My eyes snapped open and I glanced left, right, up and down almost absently. I was definitely back in the Academy as Baba Yaga said, pulled from her hut and dragged back to wherever this place was. It definitely was the auditorium, I think.

We found ourselves at the bottom-center of a massive, circular room of some kind. Dark and hooded figures stood atop stone steps that radiated outwards and upwards in a circle. Above us was a host of glowing and humming crystalline things that seemed to phase in and out of the air, creating fractals whenever and wherever they appeared and disappeared. It hurt to look at them.

To my right was Olga and to my left was the kid who kept falling unconscious; he wasn’t unconscious anymore, but the many bruises and cuts all over his naked form told me much of his suffering. The other children did not look any better. They were injured in some form or another and one boy looked as though he was just a step away from dying altogether. The girls seemed distant; it was as though they were here, but their minds were somewhere else. Like the boy to my left, they were all naked for some reason.

Around us clapped an almost equal number of black-robed people, who I knew to be Dark Mages; there were ten of us and eleven of them. One man in particular, seemed annoyed about something, even as he clapped. Another woman seemed familiar; she might’ve been the same woman who stepped on me when I crawled my way out of that dark pit. I didn’t recognize the rest of them, however, as I counted down their number – four women and seven men.

But there was one face among them that I recognized almost immediately, Vaago.

“Welcome back, dear Neophytes!” He announced, grinning from ear to ear as he regarded us with a look that could only be described as predatory. Still, none of the children reacted to him; aside from Olga and I, everyone had dead-eyed looks on their faces, staring ahead into nothing and everything. This did not seem to faze Lord Vaago, however, as he continued, “I see that you’re all well and good and have discovered your Innate Talents! This is most excellent! What a truly talented batch you are!”

The claps intensified. I turned to Olga. She seemed to be on edge. “Are you alright?”

She nodded. Emotions danced across the surface of her normally apathetic eyes. It might’ve been… pity. “I am fine; you should ask the other girls that. They look as though they have been through hell itself.”

She was right. The other girls’ faces were frozen in static horror, eyes wide and flat. But I couldn’t approach them, not when we were surrounded by these powerful Dark Mages, who were far more than willing and capable of killing me if I made even a single wrong move. So, I merely nodded, before turning away. I couldn’t do anything for them – not yet.

“Now,” Lord Vaago continued. “These fine and noble Dark Lords and Ladies at my side today have all voiced their interests in taking you on as an apprentice of theirs, to learn under their guidance and tutelage. However, only one Neophyte may be assigned to a Dark Lord; this mentorship will continue until your graduation and ascension.”

“Before we begin, Lord Kyroth, a neutral party on the matter, will be examining each of the Neophytes and he will declare, for all of us to hear, just what their Innate Talent is. After that, the Dark Lords and Ladies may voice their petition to take on an apprentice; the deliberation may take a while, so the Neophytes will be sent to the Healing Room for the duration.” Lord Vaago declared, turning left and right as though he was expecting protests from the other Dark Mages. When there were none, he continued, gesturing towards us, “Lord Kyroth, if you would do the honors…”

I had no idea which of them was Lord Kyroth. But none of the people in front of us stepped forward. They all stood still and kept their eyes locked on all of us. And then, somehow, someone stood up from the side – a place that had been visible to me this entire time. I knew for a fact that there was no one there earlier. It was empty. And yet, someone had been sitting there the entire time. The figure walked towards us and just the very act of looking at him was difficult; it was as though my mind was forcing me to deny the fact that he was there at all, despite the fact that I knew that he was right there.

I shook my head and blinked several times in an attempt to clear my eyes. He was there, but he also wasn’t there. No… he was somehow convincing my brain that he wasn’t there! It was definitely a spell of some kind. And I definitely wanted to learn it.

He glanced my way and smirked, before winking at me.

Lord Kyroth walked towards the rightmost girl and laid his hand on her forehead. The girl stiffened for a moment, before her eyes rolled to the back of her head. “Her name is Liza Harris; her Innate Talent is Ice Magic – Category 2.”

At that, the Dark Lords and Ladies clapped. Lord Vaago merely smiled and nodded. Liza fell on her back, unconscious. No one reacted to her sudden collapse. Though I did notice one or two curious glances sent her way from the Dark Lords and Ladies, but none of them seemed impressed.

Lord Kyroth moved onto another girl and did the same. “Iwahashi Kaede; her Innate Talent is Curse Magic – Category 4. That’s bloody impressive!”

That definitely caught the attention of all the Dark Lords and Ladies as they began whispering and murmuring to each other in hushed tones. They were definitely interested in Kaede. It was clear in the eyes of many that they wanted her.

Kyroth let go of Kaede and she fell on her back, unconscious, just like Liza who came before her. He then moved on to the next girl and laid his hand on her forehead. “Kamala Chanthara: her Innate Talent is Hex Magic – Category 3.”

