Son of Edelia: A Rising Dawn

Chapter 35

Adam was sprinting back down the hall, his heartbeat thundering in his ears like a war drum. He was sprinting away when a sudden flash of images erupted through his mind, memories from centuries ago thundering in his mind like explosions, the sudden influx of knowledge driving Adam to his knees. Crawling, dragging his body to the professors, his mind suddenly became immensely full, as if a second consciousness was developing within his own mind. He could faintly hear the sounds of pitched combat and hazily make out the flashing of lights, both a deep red and flashes of arcane purple and blues, illuminating the corridor in a dazzling aurora.

Adam flinched, his hand flashing to cover his ears as a cacophony of voices erupted into his ears louder than the explosive combat happening mere feet away. Clutching his head, he writhed on the ground in abject agony, a single image remaining in his mind as he felt his grasp on reality weakening. A tomb set into a towering snow-capped mountain, a vast dark forest stretched for miles, a stream of crystal clear water flowing serenely down the mountainside.

Thoughts came streaming into his mind from an unknown source, his body seizing by the entrance to the staff room. "Seek the lost pieces, learn the ancient history!" a voice screamed in his brain.

Adam closed his eyes and curled into a ball on the floor, his energy sapped as the voice continued to scream within his mind. He rocked on the floor for what felt like hours, the sounds echoing within his eardrums, images flashing through his mind, and the whole world seemed to melt away like ice.

"Adam? What are you doing on the floor?" A gentle voice asked.

Adam's eyes shot open the world, returning to normal, and the cries within his mind ceased as if they had never happened before. The images stopped clouding his thoughts; however, the sight still burned into his mind like a scar. Eyes darting around the corridor revealed its sad state; the wooden floorboards were splintered and scorched, the stone walls were cracked and crumbling, and the entire building groaned like a giant awakening from slumber.

"Adam, are you okay?" Bridgette asked, kneeling down and placing a hand on his shoulder.

"How...How long was I out?" Adam asked, his voice cracking as he spoke.

"Oh, darling, it's been only a few minutes," Bridgette said, her tone softening as she gently lifted Adam off the floor. It looks like you passed out as you were leaving. I told Arthur it was too soon to talk to you," she grumbled, her face darkening.

"No, no, that can't be right. It was hours. I heard the voices for hours," Adam mumbled, suddenly feeling nauseous.

"It sounds like a nightmare, honey." Bridgette consoled, her voice dropping its seductive charm and adopting a more matronly attitude.

Yeah...a nightmare...Adam rationalized, turning his head to gaze down the corridor toward the statue hall. "A nightmare..." he mumbled, clutching his head. "What happened to this place?" Adam asked as he limped along.

"Well, your Master talked with Arthur, and things got out of hand," she replied, smiling as she stopped to perform a spell. "But rest assured, by the end, he agreed with my point of view." She explained that a small glyph appeared in her hand, glowing a brilliant green.

With a wave of her hand, Adam watched as the damage to the surroundings seemed to reverse in real-time. The burnt wood slowly lightened and reassembled itself; the crumbling stone reconstituted and fit itself onto the wall. Adam's eyes were wide as he witnessed the immense magic, darting over to see Bridgette's brow creased in concentration, a single bead of sweat dripping down her face as she controlled the spell. After a beat, the glow faded, and the damage disappeared, leaving the corridor and the staff room pristine as if the damage had never occurred.

"What was that!" Adam shouted the magic, momentarily pushing away his concerns about his nightmare.

"That was a sixth circle spell." Bridgette panted, wiping the sweat from her brow with a handkerchief. "When you come by my class tomorrow, you'll learn all about it," she explained, quickly composing herself.

Adam followed along, his mind racing as he recounted the strange nightmare he had moments ago, his brow creasing as he tried to decipher the meaning of the words the voice screamed, echoing in his mind as Adam mulled over the whole encounter. The world seemed to blur by as his body moved almost subconsciously; he gave greetings to the passing students and professors, answered questions, and commented on conversations; all the while, his mind was solely occupied with the now-distant memory of his strange, harrowing night terror. So lost in his own thoughts that he hardly realized he was already inside his room, he collapsed on his bed, wincing in pain as his body settled.

Where was that place? Is that the location of the lost pieces? At the time, I didn't have the luxury to worry about what it meant, but now, Adam thought, rubbing his eyes as exhaustion settled over him. Maybe I can trust Master Bridgette to decipher the dream, he mused. If it's her, I'm sure she can figure out what the voice meant by lost pieces, he realized, closing his eyes and drifting into a dreamless sleep.