Chapter 5 - registration
Dorin closed his eyes as the lilac smoke engulfed him. He could feel the spell working around him while Seb held his arm firmly.
"A translocation spell..." he thought to himself, "for short distance travel."
When the smoke dissipated, they were standing in front of a small white tent. Several other tents stood on both side of it, all of which had a table in front and one or two people sitting inside. The People inside this particular tent were both staring at Seb and Dorin. The girl in front of the table was holding a bunch of papers, while inside, a guy knelt in front of a box.
"Seb!" said the girl at the front desk, "You know well that you're not supposed to use spells indiscriminately on campus!"
[Is registration still open?] asked Seb, ignoring the girl’s warning.
"Weren't you here earlier?" said the guy inside the tent. He straightened up and dusted his pants. "Besides, all the slots are full."
"Full?" Dorin asked. The two of them looked at the strange boy beside Seb. "But I've gone all this way..."
[Isn't there any other slots available?]
"Sorry, like we said, we're all full." said the girl.
"But it's just 1 more slot..." Dorin begged.
"You see, we give out photography kits to all registrants, so we can't accept more than what we have on hand," the girl told him. "I'm afraid we can't include you unless one of the other registrants back out."
[Then let him take my slot.] wrote Seb.
"Are you sure?" the guy asked. "Haven’t you been waiting for this all school year?"
"Really Seb? You're giving up your spot for me?" asked Dorin.
[Yes. I will try something else.] was the other's written reply.
"You don't know how much this means to me! You are truly an amiable person!" Dorin said unabashedly. "From this day forth, I shall think of you as my brother!" He then took hold of Seb's shoulders and kissed both his cheeks. Seb stood there, his face devoid of emotion as Dorin smiled at him. The 2 people from the photography club looked surprised.
"I thank you too!" said Dorin, reaching out to them, the girl flinched as he took her hand and pumped it enthusiastically. "I am called Dorin Silvius."
"Oh, for a minute there I thought you were gonna..." mumbled the girl, turning red. "I am Anastasia, Technology department year 4, and that one over there is Josiah, Science department year 7." Dorin reached out for Josiah's hand as well but the other stepped back.
"Sorry, but I'm not good with physical contact," said he. "Here's the registration form." He handed Dorin two sheets of paper and a pen. "For the fee, just give it to Seb, since he has already paid for his slot."
"Oh, how much do I have to pay?" asked Dorin.
[Two Hundred alma.] wrote Seb before the others can speak.
"Okay..." Dorin took his pouch from his new satchel and counted 200 alma bills as the three stared at the thick wad of money. "Here, you go!" he said cheerfully.
[Thank you. Now, let's go back and have a bite to eat.] wrote Seb, [your treat] he added shortly.
"Of course!" said the other, "It's the least I can do!"
The two went on their way, Dorin chattering happily. Anastasia and Josiah watched as the two turned a bend and disappeared from their sight.
"Isn't the registration fee only 50 Almas?" asked Anastasia.
"I feel sorry for that new kid," said Josiah.
"You mean, you can talk to Mar using this... cellphone?" asked Dorin as he inspected the small phone in his hands. "I have read about telephones in my mother's book before, but I have never actually seen one. Don't they need to be connected to lines?" he asked
[cell phones use radio waves transmitted through antennas, no need for cable lines.]
"Oh... I'd like to read about that sometime..."
[you can study at the tech dept.] wrote Seb.
"Study?"
[they have full 1 yr course for cp tech w/ additional 2 yrs for telecom & satellite tech. very in demand & high pay job <3] heart included.
"This is delicious!" Dorin was no longer listening. He took another bite off the hamburger they bought and exclaimed. "What did you say this was called again?"
[Hamburger. Where did you say you were from again?]
"By the way, how can you call Mar if you can't talk?" Dorin asked, ignoring Seb's question.
[Through text or email] Seb made a sequence of swipes and taps. Later, the phone rang. He pressed a button and passed it to Dorin.
