DOG.

Dog

within a small room within the abyssal Academy. A chubby kid clothed in a grey robe had his hands behind his back as he stared out the window. Naturally this was Magnus. The rising sun made the sky bronze, occasionally people could be seen walking on the street. A few people could be seen setting stalls on the side of the street.

One of the people setting up stalls had a banner which read, "5 min breakfast. A good breakfast counts for 50 % of your grades. Buy the monthly breakfast membership for 1 spirit essence today!!!"

Countless people could be seen walking, the one thing all this people had in common was their grey robes. Occasionally one would see a person with white robes.

The sun continued to rise, like a monster- the light slowly crept, which each second it consumed the darkness of night- very soon there was no traces of any previous darkness.

*In the same manner, the light of day would be consumed by the darkness of night until there is no trace of light. Light and darkness respect each other as equals. They rely on each other for their existence, the concept of light would not exist without the concept of darkness. The same can be said for good and evil, only a hypocrite would claim that any one of the two is superior. * Magnus sighed as he thought about his observations back on earth.

*The world was full of such hypocrites- hypocrites who would use arguments on morality to push their selfish agendas. It is this hypocrisy that made me hate the world and consequently it led to the secluded life I had on earth. Now that I have experienced death, I now realize the shortness of life- there was a reason why everyone decided to turn a blind eye to the truth, it was so that they could live peacefully. If the good was not treated as superior, people would simply kill each other and utilise ruthless methods of obtaining whatever they desire. * While contemplating a smile formed on his face.

"Geez, when did I become so edgy? I should probably make my way to school. Magnus decided to leave the egg in his dormitory, as it was of no use to him now. Furthermore, there was a greater probability of it getting stolen or forcefully taken away than by someone breaking into his dormitory which was protected by the academy.

...........................…..

On the east side of the Abyssal Academy there stood a building that appeared to be a castle and had an aura of wisdom to it. The building had grey bricks that were not consistent in colour, some were a darker shade than others. As Magnus approached the building's main entrance, he noticed two creatures guarding the main door, apart from their horns and wings- one could easily have classified the statues as lions. As he was about to open the door, both creatures turned their focus to Magnus.

"Show us your admission pass." Their voices were as loud as thunder and as deep as the ocean- upon hearing simply the voices of these creatures- many people would begin to cower and even run away. Magnus stood his ground and recalled that he was given a card by Celine after he tested his affinity to demon magic. The admission pass was given to him on the day of the examination- this was a document with runes inscribed onto it. The runes allowed for one to be easily identified and they could not be forged. Once the admission pass was in the right persons hands- it would begin to glow. In the same way, in the wrong hands it would remain its original colour. Magnus took out a glowing blue card from his robes and handed it to one of the creatures- as the card got transferred to the creatures' claws, the blue colour became dull.

"You may enter, head to the main desk first."

After heading to the main desk, Magnus was given information on his classes and where they would be taking place. A black watch was also given to him.

As Magnus was making his way to class, he noticed that every class he passed had a chalkboard and seemed to be exactly like an outdated university lecture hall back on earth.

He soon found class number 72, which was the class allocated to him. The class had between 200 and 300 seats. Magnus picked a seat closest to the exit towards the back of the class. The class was noisy as people were engaged in talks amongst themselves.

*Even though it's probably the first time most people are seeing each other, groups are already forming, and people are already forming their own social circles. I must find a social group. * Magnus was aware of how powerless he was, being rank D- the only way to protect himself from being tortured by others was to join a social circle. Loners with a good aptitude would not be subjected to harsh treatment, as they were treated as the academy's pride. People like Magnus were simply dispensable.

Even though everyone was forming social groups, Magnus could not shake away the feeling that everyone seemed to be focused on one group. A group that consisted of both males and females who all had the same grey robes everyone else had, however on each of their shoulders there was a symbol of a skull on it. As Magnus was deep in thought, a figure walked through the door causing the class to become silent. Wearing her usual white robe, the brunette walked in- her freckles more beautiful than all the constellations in the universe, her long hair more elusive than the milky way. It was Celine.

"Greetings, we have 2 things on the agenda today. Firstly, we must activate the watches you were each given today. Secondly, I will discuss theory and the test that will be happening at the end of the term- which is in 6 weeks' time." After a brief pause Celine continued.

