Chapter 3

Its been a few weeks since the opening ceremony and we have been placed within the dorms. I don"t know if it was by sheer luck or coincidence but I was the only person who did not have a roommate with them. Most of the boys were jealous and some were even furious that I was the lucky one.

I had hoped that within this academy I could finally find peace, that I could finally find a place where I belong. But life does not always work the way that you wish for it to. Due to my status within the dorm as well as the unlikely friendship I had with Julie, made me the target of the bullies within the academy.

I hated being the last dragon in existence and I decided to always hide the fact. I did not want the unnecessary reputation from being discovered, so I took their punishment. Taking a few beatings and a few insults was enough to tide me over.

Julie was not aware of what was happening to me and that is the way I would like to keep it. She has been nothing but nice to me, so I did not want to ruin her days with the knowledge that just because she knew and liked me, I was shunned as the result.

It turned out that I found what degree she saw me as a friend was. I was the friend that would give her advice on the boys that she found attractive and powerful. I was the friend that would console her when she felt down or when she felt worthless. Yet I was never the friend that she would be able to open up emotionally and love.

Throughout the beatings and the insults, the main antagonist of mine, was a fire mage by the name of Bo Scaro. He was one of the highest nobility students currently attending the academy and one of the most powerful of the first years. He was the main tormentor who made my days here hell.

With everything that has gone wrong throughout my academy life, I was not prepared for the events that would unfurl themselves within my near future. The one thing I was subconsciously hoping wouldn"t happen would happen eventually. The one hope I had held out for came crashing down upon my life in the most unfortunate way I could imagine.

Julie came into my dorm room with a large smile on her face. She never comes to my room this early in the morning. It was just about time to start getting ready for the classes that were about to begin.

She was wearing a knee length sparkly black sleeveless dress that truly made her figure stand out. She looked beautiful standing at the entrance to my door asking to come in. I noticed her long loose black hair was a bit dishevelled and the look of ecstasy was plastered upon her face.

"I have finally done it." She let out as she fell back onto my bed.

"Done what?" I asked as I turned to my wooden closest beginning to look through it for the clothes I intended to wear to class.

"I have finally found the one to make my husband." She said with a sigh and as I turned around shocked, I could see her closed eyes and the look of pure joy sitting upon her face.

"What?" I said still shocked at her revelation. Is she being serious now? Is she really that far out of my reach that I am no longer within her sights? Why do these things keep happening to me? I thought as I felt my heart fall to the depths of my being.

"I have found a powerful magic user that I can make my husband." She said as she sat up on the bed as glanced in my direction. "And the perfect thing is, we have sealed the deal. There is no way he is getting out of this marriage now."

"Sealed the deal?" I asked hoping against all odds that what she meant was not what I was thinking of at this very moment.

"We gave ourselves to each other." She said with a large smile as she fell back down onto my bed. "We belong to each other now. There is no way Bo can get out of the upcoming marriage arrangement."

My heart fell even further than before and I could swear I felt my soul tear in two. I found that since I could no longer have the happiness that I hoped for, that I didn"t care about many of the things that I normally would. The one thing I knew I needed was to leave at this very moment.

While her eyes were closed I walked out of my room hoping to find a location as to where I could cool off. I needed to calm down. The dragon side of me was becoming uncontrollable and that is something that I just couldn"t have.

Then an idea hit me. She wanted a powerful partner yet she was friends with the rarest one of them all. Maybe I could use this to my advantage. Maybe I could join the annual tournament that I knew Bo would be apart of and use that as the time to unveil myself.

I found a large tree just outside of the school grounds, atop a hill. Sitting under the welcomed shade, I found the view overlooked the academy and its grounds. The swaying breeze as well as the wildlife within the forest behind me made this spot wondrous. It was just what I needed to calm down.

I felt the academy issued MEP (Magical Communications Protocol) vibrate within my pocket. It was the communication device that allowed two way radio waves to be transmitted from the two intended crystals. It was a diamond crystal with the height of a golf ball and the width of a couple centimeters.

I let it vibrate knowing who it is that was trying to contact me. Why do I need to answer her call now? I still needed to try and relax with the knowledge that the last shred of happiness that I could"ve had, was now an impossible task. I had nothing. I would be nothing.

When the vibrating stopped, I grabbed the crystal from my pants pocket, only now realizing that I did not have a shirt on. I left far to quickly to realize it earlier. It was the downside of being a dragon. My temperature was always a little high, disabling me from feeling the cold.

I held the crystal in my right hand as it sprung to life. It was a clear crystal that was standard issue. If you had more money, a more vibrant colour could be bought. It began to glow white slightly as it hovered a few centimeters from above my palm.

A hologram emitted above the crystal in the form of a thirty by fifteen centimeter rectangle. Julie"s face became apparent as the message connected. She looked a little frantic.

"Vic, where are you?" She almost shouted through the message. "You just disappeared on me. I was telling you the good news and then I open my eyes, and you were gone. What happened? Are you okay? Are you hurt? Please let me know. I need to know you are okay. Please come back." She was almost crying by the end of the message yet for some odd reason it did not affect me.

I felt broken knowing that her tears now meant nothing to me. How could I have believed that she could be the one. That she could"ve have been the one to spend the rest of my life with. However short it may be.

The message ended and I closed my fist on the deactivated crystal. I needed something to take the pain away. I need something to make this whole situation better. Then I remembered the tournament. The tournament that would start in a few days that could grant any wish that I wanted.

A wish that could solve all of my problems. A wish that could solve many peoples problems. And I knew the exact one I would make.

I stood up and taking a deep breath I set out towards the academy offices that would hold the registration form. After about twenty or so minutes, I found the office and proceeded to enter.

Behind the large steel and glass counter, sat the mid thirties admin worker. He had a slight recede to his dark brown hair and a scowl ever present on his face. He glanced up at me and without his expression changing he spoke.

"What do you want?" He said almost angrily.

"I want to register for the tournament." I told him honestly. I could see the humoured expression coming across his face as my soft smile dropped.

"Do you now?" He said as his scowl turned into a mock smile. "If I remember correctly, you Victor, are ranked three hundredth and four within the first years. Do you think you can match up to the other years, let alone your own?"

"I will fight and I will win." I told him as a resolute expression crossed my face. I stood my ground, standing tall as I stared into his dark eyes. "That I can promise you."

"Alright, fine." The man said with his smile growing. It seemed that he was beginning to enjoy sending a low ranked player to the tournament. It seemed as if he got off on it. Strange, really.

I watched as he registered me through his holo-desk. The school"s system showing up a few centimeters off the desk with a soft blue glow.

"Congratulations." The man said with a chuckle. "You have now been registered for the competition. Just in time too, the registration was about to close."

"Thank you." I said as I turned around and began to make my way to the dorms. I still needed a shirt.