The heavy, pressurized silence of the classroom was suddenly shattered by a sound that was more primal than human—a jagged, stuttering sob that escaped the throat of the boy standing at the lectern.
“This... this can’t be happening...”
The young man’s fingers, which had been pressed so hopefully against the Awakening Crystal, were now trembling with a violent, rhythmic palsy. He stared at the cold, dark surface of the cube, his eyes wide and bloodshot, reflecting nothing but the sterile fluorescent lights of the ceiling.
“I haven't awakened? Me? Out of everyone? There has to be a mistake... the crystal... it must be defective!”
His voice rose to a frantic, hysterical pitch, echoing off the stone walls of Class 2-Spirit. He reached out again, slamming his palm onto the crystal with a de
