MAGIK - CHAPTER ONE

"Ingenuity is often found in the most surprising places. I found mine in my kitchen sink."

- [Magitek Engineer] James Dolorus Hyzaar, founder of GoTek, 2889 PG, inventor of the [Condenser] and [Evaporator] engineering cores

Samuel Vallarus Hyzaar, the 4th son of Richard Sallarus Hyzaar, 3rd president of GoTek Corporations and head of the Hyzaar family, was absolutely, utterly, and mind-numbingly bored.

The 9-year-old child of the multibillion magitek conglomerate had spent the last 9 months reading, watching, and studying everything his family had about the inauguration for Humans, and he was absolutely tired of waiting. Born of the 10th month in the year 3010 PG, only about 3 months were left until his birthday; until he would go through his inauguration, and finally considered ready to enroll in the various prestigious academies for scions throughout the world of Lythia. Yet, at this moment, the child was bored.

He sat in front of his iMag, going through all the materials he could, again and again. His connection to the world at large had been stilted for the last year; everything he used to have access to was restricted; no games, no movies, no social media. All he had to fill his days with were various educational books and recordings about the history of the world, the system, different classes, paths of progression; he knew far more than he should.

He studied about magik, monsters, dungeons; read about society, etiquette, responsibility, noblese oblige; explored classes, the System, the interface; studied geography, history, mathematics. Yet, he had gone through it all thrice and had finally succumbed to taedium vitae.

Being stuck in a room for hours on end as a child was agonizingly difficult, as you may observe; but it was expected of Sam. Being the 4th son and youngest of 7 siblings, 4 brothers and 3 sisters, he was not expected for any important positions. He would not become the heir; his eldest brother had that right. His other siblings already had various roles they were expected to fulfill in their family organization, having proven themselves earlier than himself. For Samuel however, all he had to do was live up to the name of Hyzaar. The spark that his siblings had found seemed to be absent in him.

As a scion of modern nobility, he needed to be aware of the general geopolitical climate of the various Connected Cities, be relatively fluent in at least the major languages including Humar, Rhalvar, and Dwemer, be able to converse and socialize with his peers and elders according to station, and much much more. And he had learned that and more during his lessons with his tutors since he was 5 years old.

Per all of his tutors, Sam was an excellent student; studious, meticulous, sharp, and critical. He had been proud of his own accomplishments as well; unlike some of his peers who had devolved to only playing various online games to spend their time. Yet that is what Sam so dearly wished for at this moment, a form of reprieve.

Learning about the history of the worlds, Solara, the Connected Cities, the birth of the System, and paths of progression had been fascinating at first. It was agreed across the planets that these materials would only be introduced to a child once they were of appropriate age; generally a year before inauguration for Samuel and his peers; typically after inauguration for the less fortunate and middle class though or as needed for their future profession.

A side effect of these advanced classes for Sam was that he had already finished them multiple times, well ahead of everyone else. His peers had barely covered the various topics; but a Hyzaar was expected to know more.

"Even though my dear family hasn't planned anything grand for me." Sam mused, sliding his golden felt-tipped stylus across the glass surface of his iMag and gradually dotting more notes.

"I can't believe they'll just rush me away to some backwater academy as soon as I'm inaugurated," he grumbled further. Some think that being the youngest would allow for everyone else to coddle him; unfortunately, being the youngest in HIS family meant being the one with the least resources. The Hyzaar line only looked at accomplishments; and being able to go to a more prestigious institute depended on your accomplishments even as a child.