The Sunstonians know that we won’t sit idly and do nothing after the amount of destruction they caused in Sector 8. They’re expecting us to retaliate, but we can’t, not the way we usually do. If we are to beat the Sunstonians in this gruesome game, we need to outthink them. We need to attack in a way they would never see coming. This is not just a war of manpower; it is a chessboard, and we’re many steps behind.
General Commander Cerindale Donnovan.
Sector 1, Ragnarok.
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When Aodhán arrived at the library, he made his way to the eagle-eyed librarian and asked. “Good morning. I’m looking for books on familiars and how to best control them. What row can I find them in?”
The woman paused to observe him before she sighed. “Unfortunately for you, those books are in the advanced section of the library. What we have down here are literatures and comics that I doubt would be of any use to you.”
“Is there no way I can check out the books in the advanced section then?” he asked, and the librarian raised an eyebrow in mild annoyance. “It’s called the advanced section for a reason; that means it is only accessible to people in the advanced class.”
She shifted, hesitating for a moment before adding. “Unless you’ve been issued a temporary pass, I cannot help you.”
Aodhán nodded and immediately texted Rahim. Five minutes later, the librarian issued him the temporary pass and led him to the second floor. She then pressed the temporary pass against a small screen embedded in the metallic door, and it opened with a faint creak.
Aodhán walked into the advanced floor, eyes wide in amazement, as he took in the rows and stacks of shelves that filled the hall. Light streamed in from large oval windows, and the musky smell of old books filled the air.
His gaze darted to the cluster of reading tables and chairs situated at the center of the hall, and he suddenly came to a halt as the eyes of several advanced individuals turned his way, the stripes on their uniforms identifying them as 2nd and 3rd year students.
A look of confusion passed through their faces before recognition set in, and the eyes of many widened. Almost immediately, several individuals rushed forward, but they all staggered to a halt when a trio of girls suddenly appeared before him with plastic grins plastered on their faces.
They looked more like a trio of hungry sharks at the scent of blood than the teenagers they really were, and Aodhán instinctively took a step back.
Unfortunately, the door was shut firmly behind him, leaving him no choice but to face them, so he took a deep breath, pushed his nerves aside, and smiled back at the girls.
His gaze darted to the number of stripes on their uniform, and he swallowed when he identified them as third-year students. That explained why the other students had backed off, as they were mostly 2nd-year students.
“Oh my, must be our luck, girls. I can't believe we're standing in the presence of the all-powerful Aodhán Brystion.” The girl in the center chuckled.
Needless to say, she was beautiful. Everyone in the academy was beautiful due to their bloodlines or advancement, but beauty wasn’t uniform, and like Daruk, the girl stood far above average.
Her hair was a river of ink that fell all the way to her waist, and although it had a glossy and wet look, it didn’t stick to her body.
Her black pupils were ringed with two bands, one silver and the other blue. Runic tattoos, not seals, trailed down from the base of her neck until they disappeared beneath her uniform, giving her delicate beauty a slightly rugged look.
The other two girls behind her were not as beautiful, but they still stood way above average. The one on the left was a red head, whose hair glowed and crackled like the embers of a dying flame, while the other had her blonde hair styled in some sort of pixie cut that framed her jaw, and although she had no visible bloodline manifestation, Aodhán recognized her as the strongest of the three.
“How can I help you guys?” Aodhán asked, proud that his voice hadn’t betrayed his anxiety.
The smile of the middle girl stretched even wider as she extended a hand in greeting. “I am Bethany Lockwood. By my right is Maven Shadescroft, and by my left is Sylphie Silverspire. We have heard so much about you, and would like to have a nice conversation with you.”
Aodhán nodded slowly and furiously, thinking of a way to extricate himself from the situation. “I take it this ‘nice conversation revolves around the topic of my familiar.”
“Correct.” Bethany gasped as if she were surprised he made such a deduction, but why else would three third-year students be interested in a lowly first-year student? “Come with us, Aodhán; we have much to discuss.”
She turned and began making her way to a corner of the library, but her posse remained behind, their presence a silent threat that destroyed every thought of escape.
Seeing as he had no choice, he followed behind Bethany while Sylphie and Maven walked behind him.There were only two chairs around the table Bethany led them to, but with a wave of her hand, she constructed more and gestured for him to sit down.
The girls arranged themselves on one side of the table, making him feel like he was seated before a panel. Their smiles remained fixed in place even as their shark eyes scrutinized his every motion.
“You don’t know how happy we are that you agreed to join us.” Bethany said a moment later, and Aodhán raised an eyebrow.
“I’m not sure that I had a choice in the matter.”
“Everyone has a choice. Life itself is a choice.” Sylphie muttered in a sober tone, and the other two girls immediately closed their eyes as they made a sort of religious sign across their foreheads in response to the statement.
