Magiana Imperial Academy - Volume 1: Path to Greatness
Chapter 10: December: The Week of Life

Phillip awoke on Sunday morning and when he moved to get up, his foot hit something. He turned on his bedside lamp and looked down. There were a small pile of presents at the foot of his bed. He was reminded that it was the first day of the Week of Life. A smile creeped across his face. His parents only gave him a present a day, but there were nine there. He picked them up to see who sent them: his parents, Eli, Miles, Lloyd, Dominique, Trevor, Kylie, Luna and Victoria of all people.

He began opening them, yet to draw back the black curtains that surrounded his bed. His parents had sent him a golden watch, with both a digital display and hands. He had seen it once and mentioned how he thought it looked nice, but never thought they’d get it for him.

Good morning, son! We hope that you have a good Sunday; after all, a good start to the Week of Life is sure to mean a good week throughout. You’ve been writing like you said, but I wish you’d do it more frequently. Either way, it’s nice to know that you’re getting along just fine. Six more months until we can see each other again. I’ll be counting the days; Jon and Hannah miss you, so I’m sure they will too.

Until next time,

Mother

Eli had sent him a gift completely separate from their parents. Phillip frowned when he saw it; it was a book titled 101 Ways to Get the Girl of your Dreams to be Yours. It also had a letter with it.

Happy Sunday, brother. I know what you’re thinking: “Luna and I are engaged, I’m just fine,” et cetera and et cetera. But you mentioned in your first letter that she was in House Lychester while you were in Sloane. You might need some help getting close to her again since she’s spending so much time with other guys. Or if she does have her eyes on someone else, you can use the book to replace yourself a new girl. It’s up to you. Anyway, I’ll see you in six months. Be prepared for me to ask a ton of questions; I want to get a feeling about what my first year is going to be like.

Love,

Eli

With a chuckle, Phillip tucked his brother’s letter in the book and threw it on his nightstand. He had no intention of using any advice that was in it, but it could make an interesting read.

Miles didn’t bother with a letter, which made sense, with him only being a few feet away. He had gotten Phillip a book titled Magi Marauders World Cups. Underneath the title it read, “For new fans and MM Nuts”. Miles made it known that he was a big fan of Magi Marauders ever since the first time they played it in October. Phillip grew to enjoy the sport as well quite a bit, but didn’t know much about it. He’d be reading it as well, but not ironically.

Trevor’s present also lacked a note. His present was by far the largest. It was a large tome title The Ultimate Magic Encyclopedia: All the info you’d need on the Five Branches of Magic. Flipping through it, Phillip saw that it was indeed full of all sorts of information. One page, there’s something on Healing Magic, and on another a Ritual Magic spell on how to revive small animals. In the corner of the page there were five stars. A smaller asterisk was nearby, and the footnote referred to that at the spell’s difficulty level.

Lloyd’s present was an assortment of candy that was carefully placed into a beautifully crafted wooden box. There was a note lying on top of the candy.

Hey there, Phil. I know that I don’t see you all that often, but since we’re roommates and all, we’ll end up spending a lot of time together. Here’s to becoming friends during our time here, man. About the candy, it might be lame compared to some of the other things you might get, but what’s a better failsafe than candy? Anyway, I’ll see you next week.

Yours Truly,

Lloyd

Putting the candy aside to eat later in the day, Phillip picked up Kylie’s gift. It was the smallest of them. Inside was a small, handmade doll that wore their uniform. It was smiling up at Phillip. He laid it down next to him and began reading the note that came with it.

Hi, there, Phillip, it’s me, Kylie. I’m sorry for being all jumpy. It’s just… having the prince of all people here is really exciting and I don’t know how to handle it. I’ll try to stop looking at you different, I swear. Anyway, I made a little doll for you; I hope you like it. There a little string so you can tie it to your bag if you want. If you don’t, I’ll understand, though… Um, I’ll be seeing you next week, Phillip. Enjoy yourself at school.

Sincerely,

Kylie

Phillip took a moment to tie the doll to his bag. When he saw it, he smiled to himself. It was actually very cute there. The next present that Phillip picked up was Dominique’s. It was the fourth book he received, and the second one related to Magi Marauders. It was called Magi Marauders: A History of a Sport. Poking out of the book was a letter.

