to pierce through. Some students were more specialized for pinpoint damage, however, Miriya being among them.


    Miriya''s attack was identical to the one from the exam, she wasn''t yet comfortable with her bow, so she wore her trusty slingshot on her waist and delivered a pellet at blistering speed into the side of the bubble, but even she was not able to penetrate through.


    Another standout was the large Clickfolk. They seemed to have a much higher grasp of the complexities of mana than most of the other students. He shared the same affinity as Captain Exelcia and he, with his ability to turn water into a jetstream with tremendous force, was one of only two students to be able to pierce through the liquid.


    The other was, of course, Cleinz. During the exam, Captain Crans had thwarted him easily and not given him much of a chance to show his skill, but there was clearly more going on to him than met the eyes.


    His magic seemed simple for how complex it was. He again donned the armor of stone and equipped his rock armaments before lunging at the sphere. During the exam, Cleinz had hit nothing, his spear hanging helplessly in the air as he was quickly disarmed by Captain Crans. This time, the tip of his spear made contact with the bubble and pushed through with an explosion of mist and droplets of water as the force of his blow pushed his weapon through seemingly without effort. He was the only student within the class that received a compliment from Captain Exelcia, who called his technique "excellent."


    There were many other incredible students, however, and Zel could immediately see what Captain Exelcia had meant by trying to find what they were good at. If there was anything that Zel was lacking that the majority of the other students had, it was a specific plan of attack. Zel had always just used her lightning generally, its destructive force was inherently dangerous, and she had never thought of any methods to enhance these properties. Many of the other students were the opposite. Some would form weapons out of their mana, like Cleinz, some of them had specific attacks that they developed to enhance the destructive force of their attacks, like the large clickfolk. Even Jammy, who Zel now knew possessed possibly the least mana in the class, was able to product stronger than results than Zel because she was using her plants efficiently and, though she was unable to pierce the barrier, Exelcia said that her only issue was the force she put behind her mana, there was nothing wrong with her execution.


    Zel tried to familiarize herself with her fellow students as they all took their turns, now that she didn''t have the stress of being tested on her shoulders it was much easier to actually take in the other members of the class and learn about them.


    There was the gorgeous Splitfolk woman from the fancy Splitfolk group with the flowing white hair. She had a fire affinity and appeared to have unbelievable control over it. She could make flowing tendrils of flame that struck at the bubble with force you could hear. It seemed a general trend that the students from the fancy Splitfolk group were generally a cut above when it came to their magic, which annoyed Zel but made sense if they were all in the same group as Cleinz.


    The Clickfolk, however, were not so harmonious. It quickly became abundantly clear that the large Clickfolk was the most skilled among them by far, perhaps with Jammy in a distant second or third. The majority of them struggled tremendously, earning a speaking-to from Captain Exelcia that sounded almost angry.


    There was also another Splitfolk man who was taller than Cleinz but much skinnier who had a wind affinity, but he had problems similar to Zel. His control of his wind was not precise enough to pierce through the barrier alone. It felt nice to know that someone else struggled in the same way she did.


    As they wrapped up the final students, Zel felt that she had a better handle on the level of the class, but she also noticed that there was one student who did not get called up. It was a Splitfolk woman who was stunning, she had dark blue hair at the top of her head that gradually melted into an orange or red that almost looked like it was on fire and she wore a gentle, though somewhat bored expression on warm lips. It was strange though, as Zel couldn''t remember seeing her at the exam. Zel found herself staring a little too long until the girl looked in her direction and she snapped her attention back forward.


    When Exelcia finished up with the last of the students, she addressed them all once again.


    "Alright! A mighty impressive group all of you are! Quite the crop we have this year." She continued, "now normally we would have a few more courses in this room, namely the magical flexibility course and the teamwork course, but we want you to spend some time stewing on what you''ve learned, so you won''t be receiving any more specific instruction from us until tomorrow where Captain Ceres will give each of you coaching to improve your magic individually. You will still attend your other elective courses, and I have one more announcement to make related to your teamwork course. The groups that you will be part of!"


    The classroom grew dead quiet, which seemed to amuse Captain Exelcia as she continued.


    "These groups will be the people you spend the majority of your time during your first year with, and likely longer than that," she said. "In these groups you will be expected to participate together in class, complete various activities together, and, most notably, complete the final exam together."


    The students grew restless upon hearing this, voicing questions and concerns, but they fell on deaf ears as Captain Exelcia kept speaking.


    "Dream Academy has an interesting philosophy of individual prowess over large groups, but that does not mean there is no merit to working together, and you will be expected to mold and mesh with any group of people you meet in the field, including ones that you may not have any synergy with or you may dislike them personally. Failures for these reasons are unacceptable, and with the teamwork course, we hope to turn you into flexible combatants who can shine under any circumstances. Now, the list."


    Zel had expected Captain Exelcia to produce a paper from which she could read off the groups, but she began reciting names of students seemingly from memory. She looked at each student as she spoke their names and which group they would belong to. There was a general trend that Zel noticed rather quickly that made her nervous. The number of students in each grouping was either three or four, but no matter how many people were in each group it seemed that no one was satisfied. Students would frown or groan as they heard their name called along with the others. Zel had a bad feeling as Captain Exelcia made her way down her mental list until she came to Zel.


    "The next group will be Zel, Miriya, Jammy¡­" Zel felt her worries melt away as Captain Exelcia said the name of her sister and friend, immediately thinking that her group would not be so bad, but then Captain Exelcia hit her in the gut.


    "...and Cleinz!" She said.


    Fuck.

 Chapter 16: Butting Heads

    Chapter 16: Butting Heads


    Zel''s jaw nearly hit the floor. Cleinz was likewise stunned, and by the time the shock had run its course in Zel''s mind, Cleinz was already standing, anger burning behind his eyes.


    "Captain Exelcia, you cannot be serious," Cleinz started, "I am a Duphor, you cannot seriously expect me to work with one of the-," before he could finish his word, Cleinz was interrupted by Captain Exelcia.


    "One of who, Mr. Duphor?" She asked, her normal cheery expression and voice was replaced by sternness like that of a mother scolding her child. Cleinz froze, and opted not to speak any further, but it was Zel''s turn this time.


    "I hate to say it, Captain, but I agree with Cleinz. I don''t know why you think it would be a good idea for me to be in a group with that jerk." Zel had many different words that she wanted to call Cleinz in her head, but jerk would suffice while talking in front of the captains.


    "I can understand your concerns, Zel, but if you would, I want to finish calling out the groups before I explain myself any further. Otherwise I''ll forget where I was." Zel reluctantly dropped it.


    Exelcia went down the line as she said, and each grouping was met with more groans or disappointment, though none were so vocal about their parties than Zel and Cleinz were. As promised, as soon as she was done reciting her list from memory she spoke quickly before anybody could interject.


    "When working as a unit, you will sometimes be matched up with people you work well with, that is the ideal. If everyone is on the same page then whatever operation you are carrying out will usually progress smoothly. However, if for whatever reason your group does not work well together, it will make missions significantly more difficult. One bad cog can halt a whole machine. I''m going to make it so none of you are that cog!" Captain Exelcia explained.


    "Now, if I did what I wanted to, then each of your groups should be composed of two to three people that already know each other and would be happy to work with, then there should be one to two outliers." Captain Exelcia continued, "sorry if you drew the short straw, but there is a reason for that too, each of you has a lesson to learn from the people around you, whether you want to or not. This will force you to learn something at least, even if that something is ''I''ll tolerated this chump until the final exam, then I''ll never talk to them again.''"


    Zel was still upset with being teamed up with Cleinz, Miriya and Jammy seemed no more happy than she was.


