The Final Exam.

When I woke up the next morning, it was time for the final task of our training. Everything we have been training for for the last year and a half has led up to this.

"First things first," said Ego as he tapped my arm and led me down the hill to the ground below, where our instructor Azriel had begun talking to our classmate Ariel and another man who I was not familiar with. As we approached, the man looked up and stared at me with an intrigued expression on his face. "So these are the children you were talking about."

"Yes these are my most prized disciples, Headmaster Reagan." replied Azriel with a smile on his face.

Headmaster Reagan is an imposing and extremely intelligent looking man with jet black hair and piercing green eyes, giving him an air of mystery and intimidation that surrounds him everywhere he goes. He stands about six foot two inches tall with broad shoulders and wears a long, flowing cape made of red velvet. He has a powerful jawline and high cheekbones which makes him appear young for a man of his age, with sharp cheekbones and angular features giving him a unique look and a distinct set of character traits. "Let's begin then."

Our test was to successfully bring down an evil wolf-creature known as the Beast of Bereth. It is a ferocious beast whose fur is as dark as midnight, its paws as black as pitch and its eyes blazing yellow and crimson red, burning fiercely within its skull. Their claws are razor sharp, strong enough to tear flesh right off bone, and its teeth are serrated and incredibly sharp.

In order to gain entrance into this legendary academy, we would need to best it. As we stood facing the gigantic wolf, Ego pointed a hand toward it, and a dark ball of energy materialized itself within the palm, casting its bright white glow across his features.

"Now Cyrus! Hurry up!" Ego suddenly cried out as the creature charged forward towards us.

The beast's muscles rippled underneath the weight of its own power, every fiber of its being working together as it barreled toward us. Ego motioned his hand toward Ariel and me.

"Come, boy," He commanded softly, his voice booming throughout the open chamber.

"Prepare your strongest magic." His instructions were clear, making it easy for Ariel and me to execute them.

In less than five seconds Ariel had formed an enormous ice shard in her hand, and thrust it toward the massive beast.

"Diamond Glaive Strike!"

As she said the name of her magic, the monster charged even faster, slamming into the wall behind us before Ariel managed to summon a defensive barrier between us and it. Unfortunately, the barrier was only strong enough to stall for a couple of seconds, allowing enough time for her to yell: "Use the beast's attack against it, Cyrus, and use your Aether!"

Without hesitating, I concentrated on my control. "Aether Construct!" Instantly, a solid white sphere materialized in my chest, quickly expanding and taking the shape of a white glove with razor sharp fingertips. Then, the magic gauntlet flashed with a bright yellow glow, emitting a buzzing noise, similar to electricity coursing through wires. Suddenly, I released my control over my core, and watched with amazement as the gauntlet flashed and shattered, sending the shrapnel shooting forward in front of the Beast's face. A massive amount of white magical energy released itself from within the shattered fragments and exploded right onto its face, releasing a shower of sparks and blinding it temporarily.

When the smoke cleared, we had a chance to observe the damage dealt upon our target; its front legs were torn off while the other three had severe damage, but was still alive. The three remaining legs worked overtime to bring its torso up as it glared menacingly at the group of us, the blood-red flames of its eyes burning brighter than ever before. However, I could tell it wasn't about to give in easily, especially once Ego yelled "Go forth."

While the beast lay injured, it still attempted a vicious counterattack on me. However, Ariel anticipated it. Without batting an eyelash, she reached out with her arm and summoned her special spell. A thin stream of pale blue light burst forth and encompassed the entire area around the wolf, freezing its legs in place. Now the beast had nowhere to go, and Ariel and I could finally move. In seconds we made quick work of the remaining parts of its body and killed the Beast, ending our test successfully. Afterward Ego and the headmaster walked over to congratulate the two of us.

"Congratulations Ariel and Cyrus," said headmaster Reagan as he bowed his head slightly towards both of us.

"Both of your performances have been spectacular, I look forward to seeing you in my academy and as I said before, Ego will take care of all your needs." He raised a hand to wave goodbye as he began striding across the grass back up toward the top of the mountain. Ego smiled at Ariel and shook hands with me. "See you two later." He chuckled and waved a small goodbye as he too began ascending the hill towards the castle.

Just before I could make my exit I spotted Ego staring right at me, a playful smirk visible on his face. His aura radiated with some unknown energy and filled the space around him like a vacuum. However his stance and the tone of his eyes sent a chill down my spine, it was an emotion that couldn't be read, nor understood and left an unsettling feeling in my stomach. He gave a knowing grin and left with Reagan. Ariel and I could hardly wait to meet our fellow classmates, but for now we had to go back home and notify our parents of our success, it's been so long since I've seen my mother and father.

In my previous life I never knew what the feeling of being loved even was, I was a tool for my parents to use. All I would ever do was steal or commit atrocities just so that I could continue living. I began to become a prideful being who was infatuated with the concept of money. I eventually lost contact with my parents and died, not knowing if I even had any family left. What a pitiful end for me. But here I'm getting an opportunity at redemption to prove my existence isn't entirely worthless. Maybe I'll prove to be useful, or maybe... maybe I'll waste away the second chance that fate has granted me, if so then it'd be a much happier ending then my first.

I've been given a purpose again. I won't squander the gifts I've been given and will become an all powerful mage, something unattainable to many people. Even if I fail and the world resents my being and wishes death on me, the goal I strive for and have accepted will never change, and my beliefs and morals have been laid bare for me and me only. But at the end of the day I'm not stupid to know that my ambition won't accomplish anything, thus why I decided to make friends along the way and I also want to grow to become a mage and man who'll stand the test of time, but most importantly, I want to be seen as a true person in this life rather than an insignificant stain on this world. Just know that there is always someone who will believe in you.

Act 1, Arc 0.5: Introduction

END.