Chương 5: Oathbound

I genuinely expected someone to have stepped up to the challenge almost immediately. Especially when considering what I could only assume was a generous compensation just for volunteering to be the first in line. So upon seeing absolutely no one stepping up to the plate, or even looking as if they were considering the offer, I knew then and there that something had definitely gone wrong.

There were two distinct groups of students now from what I could tell, those that seemed to be fiddling, palming, or grasping at whatever lay hidden underneath their cloaks, and those that sat with a genuine look of defeat in their eyes. Ilunor wasn't any of these however as the diminutive lizard seemed to have gone into a minor frenzy upon emptying the contents of his pockets onto the table.

From a pocket watch to cuff-links, and an assortment of other jewels and gems that looked as if he'd recently robbed a jewelry store, it was clear he was looking for something. Something that I assumed both Thacea and Thalmin both already possessed, given how they both were likewise placing their hands nervously on what seemed to be a necklace for the former, and a sheathed dagger for the latter.

It was clear that Ilunor wanted to broach a question to either Thacea or Thalmin, but couldn't, given how no one in the room dared to raise their voices, not even to whisper amongst themselves. I could see what little complexion he had on his scaled cheeks drain to a ghostly pale green. I could also see that he didn't seem to give in just yet, as he continued fumbling with pocket after pocket, all in an attempt to find whatever it was he was looking for…

The situation was beyond tense, so tense in fact that my hand had drifted purposefully towards my holstered sidearm, and my HUD was just about ready to enter tactical mode as the threat assessment training kicked in hard. Mal'tory's eyes throughout all of this remained steely and cold, shifting only after a good few minutes to the Dean as they exchanged a knowing glance. One that the blue robed Vanavan seemed to scowl at intently.

"Very well. I shall rescind the offer and begin calling out names in alphabetical-""Professor!" A voice emerged from one of the tables near the very front of the stage. There, a figure stood, draconic in appearance, somewhat resembling what I'd seen in artistic renditions of reptilian humanoid aliens from way back in the late 21st century. What many at the time ridiculed as being too 'Gorn-like', a dismissive slight that referenced the great works of old science fiction, Star Trek in this case.

Regardless, this wasn't the latex-masked or poorly rendered 3D models of some imaginary lizard… but the real deal. As a result, I could actually tell that his face exuded confidence. A cautionary confidence, but confidence all the same. Which was more than I could say for the rest of the students in the room.

"Lord Qiv of Baralon-realm. You may speak." Mal'tory's attentions were now squarely focused on this lone student, which seemed to give the rest of the students some breathing room.

"If I may be allowed to be so brazen, I wish to accept the offer. I will be the first of my year-group to partake in the scholarly rites." Qiv bowed immediately after giving his little speech, dipping his head low. A small smile crept across Mal'tory's face. Not a jovial or gleeful one, but a satisfied one. A smile you'd have at the start of a particularly satisfying performance review, a professional smile devoid of any personal or emotional investment.

"Very well Lord Qiv, please step forward." Mal'tory responded as the reptilian moved up towards the stage. His cape swishing to his right, revealing the rich tunic and robes he had underneath, and an amulet that he continued to palm even as he marched onto the stage.

The entire room looked on in utter dread as Mal'tory placed the leather-bound case upon the floor of the stage, unbinding it with just his piercing gaze alone, opening up to reveal an old hardcover book, a quill, and a small bottle of ink that glowed black. I tried adjusting my visual sensors, zooming closer into that vial of liquid that seemed to defy everything I understood about light. However as my eyes tried to fixate on the bottle of ink, the effect still remained the same.

It was black, dark, yet it glowed and emanated light far brighter than any candle or glowing crystal in this room.

"The Transgracian Academy for the Magical Arts acknowledges your presence, Lord Qiv Ratom of the Baralon-realm. What say you?"

"I, Lord Qiv Ratom of the Baralon-realm, recognize the enlightened and benevolent charity of the Transgracian Academy for allowing me and my line, tutelage and education within these hallowed halls." The reptilian responded, keeping his head low throughout the entire exchange.

"The Nexus and his Holy Majesty the King to which the Gods have bestowed the authority of sovereign, compels me as his divine agent, to grant you the rights to scholarship, under the ties that bind. Do you consent, Lord Qiv Ratom?"

