Below Average

The gravity wave slammed against the wall and shook the whole room. A black aura glowed as the wave of energy tried to push through everything. Lee Seng looked at his hands and felt the bokken turn to fine dust. It quickly blew away from the gravity wave. He watched as the dummies in front of him, hit the ground row by row and turned to look at Icarus. The room pulsed the black aura four more times before the aftereffects quickly stopped like nothing had ever happened. Icarus let out a chuckle and clapped slowly. The examinees were whispering amongst each other and Lee Seng's ears twitched.

'Did I go too far?' Lee Seng asked himself. He started his way towards Icarus and Vanessa. He could hear everyone talking about him and his display of power had caught the attention of many. He didn't want to think about it. It was already causing him to have doubts and hold himself back.

"Is he really a Fighter?" A examinee asked.

"A normal Fighter wouldn't be able to strike from that far of a distance!" Another examinee exclaimed.

They were all talking about what class he was and Lee Seng tried hard to ignore it. He reached the line and Icarus held his hand up. All the examinees hushed. Lee Seng stopped in his place and looked at Icarus who was holding his hand up. He was looking at Lee Seng with a curiosity.

"To be able to make cuts at a dummy is one thing, but to be able to cut rows and rows of dummies..." Icarus' face hardened. His eyes felt like needles on Lee Seng. He slowly moved his hand back behind his back. "That's a feat I have not seen a potential student ever try. Tell me, Chang, do you think power is how hard you can hit something?"

"Power can be a factor but it depends on the context of the situation, sir." Lee Seng answered in confusion. Icarus' eyes left Lee Seng and looked at the scoreboard. He tapped his watch and watched the scoreboard show a number.

"This is result of your power as of right now, Chang." He motioned at the scoreboard. Lee Seng turned his head to look at the scoreboard.

2001

"Only 2001?"

"Isn't that way below average?"

"If he only got a below average rating then he isn't that good, right?"

"He cut through rows of dummies like butter, though. Shouldn't he be higher?"

"He did do all of that in a minute. If he had the full time like the rest of us, he would've done better."

The students were growing louder with questions. They had all thought Lee Seng would score the highest but he only managed to score 2001 points. Icarus double-tapped his watch and the thin film energy dissipated and Lee Seng bit his lip.

"You understand why I asked now?" Icarus asked. Lee Seng nodded and sighed. "You don't have great control over your power. You're a novice when it comes to it, but the strength of your power is immense."

"Reminds me of someone." Vanessa said. She stepped up towards Lee Seng. She was worried this would've tanked his spirits but Lee Seng seemed fixated on something. He moved towards the nearest sliced dummy and bent down into a squat and looked at the dummy. He noticed a half-sliced box in the abdomen area where the cut had happened and nodded. He stood up and turned around.

'I should've been more careful.' Lee Seng thought. 'I have to be careful throughout the exam or else things might not go well for me.'

"Imagine if he had the full time limit," Icarus whispered to Vanessa. "He would've had very high marks."

"He's definitely a novice, but it seems like he's practiced well in his technique." Vanessa observed.

"I've been hearing news that he just awakened two weeks ago."

"Two weeks ago? And he wants to take the test?" Vanessa turned in surprise. Icarus nodded. Not many people knew about Lee Seng's recent awakening. Icarus was only told because he would most likely be in charge of Lee Seng during the examinee.

"Not much know about it. I've heard the Creator wants it to be quiet information. Do well to not tell anyone else. I only tell you this because it looks like we might be gaining another talented individual." Icarus raised his watch up and nodded. "Alright, everyone! With that out of the way, let's all head to Gymnasium E and meet up with the rest of the examinees. You'll be briefed there."

Students began to unload onto the gym floor and Lee Seng glanced at the dummy one more time before standing. He started to follow the group out of the gym and towards Gymnasium E. Lee Seng eyes scanned the crowd. He always liked to watch people and crowds, so this was no different for him. Many stared at him and when they made eye contact with him, they quickly looked away, following the teachers.

