Chapter 24:

Stryg listened to Rime, professor of Magic Fundamentals, lecture about the finesse in all magic, especially the basics. Overall, the lecture had been informative. Still, Stryg was having a hard time staying awake. His body was exhausted from the strain of casting a spell earlier.

“Magic is a fickle thing,” Rime said. “Few of us are born with the ability to use it, while even fewer can use it properly. The whole thing may seem imbalanced, but I assure you it is not. While I deny the existence of fate, there is an order to the way things work. Equality in nature, you might say. There is a reason why the world has ten Realms, ten chromatic colors and ten elements of mana. The world likes its balance. It's why the eleventh and final element, chaos, cannot be used by anyone, rejected by all. The Null Realms are in constant change because of the actions of individuals. Yet the Null Realms naturally and continuously account for that change. For example, if half the magi in the world were to die today, the next generation would see an explosive amount of mageborn births. We call this the ethereal balance theory, unseen yet always there.”

“Moving on, do any of you know how the Ebon Realm classifies a species to be an animal or not?” Rime asked.

“Animals are dumb?” Someone voiced.

“Not all animals are dumb. Sea serpents are intelligent enough to hold a conversation and they are classified as animals. Whereas drakes hold about the same amount of intelligence as a dog and yet they are considered magical creatures not animals,” Rime said.

The class was silent. They weren’t sure what the correct answer was.

Rime shook his head, “Why do I expect anything from you at all. Magic. Magic is what separates animals from the other species. Every dominant species in this Realm has the ability to use magic in one way or another. It is why beastkin for all their physical abilities are considered animals, not fit to stand with other species.”

Kegrog, the orc, raised his hand, “So, beastkin can’t use magic?”

Even after being healed by a white mage at the infirmary, Kegrog still looked haggard. Orcs had a sturdy constitution in general, but whatever spell Stryg had cast left Kegrog worse for wear.

“That is correct. Although, beastkin are a special case. Beastkin is a blanket term we use to refer to various kinds of species, centaurs, minotaurs, merfolk, etc. All beastkin have one thing in common however. Unlike every other species who were born from one of the Null Realms, beastkin were created by magi, specifically, the infamous group Mortem from the Scarlet Realm, about four centuries ago. No one knows how exactly they managed it, all we do know is that the Mortem combined the blood of animals and magical species to create various different kinds of new creatures, known as beastkin. The Mortem wanted to create an army of magical creatures with the physical strengths of animals. Instead they ended up with creatures who had no magical ability whatsoever.”

Stryg didn’t know about any of this. He thought all creatures were created by the gods.

Rime continued, “This was about a century before the Schism, so the ten Null Realms were still interconnected. At the time, many people were appalled of what the Mortem had created. The Ivory Realm even demanded to exterminate all the beastkin whom they called abominations. The ebon lords of old saw things differently. They realized that the beastkin were nothing more than animals. They led the Ebon Realm to domesticate the beastkin, treating some as livestock, others as beasts of burden, even a few as pets. Of course, some managed to escape domestication, like the lamia. A lamia’s venom is incredibly poisonous, which made it very difficult to capture. They are said to be beautiful yet deadly, as expected of a serpentine being.”

Stryg nodded slowly in comprehension. Lamias were the creatures that had attacked his tribemates and him when they had visited the cave. Stryg raised his hand.

Rime raised an eyebrow, “Yes?”

“You mentioned that other species were born from the Realms, but didn’t the gods create us all?” Stryg asked.

Rime narrowed his eyes, “Oh. Them. There are many weak minded individuals who choose to believe in higher powers that guide our world, but it is a fantasy. Whatever thoughts you may have of fate are false. If there is a semblance of order it is because of the ethereal balance theory, or the belief in mere coincidence as a higher power. I understand that as a goblin you may have grown up with such beliefs, but in this academy we are first and foremost magi. We pursue the truth and we are the ones who wield power, there is no need or room to ascribe to the religious beliefs of fools.”

Stryg stopped himself from hissing. He needed to behave in front of these magi, however one thing was insulting him, but to insult the Blood Fang tribe as a whole, it was unacceptable.

Callum stood up from his chair. “Professor Rime, are you calling those of us who believe in the gods fools? You dare insult my father?”

“Sit down boy, before I have you expelled!” Rime shouted.

Callum glared at the drow, but reluctantly sat down. Kithina worried about him, Rime wasn’t someone you wanted on your bad side.

Rime took a deep breath, “As I was saying, magi pursue the truth of magic. There are some of us however, that follow the so called gods, out of sake of tradition and culture.” That was as far as he would concede.

The academy bells rang in the distance.

“Before class ends I will assign each group their topic for their school year’s project.” Rime pulled out a list from his pocket. “Callum Veres, Kithina, and Stryg. Seeing as two of you love being vocal in my class I believe your enthusiasm can be used to tackle the hardest topic. Dragons.”

“Oh shit,” Kithina whispered. Why did her partners have a knack for pissing off their teachers.

Stryg’s head shot up with the mention of the legendary creature. Even he knew about them. The Blood Fang tribe told horror stories of the ones that lived in the deepest parts of Vulture Woods. Stryg remembered hearing of one that had attacked a nearby tribe. They had been so utterly destroyed that not even their bones remained.

“I’ll be sure to let my father know how you openly teach and advocate your atheistic beliefs,” Callum said, before getting up and leaving class.

Kithina followed after him. Stryg got up and left, he had promised to meet up with professor Loh after class. The three ended up walking down the same hallway. Stryg cursed silently, the last thing he wanted was to insinuate being friends with these two. Friends were a weakness. He was here to purge his weaknesses, not add to them.

“Callum wait up!” Kithina ran up to him.

