Abyssuria-Residency

POV: KAELITH

Letting out a heavy sigh of exhaustion, I finally drag my aching feet away from the pristine pathways of the elite estates. I push the lingering image of the storm-gray-eyed stranger from my mind and focus on my actual destination: the rundown, seven-story Abyssuria-Residency. As the most affordable housing option on campus, its depressing exterior perfectly matches my current exhausted mood. The brick walls are stained with years of dark grime, and the cracked windows barely reflect the afternoon sun.

Stepping through the front doors, the interior proves to be worse than I imagined. A thick, stale odor hits my nose—a nasty mix of spilled cheap beer, sweat, and rotting wood. The lobby is a disaster zone filled with torn, faux-leather couches shedding their stuffing onto the sticky linoleum floor. Smashed tables and cracked lamps serve as unmistakable remnants of past violent brawls that nobody ever bothered to clean up.

I approach the front desk, hoping for a quick check-in. Instead, I encounter the dorm leader. She sits behind the scuffed counter, one bare foot propped up on the desk near her open laptop. She is engrossed in meticulously painting a tiny red cherry on her smallest toenail, her tongue poking out the corner of her mouth in deep concentration.

"Excuse me," I start, offering a polite, hesitant smile. "I'm here to—"

She aggressively silences my greeting by throwing a hand in the air, palm facing out. She refuses to even look at me. Forced to stand awkwardly in the middle of the grimy lobby, I shift my heavy duffel bag from one burning shoulder to the other, waiting in silence while she finishes her intricate toe art.

After a long minute, she caps the polish and sighs in relief. Finally looking up, she keeps her foot resting on the desk and narrows her dark eyes at me.

"What do you need?" she asks, her voice dripping with boredom.

"I'm a new tenant. Kaelith-Vane."

She types a few keys on her laptop, squinting at the dim screen. "I see your name. You paid the meager initial deposit. Good." She leans forward, her expression hardening into a stern warning. "Make sure you pay your rent on time. Abyssuria does not tolerate late payments, and we definitely do not tolerate the fights they provoke. You cause a problem, I throw you out on the street. Understood?"

I blink, taken aback by the sudden hostility. "I won't be a problem."

"My name is Mazra," she says, a smug smirk twisting her lips. "I am the dorm leader. I am also a student. If you have an issue, you speak to me between eight and ten in the morning or at night. Strictly. Do not bother me outside those hours."

I nod, not wanting to argue. She rummages through a messy drawer and tosses a rusty, ancient key onto the counter. It clatters loudly against the wood.

"Room 707," Mazra states. "It's a shared room."

I pick up the cold metal key. "Thank you. Where is the elevator?"

Mazra stares at me for a split second before she openly laughs in my face. The harsh sound echoes off the peeling lobby walls. "Oh, honey. That piece of junk has been broken for five long years. Take the stairs."

She waves me off, dismissing me. I grip the strap of my bag, dread pooling in my stomach as I locate the narrow, dimly lit stairwell.

Navigating the stairs is a grueling nightmare. With every floor I climb, my calves burn and my breathing grows ragged. The stairwell itself is a chaotic showcase of public indecency. I carefully step over littered beer bottles that clink against the concrete steps. On the third-floor landing, I am forced to avert my eyes as I squeeze past a half-naked couple. The guy has his hands shoved down the girl’s unzipped pants, his fingers moving vigorously while she grinds her bare breasts against his chest, rutting against him in borderline public sex right there against the rusty railing. Their heavy pants and wet kissing sounds echo up the concrete shaft. I keep my head down, ignoring the shirtless students lounging on the steps smoking and drinking, my face burning as I push through the chaos.

Panting and drenched in sweat, I reach the seventh floor. I am deeply relieved to find this hallway significantly quieter and cleaner than the lower levels. I trudge down the corridor, find the door marked 707, and jam the rusty key into the lock. I push the door open, slip inside, and shut it firmly behind me, leaning my back against the solid wood to catch my breath.

"Rough, right?" a voice suddenly remarks.

I jump out of my skin, gasping in shock. I spin around, my hands clutching my bag like a shield. Sitting on the floor across the room is a striking woman. She has beautiful wavy hair cascading down her shoulders and bright, welcoming eyes. She is casually arranging piles of clothes and books on her side of the small, cramped room.

"Sorry," she says, offering a warm smile. "Didn't mean to scare you. The walls in here are paper-thin."