"The watches you all were given are basic magic artifacts used to analyse your spiritual essence and provide you an easy interpretation of that summary. It has a 95% accuracy rate and can be used until the end of the novice rank. After the novice rank, unfortunately besides the use of special pets, there isn't any mechanism of analysing spiritual essence for interpretation. These artifacts are yours, even if you get expelled- the school does not require you to return them. Now you all were given ranks on the examination day, this simply refers to the relationship between the maximum demonic energy you can store and its regeneration. A person with rank D would have less than 30% of the storage and regeneration than that of a person with a rank A affinity. This also means that in a perfect world where resources were distributed equally, a person with rank D would have to work at least three times harder to achieve the same results. Your demonic energy is stored within your spirit base. Without being to be complicated, think of a spirit base as a sphere situated at your navel- this sphere has a certain level of demonic energy which depending on your rank fills up a certain percentage of the sphere. It is only through meditating would you begin to picture it clearly, and in some cases, you might be able to let your conscience enter it. Anyways you can activate the watch by allowing the demonic energy to flow from the spirit base into it. It may take some time, but this this is not a difficult task. It is also worth mentioning that these devices do not have tracking systems within them."

As she said this many students could be seen making attempts to activate their watches. Celine ignored this and continued,

"Now that the theory has been completed as well as the first agenda- I shall now discuss the test at the end of the term. Each term is six months. The test is simple, you will all be sent to a spirit dominium, where you would have to kill animals for points- the top 30 with the highest points would get a reward. Here is some advice, even though class is not compulsory, try your best to attend- as most of you would die at the test. The test may be changed during the term. Does anyone have questions?"

A female student raised her hand.

"What is a spirit dominium?"

After a long pause, Celine replied.

"As you all know, spirits may take many forms, these forms are not limited to living organisms. Spirits may take the form of objects, such as magic artifacts- your watches being one such common manifestation of a spirit entity. In some rare instances they may take the form of complete civilisations, in this civilisations, rare beasts and resources can be found. Think of it as another dimension."

"Before we can conclude today's lessons, a class representative has to be chosen. Whoever wishes to be the class representative, step forward."

As she was explaining she happened to look towards the back of the class where the exit was located. Magnus seemed to be deep in thought looking around the class.

.

.

.

.

After waiting a few minutes, a student stood up and made his way to the front of the class. He was very tall and muscular, he had fair skin and blonde hair. He also wore circular spectacles which gave him the aura of intelligence. His appearance would tempt even the most strong-willed women. On his robes a picture of a skull could be seen.

Upon seeing this student coming to the front of the class, Celine spoke.

"Does anyone have any objections?"

No one had any objections.

"Good Rank A George is appointed as the class representative. That is all from me. See you in the next lecture."

*tap tap tap* the sound of her heals could be heard as Celine left the room.

Seeing that the lecture had ended many students stood up with the intention to leave. Magnus was one of these students- being closest to one of the exits- Just as he was about to leave his actions halted by the voice of the student in the front of the class.

"Nobody leaves!" this caused all the students to go back to their seats- being the class representative George had the most authority in the class, offending him would not be a good idea. George continued to speak.

"I have a list with all your names and respective ranks. In this class there are 205 students. There are

7 rank A's

23 rank B's

170 Rank C's

And 5 Rank D's "

After a brief pause, a smile formed on his face as he stroked his chiselled jaw line.

"I have devised a system that would allow all of us to work harmoniously without people overstepping their boundaries. With this system everyone would have to obey the group of people with affinity higher than theirs. So people with rank B are answerable to people with Rank A. In the same way people with Rank C would be answerable to Rank B- the same rule would apply to people with Rank D, they are answerable to people with Rank C. I will now call out your names- when your name is called out- come to the front so that the whole class may see your face. Let us begin with the Rank A's." George began calling out names.

"Xian zho, Ashley, Xi Ping...." The names were diverse as people from different ethnicities walked up- Afterall this was the afterlife; you would be sent to the realm you deserve irrespective of your ethnicity. Due to this there was great diversity within all the realms. 4 boys and 2 girls walked to the front of the class- a skull could be seen on each of their robes. After all the names were called out the individuals went back to their seats.

Next all the Rank B student names were called and in the same manner they went back to their seats.

"For the sake of time, I would not be calling the Rank C's to the front. I will now call all the Rank D's, logically you can identify the Rank C's easily as they were the only group I did not call to the front."

