Chronicle of the eternal.., p.1
Chronicle of the Eternal: Volume 1, page 1
Chronicle of the Eternal
Volume 1
Copyright
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. Any resemblance to characters, names, locations or incidents are purely coincidental.
Copyright © D. Wolfin 2016
Cover Illustration © Dylan Pierpont 2016
www.dylanpierpont.com
First Edition
Digital Edition © 2014 ISBN: 978-0-9942421-6-7
By making the purchase of this ebook you have been granted non-exclusive, non-transferable, right to access and read the text of this ebook on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced in any way without the explicit permission of the author.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Grand Theore
Chapter 2: Duel
Chapter 3 – Alchemy
Chapter 4: Talent
Chapter 5 – Theft
Chapter 6 – Profit
Chapter 7 – Payment
Chapter 8 – Theore Substructure
Chapter 9 – Rebirth
Chapter 10 – Fatherly Advice
Chapter 11 – Results
Chapter 12 – Practical ‘Cartography’
Chapter 13 – A New Friend
Chapter 14 – Crafting
Chapter 15 – Level Up
Chapter 16 – Mastery
Chapter 17 – Sense of Excitement
Chapter 18 – First Inter Academy Tournament
Chapter 19 – Academy Break
Chapter 20 – Fall
Chapter 21 – Monster
Chapter 22 – Return
Chapter 23 – Graduation
Side Story – Tanner’s Story
A Few Words from the Author
I would like to thank you all for purchasing my book. Along with Nathan Weinstock, Jack Vanatis, and genericIntent, the editors who have put in a lot of effort in helping me create this book. I also want to thank Dylan Pierpont, who created such and incredible cover illustration for this book.
The idea for this book came to me well over a year ago, and I have constantly been revising it in my mind whilst writing End Online. The current story is so different from the initial concept that I hardly recognize it.
Chronicle of the Eternal was originally going to be about an NPC in a standard game. He owned a shop in Theore’s first floor, when one day he walked outside and looked up, wishing he had more. This gave birth to ambition and a growing self-awareness.
I constantly revised this and then it became what it is today. I hope you all enjoy it, and expect more to come in the future.
The next book released will be End Online Volume 6. I had slowed down writing it over the past month or two and focused on Chronicle of the Eternal as the image I had for this book has been much clearer.
I am currently expecting End Online Volume 6 to be released mid-June.
Regards, D. Wolfin
Chapter 1: Grand Theore
The blistering midday sun burns brightly in the sky. A few inky grey clouds hover over the horizon, bringing news of a coming rain across the cracked wasteland.
Several yellow shrubs sway in the hot breeze, excited for the water to come. Sparse vegetation and rocky surfaces extend as far as the towering mountains framing the horizon tens of miles away.
Mutated beasts, some as small as rodents and others as large as buildings, wander the land in solitude or in packs. Several people are in combat with these creatures. The smell of gunpowder surrounds them as they discharge their weapons at the monsters. From one person in particular, a vivid blue circular symbol full of complicated patterns and formulae materializes into the air at his command. This symbol activates immediately and emits a hazy mist of ice air that slows down the creatures around the man.
The hunters had emerged from the nearby city, which does not seem to originate from this world. Stretching twenty miles wide and forty-seven stories tall, each level of this city is three thousand feet high, causing the enormous structure to appear to pierce the heavens themselves.
This is the Grand City Theore, usually referred to as Grand Theore, one of seventeen Grand Cities spread throughout this world.
Grand Theore is a structure of cold steel, copper, and many other metallurgical minerals. Copper pipes carry steam from subterranean geysers that power turbines throughout the city. This creates electricity, moisture for the agricultural sector, water for the people in the city, heat during the sub zero degree nights, and kinetic energy to keep the city’s various generators functioning.
Silver pipes coated with mirrored glass on the inside collect the sunlight and reflect it throughout the interior of the city. This provides natural light throughout the floors of the city during the day. Mixed amongst some of the silver pipes are copper conduits from steam powered turbines, powering interior lighting and a few other constructs that rely on electricity to operate.
The city of Grand Theore has numerous valves sticking out like branches, each as wide around as the trunk of an ancient world tree. They release the excess pressure from the city’s steam pipe network and eject it into the sky. The steam then disperses in the hot air around the city and causes clouds to form and gather around the distant mountains where the temperature is cooler. Once a month, the clouds become heavy enough that they start to rain and move back down the mountain, returning to offer a cool respite to the Grand City.
Deep within Grand Theore, there is a young boy walking down several small alleys and avoiding the main thoroughfares. The boy is fourteen this year, and it is his first day attending his new school: Bluemist Academy. It is compulsory to attend an academy the year each child turns fourteen, where they will study for the next four years.
His home is exactly two miles from Bluemist Academy, one of the twenty academies on Grand Theore’s first floor, so he leaves his house an hour and a half before needing to be there to ensure he arrives on time.
