The first thing Eli saw when he opened his eyes was a pair of bright orange eyes staring back at him.
He jumped up as the other person stepped back. It took him a second to remember were he was and figure out what this strange guy was doing hovering over him.
"You better get up. First period starts in thirty minutes." The boy with dark grey hair stated.
"You must be my roommate." Eli said with a huff.
"Ash Othonos, it's a pleasure to meet you Eli." The ashen haired boy said giving Eli a handshake as he was still half asleep.
"I have to head out for my student council meeting, but I'll see you in third period for specialized magical studies." Ash said and left the room.
Eli took a shower and changed into a fresh school uniform. The bathroom already had supplies and the dresser full of clothes that fit him perfectly.
He noticed a satchel bag on the desk by his bed with the same purple and gold lamp emblem on it. He looked inside to see a rather unique collection of school supplies.
There were notebooks and pencils, but there was also glass bottles full of strange leaves and powders. A note floated out of the bag that read 'your student bag contains your class schedule, standard writing equipment, ingredients for potions class, along with your student idea and room key. Have an excellent first day of school! Signed Miss Nova.
Eli slung the bag out of his shoulder and walked out of the room, looking down at his class schedule. First period read 'introduction to the magical world: room 517' Eli followed the signs in the hallways and went down staircases, getting lost several times along the way, until he finally came across a door labeled 517.
As he walked in the bell tower sounded, he apparently just made it in time for class.
"Ok class the bell has sounded, please take your seats." Eli was surprised to find the person talking looked like your average middle aged teacher wearing a tweed coat and suspenders.
Eli took a seat in what looked to be a normal desk in a normal classroom environment. Considering the day he had yesterday he was surprised and comforted by the setting.
"Welcome to Intro to the magical world! I am your teacher, Mr. Hemming. I understand all of you are going through a difficult transition, so please be assured, every student in this class is new to the magical world and this school. That is what this class was set up for. Most of the students at this school were raised in a magical family and know all about our hierarchy, customs, and way of life. That is what you will be learning here."
Eli looked around the room at the five other students in the class. All wearing similar uniform to him and all looking around curiously as well.
So there's five other people in this entire school who understand what he's going through? Well at least he's not entirely alone. Eli thought to himself.
"Now we will go through introductions by stating your name, race, and what brought you here today. I'll start, as I said my name is Mr. Hemming, I am a second blood werewolf, meaning I was turned into a werewolf and not born one, and I came to teach here to help students who are going through the same challenges I went through years ago." Mr Hemming said calmly with a smile.
Eli didn't even think about the fact that creatures like vampires and werewolves are often born human. Maybe he could relate to more people in this school.
"Now let's go from back to front please." Mr. Hemming motioned at a girl sitting in the front row.
She stood up and introduced herself as Ivy Jordan. A second blood vampire who was turned over two months ago. Apparently she had been attacking people at random, not understanding what had happened to her until the MDA came and brought her here. She said she wanted to learn how to control herself at this school and sat back down with a sad look on her face.
The other four students went, two of them being vampires like Ivy, one of them being a werewolf, and one of them being a seer, who apparently had been haunted by visions since a young age without knowing why.
Eli was thinking of all his fellow students predicaments when he realized it was his turn. He stood up, "my name is Eli Abdallah, I'm a genie who grew up in the human world. I'm here to learn I guess." Eli said simply. Not wanting to elaborate on the horrific events that lead up to his enrollment.
"Wow I've been here for a few weeks waiting for the next quarter to start and I've never heard of a genie!" The werewolf student exclaimed
"Does that mean he can grant wishes like in the legends?" The vampire Ivy asked aloud.
"Settle down class. Eli is a new student just like you." Mr. Hemming said as Eli sunk into his desk.
Apparently fitting in would still be a challenge. The class went on as Mr. Hemming explained the hierarchy of the magical world. Apparently dragons were one of the most powerful species and ruled over the dragon world with few exceptions.
He explained that in order to gain power in the magical world you must defeat opponents in battle. Which is why species not specialized for combat such as seers, pixies, or mermaids were considered lower class.
The middle class mostly consisted of vampires, werewolves, sirens, and average spellcasters.
Finally, the upper class was made of elites like the dragons and higher ranked witches and warlocks.
