Chapter One
The Only thing that is guaranteed in this life is…. Death.
The embodiment of death is what we all saw. That grotesque demon with its dark brown fur with its pearcing golden eyes and teeth that came down to a razor sharp point that was covered in black ozzing plasma. Damn…. Just our luck. Who would have thought a A class humanoid demon would be hiding within a conquered labyrinthine. Screw to whoever’s pet this is. What animal cruelty to leave it here all alone….
Well shit……we were nothing compared to that hideous demon.
Now As I lay here with my guts spread across this dirt floor. I found my self contemplating my life. Once again I find my self doing this often minus the all my guts on the floor.. well maybe a few. At least I can survive those but not… I’m getting off topic.
I constantly wonder if my life is truly worth living. Haha the irony of contemplating life when I’m about to lose it . Oh there goes my spleen… , but if I’m honest I have to say yes. After that demon had appeared I was at least able to sacrifice myself for THEM.
No one had to save me this time.
I saved them.
I hope me stalling for time allowed them to get back to get help. I think it is not selfish at but actually a noble thing to allow my friends to get away and survive. Sure with out me but they are worth more than my life. Haha I’m thinking positive just like she says too. This lack of blood must be getting to me for me to do that. I hope they are happy and live full lives…… aww happyness. How bliss….. I guess i can think of a few times where I was happy to help pass what little time I have. Aw yes if want happier times i should think back to that time………..
The smell of body odor and diesel fuel seeped into my nose. As I sit here contemplating my life on this cracked grey leather in this old outdated school bus. Shit just my luck for my school route to get the old crappy crack bus. Just because I live in a poorer part of the city doesn’t mean we don’t deserve something that doesn’t look like drugs are made out it.
Thump thump thump
Oh great this big tub of lard. A ogre of a man with the world brightest orange hair step in front of me. With his beady little shit brown eyes staring down at me with disgust. His pearly white teeth separated and spat out
Oi! You vermin! Move on into the back of the bus! Move move move! No Vernon like yourself should be allowed near us gifted ! Fucking squib get out of my seat!
Such a great way to start my first day of freshman year. That randle Johnson is a real piece of work. To use a term from a magic fantasy book in the real world what a idiot. But honestly he is right on the marker about people like me. Instead of using mana well and gifted like him. It’s night and day from people like him, compared to people like me can’t use mana or gifts at all. Hey at least I’m not a giftless and deemed undesirable by the government. Im just giftless. A low class citizen like me doesn’t have the problems like the dregs of society who do nothing for the cause. Well I don’t have to worry about that until I turn 18 And have mandatory military stent. I hope to get in the GHS division. Ether way I won’t end up like that. I will just sign up with the military to be an analyst and then grow old and die. But….
This world is amazing, shit, and technically under attack. The world I call home is still in the 21 century earth but it’s like medieval has clashed with modern with a splash of John smith. It’s truly like the gods copied a novel and pasted it into our world. It was about… how old am I? Uhhh thirteen I think . So it was about 30 years ago. The world Changed forever. It happened before I was born so I don’t have a first hand account of the events. But the government and their wonderful tv ads and constant reminder through propaganda in our everyday life has made me what you would call an expert.
First came quite literally the earth quaking. Not a single person or country didn’t feel the tremors. They started off small then eventually leveled countries. The chaos that follow killed just as many people as the earthquakes. People killing each other, lawlessness and true anarchy sweep across the world. Then came the other world’s shadow. This covered a shadow over parts of the world. The temperate in those countries dropped causing the vegetation and some animals to die out. The only positive of the other world coming is that it brought MANA or shall I say gifted earth a reason to become full of it. With the introduction of mana that’s when things got real Interesting . This caused the oceans to flow different. Tsunamis became common place and rouge waves the size of skyscrapers toppled over any ship brave enough to fair the waters. If they were lucky to miss the waves the sea creatures or any animal to that changed became crazy from the influx of mana. They are normally called mana beast. Vicious they are, destroying anything in sight. But Some evolved to become truly intelligent life. Enough so to have conversations and form their own societies. There was story from Great Britain that a dog became intelligent enough that it out broke all the dogs and cats and formed it’s own country in the mountain regions of Scotland.
The cherry on top is when the portals started to pop open. They first opened in the countries that had a shadow. Once this countries fell the shadow became sold like wall. Thankfully the earth mana had its own barrier so nothing could come in but we could go in. Then the portals started breaching into counties with out a shadow. What was truly terrifying about it is what came out of those portals. That brought the human race to the brink of extinction.
