Chapter 16: Abilities
Fortem Academy,
As expected, since most of her time was wasted getting lost, a number of students were already occupying the seats. She scanned the room trying to find an empty seat. The setting was similar to a college classroom back on earth.
"Eliana!"
Her eyes darted at the voice's owner. She blinked in surprise but immediately adjusted and replied back.
"Larsanel." She smiled in relief waving back calmly.
The girl was crazily waving her hands up when she called Eliana all hyped up like a kid. Eliana's discomfort earlier vanished discovering she at least had someone she met in class. Eliana approached the girl.
The curious and judging stares she received while walking towards the table was hard to miss.
"Sit here!" Larsanel pointed at the seat she previously sat on. The left side of that chair was empty, Larsanel scooted over to that seat to give her chair to Eliana.
"Thank you Larsanel." She sat down relaxing in the comforting presence of her new found friend.
"Must I repeat it. Call me Lars, Eliana." Lars said almost like a whine. "And you're certainly welcome!"
Something tells her this girl must have had some sugar in her breakfast, she was oddly cheerful.
"Right, alright Lars." Eliana smiled fascinated by the beaming Larsanel.
Larsanel nodded rapidly with a fat smile on her lips. "I'm so glad we have the same house. I was worried I'll be stuck here with him alone." Larsanel sounded like she was truly relieved by the coincidence.
Eliana turned to check out the person seated on her right, the direction where Larsanel pointed at. She returned her eyes on Larsanel.
"Um."
"Oh!" A flash of glint passed by Larsanel's doe eyes, a light bulb of realization clicked inside her head. "My bad, hehe." She scratched the back of her head.
Eliana tilted her head in confusion.
Larsanel gripped both of Eliana's arms which made the latter squeak awkwardly. Larsanel then twisted her body towards the guy beside her who was already looking at her with playful squinted eyes.
"Meet Jett!"
"Hi!" The guy beamed.
He was wearing a similar uniform without the blazer like Larsanel. His long dirty blonde hair neatly rested on his forehead. Eliana can't deny the guy was good-looking but rather than completely handsome he was more on the cute side.
"Hello?" Jett waved his hand on her face to catch her attention. He smiled sheepishly when Eliana blinked in embarrassment.
"Oh hi." Eliana composed herself. Of course it wasn't everyday she'd meet good-looking people. "I'm Eliana, nice to meet you Jett." She offered her hand for a handshake from which Jett returned.
Larsanel laughed behind her. Eliana turned to the girl in curiosity.
"Jettam, remember when I told you I met someone who doesn't know us?" Lars asked in between chuckles.
Jett laughed shortly with the girl. "So it's her!" He calmed down shortly giving the flabbergasted Eliana a playful smile.
"I'm sorry what?" Eliana felt stupefied, what was this situation she was in?
The two calmed down, giving Eliana a smile. Eliana just sat there, her eyes looking back and forth between the two waiting for one of them to speak.
Jettam cleared his throat as composure. "I'm sorry." He smiled apologetically. "I'm not sure if Lars here mentioned it to you. She is the daughter of the right hand of the leader from the Terra land." He explained.
Eliana almost bawled her eyes out, inside her imagination of course she wouldn't want to make a fool of herself. She actually met an aristocrat her age, she should've known. She mentally facepalmed.
"Oh, I didn't know that." Eliana quietly said her eyes slowly shifting to Larsanel who found the dusts on her table interesting.
'This girl.'
"It's okay, not really a big deal. It's rather quite nice to have someone not know about our social status." Jettam said coolly. He leaned back on his chair looking straight in front. "Uh-oh, here she goes."
Eliana followed his gaze and saw a woman whom she immediately recognized.
"Good morning students." Knight Astrid laid her bag down on the professor's table. "I will be your House leader for the rest of your training." She said.
"My name is Astrid, for formality call me Lady Astrid as I am commonly addressed." She added. She paused to rummage inside her bag looking for something.
