[The Unlucky Game Master]

Arc 3.1

Licking his dry lips, he looks at the the sun scorching the cracked barren ground, seeing a shadow in the distance.

"Wake up!Mr.Alastair, do you think my class is a joke?"

*snicker*

He wakes up with a drowsy look in his watery light blue eyes, hearing the whispers all around him.He jumps in startlement realizing he was asleep.

"N-no sir Mr. Atkins!" He nervously tries to explain.

"Get out!"

"Y-yes sir!" Seeing the glare directed at him, he quickly gathers his things and hurries out the classroom under the whispers of his classmates.

The School Of Wizardry is the most renowned school of magic in all of Gretchen and is also where Alastair Cowell studies.

There are five classes ranked by color and Alastair is part of the highest purple class.The classes from highest to lowest are Purple, Green, Blue, Yellow, and Red.

Arriving at the library, he hurries to swipe his card.

*Beep, access up to the fifth floor is allowed.* A mechanical voice intones.

Holding his things he runs up the circular staircase until he reaches the fifth floor of the library.Use of magic is forbidden on the school grounds and is punishable by expulsion.

Logically as the most talented student in the school of his class, he should be highly prized by the teachers, but to them he is also the shame of the school.

The Vernook are their most hated enemies and Alastair happens to be half Vernook.The half Vernook or partial Vernook are marked by a red cross under one eye, Alastairs is under his left eye.The full Vernook have a black cross under an eye, matching their half or partial Vernook partner.The full Vernook will understand who their partner is right away on instinct.

He starts studying the subject Mr. Atkins was teaching about earnestly.

Not all full Vernook will accept their partner and some choose another full Vernook instead.When a full Vernook accepts their partner their bond will grow closer.Accepting can be done by physical contact and both parties agreement, or the full Vernook can kiss the red cross under their eye and swear an oath.If they choose to swear an oath then they can't accept anyone but their partner.

When he's done studying magic theory and analysis, he places the book back and heads home.

Once out of the school the sight before him drastically changes for a wondrous scene.He walks to a shadow and chants a short incantation.When he looks again, he's walking out from a streetlamps shadow in front of Maggies Magic Books Shop.

Alastair doesn't fully remember what his life was like, living in the Vernook territory before he was adopted by Maggie.The land in his dreams is the Vernook Territory, or at least one of them.Shaking his head, he chooses not to dwell on that thought.

Inside Maggies store are books, potions, and a variety of magic tools flying around.

"Maggie, I'm home!" He says in excitement with his light blue eyes sparkling.In return, he gets a smack to the back of his head, making him stumble forward slightly.

"Why are you back so early Ala, did you cause trouble?"

A kind middle aged woman says in rebuke, but her eyes twinkle in mischief.

Not caring, Alastair feels a warm sensation as he explains what happened with a smile on his face.

"Those old fogies!" Maggie curses after listening to Ala.

The wizard council let half and partial Vernooks be admitted into the academies, but there has always been a lingering prejudice against them.With Alastair being so outstanding, he has already attracted too much attention as a half Vernook.

The teachers refuse to sincerely teach him, so most of Alastairs time is spent in the library or learning from Maggie.

********************

"What are you doing Halim?" An arabian looking man asks his companion.

Looking into the distance a gentle black haired man pauses when he hears his companions voice.

"No, nothing" On his face is a black cross under his right eye.

They continue heading towards a destroyed ruin riding a type of odd lizard mount and kicking up a cloud of dirt in their wake.

*******************

In a dusty room Alastair searches through the various books.

The main difference between the Vernook and wizards lie in the origin of their powers.Wizards aquire their powers through training and comprehension skill.However, Vernook are odd.

Vernook are naturally born with their powers, but nobody knows why Vernook are born with differing power levels regardless of their birth.Some Vernook believe it lies in the purity of their blood, but even the most pure blooded Vernook can be weaker than a partial Vernook.

Maggie knows that Alastairs Vernook powers are very strong, but she makes him hide it, lest they attract more unwanted attention on themselves.

Blowing dust off a book, he reads the title and opens it.

The Tale Of The Destroyer And Creator: There used to be two strong entities always at odds.One gave birth to man and the other to the Vernook.One was known for peace and the other for destruction.The peaceful one couldn't bear to hurt the other, but eventually had to seal him away.Unable to bear the grief, he also sealed himself in hopes of meeting the other again.Thus gave birth to the Vernook partners.

The rest of the book doesn't go further in depth, in frustration Alastair tosses the book away and slumps down with his hands gripping his reddish-brown short hair and faint gold specks littering his light blue eyes.

In the beginning he always had the same dream and only ever saw a shadow, but now he started to superimpose the image of an unknown man onto the shadow.He hasn't been able to get a peaceful nights rest since and he's near his wits end.

He doesn't dare tell Maggie, she has enough trouble as it is, with the wizard council breathing down their throats.