"I do." It was at this point that Mal'tory knelt down to open the leatherbound book. As he did, I saw an impossible number of pages, far greater than what should've been possible in that relatively small space, flip through one another, melding together like a no-clip error from a video game. It took a good few minutes of silent page flipping, with hundreds upon hundreds of pages flipped per second, before it finally landed upon a new completely empty page; still miraculously in the middle of the book.

Mal'tory stood back up, gesturing for the reptilian to kneel, which he did so without question.

"Pick up the quill, and sign your name, Lord Qiv Ratom. After which, the rights to scholarship shall be yours, and the ties that bind shall be whole." Despite the confidence of the reptilian, his hand clearly shook as he grabbed that quill from its case. It looked as if it was heavier than it was supposed to be too, as he used both hands to carefully guide it into the ink, electrifying the air.

The radiation levels were still hovering at around 200% above background levels, something that the suit continued to remind me with its angry alerts that I had to push to the side to avoid it obstructing my close observation of the scene currently unfolding in front of me. There was some struggle as the reptilian carefully guided the pen from the ink bottle to the pages of the book, and despite it being practically coated in the stuff, none of the ink seemed to drip.

In fact, the entire quill was slowly being enveloped by the ink, stopping only at the tips of his clawed fingers as the jet-black substance seemed to ebb and flow like liquid mercury. With both hands, and a heavy breath, the reptilian finally put the quill to paper, both of his hands struggling to even move the deceptively heavy quill around, as it looked more like he was dragging it across the page, rather than writing on it.

Each stroke was deliberate, each movement seemed to cause the poor student to overexert himself as his muscles strained underneath his silken tunic. It took a solid minute, but as soon as he was done, so too did I get hit with a wave of radiation. CRITICAL ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 973% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS This time however it didn't dissipate. In fact, the radiation levels rose higher and higher still…

CRITICAL ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 1415% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS The entire room seemed to watch on in utter silence as Vanavan's face said it all: a look of utter dread. It had been a full five minutes of sitting and waiting… the radiation levels pushing the limits of my suit's passive shielding before it finally started to let up. As it dropped from 1415, back to 973, all the way down to the baseline 200% it'd been from the start.

Qiv was breathing heavily by this point, his whole body shook as he stared back up at Mal'tory, who only stared back at him with a neutral, almost casual disinterest. Without a second for Qiv to catch his breath, Mal'tory picked up the book, raising it high for the entire room to see. Qiv's name glowed with the same black radiance as the ink, with an admittedly more muted glow.

"Lord Qiv Ratom of the Baralon-realm, henceforth you shall be known as a peer of the Transgracian Academy. Welcome to our ranks, and may the divine guide your light." Mal'tory spoke, before leaning in to whisper something into the lizard's pin-like ear hole. Similar to the previous instances of whispering up on stage, my LRLD couldn't seem to pick up on anything. I assumed this was a result of the professors using some sort of acoustic bubble similar to what Ilunor had used prior.

"Lord Qiv Ratom, as the first of your class to volunteer for the ceremony, I deem it fit to grant you the rights to choose the next two of your peers-to-be." The black-robed professor continued, announcing this to the whole room who were once more put up on the chopping block. Without a second's hesitation the lizard shot his finger out to his first pick, a bear-like student who sat near the front of the stage.

"The Ursina." He stated plainly, before narrowing his eyes in my direction, pointing directly at me.

"And the Earthrealmer." I felt like I'd just been dealt a suckerpunch, as my heart skipped a beat. I didn't know what the fuck was going on, but all I knew was that being exposed to that much radiation was a danger, regardless of whether or not the suit could handle it. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

I was spared from being the immediate next up in line however as the bear-like creature stepped forward first, crossing paths with Qiv who walked back down to take his seat. It didn't make it any better though. I was always the type to hate being the middle or the last to be called up for anything. It always ended up being more stressful that way.

"Uven Kroven of Alaron-realm, the Transgracian Academy for the Magical Arts acknowledges your presence. What say you?" Mal'tory spoke in the same rehearsed fashion as before. Except this time it was clear he was settling more into his role, the satisfaction and flair from Qiv's ceremony was lost, now replaced with just plain and simple protocol.

"I, Uven Kroven of Alaron-realm, humbly submit to the benevolent and benign tutelage of the Transgracian Academy for the Magical Arts, the Nexus, and the Sovereign who reigns above us all." The bear bowed deeply, even deeper than Qiv but eliciting less of a reaction from anyone on stage.

