Aurora drew her bow quickly and notched an arrow in the direction of the guy's face. She didn't know who this guy was, nor why he was being such a douche, but she wasn't going to stand for it, even if she hadn't known Tivar for more than a few minutes. 

 

"Shut up." Aurora tried to say aggressively, but her higher pitched friendly voice didn't exactly work with her. The guy looked down at Aurora, almost a head taller than her, and laughed even louder.

 

"And who are you, little girl? You don't look like you belong on this side of Axion. I think you lie with the preteens, girl. Do you not know who I am?" The guy sneered, making Aurora grimace even more. She had no clue who this person was, but he reminded her of the nobles she hated.

 

"Do you know who I am?" Aurora said, pulling the arrow back a little further, only causing the guy to laugh even more.

 

"Girl, my name is Nigel Terra, son of the famous William Terra. Part of the great Laxius empire." He said proudly, striking his chestplate in honor. A loud clanging sound echoed through the common room, which made it go absolutely quiet, now everyone was focused on the situation at hand.

 

"And I am Aurora Flore, first princess of Ventali." Aurora said defiantly, which made Nigels eyes widen slightly.

 

"Oh I see, then you should know all about strength." He snickered then bent a bit lower, shoving her bow out of her hand. The bow clattered to the ground as Nigel got up in her face, putting fear in Aurora’s heart. "To me, you and your family are nothing but weaklings. Bow to the strong, weak princess." 

 

"N-no" Aurora said somewhat defiantly. Nigel immediately grabbed her by the neck and picked her up to reach his level, causing her to choke a bit as she struggled to get out of his grip. She couldn’t believe the nerve of this guy to touch her, or even treat her like this.

"Did you hear that everyone? She said she doesn't bow to the strong." He called out to the rest of the crowd, triggering a laugh that could only be traced to not wanting to be in the same situation at Aurora. He looked directly into Aurora's green eyes, his brown eyes boring completely into her being, scaring her to her very soul. "That was not a question scum."

 

He then tossed her onto the ground in front of him, near where Tivar was taking a knee. He glanced at Aurora, fear even building in his eyes as he realized Nigel's gaze had turned to the both of them.

 

"It seems, friends, that these two need to be taught a bit of a lesson regarding respect. I mean this is a school after all. So, I suppose, as a superior, I'm forced to teach our youngling students here what respect entails. Princess or not, this is a lesson for all, completely equal opportunity." Nigel explained to the crowd of a hundred that stood in a circle around Nigel, Aurora, and Tivar. He reached onto his back and pulled out a very large and hefty steel sword, which held a brown and black pattern on it, similar to his clothing choice. He looked at the two of them, then formed an attack position with his sword raised above his head. "I doubt Lord Umi would punish us if we just gave you a few small cuts."

 

"You don’t deserve royalty." Tivar said, pulling his seriousness together. Nigel let out a laugh of pure joy, then looked Tivar in the eye.

 

"I was hoping you would give me a reason to cut you." He growled, with a smile on his face, which made both Tivar and Aurora's skin crawl.

 

"And now friends, I will show you what happens when you disrespect my family's name." He said, swinging down, aiming for the edge of Aurora's arm but, the sword never reached its target. A loud clanging noise filled the entire common room...another person had stopped Nigel's swing. The short sword that stopped Nigels sword seemed to be made of something entirely different, being that the metal was completely black. Holding this sword was a familiar face to Aurora, the guy that had been sitting next to them during Lord Umi’s speech. A look of pure surprise echoed through Nigel's face as he realized the guy had almost effortlessly blocked his attack. Nigel then sneered at the guy, his look forming into a glare. "Looks like another student is taking my class."

 

"Student? By the likes of you? I'm sorry, I doubt a pampered rich boy like you could ever teach me anything besides how to eat off a plate with seventeen forks." The guy shot back to Nigel with a sarcastic grin on his face. The guy then looked over at Tivar and Aurora, as if he were making sure they hadn't been injured. "You know, Nigel, I believe you knocked this fair lady to the ground accidentally. Maybe it'd be best to use that rich boy's respect and apologize to her, after all, you want to show your audience respect, right?"

