Aodhán fell onto the gymnasium floor, gasping desperately for air as Coach Harvey removed the set of null armor from his body.
"By all the stars, I feel like I’m dying," he groaned, his body convulsing with exhaustion. Daruk collapsed beside him, his limbs seemingly limp like overcooked noodles.
"I...I just want it to end," Daruk wheezed as he turned onto his back, closing his eyes. "I doubt there's a single bone left intact after this ordeal.”
Aodhán tried to laugh, but it turned into a wheeze, so he just smiled instead.
He, Daruk, and Andrew had linked up after the race began, but they’d only had a few minutes to talk before they began feeling the increasing weight of their null armors, and after that, they had ditched their conversation in favor of reaching the end of the race with their lives still intact.
Unfortunately, Andrew had fallen somewhat behind, just like nearly 70% of the class. However, this time, Aodhán noticed something different. Eren, Bakhtin, and the other metal Awakened students had completed the exercise much faster than usual. Though they still looked exhausted and strained, they weren’t anywhere near the brink of collapse that Aodhán felt.
Coach Harvey glared at them as they removed their null armors on their own, sweating and panting but still standing strong. It was strange, and the only explanation Aodhán could think of was that, as metal awakened, they had developed some resistance to the null metal's effects. As the last metal Awakened handed in their armor, Coach Harvey sighed and muttered to his assistant, Miss Greene, “We’ll have to find another way to torture these demons before they build up a full immunity.”
The fact that he’d been right felt wrong to Aodhán. He had thought that null metal completely shut down the effect of every other affinity, but it seems he had been wrong.
A sudden eruption of groans shook him out of his musings, and he turned his head to see a pile of groaning students on the floor next to him. He let out a soft chuckle and closed his eyes as he tried to calm his still racing heart.
He had barely rested for a minute when someone kicked his legs and wheezed, "Please move."
Aodhán felt like ignoring them, but after a moment, he opened one eye and glared at Alesh. "Do I look like I can move right now?"
"I don't know, Aodhán, but you're definitely in a more comfortable position than I am,” Alesh grumbled, trembling under the weight of his null armor.
Aodhán shot him another glare and muttered, "I fail to see how that’s my problem, Alesh. Just switch lanes and leave me alone."
As he was about to close his eyes again, Alesh threatened, "If you don’t move, Aodhán, I swear by the Ascendants, I'll collapse on you and trap us both with my ridiculous weight."
“Arrgh!” Aodhán grumbled, and with a glare that promised certain vengeance, he rolled unto the next lane to allow Alesh to pass. He spent only a few minutes on that lane before he was forced to move again, but when a third person kicked his legs and asked him to move again, Aodhán raised a threatening finger and glared daggers at Scarlett. “I swear to the Ascendants, the next person that kicks me is going to get a bolt of lightning in the face.”
He moved again, brimming with irritation and annoyance, and although one would have thought his threat would have kept his friends away, it seemed only to encourage them. He barely spent a minute in the new lane when someone kicked his legs again, and this time Aodhán exploded.
He shot to his feet, a bolt of red lightning crackling in his hand as he prepared to blast the annoying individual to oblivion. However, Yurin shouted. “Please, oh Lord of thunder and lightning, do not smite this lowly mortal, for I only seek a passage to free myself of my heavy burdens.”
As amusing as Yurin’s statement was, he was obviously in pain. His knees buckled constantly under the weight of his armor, and he struggled to keep himself upright.
Aodhán sighed as his annoyance faded and asked. “What have I done to deserve such cruelty, Yurin? There’s literally a ton of empty—”
He paused and glanced to the side, where he expected to see a ton of empty spaces. However, the pile of students he’d seen earlier had grown to occupy the entire space, blocking others from reaching the finish line. In fact there was nowhere for anyone to pass, except by kicking him, and when Aodhán realized there were still about a dozen people who were still crawling their way towards the finish line, he gave up on resting and muttered to himself. “I might as well leave since I can’t seem to get any rest.”
“Thank you, oh benevolent lord. Your mercy shall surely go down in history.”
“Oh piss off, Yurin.” Aodhán gave him the finger and glanced at the pile of students. “Where’s Daruk?”
