Everything was black. Not black like the sky at night, which is filled with thousands of small stars lighting it up, but truly pitchblack. It was a darkness that could consume anything. It seemed like it even swallowed the sound. At least that would be an explanation for this quietness. All this nothingness felt lonely and eternal. Truly, the combination sight of this space, which resembled the bottom of an ocean, seemed like it had always been this quiet. As if things could never change, as if this somehow terrifying, yet beautiful darkness would never fade away. It had something consistent, something safe to it.

Suddenly, a ray of light cut through the room, revealing a stone floor along its way. A door creaking filled the entire room. It wasn't that loud, but the contrast to the silence before made it sound like thunder. As the door opened, the Ray of light became bigger and bigger, casting the darkness away. At the other side of the door, three heads appeared. But something was wrong- none of them moved even the slightest bit. All three breathlessly stared at what had revealed itself in front of them. After a few moments, the first one finally started to say something. ‘This… This can't be true. How is this possible?’ It was a male voice, belonging to the head closest to the door. ‘So the reports were true. We have to report this to the headmaster!’ This time, the voice belonged to a woman, just steps behind the first one. Unlike the male one, whose words were filled with astonishment and shock, she sounded a lot calmer. And still, it was clear that she was just as surprised by their discovery as her partner was. As the first one started to nod in agreement, the third head, who had stayed in the shadows until now stepped into the light. ‘Report what exactly? We came here because worrisome rumors had reached us, our task was to find their cause. Who would still look up to this academy, if even its professors ran away at the slightest sign of unfamiliarity? What would the headmaster think? I suggest we only message him and continue our investigation.’ The faces of the other two changed for a moment. They clearly didn't want to stay at this place for much longer, but it was tight what the third man had said. After a few seconds of consideration the woman nodded. The first one, again, just agreed. And so they stepped into the new discovered territory. With their guard up, one after another entered the room. It was still too dark to see anything outside of a five Meter radius. Before anyone could say anything, the woman started whispering something. It wasn't loud enough for anyone to hear, but it sounded like some kind of chant. The moment she finished her text, eight little flames appeared in the room. A flame had also been the source of light until now, but as one wasn't enough, the woman summoned another eight, seemingly brighter ones. Every last bit of the black of before had vanished now, leaving space for brightness of the fire. ‘Thank you Melissa.’ said the voice of the third one. Only now that everything was filled with light, his rather big statue appeared. His hair was as black as the darkness of just a few moments ago. ‘Don’t mention it.’ Although her voice sounded genuine, one could clearly hear that her response was like a reflex, and that she didn't really pay any attention to either of her companions. She had long red hair, which shared the color of her eyes. It was those very eyes that scanned their surroundings for any dangers. Both she and the taller man wore robes that perfectly covered their whole body. They were dark blue and had a small emblem on them. Now the first man looked at the woman. He too wore a robe. All three of them appeared to be in their mid twenties. ‘I have contacted the headmaster miss Velona. He will be here shortly.’ ‘I am glad. But until then, we should at least find some clues about this room.’ ‘I agree.’ 

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The room was filled with bookshelves. Anyone could see that this collection of books was something impressive by itself, but only very few understood the true value of this small library. ‘Magic books… And so many of them. Who in the world could afford so many hidden treasures?’ It was the first man who said this. Although he was rather tiny for his age, his long blonde hair made him appear older than he actually was. He took one of the books to inspect it. ‘This… Mister Vonstadt! Could you take a look at this please?’ Seemingly surprised by that, the taller man stepped in his direction. ‘What is it mister Velinvo?’ As he saw the book his blond junior was holding, his face changed. ‘I am unfamiliar with these runes.’ He referred to the cover of the book. ‘You know many of the old languages. Is this one of them?’ He gave the book to mister Vonstadt. ‘This is indeed one of the languages I have studied… We have a problem.’ Vonstadt was pale enough to be confused with an undead. ‘What is it mister Vonstadt?’ asked Velvino. ‘This… This text is about black magic.’ Both of the other mages immediately broke out in cold sweat. ‘What? That can't be true! Not at a place like this!’ screamed miss Velona. ‘This Academy teaches nobility. Our security is tighter than that of most armies. Are you absolutely sure that this book contains teachings of black magic?’ asked mister Velvino. ‘Not just this book I fear.’ He looked at the bookshelves. ‘Whoever built this room must be one of the greatest dark mages of the century. I suggest we wait for the headmaster before we continue our search. Who knows what kind of traps are laid around here.’ Both nodded. If any of this was related to black magic, then the headmaster would be the only one who could deal with this.