"I'm on my way there." It was Margarette.
"Hello? Hello Margarette! Do you hear me?" Dorin shouted at the phone. People in the burger joint looked at him, some of them snickering.
"You're too loud!" Mar shouted back. "I got your message, I'll be there in a minute." There was a click, then a beeping sound. Dorin gave the phone back to Seb who just sat there looking at him, but something tells him the other guy was snickering at him. His shoulders were shaking. Mar arrived later and gave Dorin a key and several sheets of paper.
"That's the key to your university vault. The papers you need to fill up and hand over to the registrar as soon as you can. They open at 8 am tomorrow. All I had was your name, it was a good thing my aunt was in the registrar's office and agreed to let me take the form back with me."
"Thank you for all your assistance Miss Margarette!" Dorin took her arm and proceeded to pump it up and down. He then took a quill pen out and started filling up the form. It was made from an actual feather.
"By the way, I was told that you haven't sent your University application yet, do you have it with you now?" Mar asked, watching Dorin's neat cursive penmanship.
"Oh, I'm not applying for university, I'm just here for the photography class!"
"Huh?"
"There's a ‘3 days, 2 nights Photography Camp’, right?" he recalled from memory, as he gulped his last piece of burger, "I saw this flyer from one of my mother's books and decided to check it out! I've never seen this camera before! Imagine, a magical contraption capable of capturing moments with just a flash of light!" Mar stared at him, dumbstruck.
[In a way, he got the logic right.] Seb wrote.
"Wait a minute... you came all the way from Monarch Forest... just to learn how to use a camera?!"
"Well, yes..." Dorin looked at his fries thoughtfully, "Actually, I asked my mother to buy me one with an instructional book included, but she flatly refused to do so, saying 'it's just a useless hobby for slackers who have too much time in their hands'." Here he waves his hand in the air and talked in a sharp, haughty voice. "So I decided to come out here on my own."
"In other words, you ran away from home?" Mar asked, her jaw left hanging.
[Obviously.]
"Yup!" Dorin answered with a nod
"And your mother is that overprotective person who gave you all those charms and wards?!"
"Yup!" Another nod. "These... fries are so tasty!" Seb pushed his fries in his direction. "I can have these?" asked Dorin with a beam, "Why thank you!" He gulped the rest of his fries and proceeded to eat the other bag.
"But... you need the signature of a parent or guardian to take classes here... especially for minors 15 years and below!"
"Oh, that's okay, I always sign my mother's documents when she's not around, I even brought her ring!" Saying this, Dorin pulls out a signet ring from some inner pocket and showed it to his 2 companions. "Although I've only ever seen her use it once..."
Mar and Seb stared at the ring. It was a gold signet ring with a single rose surrounded by a crown of 12 thorns. Mar suddenly stood up, her face pale. With a trembling hand, she pointed at the ring, stammering. "T-the... The seal of Briar Rose..." she whispered. Beside her, Seb remained motionless.
"What did I tell you about showing people your stuff?" said a small voice behind them. The three were taken aback as a small hand snatched the ring from Dorin's hand, while another pulled on his left ear.
"Ow-ow-ow..."
Dorin turned around. Standing behind him was Agate, an angry frown on her youthful face.
"A-Agate! What's the matter..." he asked her.
"THIS is the matter!" she hissed, raising her clasped fist with the ring inside. She looked around the store. Almost all of the customers were watching them now, wondering what the commotion was about. "Take your stuff." She ordered them. She then took out her wand, mumbled a spell, and whisked the whole group out of the store.
The four of them materialized inside a spacey room with a canopy bed on a corner and a study table by the only window. The walls were covered with shelves overflowing with books and models of human anatomical parts.
"Books!" gasped Dorin as he approached the nearest shelf.
"Dorin! Come here." Agate called, her eyes a dark shade of red. "And you!" she pointed at Seb, "Don't you dare place an anchor point inside my room!" The latter, who had his right hand inside his coat pocket, slowly pulled it out and looked innocently around the room instead.
