We stood in a circle atop the school's rooftop, the setting sun painting the sky in shades of orange. A crisp chill crept into the air as night approached.

  "Alright, time for introductions," Jamie said, arms crossed. "Anyone wanna volunteer?"

  "Ooh, ohh, me!" The girl with glasses called out eagerly, pushing them up with one hand while raising the other.

  "Alright, take the floor," Jamie said, gesturing to the center of the circle.

  She eagerly hopped forward, her movement making the circle look more like a triangle with one person missing.

  "I'm Becky," she said, meeting my eyes. "My mentor is Athena, the goddess of wisdom. I specialize in strategic and defensive divine arts." She stretched out her arm, and a glowing white shield materialized on her forearm.

  "Basically, I can create shields—either for myself or others. I've also developed my own set of practical tools for battle. I don't have them on me right now, but you'll see them eventually."

  She extended her hand toward me, and as she did, the shield vanished.

  "Nice to meet you."

  I shook her hand. "That shield was really cool," I said, genuinely amazed at how effortlessly she had conjured it. Would I be able to do something similar?

  "If you don't mind me asking, can people only specialize in one divine art, or do they just choose to focus on one so they don't spread themselves too thin? Like, is it better to excel in one area instead of being average at many?"

  Becky smiled and let go of my hand.

  "Good question. You can technically practice multiple divine arts, but like you said, most people specialize. Each art has different fundamentals, and they often clash. For example, if your brain is wired for healing arts—always focusing on restoration and support—then trying to use destruction arts would feel unnatural. You'd have to shift your entire way of thinking. That's why most people only learn one or two closely related arts, and it's almost unheard of for someone to master more than three."

  I nodded, taking that in.

  "Do you get to choose which art you want to learn?"

  "Not exactly. When we were chosen, our mentors picked us based on our natural talents and personality traits. Then they trained us in their own art. So, it's not like you just pick one at random—it's more about what fits you best."

  "But I don't have a mentor," I pointed out.

  "I know," Jamie chimed in. "Which is why we'll each help you figure out what works for you and what doesn't."

  "Help me how?" I asked, unsure of what he meant.

  "You'll see. Anyway, Amanda, you're up," he said, dodging my question.

  The pretty blonde girl from homeroom stood up and took Becky's place in the center.

  "Hi, I'm Amanda," she said with a warm smile, her striking blue eyes gleaming as she met my gaze.

  "My mentor is Asclepius, the god of medicine. As you might've guessed, I'm not much of a fighter. I have a spear I can conjure, and while I can use it to attack, I mostly use it for healing. Though, I can also channel toxins and poisons through it when necessary."

  "Nice to meet you, Amanda. We actually share homeroom together," I said, feeling slightly flustered by her beauty. My cheeks warmed as I extended my hand.

  She took it, then scratched the back of her head. "Oh, do we? I'm sorry, I'm not great with faces. I didn't recognize you at all."

  Am I that forgettable? Whatever, I'm sure she didn't mean it.

  I laughed it off as we shook hands. She quickly scurried back to her spot, rejoining the circle.

  "Alright, Aya?" Jamie asked, his arms still crossed.

  "Yeah, yeah," the red-eyed girl muttered, stepping into the center with her arms crossed.

  I already had a bad impression of her after she tried to pummel me earlier, so when she moved, I instinctively stepped back slightly.

  "I'm Aya, mentee of Ares," she said, snapping her fingers. A bright white short sword appeared in her grip.

  "I make weapons."

  She pointed the sword at me, her sharp red eyes narrowing. Her long black hair flowed in the evening wind, giving her an even more intimidating presence. I took another step back, unsure of what she was planning.

  She smirked at my reaction before making her weapon dissipate and returning to her spot without another word. I let out a quiet sigh of relief.

  Jamie cleared his throat, cutting through the tension with a forced cough.

  "Guess that just leaves me. My mentor's name is Zeus—I'm sure you've heard of him. I can summon and control lightning, to put it simply."