"Magic power is the most important thing in this world. So study hard to hone your skills." Mr. Hemming said at the end of class as the bell rang.
Eli checked his schedule and walked to his next class 'potions' which was taught by a thin old woman named Mrs. Samson. The class mostly consisted of throwing random ingredients into a cauldron as the teacher explained how dangerous each concoction was.
"This position can cause paralysis, and if you add a handful of birch bark and a dash of mercury. It can be made into a mind control potion." The teacher said casually moving onto the next recipe.
"Umm, Mrs. Samson, aren't these potions really dangerous?" A pixie girl asked hesitantly.
"Only to those with weak magic my dear. The stronger your magic is the stronger the potion needed to harm you. Well this potion may work on ordinary humans, it world take something much more potent to affect even the weakest of us. Only a high ranked magic user could affect you, which is why magical power is highly sought after in this world."
The girl nodded and continued working, but Eli couldn't help feeling repulsed by this mindset. You don't have to worry so long as your strong enough to not be affected? It felt wrong to Eli.
When Eli walked into the he third period, it was setup different to the others. This class only had four desks, all surrounding a podium in front of a white board.
Ash was sitting already sitting at a desk and motioned to the empty one next to him.
"Good to see you again Eli." Ash said with a smile.
"Oh, yeah good to see you to." Eli said hesitantly. Ash was so friendly to him even though they had barely talked. Maybe he was just a nice guy.
As Eli sat down two other students walked in. One was a slender teen with blonde hair and grey eyes. The emblem on his uniform was dark blue with a grey star.
The next person made Eli's blood turn cold. Alexander sat down at his desk and gave Eli a smirk.
'Great' Eli thought 'The jerk from yesterday.'
"Hello class!" a cheery voice made Eli look towards the podium, where a old man with a long silver beard stood addressing the class.
"I'm sure you've all noticed we have a new student joining us this quarter." The elder said smiling at Eli.
"I am Professor Merlin, it's a pleasure to meet you." Eli thought for a second, the name, the silver beard, and the long blue robes the man wore. Surely this couldn't be THE Merlin? From the legends?
"I've heard you've already met Alexander, and Ash is your roommate, so I guess I get the pleasure of introducing my great great great great great great grandson, Dakota Merlin. The sorcerer said proudly gesturing toward the blonde teen who looked away with a huff.
"Now that we all are acquainted," Merlin continued, "let me explain the class for the newcomer. This is Specialized Magic Studies, where students who have rare or extremely powerful magic can be taught how to use it to its full potential!" Merlin said dramatically.
"Each of you possesses magic that is unique and if you are taught how to use it correctly you can go far. Last week we focused on the core of our magical abilities. Ash, would you mind giving a demonstration on your magical center for Eli?" Merlin asked
"My pleasure Sir." Ash stood up and raised his palm. "My magic is centered around Life energy. It flows through everything around me and myself." As he said this a small flame grew in his palm until it transformed into a small bird and began soaring around the room.
"As a phoenix, I must be aware of my own life energy in order to summon and control my magic." His eyes glowed orange like hot iron before he lowered his hand and the bird evaporated.
"Excellent. You've truly tapped into that bottomless pit of life energy within yourself." Merlin complemented as Ash took his seat.
"Now Eli, remember this. Each magical creature has a different magical core. Vampires draw their magic from blood, werewolves from the moon. Merfolk from the water. You must focus on your core in order to draw your magic to its full potential. What do you believe a genie's core could be?" Merlin asked with a direct gaze.
"I don't know Sir." Eli said quietly, embarrassed as all eyes turned towards him.
"I know professor." Alexander announced
"And what would that be young man." Merlin asked intrigued.
"It's obvious isn't it. A genie's core magic trait is to serve isn't it?" The dragon said with a smirk at Eli. "It's like the opposite of my powers, which draw on raw power and leadership." He said with his eyes flowing a fiery red.
"It is true dragons feed off raw power, it is why they are so formidable within the magical world. The core of dragon magic is strength and power, but I would not say a genie's core is mere servitude." Merlin said with a smile
Alexander huffed and rolled his eyes, while Eli was thankful the wizard had not agreed with the dragons theory. Eli may not know what his magical core is yet, but he knew he did not want to be a servant to a arrogant prick like that.
