Dark Turn (Book One In War Of The Magi)

Chapter 7 - Hell's Reunion

It had been weeks since I had seen him. And good thing at that. He rekindled the hatred in my heart for him. In a way he helped me. Thanks to his surprise visit, I trained harder than ever in my spare time and got my skills sharpened. Just in time for the Reunion.

As a way to select the three duos that will represent the Empire in the Dance of Devils, the Academies around the world make their own individual tournaments, called Hell's Reunion. In the end of the tournament, three duos will be selected to represent the corresponding Academy and Empire. All in all, its a time of war between students where only the hardworking and most skillful survive. It's monstrous, in the most simple terms.

But that isn't my greatest concern. My birthday is coming by, only two weeks time actually, and every year the same thing happens with Josh throwing a party and me getting way to depressed over everything. Mental instability sure is a fun thing. Not.

Entering my room, I look at the plain walls. I don't have a single picture or memento of my family or friends, only the guitar that I keep by my bed side. There was a time where I had dreams of becoming a musician. It was a great childhood dream of mine. It was such a big dream, my dad bought me this guitar for me to practice. And so I did. Practiced so much I knew how to play entire albums from the old time, by memory and heart. Now that thing is just another coping mechanism.

I looked outside. It was nightfall. A twilight of colors danced across the sky. I cracked the window open and let the cold air run through my room. "Peaceful..." I thought. "A shame it won't last..." 

In life, people learn a variety of things. But, learning how to lose someone is the hardest lesson of all. Every night, I see my sister staring at me with her dead eyes and blank face... And every time I feel a bit more guilty than last time. Part of me knows that it wasn't my fault but, like any main character in a movie or book, I can't help but feel like I could do something to stop it, to make the execution hold for a bit longer. But life is a bitch when it comes to down to it and sometimes there is nothing you can do but stand and watch.

I stared at the sky until it turned pitch dark, with stars giving light to the nothingness, and lied down on my bed, thinking of my sister until I slipped into a dreamless sleep.

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The alarm beeped loudly, but I was already up. It was a habit to race the alarm, to always be first than most. Something my dad had nailed in my personality quite heavily.

Making my way, groggily, to the shower in my room, I stayed for a good ten minutes letting the warm water wash any trace of somberness from me. I can't stand being asked to explain why I wasn't my usual stoic self and had changed into Mister Dark and Moody all of a sudden.

As I left my room, only in my uniform pants and shoes, I pulled the ironing board from the wall and began peacefully ironing my shirt and jacket, unaware of the golden haired girl looking at me from her room. Looking up, I could see her perfect frame standing in her golden-yellow uniform, looking at me, an unreadable expression in her face.

"Morning..." My voice came after a solid three seconds of awkward silence.

"Do you do that every morning?" She asked, a foxy smile in her face.

"Do what?" I asked, turning the iron off to dress up.

"Chores semi-naked." Her eyes crossed the entire room until they met mine. "It can become a weird habit, you know?"

The way she spoke was in a sort of a half joke, half something else. Her entire demeanor, her posture, was very different from her normal way. She was hiding something, from what I could tell. Or maybe not.