CHPT 25: Bad Start

"Well...are you going to go in?" Brenda asked as Claude eyed the orange portal with the same amount of disgust that Brenda looked at him with.

"Fuck...FUCK!" Claude rambled internally as his nerves got the best of him. He ignored Brenda and continued to look at the portal seeming to have an internal struggle. "Whoooooo relax. I came here to get stronger, I came here to be a hero." Claude told himself as he took deep calming breathes.

"Excuse me, Claude!" Brenda said irritatedly.

"Hm? Oh sorry yes I'll go in now." Claude said as he took his first steps towards his adventure into a new way of life.

Claude felt the butterflies in his stomach increase in volume as he continued down the deathly silent hall towards the portal. Once he reached the portal he could hear distorted faint noises that had to be coming from the other side. Footsteps and shuffling like there were a number of people waiting silently on the other side.

Before he could make another step he felt small feminine hands hit his back shoving him into the portal.

"Eugh!"

Once Claude entered the portal he felt the magic envelope him completely, sending little bites up his arms and face and mixing the sounds of the building his was previously in with the building he was heading to.

In between those two steps he had to take to enter and exit the portal he felt like he was everywhere and nowhere at the same time. By the time Claudes other foot hit the ground he was completely disoriented.

Claude opened his eyes after a few seconds of trying to gain focus. He was in a room the size of his entire cabin but much taller with two Doric pillars at the end of the room that held up a banner saying "Welcome to the University of the Phoenix!!"

Claude took his eyes off the high hung banner and saw that he was at the top of a stone staircase with his back to a wall that most likely housed a portal.

Claudes attention was brought back to the front of him when one of the many individuals made a movement. He noticed that down the sides of the steps and along the walls there were powerful looking men and women— varying in physical features and style of clothing, but one thing was constant and that was the colors they wore.

These men and women of varying professions all had the matching colors of a black that looked almost like an incredibly deep and dark navy blue and an insignia somewhere on them that showcased a bright and fiery orange Phoenix rising from the ashes.

"You have decent senses to notice our leading assassins movements, you must be a beast tamer, young one." A hulking young man in a cloak said in a Irish accent.

Claude had to take a second look at the man. His height was already menacing at what had to be 6'7, but Claude soon realized the cloak was also hiding his unfathomably large muscles— hiding them terribly since his back and trap muscles looked ready to burst out from under the cloak.

"Yes that's right, sir." Claude said in a respectful tone.

"That's good news, we're getting more beast tamers than usual this year. I'm Prof. Brennan Haco, good to meet you." The large man said as he outstretched a large gloved hand.

"Likewise, sir." Claude said as he took the mans hand and shook it.

After further inspection Claude realized Prof. Brennan was looking at him normally, his eyes didn't linger on Claudes damaged ear or facial scar— instead he kept his dark blue eyes on Claudes. It felt good to be looked at normally again and Claude appreciated it.

"So, since more students should be coming through that portal pretty soon, if you leave this room and then go left you'll end up at the mess hall where an announcement will be made once all the students arrive, then you'll start your classes. Oh! Try not to be intimidated by the large number of students. Good luck sport." Prof. Brennan said before patting Claude on the back.

Claude headed down the stone steps feeling the judgmental gazes of the other members of the University as he passed them. After passing under the banner he was out of the room and in a very large hallway with black and orange tile floors that seemed unnaturally clean.

"What the hell??" Claude said as he looked at the right side of the hallway wall that was entirely see through glass. He saw more of the castle like building out of the glass window-wall causing him to wonder how big this place was.

After Claude finished being awestruck he followed the smell of meat and spices down the hall until he was at the entrance of what had to be the mess hall. Hundreds of students occupied the impossibly large room. Some sat at the long bench-like dining tables, while others were in a line getting incredibly large helpings of food that made Claudes stomach rumble ravenously.

"Alright, it's just eating. What the hell am I panicking for??" He asked himself as he walked into the mess hall.

After noticing the students were too absorbed in there social groups to care about Claude he began to relax slowly.

He soon found himself calmly waiting in line to approach the window and get his food like the students ahead of him— no longer feeling his heartbeat in his throat or the sweat collect under his arms. After about 5 minutes he was at the window.

"Chicken or beef?" A short and stocky woman with black hair asked.

"Chicken, please." Claude responded.

The lady went deeper into the room that smelled of meat and vegetables and came out with a tray full of chicken, rice and a large serving of vegetables that gave his meal a nice touch of color he wasn't accustomed to.

"Thanks." Claude said as he turned back to the large crowd of students and began looking for a seat.

After about 1 minute of walking he found an opening at the back corner of the mess hall that had more than 10 feet of space until there was another student.

Claude sat and ate his lunch under the ambience of idle chatter and spoons scraping metal trays.

10 minutes passed and he was almost finished with his meal when a group of students entered the mess hall seeming to be more boisterous than the entirety of the students that were already eating. They looked older than Claude and they were surrounding someone, all Claude could see was the platinum blonde top of a students head.

Claude tried to focus on his food instead of looking at them until one of them made eye contact with him, but he was too late. Claudes eyes met with another student, a tall and lean female with straight blonde hair— she was the closest to Claude out of the new group of students.

"Awe fuck." Claude said as he watched the girl make a face and then seemingly whisper to the student they were all surrounding.

Claude could feel his anger heating up his body as he imagined the things they were saying about his roughened features. As he angrily chewed on his food thinking how his day couldn't get any worse, a familiar unnaturally smug and aggravating voice cut through the cacophony of student chatter.

"What the hell?? Barbarians go to this University?!" The student said while pointing at Claude. The question was followed by hundreds of eyes cutting through Claude, then a chorus of hysterical— horribly hidden, laughter.

Claude turned and met eyes with someone he considered the bane of his existence.

"Of course.....Samuel."