Cearbhail:

The second chapter. So, how is everyone liking Pra'ja? I hope she's making an impact. Time to meet some more people.

Anyway...

=^^= Enjoy...

[Vatu]

I seemed to be standing in a dark void; a dark plane of existence. I could see and feel the cold numbing mist rolling down at my ankles. As far as dreams go, it's not the worst one I've ever had. I spend a lot of nights having nightmares, and most often they do not begin with me standing in a dark void. They usually begin with me in our old house, and I'm a kid again.

As I stood there, facing the all-encompassing darkness, faces started forming in the dark mist that started to flow in front of me. It was a small shift, one that I barely noticed, but as the thick mist rolled up and around me, more and more faces started to appear. Thousands of faces, all frowning, all Khajiit; all of them my ancestors. I could see several that I knew of from my ancestral link. Several I've already dream-walked as. And their frowning faces spoke of danger. Every dark face mouthed Ta'agra, something I knew of but was not good enough in to lip-read. Even though I couldn't read their lips, I could tell why they frowning; I was in danger. They knew it and somehow, they were trying to let me know.

The only thing is that I couldn't tell how I knew that they knew that I was in danger. It was like an empathic link; like a sixth sense connecting me to them. Danger ahead. That was the message. I just wished they could tell me what to look out for. Was it because I was in the battlemage program? I mean… I was finally at one of the safest places in Cyrodiil: The Arcane University. I wasn't out rummaging through ruins for something to sell for food and shelter. No, I was safely tucked away in my new bed, my sheets wrapped around me. I had class in the morning, my first class ever actually. I already had everything ready to go, just in case. So, it wasn't like I was in danger… was I? Was something going to go wrong? Was this all just a worry dream? Something to make me worry about my first day of school? I don't know honestly.

In the thick mist stood a body. It started appearing like a ghost, but as it walked closer, I could see a strong Khajiit body walking up to me. As it drew closer, I could tell it was my father. More and more of them started to appear, each one just as real as me. Thousands of Khajiits started surrounding me. Their mouths still trying to scream something to me, their voices trying to work up some amount of warning to me. Some were throwing their arms around, pointing to the sky. Some were wrapped up in each other's arms, quietly sobbing. This was bad… this wasn't some kind of 'first day of school' warning. This was… something worse. Another incident? Did I come back to the Imperial City during another kind of problem from Daedra? Maybe another cult?

The dark world started to shift, the ground jerking around; I almost lost my footing as the world jerked around me. The dark world started breaking apart; my ancestors looking around for a few seconds. My father reached up, grabbing my shoulder. He gave it a small squeeze, nodding to me. He mouthed something, but it was lost to me. He gave me a last shake, patting me on the shoulder before letting go. His eyes were screaming something to me, but he resigned himself as he stepped away. He started backing away, soon followed by the rest of my ancestors. One by one they disappeared into the thick mist. Within seconds, they were nothing but wisps floating in the air. I was left alone in this dark world

"Brother, wake up."

…

I felt a pull on my body and I was suddenly pulled away from the dark world. I felt my body fall back into itself, which caused me to jerk myself awake, snapping my eyes open. It took me a second to realize where I was. Well, it only took me one second to know that my sister was standing over me but as for where we were… that took me a few more seconds. The light purple/blue ceilings and walls, the alchemy table set up in the corner of the room, the books lining our new bookshelf. More than that, my bed. My warm cozy bed. I was in my new room. And boy was I glad that wasn't a dream all on its own. I was almost fearful that I would wake up in a cold ruin, still clutching some welkynd stone; still wearing ragged clothing, and my sister still complaining about her stomach hurting.

But that didn't seem to be my present. My sister was standing right above me, dressed in her new pajamas, her mane ruffled by her new pillow. My sister pulled and pushed on my arm. "Brother, wake up." She screamed, staring me dead in the eye.

My eyes were open. How on Nirn did she not notice that? I shook her hand off my arm and said, "I'm awake, sister."