"Professor Althea!" Mar called to Agate, "do you know this kid?"
"Agate? Are you really a professor here?" Dorin asked, a book already in his hands.
[Can I borrow a book too?] wrote Seb.
"SILENCE" Agate commanded, the word reverberating in the room. The children found themselves unable to speak.
[I promise to return them soon!] wrote Seb.
Agate walked to Seb, grabbed the slate, and threw it on her table.
"Now. I want all of you to listen. Answer only when asked."
Agate took out the signet ring and held it at the palm of her hand. "First, Dorin. Does your mother know that you are here?"
"No."
"Where is she now?"
"She left yesterday on another spell request."
"I knew you couldn't have come here if she knew about this...” she mumbled. “Is there any way for you to contact her?"
"Yes. But I left it back home!" Dorin replied with a stubborn look on his face.
"Drat. Do you know where she went?"
"No, she never tells me where she goes."
"Hmph. Typical Hermione..." Agate mumbled some more.
"You know my mother?" Dorin asked, but Agate just stared at him with dark angry eyes.
"I am the one asking questions." she faced Mar and Seb next, "Margarette Gunnar. Sebastian Revius. What are you two doing with my nephew?"
Hello readers! ʕ•́ᴥ•̀ʔっ♡ This is Psynoid Al, you may also know me as Alex Rosas or Gem Vecino in my other works. I hope you're enjoying the story so far :) This story will be updated every Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays Please don't forget to add the story to your library :)
Chapter 6 - The Geist "You're my aunt?!" Dorin went closer to Agate, his eyes wide, face flushed with excitement, "I never knew I had an aunt, it has always been only mother and me! I didn't know I had such a cute aunt!" He threw his arms around Agate and hugged her tightly. "Your mom and I were cousins, so yes, I am your aunt. Now, let go!" It took some time before she could push Dorin away. She looked at the two students in the room and called their names again. "Margarette, Sebastian, tell me, what were you doing with Dorin?" "They are my new friends!" Dorin exclaimed, a huge smile on his face. "I'm not asking you!" Agate retorted. "Margarette. Sebastian. Your answers?" "We met him by the University gates," Mar said, looking pale. "Some other student was trying to take his charms from him... because he couldn't pass the gates..." "That was your cousin Lance, right?" Dorin said with a smile. Mar threw
A man ran up a flight of stairs. In the darkness, you would expect him to stumble, but he never missed a step. When he reached the top, he held out his arms and pushed at a wall, revealing a secret path that led to a dimly lit room. In the middle of the room was a red gem, and staring in it is a cloaked figure of a person, a pair of bony hands the only thing visible in the gem's glow. "Did you find him?" asked the man, trying to catch his breath. "I'm afraid we have been blocked once again." Replied the cloaked one in a hoarse voice. "We have merely narrowed his location to the kingdom of Beronia, the capital of the Alcione Empire... it seems he's in the Royal University..." "Aubrianne..." the man says. "I was able to scry the location, but the University's charms blocked me, and the connection was broken before I could get past them." The cloaked figure bowed low. "I am truly sorry for my incompetence, my liege." "No. That info
- Chapter 8 - Dorin got up early the next morning. He went to the small toilet, did his morning rituals, and put on his new clothes. He looked at the small mirror, at his light brown eyes and unruly brown hair that fell to his shoulders in waves. It was still summer, though the morning air was already chilly in the city. His aunt told him that students were required to wear proper attire when inside the campus. After dressing up in his uniform, he climbed the small ladder going up to Seb's bunk and threw the bed curtains open. "Good morning Seb!" he called energetically, "Did you have a good night's sleep?" "..." He looked at his roommate. The other had a pillow over his head, his back to him. He raised his right hand and waved angrily at Dorin. "Oh, not a morning person, huh?" asked Dorin, undaunted by the other's action, "It's already 5 in the morning! The sun will be out soon!" he jumped down and started
