Chapter 1

Chapter One
Cordan
A Beginning

The first day of school came around like any other. The students came to school like any other year. They met up with their friends, told each other about their holidays, and picked on the younger students. All in all, it was a normal day. Except for one thing.

The fool noticed him first. A lone child, sitting at the back of the classroom; The new kid. He sat with one of his feet on another seat, and the other tucked up beneath it. The fool grabbed one of the chairs that had been moved away from the table, replaced it, and sat, not noticing the cold glare. "Welcome to Pa-ra-gon!" He said excitedly, yet clearly having trouble pronouncing the word. The new student made no reply. "My name is Timothy, but people call me Tim" More silence. Tim, losing interest quickly, motioned for his only friend to come over. The new one was large, short and angry; much like a dwarf from the old stories. "Well 'ous this then?" He said, motioning to the new kid. Before Tim could answer though, the teacher walked in and told them to sit at a different table. After the teacher, the rest of the class slowly filed in before the final bell. Most of them were too preoccupied with their conversations that they didn't notice him. Those that did simply glanced over at him, either hiding their curiosity or not having any.  They continued to talk amongst one another until a small, bespectacled girl delivered the roll to the teacher. "Alright everybody!" The class fall quiet. "Welcome to your newest year of education!" He said. The class looked up, their faces bored. "This year, we have a new student joining us. His name is... um... Cordan Wraith; A most unusual name, as it is. No offence meant" The class turned to Cordan. "None taken" His voice was low and dangerous. The class had to strain to hear it, yet none questioned it. There was something about him that scared them, a power that none of them had experienced before. He sat at the table furthest from the windows, and the shadows around him seemed to gather at his feet. No light seemed to be hitting him, and it was all but impossible to make out any details. But soon the bell rang, and the kids moved off to class with Cordan following behind them, alone.

Chase Wright was a Human male of about 5"8. He had dark brown hair, verging on black, which shone in the light, and a mischievous grin which was almost permanently on his face. Sitting next to him was Raven Misery, an angel amongst demons. She had long, straight black hair which fell across her face, shadowing one of her shining brown eyes. Her features were so delicate it seemed that her face was sculpted by the gods themselves. Her mouth curved upwards in a smile as she looked across the table to her friend Sapphire Blaze, a small, thin girl with wavy brown hair with a strip of purple running down the side. Next to Sapphire were two other girls, named Alaska Scale and Aayla Lupus. They both had shoulder length hair, Alaska's blonde and Aayla's brown, and were reasonably short, just smaller then Sapphire.  The five of them sat at a table away from the windows, and as the rest of the class took their places in the room they were left with the only free seat, next to Chase, on the opposite side to Raven. Cordan walked into the room, stood awkwardly in the centre, looking for a free chair. Chase waved his hand, gesturing for him to come over. Cordan obliged, his footsteps making no sound on the carpeted floor, and sat down. The teacher came in, wrote on the board for a few minutes and explained their work, then started wandering around the class aimlessly, attempting to help people. Chase watched as Cordan opened his book silently, and effortlessly answered each question. He was finished before Chase even started. And Chase was smart. Not just normal smart, but really smart. Cordan looked up quickly and Chase quickly turned his head to look like he wasn't staring, then picked up his own book and started the work.

After an  hour of quietly conversing with Chase and learning everyone's names, the bell rang and the teacher dismissed them. The rest of the class filed out of the room, but the teacher held Cordan back. He handed him a small card. It read:

Paragon Boarding College
Annual Presentation Ball
For all students' years 7-12
Time: 7pm Tuesday
Place: Paragon Grand Hall

"Every student is invited." Explained the teacher. "After recess report to the office and I will give you a tour of the school." Cordan nodded, then left the room. He headed to the schools canteen alone, avoiding the few students that had so far filtered out from their dorms. Cordan got a cola from the canteen and took a seat at a table away from the door. He didn't particularly want to be the subject of a stranger's questions. He opened the drink and took a sip, the bubbles popping as it ran down his throat. It was quite different to what he was used to, but he liked the feeling. A wave of voices was carried over to him from the direction of the door, causing him to look up, and see Chase Wright enter with his friends. Chase smiled, and then motioned for his friends to sit down at one of the tables before walking over to Cordan. "Do you mind if I sit down?" He asked. "Not at all." Replied Cordan in that voice. "I never got a chance to thank you for letting me sit with you today, so thank you." He said. "It's my pleasure." replied Chase. "Are you going to the Presentation Ball?"
"If I can make it, I am still settling in here."
"Oh, where's your room?"
"North dormitory, room 12."
"Really? Mine is across the corridor from that, room 13. If you need some help unpacking your stuff later, just ask."
"Only if you want to give up your lunchtime for it."
"It's no problem, we have a whole year of them." Chase smiled again, then stood up. "I had better get back to the others and make sure they're not getting into too much trouble. I'll see you round Cordan."
"Goodbye Chase."

And Cordan was alone again, sipping on that cool, dark drink.
Cordan stepped into the large circular building that was the schools office just as the bell for the end of recess rang. The teacher from the morning's class was there, standing with his back to the door and looking at his watch. The office was a large circular room with various intersecting corridors running through it. The office itself was composed of a U shaped desk extending from a wall, with chairs on the inside for the staff. The teacher looked up and walked over. "I am Mr. Britta. Don't worry about your current class, I have already spoken with your teacher, and the class is mostly for catch up anyway. Well, follow me, and I will show you Paragon Boarding College." The school was rather impressive. 3 stories tall, and situated in the middle of a forest, it was on a block of 300 acres. About half of this was overgrown by the forest, and the block itself was surrounded by a 12 foot stone wall. The actual school was quite modern, yet designed in the style of medieval castles. It was a mass of archways and bridges, towers and windows. It was a brilliant sight. The college was made not from stone, but a blue tinted form of concrete, reinforced with titanium bars running through it. The interior was beautiful, white marble decorated the walls and floor, and a blood red carped ran up the centre of it. The first floor contained the school's Gymnasium, pool and sporting facilities, the great hall, the dining hall, and various classrooms. The second floor held the east and west dormitories, and more classrooms. The third floor was raised on two sides for the North and South dormitories, and in the middle was a large tower, and the roof, which housed 2 helipads, one of which held a small helicopter for ferrying supplies to and from the school. The tour ended at the North dormitories. "It's only a half day today, so students can get settled into their rooms. If you need anything else, just ask for me, Okay?"
"Okay." Replied Cordan. Mr. Britta strode away in the direction of the elevators, most likely heading towards the Staff Dorms. Cordan headed to his room, but when he got to the door, he hesitated. Then turned around, and knocked on the door of room 13.