Royal Pains

Apollo Keating

4 Years Later

*slurrrrrp*

“Ahh, this guava margarita is absolutely to die for.” I sucked the rest of it down and looked out on the beach.

Maverick chuckled, “I had this strange dream last night.”

“What was it about?” I looked at him as he sat stirring his jack and coke.

“I woke up in some strange world full of magic, it was beautiful. Everything felt so vibrant and surreal, it was insane.”

“Huh, I had a pretty similar dream. I wonder if we were connected somehow.” I started laughing, however, he sat staring me dead in the eyes.

“Of course we are.” I stopped laughing and grew concerned.

A figure approached causing me to look up, a tall, black hair girl with bright green eyes. She was extremely toned and had a scar on her lip. “You should know we’ll always be connected, Snow.”

“Sphynx? What… what the hell is going…” Before I could finish another word a figure appeared in front of me. Odin stood before me holding the same handgun to my head as before. He smirked before everything went dark again.

I shot up in my bed, dripping with sweat and gripping my covers. The door swung open and Mia came flying through.

“Come on you idiot we’re going to be late for the… Are you okay, you look like shit.”

I finally caught my breath and looked over at her. She had a very concerned look on her face, probably because my face was blood-red. “Yea, just had a nightmare that’s all.” She didn’t want to leave out of concern, but nodded and closed the door. This had been the seventh time in the last three weeks this had happened to me. I wasn’t sure if it was a sign, or something else. Each dream though different all lead to the same ending.

I got out of bed and went to the sink to wash off my face. I was fourteen now, I had allowed my hair to grow long enough to my shoulders. My chin had a scar on it from a gash I received in the dungeons from an A-class creature. I had built my body up even though you couldn’t tell due to this academy uniform.

The men’s uniform was a white button-up with a silk black undershirt. Each academy student's class was split up depending on strength, and we were given a hoodless capelet that barely went past our shoulders with an emblem on it. Ruby and I had silver with the crest of a dragon in it. We had black pants which looked fancy but seemed very breathable, I figured for fighting. We had matte leather black boots which I couldn’t figure out if they were good for combat, or for a dance occasion. Overall, I give the uniform a middle thumb.

I looked back in the mirror, my eyes seemed a little more droopy due to the lack of sleep. I put my hair up into a half ponytail letting my sides hang down. My dad being the manly man he was didn’t approve of this haircut. In my previous life, the military didn’t allow long hair like in this world. So, I planned on taking advantage of everything I could here.

I tossed my daggers into the bracelet that the school had sent me. It was a silver bracelet with a small orb in one of the links. It was made with void magic, an extremely rare refined magic. I could count the users on the continent on a single hand. They used magic to make these bracelets more or less a backpack. It wasn’t too large of a space, enough for our weapons, books, a snack, and whatever other small items someone might need.

Our bags had been sent there weeks prior with whatever other things we may need, school and street clothes, toiletries, off time items. We were required to stay within the campus barrier during the week and allowed to go home and out on the weekends. Though something they didn’t know of was my transmission crystal. I had already tested it prior and could go in and out of the barrier using it without being detected.

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I’m sure other kids had the same idea as me, though these crystals were very hard to get. If my family wasn’t the right hand of the Thornes, I wouldn’t have gotten it. I exited the room to find everyone already waiting for me.

“Could you have taken any longer?” Mia was pacing back and forth. She was one of those thirty-minute early types. I was back in the Army, but now I prefer to take my time.

My mother approached me and adjusted my capelet and the button-up underneath. “You look very handsome in this sunny.” She gave me a long hug. “I’m sorry your father couldn’t be here to see you off to work.”

“I know, I’m not worried about it.” Before I could even say goodbye Mia grabbed my arm and began to drag me out.

“LET'S GO, DUMBASS!”

“Bye, Mom I love you!” As the door shut I could hear her laugh and repeat it back to me. She dragged me out the gate and a little down the road before finally letting go of me. “You know you could have just asked nicely.”

“Are you kidding, you would have never left if I didn’t drag you out. You are so damn lazy and have no regard for other people's times. What if we’re late for orientation huh, I would be so angry.”

We walked watching as the lively streets chimed with celebration. Zakore wasn’t the only academy or school going in session today. There were other small academies for normal soldiers and even just some schools.

“Do you ever wonder if it would be better to be weak like some of them?” I turned to her, a little confused but part of me understood.

I put my hands in my pockets and turned back to the street, “I suppose that all depends on what you want to do. If you're strong then you’re almost expected to be a soldier or a dungeon clearer. And if not you get the luxury of living a simple life.”

“Is there anything wrong with a normal life? In the end, you won’t have to be held down by the dead.”

“You know you are depressed when you talk like this. Cheer up, you might fail out of the academy anyways so don’t worry.” I laughed as she grew red with mad, I knew it would cheer her up a bit.

“I will not fail out you bastard!”

“Uh-huh.”

We continued walking as the streets got more and more crowded. Even though the pathways were as big as roads in my past life, it felt like rush hour in New York City.

“Please stop, I just want to get to the academy.” We turned to an alley to see a dwarf collecting his things from the ground as a group of four kids surrounded him.

“What the hell are they doing?”

“Discrimination due to him being a dwarf. Nothing new.” I began to make my way over there.

“You know there are four of them and two of us right Apollo?”

“If you’re that concerned I’ll talk to them myself, as a gentleman of course.”

The closer we got, the more I started to recognize the people attacking the dwarf. The first two who caught my eye were the Paxton twins. The second royal family dimwitted idiots. Though they weren’t too bright, they had very capable magic from what I had heard. Talking to them was about as entertaining as watching circus monkeys. I didn’t recognize the third or the fourth male with them, probably people trying to be cool with the royals.

“If it isn’t Mia and her lap dog. How have you been fido?” Allister, the male of the Paxton twins, spoke to me. He tried to pat my head and I pushed his hand away.

“Keep your grubby hands off me, imbecile. Shouldn’t you be in a library trying to help your nanoscopic brain?” Though I didn’t need to use bigger words, it always made me smile watching the internet explorer symbol load behind his eyes.

“Don’t talk to my brother with such a tone you pest.” This was Danielle now, she was a little brighter than her twin brother, though that wasn’t saying much. “This is none of your concern anyways so how about you piss off?”

“Hey dwarf, are these pricks bothering you.” He nodded his head up and down. He had a green capelet with a snake embroidered on it meaning he was in class four. I put my hand on his shoulder, “You can head on to the academy then, don't worry about these idiots.” He took that chance to run as fast as he could in the direction Isiah had also gone.

“Hey, who do you think you are speaking to royalty like that you piece of shit. I’m not sure who you think you are, but compared to them you’re trash.” Ahh yes, the bottom feeder was approaching me now.

Mia sat on the sidelines watching, “Hey Danielle, shouldn’t you tell your entourage they’re making a mistake.”

“If he can’t beat Luna’s shadow, he has no place in the first class. We all know he only got in because of her anyways.”

Mia exhaled and put her head down, “So be it.”

He placed his hand on my shoulder, “Hey bug, are you listening to me? Also, why don’t you cut that girly hair? It makes you look like a fucking elf.”

I glanced back at him over my shoulder with a gaze so strong you might mistake it for death itself. “Did I say you could touch me?” He gulped a bit as he began to sweat. He removed his hand from my shoulder and started to back up, but it was too late. My sights were already set on embarrassing this kid. “Kneel you trash.”