The walls of the police academy stretched long like a prison yard. It looked too eerie and already felt too suffocating for Emrys.
It somehow reminded him of his dreams,the body from his dream flashed into his head and it made him shudder.
"Are you going in or not?" A recruiter asked standing rigidly by the training gate.
Emrys shook the thoughts clouding his mind away and stepped in through the gate. He didn't like the way the recruiter stared at him, somewhere at the back of his mind,this all felt like a bad idea but his father hadn't stopped pushing him even after the revelation about the unknown sect and the Omni-Borns.
He had been studying the books,scrolls his father had given to him and even till now, alot of it still didn't make any sense and some parts of it all sounded like some scary fantasy story.
"You!" One of the recruiting officers pointed at him "come with me."
Emrys turned to scan around him, looking for who the man was talking to.
"Are you deaf or something?!" The man barked out again.
Only then did he realize the man had been pointing at him.
Confused,he left the queue he had just joined to follow the man wondering if it was part of some recruitment procedure the others had done that he hadn't.
Emrys followed the officer through the narrow hallway. The corridor smelled of iron,oil and something faintly burned. His boots echoed against the tiled floor,each of his step heavier than the last.
The man didn't speak,didn't even look back. He just kept walking until they reached a reinforced metal door with a red light blinking above it. He punched a code and the door slid open with a hiss.
Inside,the atmosphere changed into something quieter and colder.
A long table stretched in the center of the room and two people sat behind it. A man in a gray uniform—the chief of police, judging by the gold tag on his chest and a tall woman dressed in dark robes that shimmered faintly with embedded sigils. Six young men stood behind her,lined up like statues,each one of them wearing immaculate black uniforms with a silver crest on the chest. The same crest repeated on their shoulders—a circle split by a jagged line that glowed faintly,like breathing light.
Emrys froze,none of this looked like a police office.
The officer who'd brought him in saluted the Chief and then left without a word.
The Chief's voice was calm, too calm for Emrys's liking. "Emrys Midnight."
He nodded hesitantly. "Yes, sir?"
The tall woman stood,her heels clicking against the floor as she circled him, studying him like he was prey. She stopped inches from his face. Her eyes were pale gray,almost white–caught the light in an unnatural way.
"You look just like your father" she said, her tone unreadable. "It's no wonder they found you so quickly."
Emrys frowned. "Found me?"
"You've been summoned," the woman continued. "The First Academy has requested your immediate presence. We are here to escort you."
He blinked confused. "Escort me? To where?"
"The First Academy," she repeated,slower this time,as though testing his reaction.
Emrys stared at her like she'd just told him he was being abducted by aliens. "There must be a mistake. I came here to join the police. I filled out the forms. I'm not.."
The Chief cut him off with a small wave of his hand "You won't be needing that uniform,boy. Someone like you doesn't belong in the ranks of mortals."
Emrys's pulse spiked. "Someone like me?"
The woman smiled faintly but it wasn't kind. "You've read the scrolls, haven't you? The ones your father kept hidden."
He stiffened. How could she know about that?
"Then you already know what you are," she said. "Or at least,what you will become."
"I don't know what you're talking about," he lied.
She leaned closer,her breath cold against his ear. "Omni-Born."
The word struck him like a physical blow had been thrown at him.
His stomach twisted,his fingers curled into fists. For a second,the air felt heavier–like something unseen had shifted in the room.
He took a step back,his eyes darting towards the door. "No. You've really got the wrong person."
The Chief finally rose from his chair. "No mistake has been made,boy. That mark on your neck,right below your collar–that's proof enough. I should've known the moment I saw your name that you are Aries's son."
Emrys instinctively touched his neck, realizing too late that the faint,birthmark-like scar had started to glow faintly beneath his skin.
The woman's smirk deepened. "See? The power responds to truth."
"What do you want from me?"
"You're to trained,tested and ranked," she said,her tone clipped. "The First Academy will determine your classification before the sect gets to you. If you remain here,they'll find you within the week and we cannot allow that happen."
Emrys shook his head. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Refusal isn't an option Emrys."
Her voice dropped into something darker. "You're too valuable to lose."
The room suddenly felt smaller. The six young men behind her shifted,silently,disciplined but their presence alone radiated pressure. Magic,it hummed faintly in the air like static.
Emrys's instinct screamed at him.
He turned towards the Chief,desperate. "You can't just hand me over. I haven't done anything wrong!"
The Chief's expression didn't waver. "It's not about right or wrong. It's about what you are. And frankly…" He adjusted the insignia on his chest, revealing the same crest the others wore but inverted,black over sliver. "....we don't defy the Academy."
That was the final crack in the illusion of safety.
Emrys took a single step back and the woman's eyes narrowed.
"Don't…"
But he didn't wait for her to finish. He bolted through the door.
The moment he hit the hallway,a siren wailed overhead. Lights flickered red,Metal shutters began slamming down across corridors,sealing exits one by one.
"Code Zero!" a voice barked over the intercom. "Contain the target! Do not let him reach the outer yard!"
Emrys sprinted,his heart hammering,his boots skidding across the tiles. The whole police academy seemed to twist around him.. corridors closing in on him,stairways blocked. He darted into a maintenance passage,falling behind stacked crates.
Heavy footsteps echoed down the hall.
He pressed himself flat against the wall, holding his breath.
A red light swept past…scanning. He waited until it moved away,then he slipped into another hallway. He could see the gate up ahead…the same one he'd entered through just minutes ago.
Then the temperature dropped. A low hum filled the air,followed by the sound of boots. When he turned,the woman was standing at the other end of the hall. Her black coat flared in the wind that shouldn't exist indoors.
"Don't run,Emrys," she said softly,most gently. "The Unknown Sect already knows you're here. Do you think they'll stop once they scent your power?"
He swallowed,trembling. "Why should I trust you?"
"Because if you don't," she said,raising a hand and the crest on her wrist glowed like burning ice, "you won't live long enough to regret it."
The lights above flickered once then burst…the hallway plunging into darkness.
Emrys backed away then turned and ran.
Somewhere behind him,her voice followed like a whisper in the dark.
"The First always collects what belongs to it…Omni-Born."