Chapter 66: A new Year, a fresh set of horrors

With the first day out of the way, now Ciaran could finally enjoy some time with his friends. From the Third Year and up, the students would enjoy the privilege of managing their own time, at least to an extent.

The Academy worked on a credits-based system and every class gave you credits. From this year the students were allowed to take on some of the less academic courses as well. For example, Rayon was recruited into the military. He was a special case, however, as most of the students could only join basic training.

It would award them some credits but they would still have to pass multiple classes to be eligible for evaluation, and you needed to pass that to get through the semester. With two semesters that meant each student had two evaluations they needed to pass, and if they failed they were out of the Academy.

It was a brutal system that was designed to separate the wheat from the chaff.

As a special soldier, Ray was given all the credits he needed, but even he needed to pass. The evaluation took many different forms, and there were a few variations from which the students could pick each semester. As strict as the Academy was, they didn't want to discriminate against anyone's abilities.

Some children were unable to sit still and study, as such it was unfair to evaluate their worth based on this ability alone when they were perfectly capable of other things.

One of the best examples of this was Liam Clades. The man was deemed an academic failure because he would rather chat with whoever would entertain him rather than study quietly for more than fifteen minutes. And yet, no sane person would ever deem him incompetent.

Having the opportunity to use your unique talents to prove yourself was one thing. Meeting the standards the Academy set for you was another. Many failed, as the requirements were steep.

Even today all the students were preparing themselves for what was to come in four months. Everyone was serious about their work, except four individuals who were taking full advantage of the fact their teacher couldn't keep them in a stuffy room anymore.

Ciaran and his friends were relaxing by the fountain and were catching up with each other. Even the two antisocial rejects had missed their friends and were having the time of their life.

An hour of pointless banter with these three had healed Ciaran's mind more than a week of therapy and meditation. He truly enjoyed their company, and his only regret was that he couldn't introduce them to his familiar.

"Ok, are you lot ready to check out Floor Two? Only one of us has been there, and I want to see if all of the hassles had been worth it." Clara said.

The kids agreed. Rayon had been excited to go, but the other two were just going with the flow. Before Ciaran was excited because of the mysteries behind the unknown, but now he was met with new and exited things almost daily.

Sunny on the other hand just liked to have fun. Whether that was in a garden, a classroom, or in the Library was entirely inconsequential for her.

Even as Third Years, they had to go through the Maze to get to it tho. They all went in, and Ciaran wasn't surprised that he would get a Trial, just like the rest of them. However, when he saw what was waiting for him on the other side of the tunnel he gulped.

It was a swamp. Not any ordinary swamp, however, it was the swamp in which he had first interacted with Verdania. It looked different than what he remembered. Before it felt mysterious and he could feel that as long as he stayed in the little boat he was given he would be fine. Now it just felt dangerous.

There was no little boat, and the swamp itself felt like an enemy. Before he could do anything, however, Verdania appeared.

"Hello Ciaran, time for your first Water lesson." She said with a smile that went to her ears.

The boy didn't know why, but she was pissed, and he was going to pay for it. The fact Eleftherios didn't stop her meant he was giving them the 'Ok', and that the boy was finally allowed to progress on his martial path again.

"Please instruct me." He said, his voice serious. Even if she was just venting, as long as he got what he wanted, the boy didn't care.

She could guess what the boy was thinking, and if she had to be honest with herself, he was the least to blame for her anger, but someone had to pay, and Liam was out of her reach, and Eleftherios would be punished later.

She took a deep breath to calm herself and then began.

"Water is the source of all life Ciaran. Of the elements, it is not the fastest or the strongest. It is not the most flexible either, nor is it the most versatile. Now tell me, where do we excel." She asked the boy.

He was a bit stumped. He always thought that the Water element was the most versatile. It could heal, it was strong, and it had a decent defense. He thought about it a little but didn't consult Ariadne, this was a question for him, and he needed to figure it out on his own.

"It's ah… the wettest of elements?" In the end, he had nothing.

Verdania shook her head and made a ball of water rice from the swamp.

"Do you see this, this is water." She said and waited for the boy to nod.

"This is ice, but it's also Water." She said as she froze it.

"And this is steam, but once again, it is still Water." She said as she melted the ice and evaporated it.

The boy saw it all but still didn't get her point.

"We are our elements Ciaran. Our bodies and our souls shape our minds. For example, your soul is Wind, and as such you are a free spirit, and an air-head. That is the direct opposite of me whose soul is Space. I am always multitasking, kid, it just doesn't feel right if I am not involved in at least three things all the time. So tell me what aspect Water gives us when you eliminate all that from our personas. How are we similar? The hint is my little demonstration from earlier." She said as the anger was gone from her eyes.

Ciaran thought about it. If he was to remove his curiosity, and his rebelliousness that he associated with Wind, then his personality was a mess. Sometimes he would be apathetic to everything, and others he would lose his temper when pushed.

"So, um, we are moody people. Unhinged at times, and coldblooded at others." He said, just a hint of certainty in him.

She laughed at the way he had put it.

"In a matter of speaking, yes that's it. The way we put it, so we don't sound like crazy people, is that we are the most unpredictable. Sometimes we are kinder than saints, and others we are crueler than demons. And we do it all for ur own amusement. That, is what we will be learning from now on kid, that there are always a billion ways to approach a problem, and you should know them all." She said as she smiled.

If he had to be honest, that sounded like some stupid philosophical shit. All he wanted was to be strong and to be able to beat people up when he was in the mood for it. Which, when he thought about it, was more or less fitting with her description of Water users.

"So how do we start?" He asked.

She smiled and teleported him above the swamp.

"Try not to drown." She said as she let him go.

He sunk. With no rhyme or reason, this crazy woman had thrown him in the water, and it seemed to be sucking him in further and further down.

He hadn't had time to take a deep breath, so he had less time to work with before he would drown. He was pancaking, Ariadne was going mad with worry as she could feel his anxiety but for some reason, couldn't get out.

Her worry added to his, as they shared a mind link and just made things worse. He tried to swim out but the water was dark and muddy, and he could not see how close he was to the surface. He struggled like that for four minutes, before his body couldn't take it anymore, and was starting to lose consciousness.

He wasn't thinking about anything at this point. There was no panic left in his mind. He couldn't even hear Ariadne at this point.

"It's a shame I have to die, but it is what it is." This was his last thought before everything went dark.