A rude awakening
The light slowly crawled into the room from under the curtains. It slowly crept over the windowsill, over the carpet and finally reached the sleeping figure in the bed. Telen turned in his sleep and started murmuring. He had that dream again, the same dream he had for months now. There was a land, green and flowers. In all the colours one could imagine, blue, red, purple, yellow, green, brown, gold and sliver. But there weren't just flowers, but trees, rivers, birds and animals. The world looked like there never had been such things as elves, humans, orcs or any civilised race. The concert of birds was so beautiful and melodious you could have sat there and never wanted to stop listening. The trees spoke in their own language to each other, talking, laughing and joking. And then there was she again. That green hooded figure with a reptilian like face and constantly closed eyelids started gliding towards him again. Or maybe was she pulling him? Telen felt that she could see him; looking at him and reading him. She opened her mouth as if to start speaking……
BANG!
Telen's door flew open and his best friend Celia stormed into the room. "Wake up, you lazy toad! It's a wonderful morning, I told you, you shouldn't study all night." She said in a loud booming voice. Celia stood her arms crossed and lips pressed together. There was a muffled voice from under the covers "What's the time?" "Well sleepy head it's ten to six" she said with a little grin on her face. "ARE YOU CRAZY?! Today I have my last exam, which is the Arch Magarius test, and you wake me up this early in the morning? ARE YOU MENTAL!?" he yelled at her.
Celia's smile faded a little but almost immediately came back Telen started smiling too. She was pretty. Her hair was black and had dark blue streaks in it. She had rosy lips and a warm smile. Her eyes were jade green and resembled the forest, or when she was angry the ocean just after a storm. She wore blue, black and red robes. The colours for a high arch mage. She whipped her hair around and said in a sarcasm dripping and fake worrying voice: Well I'm not sure if you are that good you know. Someone who's passed their Arch's in Herbology, Arcane arts, Elemental magic, fire, ice, water, air, earth, death, mysteries, Runes, elfish, dwarfish, orcish, dragonish, animalia, plantae, dark arts, light arts, defence against dark and light arts, arcane resistance, arch mage, high arch mage and high battle arch mage. I'm not quite sure if that's going to be enough to be able to pass the Magaria exam. I wouldn't even bother to try and…" she couldn't even finish her long speech because Telen had chucked a huge encyclopaedia after her. She dived out the doorframe and laughed all the way down the corridor.
Telen sighed and started to put his clothes on. He walked over to the washing basin and plunged his face into the cold water, Telen had always liked cold water. After washing he looked into the mirror. Two azure blue eyes looked back at him. If Celia's eyes were amazing then Telen's must have been even more impressing. His eyes were as blue and as warm as the ocean but when he was angry they turned icy cold and whenever it was dark his eyes seemed to gleam in the dark in a blue silvery colour. His hair fell in long blonde cascades over his back. He was rather unusual in the elven community. Telen was part high elf and part night elf. This meant that Telen felt comfortable in the dark and the light, because night elves didn't like the sunlight too much and High elves would prefer to sleep at nighttime. This meant that Telen wouldn't need sleep as much as everyone else. Although Telen loved Magic and all the things about it and that was why he studied here at the academy but he also loved nature. Nature was the one thing Telen valued next to family friends, love and magic. Nature had always been Telen's best friend. So instead of just studying magic he also learned the ways of the shamans and Druids, understanding nature and how it ca help you. He sighed again, glanced around the room one more time.
Once he reached the door he waved his hand and the book flew into its rightful place and the bed made it. He was too nervous to eat so he left for the woods just outside the city where the hidden path of Magarius was located. Telen walked passed the corridors and out the academy and took off on the road to the woods outside the village. This early in the morning there was no one out on the streets so Telen had no trouble in getting to the outside of the village. He walked to the woods and started walking on a side path that was overgrown with plants and ivy. Will you please make way for me, as I do not which to hurt you.
The ivy shivered and slowly started to wind downwards and make the way free.
He continued walking on the path and went deeper and deeper into the woods until he ended up in one of the deepest parts of the forest. There were no birds chirping and there wasn't any rustling noise from little animals in the Underwood. It was so quite here. There was a giant gate with runes so old that not even Telen could translate them. All Telen knew was that there was a warning not to enter the test if you are not inclined to finish it. To the right were more runes and pictures engraved into the stonewalls. There were pictures of an icy blue dragon and a man in light icy blue robes. "It has to be a tale of the first Magarius mage who lived really long ago and talked to dragons or something." Telen said quietly. There was a sudden muffled noise and the crack of a branch. Telen turned around and saw 33 figures approaching. The other students. Not all of these students were going to pass this exam. The Magarius circle was very picky on who they picked to become one of their own. Except for one student who would have to pass, the girl with the wavy black hair, a terrible arrogant pale face and who's father was an incredibly rich Lord. Felicity Danton bought her way into the school. She was one of the rare cases were she was rich but didn't have much magical talent. She had bought her way through the courses before Professor Sethash became principal. Telen and Felicity had always hated each other. Although her magical senses were quite developed she struggled with easy battle spells. The only thing she could was a strong illusion spell but other then that maybe a perfect hair spell.
She strode next to Professor Sethash who made a sour grimace. He was angry with Professor Blinton to just except her bribe on buying her way through everything. Before Blinton had left he told Sethash that he couldn't let her fail or all the gold will be lost. Sethash disliked Felicity for being such a brat and he was disappointed at Blinton that he didn't tell him the truth that all the gold will be lost for him not the school.
Professor Sethash was the best friend of Professor Zyron. Both of them where Telen's favourite teachers. Sethash was a middle-aged man with dark hair and dark tanned skin. He was very muscular build for even battle mages and Magarius mages. Rumours said that Sethash and Zyron were something more then just human or elf. Even Telen had felt that ancient power that came up ever so slightly when the Professors wove powerful spells. He was wearing a black robe with dark purple streaks running through them and ancient symbols sewn into it that shone in lights purple colour. "My students; today is the day will prove how strong and clever you are." His booming voice echoed across the silent woods. He looked at each student seriously "Some of you won't make it, but I want you to know that when you are in trouble don't try and teleport out. Instead shoot an arcane projectile into the air and we will get you out of the test. Even if you fail this test you still have the chance to try next year and you will keep the title of High Battle Arch mage. Any questions?"
Telen's hand rose. "Yes Telen" "Well Sir, we're around 32 people, how are we going to do our test today?" Professor Sethash's mouth twitched in a slight smile then he said: " The time on the path of Magarius runs different to the time out here and to answer your next question you will go in groups depending on the score you received from the application test at the start of the year and then you will each take a different path. They are all the same just in different order. There is a sleeping room before the second last challenge so that you can rest before the second last challenge. We'll now proceed I'll read the names of the seven first students to enter." He pulled out a long scroll from his robes. " The first Students to enter are as followed: Telen Sunstrider, Viola Woodstrider, Deryl Strantin, Tamara Leaveblade, Kazhan Nightshade, Felicity Danton, Isara Nixon. Please step forward" The small crowd of students stepped forward and anxiously waited in front of the giant stone gate. Professor Sethash held up his palm towards the gate and started murmuring incantations, lifting of the protective charms that kept unaware travellers away from the test as it was dangerous. The runes slowly started glowing and then suddenly the blue light was so intense that some students covered their eyes. The gate bit by bit open and then flew open with a loud creak. "My students, the test will begin now. Good Luck to all of you." Anxiously the small group of students headed for the dark and empty path.