Dren'Dek's boots were making a loud clacking noise as he walked down the hallway. There were students who would wave or nod at him, but today he didn't notice, instead, he was deep in thought about Kaos.
He hadn't made any promises or said anything to get Kaos's hopes up at the time, but truth be told, he did have a plan to help him get stronger. Usually a select group of fourth years would be taught how to awaken their Nephilic hearts. Dren'Dek knew that Kaos needed some method to escape his limited growth, otherwise he would break his mind or body in the process.
As he arrived at his destination, he knocked on the large doors of the headmaster's office.
After a moment, he heard the headmaster's voice call out "Come in."
As he pushed the doors open, he remembered just how dark the office was, having only a few lit candles scattered about the office, and curtains over the large windows behind the desk where the headmaster sat.
Finch set down the small block of wood he seemed to be carving away at. "I'll be honest, I'm intrigued as to why you are here, Dren'Dek. If I am not mistaken Dael'Jun's personality aligns more closely with your own, so I can only assume one of two things based on your unannounced arrival. Firstly is the possibility that there is some sort of trouble that threatens the academy as a whole, or secondly, that you need my permission for something, which I believe is the more likely of the two."
It was true that Dren'Dek usually went to Dael'Jun about most of the academy related matters. It wasn't that he had something against the headmaster, he just never understood his way of thinking, or usually agreed with the decisions he would come to.
"I'm here because I want to talk to you about a student."
For just a moment, something flickered in Finch's eyes, it was something inhuman, like a fear of what he would have to do if Dren'Dek said the wrong words. But it was just in the blink of an eye, and as Dren'Dek kept staring at the wiry form of Finch he thought that maybe it hadn't even happened at all.
Finch, noticing that the conversation had come to a halt, motioned with his hand, "Go on."
"There is a student named Kaos in the Sen class. He has a strong support wish, but wants to become a Dek student. He's trying hard and is quite good, but without awakening his Heart, he's not going to get much better."
Finch nodded with a strange smile. "Yes. I know of young Kaos. There is an ongoing bet between himself and Dael'Jun that he will join the Dek class next semester. But I believe there is more to your story, no?"
Dren'Dek was mostly concerned about Kaos's mental state, but truthfully he was hesitant to bring it up in front of Finch, who seemed to rarely care for the wellbeing of others. "He isn't doing well. He's pushing himself hard and isn't really growing, so all that strain is just going back into his head."
The headmaster nodded quizzically. "And?"
"Well that's just it. I'm not sure." Dren'Dek paused for a moment, unsure about how to continue, "There's something going on with him. I'm not sure if it has to do with his Wish, or something else, but there's something else eating away at his mind, and I think it might have something to do with the Arena."
At the mention of the arena, Finch seemed to suddenly become more interested, "And why do you believe it has something to do with the Arena?"
"It just behaves differently around him. The way he goes under the sand is just a little different so I didn't think anything of it, but then I watched it kill him in the scrimmage. It threw a building at him, and it wasn't like anything the arena has ever done before."
Finch was obviously excited, and he nodded for Dren'Dek to go on, "Is there more?"
"During the joint training with the Dek class, it had him do one fight against his friend, and then spat him back out. He's different, and something tells me that if we don't handle this well, something bad is going to happen."
Finch nodded and his excited face turned thoughtful again, "I will give you permission to teach him how to awaken his heart, but on two conditions. Firstly that you only begin teaching him after this upcoming arena game, and secondly, that you update me on the training after every session."
Dren'Dek nodded a little surprised, he hadn't expected Finch to actually give him permission this easily. He gave a quick 'thank you' speech, and began walking back out the door.
"Oh and Dren," Finch's voice came from behind him, addressing the warrior without his honorific title, "if I tell you to stop the training…"
"Then I'll stop the training." Dren'Dek replied, finishing his sentence.