Paths of Extinction

The sun rays pierced through the worn-out window curtains, signaling the beginning of another monotonous day. A boy, seventeen years of age, groaned in annoyance and reluctantly got off the bed. Apart from the usual lack of sleep and absence of enthusiasm, the teenager felt frustrated over the fact that he had to go to school and, as always, be subjected to unwarranted bullying. Zeke absent-mindedly stared at the wall for a good minute or two before changing his clothes and going downstairs. His parents, as was their wont, were at work and his big sister was living in the school’s dormitory, thus he had to eat breakfast alone. The unwillingness to head to school was almost overwhelming, nevertheless, Zeke purged any thoughts of skipping due to how ludicrously expensive it was to get admitted in the first place. To begin with, only a selected few individuals were accepted into Erys, his school. All thanks to their ability to manipulate Aether. However, Zeke was one of a handful of s

 “Thank you for helping me. Your name is Zeke, right? I’m Amelia from class B.” “...” Even after she introduced herself, Zeke was still confused about her slightly odd behavior. He was certain that she did not follow him just to express her gratitude. However, as a defect, he always felt disinclined to socialise with people as that could make life worse, for himself and his friends.It wasn’t that he preferred solitude, but that his circumstances led him to be alone. He was a Defect, a student incapable of manipulating Aether, therefore, it was better and safer to be alone rather than implicate other people.When he first enrolled into Erys, Zeke did try to talk to people and make a friend or two, but w

As he anticipated, dumping PE into a main path was extremely beneficial and seemed to be right play, rather than unlocking multiple paths without focusing on just one.   [You obtained the skill ‘Spark’] [You gained 3 Aether]   [User: Zeke Orland] [Race: Human] [Level 2 (5/30 EXP)] [Strength: 26] [Agility: 25] [Aether: 13] [Paths: Martial Arts (1/12) inactive | Aether Voltage (4/22) active ] [Skills: Fists of Fury(Proficiency 100%) - Aether Control(Proficiency 2%) - Voltage Zap(Proficiency 20%) - Spark (Proficiency 0%)] [Available PE: 0]   After activating the Aether Voltage Path, which was an easy

It took Zeke a lot of effort to return home as his body was beaten and battered. Previously, when he retaliated against Rodrick and helped Amelia, he felt slightly satisfied. However, those cheerful emotions were drowned out after Rodrick humiliated him.Never had Zeke felt so useless and angry, it was almost overwhelming. He looked at his reflection in the mirror: A bruised face filled with cuts from the violent slaps, stiff lips that had coagulated blood, and a still-bleeding nose. “Oh Rodrick… I will come for you first.” The teenager spoke to himself as he controlled his rising rage and walked away. With no one to tend to his wounds, and the adamance to seek his si

As instructed by his teacher, Zeke headed to the front of the Administrative Bureau building once all the lessons for the day were done.There, Christopher Balrant, Erva Erayne, and Professor Nayro were waiting for him. The three were the main teachers of the First Years, and each was distinguished in one or two fields of study. “Zeke, my boy! Right on cue!” The Zyth’s round and black eyes arched upwards as they fell on the approaching student. Christopher was as gloomy and serious as ever, and Erva had a slightly worried look on her face. “Zeke, how are you?”She faintly smiled and inspected him from he