Chapter 3 Part 1 of 3 (Patreon)

Chapter Avegaaren Academy of the Ninth Realm

Rugrat checked the bag for the second time.

Erik opened his door. They both had their own apartments, but chose to stay at Momma’s house still. “What you grinning about? You ready?”

“Excited to get on the road. Just finishing up with this bag. I’ll be down in a minute.”

“All right, yah slow bastard.” Erik smiled, leaving the door open.

“You think that Storbon and Delilah…?” Rugrat’s words holding him there.

“Hell if I know. They’re interested in one another, around the same age, so why the hell not?” Erik shrugged in the doorway as Rugrat did up the last strap.

“Should we do anything?”

“Pfft, we’ll screw things up more than we’ll help. Now hurry up!” Erik headed down the stairs.

***

“I think that might have been the most expensive trip I have ever done,” Erik muttered to Rugrat as their ‘guide’ raised one of the celestial mana stones they’d given them in payment and disappeared in another flash of light.

Erik took a moment to examine the defenses around the totem it appeared to be a welcoming courtyard garden. Firing slits and formations had been carved into the walls, enhancing it visually, instead of it looking like the utilitarian formations stamped into some of the Alvan creations.

The effort that had gone into the make a defensive work look like a garden must’ve been monumental.

“Yeah, just burning the mana stones.”

“Something on your mind?” Erik asked. “Anything wrong?”

“No, no, don’t worry about it, just got to get my head clear, y’know?”

“Sure,-well, you need anything I’m here, dude.”

“I know.” Rugrat nodded and gave a forced smile.

Erik patted him on the shoulder, and they headed towards the ornate metal weaved gates. “Think we should ask who their crafter is? They’ve weaved working formations into the defenses like an artform.”

“Blending beauty and destruction together. Reminds me of some of the buildings in Kushan and the Under City.”

“Doesn’t look like Alva, so Elven?”

“In parts. The structure looks Gnomish from what I’ve seen.”

They walked up to the statues waiting at the entrance. A human guard stood, stretching in his booth.

“All the statues are golems as well.” Rugrat muttered. “Place is a death trap.”

Erik heard the appreciation in his voice.

“Are you looking to head to the cities, academy trials, or just looking for tutoring?” The guard called out as they approached.

“We’re looking to enter the academy.”

“You been to the Third Realm?”

“We have.” A long time ago now.

“Ninth Realm is just like that. There’s no fighting here unless it’s sanctioned. Treat the whole realm as one big city and you’ll be just fine. Just remember the advice your Association gave you. Once you’re through the gates you’ll see a blue, purple, and yellow line on the ground. The purple line will take you to registration. Blue is for the city, and yellow is for the Mission Hall.”

“Thanks,” Erik said.

The guard nodded and went back to his seat. “Good luck!”

Erik and Rugrat walked through the totem defenses and found themselves looking at the clouds beyond. The lines on the road led to the other four corners of the floating island.

“Well this is new,” Erik tried to peek over the side, clouds hanging low over head. “A floating totem island.”

“A new realm, new things to discover.”

They followed the purple line to a doorway entwined with runes, around it were clouds, but through it Erik could see a large open area with other glowing doorways.

“Huh, must be an active teleportation portal, connected to one destination, powered all the time,” Rugrat said and walked through. He turned around on the other side of the doorway, still speaking, but Erik couldn’t hear him.

Erik stepped through. “What was that? Couldn’t hear you.”

“I was right,” Rugrat smiled as they surveyed the spacious hall made of obsidian, floating gems filled the room with a soft light. Portals ringed the walls near them, people stepped through and moved to join a line before booths before twin open doors.

“Registration?” Erik shrugged.

A family hugged their daughter before she stepped to a booth. They moved off to another portal, leaving the hall.

Formations and runes ran through the wall the main doorway was inset into. Four statues, Human, Gnome, Elven, and Demi-Human stood beyond the booths and towered between them and the door. Judging those that passed between them.

“Golems?”

“Golems,” Rugrat agreed.

“Big fucking stone robot.”

They joined the line after several minutes of walking. There were just a few dozen people ahead of them, the majority were human, but there was one Elf, seven Demi-humans with different heritages, and two gnomes.

Erik tried not to stare at the gnomes but he couldn’t help himself. They were shorter than most people, their working clothes covered in various magical tools. Like most things known and unseen, Erik got used to it after he’d taken a good look.

Families and groups passed on their last words of support heading through portals to get seats to watch their admission fight and cheer them on.

Erik caught people looking at them, talking to one another, speculating on something.

They got closer to the booth, those ahead and behind losing their entourage.

“They’re wondering what Association you’re from and why you don’t have any supporters.” A girl behind them said with a nervous smile.

“Oh.” Erik smiled and nodded.

“You look like a smith and you look like an alchemist, but, hmm… Blue Lotus?”

“Guess we’re elders there,” Erik said.

“Heh, I almost forgot, been a while since I used that emblem.” Rugrat held his chin. “Don’t trust them after Vuzgal much though.”

Erik grunted, fighting the urge to spit.

The girl looked at them perplexed. Erik hoped that not being from an Association wouldn’t be a problem.

“What about you, which Association are you from?” Erik asked.

“The Fighter’s Association of course.” She smiled. “Forty-three years of training, been a tough road.”

Forty-three? She looked like she was in her early twenties.

She laughed, mistaking their expressions. “I know I’m rather young, but there are some true prodigies, like Rekha Bhettan, the Imperium head’s only Disciple. I hear that she can take on missions in the Tenth Realm already with her party. She’s just thirty years old! Wild.”

“Yeah.” Erik smiled, not wanting to say anything to draw attention.

Several people joined the line behind them as they continued to move forward. Soon, it was the girl’s turn.

“Good luck,” Erik said as she was called up.

“Thanks, see you in there!”

Erik and Rugrat were called up next, each going to a separate booth.

An elderly grandpa looking man sat at the booth opposite Erik. “Association symbol?”

“I’m not part of an association,” Erik said.

The older man frowned and raised an eyebrow “Identification? Something to say who you are?”

“Uhh, I have this.” Erik pulled out the four-star emblem that Eli’keen had given him.

The man stared at it.