Hey there, Phillip. We’re in the same gym class, potions class, and house; we’ll be seeing a lot of each other over the next seven years. If that’s the case, we can’t exactly be strangers. I’d like to extend a hand in friendship, and since you seem to like Magi Marauders (you enjoy it in gym, anyway) I thought I’d get you a book about it. Enjoy your week on the empty campus.

Sincerely,

Dominique

P.S Francisca says hi.

He snickered at the postscript and tucked the note in the book before putting it with the other three. It was another he was sure to read. There were only two more to open. Which should he leave for last; his fiancee’s, or the one he got from the girl who seems to be holding a grudge? After a few minutes of hard thought, he finally picked up Luna’s gift. Opening it, he saw a small ring, a silver one with white etching and a green gem. Like all of the others, there was a note with it, written in Luna’s beautiful flowing handwriting.

Good morning, Phillip, I’m sorry that I can’t be there with you; mother really wanted me home for the holidays. I’ll make it up to you before the end of the year. You can look forward to Regi not being at school, since his little sister wanted him home. She’ll be starting at M.I.A next year, just like Eli. Hopefully they’ll get along better than the two of you. I hope you like the ring I got you. You might think it a bit unnecessary because you already have your engagement ring, but I thought it looked nice. I’ll see you soon.

Love,

Luna

With a smile on his face, Phillip put the ring on his left middle finger. He thought that it looked nice next to his engagement ring. He looked down at the final present he needed to open. What would Victoria of all people be doing giving him a present? He picked it up. It was the most beautifully wrapped of the gifts, with a big red bow on it. Undoing the bow, he tore off the wrapping paper. Inside of the white box that was covered in the wrapping paper was a small notebook. A note was lying on top of it.

Dear Phillip,

I know that I’ve been rather unfair to you as of late. I hope you understand; not many people like being called know-it-alls. I must admit that I was wrong for acting like this for over a month. I hope you can forgive me. But I’ll have you know that I have no intentions of changing my ways. If you replace me annoying, you’ll have to deal with it. I’ve given you a homework planner. You might replace it pointless, but it’s never a bad idea to keep track of the things you need to do for school. I’ll be seeing you in a week. Don’t destroy the school.

Sincerely,

Victoria

The letter actually brought a smile to Phillip’s face. It made him happy to know that Victoria apologized, even if it did take a month. He picked up the planner and looked at it. He was yet to forget doing homework, but there was sure to be a day when it would come in handy. He placed it on his nightstand and looked around. His bed was covered in empty boxes and torn wrapping paper. He picked them all up and carried them outside to one of the trash bins that was in the hall. It was quiet, almost eerie. Usually, the hallways were filled with the sound of people talking in their rooms or snoring. There was virtually no sound that morning. When he got back, he saw the other two awake, going through their own presents.

“Morning, Phil.” Miles said with a smile. “How many presents you got?”

“Nine.” He said.

“Nine? Wow. All of those from your folks?”

“Only one.” He looked over at Trevor. “Thanks for that encyclopedia, Trevor. It’ll be a big help when I study. And thanks for that Magi Marauders book, Miles.”

“No problem,” Miles said. “Just want to help you learn more about the game.”

Miles had several presents near his bed, but Trevor only had one. It was rather small, and he looked at it longingly. When he finally opened it, he took out a picture frame. Like the box, he stared at it. A tear rolled down his cheek as he looked at it.

“Trev?” Miles looked over at Phillip and then back to Trevor. “What’s up?”

Trevor quickly wiped his eyes with his sleeve and put the picture on his night stand.

“It’s nothing.” He quickly said, smiling at them. He got up and hurried over to the door. “I’m going to the dining hall.”

After he shut the door behind him, Miles got up and looked at the picture.

“A man… and a woman. I don’t get it; what is there to cry about?”

“His parents, probably. He must be homesick.”

“Poor guy.” Miles said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Lloyd knows him better than us. Maybe we should ask him when he gets back.”