He found Daruk a moment later, buried under a pile of carelessly thrown limbs and bodies. Surprisingly, Daruk didn’t seem too bothered by the number of limbs draped across his body, and with a tired sigh, Aodhán leaned down to drag his brother out of the unpleasant pile.
“No, leave me alone. I want to die.” Daruk groaned.
“No time for that buddy; we’ve got a class to attend in approximately forty-five minutes, and I’d like to eat breakfast first.”
Daruk grumbled for a moment before pushing himself up to his feet, and together they headed towards the bathroom. Aodhán entered one of the stalls and immediately soaked himself in a tub of steaming hot water. The water soothed his sore muscles, and before long, Aodhán began to feel much better. He stepped out of the tub a few minutes later, when the water became tepid, and promptly put on his uniform.
When he finally stepped out of the stall, he found Daruk and Yurin waiting at the entrance of the gym. He draped his arms across their shoulders and apologized. “Sorry, the water was gloriously warm.”
Daruk looked up at him and snorted. “I see you’re in a much better mood.”
Aodhán shrugged. “I had a rough night. However, it turns out all I needed was thorough physical stimulation and a warm bath to get myself out of my depressive funk.”
“Well, good for you.” Yurin muttered dryly and sighed. “Why did I have to suffer for a sin I did not commit? I attended no parties, drank no booze, nor did I put any body parts in inappropriate places, yet I had to suffer with the rest of you cretins.”
Daruk snorted. “I might be guilty of the first two, but I’m innocent of the last. Sadly, I cannot speak for Aodhán.”
“Hey!” Aodhán glared at Daruk and pushed him forward. “I’m innocent too!”
Daruk laughed and wiggled his eyebrow. “Are you, Aodhán? Are you truly innocent?”
Aodhán sputtered, and they all laughed. Andrew joined them a minute later, after which they headed down to the cafeteria for breakfast.
The cafeteria was nearly filled up when they arrived, and there was a slight din of conversation in the air, coupled with the clinks of cutlery scraping against ceramic plates. The noise within the cafeteria increased the moment the other students noticed them, but after the last seven weeks, Aodhán barely noticed the extra attention.
They picked up their meals and moved to one of the empty tables at one corner of the cafeteria to sit. Eyes followed their movement, and Aodhán caught more than a few murmurs about the new leaderboard ranking.
As they finally sat down to eat, Yurin asked, "How can you guys eat under all this scrutiny?"
Daruk shrugged and pointed at Aodhán. “To be fair, you’re not exactly the one they’re staring at. It’s him.”
Aodhán shoved a piece of bacon into his mouth and grimaced. “It’ll all fade away in a day or two. They’re just hyped up about the updated leaderboard and the tension between me and Cyrus. They’ll get bored eventually.”
Yurin scoffed. "I doubt it this time, not with Cyrus planning to challenge the tower every day until he takes back first place."
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
Aodhán snorted but had to admit Yurin might have a point.
Daruk sighed and changed the topic. "Speaking of the tower, are you planning to challenge it today?"
Yurin grimaced and nodded. "Yeah, though I doubt I’ll shake up the leaderboard much. I haven’t really gained any new skills since my last attempt."
"You could always wait," Andrew suggested. "Give it a week or two."
“No.” Yurin shook his head. “I’m the only privileged commoner not within the top ten ranks, and people are starting to notice. I’ve heard some students gossiping about it, and I hate it.”
Aodhán nodded in understanding. “Whatever you decide, Yurin. I wish you the best.”
Just as he finished speaking though, the cafeteria door burst open, and although Aodhán refused to turn around, the others turned their heads to see Cyrus and his group stride into the cafeteria, their expressions grim.
A hush fell over the cafeteria as the gazes of several students darted excitedly between Cyrus and Aodhán as if waiting for a confrontation, but Aodhán refused to give them the drama they craved. Instead, he shoved a piece of toast into his mouth and ignored them.
However, it seemed Cyrus had other ideas, because instead of moving to a different table, Aodhán felt Cyrus’s blazing core begin to draw closer to him.
He grinded his jaw in annoyance and shoved another piece of bacon into his mouth. Okay, maybe he had been in the mood to be petty, competitive, and a little egotistical yesterday, but he didn't have the strength, nor was he in the mood for any of that today.