    How did she even know what people to put us in groups with? she thought, before the solution popped in her mind. Captain Exelcia had personally escorted each student out of the room during their second exam. She probably brought each student to a friend or a group of other students that they knew and kept track of it. And it would not have been hard to see who Zel got along with, especially considering her yelling match with Cleinz in the infirmary.


    But it wasn''t only them, it was everybody. Captain Exelcia introduced her as a water affinity mana user with a specialization in defense, but Zel thought that perhaps her most terrifying skill was something that she didn''t write in her resume.


    "So," Captain Exelcia continued, "as the year progresses, I expect each and every one of you to work on teamwork with this group of four. There''s something that I like to say in regards to this. ''We don''t always get to choose the family that we are with, so sometimes we must make do with the family that we got,'' That one was from your very own Captain Crans, a rather insightful quote if you ask me! Throughout the year you will be given various tasks that will test the limit of your group''s teamwork. Depending on the group, some of you will pass with no problems, even if you have issues now, you''ll quickly realize a way around them and it will be smooth sailing from then on. However, I suspect that some of you will have an extremely difficult time with the people you have been assigned to, and there will be no partial credit. Either your entire group passes this course, or you all fail out together."


    The students had been in a subdued silence, but the captain''s last comment threw the room into an uproar. Those who were okay with their grouping before were now making their voices heard, and those who were more upset spoke up all the louder. All the complaints fell on deaf ears as Exelcia produced a bubble of water in one of her hands, pressed it between her other hand and popped it, making an ear shattering noise that split the hall, silence followed.


    "Listen, kids, I''m real patient. Maybe the most patient out of all the Captains that you''ll work with this year. But I can''t stand being yelled at. So next time you all complain, keep it down, or we''ll have problems." Exelcia''s voice was serene but threatening. Like the edge of an abyss. Nobody dared breath.


    "This will be hard, for some of you this will be literally the hardest thing you ever do." She said, letting out a laugh. "Imagine that, getting used to working with someone you don''t like being the hardest thing you''ll ever do at the Academy. If only it were that easy for me."


    "If you have any other questions, the other teachers and I will be sticking around here until either you all are gone, or our next classes begin, so don''t be shy." Captain Exelcia said, her normal cheery tone returning as if it had never left. "Ah, but if you come to complain about your groupings, I''m going to feed you to Captain Crans."


    "Ooo." Captain Crans said from the back of the classroom. Zel thought she saw him lick his lips.


    "Alright, you all are dismissed," Captain Exelcia announced. "Don''t get lost on your way to your other classes. They won''t all be so easy to find as this one, but you''ll have plenty of time. Tomorrow we''re going to hit your magical flexibility and teamwork hard. No more hand holding from here on out! We''re off to the races!"


    With that, the grumbly class dispersed, some more grumbly than others, but Zel was the queen among them. Students and teachers alike cleared out of her way as the exited the classroom.


    "Ugh, I can''t believe we''re going to work with Cleinz!" Zel exclaimed. She pulled down on her face with her hands, stretching her sharp features and hoping that perhaps her face falling off would be a good excuse to not have to go through with this grouping. Alas, her skin remained intact. "It was already a bad evening, now it is surely complete. Surely this night could not have started off any worse."Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!


    "Hey, don''t say that." Miriya said, a somber expression on her face. "I''ve seen you screw up things way worse than this situation. Give yourself some credit!"


    "HA!" Zel cried. "I''m starving! Let''s go find something to eat." Zel whipped around and smashed face-first into somebody who tried to pass her in the hall. She bounced back like a spring and was prepared to come back with all apologies for not watching where she was going, but then she noticed who it was she had ran into. It was none other than Cleinz himself. He was glaring down at her, unmoving. Zel suddenly had the impression that her running into him hadn''t been her fault.


    "Sorry Cleinz, didn''t see you there. Don''t know how I could have missed a pile of garbage that tall," she said, deciding to come out of the gate swinging. Cleinz looked aghast and opened his mouth to retort, but stopped himself and sighed, pinching his nose just beneath his brow.


    "I believe it is Zel, is it not?" He asked, even though he obviously knew her name, "you have been granted a unique honor, the honor to serve a Duhpor directly, whether or not you deserve it."


    Zel didn''t think she could get mad so fast. She had had a bad night, bad sleep, and hadn''t eaten all evening, and she was just about ready to snap Cleinz in half like a twig. Before she could make a move, however, Miriya jumped in between the two. She began talking to Cleinz while holding one hand back to keep Zel at bay. It was barely enough.


    "Hey Cleinz," She began, keeping Zel solidly behind her and out of Cleinz'' vision, "I think we''ve had a bit of a rocky start, but we are supposed to be a team from now on. So why don''t we start over. My name is Miriya Crestfall. It''s nice to make your acquaintance." She held out a single furry hand to Cleinz.


    Cleinz hesitated for a moment, still focused on Zel and unsure of what to do. Miriya feared that he would not shake her hand, but after the moment had passed he slowly brought his hand forward and met Miriya with a single stern shake.


    "Cleinz Duphor," he said without any further acknowledgement. Then he looked to Jammy. Jammy was significantly shorter than Cleinz, but she was not intimidated by him and held out her hand while introducing herself in Clicktongue.


    "Charmed," Cleinz responded, flatly, shaking Jammy''s hand as well.


    "Well, Cleinz, we were all just about to go eat. We haven''t had the chance to grab anything due to a clerical issue with our room this evening," Miriya lied. A rare sight. "Do you want to join us?" Zel wanted to boot Miriya right in the behind for even suggesting such a thing, but she held strong. She thought she could perhaps tolerate Cleinz as long as she was not the one that had to talk to him. Luckily for her, Cleinz answered quickly.


    "No, I will not be joining you. A member of the Duphor family would never have to stoop so low as to join commoners for meals," he said. He put extra emphasis on the word "commoners" as if it were a slur.


    "No, the reason that I have come to speak to you is to inform you of how our team will operate," he continued, "Unfortunately, our success in this course is inextricably tied to our ability to work as a group, regardless of each of your individual competence. I highly doubt that I would be penalized for your, what I anticipate will be, extremely poor performance, we must all pass this class together. My suggestion to this end is this: I will do all the ''heavy lifting'' as it were, using my superior Duphor magic to ensure that we always rise to whatever piddly challenge the Academy will throw our way, and you three will simply be along for the ride. After this year ends, we can go our separate ways. By that point it should be clear how poor a fit one or all of you are for this school, and we''ll all be rid of a burden. How does that sound?"


    This time even Miriya was stunned to silence. In her brief lapse she also dropped her hand. Zel was loose, and it took her no time at all to get between Cleinz and her sister.


    "I really don''t know where you get this idea that you''re better than us, but clearly there is something wrong," she began, "We''ve already been through how we belong here just as much as you do, ''Mr. Duphor,''" she said, mimicking Captain Exelcia, "so we''ll skip that part. You''re asking us to let you do all the heavy lifting, ignoring the whole ''team'' part of ''teamwork,'' and just take the easy pass out of this class into year two? Is that what I am to understand you ''expect'' from us?" Zel cocked her head, eyes wide, patiently waiting for the answer.


    "Yes, for someone as thick as you are, that was an acceptable summary." He said, without even a blink.


    "An interesting idea, Cleinz!" Zel said, the venom practically spilling from her lips. "Allow me to propose a hypothetical, then, if I may."


    "Say that, for example, during our team building exercises, we went to a different place. Somewhere that maybe doesn''t have very much stone, such as a lake or a mountain that is known to be completely coated in a thick layer of ice towards the peak. Where exactly will you get the stone in these situations? You see, I noticed something, during our exams. I noticed that when you had the opportunity to fight Captain Crans, before you did, you bent down and touched the same stone that you then used during your combat. Perhaps this is just baseless speculation, but I suspect that you need direct contact with stone to manipulate it. If that is indeed the case, my dear, dear Cleinz. Would you please explain to your lesser teammates how you will manage in this hypothetical?"


