《Yokai Academy》 Prologue + Chapter 1 Prologue: ¡°And you are sure my son is going to be alright?¡± the man asked, pacing back and forth in the luxuriously decorated room. ¡°I assure you that everything has been taken care of, only a select few members here know and I am one of them. Nothing is going to happen to him.¡± The other said with a reassuring smile. He could understand this father¡¯s worry for his child but it was after all unnecessary. ¡°Good, I will take you by your word. You should be well aware of the consequences should he come to harm. We have helped you in recent years to reveal yourself to the public but don¡¯t think I forget how it was in the old times. I do not wish for war but should this little experiment fail with how the humans see you now it could escalate quite quickly.¡± Looking in the father¡¯s eyes the man could see a dangerous glint that promised death and suffering. It was no surprise that he believed his words. Who wouldn¡¯t after knowing who this worried father really was? Sighing deeply the man turned and looked out of the window behind him. It was autumn, even though the signs hadn¡¯t shown themselves here yet it was after all only a matter of time. Was this a blessing or a curse that after so many years it all depended on a single boy that couldn¡¯t even fathom the scale of things happening around him? Closing his eyes for a short moment and taking a deep breath the man once again turned around, looking the other straight in the eye. ¡°I promise you that this will work. It is a good shot and a way to quiet down the voices that keep asking for me to step down. You know I am a very old being, much older than others and have been against the reveal for a long time now but after seeing the smiles of our children as they no longer have to hide and instead gained the opportunity to mingle with their kind and others, how could I have the heart to send them back into darkness? How could I steal away what little light they have inside of them? This is going to work but only if we don¡¯t tell him or others. Your son needs to find it inside of himself to look past the exterior flesh and see what is inside, notice what really counts. If, and I say if we succeed then we might have a way out of this mess after all.¡± Listening to his words the father turned and left the room without another word. Anxiety and worry were still visible on his face but he swallowed those feelings as he exited the building. Once again looking out of the window the other¡¯s eyes followed the lone back that was now slowly disappearing into the distance before finally vanishing in a blinding light as if he had never existed in the first place. Chapter 1: The beginning of the 21st century on December 17th marked the day of a new Era. Yokai, a name given by humans to an abundant number of different species, monsters and fabled beasts, believed to only exist in myths made the first official contact with humans and revealed themselves to the world. The public only heard about this event roughly 30 years later during which many debates and congresses had been held between the two factions of humans and Yokais to ensure safety for both kinds. Human rights were extended towards other sentient beings, treaties were signed, hands shaken and the world seemed to suddenly turn into a much bigger place where dragons, vampires and witches freely strolled around. Naturally there was resistance to those treaties on both human and Yokai sides as not everyone was a fan of the turn of events. Things really started going out of control when young Yokai children attended public schools, as the level of harassment and bullying they had to endure was nearly unheard of which once again sparked many debates and conflicts. Both sides had a point and considering that younger Yokai did indeed carry a certain amount of risk with them as their powers and bodies were nowhere near as stable as adult ones it was thus decided to separate both of the younger generations once again while a new school was being built, this time only for Yokai. There they would learn to control their bodies and powers until graduation at which point they could join human society in the workforce and live a normal life, without the need to hide. Sure, things were not perfect as even adult Yokais had to endure a certain level of harassment but it was an acceptable level as most adult humans had the wisdom to not kick a sleeping dragon. Nearly all Yokais were after all many times stronger than a normal human being so who would be stupid enough to enrage such a ¡®monster¡¯? The school was built in a secret location after many public threats of human extremists in fear of terror attacks and would officially open its doors for the first time to only Yokai; this is also where our story and the journey of a certain 15 year old boy shall begin. ----- Ze was not having the best of mornings. He was woken up by blinding sunlight that hurt his eyes and somehow made it past his closed blinds, his dog had decided to use the new shoes he bought as an experimental toilet and the entire apartment was as cold as a freezer because his job-hunting father had forgotten to pay a few bills again. Did all of this really have to happen on his first day attending a new school? Tiptoeing on the cold floor of his room he grabbed some clothes and made his way to the kitchen where it was always warm thanks to their neighbors that lived above and below them. While getting dressed and throwing his old boxers and shirt that he had slept in on the floor, Ze noticed a note that was left on the table which would explain why he hadn¡¯t even seen a pinky of his father yet. After putting on a dark shirt and black hoodie he picked up the note with a bad feeling and started reading. ''Morning Zeke! Hope you slept well as it is your big day today. Don¡¯t wet your pants big boy just because it is a new school and you don¡¯t know anyone there, it¡¯s going to be alright! Milk is in the fridge and we should still have some leftover cereal somewhere, just look around for it. I got a job interview in about 15 minutes so I have no time to drive you there, just take the school-bus at the corner of Meddlingtonstreet, if I remember correctly it arrives there at 7:50 so you might want to leave early. Your School Uniform is in my room, don¡¯t forget about it. PS: I left the feces in your shoes on purpose, do you see now why I hate dogs?'' ¡°Charming as always Dad¡± Ze mumbled after he finished reading it and was about to throw the piece of paper away when his hands suddenly stopped. 7:50? Quickly grabbing his phone that was on the table he checked the time and knew now what this bad premonition he had was. It was 7:47. He wasn¡¯t dressed in his new uniform yet, still hadn¡¯t cleaned away the dog poop while also being without any meal and walking to Meddlingtonstreet was about 8 minutes away on foot. Mumbling curses under his breath Ze quickly sprinted into his room while jumping over the stain his dog left behind and grabbed a pair of old and worn skate shoes, sliding down the hallway he picked up the uniform in his father¡¯s room and stuffed it into and old backpack that he swung around his shoulder. He hurriedly put his keys, some money and his phone into the side pocket of his hoodie and charged out of the door before coming to an abrupt stop. Rain was bombarding his face the moment he left the apartment and he could clearly see lighting striking through the distant sky. Looking over his shoulder he noticed that the only umbrella they possessed was missing, his father probably took it to his interview. ¡°Today really isn¡¯t my day is it?¡± Ze asked himself aloud with a dejected sigh while pulling the hood he had over his head and deep into his face as to protect it from the weather so that he could at least partially see what was going on before his eyes. With a slam the door fell shut and he practically jumped down the flight of stairs leading into the packed streets. ¡­ Mary tried her best to look confident as she stared into the mirror opposite of her. She had nearly spent an hour now and still wasn¡¯t satisfied. Her black hair was braided into twin-tails and she had put on some make-up to help sharpen up her cheekbones as well as to get rid of the hint of shadow beneath her eyes. Thankfully she wasn¡¯t as nervous as she had been last night but it still made it hard for her to be confident in her outer appearance; it was after all her first day at Yokai Academy. Mary didn¡¯t want others to mock or make fun of her, never would she let that happen again which was why she had spent so much time to look as pretty as she could and to give herself some dearly needed confidence which she didn¡¯t really have much to begin with. All she wanted was to be accepted and not feel¡­ like she had before. Clenching her fists, a trace of moisture appeared in the corner of her eyes which she quickly blinked away while taking another deep breath. It was going to be alright. They would be just like her, Yokai and not human. After brushing her teeth nervously for the fifth time she glanced at the clock on her wall and knew it was time to finally make the first step in her new life. Mary quickly grabbed her bag, said bye to her parents and then left her home with an umbrella in her hand to battle the storm that was going on outside. She was more than a little displeased about this weather as it was less than excellent for her appearance which she had tried to perfect for a long time now but there was no helping it after all so she had to live with it. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. 15 minutes later she stood beside a few dozen other teenagers her age with the same uniform that she was wearing under a bus-stop. It was an understatement to say that she was a little excited seeing all these different boys and girls around her age chatting, knowing that she was just like them. Mary had not met many Yokai except her parents; they were after all less common than humans, especially when one took all the different races that existed with them into consideration. It was even hard to meet two Yokais from the same type in a city if they lived alone and without family. Unable to just strike up a random conversation she decided to instead listen in on some of the chit chat, maybe she could join them that way. A tall, brown haired girl with slight rabbit teeth was currently telling a story to the few people around her so no one really noticed that Mary had sneakily joined their ranks. ¡°And this foxboy just straight up tells me that he wants to be with me and I look at him and tell him ¡®Do I look like a bitch in heat? I mean think about, what if we had kids? How would that look with a foxboy like you considering that I am a Beaver type Beast-man!¡¯¡± The boys and girls around her instantly broke out into loud laughter, only Mary couldn¡¯t bring herself to laugh. Didn¡¯t the guy in her story just want to be with her? Was there really a need to tell him off like that or even discriminate against other Yokai? These kinds of thoughts floated inside her head for a while and she had no idea what was so funny about it, in the end it only showed the terrible character that this brown haired girl seemed to have. With a deep sigh she turned away from the group dejectedly. Those were the type of Yokais she had hoped not to see in her new school, the kind that would only find joy in bringing others misery or by mocking them. Mary was about to look for another group that she could try to join before she stopped moving as a low rumbling sound reached her ears, maybe it was instinct garnered from her true form but upon hearing this noise she stopped dead in her tracks and looked towards the direction it came from. Because of the heavy rain it was hard to make out any people or even the streets around them but she could clearly hear a rumble that shook her tender heart coming from her left. The sound was getting louder and louder in her ears, somewhat drowning out even the rain around her while more and more dread started to fill her heart. A dark figure had appeared in the distance and it was sprinting directly towards her while the sound kept getting louder. Her legs trembled slightly as she took a step back, never before had she felt like this as absolute fear filled her entire being, the terror nearly breaking her heart in two. Her instincts were screaming at her to run, run far away and to never look back. She had no idea why exactly that was the case but the stronger it got the more her legs trembled and even if she wanted to run away it would be impossible at this point. The dark figure was sprinting full throttle towards her in the rain, other people around had noticed it too and the same fearful look started appearing on their faces just like on Mary¡¯s as they made way or jumped to the side so they wouldn¡¯t get in the way of this madman. Now that he was closer she was able to see the figure a lot better but that didn¡¯t really help her as nearly his entire face was blocked by the black hoodie he was wearing. All she could see was his chin, mouth and the tip of his nose and that was it. He seemed to be drenched from head to toe which was no surprise if one took the current weather into consideration. Before Mary could examine the figure any more she was finally able to make out what the sound was that had given her so much dread and it turned out to originate from his throat, a seemingly otherworldly growl that sent shiver after shiver down her spine. Only now did she realize that the person before her was still mid-sprint and only 20 feet away from her. She didn¡¯t have the time to avoid him nor did she have the time to scream for help before his body arrived right before her eyes and the growl that resonated from his throat being the only thing she heard. He had stopped not even 5 inches away from her. Her