I wake up to sunlight sneaking through my window.
The weather doesn't care about the mood or atmosphere of how humans feel. Nature keeps cycling day in and day out, regardless. I stretch out my muscles and look at my clock. It is already noon.
I slept in because we have no classes for the next week, at minimum. The truth is, the Keepers don't know how long they have to be on their toes to defend themselves.
I sit up from my bed and get up.
My feet touch the cool wooden floor. My hands look normal despite me still not believing what happened last night. I go into the bathroom and start brushing my teeth. Did I, for a moment, control all the elements?
As I stare at myself in the mirror, all I can think about is how ridiculous it sounds. Control all the elements, including light magic, at the same time in harmony? In what world does that exist?
My mind drifts back to the text in the forbidden section of the library I read by Professor Parker. Let me see what I remember from what I read.
In various parts of Glozaria, Elvenador, and Thyndara, we find foreign magic identical to the magic sourced from Glozaria, but at the same time completely different. Any time our researchers out in the field attempt to link the various foreign magic places together or acquire it for sampling, they disappear or die.
Our operation to understand this magic, which seems connected to our planet of Terrathis and the overall universe, continues. It seems everything is connected, but we do not know why or how.
I remember this part of the excerpt well. Foreign magic is any newly discovered magic that differs from all the other known magic in the world. On the planet of Terrathis, the main magical attributes throughout history have been fire, wind, water, and earth. People have acknowledged the existence of light and dark magic for a long time, but only mysteriously.
This new foreign magic is unlike anything we have ever seen. Is it possible I control it?
My head shakes no in reply to my thoughts. It's ridiculous to even think about. I finish brushing my teeth and walk over to my closet. I throw on the most random clothes that feel comfortable and open the door of my dorm.
Creeeeeeaakkkkkk!
My door swings open fully, giving me a full view of the hallway.
I turn my head from left to right as I stand in my doorway. Keepers are stationed around each corner, observing everyone intensely. Everyone only has privacy in their dorms unless the Keepers suspect them of aiding the mysterious organization. I eye the Keepers suspiciously.
One of the Keepers makes eye contact with me.
Quickly, I shut the door and sit down with my back against it.
Sometimes I forget how dangerous I am to myself and others.
I am the reason my friends are psychologically tortured! I pull my legs into my chest and wrap my arms around them. The darkness inside me keeps clawing at me, wanting me to unleash it. I do not even know how to use it properly.
The proper time to use it will come once I am strong enough to face the Elite Keepers, when I am strong enough to defeat the Eradicators in disguise as the old righteous Keepers of the past.
I slam my fist into the wall, causing some blood to appear. It bothers me to be unable to do anything and just sit here like a duck waiting for something to happen. I want to make a difference; you know!
My body wills itself to walk toward the bathroom to clean off the blood.
The last thing I want to happen is for my darkness to harm anyone as much as it harms Dustin. The monster of darkness inside of me. I don't want to harm my friends. This mysterious magic within me, which makes me feel like controlling all the elements, has me concerned as well.
After cleaning the blood off and putting a bandage on it, I walk out of my room assertively this time. As long as a Keeper accompanies you, you can go anywhere you want with whoever you want. My ambitions lead me to the training grounds where several Keepers oversee people's training.
Everyone from first years to fourth years are training at the range, obstacle course, and dueling area. In simple terms, the training grounds are packed.
Everyone is training harder now to get a chance to become a Keeper early and graduate early.
Even though the Keeper Academy is just a tool for the "Keepers," also known as the Eradicators, to use human young adults against the rest of humanity and the magical creatures.
The idea of it is still so cruel. One of the Keepers looks at me and nods at me, which means I can start training.
Before I can take two steps, I hear two voices yell out, "Is loser darkness here to pay a visit to us?"
In the distance, I spot them, two figures walking confidently toward me with an aura that could crush anyone in an instant. These figures look like twins. As I notice their blonde hair and blue eyes, I know immediately they are the Zahard twins. I scowl. I would explain who they are, but they will gladly do it themselves.
"Is that how you react to being in the presence of the Zahard twins?" they both laugh at me as they stand in front of me intimidatingly.
I say nothing back to them in return. The thing is, I can't be mean to them because they are much stronger than me. They are only a couple of rank placements in terms of strength next to Ignis.
This means they are still that much more powerful.
"Saying nothing? Well, I guess you aren't worthy of speaking to us!" they say in sync while chuckling at each other. "You may speak in front of the sons of the Duke of Light of the famous Lucian Zahard! The strongest of all the noble houses besides the House of Grey. The only noble house personally supported by the Keepers themselves," twin one says to me in a grandiose voice.
To be honest, I don't even know their first names, nor do I care. So for now, I will refer to them as twin one and twin two. Twin one is slightly shorter than twin two for reference.
"Did you know we are both official Keepers now?" Twin two says to me as he points at the Keeper Academy logo on the shoulder of the uniform.
"That means you have to listen to us in addition to being beneath us as not even a noble!" twin one says right after twin two's remark. The rage building inside of me is almost enough to hit them with a fireball from point-blank range and burn them to a crisp.
"Would you two please let me talk to Nico?" a familiar voice says as he walks up next to me. It is none other than Ignis.
This dude seriously has Prince charming-type timing.
Ignis calmly looks at the twins with a slight smile. Ignis's eyes tell another story. A story of don't even think about it. The Zahard twins back off my case.
"Uh yeah, sorry, we have to go now." The Zahard twins walk away, turning back to get a glimpse of us now and then. My heart rate lowers once my eyes notice them turn the corner.
"I am sorry they were giving you trouble, Nico. I am glad I was here to prevent a fight," Ignis says to me in a relieved tone.
Out of the corner of my eye, I notice the Keeper Principal walking with someone who looks regal right past the training grounds. "Who is that?" I ask Ignis.
"That is the Duke of Light, Lucian Zahard. The father of those two misbehaving students. He is not a nice man, but he knows how to act in a diplomatic situation," Ignis replies while watching them.
"Please follow me for a minute," I tell Ignis quickly as I hurry toward the direction I last saw the Keeper Principal and the Duke of Light.