The Oro. That’s what they say there name was. Just thinking about those other worlders makes me shiver. Then thinking about the demons that are under their control would make anyone cry for their mother. What ever you want to call them they are a threat to the very existence of this world. If mother earths mana didn’t awaken and bring the power of gifted. All of humanity would have been lost. the entire earth would have been under the control of the other worlders. The crazy thing this all happened within a year. The people who survived were the toughest or the luckiest people on earth. Damn this a long inner monologue. Who the heck am I speaking to. Uggghhhh I’m going crazy. I guess you go crazy when you don’t have any frie….
Jack! Jack! jack delgado! Earth to jack! Hurry off the bus or you will be late!
Huh oh it’s Rein. Reinhold wolf gang. He is the closet thing to friend I have. Well he is more like an older brother than anything. He is one year my senior. Also should I say room mate/ land lord? We both are….. well “were” orphans. The difference between us is still astounding. What I mean is that he is handsome and I’m me. He is a tall for his age…. I think about 6’ 2”… strong chin that he take after his grandfather but it adds to his handsome face. With his ear length blonde hair makes him look like some model and all the girls go mcdreamy. But then there is the purple scar under his right eye. Which in all reality makes him look kinda badass. The scar doesn’t hinder his looks it actually accents his looks. Lucky bastard…. I thought.
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Thanks rein! I dose off again and didn’t realize the bus stopped
Don’t worry about it. Hurry to class.
A slightly shorter man with brunette hair and wild blue eyes with an olive tan skin tone says as they leave the sunburnt yellow school bus.
Why do you even care about that loser he is beneath us?
Reinhold stops on the last step looking back at him with a wild twitch in his eye and responds.
Watch what you say Ezra. If he had mana you would lose
Ezra huffs extremely loud and says
like hell he can win! I have had mana since I was 10. If that runt gets mana now his control would be trash. Plus I’m the son of a prestigious clan.
Reinhold shakes his head.
Your lineage has you blind.
Ezra says
whatever! You never answered the question.
Reinhold quips.
sorry Your ignorance made me forget. That’s the brother I told you about and how we survived that place together.
Ezra smile faded immediately he knew what kinda life we both had lived. He turn to me and bowed. Not like a joking bow but a sincere from the heart bow. Rein just nodded towards me and he turned from the bus and headed into school with Ezra.
Jack pov:
As I walked away from the bus I thought to myself …..rein… that jerk he just had to tell Ezra sword of the sword clan that. I get why he told him that. Since they are in a squad together but still…I sighed at my own inner monologue…..
Only reason I went to that orphanage was because of my family they were gifted…..but I’m not. Just thinking of that terrible place makes the scars all over my body and my joints Ache in pain. The gruesome torture they called training is still deep within my bones. Ooooffff everything hurts again! I need to get my self checked out.
As I walk on the blue speckled stone path of the school grounds. The gifted academy of New America is the name of this prison. Well it’s for non gifted too but no one really cares about us.
This place looks like a medieval castle had a love child with the America and this is what popped out. The perfectly mannered front yard with pristine white stone buildings, the blue speckled stone paths that lead throughout the campus, and the giant red sign sign with white lettering saying New America academy. Nothing screams America like red white and blue everything. Thankfully i ended up at this academy. I have heard horror stories of the The capital academy. Since it’s located in well in the capital it’s ran like a army base.
It’s truly awh inspiring how they are able to get every kid on this half the United States from the age of 10 until 18 in one place. But not every parent choices so. Well to a degree once they hit 15 they have to come. I understand why they would not want their kid here since The town surrounding this prison is like a student only town. Of course there are guards and adults but most of the teenagers work at the stores.
Rinnnnhgggg rinnnnnnnnggggg
Wait what ! I thought I had enough time! My god it’s 8:00! I have ten minutes to get to class!
Whoosh! 8:09 …. I barely made it on time!
My first class of the day is gifted theory/ practical. The practical part is In the afternoon but Since I’m giftless both classes are just theory. The practical part all I get to do this year is to sit. Unlike previous years I can not run survival scenarios with them. ButThank the great mother that the other gifted students will make it interesting to watch. Since it’s the first year we can use gifts
As I come to two gaint oak doors that have a sign with class 108. I take a deep breath and step through oak doors. The familiar smell of pine and leather assaulted my nostrils. The amphitheater style room could hold over three hundred students with it bench style rows. Luckily the bench seats are covered by a black leather cushions with the USA flag etteched into the leather. The simple 1500s estetic with white walls, black ornate lighting with a soft white glow, and the white marble floors with a hint of grey streaks going through it. They truly did a simple clean look only if you minus all the American flags and other tapestry depicting America on the walls. It makes for a very boring day with splash patriotism.