That also garnered several reactions from most of the attending Dark Lords and Ladies. Curious and interested looks were sent the girl’s way. Lord Vaago in particular, seemed impressed. As before, whispers and murmurs were exchanged. I tried noting who talked to who, but it was difficult to memorize their faces when their faces were mostly concealed by shadows and only Lord Vaago fully revealed his head.

Kamala, however, did not fall unconscious; instead, she slumped forward, weakened and groggy, but very much awake. THAT garnered her more reactions than her Innate Talent, honestly. Even Lord Kyroth seemed surprised, though it was exceedingly difficult to even look at his face.

Huh, what exactly did it mean if someone doesn’t fall unconscious? Is that good or bad?

Obviously, I found no real answers.

Kyroth moved on to the next girl and did the same. “Maria Andales; her Innate Talent is Enchanting Magic – Category 2.”

A few eyebrows were raised, but Maria did not seem to garner as much attention as Kamala or Kaede. Still, some Dark Lords and Ladies seemed interested in her, but not terribly so. The whispers and murmurs exchanged between them were few and short. She fell immediately unconscious after Kyroth moved away from her.

Olga was up next. She stiffened as Kyroth laid his hand on his forehead. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head. Multi-colored flames exploded from her form, bathing the dark hall in all the lights of the rainbow. The shock that came from the Dark Lords and Ladies was palpable, and so was the interest that followed, even Lord Vaago was not spared. They all wanted her. It was immediately obvious as they sent daring glances at each other. No whispers or murmurs were exchanged. “Olga Ulitskaya; her Innate Talent is Phoenix Fire Magic – Category 6. Holy shit, this kid’s going to be a monster when she ascends.”

Strangely enough, there was only silence after Lord Kyroth’s declaration. Where their mouths and bodies remained silent, their auras spoke a different story; every single one of them wanted Olga to be their apprentice, including Lord Vaago, who seemed to thrum with excitement as he leveled his gaze at Olga. I wasn’t sure if that was good or bad for her, earning the interest of quite a number of Dark Mages. At the very least, it assured me that Olga would not lack in her magical learning; she would become strong, my one and only ally.

When Kyroth released her from his hold, Olga held firm. She wobbled a bit, swaying side to side, but she did not fall and she did not waver. Instead, she steadied herself and glared defiantly at the gathered Dark Lords and Ladies.

I smiled.

And so did everyone else, apparently.

It only drew more of their attention towards her. It was, after all, a sign of strength and will; and, if Baba Yaga’s teachings were even partially correct, both of those things were highly prized qualities among the students. The fact that Olga was apparently very naturally powerful only added fuel to the fire.

And then, Lord Kyroth moved on to me. I did not resist when he reached for my forehead. My whole world turned white for a moment, before flashes of spiraling, fleshy growths filled my vision. And I felt someone else in my head, a foreign presence that wasn’t supposed to be there, digging into the dark recesses of my mind. And I could do nothing but watch as the fleshy, towering growths undulated and writhed. Screaming, toothless faces emerged from their gruesome forms. And a thousand eyes snapped open and stared at me.

It lasted for a total of one second. And then, when I came to, I saw Lord Kyroth take a single step back. I could see him, now. And I saw the shock across his face; his glowing crimson eyes widened. He was a lot younger than I thought. His skin was like Lord Vaago’s, white and smooth like porcelain. The clear difference was that Lord Kyroth had short blonde hair.

And then, he smiled down at me and whispered, “I didn’t think I’d live to see the day, but here you stand. You’re going to be something special, kid. Don’t die.”

He then turned to the gathered Dark Lords and Ladies, all of whom sent curious and interested glances my way. Lord Vaago, in particular, seemed pensive and contemplative. “His name is Uriel Alverez. His Innate Talent is Flesh-Crafting Magic.”

At the mere mention of Flesh-Crafting, almost all of them seemed to lurch forward towards me, like hungry predators in the presence of prey. I shuddered. The hungering stares sent my way made me distinctly uncomfortable. One, in particular, a Dark Lady who’d stayed quiet the entire time, sent me a particularly piercing look. Her crimson eyes flared and I could gulp in response. They were all very powerful Dark Mages, I was sure, but something about her seemed different, unsettling.

But, Baba Yaga did warn me about my Innate Talent; it gave me plenty of potential, but also painted a massive target on my back. I had to be careful, even more so than Olga had to be. I had to survive.

Lord Kyroth paused. And silence reigned as the gathered Dark Mages waited. Honestly, even I was excited about what he was going to say. Olga was powerful and I couldn’t help but wonder how well I measured up to her. Lord Kyroth glanced over his shoulder and smirked at me, before he spoke, “Category 10”

The silence broke almost immediately as the Dark Lords and Ladies exploded into arguments.

I breathed in and out, my heart hammering within my chest. This wasn’t good. The target on my back just got a whole lot larger.