"It's okay," I breathe out, my racing heart slowing down. "I just didn't expect anyone to be in here yet."

She stands up, brushing off her jeans, and extends her hand. "I'm Tessara. Looks like I'm your new roommate."

I take her hand, returning the firm handshake. "Kaelith. Nice to meet you."

Tessara’s eyes widen, taking in my face. She instantly shatters the rest of my lingering anxiety by brightly declaring, "Wow. You are the prettiest girl I have ever seen."

Heat rushes to my cheeks. I blush, quickly brushing off the intense compliment. "That is way too much. You're definitely prettier than me."

"Take the compliment, Kaelith," Tessara laughs, patting my arm. "Are you a freshman too?"

I nod, stepping further into the room. We quickly bond over our shared status as clueless freshmen, exchanging nervous jokes about the daunting academy. I walk over to my designated bed, a stiff mattress on a creaky metal frame, and drop my heavy bag onto the floor. My shoulders slump in relief. I assume I can finally rest my aching feet and maybe catch a nap before the day really begins.

Tessara tilts her head thoughtfully, tapping her chin. "I guess we should get ready. We must attend the mandatory general assembly."

I freeze, turning to look at her. "Assembly? When?"

"They posted it on 'Resonance,' the official school page," she explains, pulling out her sleek smartphone.

I mutter a curse under my breath. My mother had spitefully confiscated my phone right before shoving me out the front door, leaving me cut off from any digital campus updates. "I don't have my phone on me. What time does it start?"

Before Tessara can answer, deafening campus sirens wail through the air. The piercing, mechanical shrieks vibrate through the thin windowpanes, freezing my blood. Panic spikes in my chest.

Tessara leaps up from the floor, her casual demeanor vanishing. She grabs my wrist in an iron grip. "Now!" she shouts over the blaring noise.

She drags me out the door before I can even process what is happening. My tired legs stumble as she pulls me down the hall. "Are we under attack?" I yell.

"No!" Tessara yells back, pulling me toward the stairs. "We just have to catch the free student shuttle before it departs for the main hall!"

We sprint down the seven flights of stairs, dodging the lingering couples and empty bottles, bursting out the front doors of Abyssuria just in time to squeeze onto the massive campus shuttle bus. The ride is a blur of anxious chatter and packed bodies pressing against me.

When the shuttle drops us off, we rush into the grand main hall. The vast auditorium is already packed to the brim with students. We slip through the heavy double doors and deliberately settle into the back rows. This vantage point perfectly allows me to sink into the shadows. I scan the front rows and spot my brother Kierax and Sienris sitting near the center stage. I slump down in my seat, desperate to avoid their sight. I briefly wonder where my ex-mate Jaxen-Minor is seated among the sea of heads, but I quickly push the jerk from my mind. I refuse to let him ruin my fresh start today.

Beside me, Tessara breathes a heavy sigh of relief, fanning her flushed face. "Thank the Moon Goddess we made it. Missing this assembly is social suicide."

"Why?" I ask, leaning closer to hear her over the roar of the crowd.

"We must carefully observe the introduction of the Alphas for each faction," Tessara stresses, her tone dead serious. "Choosing one to follow is essential for a peaceful survival at this school. You have to pick the right one."

My frown deepens in genuine confusion. The words sound foreign on my tongue as I echo them. "Choose... an Alpha?"

Tessara looks at me in pure disbelief. "Yes, Kaelith. Aligning with an Alpha's clique is the only way to build vital connections and get protection on campus. It is how things work here."

"I don't understand," I admit, feeling a sudden wave of dread wash over me. "I don't know anything about the academy's social hierarchy."

She chuckles, shaking her head. "Have you been sheltered your whole life?"

I purse my lips, a bitter taste rising in my mouth. I recall the cold, suffocating walls of my childhood home. My parents maliciously restricted my life, locking me away and denying me basic information while they elevated my brothers. They fed them knowledge and power, leaving me scraps in the dark.

Sensing my lingering pain and the sudden shift in my mood, Tessara softens. She offers a warm, understanding smile and reaches out to squeeze my hand. "It's okay. I promise to explain all the brutal details to you later."

The lights in the vast auditorium suddenly dim, and the roaring chatter of the crowd cuts off into a hushed, expectant silence.

Tessara points a manicured finger toward the brightly lit podium at the front of the stage. "Focus now," she whispers, her eyes shining with a mix of excitement and apprehension. "The most powerful figures in the school are about to be introduced."