Mike
(Conference Hall 7, Academy Grounds)
La'ar continued with their lecture and reviewed what they had achieved so far.
"I want to reiterate what I said earlier. You are all fledgling Chosen, with scarcely a few hours behind you in Gift usage. This is all brand new to you, even if theoretically some of you may understand your power better than others. Some of you will grasp your powers early, and others will grasp them much later on. Do not fret if you end up in either of those scenarios. For most of you, you're not the first to wield your Gift among the species of the Galaxy, and you won't be the last either."
"Unless you're a total weirdo like me who gets a human-specific gift no one understands yet." Mike shook his head with an exasperated smirk.
"As we go about our days here at the Academy, I want to impress upon you to activate and use your Gift as often as possible. This not only allows you to 'train' your Gift, but understand it with regular use as well. Humans have a quaint little saying, 'Practice makes perfect', which holds true in this case. This won't be like regular school, where you sit in boring classes all day and rot your brains away with carefully curated propaganda. You will learn about the Livari Commonwealth of Systems, as well as the two other major powers in our Galaxy, the D'Valian Empire, and the Federation of Neutral Peoples, whose representatives you will meet, so as to remain unbiased in our teaching. You will learn about Earth's history in the broader Galaxy, and how humanity is distinct from the other races of the galaxy." La'ar fired off rapidly.
By now, Sam was taking notes by typing away in the air, whilst others did the same. Mike forgot how proficient he was with the Link, and was busy taking notes mentally through the Link while paying attention to every word La'ar spoke.
"However, your most common classes will be Gift-related. There is a place for theory, but as of right now, you are very far behind most species in terms of magic, and you are far older than most species when they begin their training, so be prepared for a rather grueling workload as far as that is concerned. Now, I wish to address the elephant in the room directly." La'ar spoke in a far more serious tone. This got everyone's undivided attention.
"The display that most of you showed on the field today, except for those with Physical gifts, was disappointing. I can imagine that this was the case, especially for yourselves. Some of you with more physically oriented Gifts got used to them rather quickly, as you are a very tactile species that is rather dependent on your bodies for every action you take. Would I be wrong to assume that many of you feel somewhat humiliated by today?" La'ar asked pointedly. It was obvious why he was asking. The Flaming Hammer dude, by the name of Aden Williamson, had laughed and scoffed with a few others at the attempts of those at the target range when it was painfully obvious they weren't making headway. La'ar had told him off, but it didn't lessen the sting.
"I wish to make it clear, before I resort to more direct means, that heckling of your fellows is unbecoming of a Chosen. If you have legitimate grievances with one another, deal with it directly, but choosing to shame your peers due to their lack of understanding is simply uncouth, and if I witness it in my classes again, humiliation equal to what you gave will be dealt back to you. Do you understand?" La'ar stared straight at Aden who folded his arms, and defiantly met La'ar's gaze. It was then that the most bizarre incident so far occurred.
Aden stood up and declared, "Fine, I'll dial it down," he said to La'ar, who received the statement with a nod of appreciation. Then Aden turned to the rest of the class "But I'll only respect you if you earn my respect. If you're just weak and a waste of time, I'll tell you. I'm not in the business of lying to make people feel better. If you suck, you suck. You don't wanna hear you suck, then either get stronger or stay out of my way NPC's." he said vehemently, before sitting down. The statement came as a shock to almost everyone in the class. It was as if Aden had just declared war.
"Let's hope your skills match your bravado, Aden Williamson," La'ar commented drily. "In any event, tomorrow, we will be taking the same class as today, with a caveat. You will each be getting personal instruction from teachers and staff who have been dedicating their lives to the endeavor. Your class will be starting first thing in the morning at 7 o'clock, and you'll be dispersed across the field, as yours will be the only class in the Colosseum at that time. Now, on to housekeeping." La'ar stated matter-of-factly.
"You will each note that you have your own private bathroom facilities, which means that there is no need for communal bathing. However, should you wish to use the communal facilities in the gym, feel free to do so. Our desire here at the Academy is to provide you with the maximum ability of self-expression and individuality, should you desire it. Your house has several common areas, such as a cafeteria, lounge, gymnasium, swimming pool, and other spaces which you can eventually make 'your own' amongst yourselves. I do hope you realize, this means that you will now be 'on your own', and the decisions you make will be your responsibility." La'ar intoned lightly.
"Seeing as tomorrow is 'Wednesday', you may be wondering whether or not you will be able to visit your families. The answer to that is yes. You will get Saturdays to visit your families as standard. However..." La'ar led with a lowering voice.
"Your access to this privilege will either be expanded or reduced, depending on your performance here at the Academy. If it is reduced, you will have less time away from the Academy and your access to the Livari Network will be revoked, amongst other things. If it is expanded, your time away can extend from Friday through Sunday, and your access to the Livari Network expanded to frontier access. This might not mean all that much to you now, but it will become incredibly important very quickly. Emma, you have a question?" La'ar paused, seeing as Emma had stuck her hand up high.
