Hundreds of students flooded into the giant lecture hall, their voices merging into a rising hum of conversations and shuffling. The space engulfed them—walls climbed high, ceiling vaulted like a church. It could easily fit five hundred bodies and today was full.
Leon squeezed in amongst the flood of students with Finn and Isla. Like drops in the river, they were all carried away in the overwhelming force of the throng.
Finn flopped into the chair beside Leon with an exaggerated grunt, "Why do they keep us in this boring class? Powers—I love powers. Studying? Ugh, kill me now."
Finn elbowed Leon with a smile, "I'm counting on you, man. You and only you and your brain are my only hope."
Leon straightened the strap of his satchel and emitted an obnoxiously quiet sigh. "Then shut up and let me study."
But Leon couldn't help it. His gaze was drawn to Isla across the room, giggling—so light, so at ease—with a girl that Leon didn't recognize. Something tightened in Leon's chest. A glint of something. He blinked it back.
A rush of silence rushed through the room.
A man had entered.
Tall, stout and with eyes of frozen glass and a mind that seems to deflate the space around him. The whispers died like candles in a storm. "Good Morning, Sir!" the students barked in a unison voice as they rose. He did not move. "Sit!" The voice was deep. Collected. Dangerous. Whispers crawled like ants between rows of students. Magnus Holloway. The Magnus Holloway, the infamous Blue Blood ice caster; a living legend. Disciplined, Uncompromising, Cruel. Leon muttered, "He looks like he would freeze time by blinking." And then, as if summoned, it arrived. An immediate and violent cold surged through the air. Breath caught in throats. Frost formed around the edges of their desks. Every student froze again—but this time literally. It felt like invisible needles pierced their skin, like something ancient had looked directly into their souls. And then—gone. Just like that. Magnus spoke; his voice rumbled through the frostbitten space of silence. "Listen closely."
He surveyed the crowd like a judge in a crumbling courtroom. "You've lost friends. Classmates. Thousands, gone. Because of one cowardly act."
No one moved. The air itself did not dare whisper.
"This academy has never seen destruction like we are facing. Yet we start now. Not later. We will not huddle quietly in grief. We will sharpen your grief into daggers. We will forge your rage into strength."
He moved closer. He was a glacier calving.
"This will never happen again."
His words were heavy like steel.
"We do not have the luxury of time," he growled. "The war has already come."
It started faintly, like a heartbeat. Then it built, fists squeezed, spines straightened, and eyes burned.
"YES, SIR! WE'LL TAKE THEM ALL OUT!"
The chorus rang through the hall.
Leon felt his pulse pounding in his ears.
And then --
A flicker. A flash.
Amelie's face; pale. Bloody. Eyes too wide in her last breath.
His throat closed. Power demanded. Purple light fizzled dimly around his skin, if only for a second.
Only one person noticed.
Magnus's cold eyes locked on him. A beat passed.
Then... a faint, knowing smile.
The scene shifted.
A meditation hall, quiet as a forest. Golden sunlight streamed through latticed windows. A calm warmth filled the space.
Students sat cross-legged on mats, breaths slowing.
A new teacher stepped in. Tall. Grounded. Like a tree that had lived through every storm.
Darius Falken. The Green Blood. The healer. The calm.
"Meditation," he said, walking between them, "is not for peace. It is a key. A door. You touch it, and your true power answers."
His gaze swept the group. "We call it Genkame. Center your heart. If it answers with clarity, you rise. If it answers with darkness... it consumes."
Eyes closed. Silence fell.
Leon inhaled slowly. In. Out. In. Out.
Then, he fell inward.
Deeper.
Darker.
A pulse of energy. Purple. Thick like fog. Cold. Alive.
Something was moving inside it.
A figure - tall, shadowy, no mouth, just teeth. It was staring. It was waiting.
Leon snapped his eyes open. He was sweating down the side of his temple. Breathing hard.
"Leon," Darius said, his tone calm but firm.
The boy's hands were shaking.