  I'd love to see that.

  "Now that that's out of the way, it's time for your first mission." Jamie uncrossed his arms and walked up to me, placing a firm hand on my shoulder as he met my gaze.

  "You're gonna go kill that demon."

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  What?

  "Alone?! But I can't even control this… energy, or whatever you call it. How the hell am I supposed to kill a demon with no power?" I asked, genuinely wondering if he had lost his mind.

  "Relax, man. I'm sending you with help." He grinned. "Aya, go with him."

  Aya immediately threw her arms out in protest. "Why me?!"

  "Because I can sense how much you don't wanna be around him. Think of it as a team bonding exercise. After all, he is the newest member of this team," Jamie said, his grin never fading.

  Aya rolled her eyes. "Ughhh."

  She stomped over to me, muttering something under her breath. Before I could react, she grabbed me by the waist and hoisted me under her arm.

  "Wha—what?! Hey!" I yelped in shock as this tiny girl—who wasn't even five feet tall—manhandled me like I weighed nothing.

  She walked toward the edge of the roof, gazing out over the sprawling town below.

  "We'll be back," she said, not bothering to look at the others.

  "Good luck!" Amanda and Becky called out.

  "Don't let him die, Aya. And try to teach him a thing or two," Jamie added.

  Aya glanced down at me, still tucked under her arm, and grinned. With her sharp red eyes and that expression, she looked like a demon herself.

  Don't tell me she's gonna—

  Aya jumped.

  I screamed.

  We landed safely—well, safe for us, anyway. The pavement beneath us cracked, a small crater forming from the impact.

  Aya unceremoniously dropped me to the ground. "Try to keep up," she said before bolting off.

  "Hey, wait… up!" I called out, but she was already gone—nothing more than a shrinking dot in the distance.

  "Damn, she's fast," I muttered, pushing myself to my feet. I did a quick stretch to loosen my muscles, then took off after her.

  I had always been decently athletic—I even ran track for a while before getting booted off the team for skipping meetings. But she was faster than anyone I had ever seen. Inhumanly fast. Maybe it was part of her powers.

  Powers.

  I had powers too. If she was using this… divine energy to enhance her speed, then maybe I could do the same.

  In the distance, I could just barely make out the faintest outline of her. I was getting closer—but not close enough.

  "At this rate, I'll gas out and lose her," I gritted through my teeth.

  Focus, Brian. If she can do it, you can too.

  I closed my eyes. Ever since I had woken up from that bite, I'd felt something—a tiny presence in my sternum. Like an itch at the edge of my awareness, something I could sense but never paid attention to.

  I focused on it. The deeper I concentrated, the more I could feel it—some kind of wild energy stirring inside me, waiting to be released.

  But how do I release it?

  Was it like flexing a muscle? A conscious effort?

  Damn it, why didn't anyone explain how to control this energy before throwing me into a life-or-death fight with unholy creatures?

  I opened my eyes, breath coming fast. My heart sank.

  Aya was gone.

  I had been completely left behind. Stranded.

  "Damn it, Aya! You're supposed to be training me!" I growled, slamming my fist into the building beside me.

  The wall cracked.

  I froze. My fist was partially embedded in the concrete.

  A thick, black smoke-like aura curled around my hand.

  Did I… do that?

  I stared at my fist, stunned. The energy had appeared when I was pissed about Aya leaving me. Maybe that had something to do with it.

  Wait a minute…

  I closed my eyes and focused on my sternum. The racing mass of energy I'd felt before—it was gone. I searched for it, scanning the rest of my body, and the answer became obvious.

  It had moved.

  I could sense it coiled around my right arm, stretching from my shoulder down to my fist, as if it had elongated itself and flowed there naturally.

  I had done it. I had channeled my divine energy.

  Slowly, I pulled my fist from the wall and relaxed my hand. The moment I did, the energy recoiled, flowing back to my sternum like a rubber band snapping into place.