Daruk leaned in closer and whispered. “Keep your cool, Aodhán; he’s looking for an excuse to stir up trouble.” Aodhán didn't respond, but even when he felt Cyrus’s core blazing behind him, he refused to turn around.
The tension in the air skyrocketed and became nearly oppressive as the rest of the cafeteria seemed to hold their collective breaths. Students stared at them on edge as they waited for the inevitable clash.
Andrew leaned back in his chair, silent and tense as he glared at Cyrus, while Daruk wore his usual cold expression. Yurin, however, seemed nervous, his eyes darting from one person to another before whispering to himself. "I’d pay good money to not be here right now."
The silence within the cafeteria stretched for almost a minute before Cyrus suddenly spoke up, seemingly annoyed that he had been forced to initiate the conversation. “You truly are disrespectful, aren’t you?”
Aodhán finally turned around and grinned. “Hey Cyrus, to what do I owe the pleasure?”
Cyrus scowled. “I hope you realize that I am the son of a duke, a representative of my father in this academy. An insult to me is an insult to the duke himself.”
Aodhán grimaced, not liking where this conversation was leading one bit. Turning to face Cyrus fully, he replied. “I’ve never insulted you, your station, or spoken ill about you where you could hear me.”
A vein on Cyrus’s forehead bulged as his anger flared. “So you’ve spoken ill about me.”
Aodhán shrugged. “I will only admit to such a crime if you admit that you’ve done the same.”
Cyrus glared at him for a moment before letting out a tight-lipped smile. “Enjoy your moment, Aodhán. In fact, savor it, because this will be the last time you have it.” His tone was sharp and cutting, a contrast to the smile he wore.
Aodhán reciprocated with a similar expression. “I’ll make sure to do so, Cyrus. Thanks for caring.”
Cyrus bristled at his tone, his hands clenching into a fist, but Lilith held him back before he could do anything drastic. “He’s not worth it.” She said as she massaged his fist and smiled sweetly at Aodhán. “After all, his manners are just as poor as his station.”
They left after that, and Aodhán sighed. What he’d done to make them suddenly hate him this much—he didn’t know. Right from the beginning, there had always been a sort of tension and distaste between them, but it had never been this bad.
Perhaps something had happened to them during the break that had somehow involved him? It seemed a logical conclusion, since this intense hatred they felt for him had only begun after the break.
Aodhán returned his attention to his food, but he had lost his appetite, and although Yurin tried to bring up exciting conversations, Aodhán's mood had soured.
He was pushing his food around his plate when he suddenly felt a flare of anger and irritation bubbling up within him, but he quickly realized the emotion was from Varéc and shut down the psychic link.
The red haze that had begun covering his vision subsided, and Aodhán shuddered. He had almost lost control of himself right now—something that hadn’t happened in weeks. He really needed to get to the advanced library and read up on better ways to exercise control over Varéc.
Their bond had deepened significantly after their battle with the IceDrake, and Aodhán worried that his control had weakened. When they finished their breakfast, they split off, with Yurin moving to whatever class he had that morning while they moved to the lecture hall for the class on understanding elemental affinities.
Valerie Potts was already present when they arrived, standing before a large screen that displayed the name of the course in stylish, elemental texts. A few students were already seated, but more than half of the available chairs were still empty, so in their usual manner, they walked towards the middle row and sat down.
The lecture began a few minutes later with Valerie Potts loudly clearing her throat and tapping the screen to reveal a sort of affinity tree that grew downward instead of up. Valerie smiled warmly and addressed them. “I see that coach Harvey has been working you all to the bone.”
Groans echoed out of the gathered students, and Valerie chuckled. “Don’t despair. However terrible the exercises might seem, I assure you that they are for your own good. I and the other fourth-year students are a testament to his training.”
Aodhán smiled wryly, wanting to believe that this daily torture was for his own good, but his body felt otherwise.
“Anyway,” she continued, her voice clear and resonant, “Today, we delve into the fascinating world of elemental affinities, their origins, spiritual attunements, and a fascinating term called affinity inheritance.”
“Starting with the latter, it is a widely known fact that affinities can be passed down from generation to generation, with entire family members all bearing the same affinity and bloodline. However, in most instances, there are outliers, children, who, for a myriad of reasons, take on an affinity different from that of the rest of their families. Can anyone list a few of these reasons?”