heart was beating so fast that it seemed to be willing to leave her body as waves of fear and terror washed over her. Not daring to even look up in his face she just blankly stared at the chest before her. Mary could see it slowly moving with the rhythm of breathing as she waited for it to happen, for anything to happen. The fear she currently felt was hard to explain to an outsider but the people around her knew it all too well. If you saw a person sprint towards you at breakneck speed while letting out a deep growl that seemed to come from the pits of hell itself, who wouldn¡¯t be scared to death? Mary waited for quite some time and only after nearly a full minute during which she could feel his stare did he finally walk away from her and stood off to the side, seemingly waiting for another bus. She felt as if a heavy weight had been lifted from her heart as her eyes nearly teared up from joy. Nothing happened, he didn¡¯t do anything to me. That was the only thing she could think of as she glanced at the dark figure next to her standing in the rain. ¡­ Ze was running like his life depended on it and his haggard breathing quickly turned into a growl as he was constantly sucking in air between his teeth and letting it out again. His entire body was already in pain as he ran around another corner and jumped between two people to get through, his vision somewhat impeded by the hood but it was still better than the raindrops nearly making him blind. After only two minutes he arrived at the bus-stop and saw quite a lot of people dressed in the same uniform that was in his backpack. Ze knew that he had made it in time and he couldn¡¯t help but let out a satisfied noise that also turned into a growl as he was just too exhausted to make any other noise and couldn¡¯t be bothered to form words, that would require quite some effort in his current condition. After stopping he closed his eyes for a while as he tried to regulate his breathing so that he wouldn¡¯t keep making growling sounds and it thankfully didn¡¯t take long, most of the time he stood there was actually spent on resting his tired legs so that he would be able to walk normally again while ignoring the muscle pain that was shooting through him. It probably didn¡¯t really help much that he hadn¡¯t worked out in ages but judging by how exhausted he felt this sure as hell could count as one hell of a death-race workout. As he opened his eyes he noticed the top of a head at the bottom of his vision and looked down, to his surprise he could see a black haired girl with twin tails only inches away from him, seemingly frozen in terror. It didn¡¯t take long for him to combine two and two. Turned out he hadn¡¯t noticed her standing there and nearly ran into her full force but the shock of the possible accident alone had apparently filled her with utter terror, which was at least what her face showed right now. Feeling sorry and slightly embarrassed, Ze quickly made some space and decided to just wait for the bus for now and apologize in private to her later, after all they would be going to the same school. He did find it a bit weird that no one was talking around him and he couldn¡¯t help feeling as if he was being stared at but was it really so unusual to see someone running to catch a bus? Thankfully it didn¡¯t take long before a retro school bus that was painted in a blinding yellow stopped before them and opened its doors. He could see how many people from his new school threw a few glances his way before hurriedly turning their heads and entering the vehicle. Sighing mentally he shook his head. It seemed like he had made some kind of impression on them even though he had no idea what it was that made them look away like that. Deciding not to think about it for now he waited for them all to enter before he, as the last one stepped onto the bus. Ze could hear countless conversations suddenly buzzing to life as murmurs reached his ears as he finally climbed the few steps up and stood between countless seats and before the nearly 100 students. All eyes seemed to land on him at the same time and the before lively conversations instantly died down. Now he at least knew what kind of impression he had made. ----- Hey Author here, hope you liked this little taste of what is to come and if you are here from Azalon, nice to see you and thanks guys :) As mentioned in the description of this story I am trying out a new style that you might have noticed in this chapter by switching POV quite frequently and building up different viewpoints of certain situations so that the reader is able to understand why certain characters react a certain way (poor clueless MC XD) The main focus will naturally always be with our main man Ze and I won''t do this all the time but it is still key in this story and I hope you will enjoy what I am doing with it. Now for those of you who are bored, here is a random YT link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wn0COZV0snM Enjoy and cya guys! Chapter 2 Here it is, Chapter 2. I am well aware that some people seem to be under the impression that I should apologize to the maker of Rosario + Vampire but lets be real here people, Zhan Long is like totally a copy of LMS and should also totally apologize (sarcasm if you didn''t notice). There is quite a few Original stories about VR out there, my Azalon being one of them and also inspired by LMS but in no way did I ever try to copy someone elses work. Just because I use the term ''Yokai'' instead of ''Monster'' or ''Creatures'' and also included a school in it doesn''t mean that I will go even slightly in the direction that Rosario + vampire did *sigh* I really wish people would stop judging so very fast but it is the internet after all so what can one expect. I used this beginning as an omage to Rosario + Vampire and that is why it is so similar, not because I just couldn''t be bothered to do otherwise or my writing sucks. It was out of respect and love for both the Anime and Manga that I started it this way, the idea itself actually started completely different and was not really inspired by it at all, believe it or not. Now here is the next chapter and sorry about that little rant but I felt like I had to get that out there (even though no one is probably going to read this anyways) so yeah... ----- Chapter 2 Relief surged through her as she entered the bus. Mary knew that it was finally over and now that she was away from him it puzzled her a bit why exactly she had felt so afraid. Sitting down on a free seat she stared absentmindedly outside the window and watched the endless rain as chatter and discussions exploded around her and she could clearly hear the others speculating as to who exactly the stranger at the bus stop had been. Mary didn''t really care who he was, she was just glad to be away from him and that she wouldn''t see the guy ever again. As to why she was so afraid... her only guess was that the trauma she lived through with the humans had struck her harder than she was willing to admit and she had been so afraid of him because she felt that he was one of them which only made sense, after all this was a rather normal bus-stop with one exception and that was this bus that stopped here too. Deep in thought it took her a few seconds to notice the silence and when she did her gaze followed the others around her to the front of the vehicle. Mary''s heart nearly stopped when she saw him standing there, looking directly at her. It couldn''t be... that he was chasing her right? Quickly throwing away this absurd thought, the only other conclusion she came to judging by the uncaring bus driver was that he was just like her... a new student at Yokai Academy. Feeling her limbs and expression go stiff she watched the hood turn from one side to the other, seemingly looking for something. He was coming closer with every step as she closed her eyes and turned her head, hoping, praying that it wasn''t her he was looking for her. Mary''s heightened senses picked up every single movement of his body, the smell that was so very familiar, bringing back many bad memories. What kind of Yokai smelled exactly like a human? Had he mingled with them for such a long time that even his skin was now giving off the stench or was he simply masking his odor so others wouldn''t be able to identify him? Those were the kind of thoughts that shot through her mind as he came closer with every step. She could see the same confused and terrified expression on a few others around her, she apparently wasn''t the only one that noticed something was off with this new student that had entered their midst. With closed eyes and baited breath she waited for him to go past her, hoping that all of this was some kind of misunderstanding. The silence in the bus was only occasionally broken by the slow and steady steps of the hooded guy while his head unceasingly turned from right to left and even though no one could see his face they all felt his stare that sent shivers down their spines. Finally noticing that something was wrong the bus driver turned his head and for the first time took notice of this new arrival with a puzzled look. When his foot came down next to her seat it sounded like a thunderbolt striking a tree to her ears. The complete silence that followed was nearly deafening and Mary for the first time realized that he had stopped and wasn''t moving anymore. With yet another surge of fear she slowly opened her eyes and while trying her best to calm down her trembling hands turned her head, only to stare directly into the darkness of his hood without being able to make out anything except for his chin and mouth. Mary''s body stiffened as if she was a lamb standing in front of a lion. He really had been looking for her... This one realization nearly brought her to tears and she tried her best not to let it show in her eyes. Why couldn''t he just leave her alone?! ¡­.. Ze took his time to look for a seat but he didn''t have much luck as the entire bus was nearly completely full and the only free one seemed to be next to that girl he nearly ran over. Not wanting to make things awkward he tried his hardest to maybe spot another place to sit down but by the time he arrived next to hers he was completely sure that there really was no other option and with a mental sigh stared at her for a second before she turned her head and looked towards him too. The fear that he could see inside those hazelnut brown eyes surprised him more than a little and he couldn''t help but wonder if it really was only this small incident that scared her that much or if it was something else entirely. When he saw that she was even close to crying he couldn''t help but feel even worse as he sat down next to her and tried his best to stay as still as possible so he hopefully wouldn''t scare her anymore. It was also at this point that he noticed that every single person inside the vehicle was staring at him, including the bus driver. This time Ze really couldn''t help but wonder if it was because he wasn''t wearing his school uniform like all the others, but why then did they have the same fearful expression on their faces? Since arriving at the bus stop not much had made sense to him and it only got more confusing as time went on. Was he really that frightening to look at? The bus driver was the first one to come back to reality as he had been somewhat lost in thought and turned his head back to the street before finally starting up the engine. Followed by a roar the yellow school bus came to life and nearly jumped on the road. Ignoring the stares he was still getting, Ze turned his head to the right and watched the familiar buildings and streets of New Jersey zooming past in the heavy rain. The dark clouds in the sky were nearly completely blocking out the morning sun so it was still quite dark outside but people going about their business could be seen everywhere. The traffic wasn''t really that bad today and after only 15 minutes of quiet travel could they all hear the driver''s voice through the speakers at the front and back of the bus. "Alright everyone, we are not that far away from the gate anymore and I know you have a lot of questions but they will all be answered when we arrive. I would like to take this time to congratulate you all and formally welcome you into Yokai Academy!" Ze''s mind nearly went blank after hearing those words that he didn''t... couldn''t believe. He still remembered his father telling him about this opportunity to attend a new school after dropping out of his old one. It would apparently officially open its doors for the first time this semester so it was the perfect opportunity for Ze to join and make some new friends as no cliques or groups had been formed yet. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Most of the information concerning this school had been a mystery to his dad but it couldn''t be that he admitted him to Yokai academy... right? The bus driver was still saying a few more things but lost in thought he didn''t pay it any mind as a frightening realization struck him. If this really was the bus to Yokai Academy, didn''t that mean that all the other students around him were Yokai too? Real fear for the first time in a while gripped his insides and his heart rate increased. Ze was well informed by the news as to how dangerous young Yokai that couldn''t control their form or powers were, which was the exact reason they had built this school. To teach young Yokai how to not go berserk or accidentally kill human beings. It was probably safer to be locked in a cage with 10 Tigers than attending this school as a human being. After all there was countless young Yokai that absolutely detested humans because of the bullying they had to endure before so they probably wouldn''t mind venting some of that built up anger on a single, unsuspecting human. Ze knew his Dad very well and could only guess that his acceptance into Yokai Academy had been some kind of misunderstanding or mistake, which parent wanted to send their own kid to an early grave after all? Calming down his thoughts he started to go about this logically as the bus went around a narrow corner. Couldn''t he just go to a teacher or the principal when he arrived and explain the situation? I mean surely they wouldn''t want a human attending their Academy after making such a great effort to create it only for Yokais. But then Ze remembered a little detail that made him shiver in fright and he abandoned the idea. They had spent an incredible amount of effort and time as far as he knew to create this school and make it safe for Yokai which meant that they had to build it at a secret location so that human extremists wouldn''t just blow it up and kill hundreds of young Yokai. Didn''t that mean that they would rather kill one single human than possibly endanger their entire future generation by letting him walk away from this? Only knowing Yokai as rather bloodthirsty and cruel from the media, although he didn''t believe it all, he also couldn''t deny some of the evidence that showed that they sometimes acted quite radical. Feeling powerless and without any other idea to get out of this mess he couldn''t help but look ahead only to watch a shocking scene. Unbeknownst to him the bus had entered a small and narrow alley at some point and time and was rushing towards a solid concrete wall that was only 15 feet or so away at the moment. Feeling his pupils contract to the size of pinheads Ze didn''t even have the time to scream before the bumper and wall made contact. His entire body instinctively went rigid to brace himself for an impact that didn''t come. Instead a rather peculiar sight unfolded before him as the entire bus turned transparent like glass and he could see his surroundings better. It was difficult to describe what he saw but if he had to use one word then it would probably be ''phantasmal''. Shimmering in all colors of the rainbow like a a puddle of oil in the sun, clouds of ever changing forms and colors surged above, beneath him and to his right and left. He knew that he was no longer on earth as this was a sight that was simply impossible to even imagine there. Glancing around he could see the faint shapes and contours of the bus he was still sitting in. The only thing that was still crystal clear and just like before were the other people around him that seemed to show the same sense of awe and wonder that he was currently experiencing on their faces. One thing he did notice was that everyone else around him had a red line, similar to a seatbelt around their waste that seemed to be the only inanimate and solid object except for the clothes on their bodies that didn''t turn transparent. The only one who did not have this seatbelt on was Ze himself as even the bus driver had it. Unsure as to what use it really had his gaze once again wandered to the intangible surroundings that they all seemed to quietly float through. This was also around the same time that he noticed the complete absence of sound and it was somewhat irritating and uncomfortable for him. He could see the mouths of others moving around him but heard absolutley nothing, only after noticing that some people were actually having a conversation did a frightening realization strike him like a bolt of lightning. Ze himself was the only one that couldn''t hear anything. With a furrowed brow he rubbed against his ear with one hand, only to experience something akin to an electric shock and with it returned the noise. "Isn''t this just amazing? I heard the principle himself used his powers to create this tunnel through the void and even created a small place, solely for the Academy." "Yeah I heard the same, those humans think they can track us down but I can only wish them good luck. It will take them centuries at least to figure out interdimensional travel with their technology as our Magic has its own rules and can even bend certain laws of the universe." "Look at that one it looks just like an elephant with wings, or that one, a centaur with two heads." "I don''t think I will ever forget this sight in my whole life. "So what do you plan to do first? Look for babes or train your powers?" Countless voices bombarded his ears and it somewhat hurt after having nothing but absolute silence for a good while. It was difficult for him to categorize who exactly spoke as they seemed to come from everywhere at the same time, it was like he had ears next to every single mouth that had a voice and it gave Ze a terrible headache. He tried his best to block it all out but it was like trying to drink from a cup without a bottom, a physical impossibility. The headache started to get worse and he instead tried to concentrate on something else as he docused on his hands. They seemed oddly white and he could swear that he was able to see the different colors from his surroundings beneath his skin. There was a clear difference to his condition and the solid form that the people around him had. Completely fascinated by this phenomenon he flexed and moved his right arm around but it felt just like before, there didn''t seem to be any difference. Still entranced he didn''t noticed the look that the girl with the twintails beside him was giving him as he played around with his fingers. Suddenly another jolt of electricity shot through him like before and his fingers started to disintegrate into particles of different colors, similar to the surrounding clouds. Ze strangely enough didn''t panic as he watched first his skin and then flesh dissipate in a cloud of particles that was floating around him and even the skeletal right hand he now possessed started to do the same. He could still feel his right arm just like before and tried flexing it, to his delight the cloud around him started to rush to the spot where his hand used to be and formed a translucent and colorful version of the previous original. His mind was growing hazy as a smile formed on his lips before a shrill scream next to him made him flinch in pain and brought the attention of the other passengers sitting in the bus towards him. ----- Alright, hope you enjoyed it and if you have any questions just comment below, I will try my best to answer them. [th_113_.gif] Should you find any spelling mistakes please do tell and I wish you all a good day/night! Abbadon out! Chapter 3 Sorry this chapter is a bit late, I was at my dad''s this weekend as I hadn''t seen him in a while and he currently doesn''t have internet so I wasn''t able to finish or post this. Hope you all enjoy it nevertheless! ----- Chapter 3: Mary didn''t know what sin she had committed that the world would just play one cruel joke after the other on her. He was sitting right next to her and it was clear now that he was a Yokai just like her but she still couldn''t make sense of the baseless fear she felt just by being near him. It was like his presence alone spelled terror and doom for her. Trying her best to keep the shaking of her hands under control she stared outside through the window to her left and watched the world fly by, not daring to even glance his way. It was a relief for her that he never talked or tried anything else so after a few minutes she was able to calm down and suppress the fear while occasionally giving him a look out of the corner of her eye. Even though he was quite frightening she felt a bit curious as to what kind of face hid beneath that deep hood. Mary couldn''t help but have a little girly moment as she wondered if he would be handsome or not before shaking her head mentally as it didn''t really matter at all to her and he wasn''t someone she would like to associate in any way to begin with. The silence in the bus was stifling as not a single person dared to speak after he had entered the bus. Just from that it was clear that not only she felt an unknown fear towards this rather mysterious classmate. Could it be that he was a Yokai that had powers that were linked with illusion or mind manipulation? It was said that those people had quite a frightening aura and her father had warned her many times to stay away from Yokai like that as they could even make others fall in love with them and use them in various ways. Still deep in thought a voice over the speakers and presumably the bus driver making an announcement allowed her mind to return to reality. "Alright everyone, we are not that far away from the gate anymore and I know you have a lot of questions but they will all be answered when we arrive. I would like to take this time to congratulate you all and formally welcome you into Yokai Academy! I would also like you all to put on your seatbelts please as the transfer is quite difficult and dangerous otherwise. They will help you keep your cellular structure easier as this kind of passing through is something quite tricky without them." Listening to the rather casual way he had said that, Mary felt a cold shiver running down her back. Didn''t that practically mean that they could die if they didn''t put the seatbelts on? Not daring to take any chances, Mary immediately grabbed beside her left side and made sure to fix the belt around her hip tightly. She felt quite nervous not knowing what would happen and couldn''t help but glance around, only to notice something that worried her. He hadn''t put on the seatbelt like all the others inside the bus and instead just sat there unmoving. It couldn''t be that he wanted to act cool and not put on the seatbelt right? No one was that stupid, or at least she hoped so. Hesitating for a few minutes as she just didn''t have it inside her to ask him why, Mary in the end decided to keep quiet and tried to forget about it. It wasn''t her fault in the end if he got hurt as they had all clearly been warned. Trying to convince herself with this reasoning while ignoring the guilt deep in her intestines she stoically looked ahead. Soon enough the voice of the bus driver echoed inside the bus once again. "Alright everyone, prepare for the transfer!" She could clearly see the concrete wall of a dead-end rushing towards them in the windshield of the bus and gripped the sides of her school uniform tightly as the front of the vehicle connected with the wall. In but a moment they were through and she let go of her clothes, her mouth wide open in awe. No matter which window she looked through they showed the same surreal scene of whirling and ever changing clouds. They shined in all colors of the rainbow and seemed to stretch endlessly into nothingness, the only thing convincing her that this wasn''t just a dream was the very real interior of the bus as well as the presence of her future class and schoolmates. It took her a while to take it all in before she once again remembered that he was sitting beside her and was also the only one not wearing a seatbelt. Somewhat worried that her staying quiet could have harmed the guy she looked to her left only to be shocked speechless. He still sat there as still as a statue but unlike before his body seemed to be somewhat faded at the edges and even slightly translucent with random colors appearing and disappearing inside of him, similar to how the colorful clouds outside the bus behaved. Her mind went blank and she couldn''t even alert anybody else of this anomaly as no air entered her lungs. Unable to look away she watched him stare at his own hands. Absolute terror filled her being as she saw his right hand slowly disappearing, first the skin, then the muscles and flesh and last but not least the bone too . Seeing up close how each and every layer of a hand gruesomely disintegrated in a cloud of particles she no longer could help it as she screamed her lungs out so that someone would wake her from this dreadful nightmare. Her mind escaped the situation and only a single thought was present in her skull. This is my fault! This is my fault! THIS IS MY FAULT! ¡­.. Charlie couldn''t help but still feel a little bit of awe for the things around him even though he had seen it many times. As one of the bus drivers of the school he had quite a lot of experience and also saw many things in his life but not much could compare with this bizarre place that they were floating through until they would gradually be pulled towards the Academy. He really admired the principle as he had been the one creating a school in this void. Needless to say it took a lot of courage for such a bold idea to pass in the minds of ordinary Yokai but he had achieved exactly that. Not only was he strong beyond believe but he never abused his powers to bully those weaker than others and treated all Yokai equally so Charlie''s admiration was understandable. Still deep in thought a sudden ear shattering scream behind him nearly made him jump out of his seat. Quite alarmed he looked back. One of the new students had become slightly translucent and showed the same color variety of the clouds outside. It didn''t take long for him to connect the dots but he didn''t dare believe it at first. Because if he did, it meant that he was quite literally bringing a monster to the Academy. After about 2 seconds he hurriedly stood up and rushed to the middle of the bus. Charlie didn''t really have to worry that they would crash into something as they were floating in an empty void to begin with and the process was automatic each time. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Finally arriving next to the boy he watched part of his leg dissipate in a cloud of particles before once again restructuring itself, looking less real and more dreamlike afterwards. With a shudder he didn''t dare waste time and quickly put the matter solidifying seatbelt around his waist. Right away the boy''s body returned to a solid form and Charlie this time turned to calm down the still screaming girl right next to him. He could feel the eyes of nearly all students resting on him as he managed to finally stop her from screaming her lungs out. Wiping some sweat from his forehead he once again looked towards the boy that was now wearing his seatbelt with an inner shudder. "I only ever heard of monstrously strong Yokai being able to safely stay in this place without a seatbelt, that a new student is able to do the same is... something else for sure." Charlie whispered, more to himself than anyone else but in the complete silence his words easily reached the ears of others. Giving the non responsive hood another look he turned around while ignoring the waves of fear that still emanated towards him from the boy''s body. He would have to be mentally handicapped to not realize what this boy really was at this point. ¡­.. The moment he wore the seatbelt his mind cleared up and the bus returned to being solid. With a somewhat bewildered look he examined his own hands and then glanced at the shocked bus driver. His mind was finally back to reality and a cold shudder ran through his bones as he realized what really just happened. Ze had been moments from disintegrating into nothingness and only this seatbelt was what saved his life. Completely in a daze he didn''t even notice that the bus driver once again left and only after feeling a tug on his left arm did his mind return to reality. "A-Are you alright?" It took him a moment to take in the whole picture as he looked at the girl that was sitting next to him. Her twin tails and hair were messy, a clear stream of tears still ran down her cheeks and together with the fearful as well as concerned look on her face it made for a scene he had never seen before. Pausing for a moment he nodded his head and couldn''t help but have a strange feeling in his stomach when he saw the smile of relief that she showed him. Ze knew she was a Yokai, he knew that he was not like any of the others on this bus but the way she had just looked at him... wasn''t like how he had expected these ''monsters'' to be. Unsure what to say the girl stayed silent while still looking at him, seemingly in thought. Not really in the mood to start up a conversation at the moment as he was still insecure about his current situation and had to get his mind back in order after the shock he just received, Ze remained silent too. Another five minutes of floating in the vast, colorful emptiness later a shaking went through the entire vehicle before they passed through a transparent barrier and a new sight surrounded them. They were driving on a dirt road with deep green grassy hills on both sides. Trees sprinkled the surroundings and it wasn''t far off to calling this the entrance of a forest. Bright rays of sunlight broke through the cluster of branches above them, giving everything a rather mysterious atmosphere. They continued to drive for a few more minutes before a clearing appeared in the trees and the road grew wider. Together with the voice of the bus driver that was resounding through the speakers they finally saw it. "Once again I welcome you to Vandech Academy or simply called, Yokai Academy!" They passed an open metal gate with gigantic stone statues of all kinds of mythical creatures filling up the top of the stone wall that seemed to stretch out infinitely far. Somewhat similar to a Manor the main building had about 4 floors and was quite a big structure. Ze was able to see multiple other wooden as well as stone buildings off In the distance together with a track for short distance running and a barren field with two metal goals similar to the ones you see in football but there was a big difference as the entire field was not flat but filled with all kinds of obstacles like stone towers or walls that gave off the feeling of a maze. Multiple busses were already lined up at the entrance of the main building and a flood of students stood outside, waiting for their turn to enter. Seeing so many of them, all with different ages, skin and hair colors as well as features, Ze couldn''t help but nervously swallow. They looked human enough but he wasn''t going to escape reality again and pretend that he was clueless. It was clear to him now that he was at a school with literally thousands of teenager Yokais, a truly terrifying thought. Even before entering the school he had nearly lost his life by not paying attention so Ze from this moment forth vowed to always listen closely to someone if they talked. At the same time he also promised himself that he would find a way to get out of this mess alive, no matter the cost. That was something he was adamant about, he would leave this possible death trap alive no matter what, even just so he could get angry at his father for nealry killing him by sending him to this academy... or so he could at least see his dad ever again... Trying his best to rid himself of these depressing thoughts and concentrate on the here and now he turned to his left and saw a rather excited expression that turned a little stiff when he looked at the girl beside him but no longer could he see the same fear in her eyes which definitely was a plus. Standing up with all the other students, he wanted to leave the bus but to his surprise the other people around him stayed standing in their seats while looking at him, clearly creating a corridor. It didn''t take long for him to understand as to why and with a smile he made his way through the bus. While Ze passed the many faces of his future classmates a sudden thought entered his mind. Through a number of coincidences and misunderstandings he had planted seeds of fear into the surrounding students and they viewed him as some kind of monster even within all the other Yokais... couldn''t he use this to his advantage or at least so he would stay safe? Fear was a powerful deterrent after all and would keep quite a lot of hot blooded young Yokais off his back. Wouldn''t it be best if he played the role of the mysterious and unpredictable all powerful Yokai for as long as he could? After all, people feared what they didn''t know. Feeling a slight smile appear on his face and an inkling of an idea as to how he could make it out of this monster school alive, Ze stepped onto the fresh soil of a different world for the first time, breathed in the fresh air while turning his gleaming eyes beneath is hood to the Yokais swarming all around him. ----- And there we go, with this I think many will unerstand the kind of setting as well as story I wanted to create ^^. As always if you find any mistakes let me know! PS: Amazing Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvvO-ndDLVE Abbadon out! Chapter 4 And with this I am back on my usual schedule (so tired! god not writitng for two days with this kind of schedule is terrifying...) Sorry for the delay but sadly couldn''t really help it, everything should be back on track now and I will try to make sure this doesn''t really happen in the future. Hope you enjoy the next chapter as we are slowly but surely getting into the thick of it all! ----- Chapter 4: Taking one last deep breath, Ze mixed and mingled with the crowd while slowly making his way through the open front doors. Feeling similar to a tuna being squeezed inside a can he could not even control the way he was going as the mass of Yokais pushed him forward and through wide corridors. Finally they reached something that looked similar to a giant assembly hall and inside was enough space for everyone to gather before a podium without having to press against shoulders. A sheer endless stream of people was still trickling in behind him and only after it stopped did the doors slowly close. A commotion at the front immediately drew Ze''s attention as a middle aged man with completely white hair, bright blue eyes and a beaming smile stepped onto the stage. Spreading his arms to quiet down the last murmurs in the crowd he began his speech. "Welcome new students! My name is Cazhar Vandech and I am the principle of this school as well as guidance teacher. Now I am well aware that this first year here might be a bit strange as there will be no upperclassmen for you considering that everyone between the ages of 15-18 has been put into a single group but that is for a reason as every private household teaches differently so we decided to level the playing field and start from the basics to make sure that you have a good foundation before moving on to more complicated matters. Each and every one of you is naturally well aware that this is a boarding school and individual rooms have been prepared at the dorms where your homeroom teacher will guide you later today." Ze could already feel the headache coming as this was new information to him but it did make sense considering the unique location and trouble in getting here. Deciding to mull over these matters later instead of missing anything lifesaving or important again, Ze tried his best to keep listening to the principal that had continued with his speech. "There are many facilities in this school such as the cafeteria in the main building, classes will naturally also be held here and at the 4th floor we have a huge collection of Yokai related reading material as well as the general library. You might have seen our running track as well as rather uniquely shaped playing field but all of this will be explained soon enough in PE." Right away a unison moan of displeasure rose from the thousands of students and the principle couldn''t help but show a wry smile. "Yes I know, rarely any young people these days likes PE but it is important, especially for Yokai. Continuing where I left off we have the dormitory which is next to the track, a stadium for school competitions, special stores where you can all buy everyday needs that you might have for your room or rare materials, the money will be provided by the school and yes you will have a monthly limit. There is also a mission board in the dormitory hall but more of that later. Last but not least we have the forest at the back of the school and I advice everyone who is not going into it because of a special mission that will be touched later on in your studies, a class assignment or anything else of the matter to stay as far away from it as possible. There is a lot of rather nasty creatures residing inside it for the sole purpose of giving you all some more experience with different types of beasts and or situations but a simple lesson can quickly turn into a bloodbath if you aren''t careful so I beg each and every one of you to not enter the forest under any circumstances for the first Semester. If you are worried that these beasts might come close to the dorm or school grounds, don''t be. I was the one who brought them here and I was also the one who laid the foundations for magic formations that will repel them, I am willing to bet my name and life on that so rest assured please as I am trying to warn and not scare you all." Showing a warm smile on his slightly aged face the principal started to explain how the following year was going to look like and when their holidays would start before pointing to a hidden corner of the room. 200 men and women, both young and old stepped out of the shadows and instantly became the center of attention. "These will be your teachers for this year, you won''t get to know each and every one of them and surely are not required to know all of their names but I hope you treat them with respect as they will be the ones taking care of you for the most part this year. Should there be an emergency situation, something bothering you or it is just simply that you are having difficulties in your studies I hope that you seek advice from one of them and even during the nighttime you can ask for help from them if it is an emergency situation as they will be sleeping in the same dormitory with all of you. Now then, I think it is time that we select which class you will attend so please form a line so we can quickly get you all acquainted with your respective homeroom teachers." Following those words Ze quickly found himself standing in a sheer endless line of young Yokais, occasionally stepping forward before stopping again. As far as he could tell from standing so far in the back, each student drew a card from a gigantic pile that nearly spilled over the sides of a nearby table. Each time a student drew a card the entire pile would for a second float up and then mix itself in the air before descending down again. It was a mesmerizing sight and also the first time Ze saw the powers that Yokai could wield in action, even if it was currently only used to shuffle an enormous deck of cards. The entire process was proceeding quite fast if you took the sheer number of new students into account and soon enough it was his turn. Stepping forward he could see the principle showing him a warm smile while motioning towards the now significantly smaller card pile. Not wanting to waste much time as it would be random anyways he picked a card that was close to the edge of the table, it had ''C-1'' written on it. "Go out of the doors and climb the stairs to the first floor, there you should be able to find your class with ease." The principle explained before letting another student step forward. Feeling somewhat insecure while standing next to such a powerful Yokai, Ze hurriedly followed the other students outside of the assembly hall and up the stairs. A sheer endless corridor with an occasional door stretched out before him and he could see the sign ''M-1'' on one of the doors to his right. It was clear that they followed an alphabetic order so Ze really only needed to find the right way and walk down this hallway to reach his class. He occasionally met other students that were also searching for their respective class but most of the time it was quite eerie to be walking down this silent and seemingly never ending corridor. After nearly 5 minutes he managed to finally reach the door depicting a ''C-1'' above it. Taking in a deep breath and readying his mind for what was to come he opened the door and stepped inside. The chatter was what really got him after the long silence that he had experienced and he needed a good moment to once again get a hold of his bearings as he scanned the room. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. He saw a multitude of faces with different shapes and in all forms either involved in a conversation or staring into nothingness. Recognizing not a single one of them he could only sigh and lament that he would need to build his fear inducing image completely from scratch again. The previous one had all just been a big misunderstanding so how the hell should he do it intentionally? Deciding that those were thoughts meant for a later time, Ze made his way to one of the only available seats while attracting some moderate attention but not enough to warrant stares. Sitting between nearly 40 young Yokai in a closed room was a situation that once again let a cold shiver run down his spine and he didn''t mind that not one of them tried to talk to him, it was even welcomed that he was left alone as each interaction could potentially blow his cover or expose him for what he really was. Even though the principle had seemed nice, that was only because he thought of Ze as one of his own, what if he knew that he was a human and pretty much the sole reason why this school was built in the first place? Would he still be that nice then? He very much doubted it. Time slowly trickled away before the door once again opened and Ze looked up but what he saw was something he really had not expected. "You gotta be kidding me..." He mumbled while staring at the girl with twintails standing in the doorway and freezing up the exact moment she spotted him. ..... Making her way past door after door she couldn''t help but curse her own luck as Mary had been one of the last people to draw from the then miserable pile of 5 cards. It not only didn''t really give her much choice but also left her with little to no time to find the right class which made her a little nervous but she tried her best to stay calm. It wouldn''t be like last time she was in a classroom. Mary would go in, just start up a conversation and make friends that way. Yes, that¡¯s what she would do. At least that had been the plan until she saw him sitting there. Even though she wasn''t terrified of his presence anymore she could still feel a trace of fear lingering in her heart when she looked in his direction and for some unknown reason she just felt incredibly uncomfortable being near him as if he was some kind of flashing and booming warning sign. Gulping once she gathered all of her courage and stepped into the room while trying her best to ignore his existance. Looking around the room she noticed that the only other free place to sit down was... right next to his. Just what the hell did she do to deserve this?! Was fate just playing a cruel joke on her or why did it feel like someone was pulling a few invisible strings? Sighing mentally she put a strand of hair out of her eye and reluctantly sat down. Glancing his way she was relieved to see that he was just stoically looking forward, apparently completely ignoring her but that was fine in her mind as she tried to do the same. Listening to all the hubbub around her she once again wished that she was seated anywhere else in the room and not next to this silent freak. How the hell was she going to make connections if ''hoody killjoy'' was right next to her, it felt like the universe was throwing rocks in her way just to see how she would solve the problem and it ignited a tiny flame of anger in her heart. Unable to do anything about it for now she was quickly ripped out of her own thoughts as the door opened and a tall and pretty woman in her mid twenties with light skin, long blond hair and grayish eyes entered the room. Right away all of the attention focused on her as it was clear that she was not a student. The males in the room started to perk up their ears in anticipation as her rosy lips parted. "Hello guys, my name is Sarah Mitchell and I am going to be your Homeroom as well as History teacher." Nearly every male sitting in the room did a mental fist pump for being able to stare at such an attractive lady each day from now on. "You can all just call me Sarah, no need for something like ''Miss Mitchell'' as that will only make me feel old." Letting out an angelic laugh, even the females in the room showed an enchanted smile while a few males wanted to prostrate themselves to show their devotion to such a miracle. Not only was she attractive but seemingly had a nice and easy going personality too, was this some kind of reward for previous good deeds? Even Mary was pleasantly surprised about this turn of events and showed a small smile. "Before we begin I would like you all to promise me one thing. Just like the principle said, should you ever have problems then please come to me so we can talk about it, even if it is not an emergency feel free to wake me up during the night as you are my students and I want each and every one of you to be happy and have an enjoyable time here at Vandech Academy." Nearly every mind in the room screamed out the same thing. An Angel appeared! A few of the males even started to pinch themselves to make sure that it wasn''t a dream. Could this be the ultimate teacher that would show them all a new era?! ..... Staring at this rather pretty teacher Ze couldn''t help but sigh. Didn''t she understand that some people just wanted to be left alone instead of talking about their problems? Would it really help him in his situation to tell her that he was a human? His guess was that her angelic facade that she was showing right now was all a ploy to make her students listen and behave better so she would have less problems with them all, it would make a lot of things easier for her as a teacher if they hung at her lips like drug addicts. All he really saw in her was a cunning Yokai that would probably kill him if she found out that he wasn''t one of them so his first impression of his new homeroom teacher could be called quite poor. Maybe it was because he was so alert and always expecting the worst in his current situation but her charm didn''t really have any effect on him and if at all only helped him in keeping his edge. Looking into those pure eyes as she showed a warm smile even towards him he couldn''t help but slightly sneer. Just who did she think she was tricking with this little show of hers? Giving a quick look around he nearly closed his eyes in shame when he saw the vacant smiles and dreamy eyes all around. It seemed that Yokai were just as susceptible to outward appearance coupled with honey laced manipulation as the general public of humanity was. A rather sad but not really unexpected discovery... ----- And there we go, once again sorry that it is late by one day but even now after finishing this I am just insanely tired and wanna shut my eyes so you can imagine why it wasn''t finished yesterday (yay work! [sarcasm]). Anyways, hope you all liked it and see you on Saturday for more Yokai Academy and tomorrow for those of you who also read Azalon ^^. Should you find any mistakes or errors please do tell below! PS: no PS today too tired -.- Abbadon out! Chapter 5: Bit late but here is the Chapter, hope you all enjoy! ----- Chapter 5: Ze just wished for the goddamn lesson to end at this point. Everyone else was hanging on this beauty¡¯s lips, closely listening to each word except for him that is as he held little to no interest for the backstory of this teacher. Sure it was fascinating that you are currently single and finished your degree as one of the youngest people ever but was this really relevant at the moment?! It was a bit strange as normally you wouldn¡¯t see a teacher boast like that about herself but maybe she thought telling the class about her past would bring them all a little closer and it did have the desired effect on most of them. Glancing around he only saw a few people that had the same confused or even annoyed expression on their faces that he also held. Clearly he wasn¡¯t the only one hoping she would move on to either more important things or for the entire lesson to just end. If this was how his Semester would look like he rather one of the Yokai would rip his head off now instead of having to listen to her endless chatter. ¡°Well then, now that I introduced myself to you all some more I would love to hear about each and every single one of you. If you don¡¯t want to you naturally don¡¯t have to talk about much but at least your name and age would be great to know, not only for me but for the others in this class too. I am sure many of you want to make friends as soon as possible but how should you do that without even knowing each other¡¯s names?¡± With a brilliant smile that could warm even the coldest of hearts she looked around, waiting for someone to take the first step. After a while one of her admirers, naturally a young and hot blooded male, stood up and introduced himself. ¡°My name is Jonathan Medley, 16 years old and from Ohio. Currently not in a relationship and from the Horsemen clan.¡± Clapping her porcelain hands happily she gave him her thanks and looked around for other volunteers. Like the trickling of the first rain the first few introductions were a bit rigid and stiff but soon enough everyone got used to it and it went from one seat to the next in an orderly fashion. Ze tried to memorize most names but it wasn¡¯t easy to do so he just made some reminders in the back of his head like ¡°Johnathan the Horse-guy¡± or ¡°Cristal the Jaguar-girl¡±. Simple things like that helped him keep a few names but the rest was lost after only a few seconds. When it was the girl¡¯s turn next to him he paid a little more attention as she was someone that had piqued his interest, although only because of the misunderstandings and her tendency to always end up in the same boat with him as if via some rather cruel joke of fate. He could see the nervousness on her face as she stood there with all eyes on her person. ¡°M-my name is Marianne Taylor, I am 15 years old and from the Rabbitmen clan.¡± Quickly sitting down once again with slightly red cheeks that were somewhat hidden by her bangs he couldn¡¯t help the smile that formed on his face as he watched this rather cute sight. Completely distracted for a few seconds he didn¡¯t even notice the silence and eyes that had fallen on him. Only now did some people realize that he still had his hood up in class and no one had really seen his face. Clearing her throat, Sarah was finally able to draw his attention as she stared at Ze with slightly wrinkled brows even though she still showed the same smile. ¡°Well then young man, don¡¯t you want to show everyone your face and tell them who you are?¡± Glancing around the room and seeing all the Yokais that stared back he couldn¡¯t help but feel a shiver running down his spine as he slowly shook his head. This time the smile was no longer present on her face but she still tried to go about things politely. ¡°Well I as your teacher want you to at least state your name and age even if you are being rude to your classmates with that hood of yours up.¡± Honestly, Ze was nearly 99% sure that not one of the people in the room really cared if they saw his face or not, the only one he was being rude to was the teacher but he had no intention to give them a piece of information about himself that could be traced back. His goal was to avoid any evidence he had ever been or was currently here and keep a low profile while at the same time faking a mysterious and dangerous role well enough that he would be left alone. He couldn¡¯t give them his real name so he said the first thing that came to mind if he used the short form of his name. ¡°Zero, 15 years old.¡± ..... She felt the same fear in her bones when Mary saw the smile in the darkness of his hood that was directed towards her. It was as if death itself was smiling at her. Turning her head hastily to the side she noticed all the looks he was getting at this point. ¡°Well then young man, don¡¯t you want to show everyone your face and tell them who you are?¡± This single sentence once again raised some interest inside her even if he was quite a scary guy. She knew literally nothing about him except that he was male. Maybe with this she could feel a bit safer after knowing what kind of Yokai he was. Just like the rest of the people around Mary looked expectantly at the hood but was soon enough shocked and disappointed when she saw him boldly shake his head. Were they all not worthy in his eyes? Just where the hell did this arrogance stem from? Not being able to get an answer she could only agree with Sarah¡¯s next words that he was being quite rude to everyone by hiding his face. It couldn¡¯t be that he was so ugly that he felt the need to hide it right? Just like before she waited for a response and for the first time he spoke. ¡°Zero, 15 years old.