“That sounds like a good idea.” There was a grumbling sound and Miles laughed.

“Hungry?”

“Yeah. We should get down to the dining hall, too.”

The dining hall was practically abandoned when Phillip and Miles got there. It wasn’t as occupied on weekends, and with more than half of the school gone, it was even less crowded. From what they saw, the rule about eating with the people from your house didn’t apply during the holidays. Trevor wasn’t sitting at the Sloane table, but he appeared happier with the people he was eating with.

Like on weekends, Miles got food that people would usually eat for lunch or dinner even though it was time for breakfast. Most of their friends were absent, so the two just ate together. When they were satisfied, they made to leave the dining hall.

“Hey, Miles,” Isaiah called. “We’re practicing at three today, if you want to drop by.”

“I’ll be there!” He replied.

The two spent their morning in the common room, playing games. With less people there, they could use the T.V. for a lot longer than usual. They did stop eventually, beginning to play board games. Phillip noticed that the world conquest game he and Eli played was there, and asked if Miles wanted to play. Feeling confident, he accepted the challenge. His high spirits were quickly crushed as Phillip proved that he was a much better player. The game only lasted about a half hour before Miles’s last territory was conquered.

“Aw, man… I don’t really know why I thought I‘d stand a chance against a politician’s son in a game like this.”

“Up for a rematch?”

“Hm…” Miles’s eyes started darting around, and when they stopped he grinned. “It’s 2:30! We should get to the field for practice.”

Phillip laughed to himself and packed the game away, knowing full well that Miles was trying to replace a way to prevent another loss.

The two bundled up and made the short journey to the locker room. Inside they found Isaiah and two other boys. They were all putting on the armor used in Magi Marauders; their armor was different colors.

“Hey there, guys.” Isaiah said. “These are Brion Payton and Barclay Trask.”

A black young man, who was the shortest of the three, waved at them. He was putting on the red, black and yellow armor House Bryne’s students wore. The second was the tallest and palest, who just nodded at the two. He was putting on House Crowlin’s white, brown and gold armor.

“Is it just us?” Miles asked.

“No, there are some of the girls changing as well.” He put his helmet on. “We’ll see them outside.”

“You practicing with us?” Miles asked, opening one of the lockers.

“I don’t see why not.” Phillip opened one of the lockers as well. The armor inside of it was blue, black, and white. Taking it out, he put it on and followed Miles outside.

They went outside to see the other three they met in the locker room and four others.

“They they are.” Isaiah gestured to the two. “These are Phillip and Miles.” He then turned to the girls. “These are Tamara Gray,” A girl with platinum blonde hair smiled and nodded at them; she wore House Sloane’s armor. “Whitney Bell,” A blonde girl with brown eyes waved at them; she was wearing House Crowlin’s armor. “Ionia Fenton,” A girl with cropped hair saluted them; she was wearing House Bryne’s armor. “And Zoey Prince.” The shortest of them, a girl with light brown hair nodded at them, just as Tamara did. She was wearing House Lychester’s armor.

“There’s nine of us here.” Phillip noted. “How’re we going to play?”

“You two are new to the game, so we’ll count you as a single person.” Isaiah looked at the others. “That alright with you guys?” They all assented, and randomly split each other up.

Along with Isaiah, Miles and Phillip were on the same team as Ionia and Whitney.

“We’ll be playing Capture the Flag Manhunt today.” Isaiah announced, walking over to the the equipment shed from which Coach Frazier set up the field for each game. “I’m just going to get the stage set then we can start!”

Miles was shifting on his feet, wearing a big, excited smile. Phillip could tell how excited he was to be playing with the people that actually represented their school. He himself was happy, but nowhere near as happy as Miles.

“You might want to calm down there.” Ionia said. “I remember my first time playing for my house; I was so excited, imagining myself as the hero of the day…” She sighed. “And I lost the game for us.”

Miles ignored her words, continuing to happily jump around. “I’ll be fine! You’ll see!”

The two older girls looked at each other before laughing. Putting on her helmet Ionia said, “If you say so.”

Lights shot up from the lights on the ground, forming the radiant dome that would lead to some terrain nowhere near the school grounds. When Isaiah returned to his team, the two teams made their way to opposite sides of the dome before entering.

