The Chronicles of Edwin, Ch. 1 "The Test"

Edwin awoke to the grating sound of his mothers yells.  She had already turned on the lights and made breakfast.  "Wake up!  You don't want to miss the first day of finals do you?!"

"I'm awake!!!" Edwin retorted impishly as he fell back to sleep.  But the instant his head smashed into the fluffy mass that resembled a pillow, the reality of what his mother had said hit him.  He bolted up, well half way at least.  It took him about three tries to finally sit up.  He was not a morning person.  But today was different.  He had two finals at the regions foremost renowned university for Magitechnology, and he was going to be late!

What was worse was his lack of study, but he was rather apathetic of late.  It was time to just get them over with and move on.  So, Edwin dressed himself in the new clothes he and his mother had purchased just last night and rushed down the stairs.  His father was looking lumpy as ever, waiting to take Edwin's siblings to the academy in Edwin's place.  You see, it is normally Edwin's job to take his brothers to Crest Academy but because of finals he had to leave early.

Edwin downed a couple pastries and quick as a click, he was out the door and mounting his Jeed.  Now a jeed is a funny looking creature, it is big and furry with huge padded feet.  Edwin had an elderly red jeed which he rode around most places, it was his favorite mode of transportation.  Anywho, he secured his pack on the saddle and mounted the beast.  Pretty soon they were barreling pell-mell down the highway.

It was not long till Edwin had stowed his mount and was riding the Bhusr (the 'h' and 'r' are silent), a giant breed of millipede that had been tamed and was used as public transportation by the university.  Edwin wasn't nervous about the exams at all.  Rather he liked watching all the others riding the Bhusr as they were frantically looking over notes.  One girl sitting across from him was rather attractive.  She kept looking his way when she thought Edwin wasn't looking...or so he hoped anyway.  It is hard to see what someone is doing whilst not looking at them, no?

Edwin wondered what would have happened had he said something, anything, to that girl on the Bhusr.  Probably nothing.  Definitely nothing.  He wondered why he always daydreamed like this.  Maybe it was because so many of his friends were in or in some stage of entering relationships.  Or perhaps just his boyhood fantasies of finding his princess and having wild adventures till happily ever after came.  Oh well, this was his stop.  Time to walk...

Edwin hated walking.  He was quite round, some believed him to have giant blood in him, some just thought he ate too much and instead of growing out he first grew up.  Whatever the case, his feet disagreed with prolonged use and in the event of walking, or heaven forbid, running!  They promply started to whine.  But, being used to this, Edwin ignored his feet and walked on.

It turns out he had made great time and was a whole half hour early to class.  So, he got out his books and mused over the material.  "To use magic to create structures, you must first understand what you create.  We begin with the simple rod..."  Learning to be a Civil Magitechnician was a lot of work.  One had to master mathematics, geometry, alchemy, and other technical skills.  But it paid well and Edwin would be able to carry on the family trade.  For indeed, both of his parents were magitechnicians and his grandfather was too.  He worked for the military building forts and harbors and such around the world.

Well, dreams of grandeur only come true one test at a time.  And it was that fated time, Dr. Tayedalhi was passing out the exams.  Edwin wished his friend luck and went to work.

Three hours later and a little cross eyed he turned in his paper.  He guessed way too much on that exam, nothing good could come from that.  That's what I get for not studying I guess... I'll live.  He thought as he walked out.

Edwin now had a bit of time on his hand, his next exam was a couple hours away.  So, he found a place to sit down and got out his scryver text to check 'face-tome'.  Then he remembered he had to make an important call.  He had accidentally scheduled and interview with a magitech company during one of his exams.  The lady was nice though and everything worked out fine.  He would be going the next day at 9:00 instead of 1:00.  Disaster averted.

Shortly after his friend called inviting him to lunch.  Naterasha and Eliza met Edwin at one of the campuses dining areas.  They ate and laughed and studied a bit then it was about time to go.  Naterasha stopped everyone to hand out gifts.  She had made some little notes with an encouraging 'end of the semester' scripture on it, also a piece of chocolate.  Edwin and Eliza each got one.

Then they were off.  They ran into a couple friends on their way, but quickly got to Haverson Hall.  It was a huge round building where they say terrible alchemic experiments used to take place, and that was why there were plans to demolish it.  Whether these stories were true or not, the building was real enough.  And so were the stairs.  Edwin hated those stairs with a burning passion, as intense as the pain in his calves after climbing them.

They all made it to their room though, and after catching his breath a bit Edwin settled into his seat.  I was not too long before the exam was passed out and pencils were grinding lead into endless reams of paper.  Math, Edwin loved math.  Math tests, those he hated.  And this one was no different.

Once again, three hours pass and even more cross eyed than before, he turns in his test booklet and leaves.

Exhausted, he goes straight home to relax and prepare for the next day.