In the end, whipping my own magic into obedience, I realized, was not something that happened instantly. It was a slow process that demanded both patience and endurance. More than a wild animal, my magic behaved like a small, dumb child; whipping and yelling incessantly will just cause it to curl up and stop functioning entirely. It reminded me of the kids who’d just cry and lay on the floor when they were beaten or punished by their parents or older children. I had to stop at some point, because it might just become utterly useless; I just hoped my magic understood why I was doing what I did. If only it wasn’t such a temperamental thing, I would not have been forced to do any of this.

The wand was helpful enough, at the very least, to grant me full control over my magic. It was a crutch, but one I would have to rely on to progress any further.

With that, I pulled myself away from my center and back into the outside world. Lord Sorzin nodded at me and I nodded back. Was he impressed? I had no idea. The fact that I was not being tortured or otherwise punished probably meant he was satisfied with what I’d done.

I leaned back against my chair and sighed. Beside me, Olga was doing spectacularly, toying with a ball of multi-colored flames; she tossed it from one hand to the other almost as if it was just a toy. Lord Sorzin approved of the display, nodding at her once, before turning away and observing the other Neophytes. The others were… not doing quite as well as Olga and I; at the very least, Lord Sorzin wasn’t beating them up or otherwise punishing them for their failures. He was just… there, observing.

Olga turned to me. Her eyes were filled with concern as she spoke, “Are you alright?”

I nodded, “I’m fine; dealing with my magic is going to be difficult.”

“The others are having a difficult time as well,” She glanced over her shoulder at the other Neophytes, most of whom were struggling to even manifest their magical energies; Kaede and Antonio, I noted, had the most success among them. The former’s magic manifested in a strange, almost violet haze that looked as though it was made entirely out of letters and numbers and other odd symbols I couldn’t recognize. The latter, meanwhile, produced magic that looked almost like wet paper, flickering in and out of sight, due to Antonio’s poor control. Frustration, rage, and fear lingered on his face as his magic failed again and again. And yet, for someone who was probably doing this for the first time, he was doing even better than I did, under Baba Yaga’s tutelage.

The others were… well, they were doing their best with what they had. I figured I might as well try to teach them what I know once we’re back in the dorm.

I turned my attention back towards Olga, “What about you, Olga? Are you alright?”

She nodded and closed her hands, snuffing out the ball of multi-colored flames. She sighed and leaned her head back. “I am fine. It feels odd to say this, considering where we are and everything that’s happened to us, thus far, but… I am bored.”

I blinked and raised an eyebrow. That was certainly an odd thing to hear, coming from her. Although, it did bring to mind an odd question, “How long was I… in a stupor?”

Olga shrugged again. “You were… kind of asleep for a while, Uriel; it could’ve been an hour or more, but I do not know for sure. Why do you ask?”

“It just… felt like it’s been less than five minutes for me,” It really did. I certainly wasn’t whipping my magic into submission for an hour; I counted around five or six lashes with the… metaphysical whip and that was it, before my temperamental magic started curling into itself and crying like a child. To think I was there for such a long time; reaching inwards as I did must’ve warped my perception of time… or something, because it definitely didn’t feel that long when I was there. The next time I was going to torture my magic into submission, I would have to do it somewhere safe and private; falling into a stupor, surrounded by people I couldn’t trust, was a good way to get killed. Olga was right there, thankfully; the other Neophytes probably weren’t my enemies, but I trusted them about as far as I could throw them, even if I was planning on ingratiating myself to them.

Olga nodded, but then her eyes narrowed and her stoic face fell for a moment, revealing… sadness. “Your magic… it is in pain; why do you choose this method of gaining control? Is it not better to gain its trust and work together? Wouldn’t that be better in the long run?”

“It’s the quickest way,” I told her, plainly. I did consider taming and gaining the trust of my magic as I would a dog or a cat, treat it more like a companion than a slave. But I couldn’t risk falling behind. Unlike her, I did not have the luxury of possessing magic that readily obeyed my will; somehow, Olga could manipulate hers as though it possessed no will of its own, unlike mine. She was lucky. I had no choice. “I have to grow strong fast or risk falling behind; I can’t fall behind – I can’t. That’ll kill me.”

The sadness in her eyes dissipated as she nodded. “I understand; this place is… cruel. But try not to lose too much of yourself to the darkness.”

“What did you just say, little girl?” Lord Sorzin suddenly spoke, his head snapping towards Olga. And the temperature in the room dropped. I felt my breath hitch as the Dark Lord took a step towards Olga, towering and looming over her – a black figure with blazing crimson eyes. I found myself with a shortness of breath as he approached us – her. The other Neophytes froze.

Olga seemed to shrink into her chair, becoming smaller and smaller. She gulped and shook, before she stood up and faced the Dark Lord. She seemed so small and so frail, but… I was certain I couldn’t do the same if I was in her place; I’d be frozen in fear. When Olga spoke, her voice was broken and shaky, but she spoke nonetheless, “I… just don’t want my friend to become cruel… my lord.”

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“Cruelty,” Lord Sorzin began, “Is one of the many traits that define a Dark Mage; cruelty gives us power, fuels our passion, and sets us above our rivals, the Light Mages, they who preach peace and apathy, they who invite the weak and the frail into their circles. Cruelty makes us strong, little girl; cruelty sets us above the plebeians. It is because of our cruelty that we, Dark Mages, are feared and respected. You will understand that, in time. Your lapse… will be forgiven, for now. But you will not speak of things you know nothing of; do you understand, little girl?”

Olga gulped and nodded. She was pale and her breaths were short and shallow, but she stood her ground. “I understand… my lord.”