As they walked, Phillip began to wonder what kind of place they’d be playing in today. Of the handful of times he had played, he was brought to rainforests, caves, and coastlines. Walking into the brilliant wall of the dome, he was excitedly looking forward to whatever scenery he was about to be exposed to.

His eagerness was quickly turned to terror as he suddenly walked off the edge of a cliff. Phillip flailed his arms in hopes of grabbing onto something, but to no avail. Before he could fall that far, someone grabbed his arm and pulled him up. The same had happened to Miles, and Phillip saw that all color drained from his face. He was looking down, and Phillip looked down as well. There was an extremely long drop right in front of them. The only way to get across the chasm would be to go around.

“W-w-we a-almost died…” Miles quietly said.

“No you didn’t!” Ionia said, sounding amusing. “Sure, you’d lose some HP and it’d be a pain in the butt getting back up here, but you wouldn’t die.”

After recovering from that close call, which wasn’t that close if Ionia was telling the truth, Phillip looked around to see just where they ended up. They were in the middle of a mountain range, with some peaks higher than others, which would make it really difficult to get around.

“So, how’re we going to work around,” Miles waved a hand over the chasm. “this?”

“Pretty simple, really.” Ionia took a red vial out of the potion holder on her hip. “When you get to the other side, you get past the defenders by,” Whitney walked over to her and shoved her over the edge. “Doing this.” She got the last words out as she began to plummet.

Phillip and Miles ran over to the edge, but there was no sign of her colored armor amid the black abyss.

“I’m going to go ahead!” Whitney said, leaping over the chasm in a single bound.

“So what’re you two going to do; stay here or follow her?”

“I’m getting as far away from this pit as possible!” Miles left as well, but didn’t try to perform the same jump as Whitney.

“I think I’ll go with him.” Phillip followed after him. As he went, he noticed a large red blob making it’s way up the wall of the gorge. Ionia was poking out of it, waving at him.

Phillip thought that the game went surprising well, considering how much the mountain frightened him and Miles. Once they got away from the abyss, they were much better off, but always wary of where they were to prevent falling off of the mountain.

Being the most inexperienced, they were the first to get out and, like the name suggested, had to watch the rest of the game, having been booted out. The large, holographic display that hovered right near the dome - which gave spectators several different viewpoints of the match - was unaffected by the snow. They cheered on their other three teammates, unsure of whether or not they could actually be heard.

Despite being down three members to four so early on, Whitney, Ionia and Isaiah played very well. In the end, their flag was finally captured when Isaiah was knocked into the chasm and tried to escape as Brion made off with it. Ionia, who had been watching with them and others who were eliminated, threw her helmet down in frustration as Brion crossed over to his side.

“We were so close!” She screamed. “If Isaiah got out in time, he might’ve been able to catch up with him!”

They made their way back to the locker room, hearing Ionia rant as she went back with Whitney, Tamara and Zoey.

“Phil and I didn’t last long, but I thought that was awesome! Even if it was a bit scary.”

“Are there a lot of stadiums like that?” Phillip asked.

“Quite a few, I’d imagine. I’ve only seen those mountains before.” Isaiah said.

“There are some pretty crazy ones at the JMMWC and MMWC.” Brion said. “I remember some sort of forest where the plants would attack you, so it was like there were three teams instead of just two.”

Brion, Isaiah, Barclay and Miles shared stories about the two events, even thought they never told Phillip what the acronyms stood for. He listened on, trying to learn a bit more about the game, but a lot of information went right over his head.

After changing back into their uniforms and taking a shower in the house’s shower room, they went back to the main building for lunch. Miles basically got the exactly same food he had for breakfast, but replaced some of the food to mix things up a bit.

“You know,” Miles said once he was done eating. “I could use a little more help with my potion brewing. Want to stop by Professor Black’s class?”

The two made their way up to the third floor and down the corridor that housed Professor Black’s classroom. There was no guarantee that they’d replace her, but it was worth a try.