"The Nexus and his Holy Majesty the King to which the Gods have bestowed the authority of sovereign, compels me as his divine agent, to grant you the rights to scholarship, under the ties that bind. Do you consent, Uven Kroven?" Mal'tory replied verbatim, all without a hint of boredom, but more so with an impartial neutrality throughout it all.

"Yes."

"Pick up the quill, and sign your name, Uven Kroven. After which, the rights to scholarship shall be yours, and the ties that bind shall be whole." The black-robed professor spoke once more without a single hitch or variance in his speech. It definitely was a ceremony. And it was clear the guy had experience with it. Maybe too much experience… Yet unlike Qiv's ceremony, things started to go south the moment the bear knelt down on both knees.

The quill seemed to be easier to pick up, the bear making no effort to show himself straining to lift the writing implement. The ink, whilst still glowing and spreading, didn't stop at the bear's hand… but instead, enveloped him entirely. His entire form turned into a silhouette of its former self, almost like I was staring at a shadow of the man that had gone on stage. A shadow that still glowed with that sickening aura, as the bear seemed to find no difficulty in completing the ceremony.

Unlike the strained movements, the fight just to reach the pages, and the deliberate strokes that Qiv had demonstrated just moments prior, the bear seemed to put pen to paper without much fuss or fanfare. In the span of a few seconds the signing was over. A spike of radiation quickly followed as I'd expected, but it wasn't anywhere near the levels of the previous ceremony.

CRITICAL ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 322% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS In fact, it shot down as quickly as it'd gone up, returning to the baseline 200%, followed by the inky blob of a bear returning to his former form. The ink seemingly being withdrawn back into the quill, and into the pages of the book itself. I looked around, desperate to see if anyone else was reacting to this with the same shock as I was.

All I saw however were faces of defeat and dejection, like everyone was expecting this. I couldn't stand it anymore, as I leaned over to Thacea, and whispered softly.

"What the hell's going on?" I managed out, to which the princess seemed hesitant to reply as Mal'tory lifted the pages of the book up in the air. Once again, there was a stark difference between Qiv's signature and Uven's as the latter's signature glowed brighter and with a menacing dance of colors.

"Emma, I am so sorry. If we had more time we could've helped prepare you for this." The princess whispered back, her voice drenched with guilt.

"Prepare me for what? What the hell is all of this?" I shot back quickly, as the bear was starting to get up to leave the stage.

"The binding ceremony. They bind your soul to the pages of the yearbook. Lord Qiv and some of us are able to counter it unlike Uven. This… this is how the Nexus used to do things. This is how the Nexus used to control the Adjacent realms. They take princes and nobles of adjacent realmers and-""Cadet Emma Booker of Earthrealm." Mal'tory's voice echoed menacingly throughout the dead silence of the room.

"If you would be so kind as to not hold up the rest of the year, your presence is requested. Now." I shuddered in place at that, a knot quickly formed in my gut as I struggled to get up. If it wasn't for the suit's exoskeleton, I don't even think I'd be able to get up from my seat. With a final look of utter desperation, the princess whispered to me, and forced out a smile.

"I pray that this suit of yours can dispel tier 19 spells, or perhaps somehow, is able to resist it." My steps once more reverberated throughout the room. Except this time it felt even louder given how the whole room was silent and still. Each clank was preceded by a small whirr of the motors that ran seamlessly underneath the suit, probably the first sounds of any technology more advanced than simple levers and pulleys that anyone here had heard.

It didn't take long before I arrived on stage, and at this point I felt my whole body shaking, ready to lose what little contents I had in my stomach. It felt weird to be up here, to be the center of attention in front of not only all the faculty and students, but Mal'tory and the Dean. Their eyes seemed to be fixated on me, on my suit, and on every movement I made as the suit's height meant that I was basically staring down at them.

"Cadet Emma Booker of Earthrealm, the Transgracian Academy for the Magical Arts acknowledges your presence. What say you?" Mal'tory once more spoke, he kept that same neutral tone as before, except this time I could detect just the slightest hint of a nervous inflexion. I didn't know what to say. It was clear everyone else had speeches lined up for this, and every single speech had that same overtone of subservience and submission.

It would be easy to just pull from what I'd heard, but that would be betraying literally everything I stood for when I put on the uniform. I was a cadet, a member of the United Nations armed forces first and foremost. I couldn't care less about whatever allegiances or politics this place had. This marked the first point in my entire life where my resolve would be tested, where I would prove that the vows spoken underneath the white and blue of the UN banner meant something more than just lip service.