He began

"Gunter Meyer, Hans weber, Petra Doyer, Fen Ju and Magnus Freeman." The five reluctantly stood up and went to the front of the class. After a few minutes they began collectively going back to their seats, when suddenly George spoke.

"Wait where you all going? You forgot to prostrate. Ill-mannered dogs." The smile on his face shone with increased radiance. The five prostrated towards the class, humiliation crept through each of their hearts. Even though Magnus expected something like this would happen, he still could not help but feel anger in his heart- little did he know that would occur next would be even worse, it would strip the little significance he had left- the significance of being a dog to his classmates.

"All of you besides little carrot may go back to your seats." The moment Magnus heard the words "little carrot"- he knew this had to do with the incident that occurred on the examination day. George had a deranged look in his eyes, he began laughing hysterically. He then looked towards Magnus who was currently standing and slightly shorter in height.

"Who gave you permission to stop prostration?" George than charged towards Magnus, aiming for his abdomen.

*BAM!* Magnus felt his body become cold, he was struck and fell to the wooden floor into prostrated stance. He could not breath, the punch to his abdomen seemed to have caused the air in his lungs to dissipate. As Magnus was struggling for air-

*BAM!* a straw- roped sandal landed at the nape of his neck, causing his head to be smashed into the wooden floor.

"Please stop, I am sorry." Magnus begged.

"HAHAHA this is for your own good." George replied.

*BAM!*

"HELP! ME! PLEASE!"

*BAM!*

*BAM!*

A river of blood began to flow on the wooden floor.

*BAM!*

*BAM!*

*BAM!*

After continuously bashing Magnus into the wooden floor, a puddle of blood stained the previously brown floor into maroon. Splinters could be seen all around Magnus's forehead and a 5cm splinter could be seen piercing his right eye. Blood filled up over the pupil and Iris of his right eye, his previously black hair and grey robes had a taint of redness- the smell of blood permeated the lecture hall. George knew that Magnus's hands were tied, technically they both had not even began training- if a fight had to begin, their ranks would not play such a significant role. However, because of his rank, if Magnus attacked him- the wrath of the academy would befall him, as a result he felt no fear in torturing Magnus. He could do anything he wanted to Magnus, after all who would choose to side with a Rank D over a Rank A?

"This dog!" George pointed to Magnus who was on the floor covered in blood and struggling to breath.

"This dog dared to use his imagination to defile our beloved instructor. It is our duty as fellow demonic compatriots to rid ourselves of people who do not show respect to the people we so very need." George displayed a fake look of pity and sadness.

"Do we give up on them? People like this dog." His words echoed through the lecture hall; his voice had a righteous tone to it.

"No, we do not! At the end of the day, we people of the same soil. We need to help such people. We need to reform them; I now ask all of you to please help me in reforming this dog! For his sake, such a harsh act would have to be taken- but we only doing this because we love him. Step forward, help me reform him."

Magnus had the desire to run. Even though his mind had not given up, his body displayed the limitations of mortality in its fullest. He seemed to have exhausted all his energy and could not even left his finger. Magnus seemed to have long lost the energy to maintain a prostration, he now was lying on the floor on his stomach.

At first the classmates hesitated, but after the first person had moved, it began.

*BAM!*

*BAM!*

*BAM!*

Most of the students in the class took turns to beat Magnus, for most of them it was a form of entertainment- after all most people would not genuinely understand oppression until they are the ones being oppressed, it was simply human nature. Magnus now had no energy to scream.

Upon seeing this George called one of the Rank A students with a skull on his robe. The student gave George an instrument that looked like a corkscrew. George than used the instrument in an attempt to gauge Magnus's eyes out.

"This way you will never use your eyes for wrong again." His voice maintained the tone of righteousness.

George placed the instrument on Magnus's eyelid, teasing Magnus.

*Splttt*

the instrument pierced through Magnus's right eyelid into the depths of his socket. Several students were laughing so much that they could feel their stomachs paining. Blackness filled Magnus's vision as he collapsed on the ground unconscious.

*Gush* blood flowed from his eye sockets.

"Hopefully our brother has become enlightened. Let's call it a day." A smile of pride and satisfaction appeared on George's face.

Soon the students all left, leaving behind only one in a pool of blood.

