Chapter 34: Delving Deeper with Audiobook

By: Asa Montreaux

Life at The Andrews School continued in its strange mix of the extraordinary and the mundane. Students returned to their classes, mastering more advanced spells, while whispers of danger and terror swirled around them like an unseen storm. Magic classes had grown more challenging, and the spells they were learning now held more weight. What once had been abstract lessons on defensive wards and levitation had become tools that might soon be necessary for survival.

In "Advanced Spells and Conjurations," Professor Terrence had begun teaching them the fundamentals of long-distance communication spells, enchantments that allowed wizards to send thoughts or messages across vast distances. Hugh paid close attention, his sharp mind absorbing the intricate patterns of the spell. As he watched other students practice in pairs, he couldn't help but think of how these skills could become essential—especially given what The Crimson Dawn was capable of. A single spell, wielded at the right time, could make the difference between stopping a catastrophe or watching it unfold.

But while everyone seemed focused on preparing for their next lesson, Hugh found himself growing distant from his friends, his thoughts spiraling inward. The deeper the threat grew, the more it felt like everything around him was slipping out of control. He had to do something—something more. 

After class, he didn’t join the others for lunch. Instead, he slipped away to the quiet seclusion of the library, retreating to the oldest wing where the shelves were filled with ancient, dust-covered tomes on telepathy, mental magic, and the mind's mysterious depths. The vast chamber was silent except for the soft rustle of pages being turned and the occasional faint flicker of a spell being cast by students practicing quietly. Hugh knew he had to go deeper into his own abilities—his telepathy, his unique gift. The answers weren’t going to be handed to him; he needed to find them himself.

He pulled an ancient book from the shelf, its leather binding cracked and worn. The title was faded but legible: *Mastery of the Mind: The Path to Deeper Telepathy*. 

He found a secluded corner and settled in, the weight of the book heavy in his lap. As he flipped through the pages, words about mental focus, meditation, and dangerous techniques for amplifying one’s telepathic abilities leapt out at him. Some of the spells described were forbidden—borderline illegal due to the risks they posed to the caster. But Hugh wasn’t afraid of pushing the boundaries. He needed to break through the barriers holding him back. The strength of his telepathy had grown since his arrival at the school, but there was something more—something deeper—waiting just out of reach.

Hours passed as Hugh studied. He practiced the visualization techniques the book described, learning to clear his mind, to focus on the essence of thought itself. He began attempting the first step in an advanced telepathic spell that would allow him to tap into the minds of those far away—without their knowledge. It wasn’t meant for spying exactly, but he knew it would be useful in the battles ahead.

As he sat in deep concentration, his mind reaching outward, something flickered—like a brief connection to something distant, foreign, and dangerous. It was like a radio-signal crossing wires, a flash of thoughts and emotions that weren’t his own. A cold, calculated feeling slid through his consciousness—an image of a control panel, dark figures standing before it, hands poised to override systems. And then, just as quickly as it had come, the image was gone.

Hugh’s eyes snapped open, his heart racing. 

Could it have been real? Was that a glimpse of what The Crimson Dawn was planning? He tried to shake it off as his imagination was running wild, but the sensation wouldn’t leave him. He could feel that this was the next step in their plan. It was bigger than just stealing guidance devices. It was about control—control over everything, from the physical world to the systems that kept it functioning. 

He got up and hurried down the hall, but the sounds of student chatter in the corridor felt distant, almost disconnected from what was swirling in his mind. Hugh walked past groups of students, oblivious to the gravity of what he had just sensed. Their laughter and casual gossip about exams or relationships felt trivial compared to the dark undercurrents he knew were brewing beneath the surface.

The gossip these days, however, wasn’t just about school dramas. Whispers about the scandals of their more famous classmates had spread like wildfire. Social media had become a breeding ground for rumors, with magic only half-hidden from public view. Wizards in training were learning to cloak their powers, but it was becoming harder to do in a world where everyone carried cameras in their pockets. A few classmates—particularly those from powerful magical families—had been caught on Instagram using small spells, carelessly showing off in their everyday lives.

Hugh overheard two girls near the entrance to the library whispering about someone in their year—Marcus Bentley—whose latest spell gone wrong had accidentally been captured and nearly exposed. His family had covered it up quickly, but the incident had left a scar. Students were growing reckless, the line between their magical and mundane lives blurring.

"Did you hear what he did last week?" one girl was saying. "Tried to show off for a bunch of non-magicals at a club. He thought he could pull off a quick levitation spell, but it backfired. They caught it all on video."2

"His family’s furious. They had to pay to have the footage scrubbed from the internet."

"Yeah, but you can’t erase everything. Some people already saw it."

Hugh shook his head as he passed them. The carelessness of some students was beyond frustrating. They were living in dangerous times, and there were those who still acted like it was all some kind of game.

But as reckless as some of his peers were, Hugh couldn’t shake the feeling that their biggest problem wasn’t exposure—it was The Crimson Dawn and whatever they were planning next. They were after more than control centers or guidance systems. 

Back in his dorm that night, Hugh tossed and turned, unable to sleep. His mind was churning with pieces of a puzzle he couldn’t quite fit together. Why would they target guidance systems first? Were they planning to shut down airports, or was it just a step toward something even bigger?

He pulled out a notebook and started jotting down every strange thought, every half-formed theory that came to him. At first, it seemed random—small attacks, targeted buildings, causing chaos. But the more he wrote, the more it became clear.

This wasn’t about a few buildings or even major cities. They wanted to dismantle the fabric of both the magical and non-magical worlds, leaving chaos in their wake. The bigger plan was far darker than anyone could have guessed.

And now, only three steps remained: finding out where The Crimson Dawn would strike next, figuring out how to stop them, and preparing for the fight of their lives.