Aodhán stared awkwardly at the weird display, waiting for them to say or do something, but after several seconds of silence, he decided to take charge of the conversation.“Okay, what do you want to know?”
Their eyes snapped open at his words, and Maven replied in a harsh whisper. “The familiar; how did you bind it?”
“Or create it? You will tell us.” Sylphie added, her smile all but gone as she fixed him with burning eyes.
Aodhán swallowed nervously and repeated the same words he’d told Andrew. “I can’t tell you how because I don’t know how it happened. It just…happened.”
Bethany chuckled. “Aodhán, do you take us for fools?”
“No, never. I’m telling the truth.” He replied hurriedly, and the three girls exchanged weird looks.
A moment of silent conversation passed between them before Bethany suddenly leaned forward and hissed.“You’re lying, Aodhán; Maven can tell.” in a gentler tone, she added. “How much do you want for this information? We are willing to pay.”
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“I assure you —”
“We are also willing to torture the information out of you if that is what you’d prefer.” Maven cut him off with a glare that caused his heart to stutter before resuming its maddened tempo.
Aodhán doubted they could actually torture him, but he didn’t put it past them to make life extremely difficult for him. The cold feel of the ink he sat on was a constant reminder that even with Varéc, he stood no chance against a second-year student, much less a third-year student.
When he failed to respond, Bethany’s expression hardened, and she said to Maven. “Take it.”
Aodhán had no idea what she meant by that, but as a maniacal grin appeared on Maven’s face, he knew it couldn’t be good. He immediately tried to get up, but clasps of ink formed around his arms and legs, too fast for him to react.
Maven stretched a finger towards his forehead, and he realized what they wanted to take. His memory. Aodhán couldn’t allow that, not when Az’s voice had catalyzed the whole thing.
A roar rang out in his mind as Varéc tried to rush out of his core, but for some reason, he was unable to. Aodhán turned to see Sylphie smiling sweetly at him, and he knew she was responsible for that.
He struggled, shaking his head vigorously, but just as Maven’s hand touched his head, a voice rang out.
“Assaulting a junior is a crime worthy of expulsion.”
Maven retracted her hand immediately, and they all turned to see his savior. The boy couldn’t have been more than eighteen years old, but he looked much older, even gaunt. His bronze skin was stretched tight across his bones, but beneath the frailty his build suggested, a core that rivaled that of Valerie Potts blazed within him.
Aodhán’s eyes widened as he took in the boy’s pink hair and facial features. There was something familiar about him, but it wasn’t until Bethany spoke that he figured it out.
“Eldrith Valerion.” She spat out the name like a curse. “Ever intruding on things you have no business with.
”Eldrith didn’t even flinch at her tone and continued in the same casual tone he’d spoken in earlier. “You will release the boy, and I'll forget this ever happened.”
“You sniveling necrotic bastard!” Maven spat. “Don’t you realize the importance of what we are about to do?”
Rather than respond, Eldrith simply walked towards him and pulled the construct apart as if it were paper. Aodhán stumbleb, but Eldrith grabbed him by his uniform’s collar, which held him steady.
“That boy has information that we need, Eldrith, information that even you could benefit from.” Bethany spoke through clenched teeth, but Eldrith ignored her and turned to Sylphie. “Release your hold on the boy’s spirit, or I will break it myself.”
Sylphie fumed, her nose flaring in annoyance, but a minute later, Aodhán felt his connection to Varéc click into place once again, and he sighed in relief.
Bethany turned to him, and her plastic smile returned. “I apologize on Maven’s behalf; perhaps you would like to visit the third quadrant this evening, so we can continue this conversation in a much friendlier setting.”
“No, I’d rather not.” Aodhán replied with a vigorous shake of his head, and Bethany’s smile withered. The three girls glared, their gazes darting back and forth between him and Eldrith.
Bethany clenched her fists, as if gearing up for a fight, but Maven placed a hand on her shoulder and shook her head. “It's not worth it.”
Bethany relaxed, her plastic smile sliding back into place. “We will meet again, Aodhán Brystion, I'm sure that by then, you'll be more inclined to talk.”
They walked away the next moment at him, and Aodhán let out a deep sigh, too shaken to do anything else.
“Thank you.” He said to Eldrith, who frowned at him and asked. “How did you get here? You shouldn’t have access to this floor.”
Aodhán explained what had happened with the librarian and what he’d come up here to find in the first place.
“Perks of being the academy’s newest champion.” Eldrith chuckled. "Still, you need to be careful; you’re lucky I walked in at the right time.”
“Yes, thank you again.” Aodhán replied sincerely before asking. “You’re Cyrus’s brother, right?”
“Half brother.” Eldrith corrected with a twisted smile as he led him towards a row of shelves at the back of the floor. When they reached the section on familiars, Aodhán browsed the array of books before settling on a thick brown book designed with shimmering gold ink.