    Zel finished her rant and put her hands behind her back, doing her best to look cute and innocent as she could muster.


    "Ha," Cleinz let out a single, arrogant laugh, "in that case, I would simply need to bring the stone with me. A service that you three could doubtlessly provide, even given your inadequacies."


    "So, rather than finding a way with our various skills to assist you in utilizing your affinity at the top of Sub-Cross mountains, you would rather utilize our backs as load bearing cattle?" Zel kept her innocent posture and tone, but her rage was beginning to boil over, causing her pointy ears to twitch.


    "I could think of no greater service or utilization of your skills, Zel." He said with a nasty grin.


    "In that case, I think I''ll carry the rock that will be the stone spear for you, so I can shove it up yo-" Before Zel could finish, she was again interrupted by Miriya who had finally managed to get between Zel and Cleinz once again. A blessing to Cleinz and the surrounding student''s ears.


    "I don''t think that will work for us, Cleinz," She said firmly, "As Zel said, we''re here for the same reasons that you are, to learn and become people who can protect those who need protecting, and if you do all the work, how will we protect anything?"


    "Hmph," Cleinz grunted, his nose wrinkled, "Then I will relent for now. However, if you impair my progress or slow me down in any way, there will be consequences."


    With that, Cleinz whipped around and walked away, his cloak trailing behind him as he went. Miriya let out a sigh of relief when he left.


    "We cannot let him talk to us like that," Zel said, her eyes still locked on Cleinz as he disappeared up a staircase.


    "We might not have a choice," Miriya said, shaking her head, "it would be ideal if we could be friends with him, but I''ll admit, that seems like it''ll be a problem. What do you think, Jammy?"


    Jammy pointed towards where Cleinz had disappeared with one hand, and raised another to her head where she twirled it around. Zel let out a hearty laugh.


    "He is a bit of a loony, ain''t he?" She said. Jammy, it seemed, had the same knack as Miriya in her ability to calm Zel down. "Now, back to lunch, I''m still starving!"


    "Yeah, let''s go," Miriya said as Jammy buzzed in agreement. After spending a moment to find their bearings, the trio set out on a quest to find some food.

 Chapter 17: Jammys Dilemma

    Chapter 17: Jammy''s Dilemma


    After departing from the classroom, it did not take long for the girls to find what they were looking for, the Dream Academy Mess Hall. A big room full of students, teachers, and other various faculty getting their meals from the Academy''s accredited chefs; for a price, of course. Zel had thought it would be harder to find, as most things in the mountain were, but the trail of similarly hungry students helped end their questing shortly.


    The grub of the night was gathered from the nearby farms that surrounded most of Dream Academy in several directions and was served seasonally, at least that''s what Zel overheard some of the other, slightly more knowledgeable, students talking about. The food in front of her gave her no inkling of what season these crops were all from. Her mother was a gardener and her dad a chef, so she wasn''t unfamiliar with the kinds of stuff that ended up in meals, but she was clearly in over her head here. She did her best to pick something she recognized and pay before the number of choices confused her further.


    It was rather crowded in the mess, but the three of them found a table easily enough and ate their meals while discussing the way the first class had gone. They all agreed that it was exciting and interesting, except for that last part that they would leave to discuss until a later date, but in particular they were all interested in the idea of magical flexibility. Zel and Miriya spent some time discussing it between themselves as Jammy did her best to interject, but this particular topic was very difficult to approach because of the language barrier, the sisters found themselves guessing what Jammy was trying to say but it was getting them nowhere.


    "Ah! We should go see Flint!" Miriya suddenly interjected while Zell and Jammy were locked in some kind of dance, throwing out hands at each other trying to properly convey what exactly Jammy''s thoughts were on her own skill level when it came to the flexibility of her plant magic.


    Zel agreed. "We have plenty of time before our electives begin, so why don''t we pay him a visit to help him clear this up as well as the¡­ other things¡­" Zel wasn''t particularly excited to have such a serious talk with a senior student so soon, but it needed to be done. "You know the way, right Jammy?"


    Jammy nodded equal parts enthusiastically and angrily, frustrated at this continual issue. She led them out the mess hall and further up the spiraling staircase.


    Jammy led them up four stories, leaving them on the fifth floor of the campus. Zel was surprised, as she thought it would be further up still. She recalled that Miracle had said the higher you moved up in the academy, the more places you were allowed to stay. She had an assumption coupled with that, namely that the higher rooms would be of somewhat higher quality, but as Zel led them to a seemingly identical doorway with seemingly identical interior upon entering, that illusion was thoroughly dashed.


    It really was just the same kind of hallway that they lived in, with the added bonus of a staircase at the back end that led to somewhere mysterious. Jammy walked up to one of the doors and gave it a solid knock. A few moments later a Clickfolk man that the group did not recognize, looking as though he had just awoken from a years long nap, appeared.


    "What''s up?" He asked while rubbing his eyes futilly, the sleep was stronger than he. "What do you need?"


    Before Zel or Miriya were able to say anything, Jammy piped up with some Clicktongue and the man in the doorway looked down in surprise, having not noticed her.


    "Oooh, you''re clearly here for Flint." He said before calling over his shoulder, "Flint, some of your buddies are here to talk to you!" He then disappeared from the door and after a short time Flint appeared in his place.


    "Hey! How''s it going Jammy! Zel, Miriya! Good to see you all!" Unlike his roommate, Flint was very enthusiastic and awake. He was no longer wearing the long and flowing garb of the Clickfolk clique that he had been temporarily a part of, but a more classic and bookish look. A nice shirt tucked into some equally nice and well-fitting pants. Zel thought it was a good look for him, though his scruff was getting more noticeable every time she saw him.


    "I would invite you in, but my roommate just got back from a deployment. We should take this elsewhere." As Flint said this, a thankful grunt could be heard from behind him as he gently closed the door. "Let''s head to the common area." He led them back towards the front of the lobby where they procured themselves a few seats and a table.


    "I expected that third years'' dorms would be a lot different from the ones that were given to us!" Miriya exclaimed as they got seated, "This is practically the same! So much for moving up in the world!"


    "Ahh, it''s not so bad." Flint responded, pointing towards the hallway. "Did you see that staircase back there? We actually have access to a variety of campus facilities that you guys don''t have on the rock bottom down there. Baths, food, a private tunnel out to the city. It''s nice. Oh, and not to make you jealous, Miriya, but we have a private shooting range for those of us who use range weapons. The facilities themselves aren''t any better than yours, that''s true, but with additional experience gives us additional responsibility. We get cooler stuff."


    "Anyway," Flint continued, "to what do I owe this visit? Perhaps you are going to take me up on my offer?" Flint asked with a sincere and hopeful smile.


    "We think we will, Flint, but there''s something we''ve gotta talk to you about first. Tonight we come to you with some issues that we''ve been having with Jammy. More specifically with her boss." Zel explained. It was true that their visit had been spurred on by a miscommunication with Jammy, but the truth was also that that miscommunication was the least of Jammy''s problems


    Flint''s smile turned into a frown.


    "What''s wrong?" He asked. Jammy, who had seemed to be quite cheerful despite the situation, suddenly seemed like it all came crashing down on her. She slumped in her seat and, as she began to speak to Flint, Zel could hear the tapping noise that she had been making last night began to come back, quite at first, but it grew louder as she spoke.


    Flint listened intently.


    "I understand. I''m sorry that this happened to you, Jammy." He said before addressing the sisters. "Jammy explained that you''ve been having some communications issues with this, so I''ll bring you up to speed. The Clickfolk that you have been having issues with is Jammy''s commanding officer. Unlike normal Dream Academy students, such as yourself, the exchange program still has the students be part of their own school, rather than official members of Dream Academy. As such, Jammy is not technically a student here, but a student of a Clickfolk institution to the west."