¡± It was a cold and detached voice, void of emotion. Unlike what one might expect from a 15 year old teenager it held a rather deep tone that one would normally associate with a middle aged man so it was clear that at least in that department he was already an adult. Unable to control the thought as to where else he was already an adult too she quickly locked those thoughts away. Was it the same for boys or did really everyone have to only think of one thing when they were teenagers and full of raging hormones? Mary really couldn¡¯t wait for puberty to finally end as it was starting to get on her nerves. One thing she did find strange from his response was the supposedly ¡®name¡¯ he had given. What the hell was ¡®Zero¡¯ for a name? Did his parents label him as useless from the very moment he was born? And where the hell was his last name at, I mean surely he had one right? Unable to make heads or tails of the entire thing she decided to forget about it for now. No use thinking about it if there was no clear answer at the moment. Mary also had no intention to ever talk with him again after the previous events so she would probably never know what the story was behind his name but it didn¡¯t really bothered her much as she listened to introductions of the remaining students. It was clear that Sarah had, at least for now, given up to get more out of Zero as he straight up just ignored her repeated question if his name had been some kind of sick joke or not. Noticing the angry glare this previously lovely teacher kept sending the guy¡¯s way Mary couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit sorry for him. It was true that it was his own fault but that all of this escalating into him making an enemy out of their homeroom teacher felt somewhat undeserved to her. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Once again shooting another look Zero¡¯s way she bit her lip and decided to give talking with Sarah after the class a try to maybe dissipate some of the clear anger she currently felt for the troublemaker in her class. After all he was a young Yokai like them so it wouldn¡¯t be unusual if he acted like this as a self-defense mechanism, to keep everyone away so he wouldn¡¯t himself get hurt. At least something along those lines was Mary¡¯s current guess to explain her new classmate¡¯s rather strange behavior. ..... It took quite a while but finally the teacher started talking about things that seemed important in Ze¡¯s mind. ¡°Today really is only an introduction day, so you all feel a bit more at home and to give you a clear picture of your time here as a student. Tomorrow morning we will have you participate in a physical exam to see how well your control over your powers are and especially what kind of ability you possess so make sure to sleep early to give it your all!¡± Showing everyone except Ze a smile she told the class to stand up as she would guide them to the dorm and their rooms now. He couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit of dread as tomorrow would probably be the day that they found out that he was human considering that he had no powers to speak of and would fail any examination that took them into account. Just how the hell was he going to get out of this mess!? Suppressing the trembling of his hands he tried to calm down and formed a plan to gather information. First things first he needed to know more about Yokais and their powers, maybe he could fake or make an excuse tomorrow if he knew what this was all about so the first place he had to visit after this was over was the library. It might be a bit unjustified that he feared Yokais to this extent but it was no understatement that they were clearly dangerous as there had been more than one incident were bullied Yokai children went completely berserk and slaughtered entire classrooms with their powers. Just the reports were enough to make someone¡¯s stomach turn in fright and were the sole reason even more tension had started to build up between Human and Yokai kind. The threat to his own life was very real currently so he had no time to relax and needed a solid plan or everything was over. Following Sarah¡¯s lead, 30+ students from class C-1 left the main building and crossed over the running track as well as a grassy hill before reaching a pretty big complex of buildings that were all linked together. ¡°These are the dorms you will be staying in, you will mostly use the main entrance here to access your room as the back exit is only used for emergency purposes so please keep that in mind.¡± The entire thing looked very much like an apartment building just instead of being very tall it only had 2 floors as far as Ze could tell and stretched out quite a distance. The lobby at the entrance even had a reception desk and a number of keys just like in a hotel hung at a wall behind it. ¡°You all will get one set of keys for your room and should you lose it there is a spare one here with Jarred but I hope you do take care of it as whoever finds your lost key can enter your room at will.¡± Glancing especially towards the girls, Sarah introduced them all to Jarred and Ze was shortly after handed his own room key. The number ¡®1393¡¯ was engraved on a little keychain together with it so as long as he didn¡¯t lose it he would have no problem of finding his way back. ¡°Each class has their room numbers close together so if you want to visit a friend you don¡¯t have to go far but even if there are people from different classes you want to find it isn¡¯t really a problem.¡± Pointing at a corner where stairs lead upwards they could all see a sign with an arrow pointing upwards and the letters ¡®1000-2000, A-J¡¯ ¡°There are currently a lot of spare rooms for each class as next year a lot more students will arrive and rooms are not divided by year but class letters. So 1000-1100 are for example reserved for all 3 years of the classes A-1 to A-3. It is a pretty simple system if you get used to it. The first two floors are personal rooms for the students while the ground floor is where everyone can spend their spare time, we have a lounge, play room, canteen, assembly hall for announcements and much more here so feel free to wander around a bit today after I show you your room so you get a feel for it all and know where to go. If you are confused just ask Jarred at the reception desk and he will help you out, the way to the exit is always shown by signs so you don¡¯t have to be worried that you will get lost in here even if it is a pretty big complex. Alright, I think it¡¯s time I showed you your rooms.¡± Followed by an angelic smile she ascended the stairs together with the rest of the class and quite a few males couldn¡¯t help but stare at her round behind that was in full view while walking upstairs, only the occasional elbow thrust into a liver by a few female classmates could stop them from staring with an open mouth. Ze for one couldn¡¯t help but shake his head at this scene. For him her well rounded ass had little to no attraction considering she was a Yokai, as far as he knew her Vagina could have literal teeth so that was a big turn off in his book. Walking down long corridors that were well lit by sunlight falling through the window front they followed the signs and soon enough reached the right section. ¡°Alright, one more thing before I go. Should there be any problem you don¡¯t know what to do about, remember that I as your teacher also live in this dorm. Teachers reside on the bottom floor and there are signs too but if you still don¡¯t find your way just ask Jarred, I am always happy to help any of you.¡± Turning around with her long golden hair fluttering from the motion, she left the students of class C-1 to their own devices. Without even paying any attention to the rest of the class Ze immediately took his key and looked for his room. He could feel a few looks following his back but they soon enough disappeared as he turned a corner. Time was of the essence here and he needed a place where he could relax and be himself desperately so his own room that no one else would enter was currently the only thing on his mind. Soon enough a door with the letters ¡®1393¡¯ engraved into it showed up before him. Trying his best to keep his hand steady he inserted the key and turned the lock. With a click that sounded like music in his ears he opened the door, went inside and closed it behind him. Right away all the pressure that had been pressing down on his shoulders since he found out that this was Yokai academy, the entire uncaring mask he had put on while steeling his heart, all of it disappeared. With his trembling knees unable to support his weight anymore he leaned against the closed door as he slowly slid to the floor. Putting both palms of his hands over his eyes he let out a low shout of anger and desperation. ¡°Just what the hell am I supposed to do now?¡± Ze asked himself in the twilight of his new home. ----- Now then, with this ends the introduction bit of the Academy and Ze''s circumstances. Hope I was able to interest at least a few of you with this new story as we are finally getting into the real meat of it all. :) Should there be any mistakes please to tell below and hope you all have an enjoyable weekend! PS: B&S weekend but I couldn''t play much until now because of writing and taking care of my eye T-T not fair... Abbadon out! Chapter 6 Been taking care of my health and sleep this past week and also decided to change a few things about my current schedule as it is grinding away at me slowly like this, need to rework it and will announce it soon enough but here is the next chapter for all of you with Chapter 7 coming in about 1 hour ish. Hope you enjoy! ----- Chapter 6: Lost in his thoughts for more than a few minutes, Ze finally pulled himself together and looked around the room that was from this moment forth his. Despite him being one of many students, this new home turned out to be quite spacious with the entrance hall connecting to a large living room that also had a little kitchen attached to it. Although the Academy provided breakfast, lunch and dinner they apparently still gave you the option to cook something for yourself, which wasn¡¯t bad at all considering he even had his own fridge now. There was only two doors except the entrance door connecting to the living room, one led to a small bathroom where he found a shower, sink as well as toilet cramped together and the other opened up to a small room with an average sized bed, dresser and mirror. One thing he did noticed was that there was no TV but that only made sense considering they weren¡¯t really on earth anymore right now, it did intrigue him though how the principal managed to power everything with electricity. It couldn¡¯t be that the school had its own power plant right? Pondering about this question for a bit he went back to the living room and opened the fridge only to find it empty which he somewhat half expected. Closing it again he pulled off his hood for the first time all day and unpacked his school bag. Considering he hadn¡¯t known beforehand that this school was a boarding school, however that escaped his dad¡¯s mind, Ze only had a limited amount of clothes and next to no money with him to buy more. He quite literally owned only the things he wore right now and a few other school related items. Sighing deeply he pulled up his phone and checked it for a connection, without any luck naturally. Ze felt a slight headache coming and went to the mirror in his bedroom to check if it was the stress getting to him or something else. In the reflective surface, a teenager with above average looks while donning quite the dark circles beneath the eyes looked back at him. His hair was dark brown and cut short, styled to the latest trend. Eyes sported a deep emerald color and his complexion was currently awfully pale, which was understandable if one took his current circumstances into account. Staring into his own eyes that had the same panicked look like a wild animal being hunted down, Ze felt somewhat annoyed and pushed against the surface of the mirror while once again leaving the room. He was stranded in this strange little world, alone as the only human and ridiculously unprepared for the dangers that lurked around him. That brought his mind to the matter at hand and a possible idea of how to solve his lack of knowledge concerning Yokais. As a student of the Academy he should have every right to visit all facilities which naturally included the library, a place where knowledge was more than abundant. If he wanted answers, that was the only logical place to look for them without blowing his cover. He knew next to nothing about Yokais, sure he had a general idea thanks to the news and the bad stories people told about them but actual facts he only knew very few. Pulling up his hood he prepared himself mentally and with a deep intake of air left his little apartment. Outside in the hall he met no one as he hastily made his way down the stairs. Passing Jarred without even so much as a word, Ze could feel the stare in his back and tried to just ignore it. The way back to the main building was uneventful as even here practically no one was outside as far as his eyes tell. Most were probably still busy with exploring their rooms or the dorm itself so he didn¡¯t feel too much pressure as he stepped through the big double doors and went up the stairs, following the signs just like he had done in the dorm. It hadn¡¯t caught his eye before but there was a lot of them all around, making it easy to find your way even when it was your first time exploring around the building. This was probably done to lessen the burden on teachers or other personnel to verbally explain it every single time which made good sense. Ze ascended the stairs three times before following the arrows through the long and empty halls to the back of the main building. Looking at a set of majestic double doors with intricate designs carved in the wood itself he couldn¡¯t help but feel that this was the right place without even needing to look at the letters carved next to it. Putting his hand on one of the massive doors he was surprised to find little to no resistance as the heavy door swung inward silently. Before his eyes unfolded a rather magical sight as a maze of bookcases that reached as high up as the room itself was tall blocked his view. Only little pathways that were five feet wide allowed passage through it all. Craning his head back in awe he examined the different backs of thousands of books displayed before him. The door closed soundlessly behind Ze as he looked around himself in a slight trance, completely overwhelmed by this ¡®library¡¯ he was standing in. When he first heard the word he thought it was going to be a little school library like they normally existed and not one that could very well rival the biggest libraries on earth. How the hell was he going to find what he needed in this tsunami of knowledge? Hearing a quiet ¡°excuse me¡± to the right of him gave Ze nearly a heart attack and he quickly spun around on the back of his heels. Standing behind a small desk that looked like a reception area was an old man with white hair. His eyes were of golden color and the stare he gave him seemed to pierce through Ze¡¯s body as if he was able to see through even the smallest of secrets. This gaze alone sent shivers down his spine but he decided to ignore his instincts that were on high alert and instead walked closer. ¡°Can I help you somehow young man?