The Mark of Aether

The Academy~Part I

Screams rang in the blankness of my mind, stirring at each bit of consciousness I had. My head throbbed as an agonizing headache kept hammering on my nerves, the blood in my veins pounding too fast. Voices whispered their song in the background of all that noise, the words coming by too familiar. But I couldn't understand them. I couldn't understand any of what was happening.

And all night long, I kept tossing in my bed, trying hard to shun the entire stampede running in my head. And perhaps what made me sit on the edge all the more was that the voices were familiar. It was a faint hum in my brain, but I knew I heard it once before, yet, I couldn't bring myself to remember.

And as morning came, salvation did, too. As the first rays of light danced in our soundless room, the voices died, as though hiding in the shadows of my mind. I released a mighty sigh. My body felt weak, slack and strained to the core. But I forced myself to get out of bed.

My day would be long; I knew that without a doubt. And at the moment, the wisest thing seemed to be to get prepared. Showering, I allowed all the worries to sink with the steaming water, cleaning my head. The air in the first norm was filled with magic, allowing me to breathe the energy all around. Using the guidance of my scroll, I discovered how my uniform was supposed to be worn.

I slipped in the loose, white shirt of the academy before tucking it underneath a  black maxi skirt. Using a simple flare of magic, I made the silver laces of my royal blue vest tie themselves. Ramos did warn me to be careful not using my magic for pointless reasons, but my powers hummed in my veins, begging to be liberated. And I obeyed to their will.

'Freedom to the soul is freedom to the light,' I recalled as I braided my hair. Waking Mayra from her slumber, I waited until she prepared herself before leaving the room, with her guiding me the way down to the gazebos.

And it was little to say that the academy was alive. Wherever I looked, more students greeted my eyesight, buzzing and bustling all around. And as we reached the lake, Mayra offered me a seat as some pixies came flying with our plates. Several eyes stared curiously at me, for I was the new girl. But I wasn't the only one, and I thanked the heavens for it countless times. Ramos had explained that during spring break, the norms opened their doors for new applying students, which took most of the eyes away. But some still remained, especially as I was in the continuous company of the Countess. And I wondered how it would have been if anyone knew of my true identity.

Food was as luscious as the one I tasted at the Whitestone manor, spread in a wide variety in front of my eyes. And there was everything from freshly baked bread to exotic fruits and cream. As we ate, the chirping of the birds came with the ringing of a bell. It was our cue that breakfast was over. And with the same rush the students came in, they left to their classes, dragging us with them.

*****

The magic and elemental class was rather easy to find, guided by the information of our scrolls. Most of the seats were still empty, waiting for the yet to come students. And all my complains went to deaf ears as Mayra made me sit on the closest row to the professor's desk. Minutes passed before the rest of the students came, followed by our professor.

Cloaked in her black and gold robe, our teacher sauntered her way to the desk with grace, her white, layered hair swaying behind her. And from between her tendrils, a pair of pointed ears made appearance. From one face to another, her eyes danced before she spoke, ''To all new students, I bid you my warmest welcomes. My name is Aria and you will be addressing me by Professor Fairlon. I will be teaching you all you need to know about the magic in your blood for this year. Open your books to the fourth section and start reading from the third title.''