    "What? Why would they send someone like an officer with students? Wouldn''t that be the equivalent to their Captains?" Zel asked.


    "Not exactly." Flint said, shaking his head. "Where the Clickfolk come from is a very different culture than our own. With different cultures obviously comes different ideas. Their command structure is similar, but not the same as ours. Where Dream Academy focuses on flexible individuals, the Clickfolk school of thought is flexible teams. There are a variety of reasons for that I could go into, but that isn''t important right now. What you should understand is that Clickfolk that gave you and Jammy these troubles, Dark, is just as much a student as you are, he''s here to learn. Despite this, he has been chosen as the leader of the Clickfolk in the exchange here at Dream Academy, and the leading officer in this program''s rules are absolute, and any infractions against them are taken very seriously. Because of this incident, when Jammy returns to her homeland she will no longer be welcome."You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    "WHAT!?" Zel screamed leaning forward in her chair and startling some nearby students, "What does that mean? They won''t let her be a student anymore?"


    "I''m afraid so," Flint said, nodding solemnly, "disobedience is not tolerated in the Clickfolk culture, especially not by someone in a position with essentially no power. Jammy will be allowed to finish her year out here, that part is set in stone via the contract between Dream Academy and Beryiith, but as soon as her time is up at the Academy she will be forced out of her own program when she returns. If what she told me is true, Dark has likely already sent word to their country detailing this. She has essentially been put on a timer."


    "That''s not fair, though!" Miriya said, "All she did was spend some time with us! Isn''t that the whole point of an exchange program? To be surrounded by people you''ve never met before."


    "I agree with you completely," Flint said, "I even agree that most people that I met in my exchange program feel the exact same way. But there are always outliers. In Split Sky, there is a lot of focus on equality and treating others as you would have them you, but not everyone agrees with this or behaves in a way that reflects this general belief. I remember that you got into quite the argument with another Splitfolk after your exam, did you not Zel?" Flint asked. Cleinz ''enraged face flashed in Zel''s mind. She slumped back down into her chair and crossed her arms.


    "I don''t think it has anything to do with either of you." Flint continued, "I did not meet Dark until my journey back here, and during that time I can count on one hand the number of times that we spoke to one another. I don''t know who he is, but I suspect that this reluctance to let his unit mingle with other students boils down to a personal belief of his. Unfortunately, regardless of his personal beliefs he has the final word on his unit''s activities. There is little we can do to change his decision."


    "What are we going to do, then?" Miriya asked, "It may be a ways off, but we can''t have Jammy quit doing something she loves!" Her ears had fallen flat on her head, something that only happened when she was truly upset.


    "Well¡­" Flint paused, thinking for a moment, "She''s not totally out of luck. But it isn''t ideal."


    "What can she do?" Miriya asked.


    "Like I said, Dark''s word is final. If it''s true that he already sent word back about her failure to work under his command, then unless a major miracle happens to overturn this result she will not be allowed to work back at her academy. However," Flint paused again, this time dramatically, "after this program ends in one year, she could enroll into Dream Academy as a regular student, and continue her courses here."


    "YES!" Zel shouted again, the students who were startled before were ready for it this time, and they did not flinch.


    "It is some good news," Flint agreed, "but like I said, it''s not perfect. There first of all is the issue of whether or not Jammy would want to do that." He looked at Jammy, awaiting her opinion. Jammy sat up out of her sullen posture and let out a positive buzz. Flint nodded.


    "You say that you would be willing right now, but things change in a year of course, luckily you have that long to decide your next action. However, the other challenges will be much more difficult." Flint scratched at his fuzz as he compiled the information in his mind. After he was satisfied, he continued


    "There likely won''t be any legal ramifications, she won''t be made a criminal, but she will likely be barred from further education. But if we actually want to solve this problem¡­" He paused again before an idea seemed to pop in his head. "We would probably need someone with massive political power in both Split Sky and Beryiith to vouch for her. Someone at least as relevant as the headmaster. The only real silver lining right now is that, even if Jammy is forced to go back, that she would only be forced to drop her program, this incident wouldn''t bar her from other fields."


    "That isn''t much of a silver lining at all," Miriya complained.


    "It isn''t, but there are worse things," Flint said with a shrug, "Truth be told, if she spends long enough at the academy, she will almost certainly encounter worse things than forgetting about her dreams. But that would never stop the Jammy that I know." Gave Jammy a gentle smile, Jammy let out a gentle buzz in agreement, still seeming quite sad.


    "So we got a year, huh¡­" Zel thought aloud, "I don''t think anyone told you, Flint, but we actually got grouped up with that bastard I got in an argument with. Cleinz, if you remember. Exelcia is in charge of our team''s class and put us together in order to get us to learn how to deal with teammates that don''t get along, or something like that. However, she put the three of us together, so it isn''t all that bad." Zel kept scooting lower in her chair with her arms crossed. Soon, she would become one with the floor.


    "Ah, that tracks. Exelcia has a habit of doing that. The fact that the three of you are in a group together will prove to be a blessing and a curse, I imagine." Flint said this in a way that Zel could only describe as foreboding.


    "What''s that supposed to mean?" She asked bluntly.


    "You''ll find out from your class with her soon enough, I should suspect," Flint said in a taunting tone, "but the Exelcia I know does not put teams together that she thinks would succeed naturally." None of the three girls found Flints teasing amusing, and he moved on before incurring further questioning.


    "In the interim, I would suggest getting to know the school as well as you can, and yourselves as best you are able. There is a lot to learn here, and you need to start exploring your options before the year is up. Who knows? Maybe one of you will make Captain before the end of the year, if you could pull that off I would be willing to bet the headmaster would take your case seriously." Flint said all this with a straight face, leading Zel to believe that they actually had some kind of chance to help Jammy. She balled her hands into fists.


    We can''t let them take her back! She thought to herself with determination. With that resolved as best as it was going to be for now, Zel thought it was time to move onto other topics.


    "You mentioned earlier about helping us get into some Clicktongue classes. Miriya and I both wanted to. What should we do? Our classes aren''t locked in yet, so we could take a course, or should we go the club route? Any ideas?" Zel pulled herself back up in her chair. The stone floor would be left wanting for her body a little longer yet. Jammy looked at Zel with a confused head tilt, Zel realized that she hadn''t actually explained to Jammy that they planned to learn Clicktongue.


    "We wanted to be able to understand you like you understand us," She said with a warm smile, "It''s the least that we can do for a friend."


    Jammy''s eyes seemed to sparkle and she jumped out of her seat to give Zel a hug before running over to do the same with Miriya, all three of them were giggling.


    Flint himself had lit up as well. He was clearly very excited to have more of a chance to talk about one of his favorite topics.


    "Yes! Excellent! I do have some recommendations¡­" He began.


    He explained to Zel and Miriya that there were a variety of classes that they could take at the school that were taught by different instructors. The one that Flint recommended was taught by a Professor Arcton, who he promised would be one of the best instructors for both learning the language, as well as giving them insight into Clickfolk culture, giving them an advantage as they started brainstorming how to keep Jammy around beyond this first year. Luckily for both Zel and Miriya, the class was later in the evening, and did not conflict with any of the classes they had taken so far, so they would be able to try it later that same night.


    The whole time that they were talking, Jammy was absolutely aglow compared to how she had been acting all night. Zel smiled. The idea that Jammy felt so comfortable with them already, and they with her, was already a highlight of her time at Dream Academy.


    They spent a while longer talking about anything, getting all of their minds off the more stressful goings on. With Jammy''s help, Flint even spent the time to teach them some very basic words and phrases in Clicktongue that they could watch out for. Before long, though, it was time to head back to classes. So the girls gathered themselves and said goodbye to Flint before preparing to dive into the halls, more cluttered than labyrinthine, to find their next class.


