As the students grew awestruck by Jack's tamed beasts, Jack continued discussing his lesson.
"Alright, let me tell ya 'bout the animals or beasts, I should say that are runnin' rampant across the world these days. They're split into three Groups: Prehistoric Class, Mutated Class, and Evolution Class. Now, you might reckon one class is tougher than the others, but nah, that's not how it works at all."
Jack added that the groups don't define a beast's strength, but rather describe how it is affected by the Origins. For humans, Primal and Evolved Origins affect the physical body and senses, while True Origin helps humans acquire supernatural abilities. True Origin doesn't just grant abilities, it also alters a human's normal build entirely. A perfect example of that are the winged students or people like Lavender, whose True Origins gave them strange forms or extra appendages that normal humans shouldn't have.
For plants and animals, it's different. As long as a beast or plant is corrupted by Origins, it undergoes a strange mutation or evolution.
The three beasts inside the Hunting Department venue also fit this criteria.
First is the Giant Magpie. Maggie was a mutated creature. Mutation usually causes an ordinary creature to grow in size and acquire enhanced physical traits.
Second is Kang, the Brutal Kangaroo. Kang was once an ordinary, skinny kangaroo from a zoo in Australia. But when Origins came, it evolved into a buff, muscular one, improving its instinct-driven skills and gaining new abilities. For example, from only knowing how to jump high, it could now learn to punch like a person.
Third and last is Ally, the Deinosuchus. Ally was once an ordinary alligator, but when it was exposed to Origin Energies, its body began to revert to what its ancestor once was. The alligator's prehistoric ancestors were giant reptiles known as Deinosuchus. These creatures were apex predators in prehistoric times, with appetites that included large animals... even dinosaurs.
All the students were baffled. They hadn't expected to see a living dinosaur today!
Jack looked delighted as his students listened eagerly, and so, he continued.
According to him, beasts are ranked by their strength. The weakest monsters are called Egg/Spawn Stage. These are newborn monsters from adult beasts and are usually guarded by their parents. After a few months, they hatch or evolve and enter the Juvenile Stage, a stage where they're still as weak as the previous one. When well-fed, the monster then enters the Adolescent Stage. In this stage, their food consumption increases drastically, and they need to hunt or feed more. If placed under certain conditions, they transform into their Adult Stage. During the Adult Stage, they acquire specific abilities and gain better control over them. So far, Adult Stage is the highest stage researchers have discovered within just a few days.
Normally, researching something this massive and controversial should take a lot of time. But within just five days of the Great Catastrophe, humans had already adapted and gained significant knowledge. It was amazing... to most people but not Raia. His suspicions only grew stronger. He began to believe that True Haven had seen this coming or worse, had done something to cause the catastrophe.
Jack also added to his lesson the effects of True Origins on animals or beasts.
Jack said True Origins affect monsters the same way they affect humans. A monster with a True Origin gains an abnormal ability.
"For example, this here's me mate, Maggie the Magpie. She's got this True Origin ability that lets her pierce through anything. It doesn't matter if it's the toughest diamond or the stretchiest rubber, she'll cut right through it, no worries."
To demonstrate, a hard metallic plate that's thicker than two people combined was lowered from the ceiling.
Jack blew his whistle. Maggie flapped her wings and took off. As she neared the metallic plate, she suddenly burst through it. The students only saw a blur, a shadow slicing through the air because of how fast Maggie had moved.
After her performance, Maggie flew down and landed beside Jack, who gently patted her feathers.
The onlookers roared in amazement as they saw the metallic plate. A clean, gaping hole was in the middle!
Students cheered for Maggie, surprised by the power of the bird. Some of them even wished they had Jack's powers so they could tame beasts of their own.
But of course, Kang and Ally wouldn't let Maggie steal the spotlight. They showcased their raw power as well. Though they weren't blessed with True Origin abilities, their sheer physical strength made up for it.
For example, when a metal slab appeared on the ground, Kang the Brutal Kangaroo punched it. The slab dented deeply, forming a crater-like hole. The students roared once more.
Ally showcased its massive jaw strength by gnawing a large chunk of the metal slab like it was cake. The crowd was astounded, screaming the names of the beasts.