Short black hair covers his head in an unkempt mess. Anyone would assume this boy to be extremely apathetic if not for his unwavering, crystal-blue eyes. He wears a brown tattered shirt with several short brass buckles pulling the sleeves tight against his arms. His pants are as black as night, which helps conceal the wrinkles they are covered in.
He is only 4 foot 5 inches tall, allowing him to easily pass under the copper steam pipes powering the nearby residences, without having to lower his head. In front of the boy floats a translucent map of the city, highlighting the path to his destination.
He avoids the main roads to prevent unnecessary trouble. Unfortunately, he isn’t able to travel the entire way to the academy through the back alleys and has to use the main thoroughfare at some point.
“Oi, you’re that god damned Soulless kid aren’t you? The hell do you think you’re doing here?” A gruff middle-aged man notices the boy in the street and calls out in disgust.
The boy looks at the man without anger or humiliation and unhesitatingly replies, “I’m on my way my academy, sir.”
“Ridiculous! They shouldn’t let someone like you even dream of going to an academy.” The man spits on the ground with an exaggerated motion and walks away.
“What? He’s a Soulless? Disgusting, he should just go straight to the Temple of Death.” The person next to the boy takes a few steps away as if the boy is contagious.
The boy doesn’t show any reaction to the man’s gruff words and continues walking.
This is what it means to be Soulless. A person that is said to have no soul and lacks some of the crucial factors that make up a person’s individuality. The boy quickens his pace as he leaves the area to ensure he is not late for his first day at Bluemist Academy.
A half hour later, the boy arrives in front of the academy he has been designated to attend.
He received the notification a week ago, which included a compilation of information regarding the academy system and deposited all the items he would need into his personal inventory.
The academy is a large building of silver, steel and copper plates. At the top of the central building is a clock tower, twisted copper hands on the clock reveal the time to be 8:40am. The boy enters the front gate twenty minutes early, exactly the amount of time he will need to register with attendance and arrive to class on time.
Multiple boys and girls, all fourteen years old, filter in through the entrance of the academy. Each and every one is being supervised by their parents. Only the boy who was called a Soulless earlier is alone.
The boy easily merges with the line of people and awaits his turn to enter the building. The line appears to be long, but the speed at which students are processed and sent to their respective classes is extremely efficient. Ten minutes pass and the boy is standing in front of the admittance desk inside the building.
“You are.. Regal Havier.” The short, blonde haired woman sitting behind the desk brings up a translucent screen with the boys information. The screen shows the status page for the boy.
Name: Regal Havier
Age: 14
Level: 1
Nxt Level: 0%
Health: 100/100
Mana: 100/100
Stamina: 50/50
Class: None
Str: 10
Dex: 10
Agi: 10
End: 10
Int: 10
Lck: 10
Martial Skills:
None
Alchemy Skills:
Non
Crafting Skills:
None
Misc Skills:
Future Sight - Lv.100 - Mastered 11th Tier (Foresight)
Passive Buffs:
None
“Hrmm,” the lady doing the admittance for new student suddenly frowns, “You have no skills other than a single miscellaneous skill that I’ve never heard of. It appears to be your inherent skill. What have you been doing the past seven years?”
Regal can tell that the question isn’t meant to be answered. He waits patiently as she opens another translucent window. This new page contains Regal’s personal history, which can only be accessed by someone of her occupation.
“Both your parents are… This is complicated. They both entered the eternal rest and left you alone seven years ago. You’re also a Soulless, so you probably don’t even feel anything about this.”
The woman frowns upon reading the history of Regal Havier, a hint of scorn in her eyes. What she says isn’t entirely true. While he wasn’t as emotional as anyone else would have been, silent tears fell down his face while reading the farewell note his parent left saying they have decided to enter the eternal rest. This was the most emotionally charged state he had ever been in.
Regal didn’t become homeless after his parents entered the eternal rest. As he hadn’t graduated from an academy, he did not need to pay the single gold of the yearly city tax and was permitted by the city guard to stay in his home until he graduated from an academy.
Regal’s parents also left him with enough money to live peacefully for the next ten or so years. He took over maintaining and cleaning the small house while supporting himself. He had no indecision about this fact, only seeing what needed to be done and doing it.
“Soulless, you will go to the fourth classroom. Find any free seat and sit there. I am already behind schedule so make haste.” The woman abruptly brushes Regal off and attends to the next student.
“Yes, ma’am,” Regal nods toward the lady and follows his map toward the fourth classroom.
The classroom is already half full. The new students are laughing cheerfully with one another as they form their own social circles. Each and every student wears a similar brown shirt with the sleeves buckled tight and black pants. The only difference is that their uniforms are in much better condition than Regal’s.
