An old, withered man shuffled to the front of the classroom; his gait was slow but determined. He sported a comically full grey beard reaching past his waist, looking like a true ancient wizard. With an appearance so old, that there was little to doubt he had seen much of the history he was about to teach. The room waited silently for him to begin.

“Good morning class. It is a pleasure to welcome those of you who are new to this academy, and a welcome back to students who passed on taking this class during their previous year. Before I begin, I am required to make an announcement on behalf of the school. First, students are not allowed in the dormitory of the opposite sex. Being caught will result in immediate expulsion from the Ashbourne Academy.

“Regarding your classes, your job as new adults and students is to listen and learn. There will be no attendance taken. If you want to learn then come to class, otherwise I don’t care what you do. There will be no need to take notes if you do not want to. Homework will not be assigned at this academy. And there will be no grades at all. You have paid to come here to learn, and it will be up to you as for how much learning you do,” the old man spoke slowly, his voice croaky and clear.

Immediately a student stood up, a blonde-haired teen. He looked unfazed by the attention as he walked out of his aisle and out of the classroom. The second he had left, a few other students stood up and followed. Kai estimated there were about 20 students remaining. The teacher silently watched the entire time, with no reaction on his wrinkled face.

After the final student had left, the teacher turned to the rest. “We will see how many of you remain here by the end of the school year,” he said chuckling lightly.

An ashen limb extended from the teacher’s backside, picking up a piece of chalk. Writing on the board with the limb, the teacher kept his face and body forwards. “My name is Eric Dravenport. You can call me Professor, Mr. Dravenport, or Eric if you so wish. I have been studying and teaching history for a long time. If you have questions at any time during the lecture, please raise your hand and wait to be called on.”

Kai was surprised, he hadn’t expected the academy to be so loose with their rules. I guess it’s difficult to babysit a bunch of magically enhanced teenagers. They are giving us the autonomy to do what we want as long as we don’t break academy rules. Also, I wonder if there is any relation to the Dravenport I met yesterday. On his lap, Akane slept quietly.

“To begin, does anyone know the origin of humans?” The teacher asked, his eyes scanning the room.

When no one responded the professor sighed. “If anyone knows the answer you can speak up, I’m not going to bite if you get the answer wrong.”

“From Earth?” Someone called out.

“While that is technically right, it isn’t the answer I am looking for,” the professor responded.

“Primates,” Kai spoke without thinking.

The professor’s gaze narrowed in on Kai. A toothy grin showed on his face. Kai felt his face flush red for a second, he hadn’t meant to speak but the answer came to him. He couldn’t remember who had taught him this, but he knew the answer must have come from his past life’s knowledge.

“You’re correct. Variations of humans have been around for millions of years eventually evolving from primates into the modern-day versions of humans we all see around us. We continue to evolve even today with the addition of magic and mana, however that will be a discussion for a different time.”

Coughing a few times, the professor cleared his throat. “What most would consider modern humans, however, have a much shorter history, only a few thousand years in fact. Much has been gained and lost during that time. Very few people still remain from the days when we came from Earth to the Myriad of Worlds. When they die, all that will exist are the stories and books of the old world, passed down and fading into dust and ashes. You all might be asking, why does this matter to us, and who cares about history. Especially on a planet with which we have no connection, and which may no longer exist. Does anyone care to answer?”

Unlike this last time, someone else besides Kai spoke up. “If we learn from the past, we can make a better future,” a girl from behind Kai called out, her voice sweet and high-pitched.

The professor frowned. “Bah. What an idealistic statement. Humans are notorious for making the same mistakes over and over again. As naïve as that is though, it is also true. It has helped many, knowing about history and the past to make better decisions in the present. Though the true reason history is important is because it is what shaped the world into what it is today. Millions or billions of different actions have led up to this particular point in time, shaping and turning until we find ourselves on a different planet than the one where our entire species started.”

The entire room was silent in consideration.

“Again, much of human history is lost, it wasn’t until those last few thousand years on Earth that we started recording events. Humans have been a part of the Myriad of Worlds for 1,275 years now. The gods descended upon Earth and offered humans salvation. They spoke of a threat coming for Earth, that humans, even with all their technology and intelligence, would perish against this grave threat. Opening portals all over the world, they spoke of a sanctuary, where people could go and live on.

“That was the worst day ever in human history. Panic ensued when these mythical beings claiming to be gods came down and showed the world their power and magic. Riots, mass killings, war, and many other horrible events all happened on that first day in chaos and panic. Many militaries attempted to block the portals only to have their entire squadrons and vehicles moved to a different location entirely.

“The portals were only open 24 hours. In that time, millions of people crossed the boundary seeking a new life, one of magic and opportunity. The gods did not discriminate, they accepted all who passed the boundary. The portals closed exactly one day later. There has been no news about Planet Earth since. We do not know if humanity continued on or if they were exterminated by the threat the gods spoke of.”

