The Academy was situated in the valley between two rows of barren peaks. A single peak stood behind the Academy. Visually it looked as if it was right behind the Building, but even if you were to walk from the Academy's back gates to the peak it would take you half a day just to reach the base of the mountain.
There was a river that flowed from on of the numerous peaks in the mountain range and flowed through the mountains. The valley sat very closely t the vein's underground. The river glowed many colours at night, as the light of the veins shone through it. There was never silence in the valley, the river crashing against the rocks, The cadets trying to control the the blood power they were cursed with. At night sometimes the river would calm down and the valley would feel silent.
The Academy it self was lighted by the Veins under the mountains, under the structure itself. The morning did not begin with sunlight. It began with the vein's glowing red, then the sun came up.
Arata lay awake in the dormitory from two hours before sunset, it was a habit instilled into him from the days on the battlefield. Sleep seldom comes to people who have been to active war. The fear of Cannons from the opposite side, constant shooting, takes toll on a person's nervous system.
But today, that was not the reason sleep eluded the soldier. His breathing was steady. His pulse slow. There was no tremor in his hands, no phantom thunder of artillery behind his eyes. By all measures he was calm. And the sounds in the valley, from the river were more calming for the soldier, more than they were noise.
He could feel a faint vibration through the bed-frame, through the floor, through his spine. Slowly as he concentrated on it, he could hear it too. The Obsidian Shard from Rhea, was almost mirroring the vibrations.
'What is that?'
As he got up from the bed still two hours to sunrise, he went for a walk in the Academy corridors, lighted by the faint glow of the single vein growth in the bricks of the structure.
'The silence can also be beautiful, sometimes' Arata thought as he looked at the vast valley over looked by the numerous balconies in the numerous towers of the Academy.
As he kept looking out he saw the river changing colours, Nocturnal animals now starting to retreat into their asylums to rest for the day. At that moment his sights fell on a humanoid figure in one of the towers to his right. The silhouette was indiscernible even with glow of the veins, but he didn't have to keep guessing for a long time. The silhouette turned it's head towards him. Arata had been spotted, The figure dissipated.
'The hell was that?'
That was the exact moment he felt a presence standing besides him.
"Fuck" Arata went into Combat Mode.
"Calm, Cadet. There is no need to shout absurdities in this school of devotion." The figure came out of the shadows.
"Yeah, then why are you creeping up on people, in all black clothes, you weirdo."
"Haahaha, I guess you are right about that, but take my words, I am not the weird here, it's you." The silhouette came into the light of the veins.
'Definitely a male. Mask covering the face.Has abilities to cross about 200 meters in the time it takes to blink."
"I won't hurt you. I don't hurt potential guiding stars of civilisation." The man finally took his cowl off.
Even in the Light of the Vein, Arata could not make out the face of this man. The face had all the feature that made a being Human, but the way they correlated with each other made Arata almost dizzy in confusion. At moments He saw one face the other moment something hd changed, Sometimes the nose was a bit big, sometimes the eyes were blue, sometimes black.
"What are you?" Arata finally spoke.
"Someone like you, I must say for now. Now! It's my turn to ask something. Why are you wandering these Empty halls?" The man was now looking at the scenery from the balcony.
"Couldn't sleep. Tried to but the damn vibration in the floor won't let me." Arata said as he lowered his guard a little.
"I guess you don't understand them yet. You did just join the Academy. Curious as to What the Vibrations are?" The lonely figure in front of Arata asked.
"I don't get curious anymore. If I get the answer to the question it is well and good, if not then also life goes on." Arata now joined the mysterious man on his right side.
"If you ask me, I could answer that question. Only if you wanted though."
"Why would you do so?"
"Out of the goodness of my heart ans as a favour of course."
"What favour?" Arata looked at him " You just jumped 200 meters faster than I could Blink. What possible favour could I do you?"
"So you ARE a curious person. Don't worry of the Favour, I never cash them in anyways. Now do you want the Answer or not?" The man had voice so soothing and pure that for a minute even Arata was taken in by the charm.
"No, Thanks." Arata said as he turned back now to go back to his dormitory.
"Fine then, I will just remind you of a note That a friend gave you, that you have forgotten to read at it's correct time." The man said to Arata.
"What note?" Arata looked back to see the silhouette gone.
What note was he talking about?
Arata stood alone on the balcony for several seconds, eyes fixed on the space where the man had vanished. The hum beneath the stone continued, indifferent to his confusion. The river below shifted colour again, red giving way to a dull amber as the veins adjusted toward dawn.
