A/N: Sorry, this is just a crappy filler. The next one will probably be a crappy filler too, but the one after that? It's gonna start getting real!
The next day, Professor Almerwick called a schoolwide assembly for Professor Limentus's funeral. The tables in the cafeteria were all pushed to the side so Limentus's body could be seen. The students didn't wear their sashes- just the black separable jumpsuits. Professor Almerwick told the whole school how she died- and that Elmwood was a member of the Order of Chaos. "The Order of Chaos is a terror group that is devoted to harnessing the evil powers of the Catrops and destroying our planet. Planet Nidus being destroyed would most likely mean the end of the universe. And the Catrops would survive it all," she'd told us. "Your professor gave her life to try and end the Order of Chaos. I would like you all to make sure her sacrifice was not in vain."
Now we were sitting in our dorms, contemplating what Almerwick had said. "I wonder who'll be teaching Honors Calculations and Field Experiences now," said Kiara. I shrugged.
"That was... kind of horrible. Just the way she died so easily, you know? It makes me hope that I won't go that easy. I either want to embrace death or defy it- not just die," mused Tessa. Ella nodded.
"I want to make sure she didn't..." My voice trailed away. A huge weight was on my chest.
"Make sure she didn't die for nothing?" Kiara suggested. I nodded.
Suddenly, I was crying. A flood of tears was rushing out of me, accompanied by heaving sobs. "Hey, let it all..." Kiara's voice broke, and then the four of us were weeping. We hadn't known Limentus for long, but death... death was frightening. I was scared. I didn't want to end up like that. My sobs grew more intense, and each breath took more life out of me than it put back in. The world around me spun, and it was just me, my tears, and death. What was life, even? A few years where you tried to make an impact on people and then you died. And eventually, you were forgotten, lost in the distant swirl of time. You were tossed into oblivion like a discarded wrapper, sucked into the void like dust in a vacuum. There were no stars in this night- it was just fading, fading away. It didn't matter if you were the best or the worst person on the face of Nidus. Eventually, you would fade, too, and none of your monuments would remain.
My tears eventually dried. I voiced my theories to my friends, and they all shared similar thoughts. Who can I tell everything to? I asked myself. Kiara? I could tell her almost anything. Almost. The thought put me into an even greater stupor than before. But if you are the only one who knows the most about you, then wouldn't that mean you'd carry your own memories of yourself and never fade? I asked myself. I tacked that on to my sentences and I felt marginally better. I mean, who's to say you can't make yourself feel better?
The schoolwide intercom crackled, and I heard Professer Almerwick say, "ALL STUDENTS, LISTEN UP. IN LIGHT OF RECENT DEVELOPMENTS, YOU ARE ONLY ALLOWED TO BRING YOUR WEAPONS TO CLASSES THAT REQUIRE THEM. WHEN NOT NEEDED, YOUR WEAPONS ARE TO BE STORED IN YOUR ROOMS. YOU MAY BRING YOUR SHIELDS WITH YOU. ALSO, YOU WILL KEEP THE ROOM ON EMERGENCY LOCKDOWN SETTINGS WHEN YOU ARE IN YOUR ROOMS AT ALL TIMES. THAT WILL BE ALL. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, STUDENTS."
I headed over to the emergency button and pushed it. The adamant-titanium sheets slid over everything and I went back to my bed. "This is going to be a fun year," I said glumly.
"On the bright side, Donomeira is almost here!" Ella exclaimed.
"Only..." I paused while I counted in my head. "Twenty-nine days until December 25th! I can't wait for all the presents!" I exclaimed. Donomeira was the day where people gathered to give each other gifts and celebrate life.
"Wasn't it just your birthday five days ago?" Tessa teased.
"Maybe," I replied. For my birthday, Ella had given me a set of Power Embedded adamant-titanium-and-leather gloves, Tessa had given me arm and leg greaves, and Kiara had given me a pair of adamant-titanium-and-leather boots. Mine and Kiara's parents sent us a helmet each and a big pack of food, which we shared with Ella and Tessa. My helmet was molded a bit in the likeness of a wolf, and Kiara's was subtly influenced by an owl. "You know, it's kind of funny that just a second ago we were sobbing our eyes out and now we're gabbing about presents," I said.
"Well, life's just... moving on, I guess," Kiara theorized.
"And then death," Tessa added.
"Well, aren't you Miss Cheerful," Ella grumbled.
"Oh, come on, guys," I laughed, playfully swatting their arms. "Anyways, what do you all want for Donomeira?"
While we listed the few things we wanted, I looked around the room, hearing Ella recite names of books and seeing Kiara and Tessa stare at her, dumbfounded, and realized how lucky I was to have such amazing friends.
When we went back to school the following Monday, we had two new teachers. The school carried on as normal. Could've fooled me.
Our new Field Experiences teacher was a short, heavily muscled woman with chin-length iron-gray hair and a sharp, hawkish face, named Professor Allgood. Since we weren't allowed to leave the castle anymore, we basically just battled holograms the whole time. I liked Professor Allgood's method of teaching- she'd help you if you were having trouble, but if you were fooling around "you might as well be failing."
Honors Calculations was taught by a mousy man called Professor Eleman. He was a very good teacher, but he was very quiet, compared to the loud, strict Professor Limentus- and even just the average person. I felt like the whole school was taking after his example- becoming very quiet. Becoming very quiet and losing their resolve.
A/N: Toldja it was crappy, and I was right! I just feel... not too good. I'll start writing the next chapter tonight (March 12) and if I finish that then I'll do the chapter after that, which will be good! After that, there won't be as many fillers. Part of the reason why this sucks is probably the fact that my brother and his friend are playing Star Wars Battlefront. I'm so excited for Daylight Savings and Spring Break! Once my break starts (next week) I'll try to post updates every two to three days. I'm going to New Jersey and New York to see my cousin and my old friends! Off to eat donuts with whipped cream! Please vote, comment, follow, and share!
-Deepio the Slytherclaw
