The Hollow Blade: A LitRPG Portal Apocalypse Story (Arcadia Academy Book 1)

by Wolfe Locke

  ​It was a good friendship, and the two of us respected one another.

  ​“Seriously, though.” Said Markus, interrupting my thoughts. “You got to stop being so hard on yourself, man. You’re not going to help anyone if you burn out before you even hit silver. I’m counting on you to help me reach Gold.”

  ​“Don’t worry about it. I know my limits,” I replied. “I’m going to get some sleep tonight. I can barely keep my eyes open right now anyway. Today will be tough. There’s just no way I can spend another night training.”

  ​“Obviously.” Markus replied as he rolled his eyes. “Try not to fall asleep in class. I know some of the lectures can be boring, but that’ll just mean more work for you.” Markus turned serious for a second. “Seriously. You know how the Cadre are. If they can find a reason to give any of us Cadets extra duty, they will.”

  ​“I know.” I responded, remembering the time I’d been made to trim the weeds on the training field with scissors. “I appreciate the pep talk. I do, but don’t you have some more Iron rankers to haze before breakfast?”

  ​At that, Markus’s grin turned wicked. “You know how much I love tormenting Iron rankers, but yeah, I’ve a quota to reach. Speaking of which, it’s my duty as your superior to show you why it’s never a good idea to overextend yourself. I’ll see you in physical training.”

  ​Markus winked, took off, finally leaving me alone to finish getting ready.

  ​I knew that the “torment” that all cadets were put through was in good natured. There was no harm meant. In fact, it had been proven to build stronger bonds between the upper and lower cadets. Well… most of the time. Sometimes it could get a little out of hand.

  ​Once Markus was gone, my feeling of grogginess intensified. I groaned. my body was already mad at me for training so much. Now Markus wanted to spar during physical training. Today was going to be a long day. But at least I’m ready for that breakthrough..

  ​Although I was exhausted, most of my day went by quickly. I barely remembered breakfast or the agility drills that followed. I even made it through the first round of physical training and come time to duel, I managed to fend off Markus’s fierce attacks. The fight ended in a draw.

  ​As Markus had said, the lectures were the most difficult part of my day. Although they were full of fascinating subjects such as famous swordsmen in history and the wars they fought in, and the battles they proved themselves in, it was difficult to stay awake. Even then, I was proactive. When I felt myself start to slip into sleep; I pushed myself away from my desk and stood at the back of the room. As had been taught to all cadets, there was no shame in doing what duty required.

  ​It was during the second lecture period, just after lunch, that I slipped up. The lecture was on dark beings. Those creatures that stalked the land, causing strife and terror. Those that warriors like me fought against on the front lines. Ogres, orcs, imps, demons, and darker things. It should have been a great class, but I still struggled to keep my eyes open.

  ​Many monsters and calamities plagued the land, and it was up to the Magic Knights of the Kingdom of Arcadia to keep them at bay. It was why we cadets all trained. One of the reasons at least. We didn’t just exist for war against our neighbors.

  ​The subject was taught by one of the more difficult to deal with Cadre, and unlike other instructors, she didn’t allow me to stand when I got tired. Although the subject was interesting, I was unable to keep my eyes open, and my fatigued mind kept wandering into the realm of dreams. It was difficult to fight nodding off and my thoughts grew wild.

  ​There had been other reasons I had spent so many nights training. Like all of the other cadets, I was always striving to be better. To ascend, and learn, and train, until I was ready to take my position on the front lines and fight against the enemies of the Kingdom.

  ​To that end, I had been training extra hard to learn a new technique. The Crimson Blade, which would be my first Swordcraft, learned on Academy grounds.

  ​Unlike the secret technique of my family, this one was common knowledge. However, I had learned early on that just because the correct way to execute the technique was readily available to any who wanted to learn it, that did not mean it was easy to do so.

  ​My desire to learn the Crimson Blade had come during one of the very few times that an enemy made it onto the academy’s grounds. Mountain trolls, while extremely aggressive and dangerous, were not the brightest of creatures. The hulking monster of muscle and flesh had somehow managed to wander onto the grounds accidentally. Still, once it made it far enough and saw what it assumed were prey, it had quickly turned into a threat and tried to rampage.

  ​But at the Academy, we were taught to run towards danger, not away from it, and when I had heard the screams start, I went running. The troll had attacked some Iron rankers that had been training on the grounds. Luckily, none had been too severely injured, though their egos might have been a bit bruised.

  ​Markus, some other cadets, and I had all tried to coordinate to band together to stop the beast, but someone else intervened. It wasn’t a Cadre member. It was a senior classman. The most senior classman.

  ​We all watched as the lone figure approached the massive troll, his sword gleaming in his hand. The troll roared and lunged to attack, sweeping its thick limbs at the cadet in an attempt to smash him into the dirt, but the cadet was easily able to dodge the attack with a precise movement that I could only hope to emulate one day. Then, in a flash of movement, he raised his sword, and it began to glow with a violent crimson light.

