Humans fear many things.
Darkness, insects, animals, the depths of the ocean…
Death, hunger, disease.
But in this age, what people feared most could be summarized in a single word: Monsters.
The trigonometry class had ended, and the classroom was slowly emptying. After Tarrow erased the sine and cosine drawings on the board and left, the class instantly relaxed.
In the back row, Eren closed his notebook, but his mind wasn't on the lesson. The shadow outside had caught his eye again. It had been the same thing for a few days.
Dean was in the front rows, neatly gathering his belongings as if it were a special ceremony. When Eren took a step to say something, Dean had already headed for the door. A person with golden hair and gray eyes was waiting for him at the door: Burhein, the vice-captain of the Lanterns.
Dean went up to him and greeted him. Eren stayed where he was. He had taken a step for something he didn't know what to say; that step now hung in the air.
Raphael caught up to him and touched his shoulder as if to say, "Let's go."
Kayra walked to the door with a bored expression. Eren joined them.
The corridor was divided in two; ordinary students flowed to one side, and the Shadows to the other. This was because only the Shadow team had been called for patrol—not the other teams.
Everyone slowed down when a long shadow appeared at the end of the corridor. The shadow came, then reunited with its owner: Captain Azel.
He stood there in his black coat, with that classic "bored but all-knowing man" expression on his face. He spoke without taking his eyes off the team:
Azel: "Shadow team. Gather."
Eren, Raphael, Kayra; Leila, Cain, Shirou, Gus, Nicholas, Zulu from the back; Arlo and Milo from the side... all lined up in front of Azel.
The other classes were passing by. Dean, Rowan, and Mira continued with their class schedules as if nothing had happened, because the patrol duty belonged entirely to the Shadow team.
Azel looked at them. He was silent for a while. He looked at Eren first, then Kayra, and finally Raphael. Then he spoke:
Azel: "Today, you are going on patrol to the North Line."
When the sentence ended, a visible tension rose from the team. The North Line was cold, very cold, and dangerous.
Azel continued: "Don't worry, you will be in the back lines. Normally, I would send the 3rd graders."
No one's face changed. Everyone knew why he couldn't send them.
Azel: "But the 3rd graders are still being punished. For starting a fight with the Lanterns and stealing the Great Sun Lantern."
Nicholas turned his head to the side. Gus shrugged. Zulu adjusted his own hair. None of them, except the 1st graders, were surprised by the subject. The 3rd graders were already a group suffering from a lapse of reason.
Azel continued: "Only two people are left from the 4th graders. They are also in no condition to leave their rooms."
A small silence fell. Eren felt a sigh of inner distress weighing down on him.
Azel was silent for a short time, then stepped back.
Azel: "Dusk will take you. I have... another assignment."
The phrase "another assignment" left only one meaning behind: The Casino.
When Azel left, Dusk slowly opened the door and walked towards the middle of the room. His shadow was moving on its own. The man already looked like he hadn't slept for two days.
Dusk: "Captain Azel won't be with us today as he got his salary. Gather up. To the North Line immediately."
It took the team a while to get ready. It had been a long time since Eren had maintained his pistol, and he didn't want it to jam in the middle of a conflict. While Eren was cleaning his pistol, Vice-Captain Dusk knocked on the room door and entered.
Dusk: "Eren, I have to give you and the other 1st graders something before you go."
He took out a small black cylindrical glass bottle from his pocket. Actually, the bottle was not black, the liquid inside was black.
Dusk: "Drink this."
Eren was surprised; it was obvious he was disgusted by the liquid.
Eren: "Why? This looks disgusting."
Dusk took a deep breath.
Dusk: "This is an elixir. Let me give you an example. Last night before bed, I looked at your exam teams. I don't know if the mage in your team told you, but she drank an elixir to gain magic energy. This is the same type of elixir, actually not the same type, but the effect is the same: it will give you magic power."
Eren took the bottle and looked at Dusk.
Eren: "Well, what's the difference between them?"
Dusk: "There are basically two differences between them. Hers is a baseless elixir, and this is a based elixir. The based elixir and her elixir have an element power. Water element. This one is elementless."
Eren: "What is a based elixir and an element?"
Dusk: "You don't need to learn about the based elixir for now, but let me explain the elements. Generally, most people are born with an affinity for one element type. Sometimes there can be situations like affinity with more than one element type or no affinity with any type. For example, Shirou, you fought him, he fights with boiling water balloons, right?"
Eren: "Yes."
Dusk: "Well, he has two element affinities: Water and Fire. After learning your element, you can learn the techniques and styles of people with the same type of element affinity as you in the library. Or you can create your own style, of course, for that your synthesis ability needs to be high. Mine is not that high. Besides, those with dark element affinity like me are very rare, so there aren't many styles. The main elements that come to my mind right now are light, dark, earth, water, fire, lightning, and air. There are more, of course, but they don't come to mind. Now, drink this elixir, or I'll force you to."
Eren suddenly flinched, opened the cap of the bottle, and drank it all in one go. Then he gagged.
When they left the academy, the air was quite cold. They got into the horse-drawn carriage. The path leading into the forest began to darken.
Dusk: "We'll get off here. We have a short way left."
The team started walking.
Dusk in the lead, behind him Shirou's breath smelling of boiling steam; Cain's heavy footsteps hitting the ground; Leila's rhythmic walk; Eren and Kayra side by side; Raphael between Nicholas, Gus, and Zulu in the back.
Kayra cursed under his breath. "Why is it always up to us, f*ck."
Zulu nonchalantly tossed his hair back. "What can we do, because of the upperclassmen. They owe us."
Shirou played with his pipe; tiny drops of steam rose from it. Nicholas's breath was cold; the area around his footprint slightly frosted with every step. Gus took out his cigarette pack from his pocket, but put it back when Dusk turned and raised an eyebrow. Leila was silent as she walked, but the magic vibration around her could be felt. Eren noticed. Whenever he looked at the girl, he couldn't find anything to say. Milo stopped from time to time, checked the ground, and then walked again. Arlo was looking around absentmindedly as if nothing was happening.
As they approached the North Line, the smell of the forest was cut off. It was replaced by a smell like rotten metal. The air became heavy.
Dusk stopped.
Dusk: "We have arrived at the place where we will stay."
The stone building that emerged from the trees appeared. It was a small center used by the patrol guards. There were claw marks on its walls. Its door was crooked.
The team lined up inside.
Dusk opened the door.
Dusk: "We will stay here tonight. Keep your eyes peeled."
Eren felt a slight chill inside as he entered. Leila went to the side of the table, leaning her shoulder against the wall. Eren sat opposite; the girl looked at him for a moment, then looked away.
Milo pointed to the shadow next to the door. Arlo stared blankly at the shadow. Cain sat on the floor, leaning his head against the wall.
Kayra looked up at the air as if to say, "we're definitely screwed tonight."
Dusk stepped onto the threshold of the door. His eyes darkened.
Dusk: "Be ready,"
The tone in his voice was much heavier than in previous patrols.
Dusk: "Normally, this place is not very dangerous, but we need to be careful just in case."
And a roar came from outside. Not weak. Not far away.
Something from inside the forest was listening to their breaths.