"Yes sir," Emma spoke up next to him. "What is the 'Livari Network', and what causes our status to 'expand' or 'reduce'?" she asked directly.
"A very valid question, thank you, Emma. In essence, the Livari Network is like the internet of Earth, but for the entire Livari Commonwealth, comprising of thousands of worlds and peoples. It is more vast than you could ever imagine. The advantage this gives you is enormous, especially as a Chosen. You see, the Chosen exist in a 'privileged' zone within society, enjoying enormous benefits that other everyday citizens do not. You are exempt from taxes, owe no allegiance to anyone but the Livari, and can travel where you please, when you please, once you graduate. You get access to the Livari's top equipment, and the ability to purchase goods from other planets at preferential rates. You also gain access to work opportunities from other planets. That is the power of the Network." La'ar stated informatively.
"As for your 'status' here at the Academy, it's rather simple. Work to the best of your ability, excel in your studies and the usage of your Gift, and never cease to better yourself. That is how you will remain 'in the green' here. The opposite rings just as true. If you are lax in your studies, you don't work on improving your Gift, or you fail to attend classes and shirk your responsibilities, then your status will gradually decrease, and if severe enough, eventually you will be stripped of your Gift and your memories of this place, and return to being a simple human being. Does that answer your question, Emma?" La'ar asked pleasantly.
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"Perfectly sir, thank you." she responded briskly.
"Any other questions?" La'ar ventured.
A boy with a messy mop of hair, the 'stretchy guy' Mike had raced earlier, raised his hand and asked, "Are we allowed to have relationships here at the Academy, and how will it affect our 'status'?" he asked nonchalantly. The question caused some murmuring around the room.
La'ar smirked slightly at the question. "Due to the nature of human relations, especially those in young humans and the highly charged emotional connections you forge, I was advised not to allow such relationships to exist at the Academy," he stated with a smile. This led to much sighing and groaning around the room, much to Mike's surprise. "However," La'ar began, arresting the negative aura. "That was simply a recommendation. I believe that you ought to still try and live your lives to the fullest, and that includes interpersonal relationships of all kinds. Thus, I will not restrict relationships at the Academy." The room positively buzzed with excitement at La'ar's statement, Mike certainly hadn't expected this, especially given the nature of the Agreement.
"That being said, boys and girls, you are precisely that. Only boys and girls. By your society's standards, you are barely of age, and seeing as you are Chosen, there are far greater priorities and responsibilities for you to attend to than 'hooking up' as you like to call it. Also, seeing as such decisions could very easily alter your lives forever, and not necessarily in a positive way, there are a few caveats to me 'allowing' relationships." La'ar spoke sternly. This got everyone's attention even more focused.
"Firstly, you must understand that you are first and foremost Chosen, not boyfriends or girlfriends. This means that should you wish to pursue relationships, should those relationships cause your performance to diminish beyond tolerable levels, your relationship will be called into question and an inquiry will be started. Another caveat is that should you fall pregnant, you, and your partner if they attend the Academy as well, will be immediately stripped from the Academy, no questions asked. To get into a situation where pregnancy is even a possibility means that you choose self-gratification over your responsibilities as a Chosen." La'ar spoke severely, eliciting several whispers.
"If this seems extreme to you, let me be clear. You chose to accept the Agreement, and you agreed to take up the responsibility of being a Chosen, which includes being called upon in life-or-death situations one day. If that duty is at all called into question, to borrow an earth colloquialism, you will be dropped like a stone. We get to decide what to allow, and what not to allow. I am already going against my better judgment in allowing this because I wish to allow you to make your case yourselves. Do not make me regret this decision. Do I make myself clear?" La'ar asked forcefully. The class called out "Yes, sir!"
"Wonderful! Let's move on to a few other items on today's list." La'ar began. The minutiae was easily the most boring part of the lecture they had to endure for the next 30 minutes. Bathroom etiquette, meals, the curriculum, a map of the Academy, and basic Link usage for those that hadn't experimented with it yet.
"Pretty standard fare actually, I was expecting this to be a little crazier." Mike thought pleasantly.
"My last few announcements are far less boring than what I just went through, so pay attention. You will each be granted 1000 Lithrum each, which is the equivalent of $10,000 for reference." Every mouth dropped wide open at that announcement, and a few gasps could be heard. "This decision was not made frivolously, but with intent. You may do with these funds whatever you desire, however, this allowance was made so that those of you who left behind family in dire situations might be able to assist them with their situations. Remember, be responsible with what you're given, and you will be rewarded in kind. That is the way the Livari like to do things, and we will always appreciate hard work, responsibility, and wisdom." he stated with a hint of pride.
"Moving on to the next item, which may catch some of you unawares. As you know, there were a number of people who, over the last 200 years, helped to create and prepare the Academy in order to welcome you. It took them copious amounts of time, energy, and effort to do so. They were the original founders of secret societies, formed in order to facilitate bringing Attuned into the fold and expanding the pool of magical humans in their time. This was a noble cause and one which they undertook to prove that humanity could be trusted with magic. They also naturally served to bear witness to the long-term effect of magic on the human body and psyche."