"You little shi-" Nigel started to say, trying to push his sword forward, but the other guy's leg moved further behind him to keep his body directly in place. This mystery man was still nowhere near the size of Nigel, who was extremely muscular, but yet he still was able to hold him back.

 

"No? Then allow me to show you how we treat people with respect." He said, pushing Nigel's sword sideways and causing him to trip forward, nearly dropping to the ground. The guy turned around then walked up to Aurora. For a moment, she was stunned by whoever this was, she hadn't expected anyone to stand up to Nigel Terra like this, especially someone she feared Amelia had made an enemy with. The guy then reached his hand down, with a sincere smile on his face.

 

“You don’t have to-” Aurora spoke softly.

 

“Take my hand.” He then pulled her up extremely gracefully to her feet then guided her to the edge of the circle that had formed around them. "You see Nigel, respect is something earned, and while force can be used, it is not true respect."

 

"How dare you talk to me like that scum!" He yelled at the guy, raising his sword. The guy followed his movements, holding his sword diagonally to defend against any attack.

 

"I'll talk to you any way I want, preppy rich kids like you don't deserve my respect." The guy shot back, then laughed. "All you do is pick on easy targets. You aren't anything but a coward. But being the nice guy I am, I'll let you walk away from this fight, because you damn well aren't going to win.

 

"I'm tired of this!" Nigel yelled then charged at the guy, swinging his sword with all his ferocity. The guy jumped to the side, rolling quickly, then slamming the hilt of his sword into the back of Nigels armor, causing him to tumble forward near Tivar. 

 

“Goddess of the moon, bless this man with speed like no other." Tivar muttered, pushing his hands out. Yellow light then escaped from his hands and flew towards the mystery guy, and entered him. He smiled softly and shot his eyes towards Tivar, giving him a nod of thanks..

 

"Did you seriously charge me?" The guy laughed as Nigel got off the ground. "I mean I thought there were some bad sword fighters, but you must be their star idiot."

 

"I'll teach you to respect my name scum." Nigel said turning around and swinging his sword with even more ferocity. The guy turned his sword to block the attack, but didn't seem to be prepared for the amount of force behind Nigel's swing. He grunted then stumbled to the side a few inches, but didn't let Nigel's sword get the best of him. It almost seemed like an unfair fight to Aurora. The guy's sword was nearly 2 or 3 times smaller than Nigels, and while she wanted to help him in any way she could, she just wouldn't be able to get to her bow before Nigel saw her. Nigel pulled his sword back once more, but the guy seemed to take this opportunity to duck, dogging Nigel's swing then slamming his shoulder into Nigel's chest plate. The guy let his sword fall as he tackled Nigel, then slamming him onto the ground.

 

"I don't think you have that power." The guy said in a cocky tone, slamming his fist into Nigel's face, pinning his sword arm to the ground with his knee.

 

"Power? I'm glad you mentioned that." Nigel chuckled, and then the real trouble started. Orange energy began to build around Nigel's left arm, something that the guy wasn't paying attention to as he was gloating over how weak Nigel appeared to be in fighting. "Take this scum."

 

"What-" The guy began to question, but was immediately met with an answer. The orange energy finished forming, and a large version of his arm slammed into the entire right side of the guy's body, throwing him into a nearby column. The guy grunted then slammed back first into the ground, cracking the column. He then slammed into the ground belly first. Blood was seeping out from his back, and rubble covered his now ripped shirt. Nigel, breathing heavily, got up from the ground and started slowly walking towards the guy, giving Aurora the opening she needed. She glanced between the two weapons that lay on the ground, the guy's black sword and her own bow, which one should she go for?

 

"You see stupid piece of scum, the power of the Terra family is much greater than any other family, we have a very special power that gives us an extreme advantage against whatever skill or power you think you possess." Nigel gloated as he neared the guy, who was still on the ground not moving at all. Aurora grimaced at the state the guy seemed to be in, and a million thoughts went through her head, what should she do? She was frozen in fear. What if she made the wrong decision? What if she got really hurt? What if the guy got really hurt? She then glanced back at Nigel, who was slowly bending down to grab the guy, and she went for it. She jumped for her bow, and when she hit the ground she notched an arrow and fired it at Nigel's back, with only enough force to pierce the metal. The arrow sailed extremely fast and lodged itself in Nigel's armor, causing him to yell in pain and grab at his back trying to find the arrow.

