P R O L O G U E

YEAR- 4019 ADHD (AFTER DEATH OF OLD HUMAN GENERATION)

Everything was a lie.

A fake dream she insisted on believing, a story she was persistent on keeping. Maybe she knew all along that day. Maybe she just didn't want to accept it. The whispers, the stares and the fact she was a lie in itself. A lie that's been caught.

Those gazes which were once filled with warmth, were now burning with hate and raw disgust. How can one's identity cost her everything? How can everything change with just what she is?

It was a small mistake on her part. A mistake that cost her everything. She trusted.

The true fault however wasn't hers. No, she's just the unfortunate product coming from the bottom.

A Null.

The word ghosted the lips of every passerby, every student that now stood watching and even the Warden's eyes that chose to ignore the scene, glinted with hostility.

This was her world, a harsh and unforgiving one.

Power conquered all.

Power the only thing she'd ever dreamt of.

The only problem, was her existence.

A Null's body wasn't made to sustain the SoulSpirit, a blessing from the Gods themselves. Nulls were hated, branded as failures of civilization and humanity itself. So when her beloved father was approached by a bunch hooded men with a promise to forge her identity as a common Anatomy, he leapt at the offer. The only price was his arms. Arms that had hugged her whenever she was upset. Arms that created beautiful carvings. Arms that were no more.

Every visit home from then served her as a reminder. To succeed and bring them happiness.

A father gave up his future for his daughter's, but what was the use now? Everyone knows. Knows what a weak, hopeless and pathetic being she is, And it was all her fault.

She broke the one rule.

She trusted the wrong person.

She just didn't know that time and now she must pay the price.

They had her cornered with an audience to match. Elites and Anatomys stood watching the spectacle unfolding.

"What a pathetic lying scum we have here. It truly disgusts me to think that I even liked you once, Raelynn Castways" Drake, one of her Anatomy 'friends' spat out.

"To think we almost fell for it huh, I always thought you were a freak and now I know why. Turns out it actually runs in your filthy blood?" another Anatomy snarled. He was first one to welcome her around the Academy with a bright smile. Joy was his name. Ironic.

"Is she even a girl? Looks more animal to me!"

"This explains the ugly genes"

"She should just die!"

Every taunt hit her worse than the last. The comments making her dizzy with fear.

"Maybe we should just show her, where she truly belongs", a familiar voice spoke up. Whipping her head towards the source, her eyes widened with betrayal.

She had known it was her.

She just didn't want to believe it.

But there she stood, with a look she never expected to be ever directed at her of all people. They were once best of friends, soul sisters they even claimed. Thinking about it now she laughed mirthlessly. To think she, Raelynn, trusted her with her life. Now she must pay the price.

"Madison"

The one name that ruined it all. The one name she once adored.

The one girl who will now break her, it's a public execution after all.

"Don't speak my name, you'll taint it" Madison spat. Raelynn was shocked she'd knew Madison exposed her. What she didn't know was the reason behind her betrayal.

"Why?" croaked Raelynn. She wanted to know. She deserved to know.

"Why? Because you're a Null! A freak of nature that wasn't supposed to exist! Your existence is just a reminder that our world still has flaws, flaws we need to get rid of" Madison scoffed, "Looking at you just keeps proving it. You're a mistake that's been brought here."

Raelynn never knew someone could be this cruel and she definitely didn't think Madison was the type. Turns out there was more to her that met the eye.

"I don't know how this Academy accepted you or how you managed to fool everyone including us," she smirked, "But in the end a bug is always a bug, they can only hide for so long in those filthy holes of theirs"

Someone grabbed Raelynn's hair and shoved her to the ground. She knew what came next. It was what they expected. Power loved a good show and she just happened to be the performer with least benefits. Actually, she had no benefits at all.

"And what do we do when we catch a bug?" She pretended to think with a sickly sweet smile Raelynn once thought was genuine,

"We crush it."

The words sent a chill through Raelynn.

"Scum", the harsh kick that was directed towards her chest would have sent her flying if a pair of arms hadn't latched on to hers, preventing her escape. It was all that was needed to unleash their anger.

