Chapter 35 - The Eagle- War for Academies arc

Roy 'Veg It had only been a few days since Hito left to return to his village, but I could already feel his absence. I missed puking alongside him after running 5,000 laps, I missed knocking each other out during sparring sessions, and most of all I missed both of us being punished after I tried saving his ass from his shenanigans. Training just wasn't the same without him. Still, I smiled. Because he had accomplished what it felt like few people could. He graduated from the Aisaran Academy, which was undoubtedly one of the best in the country. Looking around at my fellow comrades, I knew that most of us would be able to join at least a high-ranking infantry squad; if not the Elite ranks themselves. Just the battle-hardened faces we wore showed our discipline, our drive, and our prowess, against the forces of evil. We undoubtedly earned our reputation as one of the greatest academies in all 4 kingdoms. Hopefully, an accomplishment such as this would begin my path of atonement for a grave sin. I came from the kingdom Karg' Un, the one that famously rebelled against the King from Shak' Ga. Not of, if we said that we would have to say King of Aktash. As he was the clear ruler of Aktash. Until he was killed by that Kargian scum. Vakash. The traitor stooped so low as to use his original name, the one given to him by his kingdom. How despicable, to put a country of barbarians above himself. Feeling my anger rise, I quickly recited the oath of the eagle, stopping myself from punching the table. My anger had no place here. Soon, it would find its place on the battlefield as I finished the job the King had started. Scourging Karg' Un from existence. But for now, it would be best to control my temper. There was no need to cause reason for discipline tonight. As I wolfed down my dinner (this night a fine steak) I thought of the upcoming trial tomorrow. The one Hito had completed just a few days ago, meaning I had to complete it tomorrow. I can't let my rival get too far ahead of me. Though I wish he would be here to watch. No matter, once I pass the trial we would surely be put into the same squad anyway. Unless I grow even stronger. Snickering, I downed another piece of my treat. Normally our food is mediocre: potatoes and some peasant's meat, but my instructors treat us with special delicacies every now and then. If they had such easy access to these fine cuisines, I don't know why we can't eat them more often. I wasn't going to complain though. I was far too happy that someone with such a dog's background as me was given a second chance. I couldn't overstate my disdain for Karg' Un. I couldn't even think about its desolate mountains without getting pissed off. Calm down. As I gripped my glass, I could feel tiny shards embed themselves into my hand. Although displeased with my inability to control my emotions, this did make me smile. This level of awareness of self would be key tomorrow. I've heard tales of people who had gone through the entire trial flawlessly until the final moment. In one fell swoop, a hidden elf or orc sprung and made its attack known, either shooting an arrow through the student's neck or cleaving him in half. Even the most experienced healing mages usually couldn't heal a student who failed that badly. As I downed the glass of water, I didn't feel fear or anticipation for the upcoming battle. All I felt was an invigorating sense of pure adrenaline. I had a unique Water annihilation magic, that allowed me to use the water found in surrounding plants to create weapons capable of piercing any armor. Any monster hiding in the bushes, waiting to attack, would find its hiding place extremely hostile. That image forced a hearty laughter out of me. Paying no mind to the confused and annoyed glances my comrades gave me, I ate another slab of steak. "Hey, Roya." What the hell? Hito- Looking up to see my friend, I found myself unable to force my anger away. I couldn't give a damn about any excitement or suspicion. This bastard just called me by my Kargian name. "The name's Roy, jackass. Aren't you supposed to be back at home anyway!" He sat down, paying little mind to my venom. Although the back of my mind nagged at me, telling me something was terribly wrong, I couldn't find it within myself to care. This... this BASTARD just called me by my Kargian name! Picking up a slab of meat, Hito set it onto his plate without care of my evident anger. Who the hell does he- "Calm down, or I'll kill the 5 people behind us." Wha- kill? Finally, fear overtook my anger. What the hell is going on with Hito? "Hito... you know not to call me that name. It was given to me by dogs." He casually spread some butter on his steak before reaching for the pepper. Hito hates pepper. As he cut into his steak, cooked rare, he said "Wrong. That is the name given by your country. You know better than to reduce your name to a single syllable, Roya." I watched with wide eyes as blood poured out of his steak. Hito hates rare steak for that exact reason. Despite being such a powerful annihilation mage, he had an innate fear of blood. Yet he seemed to relish in cutting the steak apart just now. What the hell is going on?! "I see no logic that could explain why you would change your name, if I may be frank. Your name symbolizes your pride in yourself, so changing it should be damaging to your own image. Furthermore, changing your name to a single syllable is the worst offense you can make towards your country. Therefore, it is entirely abhorrent that-" Slamming my fists on the desk, I paid no mind to the lack of any reaction from my comrades as I screamed, "You know why I changed my name, Hito! It was for that very reason, to scorn the nation that I was born in, that defiled me since birth! The land whose very lineage... Hito... " My outburst was cut short as lightning danced along my comrades, slashing through their necks, their heads, or even embedding themselves inside their bodies, blowing them up from the inside out. As their gory remains littered the hall, I could only whisper "Hito... what the hell did you just do?" Almost ignoring my question, he nonchalantly wiped his mouth with his napkin, taking special care to clean the blood off of his lips. "I did ask you to be calm, didn't I." As he finished his steak, I could do nothing but stare in shock. What... what demon possessed Hito? He was nothing like the sweet and innocent, even if deadly, warrior I had become close friends with. He... he's darkness!!! Evil!!! Evil that the eagle sigil demands I destroy, to liberate the land. As I began scouring my surroundings, looking for anything to give my water annihilation magic a boost, the only thing I found was laughter. I gazed in horror as Hito's cheek started to sizzle. The smell of burning flesh overpowered the naturally pleasant smell of a hearty meal. The sizzling gave way to burning as Hito's laughter only intensified. The horror finally over, I barely had time to recognize the tattoo that had formed on his left cheek, crawling down the entire side of his face. In a flash, Hito grabbed my throat with a vicious fury unlike any I've ever seen. Still laughing, Hito said, "What will it be, ant? Do you still seek to vanquish me, the ultimate evil? What if I told you there were even darker beings out there, beings that could end me in an instant! Would you still hold tight to your ideals, to your sigils? Or would you fall to the darkness and do its bidding!" As fear seeped into my very being, I felt its eyes boring into me. Gouging at my soul. Its laughter rang from its course lips in an irritable cacophony from hell. It lowered its head so close to me that I was forced to breathe the same air as it. Air that rotted my very existence. Its eyes wide with maniacal excitement, it whispered in almost a singing voice, "So what's it going to be, Reya? Will you be branded, or will you be dead?" There was only 1 right answer. Throwing away the medallion, the sigils, the kingdoms, I yielded to darkness. I felt an unbearable burning sensation cover my entire face, burning far past any physical part of me. Burning my emotions, my soul. My pain only made the demon laugh more. Its laughter filled the halls as its lighting coursed through the hallways, killing every inhabitant in the academy. Men, women, and children. There was no room to care, for every part of Rey was burnt to a crisp. Love, pain. Humanity.