The classroom smelt sweet and fresh. Somehow, Cyrus had managed to get to class and also gotten a seat at the back end of the class. Of course, the girl helped him.
The endless murmurs that ran through the class stopped suddenly as a stream of continuous thud echoed throughout the entire classroom. Someone's footsteps. Loud and authoritative. The instructor... probably.
A voice echoed. Rough, like it was being scraped against something sharp.
"Good morning class"
The man paused for a bit.
"My name is Veradin Willen and I'm your instructor for this class"
"When I call your names, you respond with 'Present'. Am I understood?"
'I think it's some kind of... attendance.'
"Yes sir!" the entire class replied, almost everyone, though.
"Cristale Arishen"
"Here," a sharp, unsteady voice replied. A young girl's voice.
"Aaron Lannar"
"Here" another voice, this time, slightly deep and firm. The voice of a young boy, probably not much older than Cyrus.
The man continued calling out the names of students, then finally he got to Cyrus, who was —of course — the last one on the list.
"Cyrus..."
"Here" The blind boy replied, his voice shaky yet soft.
The air around Cyrus tightened. The silence of the classroom felt heavy.
Soon after voices could be heard. Whispers from his fellow classmates. They were low, but Cyrus could still pick up on a few things that they said.
"His eyes are really creepy"
"I think he's blind"
"There'll be no use in associating with someone like him, he's basically a walking corpse"
Upon hearing that, Cyrus flinched. He had heard people call him a walking corpse all his life, but he never got used to it. Those words still hurt — a deep, familiar ache that never dulled.
And other whispers flowed in the air, some, not audible enough for him to hear, while others were picked up really easily.
"If you have something you wish to say, say it louder!" the sharp voice of the instructor echoed through the classroom, bringing the murmurs to a stop.
Cyrus felt a soft, warm hand grab his shoulder gently. The girl who had helped him get to the Cafeteria and then the classroom.
Aria.
Cyrus had heard the man call out her name during the attendance.
The girl was seated beside him. Placed her hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him.
"Don't listen to whatever they say. It will only ruin your mood."
Cyrus simply nodded, assuring her that he understood.
"That's good. Let's just get through this class." She paused for a bit then giggled softly. "After class, I have somewhere I want to show you... take you." She added.
"Good" the instructor said flatly after a few seconds of silence. Then he continued:
"Let's begin the class" he paused for a bit, and then cleared his throat.
"Today I will be taking you on the history of the Rift.
Although, everyone here probably knows a thing or two about the rift, I will dive into it's history and everything known to man about the phenomenon."
After a short pause, the instructor started:
"The Rift is an alternate realm filled with monstrous beasts and extinct foreign — supernatural — civilisation." He paused for a bit then continued.
"Seventy years ago, in the year 2023. The world almost came to an end when the planet experienced a great number of natural disasters, and the appearance of different kinds of beasts which appeared from portals in every part of the world.
Many cities and countries were wiped from the face of the Earth. Human created weapons had no effect on the monsters that appeared from the portals. This weakness threw the world into utter chaos.
Only a few number of people ranging from hundreds of thousands to a million or two managed to survive. Many or most took shelter underground in government secret bunkers, while others moved from building to building relying on the movement pattern of the monsters and the cities that currently faced the full grunt of their monstrosity to determine their next shelter.
A few months into the great catastrophe humans recorded hundreds of people vanishing from the face of the earth. Those humans were missing for days, some months and some forever.
Luckily, the missing humans — some of them — miraculously reappeared in the exact same location at which the vanished. They exhibited supernatural powers that should be considered impossible.
Sometime later, they waged war upon the evil beasts that appeared from the portals. Those humans fought the beasts tirelessly and in the end after a long and destructive battle, they achieved victory, retrieving the freedom and safety of humanity from the evil creatures.
These group of people were branded as the Saints of the Apocalypse.
This great catastrophe that almost wiped out the entire world was known as Judgement Day."
'Judging by the date, I'm pretty sure Father Viktor is one of those "Saints of the Apocalypse" or at least one of those who manifested during that time.' Cyrus thought.
The man continued his explanations. He dived deep into the number of layers the rift has, the layout of the first layer of the rift, which the manifestation trial will take place as well as the monsters that inhabited the layers and their rank. He explained the blessings and curses one receives when their completely manifest, as well as a whole other things that will be really useful to them once they get transported.
***
After surviving the long, suffocating tension of the class, Cyrus found himself in a quiet building. The only sound breaking the quiet was a loud, unapologetic slurp.
The scent of rich broth and fried garlic filled the air. Ceramic bowls clinked softly against wooden tables.
He was in a restaurant. The bright and gentle Aria was seated before him. Munching on God knows what.
Somehow, the place which the girl had told him she would take him to, turned out to be a small food shop that —from her words — served the best ramen in the entire academy campus.
'Eating breakfast with her at the cafeteria gave me a hint that he was a foodie, but I didn't know she loved to eat this much.' He thought, a blank expression on his face.
'Just the sound alone is enough to tell me just how much food she's consuming... I think'
"Hey, if you plan on letting that get cold, I'm stealing it." Aria said through a mouthful of noodles.
"Sorry, I'll eat it now" Cyrus replied nervously. His hand slowly glided on the table in order to find the fork, or chopsticks. Honestly, he would rather use the fork, since he has no idea on how to use chopsticks let alone hold them. Asking for help would make it obvious. Fumbling would make it worse.
"Hey, you're nervous right?" the bright girl asked, her mouth no longer filled with food.
'wait, did I get caught?'
'Oh my God, she found out I can't use chopsticks'
"Yes! You cau..." the blind boy was cut off before he could make a fool of himself.
"To tell you the truth, I'm also nervous. Scared out of my wits. I'm pretty sure everyone is. Who wouldn't be? In two days, we'll be thrown into hell, and forced to fight our way through in order to survive."
She paused for a bit then added:
"Ha, I shouldn't complain. At least I can still survive if I pull myself together. But you..."
She paused again. Her tone carried a trace of sadness.
"You're blind. You have zero chance of surviving the Rift. It's not fair."
This was the first time Cyrus had ever heard someone worry about him this much with the exception of Father Viktor of course.
Somehow, he felt an unexpected relief wash through him.
Cyrus had the sudden urge to ask the girl why she cared about him so much, but he couldn't bring himself to ask. All managed to say was:
"Thank you...thank you so much for... for worrying about me" he sobbed, his face burning hot, his hands trembling and tears running down his cheeks.
A few minutes later, Cyrus managed to stop crying. His eyes became puffy.
"Sorry… you had to see me like that," he muttered, embarrassed.
"It's nothing. Everyone cries once in a while" the girl giggled.
"Sorry, but I should get going. I have somethings to do" Cyrus muttered.
There was no reply from the girl. Cyrus picked up his stick which was rested on the left side of the table. A soft, and warm hand grabbed his idle hand and placed it on their shoulder. It was the girl. Her shoulder was relatively slim and soft. It felt like it could break by just applying a little bit of force to it.
"Let's go" the right girl spoke.
"Our rooms are opposite each other, remember?" the girl added.
"Thanks" Cyrus breathed. A light genuine smile curled up on his face.
***
The walk to the dormitory was long and strenuous. But eventually they got to their destination. Cyrus walked into his room after his short goodbye with the girl.
He lied down on his bed, exhausted and somewhat... embarrassed by what happened at the small restaurant.
He dismissed his thought forcefully from his mind, tried to remember what the instructor had taught them today in class, then he curled up on his bed then fell into a deep slumber.