My sister looked too excited to really notice anything I did or said. "Hurry, brother. Today's the day!" She said, jumping up and down. She hopped off my bed, landing right next to her trunk. She reached into her new dresser, pulling out her brand new green robe. She smiled the biggest smile I'd ever seen on her face. The sparkle in her eyes told me everything I needed to know. I did a good thing by bringing her here. She hugged her robes close to her, sprinting to the other side of the room to our one and only closet (which we used as our changing room). She ducked into her small changing area, closing the curtain behind her. "Brother, you should change into your robes as well."

I nodded to myself. Yeah, it was a good idea. Since Nisha was already concealed, I decided to just change right where I stood. I pulled my robe out of my own dresser and threw it on as fast as I could. The robes were not just a pull over robe like I thought. There was an under-layer, like a nightgown type brown robe; a green over-robe that seemed to be the main robe that we tied off with the sash; and then the brown cowl with a hood deep enough that I can stretch my ears without having to worry too much about the hood coming off. On the sleeves of my sleeved tunic, I could see my Battlemage crest sown into the shoulder. Everyone who saw me today would know I was in the Battlemage Program. Any other students in the same field would most likely try to socialize with me. I'm still getting used to being with people again… but I'm excited. I think.

By the time I was finished getting dressed and throwing on my sandals, Nisha was just finishing up and coming out of her changing area. I could see her own emblem on her left shoulder: the Mages Guild all-seeing eye with an alchemical bottle sitting in front of it. It warmed my heart to see her wearing her own robes, brand new and not hand-me-downs like ours were. And made from wool… which itches… a lot. Nope… we're wearing real cotton and silk, enchanted with magicka that will help us with our training. We're professional students now.

I couldn't believe it was finally the day that we started our training. Our long journey to get here… and it was about to pay off. Today was the day we finally change our fate. No more cave-dwelling. No more hiding in ruins, scavenging for food. I mean… sure, it's just a magic class, and we have a few spells on hand, not to mention plenty of training already under our belts, but… this is like we're finally where we're supposed to be. I'm an adult by Khajiit standards. I'm 15. I'm an adult. And I'm at a university studying combat magick. I'm going to become one of the strongest battlemages to ever walk this plane of existence. I'm probably not the smartest student… probably not that strong either. But… I'm sure I belong here.

I had three classes, each with their own instructor. One for each specific magic that I would be practicing today. Sadly, I won't be in the same classes as Nisha. She's in three classes; Alchemy, Illusion, and Alteration. Her program focused a lot on these three disciplines, as well as Restoration. She was taking the Alchemy Engineering program, while I was in the Battlemage program. So naturally, my classes were in Destruction, Enchanting, and Restoration, at least for this season. Each class was three hours long and we could only take three a season. In order for me to qualify for the Battlemage Academy, I will have to get a 'M' for my Destruction classes, 'K' for Restoration classes, 'M' for Enchanting, 'P' for Alchemy…not my strong point, and 'M' for Martial Defense. Adam walked me through my program's class structure, and I know that I have to take three classes in Destruction; two in Restoration; one for Enchanting… a special Battlemage class at that; one Alchemy class, and the Martial Defense was like an after-hours thing, a continuous thing I do every semester. Again… it's a battlemage thing. I'm supposed to learn more about it today. From what I have been told, it's straight up sword fighting, bow shooting, and hand-to-hand combat. I'm thrilled to learn more about that.

So, I have a full two seasons of classes to attend, and one additional class. They'll let me do that one during the summer break. All in all… I should be done in a year, which most Battlemage trainees are. During the summer, you're allowed two classes only. So, I have an extra slot to fill, but I'm not sure yet what I should take, if I should take anything at all.

The grading scale was pretty standard. 'M' meant 'mastery'. You had to get the best remarks in that field in order to achieve it. Of course that was based purely on the instructor and how much they thought mastery meant. Next was 'P'; Proficient. That meant I had knowledge and capable of using this field with no problems. After that was 'K'; Knowledgeable. To get that you had to at least be able to show that you understand the theory behind it. After that was the most embarrassing grade you could ever get… 'N'. Nord… you didn't want to get a 'Nord' on your final exams. That meant that you had no ability with that magic at all…it was an insult to get it.

I turned to my sister. "You got your schedule?"