Another kick, then a punch and another kick. They rained upon her one after the other. Bruises soon decorated her body. She once thought she saw something red in her peripheral view at some point.

"Leave her be, I think we might actually kill the bug. Then we might have a problem" Raelynn heard someone say Kristina, she thought. Nothing made her more uneasy than violence.

"Would be great if we did. The world's got one less problem to deal with" a voice spoke.

An Elite she thought wearily, judging from the way everyone became silent. So even Elites decided to join the show? She curled up into a ball.

She knew if the Elite ever decided to lay his hands on her, she might actually die. Killing was one of their most cherished traits after all.

"But I think that won't do. You see there are worse things than death and I think we can save the rest for tomorrow. We have the whole year and after, after all." The Elite's voice was slow and menacing , her blood freezing just listening to it and with a last kick that sent her wheezing, they filed out without a word. Nobody questioned an Elite and if they did, they wished they didn't.

Soon after everyone left, she picked up her bag and limped towards the Academy's exit. Her body screamed in agony, nearly making her black out twice.

HELLION ACADEMY- SOULCASTERS UNION- SINCE 3000

The bold letters flashed at her in a taunting manner.

Such irony.

She's never returning to this hell and she couldn't go home. Not back to her limbless father who's been looking at her with such hope. He didn't deserve it. He already lost his wife, hope was the only thing that kept him going all these years.

Hope that she would soon crush.

She can't go back home. Never.

Ignoring her bruised body, with a newfound strength, she ran. Ran towards the one place that no one dared to venture. Where no one would ever find her. Not even an Elite.

The Forest.

It wasn't much far off from the Academy but strange forces had been said to lurk within the canopy of harmless looking trees. Even Elites hesitated. Rumors said it was because one was killed.

Raelynn didn't care.

If she were lucky then the trip might actually kill her but for now, she wanted to get away. Away from Madison and her friends, away from the sick Wardens, away from her father's hopeful eyes she would soon disappoint and most of all, away from the sick system she was born into.

Caught up in her thoughts she didn't notice how the Forest started to change slowly, as if fading away into something else. Blinking away her tears she stared at the new scenery cast out before her.

It was a lake.

A lake like no other, for this one was glowing.

Shades of sapphire, cobalt and azure blues seemed to coruscate from the lake, an iridescent blue surrounded the air around it.

She walked towards it as if under a spell, making her way past the glowing indigo shrubs that grew beside the lake. Her foot caught the side of a huge rock as she stumbled and fell.

Wincing she rose only to notice something written in red on the rock. It was a language she didn't understand. Ignoring the writings, she made her way once again towards the lake and crouched low to look at it only to yelp back in surprise.

Instead of her reflection, she saw a boy with familiar eyes smirking back.

He had dark brown hair like hers except shorter and wilder, a tinge of teal lacing the tips. He wasn't very muscular, but had the body of a fighter despite the lean structure and his features were pretty if not handsome. He seemed to be about her age or maybe a year older. But that's not what caught her attention.

It was his eyes.

She knew them from somewhere.

Caught in her dreamlike haze, she failed to notice the wisps of iridescent blue that had snaked out from the lake, wrapping its tendrils slowly around her body.

It was only when the boy stretched out his hand in the lake enchanting her to follow suit, she realized where she'd seen them.

Those were her eyes.

Deep ocean blue laced with specks of glittering gold, the only thing that made her different from the other Nulls.

Her eyes stared back her.

Eyes that were now glowing.

With a jolt she tried to retract her hand but it was too late. The tendrils that wrapped around her tightened their hold and she was pulled into the lake.

Into the arms of the boy with her eyes.

She couldn't swim, couldn't breathe and as she sank deeper her body gave way.

The last thing she saw was the illuminating lake glowing brighter with the blue SoulSpirit. Her body started to change slowly. The boy was nowhere in sight. Strange, she thought lazily I've never seen it this blue as the world faded away in nothingness.

Rumour had it that the entire forest glowed a little brighter that day.