¡± The old librarian asked with a small smile. ¡°Yes, I am looking for books related to the origin of Yokais and one that contains some of the most basic forms of powers that dwell in most Yokais, it¡¯s just that there is this one guy I met today and he¡­ I don¡¯t know how to describe it but I can¡¯t-¡° ¡°-put your finger on it? I know what you mean boy. Just wait a second here while I look for the right ones that fit your request. You can use those tables over there to study them in peace later. I will be right back.¡± Turning around, the librarian, to Ze¡¯s absolute shock disappeared with a soft breeze before his eyes and only returned nearly 5 minutes later in the same fashion, this time carrying a pile of books of all sizes with him. How he had done this feat of practically teleporting away and back was not something Ze had even the faintest clue of but he doubted that it was one of the ¡®basic powers¡¯ that Yokais possessed, otherwise mankind would have long gone extinct. Accepting the rather heavy pile that nearly went beyond what he was able to carry he thanked the man and made his way to the nearest table with wobbly knees. Dropping everything with a sigh of relief he sat down and pulled the first book that fell into his hands closer. ¡®Mythical Tales of the Beast Yokai tribe and Humans¡¯ was the name of it and Ze quickly began to read. After flipping through 5 books he couldn¡¯t help but scowl. The information in these books was rather plentiful indeed and explained each category of different Yokai clans in great detail but what he wanted was not thorough explanation but rather a quick overview of ¡®Yokai 101¡¯. Putting down another book labeled as ¡®Harpies, Pixies and the magic of Chocolate¡¯ he couldn¡¯t help but sigh before grabbing for another. 2 hours had passed and they were quite fruitful as he now had an inkling of an idea. There was something called Clans for the Yokais of this world. Each clan had different characteristics and different powers that came with it, some were inherently stronger than others because they had decided to keep the blood pure and not mix with humans but most linages had diluted over the many centuries and only rare few had the powers or capacities of old as they even started to gain their true form only after hitting teenage years. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. There was many marriages between Yokais to keep human blood out of the loop, which in turn created many more variations and combinations of species like Firelamias or Earthdragons for example. Things that would normally oppose each other were possible, although most of the time weakening both powers, in a child between species. Generally there were 4 categories of Yokais. Beastmen that had the characteristics of animals or other creatures as well as some benefits from them. These were nearly 90% of all Yokais. Mythological creatures like Dragons, Phoenixes or others that were abundant in the legends of humans. They only had a population of 8% and were regarded as the ones with purer linages, ergo generally a lot stronger and the nobility of Yokai kind. Mages, witches and wizards, a term used for humans that were born with so much magic potential in their bodies that they were monsters themselves and shunned by both humanity and Yokai kind for the most part, although they still counted as Yokais themselves thanks to the the characteristics of their magic and inherent ability being above and beyond normal humans who were never born with magic reserves like that. This was a strange case where human DNA had diluted the linage of a Yokai so far that it mutated and instead of disappearing strengthened it to insane proportions. Some of the strongest Yokai alive and to date one of the most feared came from this category. Only a little more than 1% of all Yokais counted as one of the above and most did not have the crazy strength spoken of in myths and instead only average ability in magic or using their powers. Demonic Yokai with an appearance rate of about 0.1% or less were the last kind. These were the absolute abnormalities and monsters that threatened humanity many times to the brink of extinction and only a combination effort of both Human and Yokai kind were able to fend them off. A rare combination that did not fall into any of the above categories but instead combined 2 or more of them together. They were seen as mutant monsters, some with insanely strong linage and being able to tap into multiple powers while others had not only that but the magic reserves of Wizards and a few world shaking and unheard abilities of their own to boot. Normally a Yokai had one power that it could expand in like increased speed that could be applied on each body part before finally evolving into increased movement speed and even further after enough training. Demonic Yokais didn¡¯t have these limits and could for example tap into speed, dexterity, strength, body growth, heightened senses and much more in one go, making their threat even at young ages all too real. They were the only ones born without a humanoid or animal form and had to use years of practice to make themselves look akin to Humans, only after hitting puberty did they gain the ability to fully hide what they were with some added effort. Nearly all Demonic Yokais had been exterminated and were still hunted down to this day as the possible danger they brought with their appearance was just too great. These were the general categories that nearly all Yokai would fall into, naturally there was exceptions to this rule but they were even less common than Demonic Yokai so there was next to no records of them ever showing up in the past. Sighing deeply, Ze closed the book in his hands and grabbed for the next one. Just like this, hours flew by like minutes and the lamps around him turned on while the outside world turned dark. Completely engrossed in the literature and unaware of what was happening around him, Ze read until his eyes hurt, gaining an abundant knowledge about many things. One thing he managed to find out was that Yokais were genetically a bit different than humans and had a part of their brain that was bigger than that of humans, this abnormality allowed their mind to attune to what they called ¡®essence¡¯, a form of energy that supposedly existed all around. If Ze compared it to the previous knowledge he had gained, then this would be the mysterious ¡®mana¡¯ that magicians used and that had been spoken of in another book before. This essence was in nearly everything present on earth and even empty space was apparently not as empty as human scientists had thought it was. It was untraceable, interacted with barely anything and could only be harnessed by Yokais or rare human cases. One part of their brain would absorb and store this essence automatically without them having to do anything and when they reached a certain age, mainly puberty, their powers would show themselves. These were mostly derived from their DNA and inherent talents but also influenced by the essence that could transform in nearly any other form of energy. It was after all the essence of everything. Through this, Yokais had the ability to change their form, enhance beyond the physical and even call upon the elements but all of that was only temporary. Should they run out of essence then they would shift back to their human and or other form, whichever was their original one, and they would have to rest and let their mind absorb essence once again. Apparently this process of recharging could be sped up by training but the book had only explained this far and Ze could already guess that this topic was also one of the classes in this school, the training and use of essence. Knowing that humans had next to no way of sensing or using it he couldn¡¯t help but feel cold fear grip his heart and his fingers tightened around the book¡¯s cover. With the hope of finding out more and maybe being able to fake out the teachers somehow he picked up the next book and the one after that, frantic for a golden ray of hope that dwindled farther and farther away the more he learned. Holding up the last of the books in the before giant pile, it was already deep at night but no one had come to kick him out yet so Ze used the time to examine the last hope he had for now. One thing that was a little odd was that the previous books were all rather thick and he had to glance over a lot of things as reading 600+ pages of information was just not viable in his current situation. This one though was thin and a lot smaller, only 50 or so pages thick and wrapped in black leather without any letters or an image describing its contents. Slightly confused about why this had been in the same pile as the others he opened it, only to find and empty and blank page. Turning a few pages further everything was still empty as no words could be found inside this mysterious item. What the hell was an empty book like this doing inside a library? About to close the thing he reached the last page only to stop at the sentence that was written at the last bottom right corner, as if squished into it. ¡®If you are human and in need of power, leave a blood dripped fingerprint to sign the contract, otherwise destroy this book.¡¯ Stunned Ze examined the sentence over and over again before the words slowly faded away in front of his eyes as if they had never existed in the first place. Feeling a little confused and amazed at this obvious display of magic he closed the book and looked up, it showed that it was close to 10 pm so he would need to hurry back soon otherwise he wouldn¡¯t be able to get enough sleep to be awake for the examination tomorrow morning. Glancing down at the black book in his hands he naturally didn¡¯t need someone to tell him that this was a special item that should be handled with care and definitely not something ordinary. Just why the hell was it here and asking for a human in the first place? Ze knew that it was dumb and possibly dangerous what he was doing but stuck in his current situation he wasn¡¯t able to resist the devil¡¯s temptation as he brought the pile of books back to the patiently waiting old man. Quickly leaving the reception desk and double doors behind him he made his way back to the dorm with the small black book tightly hidden beneath his clothes. ----- As I said before next one arriving in 1 hour and still so tired -.- gotta...resist... the bed.... If you find any mistakes do tell below please! PS: My sleep rhythm is out of whack and I can''t even give two shits about it anymore XD Abbadon out! Chapter 7 Next Chapter just like promised, for those wondering about Azalon, both Chapters will appear tomorrow (sooooo tired T-T) Will edit these two tomorrow morning after getting some shut eye as I noticed some words missing and fixed those my mind was able to pick up on. Hope you enjoy! ----- Chapter 7: Closing his door with a sigh, Ze couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit guilty that he had stolen one of the books from the library on his first day here already but considering it was completely empty in the first place he doubted that it would matter much to the old man, that is naturally if he had no idea what this thing really was and he had the bad premonition that the old man knew nearly everything. Swallowing down his fear, he locked the door behind him and pulled down his hood. Taking out the object of his theft, an unsure expression was visible on his face in the dim light of the moon that shone through the window. Standing there for a few seconds he steeled his mind and went into his bedroom, closing the curtains while turning on the light. With a final look at the book and remembering its words he went outside again and brought one of the knives from the kitchen with him. Trying his best to keep the blade steady he cut a small gash on the palm of his left hand while quickly dipping his right thumb into his own blood before pressing it on the first page of the book. Like that he sat there for a few seconds, pressing his still bleeding hand against his jeans while staring at the object before his eyes. Seeing that nothing had happened he took his thumb off the page and sighed in resignation but before he could stand up from his bed a sudden force from above locked him in place. With the sound of pages turning at high speed and unable to even move an inch, he watched the small black book come to life with big eyes as page after page was filled with black ink in no time and words visibly form on them before the thing closed shut and sat there just like before, completely innocent. Wiping his bloody thumb on his already stained jeans, Ze picked up the book with shaking hands and opened it once again to the first page. This time it had changed from a blank page to a small paragraph as well as an image beneath it with weird symbols that were laid out in a circular and complicated pattern. ¡®To whomever finds this guide and is willing to make a contract with it. Let me once again make sure that whoever you are, do not use this book if you are of non-human nature as it will not bring you any benefits and instead only harm, this is a guide of sorts but only someone who is willing to trade a part of themselves in for power will be allowed to gain the knowledge in this book. If you are human then I must still warn you as the price for power is always high and this is only a guide to your path, the beginning of your future and not the fruit that can only be obtained through pain and effort. Should you still be in need of power beyond the human realm, once again put a thumb print of blood in the middle if the contract shown below, the consequences of this action are grave. For one your lifespan will shorten, by how much varies for each individual but living beyond the age of 50 is already considered a miracle. You will experience pain, far above what you ever felt before and it can scar your mind. Your body will not be same as before, you will no longer strictly speaking be human. This is the price for this power that was not meant to be, none of the above will show itself any time soon but let me assure you that they will happen eventually, no matter if you are prepared for it or not. At the small possibility that you finish this guide and are able to go through it then let me tell you that the first price of shortening your life can be fixed later on and you will know how to do it at that point. The rest will still be permanent.