"It's ok to take your time to discover yourself Eli. You are new here after-all, don't feel rushed." Merlin encouraged.
After that Merlin instructed the other three to practice the magic spells they had worked in last week, and Eli watched the other three as they performed wild spells that made giant flames and flashes dance throughout the classroom.
Merlin took Eli aside to work with him. "First let's start with a basic spell," Merlin instructed "imagine a flower growing from the ground. Any flower you want." Merlin watched as Eli closed his eyes and tried to picture a flower. He remembered a flower his mother always loved, a purple flower called wisteria. He felt the familiar hum of magic and when he opened his eyes they were glowing gold.
A patch of wisteria grew at his feet, sprouting from the tile as if it was dirt. Seeing the flowers reminded him of his mothers smile and how happy they made her. At that thought the entire classroom floor became overrun with the flowers a sea of purple engulfing their legs and the strong fragrance filling the air.
The three other students who had been practicing their spells stopped to stare at the flowers. "Splendid!" Merlin cheered "you may not know what it is, but I can tell you are very in touch with your magic center."
"Now focus on letting them sink back down into the ground to disappear." Merlin instructed.
Eli tried to let the image of the flowers and his mothers smile fade away, but the more he tried the more the flowers kept growing.
"Hey genie, this smell is getting unbearable. Dragons have sensitive noses! Get these nasty things out of here." Alexander ordered with a snarl.
Agitated, Eli felt the flowers wither and die before disappearing along with the golden glow in his eyes.
"See, already great at following my orders." The dragon smirked with a chuckle.
"It's ok Eli you did good." Merlin reassured.
Despite his words, Eli hated his magic seemed to listen to the stuck up dragons words, already missing the calming aroma of the wisteria.
"Here is a level one spell book." Merlin said handing him a thick leather bound book. "Try out a few spells and see how your magic responds to it. Oh and remember Eli, helping and serving another is not about weakness, but your own strength." Merlin finished in a whisper.
As the bell tower signaled the end of third period, Eli began heading his way towards the cafeteria, but noticed a problem half way there.
"Are you both going to follow me the entire time?" Eli asked as he tuned to the two teens walking behind him.
"I figured since were roommates we could get to know each other a bit by eating lunch together." Ash said in a friendly but firm tone.
"Trying to befriend him to gain his trust?" Alexander asked the pepper haired teen.
"You would try the diplomatic approach. As for me I can do whatever the hell I want. Im only keeping my eye on you to make sure you don't steal my prize." Alexander said
"Hold on." Eli interrupted, "I am not looking to make friends right now and I am certainly not anyones prize." He glared at the dragon.
"Well you may think that shorty, but the rest of the elites in this school see you as a walking power amp. In this world magic is everything and you've got the ability to make even the weakest magical being into a top-tier. So until I figure out how your magic works Im sticking to you like white on rice." Alexander smiled with a sharp toothed grin.
"I really don't know what you plan to do, you may be powerful but you lack the brains to figure out how genie magic works." Ash said mocked.
Eli had no choice but to listen to them bicker as he walked into the cafeteria. He ordered a meatball sub and sat down at the table with the dragon and phoenix on either side of him.
As he ate and the two continued to argue, he thought about Ash's comment, 'how does genie magic work?' He wondered. He was hesitant to ask but he knew he needed the help.
"Hey Ash? Eli asked, halting the argument the two were having. "Would you be able to tell me more about genie magic?" He asked uncertain.
He knew Ash had been kind to him today, but he barely knew him and was still suspicion, yet he was full of questions and he didn't know who to turn to.
"Of course." Ash said with a side smirk at Alexander. "After classes today I can tell you what I know."
Eli went through the rest of the day eager to learn more. The last three periods were spell casting for beginners, which he had some practice with and found relatively easy, gym class, which he found difficult while trying to keep up with the flying creatures and vampires with super speed, and finally magical artifacts and history, which he found interesting even if half the class fell asleep.
When he arrived back at the dorm room he walked in to see Ash at his desk, reading through piles of papers and a stack of books four feet high.
"Hey." Eli said shyly "Eli! Perfect timing, I was just going over some of the genie lore I had compiled. Please sit down, let's talk.