Hands shot up in a flurry as this was a well-known topic, one they’d discussed weeks ago under AAT. Valerie glanced around and eventually picked Lilith, who stood up and responded proudly. “There are a ton of reasons, but I’ll only mention three. Astral or cosmic interventions, recessive affinity traits, and environmental influences.”
She sat down with a flourish, not even bothering to wait for Valerie to declare her answer correct or allocate forge points. It was rude, but Valerie didn’t seem to mind too much and simply nodded. “Thank you, Miss Bloodmoon. Ten points.” She turned to the screen, which shifted to display a list of potential causes for what was commonly referred to as an affinity inheritance glitch before proceeding. “There are over a dozen probable causes of an inheritance glitch, some of which include affinity crossbreeding, exposure to rare magical artifacts, genetic mutations, and lastly, chance. In today’s class, we’ll discuss them all before moving on to the topic of spiritual attunements.”
“The foremost cause of an affinity inheritance glitch is, as Lilith said, astral or cosmic events that happen during or before the awakening of an individual. These events could range from the moon festival, which occurs in a few months, the star festival, the festival of convergence, the solstice of the northern lights, and the festival of absence. All of these events have been proven to have a major impact on the awakening of individuals, and statistics have shown that most people who awaken during these cosmic periods are mostly outliers, including myself.”
There was a smattering of laughter before Valerie continued. “The second major reason for an affinity inheritance glitch is our environment. The nature of our environment affects us all, physically, socially, emotionally, mentally, and most of all magically. Individuals who awaken near an active volcano or during a volcanic eruption usually awaken one of five affinities: fire, ash, magma, earth, or explosion, and individuals who awaken during a flood are most likely to be hydromancers. A prime example of this is Unoros, the kingdom of snow and ice, which boasts a whopping 60% of ice, cold, and winter affinities. Nevertheless, even in Unoros, there are fire awakeneds, heat awakeneds, and a current champion of theirs, Niyeli Alcatraz, who cultivates the concept of seasons and is quite famous for her fondness of spring. This proves that the impact of the environment on the affinity of an individual isn’t exactly concrete, although it exerts an influence that is not negligible.”
“The third major reason is a recessive affinity that may come about as a result of chance, exposure to powerful magical artifacts or areas dense with a particular affinity, genetic mutations, or various unexplainable events. One such event is the ingestion of an extremely powerful spiritual fruit or alchemical pill before awakening. Without a core to utilize the essence of these energy-dense resources, the energy soaks into the body and eventually mutates the genetics or natural dispensation of said person.”
“If such a person awakens, it is most likely that they’ll awaken an affinity closely tied to the essence of the pill or fruit they ingested and, in some much rarer cases, a merge of two separate affinities to form something entirely different. A good example is Champion Reiner Rivaldi, from the 3rd Sector, who is an exceptional steam awakened, born from a long line of fire awakeneds.”
The class continued in this manner, and although Aodhán didn’t jot down much as the topic had already been discussed in Awakened Advancement Theory, he thoroughly enjoyed the class and Valerie’s take on it.
After discussing the inheritance-glitch, Valerie moved on to spiritual attunements, which involved exposing oneself to an area dense with a particular essence for a long duration of time. It was based on the idea of environmental influences, and although it was considered extremely dangerous, many believed that by exposing themselves to harsh, energy-dense environments before awakening, they could attune their spirits to a particular element or concept.
The reason it was considered so dangerous was because unawakened individuals lacked the innate resistance that came with gaining an affinity and were more likely to damage their spirit in the process rather than gain any advantages.
The class ended nearly two hours later, and after giving them an assignment on the disadvantages of spiritual attunement, Valerie left the class.
Daruk and Andrew decided to go to one of the training halls for a training session, but Aodhán had other plans. With the rest of his day now free, Aodhán headed up to his room and took out his inscriber, ready to cover every available space in runic scripts.
There were already a ton of runes all over his room, but they weren’t his, and Aodhán didn’t want to spend another night within this room without marking it with his runes.
With a grin born of excitement, Aodhán took out his practice note and began jotting down a list of step-by-step scripts he wanted to inscribe.