 

"Gottem." The guy on the ground muttered, then swept his legs at Nigel's knees, connecting with extreme force, causing Nigel to fall to the ground. "My sword!" 

 

"Got it!" Aurora yelled, scooping his sword off the ground then tossing it to him. He caught it with ease then pointed it at Nigel's throat, effectively ending the battle. Aurora looked to the guy who had stuck his neck out for her and saw that some bruises that were on his cheek were disappearing before her eyes. She also noticed that his breathing was extremely relaxed, and before she could blink again, a sarcastic grin appeared on his face.

 

"You see Nigel, that is respect. I don't even know this girl's name, and she decided to help me out of respect. None of your 'friends' came to your aid, which is why-" The guy started to explain, but before he could finish, a new person entered the large common room.

 

"Just what do you think you're doing?" A deep feminine voice asked, pushing her way past the circle of people.

 

“Shit.” The guy muttered, pulling his sword away quickly and sheathing it on his waist. Aurora glanced at the speaker and saw that it was a fit woman in her 30's, wearing a very tight silver and grey dress, complete with silver and grey high heels. Her face was pudgy and round, with intense hazel eyes piercing into the guy. Her hair was similar in color to her eyes, but was completely braided. Her expression put fear into Aurora's heart, and she feared that this guy who had helped her was going to get all the blame for what had happened.

 

"Miss Lyxia." Nigel reacted quickly, seemingly happy that someone had come to his aid.

 

"Ma'am." The guy greeted the woman who was obviously extremely agitated by the fight that had ensued. She half expected the guy to start making excuses but he did nothing more than hold her gaze, while Nigel got off of the ground, sputtering like an idiot.

 

"Miss Lyxia, he attacked me unarmed, I tried to defend against him but he is just a brutal fighter. He knocked me to the ground and hit me continuously, he is an animal, he should be locked up!" Nigel lied through his teeth, causing the guy to literally start laughing.

 

"Is this true?" Miss Lyxia asked, turning her gaze to the guy while he finished laughing.

 

"Yeah definitely, everything he said is completely true." The guy said, turning his expression into a mischievous grin. "My power of healing was just too much for him to handle, I animalistically attacked him with my healing prowess, and his power just couldn't compete with it."

 

"Healing?" Aurora muttered. That explained why his bruises had healed so quickly after taking such a strike, she assumed.

 

"What is your name?" Miss Lyxia asked forcefully, but the expression of amusement didn't leave the guy's face and Aurora figured out why. She glanced over to Nigel and saw that anger was building in his eyes, he hadn't expected the guy to agree with him. Much more than that, the guy had made an absolute fool of him while agreeing, making Nigel look just as weak as the guy had said he was. 

 

"Alexander Korguard, at your service." He said, bowing, but not dropping the smile. Miss Lyxia immediately pulled out a thin tablet, and began typing on it fiercely. She looked back up at Alexander, with an almost surprised expression, but then turned it back to seriousness.

 

"Well, Alexander." Lyxia said, putting a sarcastic emphasis on the name.  "As I haven't seen you here before, I will assume you do not know the rules of this school. There is to be no fighting between students in the dormitories or the common rooms. I'm sure the school you transferred from should have taught you that much."

 

"To be fair, Lord Umi didn't say we couldn't." Alexander pointed out, still carrying that smile that looked full of life. To Aurora, she couldn't understand why he was acting so calm in the face of Miss Lyxia, as she seemed to be even scarier than Nigel. "I guess I missed the class where he said it, huh?"

 

"I didn't ask for back talk, Korguard. You will not receive any special treatment for ignorance. You'll be taken to Mr.Umi where he will decide your fate." Miss Lyxia ordered, spinning around and walking through a break away in the crowd. For a moment, Alexander didn't move but rather took a look over at Aurora and Tivar.

