Chương 1: Failed Mystic Sidor Sokolov

Sid wanted nothing more than for the pompous headmaster sitting before him to burst into holy flames. Hell, he'd have taken flames straight from a demon if they were offering. St. Jane's Rosacean School for Boys treated its students like prisoners. Ten years of back lashings and pointless electroconvulsive therapy had done a number on whatever devotion to the Holy Rose he may have held. The good news was that it would all be over soon. So long as this meeting went well.

Initially, Sid had few worries about failing to graduate, but when he saw the drab concrete walls and floor of the meeting room, he felt like he was walking into one of the school's penance chambers. The air conditioning was conveniently out of service, and he felt like he was prostrating himself to the headmaster from a tiny stool on the floor. The oak dais above naturally drew his attention as the only speck of color in the room. The headmaster smiled and opened a binder on the dais.

"Sidor Sokolov, all grown up today. Truthfully, none of us thought you would make it this far. You had quite a bit of trouble adjusting at first." Sid neatly folded his hands together.

"The Rose gave me the strength to keep fighting, and all of you helped bring me to her light. I'm truly grateful for everything you've done for me." They hadn't done a goddamn thing. When Sid arrived at St. Jane's, he thought he would be learning magic. Healing spells, at the very least. Yet, while his classmates spoke of spiritual awakenings and unlocking their inner potential, the shocks to Sid's brain had done absolutely nothing. Well, they had given him miniature seizures, but not much else.

His failure in the technical skills of magic was abysmal, but he was confident that his pristine academic and social record would carry him to graduation. If they couldn't, he had a backup plan: a small bottle of super glue tucked away in his sleeve.

"Of course. No young man deserves to end up in a witch's clutches no matter his sins." The headmaster looked down at the binder in his hands.

"You confessed your desires to defect to a coven quite early in your treatment. We believe your healing stayed on track from that point, and that you no longer pose a danger to yourself." A bead of sweat fell down Sid's forehead as he released a breath. The room was too damn hot.

"Wonderful. Truly wonderful news!" He stopped. He couldn't act too excited.

"Though I am excited to share the Rose's light, I will miss every single teacher that dedicated their time to my education." The headmaster's smile faded. Why was it fading? Was he actually going to miss Sid? No, there was no way he cared. Sid felt his leg bouncing. His heart rate remained steady despite knowing that bad news was coming.

"Sidor, I know you've been working hard, and we appreciate your efforts, but –""I know I haven't learned any spells. I can't help heal our soldiers in battle, but I know my words can still make a difference." The frustration pulsing through his veins seeped into his voice.

"The Rose challenges all of us in unexpected ways; this must be mine!" And there went his holy aura of peace and calm. A hysterical man was no spiritual guide. He had no business walking the Earth with the mystic name. Surely, if they weren't going to graduate him from the program, he would just be cut loose as an average citizen, right? As of today, he was eighteen. Keeping him on the island would be kidnapping! The headmaster closed the binder, sending a gust of air towards Sid's stuffy tunic.

Sid hated how sweaty he was beneath it. He never scared easily, but the heat of the room sure made it look like he was having a heart attack.

"A mystic's primary purpose is to heal. To soothe. To guide. We don't accept two out of three, and we don't throw failures out on the street." His eyes widened.

"You're keeping me here?"

"Yes, dear. We made a vow to teach you. Since the electric shocks haven't been working in their current form, we'll just have to go deeper."

"Deeper?"

"Your brain tissue will be exposed and shocked directly." Seriously? A lobotomy for his birthday? He was well acquainted with the shock rooms by that point. They weren't sterile enough for regular surgery, let alone brain surgery. They weren't just keeping him prisoner. They were going to kill him. It wouldn't be a quick death, either. Some nasty brain infection would take him out days after the fact. Then the perfect headmaster's failure would be buried and hidden away from the rest of the world.

No way Sid would let that happen. He slowly reached into his sleeve and grasped the bottle of super glue.

