Zero to Hero (Prequel/prototype)

Chapter 3. Zero

"Wake up Ken! How can you still be asleep! You will be teleported in 30 minutes!"

"I can't believe it's 8:30 already" the groggy Ken replied.

"I wonder what time I even fell asleep last night." Slowly rolling off his bed, Ken begins to pack his things to get ready for the teleportation.

Having pretty much no personal items, after getting dressed, Ken decided to just stuff his remaining clothes into a sack and call it a day.

"Don't forget to bring your clock Ken. I am really worried about how you will be able to get up for your classes without me around. Maybe you should go buy one of those artifacts that will sound an alarm after a set number of hours."

"Don't be stupid Emma, those things cost way more than what I got. I will be fine, don't worry about it, I'm sure I will be able to get up on my own once I'm at the academy."

Suddenly hugging him from behind, "I will miss you Ken" Emma said softly with her voice quivering.

"It will be fine Emma, I will go learn all I can, maybe make friends with some royalty, get a great job one day and support my family like Kate's parents are doing."

Completely missing her intentions, the two left the room to join the rest in the dining hall where the family had some toast for breakfast, and everyone said their goodbyes one last time.

"Make sure you all be good and take care of mom fo" before Ken could finish his sentence, the necklace begins to glow and instantly, what's in front of his eyes are no longer his family in their dining room but a giant stadium full of people with big fancy luggage and dressed even more extravagant.

The first thing Ken noticed is that unlike his home, the weather is quite comfortable and not chilling at all even during the first month of the year. The next thing he notices is that he is now inside a giant stadium, one that he has seen many times before.

"WOW! I'm actually inside the Dragonspire stadium!" Realizing where he was at, Ken couldn't hold in his excitement. The biannual tournaments are held at this very stadium where the world gets to witness the strongest fighters serving the largest kingdoms battling it out for glory with the periodical newcomers who will leave a strong impression and eventually become the next great.

With the world at peace and to keep it at peace, the largest and most powerful kingdoms that's keeping the balance have to display a certain level of military force that will make other kingdoms think twice before invading. While the military size is a factor, the key to a strong and powerful army is without a doubt, its commanding general.

It's said that the current top 10 each have the ability to destroy any kingdom unless they are faced against each other, or hundreds of extremely talented individuals will need to be sacrificed to take them down. Their immense power and the fact they all serve different kingdoms is what allowed the world to be at peace and the people have dubbed them as heroes for keeping the world at its current balance.

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to Dragonspire Academy"

As Ken looked up, he saw the lady from the selection standing alone on the announcer platform with a sound enhancer artifact speaking clearly to them from quite a distance away. As he looked closer to the stands, the stadium seats weren't fully empty either as he also noticed the professor who enrolled him sitting near the platform with others who he assumes are also professors.

"My name is Evelynn Dragonspire, the current headmistress of the academy. For today, my staff members will be registering each of you and you will be going through our entry exam to determine where you are academically and what areas you would need to improve to remain a student here."