Morning came quietly. Too quietly.
Kael hadn't slept not even for a second. He walked beside Jae with hands shoved deep in his pockets, his eyes heavy but his senses sharp.
"You look like you lost a fight with your bed," Jae said, stretching his arms wide as they navigated the campus paths.
Kael didn't react immediately. "…Didn't sleep."
"Unlucky," Jae retorted with a smirk.
Kael shot him a flat look. "…I'm serious."
Jae shrugged, his playful energy not wavering. "Yeah, I can tell. You look like you saw a ghost or something."
Kael looked ahead at the horizon, his voice dropping an octave. "…Something like that."
Jae raised a brow but chose not to push. Instead, he let out a long yawn. They kept walking as the campus hummed to life around them. Students blurred past some chatting, others already radiating the restless energy of the training grounds.
"...That power everyone uses," Kael said suddenly.
Jae glanced at him. "What about it?"
Kael hesitated, the words feeling heavy on his tongue. "…What is it?"
Jae stopped dead in his tracks. He stared at Kael for a long beat, waiting for the punchline. When none came, his expression shifted to genuine disbelief. "…You're joking. You're actually serious?"
He let out a long, weary sigh and started walking again. "It's called Nivara."
As they passed a group of upperclassmen, one student suddenly blurred, dashing forward with inhuman speed. Another struck a training post, the impact echoing like a localized explosion.
Jae pointed lazily. "That. Only hybrids and pure-bloods can tap into it. Humans? Nothing. Zero."
"So it's power from blood?" Kael asked.
"Basically. What you are decides how it works."
Kael's eyes narrowed as they reached the edge of the arena. "…So everyone here can use it?"
"Yeah," Jae said, his voice trailing off into a small, thoughtful pause. "…Everyone."
The training grounds were wide and open, teeming with students. High above, perched on a metallic structure overlooking the field, a figure stood perfectly still.
Ren.
His eyes scanned the field with clinical precision, stopping when they landed on Kael. "…That's him." His gaze shifted slightly to the boy beside him. "…And the other one."
There was no emotion in his stare only a cold, growing interest.
Below, the instructor stepped forward, his voice booming over the crowd. "Today's training focuses on Nivara application through combat. No weapons. Hand-to-hand only."
The air grew heavy as students stepped forward. One moved with enhanced speed; another's fists glowed with amplified strength. It was controlled, refined, and terrifying. Kael watched, trying to decode the logic behind the energy.
"Next."
Kael stepped into the circle. All eyes were on him now the F-rank. He exhaled slowly, trying to mimic the flow he'd seen do what they did...
He focused. Nothing. He moved anyway, but his stance was off, his limbs felt like lead.
THUD
A strike came too fast to see. Kael hit the dirt hard. Silence hung over the field for a split second before the laughter erupted.
"That's the F-rank?"
"He can't even trigger his Nivara..."
Kael pushed himself up, his jaw tight enough to crack.
"You're wasting everyone's time," a voice cut through the noise. A boy stepped forward relaxed, confident, and wearing a smirk that didn't reach his eyes.
Kael looked at him. "…Didn't ask to be here."
"Then leave."
Without warning, the boy moved. He was a blur. Kael barely managed to raise his arms before the impact sent him sliding back across the dirt. Another strike followed, but barely.
Then, for a heartbeat, something shifted.
The world seemed to slow. Kael's vision sharpened, the static in his head clearing into a single, piercing point of focus. His body reacted before he could think. He caught the boy's next hit with a solid crack.
Even the bully paused, his eyes widening. Kael stepped forward, his weight shifting for a counter-strike
Then, the feeling vanished. His balance broke, and he stumbled.
"Still trash," the boy spat, recovering his ego. "Lucky shot."
He lunged again, swinging a fist loaded with kinetic energy.
WHOOSH.
A sudden blast of pressurized air exploded outward. The boy was thrown back, his boots dragging deep furrows into the ground as he slid.
Everyone froze. Jae stood there, one hand slightly raised, looking bored. "…Relax, bro."
"You think that's funny?" the boy hissed, clenching his jaw.
Jae tilted his head. "Yeah, kinda. Like… you're trying way too hard."
"You wanna go?"
Jae grinned, and the air around him began to distort. A second figure shimmered into existence beside him a perfect, solid clone.
"Do I look busy?"
The clone moved with terrifying speed. Jae moved with it, attacking from a different angle. The boy turned to defend, but he was too late. He was hit from both sides clean, effortless strikes that forced him to his knees.
Jae stopped, the clone dissipating into thin air. "…Come on, man. At least make it interesting." His voice was casual, but his eyes were sharp, locked onto his target.
High above, Ren watched the display. His eyes narrowed. "…Not bad. But you..." His gaze shifted back to Kael. "…You're strange."
"Enough," the instructor barked. "Step back. Training resumes."
As the pressure dropped, Jae stretched his arms. "Aw, it was getting fun, Teach."
Whispers began to ripple through the crowd. "He was hiding that..." "That clone technique..."
Kael looked at Jae, his expression unreadable. "…You're annoying."
"Yeah, I know."
Kael looked away, his voice barely a whisper. "…Teach me."
Jae blinked. "…Huh?"
"Teach me how to use it."
Jae scratched the back of his head, looking genuinely stumped. "Eyy… I don't even know what to teach you. I go with the flow."
Silence.
"…Of course," Kael muttered, turning away. "Useless."
"—WAIT, don't say that!" Jae said, catching up. "I didn't say I won't help. Relax."
Kael stopped and looked at him. "…Then help properly."
Jae's grin returned. "Aight, first lesson: Stop trying so hard. You're forcing it, Kael. Nivara doesn't work like that." He tapped his chest. "It moves with you."
Kael looked down at his hand. "…So I just move?"
"Yeah. Try not to fall again, though."
"…Shut up."
Kael stepped forward again. He moved simply, naturally. For a fleeting second, something clicked. His movement sharpened, his body feeling light as air. Then, it was gone.
He stopped, a spark of realization in his eyes. "…I felt it."
Jae tilted his head, a small smirk playing on his lips. "Then you're not completely trash. Barely."
Far away, in a quiet office shielded from the noise of the academy, a drawer slid open. A file was pulled out: Keal Incident Report.
Pages flipped through data and encrypted numbers until they reached a single, underlined line:
" Irregular Output Detected."
The principal adjusted his glasses, the light reflecting off the lenses. "…So it's starting."
The file was closed and locked away.
Night fell over the dorms. Kael lay awake, staring at the ceiling. Then, a faint voice, like a memory echoed through the room.
"…Kael…"
His eyes snapped open. He sat up, heart hammering against his ribs. "…Who's there?"
Silence. But the feeling remained. Something was in the room with him. Watching. Waiting.
Kael reached out into the darkness, and for the first time, the shadows didn't pull away they reached back.
______________
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