¡¯ Ze needed a moment to process this before nearly dropping the thing out of absolute terror for this small book that promised power but warned him over and over again about the consequences. Unsure anymore if this was a wise idea or no, Ze hesitated, scared. Was he really willing to give up maybe 30 to 40 years of his life just like that? Experience pain and stop being human, whatever that meant? Was his situation really that desperate? He just wasn¡¯t able to blindly step into such dangerous waters at the moment and hastily closed the book. Sitting there quietly for a few minutes, Ze in the end put the black book on a table next to his bed and undressed himself before jumping under his duvet. It was late, he was tired and he still had to get up early tomorrow for the¡­ examination. What if this examination would reveal who he was? Just remembering the bloody classrooms with countless white sheets spread around the floor sent a cold shiver of fear down his spine and he couldn¡¯t help but think of the black book. Wasn¡¯t he practically signing a contract with the devil and selling his soul at this point? But was his soul worth an unsafe future and possible death that loomed over him at every second? Fear was a powerful motivator, especially the fear towards one¡¯s own life. What was losing a few years down the line against not being able to see the day after tomorrow? Who couldn¡¯t withstand a bit of pain? Screw humanity if it meant he had to die by staying human. Driven by his fears, the images put into his head by local news that only picked the bloodiest cases and made them worse than they really were. Urged by his will to live and to get out of this alive he broke away the crusty scab that had already formed on his palm and once again put a bloody thumb print in the book, not even thinking about the consequences with a shaken and unstable mind. Fear was all that he felt, and fear was that drove him to this stupidity that he immediately regretted in a matter of seconds as his head split apart with unending pain. Howling like he was being tortured to death, Ze thrashed around in his bed and flung the black book against a wall while pressing both hands against his bursting temples. Something had entered his body in a flash from the book and whatever it was, it brought Ze a new experience of the word hell. Unable to control his voice his screams once again echoed through the room, sending vibrations into the hall outside and waking up more than a few other sleeping students. ..... Woken by the endless screams that seemed to shake the walls themselves, many students felt panic and fear as they stood up. The hall outside quickly filled with people and two of them rushed to get a teacher while the rest looked fearfully towards the room with the number ¡®1393¡¯ from which the screams came from. Not once did they stop and many felt their hairs stand on end as they could hear the pain and despair that was contained inside that male voice. Abruptly, just as quickly as it had appeared, the screams died down and an eerie silence filled the corridor. No one dared to walk closer to the room in fear of what might hide within it, those screams didn¡¯t sound like they were made from a person that had injured themselves but more like they were being tortured by someone and no one wanted to meet the person responsible. Instead they fearfully waited for a teacher to finally arrive and resolve whatever had happened. Soon enough quick steps could be heard as Sarah, their homeroom teacher appeared with a startled and concerned look, together with the two students that had ran off to get her. Quickly making way for her, everyone stepped aside as she rushed to the room in question and knocked her smooth and silky hand against the door heavily. ¡°Zero, hello do you hear me Zero? Please open the door or at least tell me what is going on! If you don¡¯t answer then I will go look for Jarred for the spare keys to make sure that everything is alright so please unlock the door if you can.¡± Waiting for a response she looked at the closed door before a voice, slightly muffled by the wood resounded from behind it. ¡°Everything is alright with me, I just had a nightmare.¡± This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Nearly everyone in the hall exchanged an unconvinced glance. Just what kind of nightmare makes you scream like a pig in the slaughterhouse?! Thinking around the same lines as the people around her, Sarah furrowed her brow and instead shook her head before replying. ¡°I don¡¯t think that is all of it so quickly open the door so I can make sure everything is alright with you, please.¡± After a few moments the voice behind the door gave a short ¡°wait a minute¡± as a reply before silence once again filled the hall. Anxiously tapping her foot, Sarah waited just like she was instructed to before the door suddenly opened and a boy wearing a hood that covered nearly his entire face came into view. ¡°As I said, just a nightmare and I have some sleeping pills so that it won¡¯t happen again, can I go back to bed now or is there something else?¡± The boy asked in a harsh tone and Sarah was clearly stunned but she didn¡¯t say anything else and just shook her head, followed by a door slamming shut in front of her shocked figure. Normally Sarah would have used her position and power as a teacher to her advantage to make him follow her to the infirmary so she could forcibly make sure that he really was alright but that didn¡¯t seem to work with this particular student as she always found herself swept up in his own pace, no matter the situation. Swallowing the words that she had wanted to say back down Sarah threw another concerned looked towards the closed door before shooing the rest of the students back to bed. ..... Closing the door a little bit harder than he had wanted to, Ze nearly fell down on the floor as he heavily leaned against the nearby wall. His knees were wobbly and his entire body was sore from his muscles contracting for a long time because of the pain he had went through. Even now he still felt a throbbing sensation in the recesses of his mind, both body and spirit more than a little scarred from the experience. ¡°I have a bad feeling that this wasn¡¯t the pain the black book was talking about...¡± Ze said aloud to himself, shivering at the mere thought that this had just been the tip of the iceberg. Even though it had been his choice and a hasty one at that, in the end he still was a teenager and bound to make mistakes just this one... wasn¡¯t one he would recover quickly from. Gingerly returning back to his room he glanced at the ripped sheets and mess of a room that he created by flailing about during his previous ¡®experience¡¯. Noticing the discarded book lying in a corner he first fixed his bed before picking it up with an unsightly expression. Once again the first page had changed as golden letters filled the entire thing. ¡®You have thus chosen power above all else. Know mortal that this will be your guide on a path not tread by many, neither Yokai nor Human, you will be of a different kind. Maybe after decades or centuries that have passed since the creation of this book you will be the only one left but know that Spiritmancers are a profession that has always been shrouded in mystery. This will be your guide to uncover some of the secrets and gain the power that was never supposed to be ours. One of the reasons only humans can dabble in this accursed profession is because Yokais are born with a fixed spiritual center in their head while humans are a blank slate, a fresh mold one could say in that regard. The contract you signed was nothing more than an incantation that sucked the essence in your body into one place in the center of head where Yokais would normally have their spiritual center but for us humans it is also a rather tricky place. Instead of growing naturally, this forced process will shorten your life, some nights you might even wake up by the blood dripping out of your eyes and ears. The pain center in your head has been pushed back and a still weak and shaky spiritual palace has been built in its place, treat it carefully because if it collapses so will your mind and body. Minor usage of essence will be available for the first week, should you strive too crazily for power then you are doomed to fail, let your body and spirit rest first is my advice. Let your wounds heal and then dabble into the profession of a Spiritmancer. These following pages will teach you all that you need to know, everything else you will have to find out with time after mastering these basics. Learn about the Glyphs and how words can have more power over us than you might think. Study the essence but don¡¯t let it consume you like it has so many others. And most importantly, do not abuse your powers or you will fall from the little bit of humanity that is left inside of you. Our body was not made to hold this kind of energy, if overused it will change us, make us into what we fear most. Do not travel the path of no redemption and follow the light inside the darkness ahead of you. My name is Ardon Tharlasus and you are hereby my first and only disciple.¡¯ Once again Ze didn¡¯t really know how to feel about these words. Not only did they explain the dangers surrounding what he was about to stumble into but they also showed him a possible hope, that he didn¡¯t just simply throw away his future. As long as he didn¡¯t abuse this new power, whatever it was, then it wouldn¡¯t hurt him too much, at least he hoped so. Unsure what to make of this he turned the page and was quickly confused but nonetheless fascinated by the ¡®Glyphs¡¯ how they were called inside the book and their function. Many symbols of circles inside rectangles with star like edges and triangles that seemed to be looping into themselves drew him in for minutes as he absorbed all the knowledge he could. Looking through the book he soon enough found out what Spiritmancers really were. Yokais used the essence around them to strengthen and fire up their DNA to gain an increase in physical or mental powers. Spiritmancers on the other hand used the power that their bodies had absorbed to charge ¡®Glyphs¡¯ to do all sorts of different things and create different phenomena, much more diverse and expansive than what any other Yokai could ever create but instead of being able to do it instantly they needed time and spend a lot more essence to reach the same conclusion as those Yokais with natural abilities. It was similar to charging up a battery with power as these Glyphs would only hold for a limited amount of time and with varying effects but a few of the easy ones Ze found, with most being non-offensive ones, were quite useful and one of the incantations attracting his gaze like a homing missile. ¡®Cloak of darkness: An incantation focused on creating a demonic illusion around the user, can be split into head, limbs and torso sections and all parts are needed complete and inactive to create the whole illusion. Unlike other illusions that work with light to distort the surroundings this one uses shadows to create a form that one can pass through. From the outside no one would be able to see the Spiritmancers appearance while the user himself can see everything around him like normal, it is a one way illusion only working on the surroundings and not on the user himself.¡¯ Glancing over the Glyphs and further description of the incantation, Ze¡¯s eyes lit up in delight and he immediately got to work. He already had an idea what and where he wanted his first trial use of this new power, and if it worked it might very well save his very skin. Looking at the clock above him he frowned and decided to just forget about sleeping tonight and instead try his hardest to make this still complex assortment of unknown Glyphs work. Until now this was his first real chance at hiding his human identity and Ze would be damned if he couldn¡¯t achieve the impossible in 7 and a half hours. ----- AAAAAAAAND finished... *rubs sleepy eyes and yawns* =.0 hard to stay awake... Will edit chapters tomorrow, hope you liked this little double release and *mumbles a few more words sluggishly* Anyways, if you find mistakes and stuff tell me so I can fix em tomorrow and now off to bed *flops dead under duvet* PS: Satan my saviour bring me to your wonderland! Abbadon out!