I found my seat somewhere in the back. The teacher usually assign seats in smaller classes but in ones like this there weren’t any. But this didn’t mean they weren’t. The gifted made sure of it. They always chose the seats in the front or middle. They always forced the squibs in the back. Luckily I prefer the back, away from people, and especially the high and mighty. Also I’m blessed to have good hearing eyesight because some people have trouble seeing that far. Plus it’s co…
Hello is that seat taken?
I look up in surprise. Thinking to my self that This room is so big why sit next to me? Most gift….
I’m sorry if I disturbed you. But I would like to sit in this area. It’s far enough from the front but not all the way in the back…… So is it taken?
I continued to stare at the British accent boy. With his dark skin bronze skin and black curly hair with green eyes. All his features made his eyes seem to glow. His somewhat round but not fat face that has a reddish tent to his cheeks and with a muscular body made him seem like a boys head glued to a man’s body.
I responded…
No go ahead. It’s just not many people choose to sit here and I’m giftless.
The green eye boy responded with
I don’t care about stuff like that. Are you sure your not? I’m getting the same vibe from you as other gifted.
Yes I promise.. I pinched my grey lifeless uniform to indicate what I was. I continued saying This grey in is not like the light blue one that you are wearing. I said
Huh. Intresting. My name is Oliver Green. What is yours?
I looked at his out stretched hand shook it while shacking my head. I said My name is jack delgado. I haven’t seen you before are you a home transfer?
Yea, my family and I had a situation and now I’m starting my freshman year in America. Are you sure your not a gifted in secret?
How do you suppose I got past the entrance examination. Then the quarterly ones that test if you have mana?
Alright good point. Did you try everything to get gifted?
Yes, I tried everything. I I turned 10. Nothing happened. I tried doing repetitions of the same thing for 1000 times just like the original gifted had done before. I’ve put myself in life or death situations. Such as being shocked, swam in freezing water, and almost drowning. I know it’s just a hoax but by being around gifted and I still didn’t receive one. I’ve been hit by gifted with their powers. Still nothing.
Intresting.
I stared at him with confusion. Oliver brought out a little black book. He started to write something down.
What’s that?
It’s book of things I find Interesting. I write them down. Aye don’t give me that look. I don’t even need to read your mind to know what your thinking.
I’m smart but What do you think I’m some nerd mate? I can’t remember everything. This gives me a chance to remember when my brain is already full. Seriously mate I’m not weird. It’s practical.
Righhht. It’s normal for an old man to write down things to remember but… your like 15? I just find it sus that young person writes down things that “interest” Him in a little black book. I have him a wide smirk to let him know I was joking. Great I thought. The first decent conversation with someone and they had to be weird..
Aye mate I ain’t weird. I hear so much from people I tend to forget things.
I thought to myself. Can he hear me?I wonder how much he can actually read. What a invasive gift
Yes you arse. That is my gift. I also can do this.
(I can also speak into your mind and allow you respond in your mind)
( amazing, I take it the activation key is touching them?)
We got ourselves a smart one here. Yes and no. He said out loud.
The back door to the room shut with a thud. Out came a medium sized man. He was too tall or short. With his long hair tied in to a bun with a simple black stranded. It stood out against his white uniform of the teachers. His black shoes clacked against the the hard marble floors. He descended the stairs saying
Yes , we do have a smart one Mr. Green. Jack Delgado has the highest test scores out of any freshman . But yet he is not the best of his grade. Any gifted is automatically ranked higher in this school. He may be smart but he is a useless brain without MANA. Now mr green will you join us in the front?
I would prefer to sit here.
(Jack Who is this guy? What’s his problem?)
(His name is Edward valestine. Before the invasion his family was a super rich and after the gifting they stayed in power because they are able to contol….)
Edward whispered into Oliver’s ear
Please refrain from using mana
Then yelled
into the class room. As you all can guess I can control all sound. I understand your power mr green. So please do refrain from using mana. That goes for all that can. This is perfect first lesson. Let me begin by introducing myself. I am Edward valestine for this class I will be going over knowledge about gifted. It will range from where they belong to how they became to be to the basics of just mana. This first lesson we will start off with just mana basics and finish with gifted hierarchy. As a refresher how about you Mr. Delgado tell us about the basics of mana?
End of chapter one