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Chapter 2 - Chapter 2

Jasper walked with his family as they traveled onto the stadium. The crowd was being entertained by some musical bands that his father had payed for.

The music suddenly ceased as an announcer's voice came on. "People of Fetherland! Today is a great day! It is Lord Silas' youngest son's Ceremony. We have come to see off the new spirit tamer in an identification of his spirit affinity. The Lords family will take to the stage!" He exclaimed as the whole family walked in step through a set of opening curtains.

Jaspers eyes were immediately blinded by the spotlights pointed at the family. Jasper walked steadily and maintained a decent smile and wave. His stomach felt strange as the family began sitting on expensive seats. He stood alone as he came to a stop.

All of his family was sat in a semicircle around him. Sweat started to appear on his forehead. A man held a baseball sized object under some silk. He approached Jasper and pulled the pink silk off, revealing a pulsing crystal.

As Jaspers eyes were drawn to the crystal, he became entranced in it's beauty. Inside were swirling colors of every shade. An infinite rainbow of spirit energy. But as Jasper peered in, he saw one color start to takeover. It slowly took over the colorful scene, filling him with dread.

The man kneeled before Jasper and spoke, "Take the crystal young master. May your spirit taming be as successful as the Lords." His voice was steady and strong. Jasper's face began to contort as he reached out for the crystal.

He shuddered as one color became more and more prominent. "No, no." He said under his breath. His eyes widened as his fingers grasped the crystal and lifted it.

The crystal swirled with grey energy as the air turned a little colder. There was a round of gasps and then quiet muttering and chatter. Jasper's stomach dropped as he stared at the grey crystal. He could smell the scent of death waft off of it. He turned to his father who stared back with a blank face. 'Dammit!' Jasper thought.

"Young master Jasper, has a necrotic spirit affinity!" The announcer tried to keep the mood up, but the mood was spoiled already.

Necrotic affinity was the least respected and most hated. It was considered by many as evil, and by many others as lesser or cheap. Most people who find out they have necrotic affinity quit their journey before it ever starts. It's difficult to find necrotic spirits, and many times they're powerful violent spirits. Almost every family has a story of a distant relative dying brutally via a necrotic spirit. People who have it are stereotyped as being dark murderers who have always been evil. Yet only one in a thousand people have the affinity.

Quickly, the family cleared the stage and were in the tunnels of the stadium. Jasper jogged past his siblings to talk to his dad. The energy was strange. There were a lot of different thoughts flying through the space.

"Father! This means nothing for my future. I can still do this! Didn't instructor Jaraiya say I had-" Jasper exclaimed.

"You will go immediately to your room. And you will stay there!" His father screamed in his face.

Jasper stumbled backward. The feeling of hopelessness was settling in. "Mother?" He muttered. She spared him no glance as her teal hair swished past him. Each of his siblings gave him a different look as they followed their parents to their transport vehicles.

Jasper looked devestated as he watched his family leave. He was cursed to live a bottom of the barrel life now. His back hunched and he began to crumble to his knees where he stood. His fingers grabbed at his face as he ran through his thoughts. The worst possible outcome had occurred. To think he'd been nervous of getting a 'weaker' affinity. Things couldn't be worse.

Jasper stumbled into his room 20 minutes later. His head was reeling as he sat on his bed. Such a rapid change in situation left his brain scrambled and unable to process anything. He felt a strong desire to give up, lay in bed and stare at the ceiling until it came crumbling down.

The trade of necrotic spirits was so limited due to the distaste of them. How would he ever get one without his parents help. One spirit would be enough to at least start. That's all he needed. He lay his head on the pillow and smothered his face with another one. He just wanted to melt into the bed and forget he existed.

Hours passed as his face remained in the pillow. His thoughts were slowly piecing themselves back together, but they were still far from being repaired. His normal logical thinking had dropped from his brain.

Time passed until he could hear the crickets chirping outside. Even then he didn't move for a few hours longer. Around 2 in the morning he finally got up to piss and as he was about to flop back into bed when he heard a small knock on the door.

Almost imperceptible, but Jasper had sharp senses. And after all the time of silence, the slightest noise becomes obvious. "Hello?" He whisper yelled. He slowly stalked over to the door where he peered through the keyhole.

The hall was empty through the small hole. Jasper waited 30 seconds and opened the door. His body was tense as he peered through the doorframe. No one was there. He crept forward and put his head into the hall. Nothing. It was like a ghost house. There hadn't been much noise since his ceremony.

It seemed like everybody hunkered down after the event. But something was on the ground in front of the door. A simple brown book. The letters on the front and spine were golden, and spelled 'The Drums of Liberation'. He looked up again to check if anyone was there.

Seeing no one, he brought the book in and closed the door quickly. 'Who could've put it there.' His thoughts raced to find a culprit. There were no servants that he was close to. He was also equally distant with most of his siblings. They interact often but there's no feeling of closeness among them. But what was the book about? He grabbed it and fell back into his bed. He wouldn't be able to sleep tonight, so why not read this mysterious book.

Jaspers crusty eyes blinked as he slammed the book shut. The birds had started chirping and the sun had almost risen. He stared at the book cover. The ending had come fast. He was enamored with the story. Books were always interesting to him, but this one stood out.

It told a story about a pirate whose only wish was to be free.Truly free. He fought a corrupt system and brought liberation where he walked. He freed people not only from their physical restrictions, but mental and spiritual ones as well. At the end of the story thousands of people followed him. His story ended with him being captured and executed.

Yet Jasper didn't feel sad. The main character had been a beautiful embodiment of freedom. The walls he'd been restricted by in the beginning melted off as the he became free. Jasper closed the book and set it on his nightstand. Now the sun had risen fully and the exhaustion was starting to weigh on his shoulders. His mind had been completely taken off of his situation.

Suddenly a strong knock sounded on his door. He groaned and stood up. "Come in." He said. His eyes were angrier now. He felt less bad for himself and more mad at his predicament. Immediately the mad look fell off his face as his father and mother entered.

His father wore a black suit with silver tones on it. He had a few clean silver rings and a watch. His strong eyebrows and strong jaw made him threatening.

Jasper's mother had a shrewd face, almost as if she was tasting something slightly distasteful all the time. She was still beautiful however, and had her smooth teal hair tied up in a bun. She wore a tight purple dress with golden trim at the bottoms and cuffs.

His father cleared his throat and gestured for Jasper to sit on his bed. Confused, Jasper sat down. "We've been talking. Your mother and I think it's best if you leave. Your affinity is a mark on this family, and if you remain here it'll only worsen our status." His father explained.

Jasper eyes narrowed as he waited for his father to finish. "We would request you to never connect any of your actions to our family. We would like you to not acknowledge that you were a part of this family. Your siblings will cut contact with you. Please never contact us again." He finished.

Jasper chuckled to himself a little bit. "Straight faced the whole time." He commented. His father's emotionless stare turned almost angry before Jasper bowed before him. "I'll pack my things."

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