CHPT 223: Power Transfers.

All outside influences were currently in a state of icy frozen stillness. The students seated around the classroom sat unmoving in their chairs while their heads hung over scribbled on paper like lifeless dolls. Even the particularly jumpy Professor at the head of the class was motionless.

Everything so still, yet his mind moved. Firing off thoughts and emotions like an electrical storm of chaos. Sweat streamed down his temples, sunlight from the left window glistened off them like diamonds while his eyes flickered in and out with the power of his true form.

In response, he let his eyes shut and be plunged into the calm darkness of his mind where he could attempt to sort his thoughts.

"...I knew those Midnight Wardens were bad news...." He continued thinking over the line in the journal that sounded very similar to what he assumed his father thought of them.

"Ok...It seems the Midnight Wardens have a taste for Tangent Biologists-- at the least. Only those psycho bastards didn't kill this one.....because I did-- after they turned him into a WereWolf. They somehow did so by showing a Boss level Silver Cursed their blood?...then, they left him to die. Only he survived...and seemed to already have urges for homicidal violence. And not just violence.....but hallucinations?? How did he begin to think he had a family? Why did the Wardens blood make them allies with a monster? Did they kill the Boss after or let it escape? Why would they do that? WHY ARE TH---..." He stopped after realizing his clawed hands were cutting deep into the bottom of his table.

"Too much. Too much to process. Put it simply, state the facts....The Midnight Wardens aren't a Guild of Heroes. They've conversed with a monster, changed a human and then that human escaped and somehow gained a Lunar Artifact and the memories of having a family. The information concerning Aeron and his mind has to be in his journal. The Midnight Wardens...an entirely different story."

The information that previously left him shaken and dangerously unstable had an adverse effect after he went through it all in his own mind. They were no longer new details that fell on him like an avalanche of misery and dread, now they were facts he'd made his own. The rest he knew he'd uncover in time. Now, thats not to say he was relaxed. He was anything but relaxed. But he no longer felt like he'd rip the throat out of the closest person to him. One thing he did know was that he was beginning to hate the new Guild placed in South SkyHaven. The Midnight Wardens weren't Heroes, he was sure of that now.

***

The sounds of the classroom progressively buzzed back into existence like a bee flying past his ear-- only this sound stayed. The sounds of a dozen voices, the smells of a dozen different lifestyles all jammed into one room. He looked around while taking a deep breath and wiping his sweating palms on his pants.

"Arne."

"[Welcome back.]"

"What do we do?" Claude asked, truly feeling at a loss for what course of action to take after surviving the mental roller coaster he was forced to take a ride on.

"[I think the decision to be made is rather simple, Claude. We will do nothing.]"

Claude stopped midway through flipping over a page of his Monster Species book, "Stop fucking around."

"[Im not. We will do nothing, because we are not ready. Or do you think you'll just waltz into the Midnight Wardens Guildhall in all their mystery and slay them as the fully developed Lupine warrior you are? Did you forget the psychotic WereWolf writing about Mages casting fire tornadoes and swordsman moving faster than the eye can see? Or maybe the Archer shooting BLOODY LIG--]"

"I GET IT!.....I get it. There just has to be something else." Claude raged as he pretended to read with the class.

"[To be frank. Our options are limited-- if not nonexistent. You can't go tell anyone since your source of evidence would lead to them realizing your illegally functioning as a Night Runner. We also can't just attack. In terms of what the world holds, you are still very weak.....]" Arne explained.

Claude shoulders slumped in the silence that followed. All the work he's done, still weak. The thought was violently demoralizing.

"[Ahh, cheer up dammit!]"

".....What is that..a joke?"

Arne sighed within his mind, "[You are very weak now. Not always. This world you live in is the same world I once lived in. When you forget about the Monsters and their affect on this earth, your left with a world of progress, Claude. Levels are a representation of your growth-- something that never stays the same if you work at it. Trust me, I would know. How else would a meek little boy in the Vampire infested lands of Arthuria grow to be a Lupine Alpha? You are still growing, at this stage you aren't ready to take on a Guild, but-- you are STILL growing. You have a list of priorities. Firstly, you must deal with whats within your reach. Your arms can only stretch so far, and your claws can only cut so deep.]"

Now it was Claude's turn to sigh, only for a different reason, "Dammit. That's a good point. All I can do is keep reading Aeron's Journal and focus on getting stronger...smarter...but I can't help but feel like im letting people die."

"[People die everyday. You will be added to that statistic if you use your jaws to bite off more than you can chew, Claude. Right now, you must focus. Focus on training. Focus on your classes and learn more about the world, so when you venture outside on the weekends, you know more than before. This is all you can do and this is what you must do if you still desire Dolion's head.]" Arne said, his English accented voice lined with a similar flaming conviction usually found in Claude's as he finished speaking.