"That will be enough for today," Darius told them, with a nod. "All of you. Genkame drains more than your energy - it tests your soul."
The students ungracefully stood up, like wilting flowers.
Finn let out a groan and flopped sideways. "He said a little tired. My whole body feels like the passing of a dragon."
Leon gave his head a light smack. "Respect your teacher."
"I am respecting him! Just, dramatically."
Leon looked over at Isla. She was sitting utterly still, her eyes serene. Almost... glowing.
"Did you two... see something?" he asked quietly.
Finn blinked. "Like... colours?"
Isla tilted her head. "Just the usual energy stuff. Why?"
Leon hesitated. "Nothing. Maybe I was just tired."
"You always think too much, bro," Finn chuckled as he draped his arm around Leon. "Let's go. PE time."
The training camp pulsed with energy.
Until she showed up.
Selene Aldridge.
The tension in the air suddenly shifted.
She walked in like a raging storm in heels. Braided hair whipping behind her like a whip. Her eyes sharper than her water blades.
Finn's jaw was practically on the ground. "Bro... she's a goddess of war."
Leon snickered. "They call her Aqua Baddie."
"She can call herself the Supreme Empress of Death and I'd still thank her."
A loud crack broke Finn's train of thought. Selene's voice shattered the air.
"Sparring. Now. Volunteers?"
Leon, with an unnecessary amount of smugness, gave Finn a fierce push.
"My friend's really eager to play!"
"Leon, you treacherous piece of—!"
Selene beamed. "You. Face Fanny."
A little girl stepped forward. Compact. Deadly. Eyes like daggers. Her fists were already raised.
Finn's face drained of color.
Leon leaned closer to Isla. "Is she ... ?"
Isla smirked. "Just wait."
The countdown rang out again.
Three. Two. One.
"I'll let you have the first hit," Finn said, trying for a heroic smile.
Mistake.
Fanny's fist connected with his nose.
Crack.
He dropped to the ground like a sack of potatoes.
The crowd gasped.
Fanny stood over him, boiling. "You think I'm weak because I'm a girl, you pervy idiot?!"
Selene chuckled, like a proud mother hen.
Leon turned to Isla. "Definitely his type."
Finn scrambled up, eyes spinning from shock. "Okay. Okay. You want to play rough?!"
His aura flared - Orange Blood. Sparks crackled around him.
Fanny didn't hesitate. Fire erupted from her palms.
Suddenly chaos descended.
Booms. Blasts. Smoke. Fire.
Fanny disappeared into the haze - and then reappeared with a flaming uppercut that sent Finn sailing across the field, flopping like a ragdoll.
He hit the wall with force.
Selene stepped in. "Do you forfeit?"
"I WILL NEVER FORFEIT!"
Leon groaned. "Man, he is too stubborn to die."
Then—BOOM!
Smoke. A flash.
Fanny screamed and stumbled.
Leon laughed. "He was planting the bombs while being thrown! What a sneaky little rat."
Fanny snarled and ignited her hands.
Finn answered to the sound of a huge explosion.
The shockwave knocked students back and sent dust flying everywhere.
When it cleared—
Finn was down.
Fanny was barely standing.
Selene raised a hand. "Fanny wins."
Leon dragged Finn's limp body towards the infirmary. Darius waved his glowing hand and sighed. "He'll live. Just barely."
A few moments later, Selene arrived with a bruised, fatigued Fanny.
Darius glared at Selene. "What in the hell kind of training was that?"
Selene simply smiled.
When Finn finally opened his eyes, he saw Leon and whimpered.
"Bro...you saved my life."
"You're being over dramatic. Again."
Finn tightened his grip. "She's a demon."
Leon shifted his stance. "Uh...Finn?"
"What?"
"She's behind you."
Finn turned.
There was Fanny. Cracked knuckles. Red eyes. Grin of doom.
"NOOO—!"
His scream resonated through the hall.
And that was the closing act of day one at the Academy—
—in fabulous chaos.