Some just continued to stare at him while they walked. He stuck out like a sore thumb and many were wondering what the tail even did. Lee Seng never made an indication whether or not the tail was useful, but if people were suspicious of him because of it, it was something to figure out quickly.

Lee Seng trailed behind all of the other examinees. He could hear two more behind him and didn't bother to check who they were. He didn't want to run into another awkward situation with Jae and Jason, so he ignored it.

"Did you know he could do that?" Jason's voice whispered behind him.

'Yup, it's them.' Lee Seng acknowledged.

"He didn't do anything like that in the locker room." Jae answered. Jason narrowed his eyes at Lee Seng. Jae noticed and tapped Jason.

"So do you want to ask or...?"

"Let's just try to get the test over with first. I don't want to think about it."

Lee Seng sighed in relief. Examinees were flooding the halls at this point. Examinees from Gymnasium C were blending with those from his group. Most were making small talk. Lee Seng didn't understand it. They were technically competing against each other for spots in the Academy.

He shrugged it off as they all funneled into Gymnasium E. Gymnasium E was the next hallway over. The gym looked exactly like Gymnasium B. It had a stage on the backside and the bleachers weren't pulled out. Students began to funnel into the gym and stand around. As soon as Lee Seng stepped in, some gave him a look and realized he had a tail, so they stared longer.

Lee Seng stood far back from the stage. He didn't need to be seen. All he needed to do was finish the exam and make sure the Academy accepted him. If he could do this, he'd have less to worry about with the Creator and not be confined to the grounds for two years.

The gymnasium filled up with hundreds of examinees. He leaned against the wall with his arms folded. His tail leaned against the wall. He felt the cold wall in his tail and he shivered.

'I thought my tail wasn't an actual thing, but Dark Matter.' Lee Seng asked.

'It's Dark Matter, but I think since the oath's been completed, you're changing with it.' Keng answered.

'I'm changing even more?' Lee Seng held his shoulders near his neck before letting go.

'Yup. Let's just say... You gather more souls, you'll have more changes.'

'Souls will make us stronger though, right?'

'Souls will further what I can do for you, but if you get enough, you'll be given the chance to change as well. Let's just say... It's worth the souls.'

Lee Seng could feel Keng shaking his head. he found himself shaking his head along with him. It was a weird feeling but he found himself not even thinking about it anymore. If he ever were to start talking to himself out loud, it could be easily passed off as him talking to himself. He scoffed at the thought of it and smiled.

Four people walked up onto the stage and people began to hush. Lee Seng could see that two guys and two girls were coming up onto the stage. They wore similar student outfits he saw from earlier and assumed they were probably students.

"Hello, everyone." A familiar female voice spoke. Lee Seng's face soured and he rolled his eyes. "My name is Sara Evans. I'm a Third Year who will be overlooking the next event." She beamed with her platinum blonde hair and pale skin. Lee Seng watched her step back and the other girl stepped forward.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Elizabeth Walts and I'm a Third Year who will be overlooking the next event as well. I hope you will all do your best." Elizabeth introduced herself. She wore the same style outfit as Sara. Black hair in ponytails and red lipstick on. She stepped back and Manny stepped up. Lee Seng groaned and covered his eyes as the crowd began to 'wow' over Manny.

"Howdy everyone, my name's Manny Valentin and I'm also a Third Year. I hope to see some good action in the next upcoming event. If any of you get hurt, I'll be one of the Healers on standby." Manny introduced. He nodded and stepped back. Lee Seng sighed and looked back up.

The fourth was a dark tanned skin young man. He seemed tall and had black hair that looked wet. He ran his fingers through his hair as he stepped up and he smiled at everyone. Lee Seng could instantly tell this one was popular. The girls and guys started to fawn over him and Lee Seng chuckled. He couldn't deny a charming guy even if he wanted to.

"Hello everyone. Hope you've all had a good exam so far." The Greek student started. "My name is Victor Callas. I'm a Fourth Year helping with the Exam this year. I know it must be shocking for a everyone to see a Fourth Year here, but it's an honor to be with these three and with you guys. We'll be overseeing the next event and I hope you guys show your best." Victor smiled and everyone swooned.