- Chapter 9 - Agate's spell had sent Dorin back in his room with Seb. Seb took out his slate and has been writing vigorously since they arrived. He's been asking him so many questions when all Dorin wanted was to have some breakfast. [How did you see the spell?] he asked, [my locking spell is a 1st class charm! you can't just unravel it by cutting a 'thaum'!] "But, that's just what I did, I can't explain it further..." Dorin said for the nth time, yet the other can't seem to accept his explanation. [then teach me!] Seb finally wrote. Dorin sighed. "Well, I guess that's the best way to show you..." He went to the door which was recently locked by his roommate and closed his eyes to concentrate. "Just feel the spell and look for the beginning, then trace the threads that make it up, thus you find out what the spell is all about, then you follow the pattern to find the end and look for the part that loops it togeth
- Ch 10 - Sebastian and Dorin ran. At the back of the North Dormitory, there was a small garden that opened to the woods, past that were several small buildings, one of which was a wooden cabin with a sign 'Photography Club' posted on a plank in front. Hanging on top of the double doors was a banner saying '5th Annual Photography Club Summer Camp'. Several people were standing around a table by the entrance. "Please sign here for attendance!" It was Anastasia. She brightened up when she saw Dorin with Seb and waved them closer. "Good morning Dorin! Good to see you made it on time." "Good morning!" Dorin said beaming. "Is the class about to start?" "In a couple of minutes, just sign your name here..." she pointed to a blank space in a list that was almost filled with names. Dorin signed the attendance sheet and turned around to thank Seb for taking him to the Photography Club when he noticed his friend signin
The two went on their way. From the main gates, they went straight ahead to the main school building, a vast castle which housed the business offices of the University, professors' dorms, and faculties for the 3 major Divisions, namely Military and Sports Division, Science and Technology Division, and the Magic and Arts Division. They turned to the left then, on a clockwise direction, where the main Military grounds lay. Most of the University's west side was for this division, including training grounds and sports fields which lay under the Military division. This includes horse tracks, soccer fields, basketball courts, Olympic size pools, gymnasiums and the likes. The West Dormitory is a large western style building used as barracks for the students with rooms housing as many as 60 students each. They could see 2 of them from a distance, side by side to separate the male from female soldiers. To the north was the Science Department's main building, a massive buildi
The three passed the Science department to buy some snacks on their way to the military department. The Science building had several food dispensers located in front and Dorin bought a lot of snacks from each. His satchel was near bursting when they finally went on their way to the shooting ranges. "How come we don't have food dispensers in our dorms?" Dorin asked, popping some candy inside his mouth. [Magic students kept messing around with it, the food inside always disappear in the morning] Seb with a wafer stick hanging out of his mouth. "Really, you two, hurry up and finish your snacks." Mar said with a frown, "Eating is prohibited in most areas in the Military department, particularly in the training fields." [Roger] Seb gulped his wafer. Dorin placed the rest of the candy in his mouth and chewed vigorously. "We'll be passing the Sky Gate." Mar pointed at a gatehouse with 2 guards standing in front. The grounds of the
"Sebastian!" Mar ran to her friend's side. "Are you okay?" "What the hell is going on out here?" yelled someone from behind. People in the barn rushed outside to see what all the commotion was about. "Major General Muller!" saluted Drill Sergeant Robinson, his face turning pale, "There's been a weapon malfunction." "Sir." Mar stood in attention, "A civilian has been injured by a weapon malfunction." The general approached and looked at the crater where the target used to be before checking on the two students on the ground. "Would someone tell me what happened here?" he demanded, when Dorin suddenly looked up. "Dorin?!" the general said with a gasp. "What are you doing here?!" Dorin stared at the general wide-eyed, thoughts swirling in his head. He looked down at his friend, unconscious in his arms. "Marcus," he said, staring back at the general, "my... friend... is hurt." Major General Marcus Muller stared at