Claude's wooden pencil snapped at the mention of his name, "...I see. So, nothings changed. Yet, everything is more important. Alright, I can work with that. I can reach them, in time.....I hope."

With that, Claude's mind wasn't soothed, but he knew what to do. He no longer felt scattered with Arne's guidance. But focusing on the arbitrary matters within the classroom felt near impossible when compared to the information he just absorbed. But he'd try, maybe something would draw his attention....

***

Approximately twenty minutes passed before Prof. Alvis' sheepish shaking voice drew his attention like few things could. It seemed he was the only one drawn to it since a major portion of the rest of the classroom stayed slumped in their chairs and visibly disinterested.

"O-Ok students! Today, we'll be discussing a topic that i-is rather...uhh...slept o-on in terms of importance. One of those reasons is due t-to the fact that this t-topic only really concerns one ssssubset of Heroes. S-so let me start with a.....a question. W-who wants to be a Hero t-that cleanses Infested Areas?....."

His question was followed by absolute silence. If they were outside, now would be the time for crickets.

"So the current Hero's ideals are affecting the next generation. That's....horrifying." Claude thought with a growl before unapologetically raising his hand.

To his surprise, someone at the front of the classroom did the same.

The student had long shoulder length black hair similar to his own-- only it was well kept and combed in a way that somehow made the almost rugged hairstyle seem intelligent. He wore light armor of good quality mixing the styles of a sword-fighter and a Mage with an easily understandable sense of fashion. As he turned around his cold grey eyes scanned over the lack of raised hands before settling on Claude to give him a nod before turning back around.

"[Ah, if it isn't the Elemental Mage himself, Conroy. Color me surprised.]" Arne chimed in while Conroy bumped shoulders with his table-mate, causing her to raise her hand as well.

He could smell the cat hairs on her from his seat, "Stacy." He thought.

Prof. Alvis looked delighted despite there being a small percentage of raised hands.

"P-Perfect! Haha.....t-this is more than the last class. C-Conroy, do tell me your reasoning's for d-doing something sssome would call....unconventional?" Prof. Alvis inquired.

Conroy lowered his hand and shrugged matter-of-factly, "Our job as Heroes is to level up so we're strong enough to one day save the world....or whats left of it. With that fact in mind, I feel like the past as well as our generation have forgotten a simple fact. Exp is Exp, i'll take it where I can get it."

His words were simple, eloquent and coldly factual-- he almost sounded like he didn't really care about what he was saying. Yet, nobody in the classroom outwardly disagreed with him.

Prof. Alvis nodded enthusiastically as the young scholar spoke, "Yes...yes very good. Also very true! C-Claude.....what i-is your reasoning?" He said, raising a shaking hand to show it was his turn to speak.

As the many eyes of the classroom fell on him, he felt himself begin to get hot and itchy.... he never enjoyed public speaking.

"Erhm. I think Heroes are supposed to save lives. You can't just complete Tangents and think thats your entire job....Heroes are supposed to combat the Monsters. Inside and out." Claude expressed, finding the words "Hero" becoming more and more troublesome to say.

Prof. Alvis stood smiling while he watched him for a moment. His hunched posture felt exaggerated as he loomed over the students to stare.

"Exactly! V-Very well...very well said, Claude. And you too Conroy. Now....with that in mind, t-there are some things Heroes with your mindsets need to know...as you grow, cleansing o-of Infested Areas becomes more spontaneous....hehe....wrong word. It becomes more....uhh..dangerous! This world is full of m-many new variables and unknown occurrences.....and they r-roam the wild freely. And they will continue to w-when you take your first steps into the true heart of the wild. C-considering this....there is one very important thing your kind of Hero n-needs to understand....know by heart even. Would anyone care to take a guess?" Prof. Alvis questioned while he craned his birdlike neck to look about the classroom.

The students continued their looks of disinterest. All but a few. One of which raised her hand.

"Stacy! W-what do you think this thing that you should know is?" Prof. Alvis asked, his enthusiasm now visible and combating his fearful stutter.

Stacy shrugged, causing her long blonde locks to bounce and reflect the sunlight off the hair that trailed down her back, "We'd need to know like a list...of Monsters, right?" She guessed while filling her nails in a disinterested manner.

Prof. Alvis looked like he'd burst with excitement, "YES! W-well just about...hehehe. Very good, Stacy. The correct term would be; The Tiers of the Wild-born...."

"[Pay attention, Claude. Nothing has pertained to you more in this class.]" Arne said before Prof. Alvis continued.