She nodded, waving the paper in her hand. "Right here." She was lucky; all her classes were approved right away. My schedule was a little more… hectic. A lot of students studying for Battlemage currently, and most classes were full. There had to be exceptions made for me… and I had a tutor assigned to me as well. Being the adopted son of the guild's presiding Master did have its annoying benefits. Adam was supposed to bring me my amended schedule later. There was one class that needed changed: my Restoration class. The previous teacher met with an untimely injury, and was cancelled. I was placed in a different Restoration class, one guided by a professional healer.

"Good. Let's go get some breakfast and then… I guess we'll go to class." What an odd thing to say: 'go to class.' People say it every day, but for me… this was a first. Felt good to say it though.

So, my sister and I walked down to the dining hall. We didn't say much to each other, other than hoping that there would be sausages and guessing which kind of sausage we'd try to eat. Nisha wanted nothing more than a sausage drizzled with bacon grease, dipped in sausage gravy collected from the finest of fat pigs in the sauciest of farms in all of Orsinium. If you hadn't guessed, Orcs make the best sausage, and no I'm not just saying that because they look like pigs. They just have a great taste for meat and spicing it up. Too bad I didn't see any Orcs here at all.

As we approached the dining hall, I could already pick up the scent of fresh fruit, pancakes, maple syrup, and… mmm… sausages. Strong scents of bacon cooked over elm wood.

"That smells good." I glanced down at Nisha. I could hear her stomach growling at the smell of bacon.

"Yeah it does." She drooled at the thought of our breakfast. I remember last night we went out to eat. There was this nice restaurant/inn built into a ship. They serve the nicest fish, and we thought we deserved to eat something we didn't catch for once. I didn't exactly feel like swimming outside for more fish, and neither did Nisha. Sure… we spend a lot of our meals and free time with Adam, our new adoptive father, but once in a while, Nisha and I just want to be by ourselves. Our new foster mother hasn't really shown up yet… she's still on mission wherever she is, but I'm sure we'll get to meet her again soon enough.

We pushed through the main doorway, and once again, I was surprised at the size of the dining hall. Tables everywhere, spread out across a two-story building, a second level for advanced mages (you could tell them apart by their sparkly blue robes instead of our bland green/brown ones). The dining hall was huge with its own enchanted ceiling that looked like the sky above us. I thought it was ingenious though a little over-the-top. Looking around the dining hall, I always came up with the same conclusion: it was quiet. Not a lot of kids like us ever make it this far…and if you think there were other Khajiits here…you were wrong. We stuck out like a sore thumb. So, Nisha and I have been spending a lot of our meals so far to ourselves. Every once in a while, Pra'ja will join us, but she's often just doing her own thing. She seems to be far away from me, and I don't really understand why. I want to ask her about it whenever I get the time.

I glanced around the room, looking for an open table. I saw one near a window. That seemed like a good place. There was a Breton girl sitting at the table by herself. I saw her yesterday when I was collecting my new robes and books. Her name was Crassi; she was in the Battlemage Program too. She was in her second semester, like Pra'ja. As far as I could tell, she was pretty cool. Sitting next to her was another Battlemage trainee: Clemens. He was a sturdy-looking Imperial with a regal face. From what I could tell, he was really smart too. I can't wait to see him in class, see him in sparring practice. I hear he's good at what he using combative magick.

I nodded to Crassi and Clemens as they glanced up at me. "Sis… let's go sit with them."

Nisha glanced up at my classmages, and she rolled her eyes. "Why not?"

My sister and I both grabbed a seat at the table with Clemens and Crassi. And I can tell why they were sitting here in the corner of the room. As I glanced around, I could see a lot more faces, but… most of them were not children like us. Crassi and Clemens were the same age as me: 15. And as I looked around, all I could see were adults… and elves. Mostly elves. And most of those elves were Altmer. AS I got a better look, I could tell that there were nothing but Altmer and Bretons in this room. I guess this was a common theme for mages though. Altmer and Breton were perhaps the strongest/most magically inclined races our country has.