Another thought quickly entered my head, causing me to shudder involuntarily. I knew that if push comes to shove I'd never submit. I knew that I'd rather die than submit to a foreign power. So as the de facto representative of humanity in this strange and alien place, I couldn't waver in my duties. I would never turn my back on my country.

"I, Emma Booker, am a Cadet of the United Nations' Armed Forces. Under the codes of conduct and articles of the United Nations' charter for uniformed services, I will never, under good conscience and a sound mind, surrender my loyalty to my nation, my people, and the country I serve. I will partake in your ceremony as a gesture of good will and as a demonstration of the benevolent intent of my people.

I will follow the rules and regulations of your academy so long as they do not conflict with the oath I have sworn to my country. I express my desires for tutelage and for scholarship here, if you would have me." I managed out without a single stutter, surprising even myself as I tried my best and tested the very limits of the IAS' classes on diplomatic dialogue.

"But do not mistake my cooperation for submission, for my loyalties lie with my nation, always and forever." Mal'tory, perhaps for the very first time, stared back at me with a look of surprise, if a single raised brow could be counted as surprise that is… The man turned back to the Dean, and once more spoke without even speaking. I saw his lips move, but I didn't hear anything. After a short discussion the black-robed professor turned towards me once more, and nodded.

"As your journey shall be a trial of your realm's resolve, and considering your lack of understanding of our ways and the Nexus' enlightened methods, I will allow this. Now, Emma Booker of Earthrealm, pick up the quill and sign your name. After which, the rights to scholarship shall be yours, and the ties that bind shall be whole." Mal'tory spoke, gesturing for me to kneel, which I had to do if I was to reach for the quill and the book.

My hand trembled as it reached for the quill, only stabilized by the suit's onboard systems. There weren't any warnings of radiation just yet, no localized spikes, even as I got closer and closer, until finally, I picked it up. CRITICAL ALERT: LOCALIZED SOURCE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED. CRITICAL ALERT: OBJECT WEIGHT EXCEEDING HUMAN BIOMECHANICAL STRENGTH THRESHOLD, ACTIVE ASSISTANCE MODE ENGAGED. OBJECT WEIGHT: 100 KILOGRAMS… RECALIBRATING… 120 KILOGRAMS… RECALIBRATING… 150 KILOGRAMS… RECALIBRATING… 200 KILOGRAMS.

Whatever the quill was, it seemed like it was acting up just as it had with Qiv. Unlike the reptilian however, I'd easily picked it up with one hand, acting as if nothing was amiss. This shocked the entire crowd, in fact, this was the first time I'd heard a few gasps. I looked around to see the shocked expression of Vanavan, and the confused expression of the Dean.

I continued despite this, dipping the quill into the ink only to see it doing the exact same thing it had done with Qiv, as it reached my hand, and stopped. It refused to envelope me further, as it had done with the bear-like student before me. It was at this point that I heard whispers and murmurs from the crowd, and a growing look of concern from most of the faculty, as I pressed on.

Moving the pen over to the book, I began signing in earnest, finding that the suit's active assistance systems basically nullified any weight added on by what I assumed was magic. This made it so that signing my signature was trivial, despite the thing now weighing close to a quarter of a ton. However, as I reached the end of my signature, the thing stopped, refusing to budge as I found that the thing was stuck onto the pages of the book.

CRITICAL ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 322% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS… 522%... 923%... 1225%... 1925%... The number remained just shy of 2000, before finally, it crashed, going all the way back down to the 200% before I was finally able to remove the quill. I looked back to the crowd, who all stared back at me in utter confusion. Indeed, there was confusion all around as I felt no different than before.

It was only when I saw the book did I realize why Mal'tory and the rest of the staff had been peering over each other's shoulders to see the end result. My name was signed, but without even the slightest hint of a glowing aura. Not even Qiv's muted one. The Dean stepped forward for the first time throughout all of this, as he turned to Mal'tory, speaking to him softly, and then promptly went back in line.

"Cadet Emma of Earthrealm." Mal'tory began, refusing to lift the book for the crowd as he'd done with the previous two.

"Henceforth you shall be known as a peer of the Transgracian Academy. Welcome to our ranks, and may the divine guide your light." He concluded without much fanfare as I walked off stage, and back to my table who stared at me in utter awe, except for Thacea who smiled at me in genuine relief.