Sometimes, people didn’t know when to stop unless they were stopped completely. Silas had learned that long ago. Most people pushed once, sometimes twice, and backed off when they realized that he wasn’t an easy target. But Damien wasn’t most people: he enjoyed pushing and escalating things.

If Silas had known how far it would go this time, he wouldn’t have stepped out of his room at all.

The morning had started normally for most. Silas had had a good time chatting with his system and learning stuff. His intelligence stat even increased by a few points. All was good.

Valecrest’s main training corridor was already active when he passed through it. Students are trained here between classes, pushing their limits under loose supervision. He walked through the corridor without slowing, hand in his pockets. As always, whispers followed him. To be honest, it had become so outmoded and boring that he couldn’t try to care about it.

"Pinky..."

"That’s him..."

"Don’t get close..."

Silas felt it before he saw it, a shift, subtle at first. The air thickened slightly around his legs... he knew who it was instantly. He didn’t react or even look because doing any was what Damien wanted. He kept walking when something totally unexpected happened. His instincts screamed in warning as gravity spiked violently and hit him like a hammer.

His body slammed downward, his knees buckling. The reinforced floor cracked slightly under the force, a dull shockwave rippling outward. Silas caught himself on one hand, but even that cost him. The pressure bore down on his spine, his shoulders, and his skull. It wasn’t just weighing him down. It was compressing him. Every muscle in his body strained at once, veins tightening under his skin. His breath hitched as his lungs struggled against the unnatural force trying to crush the air out of him.

A few students gasped, stepping back out of fear.

"Damien," Silas growled under his breath, clenching his jaw. A slow clap echoed from the far end of the corridor.

"Wow," Damien’s voice carried, amused and sharp. "Didn’t think you’d drop that fast, Pinky."

Silas’s vision flickered slightly at the edges. The pressure wasn’t increasing anymore, but it wasn’t easing either. It held him there: It was the perfect trap. His hand dug into the floor, his fingers scraping against it as he tried to push himself up. The moment he did, the gravity shifted sideways. His arm gave out instantly, his body slamming hard against the ground with a sickening thud. Pain shot up his shoulder, sharp and immediate, while laughter rippled throughout the corridor.

His chest tightened as he forced his head up, his pink eyes locking onto Damien.

"Done?" he asked, voice low.

Damien tilted his head, smiling. "Not really." His fingers twitched. The gravity intensified again, enough to hurt. Deep, grinding pain pressed into Silas’s muscles, forcing his body to strain to exist under it. And the worst part? There were teachers; two of them stood at the edge of the corridor watching it all happen. One adjusted his glasses, and the other sighed, as if this was an inconvenience to his morning, but neither moved to stop what was happening. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Silas saw it, and something inside him snapped. He stopped trying to stand, stopping resistance entirely. Instead, he shifted and waited, then, in one sharp motion, twisted his body into the pressure instead of against it. Using the forced momentum, he rolled just enough to break the center of the gravitational hold. It hurt, but he pushed through, and it worked.

Silas surged up to one knee, then to his feet. The gravity dropped instantly as Damien released it the moment control was threatened. He stood there, breathing hard, his uniform slightly torn at the sleeve, with his hair disheveled, and his eyes burning. The corridor went quiet.

"See? You’re fine," he said casually. "No need to get dramatic," Damien smirked. Silas didn’t respond or look at him, or at anyone. He turned and walked away. He was... done. No one laughed now. By the time he reached the end of the corridor, his jaw ached from how tightly he’d clenched it. His shoulder throbbed with every step. His entire body felt like it had been wrung out and slammed back together.

What angered him the most were the teachers. That image served as a reminder of his standing in the academy. The teachers did nothing when the rules clearly spoke against the use of abilities on a non-awakened. They didn’t mind turning a blind eye if it involved him. Should they have seen him overpowering Damien, it would have been a different matter.

He exhaled sharply and changed directions toward the dormitory blocks, to his room. He knew that if he stayed any longer, he might do something he might regret.

***

The walk back felt longer than it should have. Silas didn’t rush to the dormitory. Each step he took was steady and too controlled. His shoulder throbbed with every movement, a dull, constant reminder of Damien’s little "lesson."

By the time he reached the dorm corridor, the usual noise had thinned out. Most students were in class. The hallway was quiet and almost peaceful until he saw his door.

He slowed as he felt that something was wrong. At first, it was just the position. The door wasn’t fully closed. It hung slightly open, just enough to create a thin line of darkness between it and the frame. As he got closer, the smell hit him. It was rotten, thick, and heavy, making his nose wrinkle.

He stopped right in front of his door and saw the cause. Garbage. It was spilled across the floor in front of his room like some kind of offering. Plastic wrappers, half-eaten leftovers, and crushed containers leaking unidentifiable sludge. Dark stains were spreading slowly across the tiles, sticky and foul. It was at least three days old, maybe more. Someone had taken their time to do this.

He didn’t move. For a few seconds, he just stood there. Then, slowly, he pushed open the door, and the smell hit him harder.