  ​The cadet slashed out with his blade, and in the next instant, the troll was dead. The monster’s body was split and lay in two halves on the ground. Steam rose from its inside that spilled out from where the blade had cut through. The blade had been so hot that the sword had cauterized the two halves on impact.

  ​“Who is that?” I had asked Markus.

  ​“That’s True John.” Had been Markus’s response. “He’s a platinum ranker. He keeps to himself mostly.”

  ​Platinum was the highest rank at the academy. They were those who had completed their training and were waiting for their commission to the front lines. They were masters of their technique and often knew a wide variety of Swordcraft. There were only ever two or three at the academy at any given time. Everyone wanted to reach Platinum, but few ever would. It was rumored that True John had the talent to reach the highest pinnacle of Diamond, but that remained to be seen.

  ​Watching True John take down the troll had driven me to learn the same technique that I had seen the platinum ranker use. Ever since then, I trained as often as I could to master the Sword Art, Crimson Blade.

  ​A heavy objected crashed down on the table next to me with a loud noise, the suddenness jolting me out of my thoughts and into clear alertness. I immediately sat upright and surveyed my surroundings, my hand going toward my weapon, looking for the danger.

  ​Around me, the other cadets in the class were watching me with smirks. Looming above me was the Cadre member that had been giving the lecture. She stood with her arms crossed over her chest. Evidently, she’d adopted the pose after she had dropped the heavy book on my desk.

  ​Even after Markus’s warning, I had fallen asleep in class.

  ​“Well, Mr. Valdanes. If you’re that tired, maybe some extra duty in the stables after class will help wake you up, eh?” She commented, obviously annoyed that I had fallen asleep.

  ​I groaned but took it in stride. After all, I had no excuse. I did fall asleep. This one is completely on me. Punishments such as this were common in the academy. Just like the hazing of the lower classmen, there was no malicious intent behind it. Just the intent to keep cadets in line and build up their character. I made a mistake, but it wasn’t the end of the world. Besides, I had gotten stable duty before and as far as extra duty was concerned, I really could have gotten a lot worse.

  ​I really need to take Markus’s advice and start getting more sleep. As
soon as I’m done today, I’m falling face first into my bed and not waking up till the reveille.

  ​The rest of the class went by with no other issues. I paid close attention as the lecturer told us about distinct classes and races of the undead. More than once the instructor turned an eye my way to make sure I was still awake. One of the other Cadet’s discretely offered me a rubber band, and I readily accepted it. Every time I started to nod off, I snapped myself with it. It’s not as good as standing up, but it will have to do.

  ​Finally, the class ended, and it was on to the next training session. I managed to get through the second bout of physical training, but midway through the pre-dusk run in the obstacle course, I began to really feel my fatigue. After the obstacle course, we were all called for an end of day formation by one of the older Cadre members, a man named Peter the Shrike who was rumored to have once been a high-ranking officer.

  ​“Cadets! You are dismissed. Except for you extra duty. You know where to go. Everyone else, get cleaned up, and get changed into your casuals. Fall out!” He shouted.

  ​Oh well, there was nothing to be done about it. With any luck my stable duty would go quickly, and I could be in bed not too long after everyone else. With nothing else to do but avoid further trouble, I made my way to the stables.

  Chapter 2: Quarterly of the Kingdom

  * * *

  ​By the time I made it across the academy grounds to the stables, the sun had begun to dip below the horizon. The evening was fast approaching. Wonderful. I’ve still got a lot to do once I get there. I don’t want to be stuck in the dark shoveling manure again.

  ​I kept my head down and ignored the snickers of a few of the other cadets. It wasn’t long until I saw the red brick path that led up the hill towards the stables and walked in. I, much to my relief, found there were very few horses that I needed to clean up after, which meant my workload was a lot less than I assumed it would be. Of course. I should have realized that. It’s because of the quarterly update. Most of the Cadre had to travel to the capital for the report.

  ​“Lucky me then.” I muttered as I quickly grabbed a pitchfork and a wooden wheelbarrow and tossed a few squares of hay for the remaining horses. I wasn’t really supposed to, but a little extra food always made them a bit friendlier towards me. I counted my blessings and got to work. I’d like to still get some sleep at a decent hour.

  ​As one might guess, the quarterly update happened once every three months. During that time, a large number of the Cadre from the academy would report to the capital to update the inner leadership of the Kingdom. The inner ring consisted of a group of generals who were responsible for overseeing the Kingdom’s military. It was also when changes to academy curriculum and rules regarding commissioning into service of the kingdom were laid out.

  ​If I have my way, that’ll never be me. The last thing I want is to get stuck doing some administrative tasks like a common clerk. I had a goal aside from honing my skill with the blade. I intended on ascending all the way through the ranks, aiming for platinum so that I could join the frontline in the wars to come alongside the senior members of my clan. I would start my own legend.

  ​Though the quarterly seemed like it was the only way for some of the Cadre to get any excitement anymore. I knew traveling on the open road for the quarterly was often just a thinly veiled excuse to see old friends and comrades and spend some time away from the academy. It was also why so many of the Cadre opted to go. The only other real excitement were the rare occasions when monsters managed to find their way on to the academy grounds.