I can't lie; I feel intimidated by all the tall Altmer walking around. I'm still just a cub, only mid-teens. My sister is only 10 and she's a good head smaller than I am. If you don't understand what I mean by that… I mean I'm short. I'm Cathay, which is just a fancy way of saying my breed of Khajiit makes me the same size and build as an Imperial. At max height… we're looking at 5'10". I'm built like a human. I get as tall as humans, my muscles just as thick. But I'm still Khajiit… which means I'm still an agile, vicious, capable warrior. Faster than any human, stronger too, and I handle mountainous combat with a natural ease not found in anyone but Bosmer.

There are other races of Khajiit too, the most common ones (and human-related ones) are: Suthay, Suthay-raht, Cathay-raht, and Ohmes. Each one appears differently. Suthay are short like male Bosmer and female Bretons, usually reaching 4'11". They are very sleek though, pointy ears like lynxes most times. Very magically-endowed. Usually gifted with the Sight, an ability to see the future or something like that. I'm not really sure. Then you have the Suthay-raht; taller than the Suthay but just as sleek, like an elf. Some reach 5'10", but most reach around 5'8". Very elven appearance when it comes to how sleek they are. Very Dunmer. Not as tall as Cathay though. About a head shorter most times. So… no muscles to speak of, but they have pretty quick reflexes, quicker feet than us, and have a strong connection to magick, like the other Suthay.

Then… you have me. The Cathay. Built like humans… and I'm good with my claws and my physical strength. Not so good with my magick though. I'm clumsy, unlike the Suthay-raht. And if you think I'm clumsy, you should meet the Cathay-raht. Built like Nords or Orcs. Tall, muscular, reaching anywhere from 6'2" to 6'6". Almost always have no connection to magicka at all. Slow, clumsy most often, but they can toss you across a town with a grunt and a wave of their arms. They stand about two heads above me, and just a little taller than an Altmer most times.

"You look lost." Crassi said to me in a whisper.

Hearing her talk snapped me out of my information babble. I shook the thought from my head, looking back at her. "Yeah… just thinking of how short I am.."

She gave me a leveled look. "We're the same size, Vatu."

I nodded. "Yeah… you're pretty tall for a Breton."

She brushed her crimson hair away from her neck, smirking as she did so. "Yeah… my family is pretty awesome." From what I know about her mother… she's some kind of knight or something like that. Not a battlemage like her, but I guess Crassi has a father in the Contingent or something like that.

"Oh…" I heard Clemens say as he glanced over to the table across from us. I followed his eyes to see a Dunmer witch. She had her nose in a book with an apple in her hand. From the scent I was gathering coming from Clemens, I could tell he had a… a crush? I think that's what I was scenting on him. Hormones. The Dunmer witch had shoulder-length raven black hair that almost looked like a deep blue in the candlelight. She had piercing red eyes, both of which were shoved into a book of hers: the Argonian Account. I think I saw a volume of that in the trash one day. Oh… I think it was a different book about Argonians.

The Dunmer stopped chewing on her apple, turning her gaze away from her book. She glanced up at me once she noticed I was looking at her. I waved, hoping I could get some type of reaction from her. There was a tense second while she stared me down. I looked at her patch on her right shoulder, which showed the university's emblem on it. I couldn't see her left shoulder to see what program she was in. The Dunmer continued to stare at me, finally blinking, smiling politely and buried her face back into her book. She gave a half-hearted wave to me before turning her face back into her book.

Clemens scoffed, glancing back at me. "Hey, I saw her first."

I shrugged. "I'm really not that interested in dating." Unusual, I know… but while teens my age are jumping all over each other, I'm more concerned about protecting my sister and finding us a place to live. Well… I'm here now. Perhaps, I could try this 'dating' thing. I guess I could try asking out the Dunmer girl… although I still don't really see a reason to. I'm here to study magicka and become a battlemage, not find a mate.

Clemens tried his best to keep his eyes off the girl as he went back to his breakfast, but I think everyone at the table could see how much it was bothering him. My sister this whole time was grabbing some plates for us. From what I could see, she was grabbing all the sausages she could shove on her plate. Mine was filled with pancakes. Good for her; I'm glad she's getting her fill today. The other guildhall breakfasts were… pretty lacking. Oatmeal most times. Herbal oatmeal to help with magicka growth and stability… but it still tasted like garbage. And I've eaten garbage before, so I know the taste.