    This was also time for Zel and Miriya to part ways with Jammy, who did not share their next class. Zel and Miriya were heading up and Jammy was heading down. Jammy cheerfully waved, saying one of the words that Flint taught them.


    "Goodbye!" She said happily.


    Zel and Miriya were alone together once again.


    "We''ve got magical flexibility next," Miriya said. "Do you think Captain Ceres will be as harsh as Captain Exelcia?"


    "I hope not." Zel said with a shiver. "I can only handle so much criticism a night, otherwise I get hives."


    "I thought that only happens when you talk to cute boys?" Miriya said


    "Cute girls too," Zel said with a sorrowful shake of the head.


    The two of them laughed as they made their way to their next class.

 Chapter 18: Magical Flexibility

    Chapter 18: Magical Flexibility


    The classroom ended up being a little harder to find than the girls thought. Unlike most of the other classrooms, this one was not well-marked, seemingly tucked away behind a few of the other more noticeable classrooms on the floor. By the time they found it it was nearly time for class to start, and they were relieved when they opened the door and found Captain Ceres with only a couple other students. It seemed that they weren''t the only ones running a little late.


    "Ah! Zel! Miriya! Just in time, please, take a seat." Captain Ceres greeted them enthusiastically. He was standing on the far end of the room leaning on a desk, before him there were some chairs scattered in rows and facing towards the Captain. In the seats there were a few students who had made it early, Cleinz was among them and, Zel thought perhaps she was mistaken, but the woman from their earlier class whom Zel did not recognize was among them. Miriya and Zel took their seats to wait until class started, it also gave her a chance to take in the rest of the room.


    The first thing to notice was how cramped it was. The fact that there was room for chairs was a miracle, as the walls were so coated with various texts and collections that one could not even see the stone hidden behind them. Books formed the bulk of the clutter. There were hundreds or perhaps thousands stuffed into this relatively small space, each of them worn and marked as if they had been thoroughly red, perhaps several times. There were also scrolls, tablets, and even clothing, none of which seemed to be unmarred by words. There may have been enough knowledge in that room to serve as an instructor itself, if only one had the know-how to navigate its messy interior.


    The chairs were interesting as well. They were made of solid stone and connected to the floor. Upon further inspection, it wasn''t so much that they were connected to the floor rather they were part of it, the stone rising up from the gray ground forming some simple seats.


    Simple was the wrong word. They were ordinary as far as functionality, but the backs and frames of the chairs were beautifully carved with designs and a flow to them that Zel had seldom seen outside of professionally designed woodwork. It seemed that the chairs were a temporary fixture that Captain Ceres himself had put together and, not to be outdone by his younger sibling''s ornate armor, he had added his own flare to some of his creations. Or perhaps it came naturally to him to do so.


    Either way, what a convenient affinity for one working inside a mountain, Zel thought. She had moments in her life where she had been jealous of other''s affinities, especially since hers was so destructive, but the Duphor family being able to craft something so complex with seemingly so little effort made those feelings come rushing back.


    As the last of the students trickled in, Captain Ceres began his lecture.


    "Welcome to my office," He began, "a bit cluttered, I know, but I like to keep  Now let us jump right into it, as it were."


    "This will be a bit different than all of your other classes, though that should be obvious." He continued, "honestly, it will be much closer to a club than a classroom. There is no curriculum, we will be working together and individually on each other''s weaknesses. Whether or not you pass is up to how much you improve over the course of the year. I will help you along, of course, but magical flexibility is a lifelong pursuit, and you will be expected to keep up the things you learn here as you move forward in your career."Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    "So, why don''t we start off right there," Captain Ceres said, clapping his hands together. "Could somebody do the honors and explain what magical flexibility is?" He looked expectantly over the class of somewhat nervous students.


    A young splitfolk man that Zel recognized from their other class raised his hand. He was the tall skinny boy with the wind affinity. Zel recalled him struggling during Captain Exelcia''s test, so it made sense that he would be in the same class as them.


    "Yes, Scoville," Captain Ceres said. "What do you think?


    "Isn''t it how we use our mana? How we use it in different ways?" Scoville said quietly, his voice trembling. Zel thought that her own anxiety was quiet difficult to manage with at times, but she felt bad for Scoville, who was practically shaking. She felt a sort of admiration of him that he was able to answer the question despite his fear.


    "Not quite." Captain Ceres said with a smile. "That is part of it, but magical flexibility is much more complex than that." He knelt down as Zel had seen Cleinz do when he armed himself. Instead of armor and a spear, however, as the floor turned liquid in Captain Cere''s palms, he pulled up a chunk of it and held it aloft as though it were lightless.


    "Some people, like Scoville, think that magical flexibility is what you can do with your affinity," Captain Ceres explained, the ball of stone in his hand morphed and flowed as he spoke. "How you can shape it, how it looks on the outside." As he said this, the ball morphed into a sword that the Captain laid down in his hands.


    "That is part of it, to be sure, but it is also so much more." He continued, "mana is like a muscle. It grows and gets bigger as we do, it also gets weaker as we do. Nobody''s mana stays consistent throughout their life, just as nobody''s body remains the same. It can grow stronger, weaker, more complex, or lose its flare. It is all up to us to decide what to do with it." As Captain Ceres spoke, the stone sword dissipated, taking various different shapes of weapons and other objects. It was an axe, a book, a fruit, a lamp, and it kept changing as he moved on.


    "Our magical flexibility is our potential to use mana, our control of it, what we can do with the energy we have been given. Everyone in Tenyarn is gifted with mana, but very few of them get a chance to express themselves to their full potential." The stone returned to an amorphous blob that Captain Ceres set on his desk and stepped away. It began to move on its own creating a shape that Zel couldn''t quite grasp.


    "So few get a chance to see what magic truly has to offer us." Captain Ceres concluded as the blob suddenly sprung into shape. It had four legs and a mouth, eyes, and even ears. The stones on its back formed bristles of sharp hair and its newly formed jaw had two pointy tusks extruding out of it. The new stone creature turned towards the Captain and gave him an affectionate squeal. Zel couldn''t help but sit there slack jawed with the other students at what she saw.


    "Mana connects us to the world, and in turn the world connects with us." Captain Ceres explained, lifting his new companion in his arms. "We need only open our arms and let it in. I hope to teach you all to have a better understanding of mana and increase your connection to it. As a result, each of you will become more than what you are right now."


    "Throughout this year, each of you will be given a chance to demonstrate to yourselves and everyone what kind of connection you have with mana." He continued, "it is a passion of mine, my highest passion, and this passion is something that I hope to instill in all of you. So let us begin learning. How are you going to pierce that bubble?"

 Chapter 19: How Do We Improve?

    Chapter 19: How Do We Improve?


    "So, where to begin?" Captain Ceres said.


    "Uh, sir?" Miriya spoke up. "I think Captain Exelcia said that we needed to find out on our own how to pierce through the bubble."


    "She said to think about it until the morrow came," Captain Ceres corrected her. "Each student has their own special needs that must be attended to by their classes, and if you are in this class, that means you may need some extra assistance with addressing problems such as this."


    Cleinz could not help but scoff.


    "Ah, of course." Captain Ceres said, his voice suddenly devoid of the wonder and emotion he had spoken with before. "We do have one student here who was able to pierce through the surface of the bubble with relative ease."


    "Thus proving that I do not belong here, Captain." Cleinz spat from his seat.