When Regal enters, nobody pays particular attention to him as he finds an open seat in the middle of the room. Several children look toward him as he sits down, but no one comes up to invite him into their newly formed circle of friends.
Regal’s new classmates don’t know he is a Soulless, but because of the unkempt hair and clothes, the other classmates find Regal’s appearance quite odd and out of place.
Regal Havier’s clothes were in good condition last week when he received the notification to attend Bluemist Academy. They are only in their current state because he tried them on to go for a walk around the city and ended up being cornered and beaten by people who were aware of his status as a Soulless, damaging his uniform in the process.
New students gradually filter in through the classroom door. Some select the seats nearest the windows, others choosing a seat at random.
The bell rings at exactly 9:00am, and by this point the class is full with a total of thirty students. Bluemist Academy has exactly four classrooms, each with an equal number of students. This means that in the entire academy there are currently 120 students.
Shortly after the bell, a teacher walks in and quiets the class with the raise of his hand. The teacher has a bandana the color of rust, long black hair extending beyond his shoulders, and pitch black eyes that seem to suck in the surrounding light. He wears a long overcoat of grey leather, which is adorned by several brass studs on his cuffs and lapel.
“Good morning students. I am Julius River, your teacher for the next four years. You can refer to me as Mr. River,” Julius speaks lazily as though he is overcome with exhaustion. “I am a level 154 Flame Alchemist.”
His introduction as a Flame Alchemist causes a commotion of excited whispering in the classroom. The students only become silent when an alchemical circle materializes in the air next to him and creates a small explosion.
“We will all begin with introducing ourselves and our future goals. You, at the front of the class. You can begin.”
A petite red haired girl at the front of the classroom stands up and begins her introduction, “Good morning, my name is Piora Flameheart. I hope to be a great Flame Alchemist just like our teacher one day.”
“Tristran Maple. I hope to become the best GunSmith in Grand Theore.”
“Gertrude Tanner. I wish to open my own restaurant and become famous.”
“Hazel Marquis. I love the dignity of water and ice alchemy.”
“Fredrick Dennen. Martial Gun Wielder.”
“Kopis Numen…”
“Quaz Rimuris…”
…
“Regal Havier. Unsure as to what I want to be in the future.”
“Yatta Egral…”
…
Once everyone has introduced themselves, silence falls over the classroom. The teacher begins to speak again.
“You are all young. Your goals may change in four years, so you must remain open to all possibilities. There is only one more part of the introductions to do. I hear there are four Soulless in this academy, all of whom are in this class. You four, please stand up.”
Regal and three other students, two males and one female, stand up in unison. All the other students in the class stare at them wide-eyed.
“All of you now know who the Soulless in the class are,” Mr. River looks at each and every one of the students, examining their expressions. “I will have you all know that I truly despise discrimination against the Soulless. They didn’t have a choice in who they are. They are still living people the same as all of you and a part of our great race. You would have found out who they were eventually, and now that you know, I hope you can all accept them.
Despite the teacher’s words, all the students in the class look toward the four Soulless with shock and disdain. Most of their parents had all taught them what a disgrace it was to be a Soulless. The students simply have no intention of saying their thoughts aloud due to Mr. River’s instructions.
“Ahem,” Julius clears his throat to reclaim everyone’s gaze, “Your first Lesson today will be General Education and History. After lunch I will be teaching you Mathematics. Tomorrow will be a full day on Martial Gun Skills and Alchemical Skills classes will be on Wednesday. All of you should already have learned some skills that will be used in these classes. Regardless, you will still be taught several basic skills despite what you already know. Everyone, take out your textbooks and take notes for this lesson.”
Everyone, including Regal, takes out a blank notebook and writing tools from their personal inventory. Everyone was assigned new notebooks, one for each subject, but a few students have bought custom notebooks that they prefer from a general store.
“I will start with History and some general information on this world. Some of your parents may have taught many of you about our history, but some may not have been taught anything. Therefore, we will start at the beginning. Make sure to take notes. You need to memorise this as you have a test on this, friday.”
“226 years ago, in the year 2360, the Earth suffered its greatest apocalypse: The Collapse. The human population had grown beyond what the ecosystem could support, and it began to fail. The Earth was barren of minerals and natural resources, oceans began to dry up, the atmosphere became thinner. Eventually the oxygen grew thin, making even breathing difficult.”
“The human race had covered ninety percent of the planet. Reliance on fossil fuels, pollution, war, all of these problems had long since been solved. We invented machines to carry out our daily tasks. It was called the Golden Age. Then The Collapse happened.”
“Despite all of our technological advances, The Collapse was something we could not solve. Expansion into space and the colonization of other planets became the focus of the entire race when the signs of The Collapse became apparent. For the next twenty years, space exploration was conducted by every major nation. Every journey, unfortunately, returned in failure. If we had more time or had begun sooner, perhaps we would have succeeded.”
