Nightblade (Darkest night)

"So how have you been?"

The two youths walked side by side, one dark-haired, the other white-haired. It made for a contrasting sight.

" Mostly training with Luke, hellishly so, but I managed to get through it," Morgan said with a shrug.

" And here you are," Scott said with a smile.

" At the infamous Pyreptar academy."

They walked out of the reception hall, heading deeper into the academy.

Scott briskly took on a quick tour of the grounds.

" This place sort of resembles a palace."

It was a warm afternoon, and the sun shone lazily, illuminating the courtyard. The academy's courtyard had large rolling parterres, giving the place a very aesthetic look.

They strode through the manicured lawns at a casual pace, following a sand path that led towards its edge.

" Well, if you think about it, most of the kids here belong to the higher echelons of the Brotherhood; that makes them royalty among the Brotherhood.

These gardens are used for precisely that: parties. It's rare, but every once in a while, the Lords of the great houses and some of the more legendary assassins gather here to mingle and, of course, to spot out talented initiates they can take on as apprentices."

Morgan's eyes widened, then brimmed with anticipation. He suppressed his excitement, turning serious once more.

" I'll have to become an initiate as soon as possible then." He quietly thought.

Scott glanced at the determined expression on his face, then laughed.

" You've mastered masking your emotions, Rebecca taught you that?"

Morgan stared at him in surprise.

" No, not really, doesn't everyone do that? From time to time."

Scott nonchalantly shrugged.

" But for what's worth, I applaud the effort. Come, I'll show you to your lodgings."

Walking at a brisk pace, they left the gardens and ascended the hill.

They arrived in front of a massive building. A few students in uniform were scattered here and there. Seeing the duo's approach, they slowly disappeared until the grounds were empty.

Morgan cast a furtive glance at Scott.

" By the way, why did the headmaster ask you particularly to show me around the grounds?"

A faint smile formed on Scott's face.

" Well, frankly, if I had to take a guess, I'd say it's because we're acquainted, and the other reason would be that I'm part of the student council."

Morgan's eyes widened in surprise.

"This guy, he just keeps surprising me more and more."

" Why didn't you think to tell me about that at the start?" He nonchalantly asked.

" Wait, is that the reason those guys left?

Scott shrugged again.

" No one wants to get on the student council's bad side. It wields a respectable amount of power within the academy. "

The interior of the building was massive. The walls were reinforced with a special alloy extracted from Tenebris but painted over with warm colours to give it a cozy feel.

" This place is meant to withstand a siege." Scott explained," With the scions of some of the most influential figures in the Brotherhood residing here, the academy can't afford to spare any cost to keep them as safe as possible."

Scott turned around to face Morgan.

His green eyes pierced him with a serious look.

" If anything were to happen to them right under the academy's nose, the backlash would be catastrophic."

Inside the building, a few bots moved around cleaning the floors.

Some zipped across the floor carrying laundry, delivering it to different rooms.

Morgan looked with a mixture of awe and disdain.

"What the hell? These kids are probably spoiled rotten."

Scott chuckled at the pensive expression on Morgan's face. He stared intently at the small cleaning bots manning the floors.

" You probably haven't seen these before since Father keeps staff for cleaning back home. Don't be amazed quite yet."

Scott knocked on a door, and a freckled boy with messy, unkempt hair opened the door. He adjusted his glasses, frowning in confusion, glancing between the two tall youths.

" And to what do I owe the pleasure of this unannounced visit?"

Morgan glanced at Scott.

Scott stared at the kid, his eyes glinting in amusement. A smile slowly formed on his lips.

" This should be interesting."

The three stared at one another, an awkward silence hanging in the air.

By this time, the kid was visibly agitated.

" If you two have nothing else to do, go bother someone else," He snarled and tried to close the door.

Scott placed a hand on the door, holding it in place. The kid strained against the door, but it looked like he was trying to move a wall.

" What are you trying to achieve here, Scott?" Morgan thought.

Scott smirked at him.

His demeanor turned serious, his eyes becoming cold.

" Any person who's left their room in the previous few months would recognize a student council member if they saw one."

The kid's eyes widened in terror, and he slowly stepped away from the door.

Scott nonchalantly entered, surveying the room with his eyes. " Morgan, get in here," He hissed.

Morgan followed suit, shutting the door behind him.

The room turned out to be two rooms. It was quite large with separate bedrooms on either side. It had an opulent seating area with fancy plush couches and a gaming area.

Morgan took in the extravagance, then it hit him. A pungent odour lingered in the air; it was so strong it made his eyes water.

He wrinkled his nose at the smell.

" This place is a mess, and the smell, man, have you heard of cleaning bots? " Scott growled.

By this point, the kid was visibly trembling.

" I'm sorry, I didn't know you were with the student council."

Morgan's eyes shifted between the two.

The student council in the academy was no joke.

For Scott to elicit such a reaction merely from mentioning that he was part of the council. The boy was on the verge of tears at this point.

" Damn, what the hell," Morgan thought.

Scott palmed his face in frustration, then calmed down.

" What's your name, man?"

The kid sniffled. " Lucian Ash, My name is Lucian Ash,"

Scott didn't give away an emotion, but inwardly, he was surprised.

" Ash is one of the great families; for anyone to mess with one of them, they'd either have to be stupid, ignorant, or both."

" So what's the story here, Lucian?" Scott calmly asked.

" I can only think of two reasons as to why you aren't leaving your room."

He held up two fingers.

" The first is, you're being bullied by someone, and severely, from the looks of it. Or option two, you're so confident in your ability to learn on your own that you do not need to leave your room. Looking at the state of the room, I don't think it's the latter."

Scott spoke coolly. Morgan stared at him, hiding his surprise.

But then again, for the short time he'd known him, Scott was always cool and collected. But seeing him talk to the kid, he was quite amazed.

" He's a natural leader. Like father, like son."

Lucian dried his tears and adjusted his glasses.

" You're right. Frankly, I feel weak and pathetic having to report these guys."

His fists clenched tightly at his sides.

" It's Axel Dark and Draco Dark. For some reason, they decided that I was at the bottom of the pecking order. They've made my life a literal living hell. I can't even walk out of the dorms without them breathing down my neck."

Morgan shook his head.

" Poor kid, sucks to be that guy."

Morgan had had his fair share of bullies as well. But he knew running away wouldn't solve the problem. Bullies yielded to one thing, and that was strength.

Scott smirked, then sat down.

" Well, for the meantime, I'll see what I can do. But I do have some good or bad news. That bit depends on you. You should know Draco was publicly embarrassed by one of the talented."

Lucian's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Are you serious?"

Scott nodded," Boy, it was somehow else. The Council didn't íntervene since Axel and Draco made the first move. He'll probably be looking for somewhere or someone to vent."

He cast a furtive glance at Lucian.

Morgan frowned in confusion.

" You guys are leaving me out of the loop here. The talented? Who are those?.

Scott grinned

" Oh, I was going to get around to that soon enough. If you consider us freaks, the talented are a different kind of freak, a natural born, bona fide, paranormal sort of freak," Scott said with a maniacal glint in his eye.