Written in stylized text was the title, The Codex: Harnessing the Powers of Familiars, and he flipped through the pages as he made his way to a table Eldrith had chosen for them.
He skipped past the dedication, acknowledgement, and content until he reached the first chapter before he began reading.
“One cannot discuss the subject of familiars without touching upon the origin planes. It is believed that the origin planes are fragments of the primordial chaos, and although this theory is still very disputed, it is the most reasonable theory that has been proposed so far.
What we do know is that these planes are filled with as much chaos essence as the essence of the plane itself. This intermingling of essence has tainted and twisted the origin planes, transforming them into planes of unlimited possibilities and insanity.
Familiars are creatures born as a result of this; simply put, they are creatures born of chaos. They are stronger than normal creatures, flawless, and perfect in almost every way except for their minds.
It is not unusual for familiars to go insane after a long period without advancement or experience an occasional bout of insanity. Fortunately, familiars cannot exist for long without their bonds, and after a short time, they simply fade out of existence like smoke in the wind.”
Aodhán had hoped for some insight into the whole bonding process but was a little disappointed to find nothing on the topic. He continued reading, though, as the book still offered valuable information.
The fact that Varéc could one day go insane worried him greatly, but there was no information on how to prevent such an occurrence or even manage it. He resolved to read more books on the matter; perhaps he would find something useful.
After almost two hours of reading, he finally put the book down. He’d only read it halfway, but he'd already learned quite a few things, like the fact that familiars weren’t always animate, even though they all retained a certain amount of sentience.
He’d also learned a better way to communicate with Varéc other than through the use of emotions, which he intended to try out, but time was running out and he was supposed to meet Daruk and Andrew at the training center in the next half hour.
He thanked Eldrith once again and returned the book before hurriedly making his way out of the second floor.
He breathed a sigh of relief as he climbed down the stairs. Who knew what would have happened to him if Eldrith hadn’t shown up when he did? He needed to avoid the 2nd and 3rd years like a plague.
His chip pinged immediately he arrived at the first floor, and he checked his status screen to find a blinking notification on the leaderboard icon
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—Leaderboards.
Tower of Ascension (1st year)
• Cyrus Valerion, Level 23—1st [02: 12]
• Lilith Bloodmoon, Level 23—2nd [01: 42]
• Alesh Vilaris, Level 23—3rd [01: 13]
• Grendar Bladewynn, Level 23—4th [01: 09]
• Aodhán Brystion, Level 23—5th [00: 59]
• Yurin Lahey, Level 22—6th [00: 37]
• Isis Anvindr, Level 22—7th [00: 22]
• Eren Thornhill, Level 21—8th [02: 43]
• Tobias Menzies, Level 21—9th [01: 17]
• Harnoth Darkwater, Level 20—10th [03: 27]
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Aodhán scoffed as he read through the notification. It had only been a few hours since the first lecture, but people had already challenged the tower. Perhaps they couldn’t bear to see his name at the top for long.
He was a little surprised at the number of people who managed to last longer than him within the tower. Andrew had told him that there were students who were stronger than him, but seeing it with his own eyes had a lot more impact on him.
Excitement sizzled faintly within him; he loved challenges as they were simply motivation for him to grow stronger. With a smile, he stepped out of the library and made his way to the training center.
He arrived at the center only a few minutes later and wasn’t surprised to see Andrew and Daruk already present.
He understood their need and drive to grow stronger, and although he was worried about Andrew, a part of him was scared of his brother.
Daruk didn't realize the amount of potential still laying dormant within him, and Aodhán knew that by the time he tapped into all that potential, powerful wouldn’t correctly describe him.
He observed Daruk as he meditated in one corner of the training room. A circle of frost lay beneath him, and occasionally, his aura billowed out, spreading to cover a diameter of about 8 feet before retracting, only to repeat the process several minutes later.
He’d thought about telling him about the deal he’d made with the principal, but decided to keep it secret for now until the principal notified him of their arrival.
“Good, you’re finally here." Andrew clapped, rubbing his hands together. “What are we doing today? A spar? A new technique?”
“I don’t know; maybe we can focus on the exercise Valerie spoke about today.” Aodhán replied, but Andrew shook his head.
“Assignment later; training now.” He shrugged and added. “Besides, I can’t think of a single limitation to my abilities; they’re pretty awesome.
“I can think of one, actually.” Aodhán replied as he gestured to the concrete walls around them. “In a room like this, you’re pretty limited, as you have to create your vines yourself.”
“It’s not exactly a limit if you consider the fact that the same applies to water and fire awakeneds.” Andrew argued.
“Still.” Aodhán insisted and grinned. “What if I told you I knew a way for you to circumvent that?”
Andrew paused, and his eyes narrowed in curiosity. “What are your thinking?"