“Good,” Lord Sorzin turned and walked towards the podium, where he resumed observing the rest of the class. The pressure that’d settled over my shoulders dissipated; the tension in the room disappeared with it. I breathed in several times, but I couldn’t quite control the shaking of my breaths.

I leaned in towards Olga, whose form shook uncontrollably. Her knees wobbled and she fell on her chair. She was pale – paler than she was in the snow. I moved towards her and embraced her shivering form. Lord Sorzin, luckily, did not mind. Olga and I were already more advanced, compared to the others, even if only by a little. “It’s okay, Olga; you’ll be fine. Everything’s fine.”

She nodded, but did not speak.

Lord Sorzin then clapped his hands together, wordlessly demanding everyone’s attention. I turned towards him – everyone did. He moved to the center of the platform and addressed us, “Reflect on what you’ve learned today and how you can better yourself through it. Your failures today are forgiven. Tomorrow, I expect greater results; those who fail to impress me will be flogged. Those who still cannot produce magic will face… greater consequences.”

He then raised his right hand and snapped his fingers.

Suddenly, food appeared on our tables, plates of rice and chicken and some greens that I figured were probably string beans; spoons and forks also appeared, which was nice. All of us, me included, stared at the food as though it was poisoned. Lord Sorzin scoffed. “If I wanted you dead I would not need to resort to poison; all I’d need to do is snap my fingers. You all have ten minutes to eat your breakfast, before your next class. Eat now or starve; I care not.”

Lord Sorzin turned to me, crimson eyes blazing like twin coals. “Keep the wand; you’ll need it. But I will expect greater results tomorrow.”

After that, he walked out of the classroom.

My stomach growled. I did not wait for everyone else to start eating, before I moved back to my seat and began tearing into the chicken and shoving everything else into my mouth. Olga needed no prompting as well. We were all hungry, it seemed. The last time I ate was back in Baba Yaga’s hut and that was almost an entire day ago. Everyone else began eating a few moments later.

The food did not make me full, but it was enough to sate the hunger I hadn’t known was there.

At some point, a bell rang throughout the entire academy, a dreadful sound that reminded me of the screams of pregnant women, who were dragged into the open streets for the Japanese Soldiers to stand on their bellies and force them to give birth; the women would then scream in pain and horror as their children were impaled on the knives on the rifles of the soldiers and paraded for all to see. Somehow, the bell was even worse than their screams.

It continued for five seconds before stopping.

After that, a woman in dark robes entered our classroom. She was taller than Lord Sorzin was, thin and lithe, even through the thick robes. Her skin was deathly pale, but was as smooth as porcelain. Her bald head reminded me of the white face of the moon. Like every other Dark Lord and Lady, her crimson eyes burned. She was beautiful, probably Chinese, but her face was sunken and gaunt, high cheekbones jutting out; she had the face of someone who hadn’t eaten properly for months. And yet, the power she exuded was unquestionable. In fact, her magic seemed far more intense than Lord Sorzin’s, more destructive – though, still nothing compared to Lady Victoria’s dreadful and sickening presence that caused other Dark Lords and Dark Ladies to actively avoid her.

The lady in black strode atop the platform and smiled at us.

If it weren’t for her menacing aura, her face, and her choice of clothes, I honestly would’ve thought of her smile as charming. But, considering everything, I could only look upon her and be horrified, because everyone in this academy was freaking crazy.

“Greetings, my darling little Neophytes,” She began. Her voice was strangely sweet and welcoming, despite her appearance. “I am Lady Khutulun and I will be your instructor for Combat Magic. Every Dark Mage is expected to stand at the peak of physical fitness and martial arts; you will learn to fight, jump, run, climb, punch, kick, and claw your way to victory, because a good hit is just as effective as a good spell. Remember, your enemy cannot throw a fireball at you if you stab them in the face!”

What?

I grabbed the wand on my desk, before anything crazy happened.

“I have… very low expectations for you lot, but I prefer to keep an open mind. Most of you are weak and spindly, but that can be remedied with copious amounts of exercise,” the Dark Lady continued.

She grinned and raised a hand, before snapping her fingers. Suddenly, Olga and I, and all the other Neophytes, found ourselves in an open field of green grass and blood-red skies. Lady Khutulun walked towards us, “Let’s begin.”

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"A mole, you say," Lady Victoria lazily leaned back against her throne of still-living flesh and bone, moaning and groaning in pain. She sighed and chuckled, "One of the Neophytes is a Light Mage? That's just rich! I didn't think the bastards had the gall to send one of their own into the lion's den."

Lord Vaago kept his head low in her presence. Still, he feigned pride and confidence and, as the Crow-Mother did, lounged upon his throne. The Mirror of Remote Viewing that connected them shimmered slightly as he spoke, "I am of the opinion that we should find the mole and dispose of them immediately, after a thorough interrogation, of course. I would rather not sit idly by and wait for the Light Mages to accomplish their plans."

Lady Victoria shook her head. "No."

Lord Vaago bristled, but kept his simmering rage covered and at bay. He breathed in and calmed himself; Lady Victoria was powerful enough and wise enough to join the Dark Council. There had to be a good reason for her to disagree, "You do not agree with me, my lady?"

"No, I do not."

"May I ask why?"

"No."

Inner peace, Lord Vaago's hands shook, but he kept his face still. Even through the mirror, it was difficult to ignore the shear magnitude of Lady Victoria's presence, "Very well, my lady; you mean to do nothing while a mole runs rampant within the Shadow Academy?"

The Crow-Mother grinned, "I mean to sit back and observe. I'm curious as to what the Light Mages are up to and why they felt it wise to send a child into our midst."