    "Proving¡­" Captain Ceres answered back, unphased, "that you know something that the other students here may not. And as such¡­"


    Captain Ceres set down the stone creature he had been holding onto the floor. No sooner than he had done so did the creature melt away into the floor as if it had never been there. He then stood up and twirled his hand around lightly, his fingers pointing to the edges of the room. There was a sudden burst of activity as the surrounding papers and bookshelves were nearly instantly encased in stone that flew out from the floor walls and ceilings, one of the students could not help but yelp at the surprise. Lastly, he pointed at the floor between him and Cleinz and a pillar of stone rose up from the ground, taking the form of a beautiful statue suit of armor.


    "Cleinz, why not have you start us off for tonight?" Captain Ceres said, tapping gently on the newly-formed statue. "Because you know so much more than everyone here, it should be easy to show off exactly what it means to have good mana flexibility."


    "My stone targets are by no means as durable as Captain Exelcia''s shields," Captain Ceres continued, "but they should be more than adequate to illustrate the point. Just hit it however you want."


    Cleinz stood up and made his way to the statue. It was about the same height as him, and Zel thought that it was a rather good likeness, except the statue had nothing to say. Cleinz performed his routine and was soon encased in his stone armor with his trusty spear in hand.


    He took up his stance as Zel had seen him do before and lunged at the statue, his spear piercing through the other side easily just as it had done with the bubble in the previous class. He withdrew his weapon with a rather smug look on his face that was quickly done away with when Captain Ceres made a ticking noise with his tongue.


    "The same technique again¡­ hmm," he said while gently shaking his head.


    "Was it not effective?" Cleinz asked, his annoyance with the Captain''s words quite evident.


    "Perhaps." Captain Ceres said in a flat tone. "But effective is not the goal of this course. The goal is to learn. Explain to the class how you did what you just did."


    "That is a Duphor secret! You know that as well as-" Captain Ceres interrupted before Cleinz could finish speaking.


    "There are no secrets here, Cleinz." He spoke in a blunt and authoritative tone as he continued, "You, me, the other students here, everyone is here to learn. There will be no progress made if we cannot start by teaching one another."


    Cleinz still seemed hesitant, but Captain Ceres had a cold look on his face, and soon he broke.


    "The stone armor that I encase myself in is the key," he began, "I do not have the muscle strength to force myself through a barrier like Captain Exelcia''s so I supplement my physical strength with mana. The stone contracts and bends to my will, providing tremendous force."


    "It is a technique developed by the Duphor family so long ago that nobody even remembers who made it," Captain Ceres continued, taking over Cleinz'' response. "And you demonstrate it perfectly, Cleinz." Zel saw a smile begin to creep across Cleinz'' face before Captain Ceres dashed it once more.


    "But you demonstrate it too well," he said. "Duphor techniques are all you know, down to the way you point your spear. You have no originality, no creativity, and put no thought into your actions. You simply do what you have been shown to do, what a waste when you could do so much more." Captain Ceres'' words struck Cleinz, his fist clenched and shook, but he did nothing. He understood that, to some extent, his brother''s words were true.


    "What I would like is if you could each come up with a different strategy to combat the statue than you normally would." The captain continued, "For example, just now, during the exams, and during Exelcia''s lecture, we saw Cleinz attack with a spear made of stone. Can you think of something different that would effectively damage the statue I have made?" Captain Ceres asked while rubbing his chin, thoughtfully. As he spoke the statue began to mend itself, the surface rippled like water as it reformed.


    "Of course I can," He said, staring down the statue. He leaned down to the floor as Zel had seen many times, but this time something was different. Already wearing his armor, there was nothing to equip. Zel looked on in shock when a pit appeared beneath the statue, sucking it down into the floor before collapsing in on itself leaving only the armored head of the statue exposed


    Captain Ceres clapped his hands in a solo applause. For the first time that Zel had seen, he seemed genuinely proud of his brother.


    "That was good, Cleinz, an excellent alternative to what strategy that you used before. Now," Captain Ceres turned towards the other students, "Is there any criticism that you could give Cleinz to improve his technique, anything at all is fine. Tonight are just focused on improvement and possibilities." Another awkward pause insued, but eventually it was Zel who first broke the silence.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    "I think that opening the ground below them is effective," she said, "but I think it would be better if you maybe disabled them in some way first."


    Cleinz huffed, ignoring Zel''s statement, but Captain Ceres raised an eyebrow.


    "Could you explain further what you mean, Zel?" He asked.


    "Well... I was just thinking if we don''t know what the opponent is capable of, it might make sense to force them to fall in the hole by, I don''t know, grabbing a leg with the stone or something, and pulling them down into it." Zel explained.


    "What nonsense," Cleinz retorted, "What enemy would be ready for the ground beneath them to be torn out from under their feet?" He asked in his uniquely condescending tone.


    "I didn''t say it was a bad idea, did I? Just that, you might be able to push it further." Zel said defensively.


    "I think that it was both an excellent observation and idea, Zel," Captain Cleinz said reassuringly. "Give Zel''s suggestion a try. See if there''s a way that you can make the trap you have already constructed more robust." As he said this, the statue slipped out of the stone floor that healed below it, returning it to the state that Captain Ceres had first created it in once again.


    Cleinz merely huffed and placed his hands on the floor. This time, when the pit opened up beneath the statue, tendrils of rock shot out and gripped it from four sides. The tendrils whipped the statue down into the newly formed pit and it once again closed around it. The small group all nodded their heads and let out various sounds of approval, like a group of rich folk who found a certain vintage particularly satisfying.


    Zel was amazed by Cleinz'' ability to control his mana. It was clear that, Duphor ability or not, Cleinz was much closer to his brother''s level of skill than Zel was. That made her a bit upset, the thought that Cleinz was better than her in almost all regards, but she swallowed her pride.


    Class is for learning, afterall.


    "An excellent improvement," Captain Ceres complimented, "as Zel said, there are indeed enemies that either do not need to touch the ground or, perhaps more fearsome, there are mana users experienced enough that they will anticipate the ground moving beneath their feet." Captain Ceres turned towards the others once again, "Any further suggestions for Cleinz'' technique?" This time the pause was much smaller, as several students raised their hands after only a moment. Miriya''s own fur-covered hand was the fastest among them.


    "Yes, Miriya. What would you suggest for Cleinz'' improvement?"


    "Whenever you use your magic, you always bend down to touch the stone directly. Is there any way for you to avoid that? It makes your intentions obvious and gives potential opponents information about you," she said.


    "Excellent observation," Captain Ceres said, turning to Cleinz, "Stone magic can be difficult to utilize without direct contact with the stone. Do you think you can manage to do without, or perhaps come up with a different solution to keep your enemies from reading your actions?"


    Instead of sarcastic remarks or huffs as he had done up to this point, Cleinz was actually silent, seemingly deep in thought. After a moment his eyes lit up in a way that Zel hadn''t seen before.


    "Like this!" Cleinz exclaimed. Part of his stone armor elongated down his legs, stretching and coiling round until it touched the floor connecting it and Cleinz together.


    "With this, I can have direct contact with the floor without having to actually touch the floor." Cleinz exclaimed proudly.


    Ceres nodded. "An excellent solution. Perhaps it is something of a crutch, though, but it is an effective solution in the interim, and this evening is about learning."


    "Does anyone else have any suggestions," Captain Ceres asked. They spent a while critiquing Cleinz techniques and brainstorming ways that he could improve. To Zel''s surprise, Cleinz appeared a totally different person than normal. When receiving direct criticism, he would scoff or turn his head, but even when this happened he seemed to become thoughtful as he had done before, earnestly searching for a solution despite his initial reaction being to brush off anything he did not agree with.


    After Cleinz had led the way, it made the rest of the class feel a lot more relaxed. It was scary to bare weaknesses to each other, but therapeutic to come up with solutions or ideas. They began working through the class one by one and fixing their problems or coming up with unique solutions to the difficulties they were having until they got to the beautiful girl with the orange tips on her hair.


