The following week, the three friends woke with a jolt of nervous excitement. This was the day. The day of the hunter academy exams. Dragon, full of boundless energy, was the first to burst from his house. "Granny! Granny! I'm off to the exam!"
His grandmother, with a soft smile, said, "Go on, my little thunder boy. Make us proud." His mother, with her tearful joy and unwavering pride, was always there to comfort him. His father gave him a proud clap on the shoulder. Dragon then ran to meet his friends. Arin and Sparkles were already waiting.
"Are you ready?" Dragon asked, his hair already starting to spark with excitement.
"As ready as I'll ever be!" Sparkles chirped, a determined look on her face.
With that, Dragon took off, sprinting towards the hunter academy. Sparkles, with her own nervous energy, ran right behind him. Arin, who was initially hesitant, saw Sparkles running and, with a silent surge of determination, took off after her.
They arrived at the academy, a massive, imposing stone building. The entrance was a huge, arched door with a giant, ancient black dragon skull as the door handle.
As they entered, Dragon, unable to stop his momentum, crashed right into a figure standing just inside the entrance. "Ouch! My head!" he yelled, rubbing his forehead.
Sparkles stopped abruptly, her eyes widening. "Master Ando! The Head of the Academy!" she gasped.
The man, an athletic, gray-haired old man with a steel staff, laughed. He looked at Dragon with keen eyes. "Hohoho, what do we have here? If it isn't the new troublemakers! Zain even gave me a heads-up for you rascals, Dragon!"
All three kids immediately bowed their heads in respect, completely unhesitating. Just then, a slim woman with dark black hair and a thick build came running up, looking agitated. "Headmaster, why are you always roaming around? It's an important meeting today, and all the hunter leaders are waiting!"
She stopped and her eyes softened as she saw the kids. "Oh, the future heroes of the village, aren't we?" She gave Sparkles a nice pat on the head. "Don't get discouraged by the boys around, little one."
Sparkles giggled, her grin as big as ever. "Yes, ma'am!"
The Headmaster laughed. "Girl power!" he boomed.
Anya, the woman, shook her head in exasperation. "You're too old for these jokes, Headmaster."
"Alright, kids, I expect great things from you! I have to go now," he said, turning and walking away with Anya.
Sparkles's happy smile faded. "Oh my god! I forgot to take their autographs! My sisters will never believe me!"
Arin, hearing her distress, felt his heart beat with an unusual rhythm. "I'll get them for you," he said quietly.
"Why do you always only talk when it's something to do with Sparkles?" Dragon blurted out, stunned.
Arin looked him dead in the eyes, a blush creeping up his neck. "That's not true," he said. "I just think you're obnoxious and annoying, so I don't respond."
"Whaaaaaaaaat?!" Dragon screeched, his hair sparking. "After I saved you?!"
"Don't you know us crocodile skinned are known for our tenacity? They were gonna get tired and leave anyway."
Dragon, genuinely in awe, said, "Ohh, so why'd you let me get ganged up on then? We're besties! We need to die for each other!"
"I won't die for you," Arin said flatly. "And when did we become besties?"
"Right now!" Dragon insisted. "And I like you more when you talk, Croki!"
Sparkles, watching the whole exchange, just shook her head and giggled. "Ugh, boys," she muttered, and started walking toward the entrance of the hall.
Arin felt a rush of agitated happiness. Dragon had called him a friend, even if he was obnoxious about it.
"Let's go!" Dragon shouted, finally calming down. "It's time to realize our dreams!" He let out a loud, excited "AWOOOOOOOOOOO!" and ran through the grand doors.
Inside, they were greeted by two guards, Alex and Muriel, who directed them to the right hall. "Go right in. The exam room is just ahead."
They entered the room to find a middle-aged man in his late twenties, sitting with two teenagers in their late teens. The man was registering new kids for the exam. A fiery kid with red hair, who was looking too confident for his age, glanced back and chuckled as he saw Dragon and Arin. It was the bully from the other day, and he was with his friends.
