Chapter 10

The group of physicals were led into an ancient hall. The architecture reminding Nick of historic institutes mentioned in his history classes. The halls were eerily quiet, with only the echo of footprints breaking the silence.

After a few minutes, the group came to a stop, their way blocked by two massive ornate doors. Upon the doors, two reptilian figures, wings outstretched, fire illustrated from their mouths to meet at the center of the door.

If you were curious, those are my ancestors. Dagr had not missed Nick's thought that he looked awfully similar to them.

"What type of creatures are those?"

They, and I, have many names. Winged Serpents, Leviathans, Qilin, Wyverns, and even Basilisk. However, our most common name, and the one I prefer: Dragons.

The door with the dragons opened, allowing Naomi and Keith to lead the group into a massive auditorium. The first thing Nick noticed was the amount of people within. Almost all the seats in the room were filled with students, ranging from the fourth years, who sat in the back, to the second years, who were almost at the front. Nick guessed the empty seats at the front were for the first years.

As he and the other physical first years were led into the auditorium, he was surprised to see the other three sets of first years were already seated comfortably. How had they beat the physicals? As if to answer his question, the air seemed to ripple in front of the Spirituals, and Beth appeared through some sort of portal.

Beth looked in Nick's direction, though her eyes were searching for Dagr, not Nick.

She wishes to speak with me. Was all the dragon said before taking off in her direction.

"Attracted to a Spook?" Keith was at Nick's side.

"No, I uh, how did she just appear?" Nick remembered Keith couldn't see Dagr.

"Eh, just a Spooky thing they can do. Apparently they can open rifts and travel wherever they want."

"And the others?" Nick was in awe of the amount of powers people seemed to have at the Academy.

"Ints and Mystics just use the Spooks portals. They all like to beat us here every year, only time they can feel superior." The way Keith spoke hinted at a hidden animosity between the schools.

"So we ran here because..." Well, Nick hadn't run, but he wasn't going to mention that to Keith.

"Because we are Phys, it's kinda what we do." Keith looked at Nick like it was the most obvious answer in the world. Nick had another question though.

"What about earlier, you and Naomi both seemed to teleport. How?"

"It's obviously because of how awesome we are." Nick's face told Keith he wasn't buying it. "But really, it's just an ability we have as Phys. We aren't teleporting, our physical ability is just high enough we can move faster than you can process. Every Phys gets to that level eventually."

"No more question, it's about to start." Keith pushed Nick into the nearest chair, right in front.

The moment they were seated, all of the lights turned off within the auditorium. To Nick, it was pitch black, save for a strange glow coming from Dagr, and the bird that sat on Beth's shoulder. It didn't seem any of the others around him could see the light.

The darkness was chased away a few seconds later, by a bright spotlight highlighting a single point on the stage in front of them. A large man stood before them, dressed in an ancient style, a black suite and a blood-red tie. While Nick could tell he was older, it impossible to discern his actual age.

"Greetings, and welcome to the Academy!" His voice echoed through the hall. "As current president of the Academy, I, Bradley J. Hunter, would like to formally welcome all of the new first years." He paused to scan the rows of first years.

"Your acceptance to the Academy means each of you has a gift, a gift which will enable you to further mankind, and lead humanity to an even brighter future." Another pause, as if waiting for applause. When he was met with silence, he continued.

"The CCUP established the Academy, and other schools like it, throughout the galaxy, as a way of training those with gifts. For the next four years, you will be taught how to harness your newfound powers, and how to best use these new abilities to benefit mankind." He again looked at all of the students. For a second, Nick thought he saw his eyes pause on Dagr.

"We have split you into your different schools, and each of you has now met the specially picked advisors. These advisors will be in charge of you, and will ensure your first year of training is a productive one." He spread his arms, the lights turning on as he did. "I ask that every student second year and up, warmly welcome these first years, and ensure their time here is a fond one. While the training may be tough, the bonds formed here will last a lifetime."

He paused for a moment, eyes staring off into the distance, before continuing. "I leave you now with your advisors, and your peers. For the next six months, they will handle your training. At the end of those six months, they will rank you, and a curriculum will be aside to each student, based on their chosen school, and the abilities they acquire during the first half of the year." He started to fade before the group, his form simply appearing to lose substance.

"Make friends, seek out answers, and forever push yourselves forward. That, is what the Academy exists for." With that, he was gone.

"Alright boys and girls, now the fun really begins." Keith was beaming in front of the group, Naomi at his side, and Nick could only imagine what the next six months was going to be like.