He exhaled slowly. Then he did what he had been trained to do. Inventory.
His hand moved to his coat without urgency. Journal. Obsidian shard. Necklace—the moonstone and Darwin's scale resting cold against his chest. Nothing missing. Nothing unfamiliar.
Except— He froze.
The journal.
Arata had not opened it since the day he was Initiated by Monica. Not out of laziness. Out of habit. On the battlefield, letters were read after movement, not before. After safety was secured. After the ground stopped shaking.
He had told himself there would be time.
Back in his dormitory, Arata sat on the edge of the bed and opened the journal. The first pages were blank it was intentionally so. He flipped past them, frowning, until his fingers brushed against a thicker sheet near the middle.
A folded note slid free and landed in his palm.
The paper was old. Not weathered but waited. The ink had sunk deep, as if it had been written slowly, carefully, by someone who knew it would not be read immediately.
Darwin's handwriting.
Read this only when the ground begins to hum louder than your thoughts.
If you are reading this, then congratulations...or condolences.
It means the Academy is listening back.
Arata closed his eyes. The vibration beneath the floor deepened, just slightly, as if in acknowledgement.
The man in black had not reminded him of the note by accident.
Nor had Darwin given it without knowing when it would be opened.
Arata folded the paper and placed it back inside the journal. Not yet.
The morning did not begin with sunlight, but with questions.
...
Arata finally fell asleep for an hour when Sun rose and Sirens blared through the Dormitories waking up the Cadets.
A morning routine was given to them the day before. The first siren was to wake up. The second Siren will be blared to let the cadets know that they were being summoned to the central courtyard. They had to get ready in between the Sirens.
After about five minutes of the first siren, there was movement in the dorms, The four cadets were now walking around, getting the sleep out their eyes. Unlike Arata they had been sent directly to the Academy, without participation in the Empire's War. So they were a little slow.
Arata was already going to the Restrooms and the Baths.
The dormitory was already awake when Arata returned from the baths.
One of the cadets sat on his bed rubbing his eyes furiously, hair sticking out in every direction, as if sleep had physically attacked him.
"Do they have to use sirens?" he muttered. "Couldn't they just… ring a bell? Or knock?"
"No" another voice replied flatly. "Because bells don't panic people."
That one was already dressed.
He stood near the window, uniform fitted properly, boots laced with care. He hadn't spoken loudly, hadn't even turned around, but his eyes flicked briefly to Arata as he passed—quick, assessing, then gone. The kind of look that measured timing rather than people.
On the far side of the room, a third cadet struggled with his coat, fingers fumbling, jaw tight with irritation.
"This place is ridiculous" he said. "No servants, no private quarters. They expect discipline to replace infrastructure."
The sleepy one glanced at him. "You sound like you've already written a complaint."
"I will" the cadet snapped. "Someone here should."
The fourth hadn't moved at all.
He sat cross-legged on his bed, staring at the stone wall opposite him. His eyes were open, unfocused. A faint twitch ran through his fingers every few seconds, like static discharging.
"You alright?" the sleepy cadet asked.
The boy blinked, as if pulled back from far away. "Mm. Yes. Just… loud."
"It's a dorm" the noble-sounding one scoffed. "Of course it's loud."
"No" the boy said quietly. "Not you."
Arata paused near his bed.
The hum beneath the floor had shifted again it was subtle, but present. He wondered if the others felt it too, or if it was only obvious to those who knew how to listen.
The cadet by the window finally spoke again. "You were up early."
Arata nodded once. "Habit."
"War?" the sleepy one asked without thinking.
The room went still for half a second.
"Yes" Arata replied.
No one pressed further. Even the irritated cadet looked away, suddenly busy with his sleeves.
The second siren had not yet sounded, but it felt close, it's like pressure building behind the ears. One by one, they finished preparing.
The quiet one near the wall rose last. As he passed Arata, he hesitated, then leaned in just enough to speak under his breath.
"It gets louder the closer it will get to morning" he said. "If it doesn't bother you… that's not normal."
Before Arata could respond, the second siren blared.
Conversation died instantly.
The five of them filed out into the corridor with the rest of the cadets, swept along toward the central courtyard. As they walked, Arata became aware of something else, something subtle, but undeniable. Each of them moved differently.
One with hope.
One with calculation.
One with pride.
One with quiet fear.