Dragon's hair sparked with a fiery lightning in his eyes, as his hair crackled with excitement, fear, courage, and determination. "Don't worry, Arin," he said, his voice low. "This time I won't be helpless."
Arin, still quiet and soft-looking, thought back to his week of training with his brother, a determined look in his eyes. He wouldn't look miserable in front of Sparkles ever again.
Sparkles, disgusted, said, "Eww, why do we have to take the exam with them?" She went to register her name, then Arin, and finally Dragon.
After all the kids had registered, the middle-aged man stood up. The whole atmosphere of the room changed, and a quiet fell over them all. "Attention, young hunters!" he said, his voice commanding. "I'm Master Rio, and I'll be the examiner and judge of this year's batch."
He unrolled a map of the Shadowthrees, its enormous size showing its countless mysteries. "This year's entrance exam will be a trip with me to the River of Dreams. We'll go there to investigate a shortage of food cattle and a rising number of attacks on farmers and hunters from unknown entities."
Sparkles's eyes brimmed with excitement. A field expedition! She would finally get to see the countless mysteries of the Shadowthrees.
Master Rio looked at them, his gaze piercing. "This is a perfect exam for beginners. It will show me if you can handle being hunters or not." He then pointed to the two students with him. "These are my assistants. They'll assign you your roles and find your attributes."
The first assistant, a sweet-faced girl with bangs and glasses, was named Maya. She was a mage who used a spell to determine each kid's attribute. The second was a tall, blond boy who looked like someone you could depend on. He had a long shark sword and a small handgun at his side. He was responsible for assigning the kids to their teams.
Maya's evaluation of Arin revealed he was a hardening tank with a strong affiliation to ancient dragons, a type of dragon not known to be in the area anymore. This made him the perfect bruiser for the teams. Sparkles was a natural mage, but since she hadn't honed her magic yet, she was assigned a supportive role, recording events and helping the research team. Dragon's lightning attribute was already well-known in the village, so he was assigned to the hunting squad with Arin.
Dragon and Sparkles were both in awe. "Arin, your surprises never end, do they?" Dragon said.
Sparkles, her eyes full of curiosity, asked, "Arin, what dragon family are you from? Where are the dragons now? How did you end up in this village? Tell me, tell me, please!"
Arin looked uncomfortable, staring at the ground. Dragon, realizing his friend's discomfort, cut her off. "Stop pestering him, Sparkles. How would he know? It's called 'ancient' for a reason. We lost most of that history after the Great War."
Sparkles's face fell as she realized what she had done. "I'm so sorry, Arin," she said, her eyes welling up.
Arin, feeling bad for making her apologize, finally broke his silence. "It's okay, Sparkles. My parents are dead, so I can't ask them. I'll ask Grandpa and my brother when we get back."
Sparkles started to cry, hugging Arin tightly. "I'm so sorry, I didn't know your parents were dead! I'm so, so sorry!"
Arin, choked by her hug, mumbled, "It's okay. I know you didn't mean it."
Dragon, hearing this for the first time, felt a wave of guilt. He had called Arin a coward. "You're not a coward, Arin. I can't wait to see what you do on the exam!"
The bullies laughed from their seats. "Wolf, look at those losers," one of them said.
Wolf, the red-haired leader, just gave them a menacing grin. "Leave them be for now. We won't let them get accepted, that's for sure. Not after they humiliated us the other day."
Master Rio, walking to the door, turned to the group. "Alright, now that everyone knows their role, it's time to move out. If you're scared of the forest, go home now. This is dangerous. So, unless you're willing to kill or die, don't come forth."
Surprisingly, all the kids stepped forward, their faces filled with courage and determination. Master Rio looked at the group, a small smile on his face. We've got some promising youngsters this time, he thought to himself, looking at Dragon, Arin, Sparkles, Wolf, and a few others.