  Good. It went back.

  Now I just had to figure out how to direct it to my legs—and fast.

  It had already been a couple of minutes since I lost Aya, and at her speed, that was way too long.

  I focused again, reaching for the energy within me. I imagined a hand gripping it, holding it firm. I could feel it there, raging in my grasp.

  I pulled.

  Nothing.

  I gritted my teeth, concentrating harder, pouring every ounce of my willpower into dragging it downward. But it wouldn't budge.

  Why?

  When I wasn't trying, it activated on its own, but now that I needed it, it wouldn't move.

  Maybe… it wasn't about my will alone.

  When it first appeared, I had been punching. Maybe…

  Without another thought, I took off running in the direction Aya had gone.

  This isn't working. It worked earlier, so why not now?

  I hadn't even thought about it before—it had just happened.

  I kept running at my usual pace—slow, with no hope of catching up to Aya.

  "Damn it!" I growled through gritted teeth, my breath coming in heavy gasps as I struggled to keep going.

  Think, Brian. Don't get discouraged.

  Think of the power, the force behind the punch—the explosive impact that had come purely from instinct.

  Mimic that feeling. The force. The power. The explosiveness. Mimic it and—

  Boom.

  With one kick off the ground, I shot forward. The energy spread evenly between my legs, surging through me like a coiled spring finally releasing. That was it. That was the trick. It wasn't about forcing it—it was about replicating the instinct.

  I kept running, each step launching me forward with a burst of divine energy. In the distance, a speck appeared. I grinned, knowing exactly who it was.

  I pushed harder, each kick growing stronger, faster, more explosive. The gap between us shrank rapidly until, finally—I was running at her side.

  Aya glanced at me and smirked. "So you actually figured it out."

  "No thanks to you. Were you really just gonna leave me back there?"

  She shrugged. "I knew you'd get it eventually. Why do you think I kept running in a straight line?"

  Huh. Come to think of it, she never changed direction. Maybe she was looking out for me… in her own way.

  Now that I had caught up, our path seemed more deliberate. We weren't just sprinting aimlessly—she was leading us somewhere, making sharp turns every so often.

  I kept pace with her, but I could feel the divine energy draining from my body with every step. And I only had so much to give.

  "So, do you actually know where this demon is? 'Cause to me, it just feels like we're on some wild goose chase."

  "Of course I do." She scoffed, like I'd just asked the dumbest question in the world. "Some of us can actually sense energy."

  Okay, rude. It's my first day—cut me some slack, lady.

  We kept running through town, passing by stunned onlookers who stared in awe. I couldn't blame them—two teenagers blitzing down the street at inhuman speed wasn't exactly an everyday sight.

  After about twenty more minutes, we reached the outskirts. By now, the sun had fully set, leaving only the glow of streetlights to guide us. The area was eerily quiet. Most of the houses were abandoned, their windows shattered, their walls covered in grime. The ones that weren't abandoned looked barely livable. A growing unease settled in my chest as we ventured deeper into the desolate streets.

  Aya finally came to a stop in front of an old, abandoned train tunnel. She turned to me, her expression unreadable.

  "The demon's in here. Now that we're close, I can tell it's not very strong. This should be quick." She tossed me something small.

  I caught it, frowning as I examined the object—a dagger hilt with no blade.

  "What's this?"

  "A training tool my mentor gave me when I was learning to channel energy." She crossed her arms. "Just run some energy through the hilt, and you'll get yourself a nice little weapon. Perfect for someone at your skill level."

  "And here I thought you were being nice."

  Aya ignored my sarcasm, instead turning toward the tunnel entrance with a grin. "Ready?" she asked, her red eyes gleamed in the darkness as a divine short sword materialized in her hand.

  I really need to learn how to do that.

  I took a deep breath and focused. What little energy I had left from the run pooled into the hilt, and in an instant, a smoky black blade formed.

  "Ready" I replied, gripping the dagger tight.