"Their long toil and labor bore much fruit. Thousands of people were recruited and granted magic. It took them much time and effort to remain secret, but they persisted, and the Academy you see before you is the result, which is why I applauded them earlier in assembly. Sadly, however, their good intentions fell prey to something all too common. Not magic poisoning, not the Subversion, but simple human greed. Ever since the end of your 'Second' World War, the magic users felt that they ought to exert their authority on the world and influence it, to facilitate one day ruling over it. They fomented unrest in many countries, and installed themselves into instrumental positions around the world, using their Gifts to bring about disruption and chaos." The room was silent at these revelations. One would imagine such a story would be rejected out of hand, but this was La'ar speaking, the alien who single-handedly spoke to 8 billion people, and cast a spell on a planet. When he spoke, you believed.
"You may be wondering why they would do such a thing. The prevailing thought was that if they could instill fear, chaos, dissent, and enough unrest, the world would fall into such a terrible state that serious consideration would be made by the citizenry to overhaul their ruling systems. That is where the Society would have swooped in, and 'restored order', taking their 'rightful' place at the head of society, and gradually given magic to humanity bit by bit." La'ar finished the story. The class was silent, listening with rapt attention.
"To say that we Livari were furious at their attempts to subvert the natural order and progression of humanity is a gross understatement. The Society had one singular goal: to prepare the world for magic and prove humanity could handle it. They had, over time, allowed the belief that they were superior to cloud their minds and that in turn caused them to look down on 'mere' humans, seeing themselves as the 'Chosen people', and so justifying their 'right' to rule the Earth. One could say we should have foreseen this earlier, but just as I allow you to prove to me that you can handle relationships alongside your duties as Chosen in training, so too did we wish to give humanity the chance to show its mettle, all on its own."
"We still stand by our decision, however. For the most part, the Society played its part and fulfilled every request we made of it. It was in the absence of further goals that they began to invent more goals for themselves, and the power-hungry preyed on that 'need'. It seems humanity needs goals in order to thrive, and that was a valuable lesson for us to learn as well. That being said, this story was to caution you concerning the 'legacy' members of the Society. You see, when the Livari came to Earth a month ago, we inadvertently ruined the plans the Society had laid for themselves to rule over the planet. They were a literal 'monarchy' all unto themselves, and as such, were 'stripped' of their titles and 'relegated' to being 'mere' Chosen once more. You can imagine that they blame the Livari, yes, but you see, there's something else that they may come to despise even more." La'ar spoke with gravity.
"And that something else would be you, my dear Chosen. They can't take out their frustrations on the Livari, for we are beyond their powers, however, what about the fledgling Chosen who scarcely know their Gifts yet? Those are targets some just won't be able to resist. The chances of them showing you a measure of contempt or irritation are not zero. Please be aware of this, and don't let it affect you or your time here. I am not a 'policeman', and I won't always be there to mediate between your houses, so in this instance especially, I encourage you to stand by one another. Your house will become your family, and good family looks out for each other, yes?" La'ar asked the class at large.
"Yes sir!" they called out, the feeling of camaraderie beginning to form amongst each other.
"Splendid! I have one item remaining. This is part of your curriculum, and rather exciting I might add. You'll be going on a field trip in three days." La'ar said with a satisfied smirk. The room became abuzz with chatter and a few hands went up.
"Yes, Stanley?" La'ar gestured to the guy who'd had clumps of dirt stuck to him during the day. Stanley spoke with an accent Mike couldn't quite place but almost sounded German. "Sir, where will we be going? Because if we're going to Europe, please consider Holland, it's a beautiful nation, we have windmills, flowers, and the most amazing farming system as well!" he said. This set the class buzzing even more, many wondering where they would be going, especially if it were Gift-related.
"I wonder if we're going to a training facility?" Mike wondered.
"Hey Mike, you think we're gonna go to a museum in Europe with a secret access panel, and we'll see a sub-level with magical artifacts showing the influence of the first magicians on Society!?" Sam said in a not whisper. Sam was clearly really into this new lore they were discovering and Mike was about to answer when La'ar spoke over the chatter.
"Now now, settle down. Thank you for your suggestion Stanley, but I think you'll much prefer where I'll be taking you," he said with a smirk. "For you see my fledgling Chosen..." La'ar paused for dramatic effect, before projecting a floating picture of the now-famous Aurora in orbit above Earth, the starship that the Livari had first traveled to Earth in.
"You're going sightseeing, to five different worlds in the Milky Way Galaxy." La'ar finished with a flourish.
The room erupted in a clamor. Mike looked wide-eyed to his right where his newfound classmates were seated. They all looked at each other, and each of them joined in the cacophony.
Only one thought blitzed through Mike's mind along with his entire class."This is gonna be epic!!!"