Eliana stayed quiet waiting.
She heard Jett huffed out a breath. "Wow, she's better than I expected." He said.
Eliana turned to look at him to ask what he meant but Larsanel spoke which made her look to her as well.
"She exceeded my expectations too." Larsanel said with her right arm against the table and her hand supporting her chin. "I heard she brought the newcomers from the portal by herself. Yikes, what a work it must've been."
Eliana chose to ignore the two. She already has tons of questions inside her head, adding more would be overkill.
Lady Astrid did a roll call in their class. Everyone was present, as expected. "My job for today is to check your abilities and your physical skills."
Eliana felt her heart pumped wildly. Of course it would be like this. Training. Abilities. Physical skills.
"Let us go outside the field."
The field was located behind the main building, beyond it was the school's thick creepy forest. They were told to warm their bodies up to prevent further injuries.
"I haven't trained for a while." Jett said while he warmed up his legs. "Been busy with the workloads." He added with a grunt visibly cringing when he extended his leg too far.
Eliana stretched her arms in the air clasping her hands together. "Is the training hard?" She asked, she was careful not to make it obvious she wasn't used to this.
Larsanel stood in place relaxing her breath from her jogging in place exercise. "It is hard, of course. But we got used to it." Lars explained.
Eliana nodded at the two. She heard from Jury Wistal how nobles were trained before they even entered the Academy. As mentioned it was mandatory. It was also the reason why they needn't go through the entrance exams like the other students. They trained their whole life. It was understandable to consider them qualified in the Academy.
"I see."
Astrid clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. "Alright, it's been ten minutes I expect you prepared your muscles right." Her eyes darted to where Eliana stood. "Larsanel and Jettam, come here in front."
Eliana watches the two walk towards the Lady. She wondered what was up.
"I want you two to show everyone how you control your abilities." Astrid looked over Lars. "Ladies first Larsanel."
Larsanel nodded at Astrid before taking a step back to create some space between her and the remaining students.
Eliana's eyes bulged open in shock and disbelief.
Larsanel extended her hands forward, closed together, as she did the ground in front of her tremble. She whipped her fingers up causing the grassy soils to raise from the ground. She made motions from her fingers and slowly the soil shredded some parts the mud tumbling down. It took a minute before she she clenched her hands and smiled looking at Lady Astrid who nodded in approval
"Woah."
"As expected from the Van All Terras."
"Very impressive Larsanel." Astrid clapped along with the other students at her creation.
Eliana was frozen in place staring intensely at the sculpted Fortem Academy main building Larsanel made out from the soil she pulled from the ground.
'Impossible'
'But It's not impossible because I'm seeing it in front of me with my own eyes.'
Larsanel opened her clenched hands and motioned a movement like she was pushing down, the soil went back into the ground neatly as if it wasn't pulled. The grass looked like it wasn't destroyed either.
"Thank you!" Lars cheerfully skipped towards her cousin. She stood innocently beside Jett.
Astrid nodded at the boy indicating it was his turn. He nodded back and stepped back like what Larsanel did.
Eliana blinked.
Jettam was quick and calm. He motioned his hands into circles before raising it in a sudden swift motion. Beside him an army of ants piled onto one another grew by seconds and later moulded copying his silhouette. It almost reached his height before he brought his hands down clenching it before he opened his palms.
He smiled brightly at the Lady.
"That quick!?"
"It's not easy to bring an army of insects without getting harm."
"Impressive!"
The students clapped loudly for the two. They were truly impressed how easy the two were with handling their abilities.
Astrid stood between the two cousins. "Next up, I want you all to find a pair to practice with. I will walk around to see your progress. Understand?"
"Yes Lady Astrid!"
A grim smile stretched on the Knight's lips. "Work hard students. That's of course..." Lady Astrid shifted her eyes towards the two cousins standing innocently behind her. "In order to beat two of the Ethereal Seven."
Eliana just wanted to drop dead then and there.