Miles raised his hand to knock on her door, but stopped himself short. Turning his head to the right, he began towards Professor Wilson’s room. There was blue light coming from underneath the door, even though they just saw Professor Wilson in the dining hall.

Miles pushed the door open slightly and peaked his head in. Phillip did as well. In the back of the room was a boy with greasy black hair that fell in front of his face. He had one of his legs pulled up onto the chair and was wearing House Lychester’s armband.

“Well, would you look at that.” Miles glanced at Phillip. “What’s his name? Saturn, right?”

“I’m pretty sure it is.” Philip backed away from the door, but Miles didn’t move a muscle. “What’re you doing?”

“He’s up to something, it’s obvious! Don’t you want to see what it is?”

“He doesn’t want us to see him, I’m sure.” Phillip said.

“This is Ritual Magic, things only the Gods are supposed to do. You want to just leave him?”

Hesitantly, Phillip moved back to the door. He didn’t know anything about Saturn, but felt it suspicious that he would be in a classroom all on his own. He saw that Saturn set up four candles around what appeared to be a rat.

“God of Death, Thanatos, hear my plea. You took this creature from our world,” He held his hand over the rat, and their was blood dripping from it. “But I ask you to return its soul. I offer my blood in return for it’s own.”

A blood red light flashed underneath the rat, and it slowly became enveloped by it. When the light faded, the mouse, which must’ve been dead, began moving.

Phillip and Miles couldn’t believe their eyes. They heard a story about someone reviving a rat, most likely just like Saturn, but they were a seventh-year and still messed it up. He was much younger, but the rat was acting like any other rat in the world.

“He did that perfectly!” Miles whispered.

“It’s so depressing,” Saturn began stroking the rat’s back. “Don’t you two think?” When they didn’t respond, he looked at them with his beetle black eyes. “I know that you two are there; you can come inside.”

Miles hesitantly pushed the door open and stepped in, Phillip right behind him. Once they were inside, he continued to speak.

“Life is just so fragile. Once it’s gone, there’s no getting it back.”

“But you ju-” Miles stopped speaking, utterly dumbstruck as the rat’s body fell apart, leaving it in much a worse state than it was before the ritual.

“Bringing back the dead is just something that isn’t meant to happen. It was Thanatos himself who gave the rat back its life, but it was clearly something he wasn’t meant to do, so Hades took it back. It’s quite unfair, really. They get to live for eternity, but we humans are lucky to get to a hundred years. Elves and Dracomophs live much longer, but even their lives are seconds long when compared to the Gods. Scientists are working hard to lengthen our lives, but will the Gods take kindly to our attempts? Maybe they’ll think it a threat to their authority.” He scooped up the rat’s broken corpse and cupped it in his hands. “Rulers who try to withhold things from their subjects always meet terrible ends. Will the Gods be the sole exception to this, or will mankind be able to overcome them like they did the Titans?” As he spoke, smoke began coming from the cracks between his fingers. When he opened them, ash fell from his hands to the ground.

He slapped his hands together and put them in his pockets. He walked past them and left the room, slouching slightly, leaving the two mortified.

“D-did he just say something about a divine rebellion?” Miles asked.

“I’m pretty sure he did.” Phillip looked at the ash and chuckled nervously. “But it’s pretty cool, isn’t it? Brought back a rat, even if it was for a few seconds.”

“Yeah… Wonder if we’ll get to that someday…” Miles cleared his throat. “So, should we get going? I’m going to beat you this time around; I’m not going to give you Acroton like I did last time.”

Calming down, Phillip grinned at Miles, happy to accept his challenge. “If you get there before me, that is.”

The rest of the week was very much like the first day. After waking up to a few more presents (Only from his parents and Eli), Phillip and Miles would have breakfast before spending time together until it came time for Magi Marauders practice. Trevor always kept to himself. If he wasn’t gone by the time Phillip woke up, he left shortly after.

Each day, the environment changed, but Phillip didn’t see any other new arenas. While that was a bit of a disappointment, he didn’t face defeat each and everyday. Once, Phillip got past Miles and won a game of Capture the Flag by stomping on his face, just as Reginald did back in October. His team rejoiced, but Miles didn’t take kindly to reliving that moment. Phillip tries apologizing, but Miles was in a bad mood for the rest of that day.