"This list is a rudimentary guideline to follow for Heroes in the wild. This is for one very simple-- y-yet very impppportant reason; Ssometimes, a Hero must run." Prof. Alvis said before turning and fumbling his way over to his desk where he clumsily grabbed a stack of papers and began handing them out.

The class sat up in unison, now being given a new object to fiddle and pass the time with, by the time it reached Claude everyone was already studying their own.

"[How nice. The Academies in Arthuria were never quite as organized...]" Arne said as Claude looked over the new material.

It was a pamphlet-- a shining shade of black paper with white lettering, on the front it said as Prof. Alvis had dubbed it; The Tiers of the Wild-born. Now designed with art of flaming Phoenixes in battle with twisting navy blue snakes that almost blended in with the onyx paper.

The importance of the pamphlet hit Claude in a way he knew it wouldn't for other students.

"Uhm. Why does it say, Glorian Zone?" One of the students asked from the front of the classroom.

Following the students words, Prof. Alvis, tripped as if the students question had a physical affect on him, "O-Oh yes. I f-forgot to explain. A-allow me to answer your question by introducing a theory. In consideration of these...zones. Does anyone know of the Third World Power Transfer Theory?"

Silence followed once again before abruptly being interrupted by the quick movements of fabric. Conroy's hand was once again raised.

"T-take it away, Conroy." Prof. Alvis said happily.

"If I remember my readings correctly, its a theory pertaining to the set up of the Old World..."

Prof. Alvis nodded, causing the Elemental Mage to continue.

"Before the Tangent's....the world was obviously different. And also incredibly unbalanced. Having places that were like metropolises with technological carriages powered by electricity and other Old World oddities, while other places looked as if they were in a completely different age-- or the populations were so dense that progress wasn't easily attainable when weighed against the obvious downsides that come with too many people in one place. Places like these were called, third world countries." Conroy explained in his naturally cold and relaxed tone.

The students that were uneducated in this subject were focusing intently. Claude was among the group of focused individuals.

Prof. Alvis nodded, verifying Conroy's retelling of events, "Heheheh...very good. N-Now, with that in mind. What do you think happened to these...lesser d-developed countries when the Tangents opened?"

"They were destroyed." The students spoke in unison, now engaged in the class.

"And its people?"

"....They died."

Prof. Alvis-- who was previously pacing back and forth suddenly stopped at the front of his desk, "Wrong."

The students collectively wore an expression of puzzlement, leading Prof. Alvis to continue.

"These people residing in these....third world countries didn't have the same modern resources or commodities as further developed places....things like w-weapons that fired metal pellets with the ability to rip through flesh effortlessly....guns, I believe they're called. Or even things l-like proper housing. So, when the Tangents arrived at their metaphorical doorstep, they had to fight tooth and nail to survive in a way others didn't. They were forced to use whatever they had...fight with a ferocity and fearlessness that overcame the obvious gap between them and people from places like...here. So you see, when they were Reborn, they used that power at all times. They used it for everything and trained it effortlessly because they absolutely had to. Some would say for this..and other theoretical reasons, they rose to the top. Individuals from these places ushered their countries into a new age full of people with powers further developed and harder trained than their once better developed counterparts. This is the TWPT Theory and it is very real. It also explains the Zones. These stronger people made the beings living with them grow equally stronger-- while other places simply always had greater monstrous threats. So, the Glorian Zone is where your Tier lists reside. Beasts of the wild are not the same everywhere...hehe" Prof. Alvis said, suddenly losing his stutter completely and gaining an almost charming nature in light of a subject he obviously enjoyed.

A student near Claude raised his hand. "So, are-- was New Gloria a third world country?"

Prof. Alvis laughed nervously, "Hehehe....quite the opposite. Old World New Gloria was very well off....and i'd think they were disliked by many for a number of reasons. But thats my opinion-- which is p-pointless right now..heh. But, your all aware of what this means, c-correct?"

Claude rubbed his chin in thought and surprise, "We're the weakest..."

Prof. Alvis jumped at the sudden sound before quickly readjusting, "Yyyyes on average. In terms of power and now Industrial capacity, we are relatively at the bottom-- but The Nine are dragging us up the rankings. Its a slow burn though, we remain very low. Something many of you will be aware of in certain Tournaments and combat events where you represent New Gloria as a whole. Its often q-quite a rude awakening for young s-students. The Sunlands is usually a problem.."

The class stayed silent for a while following the dropping of information. Claude could smell some students anxiety, others were mad-- having their perceived pride stung was never pleasant. But the bulk of students were something between amazed and scared.

Claude was among the bulk. The thought of their Heroes and cities was almost too much to image. But more than that, something stuck out to him. Arne's words seemed to be solidified through this class-- as if fate was making sure he understood...

In relation to what the world holds, he was still very weak.