The morning daylight broke through the enormous expanse of Lei. Dozens of alarms sounded over the upper floors of the Scholomark Tower. Ringing scattered across the interior, vibrating through the walls and causing the entire building to shake. Heads left the pillows. Legs kicked the blankets, jumping over and landing on the ground. They scuttled around their rooms, adding to the intense morning.
He heard students screaming, howling as if triumphing over a battle. Water faucets turned on and fans roared through the tower. Toothbrushes were picked up without time to waste. Some left their room with their pajamas on.
However, Moko, a 12th-year, kept his eyes closed. He spun around to press his face on the pillow. –Five more minutes…
When about to fall asleep, the alarms coming from his adjacent neighbors rang at the same time. The onslaught of the same screeching noise reaching his ears caused him to roll in bed again. He grumbled with furrowed eyes. When he thought his neighbors would shut off their alarms, a minute had passed with no change.
Then the person above him dropped their phone onto the floor. A loud thud caused Moko to flinch. Obnoxious judders followed, emanating from above with a ringtone his brain memorized. His face twitched, experiencing the chaotic wake of hundreds of students. He gripped his bedsheets, unable to endure it any longer.
“Oh, fine!” Moko shouted as he shot up from the bed. When he opened his eyelids, the room responded to his wake and lit the dark interior with a gradual gleam of iridescent light trailing the essence of the Spring dew. The glass panels changed in transparency. Shifting from a gray opaqueness to a lucid surface, the morning sunlight beamed into his room.
His neighbors silenced their alarms one by one as they stomped their feet, hurrying to turn on their showers. Moko responded shortly after. His eyes were still heavy, rubbing them to ease his tiredness. He got out of bed and stepped onto the warm floor. The warmth of the wooden tiles comforted his feet. Lights above him followed with every step he took. The entire room turned on as he snatched his folded clothes and entered the bathroom—the same routine and the same morning.
His heartbeat remained steady, his mind not concerned or much affected by this special day. From undressing to entering the shower, and then from finishing his wash to brushing his teeth, everything about today was any other day. The floors above and below him were silent. Students already exited their rooms, and Moko was the last few to follow. He dried his black hair with his towel one last time before leaving.
His closet opened by itself and the bathroom door closed behind him. Scratching his side underneath his sweater, he grabbed his shoes before heading down the corridor. The lights above dimmed and turned off as he traversed to the door without a handle. The closer he got, the louder the voices became, the sounds of seniors conversing with enthused volumes. Taking another step forward, the door opened. White light crept through to him until he was left with the sight of a blinding beam emanating from the lively tower.
Moko joined with the rest residing in the 12-story tower. This singular yet enormous building occupied all the students from 7th to 12th years. By class, the older students occupied the higher floors. The massive atrium extended from the bottom to the top. The frosted panels of glass overlaying the ceiling cast white light that shined on the interiors, radiating a cryptic environment of a wintery landscape.
Residing on the 11th floor, he saw the seniors screaming and yelling with joy. Everyone embraced each other. Fellow study mates cried on one’s shoulders or jumped frantically. A group of girls and guys spoke with unending tangents of dreams and complaints. Moko even saw a cluster of people leaning against the railing to look down at the atrium. As time passed, more of them joined, pressing their bodies against the edge to see the ground floor.
Walking onto the marble ground to join with everyone, he suddenly felt an arm extending and wrapping around his neck. Moko felt his head being pulled low, becoming locked around the grasp in a tight fold. Alert, he raised his head to see the one trapping him, and a familiar face came into sight.
“What took you so long,” Lorace asked with his arm tightening around Moko. He pushed away, but Lorace persisted. “I know you know that today was our graduation. Are you not excited?”
“N–No, I am,” Moko insisted, fighting back with equal strength. “Graduation doesn’t start until a few minutes, so I wanted to take my time.”
“But still! It’s been twelve years that we stayed in this Domain. Now that we finished, we can finally get our Systems! You should at least be thrilled!”
“Oh, yeah?” Amidst his excitement, Moko began exerting more strength to his resistance. He raised his hand behind Lorace’s back and pushed his head down to disorient him. Then with brute force, Moko unfolded the strangling arm until he freed himself. Breaking away, he faced Lorace as he stared back.
“You better calm yourself,” Moko said, charging in and tackling him. His arms heaved and snatched the shoulders. But Lorace fought back with the same vigor.
“Not today!” Lorace reached down to find a good grip on Moko’s body. Moko deflected most of his attempts, but it was clear that their wild play brought many eyes to them. Students around watched him and Lorace. They quickly dispersed so they wouldn’t get dragged into their banter. Some stayed and laughed, surrounding them and cheering them on.
Moko, in the middle of his brawl, caught glimpses of a few others engaging in the same playfight. Shirts got tugged and arms searched to find an advantage. Girls lightheartedly pushed against each other, and boys nearly tossed themselves. Some knocked against him and Lorace, causing their stance to falter before standing back up to continue.
Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
His ears absorbed distant rhythms of music playing as the floor bounced with students jumping to the beat. A couple went back inside their rooms, seeing the overwhelming scenery taking place.
After a long minute of repeated clashes, Moko broke through Lorace’s defense and grabbed his head in a chokehold. Lorace became disoriented as his hands wavered on his sides. He tried pushing himself away, but Moko’s grip was tight. He kept Lorace in a strict position. Grunting, he spoke beneath his narrow mouth begging to breathe comfortably, “Okay, man– That’s enough playing! You can let go now!”