I turned back to Clemens and Crassi. "So… these classes…"

Crassi groaned, looking at me. "Vatu, I've already told you: you're just going to have to wait. You don't have an actual schedule yet. That piece of paper you're holding is your program list. It shows all the classes available this semester in our program, not the ones you're actually signed up for." I nodded. I knew that much, but… I still wanted to know what I could expect this year.

"Ok, so let's go with the basics. Our battlemage enchanting class? Our combat training?"

Crassi glanced over to Clemens. "You want to share your views on our classes?"

Clemens glanced back at me, his eyes hardening. "Sure, I see no reason not to. In the Enchanting class, be prepared to work with pure magicka, pulled straight from the body. Your magicka will be molded and weaved into your blade, taking the form of any enchantment your mind can possibly conceive. Expect some difficulties on that."

"I can already do that." I explained my situation at the other guildhalls and using magicka-weaving to help enchant weapons. It was around this time that Nisha made her way over to our table, her plate filled with so many sausages I half expected to see them fall off in some dramatic way, like stacked in a wobbly tower or something.

Clemens nodded. "Good, you'll have a head-start. Your professor will probably be using you for examples if that's the case. Our evening classes, if you can call them that, will range from physical fitness drills to combat drills. Not to mention working with enchanted weapons, armor, rings, and other improvised tech we can produce on the fly. Ever fly on a broom before?" I shook my head. Clemens smiled. "Well, the last Khajiit we had was chewed to near-death by slaughterfish." Blasphemy. Khajiits aren't eaten by slaughterfish… slaughterfish are eaten by Khajiits.

We continued to sit there talking about our programs until Adam walked into the room. I had a pretty good conversation with Clemens and Crassi during that time. Our conversation didn't end when Adam walked into the room, but it did end when he sat down next to Nisha and me.

"How are you two getting along here?" He looked at me and then at Nisha. He glanced over to Clemens and Crassi.

Nisha was too busy shoving her face with sausages to properly answer, but that didn't stop her from trying to. She mumbled out something, spitting out a sausage in the process. When Adam was satisfied with that, he turned to look at me. He held out a piece of paper, saying, "Ok, Vatu; you need to grab one of the old rusty daggers in the practice room for your Enchanting class. This rusty dagger will follow you all the way till the end of the course. We have hundreds that the battlemages bring us after every mission that they go on. The Battlemage Commander is going to send some scouts to watch over your progress in the Battlemage program that you're attending so keep your eyes open and do what they say." He looked over at Nisha and said, "Nisha, your Alchemy class requires that you bring your own mortar and pestle. I'm guessing you have one, right?"

Nisha nodded. "Yes, Mr. Ernard." She managed to say through her stuffed face.

"Call me Adam." He said with a chuckle.

"Ok…Adam." She was able to say as she swallowed her food. "I have my own mortar and pestle in my room."

Adam smiled. He said, "I am proud to be your guardian, guys. Enjoy class." He stood up and walked away. "I would stay, but I'm needed back in the Council chambers."

I looked over at the Dunmer to see that she was already gone. I looked around but I didn't see her. I looked around the cafeteria for her, but all I could see were Bretons, some Altmer, and Imperials. A couple Argonians, and one other Khajiit. I almost wanted to stand up and introduce myself to him, but he looked busy, writing something down on a piece of paper. He wore the robes of an instructor. I wonder if I'll have his class.

Crassi looked down at my paper. "Well, let's see what classes you actually have."

I looked my sheet of paper.

…

Vatu Raz'Akha

Race: Khajiit (15)

Level One Apprentice.

Program attendance: Battlemage Pre-Training Program

Class: Destruction Spells 101. Location: Mage Practice Room. Instructor: J'skar Raz'Akha.

Time: 0800-1100.

Lunch break: 1100-1130.

Class: Enchanting for Combat. Location: Chironasium. Instructor: Arielle Jurard. Time: 1145-1400.

Class: Restoration 101. Location: Praxographical Center. Instructor: Marie Palielle. Time: 1410-1700.

Class: Martial Defense. Location: Courtyard. Instructor: Arielle Jurard.

