"Haah." Kaeden gasped suddenly, clutching his chest and gritting his teeth. He glanced around the classroom, panic creeping in. Damn it, it's happening again... he thought, heart pounding.
His eyes darted to the students around him, then landed on the professor—an older man with grey hair and a single gold-rimmed monocle over his left eye. He stood in front of a large holographic display showing swirling 'ether'—an ever-moving, formless energy field.
"Le Moreiel's Principle of Ether states that ether, once absorbed from the atmosphere, cannot—under any condition—be..." the professor droned on.
Kaeden could barely pay attention. His head was spinning, a burning heat rose in his chest, and sweat drenched his body. His skin grew pale, his breathing came in short, ragged bursts, and his surroundings blurred. Yet no one noticed. Everyone else was focused on the professor's lecture, absorbing every word about the mysterious force of ether. In this elite academy, where knowledge and power meant everything, missing a lesson could cost someone their future.
On a normal day, Kaeden would've lost himself in the intricacy of this omnipotent energy called ether, after all he was a complete knowledge addict. He loved learning—he was the kind of guy who could forget his own name during a good lecture. But not today. Today, he was fighting to stay conscious.
"What are these symptoms...? I already went to the infirmary. The scans showed nothing except that weird NPN spike... so what the hell is going on?" he whispered, desperate to stay awake. But it was harder than trying to stay awake while reading the Guardians' Ethics 'nightmare' of a textbook, the night before an exam.
This all started a month ago.
He'd been given a rare DNA sample by the Alchemy professor. The idea was just to study it—to learn more about advanced cell structures from an unknown species found on a Nethorian World. Kaeden wasn't even that interested at first. He preferred the library, burying himself in books, studying till he got drunk from all the knowledge.
But when he looked at the sample through the Etheric Microscope, everything changed. The DNA structure was so strange, so fascinating, he couldn't stop thinking about it. He needed to know more.
So, he broke the rules.
Using some of his credits, he got test rats from the Arcanian Repository and began experimenting. At first, the changes in the rats were small—minor mutations. But soon, things escalated.
Some of the creatures grew rapidly. Others mutated into bizarre, deformed shapes. And then... the worst happened.
Cannibalism.
Even the gentlest test subjects turned violent. They attacked each other, and Kaeden watched in horror as his experiment spiraled out of control. He destroyed everything, nearly killing himself in the process.
"The incident..." he muttered.
He couldn't remember all the details. He just remembered fire, destruction... and waking up in the infirmary a week later. The professor had been furious—not because Kaeden had nearly died, but because the research was lost. A discovery like that could have changed everything.
But Kaeden stayed silent.
He didn't mention the monsters. He didn't mention what he had seen. Since that day, the symptoms had started.
At first, he thought it might be an Ether Awakening. But there was no ether pulse. No sign of resonance. Nothing.
This wasn't an awakening.
Something was seriously wrong with him.
"I need to talk to the professor... This is getting out of hand," he mumbled, wiping sweat from his forehead.
"Hey," a voice said.
Kaeden turned to see a classmate looking at him. "Liam," he said quietly, trying to compose himself.
Liam Karl Orayar wasn't exactly a friend, but he was friendly enough—like a neighbor who always said hi.
"You look... really bad. Is something going on?" Liam asked.
"It's nothing," Kaeden said quickly. He couldn't afford to let anyone find out what he'd done. If the Alchemical Union got wind of it, he wouldn't just be expelled—he'd become their next experiment.
"You're sweating like crazy, man. Is it... the bullying again?"
Kaeden's eyes widened slightly, but he hid his reaction.
"It's not something you need to worry about," he replied, keeping his voice even. He didn't trust easily. In this school, trusting the wrong person could ruin you.
Liam hesitated, then sighed. "If you say so."
Kaeden turned away, mind racing. The library. There has to be something in the archives. Something that explains this.
"Mr. Kaeden."
Startled, Kaeden turned to find the professor standing right in front of him.
When did he get here?
"You seem... distracted," the professor said, his tone cool.
"I'm fine, sir. Just not feeling well," Kaeden responded, forcing a smile. A few students looked over, then quickly looked away. Kaeden was known for his brains—nothing else.
"You're pale. Very pale. Why?"
Kaeden swallowed hard.
This was getting worse. Much worse.