...........................….

Unbeknownst to the students-within a small room in the teacher's residential section of the Abyssal Academy, Celine had been monitoring the situation through a crystal ball. Celine was sitting at her table drinking tea in a carefree manner.

*Usually, they would make an example of someone to establish a hierarchy and warn students of the implications of rebelling against the system- however to go this far? In my 13 years of being here, first as a student and now a teacher- it's the first time I witnessed such brutality on a first day. *

*slurp* she closed her eyes as she sipped her tea.

*The idiot will probably die soon, even if I call help- he is destined for torture if he continues to live- people will only continue to use him as an example- it is much better for him to die. Also…. * A smile formed on Celine's face.

*If he dies, there's a high probability that I would be able to get my hands on that pet that was given to him. I simply cannot take it by force as it might bring upon the wrath of the academy. *

*Slurp*

*What a pity kid. * As she was about to stop her observation, a scenario within the room was unfolding.

The "unconscious" kid who was on deaths door could be seen standing up. The kid stumbled as he got up to his feet, using the tables and other objects in the room for balance. The kid stood up, his arms swaying- his legs limping. He walked to the door, using all the objects in the room for support to avoid falling over.

Shock filled Celine's face.

*shatter* the teacup in her hand fell to the ground.

*This does not make sense, was he acting? I am certain he would have been close to death. * Celine was confused, she did not know what just happened.

The sun was beginning to set.

The school building was empty as most of the students had already gone home, furthermore over 3 hours had already passed since school had officially ended. Magnus limped slowly out of the school building and slowly made his way to his dormitory. Even though he had lost vision in his right eye, his left eye could still see things, however it was extremely blurry.

At his dormitory his bloody figure attracted the attention of many students. He went straight to his room, cleaned of the excess blood and head for the showers. The water underneath his feet was stained red. The holes from the splinters left a burning sensation when they contacted the water. He did not take out the splinters. After the shower he made his way to his room. All this time even though he maintained a stoic outlook, his mind was racing. He looked in the mirror, his vision even more blurry than that of drunkenness. He slowly removed the splinters on his forehead and around his eyes. His eyes were cold, an eerie aura filled the room.

*I will kill all of you in such a manner that you would all wish for a dog's death. * A ruthless smile appeared on his face, coupled with his injured face, it gave him an eerie look.

"HAHAHA I have nothing to lose, so what if I die in the process of killing all of you? I was brought into this world freely, it cost me nothing. If I leave, I lose nothing. In this world one can only make gains. I want power, I want power, I want power. I want to walk freely, I want my words to be the law, I want to be a God." As Magnus said this, the purple egg hidden within his room began to glow.

"I will get revenge, and you will all pay tenfold- each of your lineages end here."

Magnus removed all the splinters, walked to his bed, and fell into deep slumber.

...........................

Magnus was walking in a lush garden, the smell of roses and lavender. The peaceful sound of birds chirping, woodpeckers going about their daily duties.

Magnus continued to walk until he reached a lake.

The lake was as blue as the sky and reflected Magnus's image. The image of a chubby kid with a hideous face could be seen. Upon seeing his face, Magnus remembered the incident that occurred within the classroom earlier. As Magnus reached out to his reflection it disappeared. The flowers in the lush garden began to wilt, the beautiful sky began to darken, birds began to fall from the sky- their corpses filled the ground. The lake became the colour of blood, and the water began rising to form a figure. The figure had humanly featured.

The thickness of blood filled the air, the figure standing above the lake opened its eyes.

"I am Reynar."

As these words were said Magnus felt a shiver within his heart.

"If it is revenge that you desire, then revenge is what will occur. You are currently too weak and misguided. To gain strength you must become the superior man. If you wish for revenge than you should go deep into the woods east from here. There you will find your answers, use the divine artifact as a guide. I will teach you how to be a superior man." As the figure said this, it grew massive wings and flew into the sky, causing the fall of corpses to increase. Soon Magnus found himself stuck in these corpses; the smell of rotting skin permeated the air. Magnus's entire body was buried in the corpses. Just as he was about to drown, he opened his eyes and saw the purple egg that he was given had turned red and was floating beside his bed. It was midnight.

"It was a dream, but it is the second time I met this entity in a dream." Determination filled Magnus's face.

"The woods." Magnus paused

"I will leave for the woods later today."