The Veilwalker

Alex and his family have lived their whole lives in Central City located on the central continent, an inland city in the heart of the once African and South American continents now fused from a continental drift many millennia ago. Although called a city, the size spans approximately 9.8 million square kilometres.

Due to its immense size, the city was demarcated into districts, each with a lord governing the day-to-day administration.

Central City was a sprawling, vertical metropolis where technology and magic is seamlessly integrated with daily life. The city gleams with towering skyscrapers that stretch into the clouds, connected by a web of transparent sky bridges and glowing neon pathways. At night, the city glows in a spectrum of colours, reflecting off its sleek, metallic surfaces and glass facades.

Commuting to school in a self-driving car powered by the empire's core AI system, Alex and Aaron spent less than 15 minutes in the cab before arriving. Standing before the gigantic school that had a population of thousands of students, they made their way inside.

Because of the huge population size of the students, each year group had a dedicated building four storeys high with all the necessary infrastructure. Additionally, each classroom had a student limit of thirty, thus one year group could take up to ten classrooms with their homeroom teachers. And this was not unique to Newhaven School, as every other school had a similar build.

Alex guided his younger brother to his block and made his way to the final-year student building. Being a student of Class A, the elite class, carried its own prestige. However, this could easily change depending on the performance of the students at the end of the year exams.

Upon entering the classroom already half filled, Alex moved towards his seat at the back of the classroom, making sure to mind his own business. He had already spotted the class bully with his gang. Thankfully, they were busy talking about the field trip to Mars. He soon took his seat and exchanged pleasantries with his one and only pal, Ross Bangu, a pure one-horned human.

"Hey Long Ross, what's up?" Alex teasingly called out to his friend. Ross Bongu stood at a height of 1.8 m at the age of fifteen years and had red hair and a lean muscular build. Like the rest of his classmates, he was adorned in black trousers, a white shirt and a matching black jacket with the school crest.

Alex had shown him kindness and willingly approached him when everybody else at the time avoided him due to his big stature at a tender age even for his species. His colleagues of similar blood only showed the bare decorum. This made him value the uniqueness of his connection with Alex.

"Looks like you're in a good mood. What's the occasion?" Ross replied in a heavy voice looking over to Alex. "Do you even have to ask? We are headed to Mars to explore the school we will be attending next. Not to mention, I haven't been on a spaceship before, much less the cold vacuum of space."

"Oh yeah… I forgot you were just a country bumpkin." Ross replied with a grin. "You don't have to rub it in, you know?" Alex always appreciated the blunt honesty of his friend. No matter what the situation they were in, Ross would never shy away from expressing his genuine thoughts. This trait of his made him an eyesore to others and a bully candidate.

Fortunately for him, his build and strength had made it impossible for anyone to take advantage of him.

Alex and Ross continued their talk as the time ticked and the others made it in. Soon after, the electronic bell chimed for homeroom. Shortly after, their homeroom teacher made his entrance and stood before class. Sha'ang Yuruff, called Sir Yuruff by his students, instructed them to follow the usual protocol for attendance.

Just like Ross, Sir Yuruff was a one-horned human standing at a height of 2.4 metres. He had an imposing aura around him that made it obvious his status as a hunter. After confirming the attendance, he proceeded to give the announcement.

"Now I believe everyone is ready for our trip to Mars." Once everyone nodded in acknowledgement, he continued. "There are a few rules to follow, and I expect complete compliance," he said, casting a glance at Bradley Brown, the known troublemaker and bully.

"One, stay close to the group.

"Two, follow the captain's instructions.

"Also, we are not the only school heading to Mars, so don't make us lose face to the other schools." Adding a couple more rules to the mix and listing some places they intended to go once on Mars. Shortly after, an orbital train was seen headed straight for their open courtyard. This quickly caught the attention of all the students, the majority of them moving to the window for a better view.

Alex was among this bunch as he admired the beauty of the modern vehicle for orbital travel. These air trains were designed to reach orbit with their destination being the massive two crossed ring structures that revolve around the planet. These massive constructs were a feature of all planets in the empire.

They served as space stations for space crafts as well as putting up protective shields to withstand the cosmic mana waves and they were largely successful.

"Alright, that's enough. Come back to seats." Returning to their seats, the students focused on their teacher. As a strict teacher with no nonsense policy in his presence coupled with his stature commandeered respect.

"We will now proceed in an orderly fashion to the open courtyard. Also double-check your items and ensure you have everything. Once you're done, move outside and join your mates. And I better see a proper queue once I step outside. Do I make myself clear?!"

"Yes, sir!" They all responded. Alex and Ross were among the first to step outside their classroom, heading to the courtyard.

"Relax, would you? The train is only taking us into orbit." Ross advised. Of course, Alex knew that. But that wasn't going to spoil his mood. With a wide grin on his face, he made his way down via the lift heading straight for the air train. As he got closer, the intricate details he missed before came into view.

From the little he knew; the trains were built with materials resistant to radiation and the inner chambers insulated to retain air as well as pressure. It had all the necessary amenities as well. They had top speeds of 28,080 km/h and were designed in a way to mitigate sonic booms, making the experience comforting for the passengers.

"A country pumpkin will always be a pumpkin." Alex heard this comment and annoying laughs from behind and didn't need to look back to know who it was. He simply ignored them while Ross gave them a sharp glare that shut them up.

'This marks my first steps into a broader world. I promise, things would not remain this way for long.' Alex silently vowed with a resolute look on his face.