The steady hum from the tires and the roar of an engine. Cyrus was inside of a moving vehicle. A truck, or a... car, he could not tell. The vehicle was filled with three government officials plus himself. Two men and a woman. Their voices could be heard by Cyrus, discussing a seemingly unimportant matter. And sometimes, they would whisper about him, knowing full well that he was there. They didn't care about his feelings at all.
Father Viktor couldn't accompany him to wherever he was being taken to by the officials. His goodbye with the old man was simple and short, as if made by two men who were only bound together by a... business of some sort. But, deep down, Cyrus experienced deep sorrow, as he knew that their goodbye would be his last time seeing the old Reverend. Not because he doubted that he would survive, but because the old man had very little time left in the land of the living.
"Boy, we're here." A deep voice called out. It came from his front, probably from the driver's seat? The same deep, harsh voice that he heard at the entrance of the church.
After a long drive from the outskirts of the city, they finally arrived at their destination.
"Get your things from the back of the Raptor" The man added.
Cyrus had heard the stories. Vehicles that could survive type-one Hellspawn. Maybe even type-two — though most who tested that theory didn't live to confirm it. He had heard that they were created using metals that were extracted from the Rift.
"What things?" the blind boy asked, his face formed to look like a supposed confused expression.
Cyrus had only brought three things along with him. One being his trusted wooden stick. The second one is a ring with a feeling of something carved on top of it. And the last being a small pouch that contained little coins and some paper bills. The pouch was handed to him by the old man before his departure.
The man gave out a sigh.
"Oh... yes, I forgot." He paused for a bit.
"Alright. Come on, let's go" the man added.
Cyrus heard a soft metallic thud. The door of the vehicle opened. Then two other metallic thuds both from his right hand side, and then, a last metallic thud, coming from right beside him.
"Get out," the deep voice came from his left side. The disgust in the man's voice was clear.
Cyrus simply grabbed his stick which was laying below his leg, then slowly got out of the vehicle. Two thuds sounded from the same right side. The doors of the vehicle were now closed... probably.
Cyrus followed behind the three government officials, the sound of their footsteps leading him on.
After a few steps, there was an abrupt stop by the officials. Cyrus also stopped behind them.
A loud clang was heard. And a creaking sound ripped through the air. It probably came from a gate. A giant one, due to how loud the creaking was.
"Where are we?" the pale boy asked... nervously.
"We're at the Ashon Rift Academy," he paused for a bit, cleared his throat, then continued.
"It's a place where kids who are on the verge of manifesting come to learn the most that they can before being transported into the rift. It's located in the capital city of Ashon"
He continued walking, probably — definitely into the Academy.
"If I'm correct, you have three days left till you get transported, so, learn all what you can as quickly as possible." He said flat, his voice deep and sharp as always.
"Not that you'll survive anyway," the man added in a whisper, his voice clearly audible enough for Cyrus to hear exactly what he said.
Cyrus simply sighed, then followed slowly behind the man.
***
A few moments later, they walked into — in Cyrus' imagination — an incredibly huge building.
"Welcome, Crowned Roland. How was your task to the outskirts?" the silence that hung through the air was broken by a soft and gentle voice. It was of a woman. A young woman.
'Crowned Roland!' the thought echoed in Cyrus' head.
The man and the woman chatted, their voices muffled in Cyrus' ears as he was deep in thought.
'Crowned is the third rank after one manifests their power. It's also one of the rarest ranks in the world right now.'
'I probably couldn't tell due to him being able to supress his power to the point where it's undetectable. I've heard that people of this rank and above have extremely perfect control over their Sage essence.'
'But still...' the thought lingered in his mind for a few more seconds
"This must be the young aspirant" the young woman said after a long pause.
"What beautiful eyes you have." The woman commented.
Cyrus was surprised by the woman's remark. It was the first time he had heard someone compliment him.
"Tha... thank you" he replied, his voice shallow and hesitant. His face slightly heating up and his fingers tighten on the stick.
"This is where I leave you," the man said, his voice sounding a bit softer.