  ​I suppose being a member of the Cadre wouldn’t be all that bad. I thought as I shoveled manure. At least I wouldn’t have to do this anymore.

  ​While many of the Cadre weren’t masterful enough to ascend to the rank of platinum and take their place on the front lines, they were considered highly capable. Cadre members were primarily made up of former gold rankers who did not have that final push to ascend further, be it from lack of drive or injury. The only thing that separated Cadre from gold rankers was the distinction between still being a cadet and being a teacher or mentor. I couldn’t imagine going through all this training, only to end up stuck here after.

  ​Not having what it took to ascend did not make them weak, at least as most would define it. In fact, it made them more versatile. Where other cadets of varying ranks would choose a weapon to specialize in and eventually master, it became the duty of the Cadre to become proficient in a variety of weapons so that they could teach that variety to all the cadets that came through the academy.

  ​They were not masters of any one set of techniques in either Swordplay or Swordcraft. But what they had was a wealth of knowledge they’d gained regarding skills and techniques to better tech.

  ​I was beyond determined to take my place on the front lines, but there had been members of my clan before me who had gone on after service to become members of the Cadre at some of the various Academies throughout the Kingdom. Although it was considered a lower calling, it was still seen as a respectable path. If you did not have what it took to fight for the Kingdom, then the next best thing would be to teach those who did.

  ​Besides, part of being a good cadet, showing the qualities of a good leader, being somebody, the Kingdom wanted was to take the punishments you were given. Lost in my thoughts, I was able to make quick work of emptying the stables of manure. I wheeled it out and dumped the load in a sinkhole just a bit behind the stables. When I was done, I fed and watered the horses. Finally, and not because I had to, but because I liked the horses, I grabbed one of the fine bristle combs and started to clean their coats.

  ​Although the work was menial, it was also relaxing. There was something about the steady breathing of the horses that put me at ease. Of all the duties that could be divvied out, I had found that I preferred this one. If I’d studied the spear instead, I could have been a Horse Lord.

  ​I was rocked out of my thoughts by the sound of a massive explosion nearby. The horses started to neigh nervously, and I backed up and ran out of the stables to check out what was going on.

  ​“What’s that?” I shouted, sure that nobody could hear me over the noise. The effect on my senses was instant. My body grew tense and alert. Every instinct of mine was screaming danger.

  ​Quickly, I ran back into the stables to grab my Katana from where I’d stored it while working and started to run down the hill back towards the academy grounds. I looked around to see what had caused the noise. Where did the noise come from?

  ​But what came for me next was not anything I could have prepared for or fought off. Heading straight toward me over the grassy terrain of the training field was a cloud of thick noxious black smoke that trailed high. It was so thick, it blocked out the sun and left everything in a haze. The cloud rose higher than anything I had ever seen, and before I knew it, I was completely enveloped within it. A terrible smell filled my nostrils, a smell I didn’t recognize.

  ​The thick haze smoke was blinding and made my eyes water as my vision started to waiver and my breathing grew heavy. I need to protect myself. I made an effort to pull my duty uniform over my nose, but the smoke had already gotten to me.

  ​Suddenly, I was filled with a fatigue that had nothing to do with my sleepless night. It was as if my entire body had gotten too heavy to bear. I did my best to fight off the sensation, but I quickly succumbed and fell to the ground.

  ​My last thoughts as I drifted into unconsciousness were, I have to get up. I have to see what happened. People might need help.

  ​Distantly, I could hear screams. But by then I was well on my way to the realm of Somnus.

  Chapter 3: Dreamscape Summoning

  * * *

  ​When I awoke the first thing, I struggled with a sense of vertigo and strangeness. I noticed was not the absence of the stables, but rather a deep feeling of dread within me.

  ​“Where am I?” I muttered as I picked myself up off the ground, but my wo
rds seemed odd and far off, like they were soundless while still echoing. The earth beneath me was undisturbed as I moved. It was as if I was a ghost.

  ​An odd feeling drew me, a magnetism I just couldn’t ignore that pulled my attention and I looked down the hill towards the training field. Past the muddle field in the distance was a gigantic crimson portal. From the portal emerged monsters of all kind and darker things that I didn’t recognize. What’s going on?

  ​Instinctively, I reached for my sword, but my hand passed right through it. Am I dead? Is that it? Why can’t I grab my sword?

  ​A familiar voice called out to me, and though I looked around, I saw no one.

  *Familiar Voice*

  No Tristan. You’re not dead. At least not yet. You’ve been summoned here. What you see before you is a portal of the apocalypse. The Portkey, it is one of the only remaining fixtures remaining in the skyline. Within that portal is the Hollow, named for the impossible realm contained within it. A world of ancient and forgotten magic. Of eldritch beings. A world unreachable to us.

  ​“Who are you?” I asked? “What is this place? Where are we? Why can’t I see you?”

  *Familiar Voice*

  So many questions. This is the Academy of Arcadia. The ruins of it at least. A better question would be when. This is the not so far off future. A future that must never be. As for who I am, I’m close to you, and that is why you cannot see me. But I will do as I can to help you. Now and forever more.