Robert hastily flew out of the teachers lodge. He streaked through the air, a small cloud of fine sand whipping through the breeze. The sun shone brightly, and the hostel was bustling with activity. Every student was busy with their own thing, so there was no need for Robert to be concerned about anyone noticing the cloud of loose fine sand that he had transformed into. His form was so unobtrusive and inconspicuous, that it went unnoticed by the busy students around him. He flew into the boys hostel and settled in Oliver's corner, his sand form shifting and swirling.
Oliver sat up in bed, and noticed the small patch of strangely swirling sand near his feet. He knew immediately what it was. The patch was small and unassuming, but it was unmistakably Robert.
"Robert," Oliver spoke directly to the patch of sand, "You'd better be mindful of the way you use your Ancestor soul's abilities in this school, else things are gonna go pretty bad for you with everyone knowing that they sleep in the same hostel with a sand monster." Oliver stomped his feet on the sand. It slowly moved under his bed and almost immediately Robert struggled out.
"What the heck was the meaning of that!" Robert spat angrily.
"Just a lesson never to play with your powers like that. I wonder what Poison's been teaching you," Oliver replied with an indifferent expression. Robert glared at him angrily and left for his bed, his mind reeling from what had just happened at Mr Williams' lodge.
"Poison, this is all getting a bit too crazy for me," he said, flopping down onto his bed. "One minute I'm just a regular kid at a boarding school, and the next I'm some kind of magical kid with a sand spirit inside me, being hunted by a crazy ice maniac and a teacher with a magic ball." He let out a sigh, shaking his head. "I know, I've always imagined what it would be like to have these kinds of experiences, but this... this is too much."
"I'm sorry, kid," Poison said, his voice heavy with understanding. "This isn't how I wanted things to be, but it's a price that has to be paid for the greater good. You may think Solomon is no big deal, but you don't know how powerful Ancestor souls really are and what we're capable of. Just please, stop playing around with my... Our powers, okay?" Robert let the sand swirling in his hands settle down, and he nodded.
"I'll try," he said quietly. "But it's hard not to want to use them, you know?"
"I know, Robert, but I've got to admit Oliver is right, if anyone else knows about my existence, things are gonna get much harder for us."
The deafening peal of the giant school bell reverberated through the school suddenly. With reluctance, Robert got out of bed and trailed behind the other students as they made their way downstairs. Their identical dark blue casual wear gave them a uniform, almost drab appearance.
"Oh, how I hate the summon bell!" Robert grumbled.
With all the students gathered in front of the boys' hostel, the principal, Mrs Miriam Carve, stepped forward to address the crowd.
"Good afternoon, students," She began, her large glasses perched on her nose as she stared at the students sternly. "I have an important announcement to make. There was an attack on one of our teachers, and I want to warn the perpetrator that they will be found and punished accordingly. I will not tolerate violence in our school."
The students began to murmur among themselves, but Mrs. Carve cut them off with a sharp "SILENCE!" The vicinity went quiet, and she continued.
"We'll deal with that matter later but presently, we... Hey, you!" Mrs Carve called, pointing. The students turned and traced her finger to Robert.
"Me?" He asked, looking around confused.
"Yes, I'd like to speak with you after the announcement," Mrs. Carve stated.
"Uh... Okay," Robert replied, attempting to appear indifferent, despite his heart pounding against his chest. The thought of Mr. Williams reporting him sent his mind into a panic. If that was the case, he'd be in deep trouble! As if to confirm his fears, he noticed the other students staring at him with curious expressions.
"As I was saying, your mid term exams would begin the day after tomorrow, I hope you all are adequately prepared..." As Mrs Carve droned on about the importance of study and hardwork, Robert tuned her out and started a conversation with Poison.
"Poison, do you think Mr. Williams reported me to the principal?" Robert asked, his voice tinged with anxiety.
"Nah, I doubt he's that foolish," Poison responded. "Maybe your principal wants to see you for something else, like giving you an award for being the most friendless student in school."
"Friends are overrated. I'd rather observe people's interactions than be a part of them," Robert said, rolling his eyes, "Oh, and Poison, I've been meaning to ask—why did the green ball stop affecting me all of a sudden?"
Poison scoffed and replied.