"Wait…It's not a proper spell, but I have figured out how to tap into my life-blood energy. I just need a needle, then I can demonstrate it for you." The headmaster raised an eyebrow.

"I suppose showing any proficiency with healing magic would warrant further review..." That was enough for Sid. Any extra time he could buy himself meant escape was still possible. The headmaster took a small sewing kit out of his pocket and held the needle out for Sid to take. He walked up the stairs and grabbed it before moving back a few steps. His magic trick would need a bit of distance to be convincing.

Good thing the headmaster was nearsighted, and Sid had bribed a fellow student to "accidentally" break his glasses yesterday. The only problem was that St. Jane's didn't carry the right adhesive for the trick. Super glue was risky, but it was all he had. Under his thick sleeve, Sid smeared a line of super glue across his forearm. He laid the needle flat over it, then pinched the skin up around it and held it there until the glue dried.

With both ends of the needle sticking out, it looked like he'd shoved the thing straight through his arm.

"Ow! Okay, now I'll show you the needle running through my skin and heal the puncture wounds." He slid the needle back and forth through the fold a few times, grimacing and trembling as part of his bit. A small stinging sensation gnawed at the back of his mind. Super glue released heat when it dried, but it shouldn't have hurt that much. Not unless the needle had something flammable on it that reacted with the glue. Like a microscopic piece of thread…

The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. He separated the glued skin and saw a hint of red where the needle just was. The pain wasn't too bad yet, so Sid took a deep breath and whispered a prayer while holding the same spot.

"And with the Rose as my guide and healer, the wound is sealed." He held his arm up for the headmaster to see. It was clear except for a little bit of sweat clinging to his skin. The man nodded and jotted a few notes down.

"I see…you're certainly not battle ready, but I think we can hold off any final decisions until we investigate this more."

"Thank you. I promise I'll make the Rose proud." Sid smiled, but he could feel the burn wound getting worse. He was starting to sweat through his habit. One eye was twitching. The headmaster stepped down from his platform and took a closer look.

"Sidor, are you alright?" Sid tried to hide the wound under his sleeve.

"Yes. Just a bit of post-healing pain."

"I see…let me take a look." The headmaster seized Sid's arm as he tried to back away. The blistering wound forming was much more noticeable now.

"Post-healing pain? This looks more like a backfired spell. Perhaps you aren't ready for the mainland after all…" Sid really wasn't interested in dying that day, so he bolted for the door. The headmaster didn't move as Sid grasped the handle and pulled. When he stepped out, a hand grabbed one of his arms. The headmaster had guards waiting outside the whole time. In that moment, he thought about the only useful topic he ever learned: anatomy.

He turned towards his attacker and swung his knuckle into the back of her elbow with all of his might, striking her ulnar nerve. She reflexively let go for a second, giving Sid a few more seconds of freedom before another guard blocked his path. As she grappled him, he heard a familiar voice in his ear. Nice hit! I'm glad you remembered something I taught you. +1 [Mobility] and [Brawn].

"What? What was-" The guard tackled him to the ground before he could finish his thought. Sid thrashed his arms and legs with a little more strength than he thought he had, hoping one lucky hit would get them to drop him again. Had his brain been better at handling situations like this, he would've felt the fire of panic lit beneath his feet and the burst of energy that followed. That would've made his thrashing at least marginally more efficient, along with whatever force had just whispered power into his ear.

Since his body wasn't much help at the moment, he used his words, the one weapon he could always count on.

"Scared I'll tell the world about your failure? How the great headmaster of St. Jane's couldn't fix one broken boy." The headmaster scoffed.

"Sidor, I don't know what you are trying to suggest!"

"Last week I saw maggots eating a dead rat in the corner of the shock room. You really think a lobotomy in those conditions won't kill me?"

"Oh, Sidor, don't be dramatic. It's not a lobotomy!" He laughed and leaned down so he was speaking directly into Sid's face. His lips twisted in a cruel smile.