    She hopped up out of her seat and approached the dummy. Now that Zel got a good look at her, she was gorgeous. She had short hair like Zel''s own, but it was a shade lighter and elegantly woven into a braid that clung tightly to the top of her head. Her eyes seemed to glow a fluorescent turquoise, like two bright gemstones in the night. She was wearing a translucent shawl over a long white and elegant dress, the likes of which Zel had never seen. It had golden edges and was made of a silk that seemed to move as though it were flowing through the wind, even in the still underground air.


    As she walked by, Zel''s heart thumped. Hard. She covered her mouth and looked away, terrified that she had made an embarrassing face. This did not go unnoticed by Miriya, whose lips curled into a naughty grin.


    "You shut up," Zel said in a ferocious whisper.


    "I didn''t say anything at all," Miriya whispered back as they watched Rika approach the statue.


    Captain Ceres had been talking with the last student who had gone, Scoville the tall skinny Splitfolk. He had some very severe control issues with his affinity and Captain Ceres was giving him some specific feedback, just finishing up as the new student reached him. When he saw her, he seemed surprised. For a moment it looked like he didn''t recognize this person, but a moment later his normal warm smile reappeared.


    "Ah, Rika. My apologies, I had forgotten you would be in this class." His confusion banished, he continued, "I hope you wouldn''t mind giving a demonstration quickly of your own techniques?" Captain Ceres spoke to Rika differently than the other students, as if he already knew her quite well.


    Rika gave a smile and a slight nod. She held up a single hand in the air. Before the small audience, flames erupted from Rika''s fingertips, a smoldering red, the heat of which Zel could feel from where she sat. In a few short moments the flame went from formless and blazing to taking the form of a solid shape; a blade. There was something odd about the weapon. The blade was ablaze, of course, but had substance behind it. Where there should have been only flames of mana, there was instead a dark blade of blackened obsidian, red, glowing molten cracks clawed their way to the tip of the sword, where it dripped off the tip like magma out of a volcano.


    Rika took a single step forward with the sword down by her side. She lifted the blade through the air gently, as if moving in slow motion. Zel was transfixed by it, following its arc as it passed from the bottom right to the top left of the statue. Rika then brought it back down to her side as gently and slowly as ever.


    Zel found herself confused. Why had Rika moved the sword without doing anything? When she finally broke herself away from its hypnotic flames, she saw something that confused her even further. The statue was gone. There was a shimmer of superheated air that was flowing up from the floor where a puddle of melted stone was slowly spreading outward from where the statue had been.


    Zel was not the only one who was shocked. None of the students made a noise as Rika''s sword vanished from her hand in a puff of flames. Only one person in the room was unaffected by Rika''s display, Captain Ceres who was scribbling down notes patiently, waiting for his students to regain their wits. After a few more moments he chose to break the silence himself.


    "Excellent work. Does anyone have any criticism that they would like to give Rika?"

 Chapter 20: Rika

    Chapter 20: Rika


    Everybody was a little too awestruck to answer the question, but Zel could help but blurt out the first thing that was on her mind.


    "That was amazing!!!" she said, almost yelling before managing to reign herself in a little. "That was amazing! Uh, my criticism is, uh... That was probably a bit too... deadly?" she said with a nervous shrug while eyeing the freshly redesigned statue.


    The room went dead silent. For a moment Zel felt like melting into a puddle like the stone, but then the silence was broken with a laugh. A laugh that rang out with the resonance of a beautiful bell. It was Rika who was laughing, and as soon as she did, the entire class erupted with laughter. For a moment, everyone shared a moment of levity, even Cleinz was holding back a chuckle behind a grimace.


    "Thank you, I''ll keep that in mind, Zel." Her voice was as sweet as nectar and Zel felt like she could listen to Rika talk all night. Miriya was looking on with a piercing gaze and the same wry grin from earlier, but Zel didn''t notice. Captain Ceres brought her back to reality.


    "Haha, thank you Zel," He said in his normal warm tone, "being too lethal can definitely be an issue depending on your enemy. But I believe I will give Rika a pass in that category, as the test was simply to explore methods of attack. Do we have any other criticism for Rika?" None of the students responded, but no longer due to the shock of having witnessed such a display, they were now genuinely bereft of advice. When no one spoke, Captain Ceres gave his own critique.


    "Your attack was, of course, exceedingly effective." He gestured to the slowly congealing puddle on the floor before he continued. "If I were to give you a piece of advice, it would be not to waste so much mana on complex techniques unless your opponent was exceedingly strong. But if you were envisioning such an enemy, then I have no qualms." Zel was confused at the wording that Captain Ceres used. ''Complex'' didn''t exactly feel apt for what she had seen, but Rika simply nodded.


    "Thank you, Captain Ceres, I''ll try to keep it more simple in the future." She said with a smile that nearly blinded Zel before returning to her seat.


    Captain Ceres looked at the Tiltwilt flower on his desk and clapped his hands together.


    "We are out of time. So that will be all this evening. You all did excellent, it was a very productive start to the year and I hope to see such efforts from you in the future. Those of you who we did not get a chance to work with, please spend some time before tomorrow thinking about the solution to Captain Exelcia''s bubble. You are dismissed."


    The students all stood up in unison. Zel took a moment longer before she rose to leave the room. Rika was walking by and she wanted to let her out of the room first to avoid talking to her and further embarrassing herself. This was not meant to be, however. As Rika passed by and Zel made to stand up, she felt a hand press against the middle of her back. She turned her head just in time to catch a glimpse of the wicked grin on Miriya''s face as she pushed Zel with just enough force to make her stumble out of her seat, directly towards the unaware Rika.


    You bitch!


    Zel fell tumbling towards Rika and almost managed to stop herself on her tippy toes, but to no avail, as she was forced to grab onto Rika''s shoulder to avoid falling. Rika was a bit surprised by the sudden extra weight, but she latched onto Zel''s arm and held her fast. She was surprisingly strong, her grip solid and firm.


    "Are you okay, Zel?" She asked, reaching across with her free arm to give Zel more support. Zel had gotten close enough to feel Rika''s breath on her face as she talked. Unlike Zel''s own face, which had freckles under her eyes, Rika''s face was totally pristine and free of any blemish or marking. Zel found herself again mesmerized by this woman''s beauty.


    After a moment being frozen in awe, Zel realized that she had been staring too long. She let go of Rika''s shoulder quickly and righted herself, stiff as a board.


    "I-I am so sorry. I must have tripped over myself, I am such a klutz, sorry to bother you." Zel couldn''t recall the last time she had such difficulty speaking, the words felt as if they were tumbling out of her mouth at random, there was nothing she could do to stem the flow. Rika simply giggled.


    "No trouble at all. Since we''re heading out the door, why don''t we walk together for a little while." Rika suddenly frowned, "Unless you have somewhere to be, of course." Zel couldn''t answer fast enough.


    "No! N-no. Nowhere to be, at least for a little while. Let''s go!" She said with a little too much gusto, Rika seemed unphased.


    They set off into the hallway with Miriya trailing a little bit behind. Zel made a mental note to get some payback later.


    I''m going to switch out her shampoo so her fur gets itchy! She thought.


    Once they were in the hall, Rika took the lead and started asking Zel questions.


    "So, Zel. Have you been around campus much?" She asked, twirling effortlessly through the crowded passage.


    "Ah, not really. I have had the time to go visit some shops in the city, but I have not looked around the school very much yet." Zel responded, she turned away shyly, screaming at herself to act normal in her head. It wasn''t working.


    "Ooo," Rika''s eyes lit up, "Let me show you some cool places that I know about then."


    "That sounds nice. Like where?" Zel asked.


    "Follow me and you''ll find out!" Rika said with a coy grin. She led them along in relative quiet for a while, because Zel could not think of anything to say, and Rika was happily humming to herself.