“Damn, this is heavy for a first day,” whispered a student directly in front of Kai.

“Heavy? No this is simple history. Now going back once again, it’s 1275 years in the past. Millions of humans have entered a vastly alien world, one different but similar at the same time. No longer at the top of the food chain, these millions of humans had to prosper or die. All the portals on Earth delivered the humans to a planet now named New Earth, a planet created by the gods solely at the beginning of our story here in the Myriad of Worlds. In those first ten years, it’s hard to estimate, but I’d wager nearly a third of humanity died.

“It’s not like today where magic and power are a part of our everyday life. Back then, people went from being ordinary mortals their entire life to suddenly possessing magic. There was no manual, no guides, no teachers. Humans had to fend for themselves and prove themselves worthy of joining the Myriad of Worlds. It took fifty years; it was only then the gods deemed the humans worthy of joining the rest of the species across the Myriad of Worlds. A world teleporter was built in the Holy City of Zenilia, one that is connected to all other world teleporters across the Myriad of Worlds. From there, humans were able to explore and travel to other planets. At the same time, the very same was true for the other sentient races, they could travel to New Earth,” the professor said.

Kai had only been 26 when he died, about 23 years before the teleporter to the other worlds became available. Even to this day he still hadn’t met any other sentient beings of a different race. I’m not sure how I would react to seeing other races.

“Yes, what is your question?” the professor said to a male student in the first row who had their hand raised.

“Professor, how old is the Myriad of Worlds?” a bulky student asked.

Rubbing his hand down his majestic beard, his eyes and head tilted up in thoughtful consideration. “I don’t rightly know. Again, this is something only the gods can answer since they claimed to have created this world of worlds for the inhabitants. But there are other races who claim to have been residing in the Myriad of Worlds for over 250,000 years. So, you can imagine, how far behind humans are when compared to these other races.”

The rest of the class was spent discussing the events of the first 50 years the humans arrived on the Myriad of Worlds. Although Kai had lived through much of it, he got a different perspective hearing it from the teacher. He didn’t’ remember much of his first 10 years since he had stayed inside the city where his parents lived, sheltered from the outside world. However, they were the most turbulent times, with many people dying as they fought for resources, land, power, fortune, and against monsters. A few individuals of renown were brought up during the discussion. Kai had even met a few of them during his short previous life.

Kai couldn’t deny the pride he felt, as they discussed the tasks and tremendous adversaries the first settlers faced. He had been a part of so much, helping to expand humanity’s territory, saving people, and creating stability for everyone. At the same time, he also felt sadness set in. He had failed, been killed, even villainized, ending his coming-of-age story on a bitter note. Benjamin Decker would always be branded a villain in the thoughts of those who still cared to remember him. There was probably nothing he could ever do to redeem his name. His past life had influenced him too much, he would never forget it no matter how he lived.

A sharp pain pinched his thigh suddenly. Looking down he could see Akane had bitten him. While Kai was thinking about the past, the class had ended. Most of the students had walked out already. “I’m going to skip lunch Akane, I’m not hungry. Go find Hector or Andre if you’re hungry, sorry,” Kai said, his thoughts still going back to the past.

Shaking his head at the absurdity of a fox completely understanding him, he noticed Akane nod once before jumping off his lap and wandering out of sight. Slipping his bag over one shoulder, he began to walk down the aisle, he noticed the teacher’s attention was on him, as he still stood behind the podium.

Kai nodded his head once towards the teacher. “Thank you for the class, I found it very interesting,” he said. Kai wasn’t attempting to brownnose but honestly did find the entire class fascinating since it was relevant to his past.

“I thank you for being engaged and finding the class entertaining. Few students find history to be fun or relatable, thus most dismiss it,” the professor responded, a small smile on his wrinkled face.

“If you don’t mind me asking, were you alive during the transition from Earth to the Myriad of Worlds?” Kai asked the teacher.

An even wider smile graced the teacher’s face. “Yes, yes, I was. How did you figure it out?”

“How do I say... I had an inkling, I guess. It was the way you phrased events and such as if you had experienced them yourself.”

“Ah… I wasn’t one of those important figures who I was lecturing about earlier, I was a nobody, in all brutal honesty. I had been a middle school teacher on Earth, I came here following my wife and became a soldier. Eventually, I grew tired of it and became a teacher once more. Very soon I will pass on leaving what I have taught to the younger generation to pass on themselves.” The teacher stared into Kai’s eyes unblinking, he looked older than ever now, it was hard to tell with the robe, but his back seemed more hunched over as if time itself was weighing on him.

Unsure what to say back, Kai thanked him and nodded before walking out of the classroom.