 

"Hold onto this for me," he said, tossing Aurora a small, black ring without any symbols. Aurora caught it, and looked it over. She didn't know what metal it was made out of, or why Alexander had given it to her, but as she looked up he was already walking away, before she could even ask why. She pocketed the ring then glanced over at Nigel, who was walking away in a huff as the crowd dissipated back to what they had been doing before. 

 

"What a fight... to " She heard Tivar mutter to himself. "Perhaps it's time we head to our dorms Princess, after...that." 

 

"I was thinking just that." Aurora said, still thinking about the guy that had stepped in for her and Tivar. Why had he done that? "What's your dorm number?"

 

"A11."

 

"Really?" Aurora asked, slightly baffled by the coincidence. "I'm there as well."

 

"That's wonderful Princess, I was hoping that was the case." Tivar smiled, then immediately began walking to the other side of the common room, as if he already knew where he was going. 

 

"Hey! Wait up!" Aurora called out as he approached a hallway with some odd decoration around it. On the top of the hallway were numbers 1-11 written in cursive script, along with two white columns along the side of the entrance, covered in what looked to be vines. She was amazed by the beautiful lavender colored flowers that seemed to be coming from the vines, which pulled her deep into her thoughts. She stared into the center of the flower and wondered how Amelia was doing. She certainly hoped that she had gotten at least one class with her, but knowing her luck she wouldn't. Her thoughts also turned to the guy who had protected her from Nigel, who was currently on an elevator heading down towards the office of Mark Umi, lord of Axion.

 

"Why did we go back up to go right back down? That seems like a glaring design flaw." Alexander pointed out as the elevator descended.

 

"Be quiet." Miss Lyxia said quickly, obviously irritated by Alexander's presence entirely. Alexander, however, didn't seem anything but relaxed while in the elevator, but he still couldn't understand why they had gone back up the stairway in order to go back underground to yet another office. However, after about 2 minutes both Miss Lyxia and Alexander got what they wanted when the elevator doors slid open. A large office sat outside the elevator doors, complete with many filled bookshelves, a large desk to the backside, two chairs in front of the desk, and red and black accents throughout the entire room. It looked more like a small library rather than a large office. Sitting at the desk was the figure of Lord Umi, who was pouring over a book and rather enjoying it as a smile was on his face.

 

"Ah Miss Lyxia, welcome, who have you brought with you?" Lord Umi greeted, glancing over at the two of them, a smile still plastered over his face.

 

"This is Alexander Korguard-" Miss Lyxia started to say but before she could continue, Lord Umi immediately laughed and put his book down, his focus now on Alexander, who was just quietly watching the conversation.

 

"Ah yes, the student Jack transferred us It's good to officially meet you Mister Korguard." Lord Umi smiled, standing up and walking around to the other side of his desk, and reaching his hand out to shake his hand.

 

"Good to meet you as well." Alexander nodded, shaking his hand. 

 

"Well Alexander here decided that he was going to attack Nigel Terra." Miss Lyxia said, with irritation still in her voice.

 

"I hoped someone would give that kid a-" Lord Umi started to say with a smile.

 

"Mark!" 

 

"Right, right." He said, walking over to his desk, sitting down, and giving Alexander a stern look. He moved his hand open, indicating that Alexander should sit down in one of the black chairs that were placed in front of his desk. "Take a seat Mister Korguard. We must discuss your punishment, as it is against the rules to fight in the common room. Miss Lyxia, would you mind letting me handle this by myself?"

"Absolutely Sir, just do not forget your place." She said sternly, heading towards the elevator. "You are a lord, you must act like one." 

 

"Yes I know. Check on the other lobbies to make sure none of the other students are getting into trouble, especially B, they are a bit rowdy." He ordered, as Miss Lyxia walked into the elevator and disappeared. For a moment, Lord Umi kept quiet, but then he stood up and turned his back to Alexander, looking at the bookshelf that was placed behind his desk "You intrigue me Mister Korguard, not many people would stand up to a Terra as you did, much less overcome them." 

 

"I just did what I thought was right sir. Nothing more than that." Alexander responded quickly, making Mr.Umi smile as he glanced over the titles.