"You mean the soul vortex? After I learnt the hard way what it really was, my father taught me a crucial method to resist it. He explained that whenever I'm under the effect of the orb, which like I said, is called the soul vortex - the part of the soul sceptre that does the extraction - I can counter it's effect by willingly transfer a wisp of my powers into it. This sort of 'confuses' the orb into thinking it has successfully captured the target soul. Why this method works is because, the orb sucks souls through its victim's magic energy and resistance but if one could cut off the link between themselves and the orb by willingly sending a wisp of their magic energy into it, the orb would temporarily loose it's 'soul extracting' ability. It's also important to note that the orb only affects magical creatures and wizards, and it can only absorb one soul at a time. I managed to escape its effect by transferring a wisp of my magic energy into it, effectively halting its influence over us. Magnificent, don't you think?"
"Yup, sounds pretty neat, but magic objects seem very complicated yet simple. And how did you learn the ball's effects 'the hard way'?" Robert asked.
Poison laughed, "Don't worry about that..." While Robert conversed telepathically with Poison, he didn't notice the other students slowly dispersing back to their hostels. But he did hear his name being called, and he looked up to see Mrs. Carve approaching him, accompanied by three teachers: Mr. Williams, Miss Greene, and Mr. Bouse, the physics teacher. Mr. Bouse was a tall, middle-aged man with a round figure, and he had a reputation for being one of the strictest teachers in the school. Robert always wondered how someone could be both tall and fat at the same time.
As Mrs. Carve and the other teachers drew closer, Robert's eyes drifted to Miss Greene, the most beautiful teacher in the entire school. She had a lush brown skin, charming eyes, a face Robert thought to be perfect, and always smiling, with a rosy blush to her lips. Robert felt his heart skip a beat whenever he saw her, and he often found himself fantasizing about her. If he were an adult, he might have even considered marrying her, but alas, he was still a student. Still, he couldn't help but feel a little flutter whenever he saw her. Cough Dora Cough
"Hey, Robert Manuel, we're taking you to the hospital right now," Mrs Carve said as she walked up to the school bus which had been parked nearby and swung open the door.
Robert looked like he just saw a flying elephant.
"Hospital? But I'm not sick!" he protested angrily.
Miss Greene was surprised by his sudden outburst. Robert was usually so calm and collected, but now he was clearly agitated. She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder and tried to reassure him.
"It's okay, Robert. There's no need to be upset," she said, meeting his gaze with a look of compassion, "We just need to make sure you're okay. Everything will be fine."
Robert looked at her, his eyes still full of anger and confusion. But as he gazed into her eyes, he felt a wave of calm wash over him. He took a deep breath, trying to collect his thoughts.
"Teacher, why are they taking me to the hospital?" Robert asked, his voice quavering slightly.
"I don't really know the details, but the principal mentioned that your hallucinations have become quite severe," Miss Greene explained. "Jackson has been reporting to her every day about your condition. He said that he's worried about you and that he can't bear to see you, his friend, suffering like this, so he recommended that you get some help at the hospital."
"That imbecile!" Poison yelled furiously in his mind.
"But... I'm not suffering," Robert protested. "I'm fine."
Miss Greene looked at him, her brow furrowed with concern.
"The principal insists, Robert, I can't make her change her mind," she said with an apologetic look and left to speak with the other teachers.
Robert clenched his fist. He looked up at the boys' hostel and caught sight of Oliver's face in one of the windows, his eyes wide and icy and his mouth twisted into a cruel smile. In another window he spotted Jackson, watching him with a sneer. Tom and Zarie ambled past, with papers stacked high in their arms, and tossed the principal a friendly, "Hi Principal Carve!"
Robert ignored them. He glanced at Mr Williams and noticed his face was contorted into a grin that made his blood boil. He received a telepathic message from Oliver that says, "I hope the doctor figures out that you have an abnormal brain wave pattern. They'll use the x-rays machine to examine you. But don't worry, I bet you'll make it out alive." Robert clenched his fist so tightly that his knuckles turned white. He sent back a message to Oliver.
"I'll kill you!" Robert's mental response was filled with rage. This was just another plot to snuff him out, and Mr. Williams was probably in on it. He wanted to scream at them, to lash out in anger, but he forced himself to remain calm. He had to keep his cool.
He walked to the bus, surprised to see that only Miss Greene was there to accompany him. Standing alongside Mr. Bouse and the principal, Mr. Williams gave a mocking wave, a smug look on his face, as if he were looking at a dead man. Robert responded by flipping him the bird, and then he climbed onto the bus and sat at the back while Miss Greene sat beside the driver.
"Poison, I don't expect you to know anything about x-rays, do you?" Robert asked telepathically.
"Kid, I've roamed Kreete long enough to know enough about technology," Poison replied.
"Is that a yes?"
Poison grunted.
"Alright, tell me all you know about x-rays and how the hell it's related to us."