"Damn, I'm late. Master Orin is going to kill me," Kael muttered, his boots pounding against the gravel as he sprinted toward the school gate. His heart raced, more from panic than exertion.
As he passed through the gates, a deep, resonant hum vibrated through the air a sound he didn't recognize. It was coming from the school grounds.
That must be where everyone is. He adjusted his cloak and hurried forward, pushing down the sick feeling rising in his gut.
On the field, Master Orin paced like a predator in a cage, eyes darting anxiously toward the horizon.
Where is that boy? He's never this late. Did something happen?
Kael reached the edge of the crowd and stopped. The sight before him was unlike anything he'd ever seen.
Hundreds of students surrounded a circular stage. At its center hovered a pulsating orb twice the size of a soccer ball emitting a cold, silvery glow that bent the light around it. Next to it stood a cloaked figure whose face was obscured, a staff clutched in one hand, crackling faintly with runes.
Kael moved through the crowd, unsure whether to feel awe or dread. As he searched for a place to sit, Master Orin approached him like a gust of wind.
"Why are you late? Are you alright? Did something happen?" Orin's voice was urgent but more relieved than angry.
"I'm fine. Nothing happened. Just... woke up weird," Kael replied, collapsing into a seat.
"Still, you've arrived just in time," Master Orin said, settling beside him. "Today's the Awakening. Let's see if the gods gave you something. I suspect they did."
From the stage, the cloaked wizard raised his arms, and the crowd quieted.
A man in a cobalt blue cloak strode forward onto the platform. His beard was long and immaculately braided, and his presence instantly turned heads.
"That's the recruiter from Aura Academy!" someone whispered.
"He's so handsome..."
"I wonder what's under that cloak..."
Suddenly, more figures appeared draped in cloaks of orange, purple, black, green, and white. Representatives from all six Essence academies in the Kingdom of Islet. They had come to witness the awakening, and scout for new heroes.
"Listen carefully," the cloaked wizard began, his voice deep and rhythmic. "Each of you will approach the orb when your name is called. Place both hands on it. It will assess your Essence capacity. The color revealed will determine your potential from weakest to strongest: green, orange, red, purple… and grey."
He paused.
"If no color appears, it means you are not attuned to Essence. Do not be discouraged. Not all are born with the spark."
Tension spread across the crowd like wildfire.
"Now then… Sam Haward."
"Already? Dammit. I thought I'd be last," Sam groaned as he trudged to the stage.
He placed his hands against the orb. It shimmered, brightened, and turned green.
"Yes! I knew it!"
"The red cloaked academy will take this one," a recruiter stood and motioned to Sam.
"Meet us here at five sharp. We leave today."
Sam bolted off the stage, grinning.
One by one, names were called. Many students left in tears. Some were accepted. Most were not.
Then came the name that shifted the entire atmosphere.
"Kael Kim."
The whispers began immediately.
"Oh no. It's him."
"Why'd they even put his name on the list?"
Kael hesitated. Master Orin touched his shoulder gently.
"Show them. You've got something none of them understand yet."
Kael nodded, inhaled sharply, and stepped onto the stage. As he placed his hands on the orb, the crowd held its breath.
The orb didn't shimmer it roared.
Light exploded outward, and the orb began to float into the air, still tethered to Kael's hands. The glow intensified, swirling like a storm. Then…
Purple.
Not just the flicker of it. A blazing, unmistakable shade of pure power.
The silence shattered into chaos.
"Is this real?!"
"There must be a mistake!"
"How can he have that level of potential?!"
Kael backed away, heart thudding.
"We'll take him," said the man in the grey cloak.
"That's not fair!" the recruiter in blue protested. "You can't always claim the strongest. Let the boy choose."
The crowd fell quiet again. The grey-cloaked man turned to Kael.
"Which academy will you choose?"
Kael didn't hesitate.
"Lunar Academy."
The blue-cloaked man frowned. "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
"Then meet us here at five. Sharp."
Kael hurried back to his apartment, heart still racing from the ceremony. But when he arrived, the door was ajar.
"That's... not right."
He stepped inside and froze. Everything was upturned. Books, dishes, furniture scattered as though a storm had passed through.
And then he saw it. A tall, shadow-cloaked figure stood in the center of the room, surrounded by swirling darkness. The shadows clung to it unnaturally, like smoke that refused to disperse.
Kael instinctively stepped forward and crunched down on broken glass.
The figure turned. Two hollow, glowing eyes locked onto him.
"Where is the Emblem?" it growled.
Then it struck.
A fist wreathed in shadow lunged toward Kael's chest.