 

"Ah yes, and that is precisely why it intrigued me. Not many people, including those who believe Nigel was wrong, would have questioned him at all, much less fought him. The Terra family is a brutal one, not to mention the country they rule is barely our ally." He said pulling a book off the shelf, it was labeled simply 'Astronomy'. He then set it on his desk, and then began looking for another book. 

“I didn’t know about that.”

 

"Yes I presumed you didn’t. Your skill is remarkable though, I must say. Tell me, what school did you go to before going here?" Lord Umi asked as he set another book on his desk titled ‘The History of Astron’ onto his desk.

 

"Uh, I didn't exactly go to a school. I lived in a small village in Arkoria, on the other side of the continent. I came to this place after my village was attacked.” Alexander spoke softly, looking to the ground. “Parents died.”

"I'm very sorry for your loss." He said sincerely, pulling a book halfway out of the bookshelf. Only a small portion of the book's title could be seen, simply reading 'Legend of', before Lord Umi chuckled, sliding it back into its place. "You know I'd suggest that book sometime in the future, The author is quite a curious one. Tell me, are you a fan of reading Mister Korguard?"

 

"Yeah, I used to read a lot as a kid, always the fantasy stuff though." Alexander laughed, his sad eyes gaining a bit more light. Lord Isomi noticed this, and a true smile came over his face.

 

"Good, then from my personal collection I shall give you this book." He said, turning around and almost expertly pulling a book from the shelf. The title read "Shadows of Time' and was a pure black book with a simple clock on the front. Alexander held it in his hands and glossed over it, but soon interest turned into confusion. "Something the matter Mister Korguard?"

 

"All these books, and not a single rulebook?" He questioned, looking up at the lord. Lord Umi laughed a hearty laugh, sitting back in his chair and putting his feet up on the edge of his desk.

"Why? Did you want me to give you one?" He asked curiously.

 

"I mean not necessarily, I just-"

"Alex, there are certain things you must learn by yourself. Guiding students as long as I have, I've learned the most important tool to a student is teaching them how to learn new things themselves. It is why I gave you the books so you may find the answers you seek on your own, instead of telling you the knowledge I wish to impart upon you." He explained. Lord Umi then leaned back in his chair, and adopted a smile on his face. "Not to mention, the fun of Axion is finding your own way. With that I think we can conclude our meeting. I believe you were assigned dorm A11?"

 

"Yes my lord." Alexander said, as he got up from his seat and bowed, beginning to head towards the elevator.

 

"I think you'll have fun with your roommates. Do me a favor will you?" He asked, making Alexander turn around. "Do your best to keep away from Nigel Terra, and his family, they are vicious people."

 

"Will do." Alexander nodded, turning back around and heading inside the elevator. The doors immediately closed, and the elevator shot up quickly, leaving Alexander alone to his thoughts. "This is a weird place, huh Artemis?"

 

"Yes, much like the one we left." A voice said from beside Alexander. A ghostly being in the form of a fox appeared on his right shoulder.

 

"Yeah." He muttered leaning up against the elevator wall and pulling his right arm up. A holographic screen appeared over his forearm."Any idea who's going to be in the room with us?"

 

"That pretty princess you saved and the guy she was with." Artemis said in his ear, causing him to grimace. “But I didn’t see anyone else before I left. Sorry I took so long, I got lost. The path out wasn’t the same as the path in.”

 

"Huh, now that you mention it, there wasn’t even a map on our Pawn’s...and I didn’t see any elevators for any other floors..." He said, glancing over the three, sort of small, books Mr.Isomi had given him. "I suppose this is the place to start to understand this weird country." 

 

He then entered the underground portion of the school, walking all the way down the steps and reaching the common room, which still had a decent amount of people in it. Alexander, for a moment, wanted to sit down and immediately get started on reading these books, however his curiosity of who would be in the dorm with him overrode that thought. He walked through the common room, passing by people with ease, until he reached a hallway with vines curling around columns to the side of it. He glanced up then saw large cursive numbers ranging from one through eleven. He then walked into the bright hallway, looking around at each of the numbered doors as he passed them. He reached the end of the hallway, and walked up to the door numbered eleven, then put his hand on the door, hearing a click, then entered the room.

 

"Oh great, another one? Who are you?" A voice mumbled as the door opened, obviously irritated.