The sound of footsteps started receding. The man was now gone.
"Alright, Let's get you accustomed to the academy..." she paused.
"Cyrus, it's Cyrus," the blind boy said.
"Cyrus. Alright, let's go," the woman breathed. She paused for a bit then added, "would you like to take my hand?"
Cyrus simply nodded then stretched out his right hand, his left hand holding the wooden stick tightly.
The woman took his hand, then she began the... uh, tour?
***
A few hours later, they were done with their tour. The woman showed Cyrus around the building. She showed him where his classes would be held, both normal and combat classes.
A single thought crossed his mind: 'How the hell is a blind boy supposed to engage in combat?' His fingers tightened on the stick.
She explained to him the courses that were available for him to take and their importance. And finally, she showed him to the dormitory and to the room at which he would reside.
Also, at the end of their tour, the woman brought up small talk with the blind boy. She asked questions and she answered questions. By Cyrus's standard, she was not just kind and gentle, she was an angel. There seemed to be an air of calmness around her. Cyrus was nervous. Yes. But, he was more at peace than he was nervous.
***
Cyrus, after a long day of travelling and touring, finally settled down in his room. He swung his stick around trying to gauge where things in his room were placed. After a few minutes of exploring his room, Cyrus lay flat on his bed. Exhausted. His face glancing at the... ceiling?
The entire building was vast. Cyrus' imagination didn't do it justice. It took minutes to get from a specific location to a different one. It probably took longer due to Cyrus' condition, but still, it was sprawling. The word "huge" also didn't do it justice.
"Classes start tomorrow. I have just two days to gain the knowledge I need in order to somehow 'survive' the rift" he said, his tone cold and exhausted.
He rolled to his side — right side.
A single phrase escaped his lips as he fell asleep.
"God have mercy"
***
The sudden high pitched treble woke Cyrus from his sleep — actually the blind boy was already awake as he couldn't sleep due to his unease.
A sharp, feminine voice tore through the air. It sounded mechanical. No hint of life could be heard from the feminine voice. It was as though the voice was artificial.
"Seven O'clock. Breakfast in the Cafeteria"
The voice repeated the sentences over and over for a couple of times.
Cyrus was already seated on his bed. Praying. He picked up his stick, tightening his hand around it, then navigated to the room's exit.
He opened the door, and then closed it as gently as he could.
The clack of a door could be heard. The sound came from the door adjacent to his. Other doors opened up straight after, almost simultaneous.
"What's up with that guy?"
"Why the hell is he holding a stick?"
"Look at his eyes, it's scary as hell"
The murmur of the other aspirants who just left their respective rooms could be heard.
Cyrus' body boiled with anger and embarrassment. His grip tightened around the stick and his ears burned.
Amid all the whispers a soft and gentle voice — although low and barely audible — sounded louder and clearer to Cyrus than all the others.
"Hi"
He looked up. The voice came from a young girl who exited the room opposite to his.
"You're... Cyrus, right?" the gentle voice asked.
"Y... yes, I am," Cyrus replied, his voice hesitant and meek.
"I figured. You're the new student from yesterday. I saw you with Incarnate Sara. I was just about to enter my room when she brought you."
"oh..."
'oh?'
'Is that all you can muster?'
'What the hell is wrong with you?!'
The girl's voice, soft and gentle, danced into his ears:
"I'm guessing from your answer that you probably don't remember seeing me... or is it something else?" she paused for a bit.
"You're..." she gasped before she could finish her sentence.
"Yes, I'm... I'm blind" Cyrus completed her sentence for her. His throat tighten
Silence lingered for a few seconds, then the girl asked:
"Would you like me to escort you to the Cafeteria?"
A smile curled up on Cyrus' face. His smile was small, but genuine.
"Yes, I would really like that. Thank you."
While they walked to the Cafeteria, a thought lingered in Cyrus' mind.
Maybe this place wouldn't be entirely as cruel as he thought it would. But still, that doesn't mean that the Rift will be less cruel or hold the same kind of cruelty as the academy. In short, it would be much, much worse.