    This is stupid, Zel thought. Someone I just met is going out of their way to show me around the school, and I can''t even talk to her. What is wrong with me? She''s just so pretty, UGH! Zel finally mustered up the courage to speak.


    "You were really amazing. In Captain Ceres class, I mean." She managed to say.


    "Ah, thank you! I don''t think that it was anything special, but it means a lot." Rika said without breaking stride.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    "Nothing special? It was unbelievable! I have seen a bunch of amazing people since arriving at the academy, but that was definitely the most incredible magic that I have seen yet," Zel assured her, "I cannot believe that you are only a first year like us."


    Rika stopped in her tracks and turned to look at Zel.


    "Oh, I''m not a first year. I''m a second year student of the academy." She said, with a perplexed expression. "What gave you the idea that I was a first year student?"


    Zel didn''t know how to answer at first, but this didn''t slow her down for long as her brain finally kicked into gear and took over for her pounding heart.


    "Because you were in the same class as us? I thought that only first year students were allowed to be in classes together, they do not offer mixed experience classes until you''re at least a second year student?" Zel repeated verbatim what she had learned from her sign-up sheet.


    "Well, I suppose that is true, yes," Rika responded. "I guess I just wanted to see what this year''s students were like. And see if there were anyone interesting." A phrase tumbled out of Zel''s mouth before she could stop herself.


    "Am I interesting?" She asked this with the sting of immediate regret piercing into her. However, she was surprised by Rika''s response.


    "You are very interesting." Rika said this with conviction. As though what she said were a fact that were indisputable. Zel was taken aback.


    "If you do not mind me asking... What do you find interesting about me?" She asked cautiously. "If I am totally honest, I would say that I am probably the least interesting person at this academy right now. Even my sister, who is a total weirdo, has a time affinity and really impressed the captains during the exam. I do not think that I am very interesting at all."


    Rika laughed again. Zel thought she would get used to the sound, but every laugh seemed to make her innards swell and swoon. She wasn''t sure she liked the sensation, but for some reason she didn''t want it to stop either.


    "You know, there is more to a person than their use to the academy. I find you interesting in different ways." Rika paused to consider something for a moment before speaking again. "And from what I heard from the Captains about your examination, especially your second one, you are very interesting to Dream Academy as well. Don''t sell yourself short!" She said this to Zel pointedly as though she were scolding a child. For the first time since they started talking, Zel suddenly felt comfortable.


    "Alright, alright." She held up her hands in defeat. "I''ll admit that I''m pretty awesome, as long as you do as well, Miss second year, showoff." Zel''s nervous smile had grown into a genuine one as Rika giggled once more before responding.


    "Sounds like a deal." She stopped suddenly in the hallway so that Zel almost smacked into her again before turning back towards a doorway that they had just passed. "Ah, I almost missed it, we''re here!" Zel read aloud the words on the doorway.


    "Observation deck," she said, "observing what?"


    "Come on and see." Rika grabbed Zel''s hand and pulled her into the doorway. Inside the door was a long tunnel, like the ones that led to the outside of the mountain, and indeed Zel could see a light on the far end. Rika let go of Zel''s hand but led the charge into the darkness.


    This tunnel appeared to be a storage room of sorts, there were a variety of instruments and devices in various sorts of repair that lined the hallway, but all cleared out of the central path, allowing them to pass through easily. It was at this moment that it hit Zel for the first time just how wealthy Dream Academy was. They had so many resources that they were able to leave them out in the open where anybody could find and use them, or perhaps even steal them. Based on what she saw here, Zel thought it entirely possible that they wouldn''t even know they were missing. She just managed to finish this line of thinking as they reached the end of the passageway. Drawn out into the light with Rika pulling her along, Zel couldn''t help but gasp at what she saw.


    They were standing on a small platform at the edge of the sheer cliff face of the mountain, the entirety of Dream Squall laid out before them. Zel could clearly see the districted layers of the mountain, buildings, lights, people sparkling and flowing like a river that wrapped its way all round them, far below. Above the moon was shining down, omnipresent and ever gentle light intermingled with the sparkly lights from the city, creating an eerie glowing aura of light that met somewhere in the middle. Zel had never seen anything like it before.


    "Wow, it''s unbelieveable!" Zel exclaimed, she leaned on the railing and took a deep breath of the outside air.


    "Very pretty, isn''t it? It''s much more bright than my home, though the city that I am from is every bit as busy as Dream Squall." Rika said.


    "I''m from a tiny town on the railroad track. You can hardly even see the lights while you''re standing right next to them inside the town!" Zel said with a laugh, "But this is amazing! I''ve never seen anything like this!" Zel took it all in for a moment longer before a thought hit her.


    "But where is home, for you I mean?" Zel turned to look at Rika, but she quickly reversed course. Somehow the light outside made her seem even more beautiful than she had already seemed. "If you do not mind me asking, that is," she finished nervously.


    To Zel''s dismay, Rika let out a sigh. She was looking over the railing as Zel was, but seemed suddenly downcast.


    "Oh, I am sorry. Forget I asked," Zel said quietly.


    ''No, no it''s alright." Rika said with a sigh, "I just miss it, you know? ...I''ll tell you about it sometime, but for now, why don''t we head back? You probably have another class coming up soon, right?" Zel wanted to say something, but she simply nodded and they walked back down the long hallway to the main spiral of campus. Once they reached the doorway at the end, Rika put her hand on the knob before stopping and sighing once again.


    "Zel, I''m sorry for grabbing you like this. You don''t know me, I''m not in your class. It was selfish of me to take up so much of your time on your first day of classes. But thank you for coming with me regardless of my selfishness."


    "I''ll be honest with you, Rika." Zel''s voice was firm and steady for the first time in a while. "I don''t know why you would want to talk to me. But I am sure glad that you did. And I hope that you will again soon."


    Rika froze, her icy-cool features did not betray any particular emotion as she turned to push open the doorway.


    "Thanks, Zel. I''ll talk to you later." Rika said with a smile before departing as quickly as their little walk had began.


    Zel waved as Rika left. She took a big breath and let out a bigger sigh, which ended up being unfortunate as she had the rest of the wind knocked out of her as a furry sister-figure, coming from seemingly nowhere, headbutted her stomach.


    "There''s my smooth sis! How did it go? Did you kiss? Did you tell her you love her? I''ve never seen you like that before, Zel, I couldn''t believe it! You were totally smitten! I didn''t even know that you liked girls! So, Rika... is she nice? Does she like you back? When are you going on another date? Do you need me to come with? I can go find a shop that you two can visit! Oh what to do what to do!" Miriya''s never ending onslaught of questions slammed into Zel like a moving train, each question one of its seemingly endless cars. She didn''t know which question to answer first and eventually after stuttering like a fool trying to get a word in, she instead decided to answer everything that was on her mind instead


    "We just talked, Miriya. You heard from our class, her name is Rika. She''s a second year student, and for some reason she wanted to talk to me. That''s all that happened." Miriya looked a bit disappointed that nothing more happened, but she quickly recovered and returned to her questions, instead asking one at a time, since Zel clearly couldn''t handle the bombardment.


    "You like her?" She asked simply and concisely. Zel didn''t think Miriya could have overwhelmed her more than she already had, but her sister found a way.


    "...shut up." Zel said, turning her head away from Miriya to more appropriately pout.


    Miriya''s own face lit up into a glowing smile and she asked Zel a follow up question.


    "Does this mean that you''ll forgive me for giving you a little push?"


    Zel pondered for a moment. Part of her still wanted to swap out Miriya''s shampoo for the sheer audacity of the crime she had committed. Instead, Zel simply held out her arms, Miriya dove into them and gave Zel a mighty hug.