Nero's eyes opened to an unfamiliar room. He was staring at a ceiling that wasn't his, and slowly turned his head to take a better look around.
Next to him, an unfamiliar face was sleeping on a small bed, and on the other side of the room was another single bed, but it was empty. Still in bed, the events in the maze came back to him, and this time he jumped down from the bed, fully alert with both hands stretched out.
The last thing he recalled was standing behind the orange door. What happened after that?
What happened to Rowan?
He barged out of the room, slamming the door behind him when he paused to take a good look at his surroundings. He was standing on the third floor of a large building that stretched up to five floors, and doors and windows came after each other.
Was this...a Dorm?
Nero reached up and fiddled a bit with the metal bar around his neck. Actually, it felt more like a prison.
Walking back to his room, he glanced to see that the other guy had awakened. They both had grim expressions, and no words were shared.
Nero sat back on his bed, leaning against the wall. He hadn't thought about this until now, but what was happening to him on his Earth right now? Was he still fast asleep? Has Nelson been trying to wake him up? Was he dead?
What if time moved differently between Earth and ruined earth? He needed to get back as soon as possible, hence he was eager to know what mission he had to accomplish to go back, and of course, the soul reaper didn't say anything about it.
Suddenly, a loud voice blared across the whole dorm. It sounded shaky and amplified, clearly coming from a speaker, "Good morning, Newly admitted Ascendants and occupants of the Novice Quarters. Lying on one end of your individual beds are your uniforms, and you're expected to look like one of us as you join us at the assembly ground for more clarification. A Teacher will be there in an hour to get everyone,"
Then, everywhere was silent again.
Nero glanced at the folded silver wear to his right, including a shirt and trousers. They were made of advanced power conductive fabrics, and Nero pulled out his ID and shoved it into the uniform's pants.
An hour later, everyone had changed and were standing outside their door. The uniforms made them all look the same, the only difference was the armband attached to the uniforms, which was divided into three colours: Red, Yellow and deep Silver.
Nero had a Red around his arm, while his roommate had yellow.
A short older woman walked into the dorm, and soon enough, everyone was walking right behind her. The boys were in a single file, and the girls were also in a single file.
Nero had caught sight of a figure that resembled Rowan, but there was currently so much distance between them for him to be sure.
As they moved to the assembly ground, Nero gasped at the infrastructure of the school. Most of the buildings were large and high, built with some kind of dark, durable material that had begun to weather, hinting at centuries of history.
It had soaring towers that pierced through the clouds, and Intricate carvings depicting some kind of creatures he had never seen before, and important events.
As he stared further ahead, he noticed a large fence surrounding the school. It had to be at least forty meters long, and appeared insanely thick.
They got to a building, and everything was packed into the hall. There were already two queues of other students, but the colour of their uniforms was different. The first line was dressed in brown, while the second was dressed in Black. The only similarities were the designs and the different colour bands.
"Are you Silver Blade?" A tall man stepped up to him. He had a brutal-looking expression on his face, and all his muscles were tensed. Nero got the feeling that was the way his face was. Plus, there was a large scar running vertically from one side of his face, across his forehead to the next.
"Yes," Nero replied, glancing down to catch an unsheathed sword strapped around the man's waist.
"Come with me," He instructed and walked away. Nero glanced around to see if anyone had witnessed that, and a few students around gave him grave, concerned looks before he left with the scarred man.
As he walked behind the man, he overheard some students behind him whispering, "You think that one already got himself in trouble?"
"Which one?"
"That one! The one walking behind Professor Zyborg with white hair,"
"Probably gonna be the first year to die this time. You know a lot of them always die..., "
The voices faded away as he stepped out of the hall, and he was led to another building. Zyborg knocked on a large, brown door, and a voice from inside asked him to come in.
Behind Zyborg, Nero anxiously followed into the room.
It was an office, and there were three teachers already inside. A woman with round glasses and fair looks sat behind the desk in the office, looking like the head of the room.
The others, also possessing their individual looks that made them stand out,, had their eyes on him.
"Silver Blade," The woman asked.
"Yes, Ma'am,"
"Step forward," She said.
He took two steps closer to her, and everything that happened next was too fast for his naked eyes to catch. Something swung through the air, and his breath caught as the woman whom he had assumed to be seated a moment ago now stood on both feet.
Next to her was Zyborg, with a sword out that was just less an an inch away from Nero's forehead. She had actually gripped his arm, stopping him from slicing off a good part of Nero's head.
"What are you doing, Professor?!" She yelled angrily.
"I can't be the only one who sees the shadow that follows him everywhere," His eyes darkened.
"He's from the Blade Family. They deal with these kinds of Demons all the time," She replied.
Zyborg didn't seem to settle, "I won't kill him, but I'll keep the blade here just in case,"
The woman sighed, then took back her seat. A sweat rolled down Nero's temple, but he kept a still expression on his face. His heart was beating fast, in anticipation of why he had been called to what could be the Principal's office.
Did they notice something off about him? Who was he kidding...who wouldn't?
Then, he heard its cold voice in his head again, ' Listen, Nero. They picked up my presence quicker than I expected, and now they're going to demand answers from you. Tell them you have a dual quirk, fire power and I, a shadow that protects you, given to you as a last keep before your mother passed away. If they ask any questions out of what you know to answer, I'll tell you what to say '
"Silver," The Principal clasped both hands on the table, her eyes hard, "We have some questions for you, and for your own sake, I advise you answer them correctly. Professor Wrya here," The Principal motioned at a dark skinned woman seated comfortably on the couch with a soft smile on her face, "Can detect any kind of lie in a breath,"
Nero's anxiety only grew.
"Now, Mr. Blade, tell us why you missed the first assessment,"
"I didn't miss the first accessment. I just don't have any sense of presence. My aura points are Zero," He repeated what the repeat had whispered to him. As he said it, he felt the presence in his mind gripping him in a quite uncomfortable manner, especially his thrumming heart, as if to control it.
"And The Shadow?"
"It's a Quirk passed onto me by my mother, as a form of protection,"
"So now, you're a Dual Quirk user. Am I correct?"
"Yes,"
"Why didn't you say anything during the first accessment?"
"It was supposed to be a top secret, but I guess the Blade family underestimated this school,"
"What if that Shadow proves to be dangerous?"
"I'm a Blade. I'm in full control of everything the shadow does, and I can assure you that it will not be a problem for this school. That is, unless someone tries to harm me," As Nero repeated the words, he groaned internally. Why was the damn reaper making him make promises he couldn't keep?
Full control? Ha! What a joke.
"Why didn't it move when Professor Zyborg tried to kill you, then?" She asked.
"Because he never intended to hurt me. Yes, maybe a little cut on the forehead, but that would be all. There was speed in his movements, but there was also exceptional control. I believe he was only trying to scare it out of me,"
The principal leaned back, "The Blade Clan...," She murmured, "You seem sharper than you appear,"
Nero didn't say anything.
"Since we didn't access your grade before, we would like to do it now,"
"Alright, Ma'am,"
Another teacher with an insane amount of freckles on his face stood up and approached Nero. He placed his palm on Nero's forehead as Zyborg withdrew his sword and closed his eyes.
A weird sensation washed over him, and then it was over.
The teacher's brow furrowed, making his freckles gather more around his eyes, then he faced the Principal, "Grade...Invalid,"