Phillip and Miles ran into Saturn several times that week. Most of the time, he was sneaking around one of the classrooms, but most commonly the Ritual Magic class. For having a week off, he was doing a lot related to schoolwork. They never stuck around long enough for him to notice them, not wanting to listen to another one of his speeches.

The New Year came in the middle of the week, and there was a small, but elegant fireworks display outside for the students to enjoy. People stayed up late to enjoy themselves and the beginning of the new year.

Before they knew it, Saturday had come. Phillip woke up to a loud scream and found Miles on his bed, scribbling swiftly on something.

“What’s the matter with you?”

“I didn’t know we had homework over break!” He exclaimed. “Why didn’t you tell me?!”

“I did. You’ve just been ignoring me.”

“So you already did it?”

“Of course I did.”

“So let me see it!”

Phillip didn’t answer right away. He wasn’t sure whether or not he should just let Miles copy his work. He wanted to help him out, but didn’t know whether he’d help him more by letting him do it on his own.

“What’s with the silence?”

“How about this? You do it yourself and if you’re not done by seven tomorrow night, I’ll let you copy mine.”

Miles opened his mouth to speak, but went back to his work without saying a word.

“I’ll see you down in the dining hall, Miles.”

That didn’t happen, however. Miles didn’t show up in the dining hall before Phillip was full and ready to leave. When he returned to the common room, Miles had his work sprawled out the table in the corner, a pair of lightning blue earmuffs blocking out all sound. With Miles so occupied by his work, Phillip was left with the few people in the common room, which he didn’t know too well.

When it came time for practice that day, Miles seemed tempted to leave his work. After a few minutes of contemplating, he finally left. When Phillip and Miles returned from the final practice of the week, it seemed that Miles forgot all about his homework. Even when they left for dinner, he didn’t remember to bring it back to their dorm.

The dining hall looked drastically different that night; it was like a meadow, even with a pair of ponds. The large tables for the fours houses were replaced with small circular tables that seated four. When the two got their food, the headmaster called for everyone’s attention.

“Good evening, everyone!” He called. “I hope that you all enjoyed the Week of Life. It is a shame that today is the last day, but all good things must come to an end. Few of you remained, but I hope that this allowed for you to deepen your bonds with your classmates. Those who left will be returning tomorrow, and classes will resume on Monday. Enjoy your meal; the staff and I worked hard to get the dining hall prepared.”

After he finished his speech and sat down, everyone went back to eating. Trevor joined Phillip and Miles at their table.

“Hey there, Trev.” Miles said, with a hint of concern in his voice. “Enjoy your week?”

Trevor nodded. “I had fun.”

“Good to hear.” Phillip said. “Get your homework done?”

Trevor nodded again.

“You too? Was I the only one w...” Miles trailed off when Saturn sat down as well. “H-hey there, Saturn…”

“Hello.”

There was an awkward pause after he showed up. Phillip and Miles kept their eyes on their plates; Trevor looked at the three of them, clearly confused.

“Regarding your behavior during the week, Phillip, Miles,” Saturn quietly said. The two froze, not just because he addressed them, but because he knew their names. “Surprised that I know your names? Luna Welshire talks about you often; I’d imagine that makes you happy, Phillip. But, as I was saying, I know that the two of you have been avoiding me.”

“Avoiding you?” Miles looked at Phillip, who shook his head. “We’re not avoiding you!”

“You two are pitiful liars. I know that after our first meeting on Sunday, you were a bit uncomfortable, and came to think of me as ‘creepy’. You can think of me like that if you want, but I’m not bad. If you actually got to know me, you’ll see that. Or not; you still might think me odd.” He finished the last of his food. “This doesn’t just apply to me. Don’t judge someone by your first impression of them alone.” He stood up and left the table, slouching like he had whenever they saw him.

Trevor watched Saturn leave and then looked at the other two, who were staring at their plates.

“Would you care to explain that?”

“Later…” Phillip said.

Trevor also finished his food and stood up to leave. “Alright; I’ll be looking forward to hearing the story.”