After the animal talent show, Jack showed the students pictures from the archive of True Haven, the images of beasts discovered so far. He showed nearly 300 creatures but didn't explain them all, as they would be covered in future classes.
Right at lunchtime, the class ended. Jack bid farewell to his students. As they left, Jack faded into the dark shadows of the venue. He reappeared in one of the seats where Raia was standing.
Raia, startled by the sudden appearance of his instructor, instinctively moved into a defensive stance. His foot shot out toward Jack's face but Jack caught it easily.
"Still so powerful. My choice has never been wrong," Jack said, leaving Raia confused. He had no idea what Jack was referring to.
Jack looked at Raia with a weirded expression, then sighed.
"You are so committed, aren't you? Anyway, good luck." Jack finger-gunned Raia, then disappeared.
Raia's face twisted in confusion. His instructor's strange behavior had truly gotten under his skin. He had no clue what Jack was talking about. When his friend Arman called out to him, Raia set aside his thoughts for now.
Outside, they saw students lining up beside the venue. There were tables and chairs under tents. It was a free lunch program provided by True Haven so that students wouldn't need to spend their True Credits mainly on food.
The meal was a standard balanced one: fried veggies, a saucy rib, steaming white rice, a brownie bar, and a glass of pineapple juice. Raia was surprised by how generous True Haven was with the food. He remained skeptical though. They were in the middle of a calamity, yet True Haven still managed to provide such abundant meals. He understood that students needed proper nutrition for their classes, but something felt off.
Still, Raia didn't refuse the food. In his culture, it was disrespectful to turn away food that was given.
After lunch, they proceeded to their next class... Combat Class!
The Combat Class venue was located right next to the Hunting Class venue, so they arrived just in time. Raia and Arman entered and saw there were no seats or chairs, only a wide ring in the center. The space was like the Hunting Class venue, but instead of seating, there was only a large, empty space and a boxing ring.
Students sat on the ground around the ring, waiting for the instructor.
Once all the students had gathered, footsteps echoed from the north side of the venue. A door opened, and a figure emerged. He was over six feet tall. His blonde hair and blue eyes stood out, but for the girls, it was the dominant way he moved, his huge, muscular body that made them swoon. He wore a fitted grey t-shirt, camo cargo pants, and black boots.
As he stepped into the ring, Raia got a better look at him. He squinted and tensed. It was the General he had met at the airport.
"Good morning, students of True Haven. I'm General Matthias Toxinco. I will be your combat instructor for this Combat Class. In this class, you will discover the combat style that best suits your powers and physique. But first, I must test your combat strength. As you can see, there are five classes present today. I've reviewed everyone's data and selected the top five students with the best physique and highest Origins count from each class. I will now call them, one by one, to join me in the ring."
The students gasped. Some already knew they weren't among the top five while others still held hope.
"Let's call the first student, from Class B, B-016." Someone from the north side of the venue stood up and walked toward the ring, wearing a hood that concealed their face.
"Student of Class D, D-002." A girl from the west side of the venue stood up. Raia noticed her athletic build. She looked like a female weightlifting athlete, wearing a perfectly fitting pink t-shirt and jogger pants.
"Come on up, student of Class F, F-028." From the east side of the ring, a frail-looking person stood and stepped forward.
"For Class H... H-008." When General Matthias said Raia's codename, he looked directly at Raia.
Raia's eyes met his with fiery intensity. Raia stood and walked toward the ring.
His hostility toward Matthias was obvious. He still hadn't forgiven the General for the intense headache that had left him unconscious for three days.
Matthias broke eye contact and announced the final student. "From Class J, J-035."
From not far behind Raia, someone in a jacket walked up, tailing him to the ring.
When all five students were assembled, Matthias explained the reason they had been called. Raia now noticed a small microphone on his shirt, the reason why everyone could hear his voice clearly through the hidden amplifiers.
"Now that you're all here, I'll give you your first task. If any of you can make me drop to the ground, I'll give that person a personal training session... and they'll be exempt from all exams and quizzes for the rest of the school year."
Raia and the others gasped at the General's offer.