"A traditional lobotomy doesn't pose much of an infection risk. This is a craniotomy. It's a much more… exposed procedure. I assure you that other institutions have used this procedure for difficult cases like yours. They have a modest success rate, and we've been licensed to perform the procedure ourselves." Sid clenched his fists. This asshole knew exactly what he was doing, and he had the nerve to say it to Sid's face.

He wanted to keep struggling against the guards' grip, but it would only deplete crucial infection-fighting energy. Not like it would make much of a difference in the end, but he was willing to bet his immune system was stronger than his puny, adrenaline-less muscles. As the headmaster opened the door to the shock room, a foul smell emerged. The custodians must not have cleaned the room that week. Perfect. Sid felt a searing pain in his throat as he swallowed. He was thoroughly fucked.

The lack of panic rushing through him meant he would be lucid up until the first cut into his scalp allowed visceral pain to take over his senses. Then he'd finally get that adrenaline rush he'd needed just moments earlier, but it would be far too late. Lucidity meant he had the opportunity to think about what happened after death. He'd probably be going to hell. He had lived most of his short life as a liar. He'd feigned devotion to the Rose like his life depended on it, and apparently, it did.

His mother chose this school for a reason, and Sid was a fool for thinking he'd ever leave with his life. Hell wouldn't have been such an awful fate if he hadn't known that his mother would one day end up there with him. Hehehe! Sid's entire body tensed up. Was that whisper from before not just a stress hallucination? That giggle sounded like it was coming from every direction at once. He looked at the two guards holding him, but both were looking straight ahead with a blank expression.

That was definitely a woman's laugh, not one coming from the headmaster. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to hold on to sanity, but then another laugh blasted directly into his ear. Ahahaha! Speak of the devil. He finally recognized that giggle. His mother, here to kick him while he was down. How fitting. She probably just wanted to watch him suffer before he died. Ha… Ha… Ha-Happy. Sid opened his eyes to find a blue screen glitching in front of him. The same words being spoken aloud were transcribed on it.

The strange sight brought the burn of bile to the back of his throat. It faded in and out, and every time it came back, a new fragment of a word appeared on it, accompanied by his mother's voice. Every word she spoke threatened to turn Sid's stomach inside out. He had no idea what the screen before him actually was, but he knew it had something to do with his mother, which meant he hated it with every inch of his being. Ha-Happy Birthday S-si.

The screen started to expand until it encompassed his entire visual field. It continued to flash in and out of existence, leaving a black void in its place when it disappeared. Sid felt the room spinning despite seeing only fixed screens of black and blue. The guards' hold was the only thing keeping him from falling down. Happy Birthday! His arms dropped to his sides as the tugging on his body stopped. His palms hit the floor as his knees gave out. The faint sound of screams surrounded him.

His hands started running over his face in search of something covering his eyes, but all he could feel was the fuzz of his sparse facial hair standing up. A small shock brushed the tips of his fingers. The electrical energy around him was probably being manipulated. Every time he tried to stand up, a painful shock forced him back down. He had no idea where he was at that point. He couldn't be sure he was still in the same building.

The headmaster and guards were still screaming, so that was probably a good indication that he hadn't gone far. He moved one hand forward and started to crawl towards the screams. He just needed something to ground him in reality. Every pull forward made his arms and legs ache. He dropped to the floor and let his face slam into it. Nothing around him made any sense, and the world seemed destined to keep it that way. He considered purposely standing in the electric field until he either died or returned to reality.

The screams eventually started to dull into gurgly whimpers. The blue screen reappeared one last time with no glitchy effects. Happy birthday, Sidor. What, did you think I forgot? Never. Now that you're all grown up, it's time to come home. I have a unique role waiting for you! Don't worry about how you're going to escape, I've sent you a getaway ride. [Game Invitation Granted to Sidor Sokolov]