Time: 1800-2000.

…

Crassi whistled at my schedule. "Wow, not bad for a first semester. Getting a good start on the basics. Only one Destruction class though?"

I nodded. "I have to have it. I can't take the other ones until I pass this first class."

She face-palmed. "Oh yeah. I didn't need to take the class. I took the test and opted out of it." I didn't have that luxury. I only knew a few spells, and they were limited as it was. I needed this class to expand my abilities with elemental magicka. The past year was me getting my recommendations, not practicing and purchasing lessons. While that seemed to work for some mages, I didn't want to spend my whole life trying to get by with the meager training offered in Mages Guild guildhalls. I can't learn to be a Battlemage in a Guild Hall, unless I'm being apprenticed by an actual Battlemage; and I haven't met many just relaxing in a guildhall. No, I had to come here to learn the specialty class. And that meant… not spending what money I had for lessons, and focus on getting here instead.

Clemens smiled. "A simple class. You learn about the various methods of using Destruction to warp armor, melt weapons, and conjure the different combative elements of Fire, Frost, Shock, Water, Earth, and Air." Just those six? Weren't there more elements?

"What about Sand?"

Clemens waved it off. "Advanced Destruction. That's a combination of Air and Earth. You have to learn about fusing magicka, and that's an advanced skill."

Crassi smirked, leaning against the table, lazily gazing at Clemens. "I'm surprised we still consider melting weapons and corroding Armor a Destruction skillset. Alteration is pretty much the same thing."

Clemens nodded. "It could be seen as such, surely. It is altering the physical nature of something physical into a new thing. However, it is being done in a destructive manner. Once corroded, the armor cannot change back, as much Alteration would allow. A melted sword cannot be reformed… easily. And if it was, it would not be to the same standard as before." He shrugged. "It's a difficult thing to monitor… the classifications between the schools of magick. Surely combative Restoration could be seen as Destruction. Draining Touch could be a Destruction spell."

Nisha shook her head. "I don't think it could." She rubbed her chin in thought. "I mean… think about it. You're not Destroying something. You're draining energy, transferring it from one person to another. Severing life though… cutting it off from the source, destroying the energy without transferring it to another source…. That would be Destruction worthy." She nodded. "I'm almost sure of it."

Clemens smiled. "Well… Vatu's sister is pretty smart."

I wrapped my arm around her, hugging her close to me. "Yup." No matter what, I'm glad I have my sister here with me. I'm glad we're here. And she's showing me again and again just how lucky I am that I chose this path for us. We definitely belong here.

"Hey, everyone." Pra'ja said as she walked up to us. "Clemens, Crassi."

Crassi glanced up at Pra'ja, her eyes arching. "Oh… and you are?"

Pra'ja hissed a laugh out, sitting down. "Pra'ja… we've been in the same classes since last semester."

Crassi continued to gaze at her. "I'm sorry, I don't recognize you."

Pra'ja shrugged. "Well… I'm not surprised. I keep to myself." She started cutting into her pancakes. She glanced at me, nodding. "You should eat up; your food's getting cold."

I glanced down at my pancakes, seeing that she was right. They were getting cold.

"And class begins in an hour." She said, looking down at my schedule.

That's right! It does! And I still have to get my practice dagger! I started shoveling food into my face. I couldn't wait here any longer. No wonder why Nisha was stuffing her face so violently. I could barely keep my mouth empty as I ate as fast as I could.

"The manners on these Khajiits…" Clemens said with a shake of his head.

Crassi smirked. "Reminds me of home."

Pra'ja chuckled. "Yeah, me too."

"I swear you look familiar." Crassi said, glancing back at Pra'ja.

"I better. I sit in front of you."

That caused her eyebrows to shoot up. "But…" She got stuck in her comment, her face blushing over. "Ah. Now I remember you. Sorry about that."

She waved it off. "No problem. You won't be the first." She turned back to her food.

I wonder how fast I can brush through 20 pancakes. I hope in ten minutes. Should be doable. I think… Oh man… I hope I'm not late to my first class. This is not how I wanted to start my first day.

Cearbhail:

So, Vatu's got his schedule. Time for his first class.