He gave frantic responses, but Moko kept his grip tight and never let go. He grinned slyly, playing with Lorace’s head by swaying it side to side. He whispered in his ear, “This is for what you did earlier.”
Lorace chuckled nervously. “Y–Yep! Of course! I deserve it, haha! Now, could you just–”
“Ah–ah,” Moko interrupted. He placed his hand on the lips, muffling plead words for him to let go. He felt Lorace resisting harder, pushing himself away using his arms and legs. But Moko held his ground, chuckling away as he overpowered him. “Now that I think about it, this is a great time to pay back all the things I went through over these past few years because of you.”
When Moko uncovered the mouth for him to speak, Lorace asked with a mildly strangling throat, “Oh, did I really push you that far? S–sorry about that! I was just trying to be a good partner!”
He sighed, “Lifting weights shouldn’t have been so painful. In fact, you had me do the heavy lifting while you never broke a sweat.”
“At least I spotted you.”
“When you weren’t on your phone,” Moko said while tightening his arm again. Lorace’s voice went up an octave, wheezing. “After we graduate and get our Systems, I’m going to have to give you a–”
There was an instant rush of pressure emitting from Moko’s head. He felt a hand yanking his hair from behind, causing his words to be cut off. His body followed the movement and got out of the playful position with Lorace. His head was freed from the grasp and retreated, sighing deeply as he watched Moko entangled in a new situation.
He reached behind to grab the unknown person, but they immediately backed off. Feeling no one behind him, he grunted while rubbing his throbbing head. He brushed his hair gently, mildly concerned that he lost some of his hair. Moko turned around to see a short figure standing before him, a person with wavy caramel hair. He narrowed his eyes and said with straight lips, “Serina.”
Serina flipped her hair behind. She pointed at Moko. “If I see you doing that again, I’m going to pluck out your hair next time.”
“Oh, hey there, Serina,” Lorace waved. Moko watched her wave back and trade a few words with him. But he stayed silent for the remainder of it, scratching a tingly spot on his head to kill time.
“What’s with that look, Moko,” Serina asked with a half-genuine tone, shifting focus from Lorace to him. She walked up with her hands behind her back, leaning her body forward and giving him a sly gesture. Lorace stepped out of the view. Moko veered in his direction but he quickly shook his head, implying he wanted nothing to do with her. “Hmm? Did you fail the finals or something? Smile! Or are you sad that we’re not going to be roommates anymore?”
“I’m not sad, and I can smile when I want to, thank you,” he replied, slowly retreating from her approach.
“Then smile right now!”
“Maybe next time… And you’re a little too close.”
“You’re no fun! No fun at all!” Serina said before she started to skip around Moko like a little child. He kept his body stiff, watching her hit him like a punching bag. She giggled in between her taunts. She then moved to Lorace and shook his shoulders, laughing excitedly and matching the energy with other seniors jumping the same way.
Serina looped back around to harass Moko, occasionally bumping into other people who were too busy in their thrilled state to care. He heard her laugh and taunted him without pausing. Conceded, he stared at Lorace with a look of resignation, glaring back with a half-smile and shrugging in helplessness.
But when the clock struck nine, the iridescent light and white beaming rays passing through the frosted glass ceiling dimmed. The bottom of the atrium turned red. The crimson light sparkled and overwhelmed the passing daylight. It swayed in oceanic webs that painted the whole interior, flowing as if reflecting off from the water’s surface.
Moko immediately felt the atmosphere of the Scholomark Tower shifting. An expectant and impatient group of seniors turned into unrelenting cheers and praise expanding across all the floors. They marched their way to the railing to gaze down on the atrium, and their delightful howls echoed through the vast cavity of the building. Juniors and all the underclassmen filling the lower floors took part in the opening ceremony.
The sight of red overwhelmed his sight. Everything was covered in the gleam, and there was no place that he couldn’t spot that wasn’t coated in such flare. His body felt soothed by the touch of the light, and his skin was warm. It was a close feeling of standing beside a small campfire. His throat felt dry and his mind grew light, for this crimson sparkle signified the final days for the ones leaving, the ones graduating.
Serina stopped her playful banter and turned to look at Moko. Their mouths were open and their bodies stiff. She quickly stormed off to observe the bottom floor of the atrium. He gazed at Lorace who had the same thrilled look. Their expressions were speaking over their lips.
They nodded and walked together to join Serina. But observing her, she tip-toed and hopped, putting an effort to poke her head over the railing. Though she was taller than it, her short frame and height rendered it difficult for her to see the ground 11 floors below. As Moko went up to her, he decided to help out, going behind and wrapping his arms around her waist. He lifted her, elevating her view without a problem. She ignored him, never minding his presence but continued glaring down. Lorace stood beside them, pressing his arms against the fencing, and lowered his head. Moko did the same, shouldering the rail and veering his sight to the base floor.
He viewed the place that would only be revealed on the day of graduation. Standing tall and firm on the concrete and marbled floor was a massive figure that burned and gleamed. The lower stories were blinded by an intense light, beaming with a red hue that attracted all the heads. These luminous rays emanated from a large sheet situated in one region. It was a wall that flowed like water, rimmed by a brown mixture of soil and stone. There it was, the thing where students were to get the very thing that they had enrolled here for, the magical veil that would give them their dreams and futures, the figure that would offer their life-long Systems: The Portal.