Aldric rose to the odd silence of the dome. It took him a moment to remember that he hadn't slept amongst the other ravens. He rubbed the crust from his eyes and licked the corners of his mouth before stretching with a mighty yawn.
The thick blanket on top of him felt like the warmest hug he'd ever received and made it nearly unbearable to leave. He blinked slowly, nearly fading back to sleep before forcing his eyes open and rising up in bed.
He caught himself glancing at the clock on the wall nearest him, that was labeled: aviary. It was 7 o'clock. His eyes buldged as he leapt from the thick blanket and raced to his wardrobe. He was late, and he hadn't even realized. How didn't he realize the tower had rotated.
Then he remembered the dorm. He hadn't really been woken up by the towers turn, but the boys' voices as they rose for the day. Then he thought about it further, and realized, the tower hadn't rotated at all. The view he could see through his stained window was the same one he had been facing when he fell asleep.
If the tower had turned he'd be looking in the opposite direction. He grew more confused and frustrated as he slipped on his tunic, robes, and boots. He laced them swiftly, but poorly, one of them coming undone after a few steps, and raced for the door.
He ran fully and came to an abrupt halt when he found the door had vanished and never reopened for the morning. He gaped at the wall and swore under his breath.
"Great, I'm late, I'm hungry, and I'm alone. I'm a bird in a cage," he huffed, kicking the wall slightly. The small thud echoed softly around the room. The bricks in front of him wiggled in their slots, tinking and clinking like a small construction site. Four bricks at eye level with the boy flipped around and revealed a written letter.
Trapped with nowhere to go and no exit in sight, escape your confinement within a set time. No weapons or allies for you to rely, get ready to escape or you'll surely die.-Master Magus-
Aldric read the letter aloud several times before finally placing the paper down.
"A test, really?" He threw his hands into the air and cursed the ceiling. He wasted little time before rushing to his end table and pulling out a stack of paper. He shuffled through the pages hoping to find something to help him.
His notes were detailed and long, but none of the classes he'd attended have shown him the art of escape. Nothing had shown him how to blast a hole in a wall, or levitate, to avoid plummeting to his death if he'd chosen to scale the tower. He was lost, how could he be expected to succeed if he hadn't been given the proper instruction.
He thought hard for a moment, and he believed he understood the test. He wasn't supposed to merely escape, he was supposed to harness a charm he hadn't yet been taught. He was to think on his feet and figure out the right steps for himself.
A seemingly impossible task for such a young boy. Though he felt defeated, he couldn't give up. He had to succeed and continue to grow. If he was going to be outcast, he was going to prove the rest of them inferior.
He inhaled deeply, his lungs stretching almost entirely, before blowing it all out. He placed his palms flat against the stone wall, and began to focus. He tried focusing his confusion, he harnessed it and tried to narrow it, but nothing came of it.
He then wondered if he should try harnessing hope again. After all the architect had tasked him with that at the very beginning. He knew it was worth a shot, so he again, inhaled deeply, and focused on hope.
The hope of leaving the dome. The hope he'd soon learn more and grow as a student under the architect. The hope of helping bring peace back to the world. He hoped deeply for so many things, but nothing manifested from it. Only frustration filled him as he felt his time slipping away.
It had been nearly 7:30 when he had gotten around to harnessing fear. He saved that for last as it was the emotion he'd only ever truly felt once. He felt nervous at times and even on edge, but never really afraid. Still, he knew he had to try anything he could to escape, and time was running out.
He focused deeper the room around him fading into pitch black. His senses heightened and his vision narrowed. He thought of fear and how it was supposed to feel, how it was supposed to overtake him, but it didn't.
"What am I supposed to do then!?" He asked angrily, punching the wall hard. As his fist collided and his anger expelled, he realized he had cast the harden charm around his fist. A small crater was formed around his hand as the rocks trickled up his wrist and disappeared.
He raised an eyebrow curiously, and started focusing again. He focused on the ravens and how they treated him. On Rhys and Jasper and their pitiful jealousy. Then he focused on being trapped in an empty room with no food or any assistance in escaping.
His palms grew warm and began to sweat, his body surged with energy as he began internalizing his anger. He felt his life force cycling through his body as that burning feeling swelled behind his sternum.
He focused further and deeper and began constructing something in his mind. He was trapped and the only way out was a door. He knew he needed some sort of door or compartment. His hands burned as if they were resting atop hot coals, his feet were numb, and his chest felt heavy.
Even still, he internalized his anger and frustration and felt his energy surge for the final time. Then, he erupted, and felt something force its way from his body nearly taking all of his energy before he could replenish it.
He fell to his knees and panted heavily, his sweat dripping into small puddles on the floor. When he built the strength to glance up, he saw it. A flimsy, but adequate door. It had been missing a hinge and a few planks were out of place but otherwise it was a door.
He rose to his feet excitedly, but slowly, and pulled the compartment open. When he emerged he was standing in front of the architect himself.
"Good job Aldric. That is passable, now hurry along, lunch will begin any moment now," he said, patting the boys small unkept head and continuing down the corridor.
From the corner of his eye, he saw the silhouette of a tall slender boy. He peeked without moving his head, and saw Jasper watching him with a disdainful gaze. He focused his eyes forward again and continued toward the stairway without a word.