“It’s not right. All four of Hollow Shade’s academies are supposed to follow free expression of religion. Whether students wish to believe in the gods or not is entirely up to them. Professors are not allowed to have a say in the matter.” Callum fumed in anger.

“Ok, I understand that. But, shouldn’t you have just written a formal complaint to the school,” Kithina suggested.

“So, you’re saying I shouldn’t have said anything? Just stayed quiet?”

“No, I’m saying that you shouldn’t have gone ahead and had a pissing match with the guy who can flunk us!”

Callum stopped walking.

Kithina blushed, “I mean. Uh. Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that.”

Callum laughed, “It’s fine. I’m glad to see you talk in a more lax manner.” He had been surprised but he wasn’t offended.

Callum turned to Stryg who was walking with his head down a little ways away. “Stryg, what do you think of what happened?”

Dammit. Stryg hoped they wouldn’t notice him. He sighed. “Of course I’m annoyed by what that drow said. But he’s stronger than me, so I decided to stay quiet.” For now at least. He would decide what to do when he actually held power.

“So, you are both in agreement? Maybe I was in the wrong,” Callum smiled sadly.

“I just don’t get why Rime doesn’t believe in the gods. What crazy idea is that?” Stryg shook his head.

“Drow in general don’t believe in the gods. Neither do orcs for that matter. I don’t know much about what vampires think. The only ones really known for believing in the gods are the goblins and humans. In other words, the weak,” Kithina said.

Stryg hissed in anger.

Kithina backed away, “No offense. I mean you are only half goblin right?”

“Offense taken,” Stryg said. He really didn’t like this girl. He didn’t care if he was tired or if this was the academy, he’d claw her up if she kept insulting him.

Callum stood between the two of them, “No need to fight amongst friends.”

“We’re not friends,” Stryg said.

Kithina stayed silent, she had seen that feral look in his eyes before when he had fought with Kegrog. She didn’t want to get on his bad side, or any side for that matter. It was best not to associate with him.

“Most vampires are quite religious, though we tend to be less outspoken about it. I guess I got my vocal side from my mother. What about you Kithina?” Callum asked.

“Some dwarves believe in the gods, others don’t. My family never did. We just saw them more as metaphors.” Kithina shrugged.

“Metaphors? How is the moon a metaphor? Lunae is literally in the sky.” Stryg said.

“Well, the goddess Lunae is technically a personification of the moon.” Callum corrected.

“Personification? You’re saying that Lunae, goddess of the moon, mother moon herself, doesn’t actually look like the moon?” Stryg asked, confused. This was the first he heard about it.

“Follow me,” Callum grinned. He led the two down a few corridors until they reached an archway. A large ornate painting hung from a wall. It depicted four beings, each lightly dressed and faces covered.

“This is a famous artist’s depiction of the Ebon Realm’s gods. We may not know exactly what they look like, but the artist painted them based on the small bits of descriptions compiled over the centuries of witnesses who claimed to have seen the ebon gods,” Callum explained.

Stryg had never seen such a painting. He stared in awe. They looked almost real. Even Kithina had to admit the painting evoked admiration.

Callum began to point each one out, “That one’s Lunae, goddess of the moon, patron of the goblins, watcher over all.”

A large white billowing scarf covered Lunae’s silver body. Half her face was covered in a crescent shaped black mask. The other half was covered by her white hair. Moonlight danced around her.

“She’s beautiful,” Stryg whispered in reverence. She was the moon incarnate.

Callum smiled, “And this one is Bellum, goddess of war, patron of vampires, and guardian of the Realm.”

Bellum was dressed in a red breast plate and leather skirt. She held a large blazing sword in her hazel hands. Her face was covered in a jet black helmet, save for her mouth, which was open in a war cry.

“That one’s Stjerne, god of the stars, the traveler. He was once patron of the drow, but he turned his back on them in favor of the humans. It’s why the drow no longer believe in the gods.”

Stjerne stood tall and away from the rest, as if going on a journey. His face was adorned by a two-faced mask. Half was black with a smile, the other gold with a frown. Save for the mask, he only wore a pair of hide pants. His skin, like the color of the midnight sky, shimmered on his chiseled chest. He held a silver staff in his hand, it’s top crackled with power.

“And the last one is Caligo, god of the deep earth, caretaker of the Realm’s secrets. He is the patron of none. They say he is the greatest secret of all. ”

Caligo sat crouched below the others. His face was enshrouded by shadows, except his eyes that seemed to be shifting through a range of colors. His skin was an assortment of terrene shades. He was naked, though a few stones were conveniently placed to cover his privates. His long silver claws glinted in the darkness around him. It looked almost as if the god was smiling through the shadows.

“This picture is beautiful and all and I’m interested in the gods as much as the next atheist, but could we talk about our project for a sec. Like, how we are going to deal with our project topic, dragons.” Kithina ran her hands through her red locks. “I mean there isn’t much information about them in the first place. It’ll be hard to write a report and do a presentation about them. Don’t get me started on the practical part. What are we going to do? Breathe fire? Bring a baby dragon to class!? It's not like they are one of the rarest and deadliest creatures in the world, right? This should be a piece of cake, hehe.” Kithina’s laugh turned into a cry, “We are so screwed aren’t we?”

Callum patted her back, “We’ll figure something out. Trust me.”

“Are dragons really that rare?” Stryg asked skeptically. From the way the Blood Fang tribe spoke, he had assumed there were many.

“Seeing as no one has seen one and lived to tell the tale in the past few centuries, then yeah, I’d say they’re pretty damn rare,” Kithina said.

Stryg frowned. “I saw one when I was a child and I’m still alive.”

“Bullshit,” Kithina spat.

Callum’s eyes widened, “What? When? Where?”

The bells rang again. Stryg was late, Loh had told him not to be. He dashed off without another word.