Training With the Girls

Morning light came slowly at Nightfall Academy. The sky was orange, and the sun peeked from behind the tall walls that surrounded the school. Birds chirped quietly. But inside the training ground, things were not quiet at all.

Agla stood in the center of the field, sweating and breathing hard. His shirt was soaked. His arms were shaking.

"Again!" Nyx shouted.

She stood with her arms crossed, watching him. Her long silver hair was tied back. Her cold eyes stared into his soul.

"But I'm—"

"Again, Agla."

Agla sighed and raised his hands. A weak red light glowed from the mark on his chest. The same mark that almost killed him… and the same mark that now made him special.

Nyx nodded. "Good. You're learning to summon energy. But your control is terrible."

"Thanks," he muttered.

Behind him, the other girls watched from the edge of the field.

Vella laughed. "Come on, loser. You can do better than that."

Rei sat under a tree, reading a spellbook. "He's improving. Barely."

Juno was stretching, her swords beside her. She didn't speak, but her eyes stayed on Agla the whole time.

Mira held a water bottle and a towel, smiling gently.

Agla tried to focus. He pushed the power forward again. The red light grew, covering his arms.

But then—

BOOM!

The energy exploded around him, throwing him backward. He hit the ground hard.

"Ow…"

The girls rushed over.

"Still alive?" Vella asked, offering her hand.

Agla groaned and nodded. "Barely."

Nyx walked over, serious as always. "You're doing it wrong. You don't push the energy. You guide it."

Agla sat up, brushing dirt off his face. "That doesn't mean anything to me. I don't even know what I'm guiding!"

Nyx knelt down beside him and pressed a hand to his chest.

"Feel it. Close your eyes."

He did.

The world grew quiet.

He could feel her hand, soft but strong. He could feel his heartbeat, and under that, the mark glowing.

It pulsed slowly.

Nyx whispered, "It's not just power. It's memory. The mark holds pieces of something… old. Something locked inside you. You need to open that door."

Agla opened his eyes. "And how do I do that?"

She stood. "We train."

---

### LATER THAT DAY

The girls took turns training him.

Vella was first. She handed him a wooden sword.

"No magic this time. Just fight."

She rushed him before he could even hold the sword properly. Agla barely blocked the first swing.

"Too slow!" she shouted, kicking him in the side.

He rolled on the ground and got up again.

She smiled. "Not bad. Again."

They trained for an hour. Agla got hit a lot. But slowly, he got better. He learned to read her moves. Learned to move his feet. Learned not to hold the sword like a baseball bat.

When they stopped, Vella gave him a nod.

"You're less pathetic now."

"Thanks," he said, out of breath.

Next was Mira.

She didn't fight. Instead, she taught him breathing and magic control.

They sat together in the garden, her hand in his, guiding his fingers.

"Magic listens to emotion," she said softly. "If you're afraid, it shakes. If you're angry, it burns. But if you're calm…"

She waved her hand. A small glowing butterfly appeared.

"It listens."

Agla tried. It took him several tries, but after a while, a small red flame floated above his palm. It flickered gently.

Mira clapped quietly. "Good. You're getting it."

He smiled at her. "It's easier with you."

She blushed a little but said nothing.

---

### EVENING

Juno took him next.

They trained on the roof.

"No talking," she said. "Just follow."

She moved like the wind — jumping, flipping, sliding over the ledge. Agla followed, almost falling twice.

He couldn't match her speed, but she didn't stop. When they finished, he collapsed.

"You're fast," he said.

She finally spoke. "You're slow. But you try."

That was her way of saying he did well.

---

### NIGHT

It was late. The moon was high, and most students were asleep. But Agla couldn't sleep.

He sat in the training yard, looking at the stars.

Nyx appeared beside him, silent as ever.

"You don't sleep much, do you?" he asked.

She didn't answer. Just stared at the sky.

He looked at her face. She was always cold and distant, but now, under the moonlight, she looked… peaceful.

"I want to ask something," he said.

She turned to him.

"Why did you kiss me that night?"

She didn't blink. "To save your life."

"That's it?"

She hesitated.

"…And because I had to know. If the mark chose you."

Agla swallowed. "Did it?"

Nyx looked into his eyes. "Yes."

He didn't know what that meant, but her voice was gentle for the first time.

Then she stood. "Tomorrow, the real training begins."

"What was today?"

"Warm-up."

She walked away.

---

### MIDNIGHT

Agla finally lay down on his bed, exhausted. But sleep didn't come easy.

He kept thinking about the girls — each one different, strong, and mysterious.

They had trained him, fought beside him, and even saved his life.

And they were all connected to something deeper — something he still didn't understand.

As his eyes closed, the mark on his chest glowed once more.

And far, far away, something in the darkness stirred.

Something… waiting for him.