The Apprentices were all feeling the same tension. The tension and inpatients that came when trying to expect the unexpected. They all knew it would be big. That was all they knew. The teachers didn't feel a thing however, so the day proceeded like any other.

As the students entered class they saw their teacher on stage enjoying the full effects of gravity. Sprawled across the podium as if to protect it from the elements he awaited death. Instead he got students.

"Oh. I was hoping that none of you showed up. If there are no students after fifteen minutes I can leave, so why could you all not have waited another fourteen minutes? I won't be teaching you anything, it is pointless. If you do not know it by now then this one lesson won't change anything. I suppose I should say goodbye. I am glad i will not have to see any of you again. Unfortunately you will all just be replaced with smaller and stupider people and I will be back at square one. I wish for a cohort filled with Adrians. He is the only one amongst you I actually enjoyed teaching and that is because he already knew everything. Now that you are here I suppose we must do something..." the teacher paused to think and scheme "You shall all do self study and revise while I supervise." He picked himself up and dragged a chair to the corner of the room where he supervised while resting his eyes.

The harbinger of wisdom stood high among the flock, like a god among men. He opened his book of lesser notes and began reciting for the people words of clarity.

"The society we stand upon today is one built upon the corpses of our fore founders. It is the result of being the awkward cousins of beings of such power that the world may very well revolve around them. We who have been neglected are now expected to act as proxy for the warmongering of these superiors. We are not called thieves because we steal artifacts from these beings, items wielding their very being. We steal something much more valuable. We steal hope from the hands of fate, rebelling against a destiny of servitude. That is why robbery is such a horrendous act. It is the act of taking hope from your fellow man."

Adrian closed his book, packed up his things and departed the room with friends in tow. He had liberated the class with content worthy enough to appease their jailer. What he did not say were the extra notes within his private book. Notes filled with controversy, questioning the current society and the slovenly state of complacency in recent times due to the success of their ancestors.

They made their way out of the classroom ready to prepare for the climax of the first round of their war. Adrian was the only person walking normally, the others filled with overloaded nerves. As the only person among them with a sense of confidence Sam asked Adrian

"What do we do now?"

In answer Adrian reached into his pockets for the most important part of his plan, the item to set it all in motion

"Does anyone feel like playing cards?"

.......

Trozes was nervously pacing the room as all teenagers would do before facing an admirer. All sorts of fantasies were racing around his mind. In contrast Scrya was calmly sitting with a restless Mark and Damian. Scrya decided it was time to wake Trozes up

"You can stop pacing now. There is no date."

"What do you mean there is no date?! Are you telling me that the confession letter was faked? How could you know that?" It started with rage before finally turning to helplessness

"What I mean is that there was never a date, it is all a ploy by Adrian. He was playing you like a fiddle." it was the same coldness that trademarked Scrya

"H-he WHAT?!!! How Dare He Interfere With Such A Sacred Thing! We Need To Find And Kill Him NOW!!"

"We will. Just not now. He is not worth ruining your entire future for. Instead we will have people monitor their every movement and if they leave the Guild we will apprehend them. I want to show them that we win this round. How well do you reckon they would do in the final examination with a broken arm?"

Mark and Damian were starting to get really uncomfortable. Somewhere in life they had made a mistake, it was just a matter of where. Scrya needed to get them motivated

"Remember the rats."

They remembered the rats.

.......

In the forest at the proposed time Ley sat waiting. She tightened her coat around her as a book fell out of it's pockets. She recovered it as swiftly as possible. Any damage to this treasure would be catastrophic, she could not ruin it after all she had done to earn it. She was tempted to start reading these scriptures of wisdom when her target emerged from the bush.

"Ley? Why are you here? I was supposed to meet the secret...Ahhh." Trozes was dumbfounded. This was not part of the plan.

"I-I just thought that with the finals so near it was time to finally share my feelings." Just saying these words made her want to throw up. The only thing keeping her going was the book in her pockets.

"I don't really know any other way to say this. Trozes, I really like you." On the word you the observers rushed inwards like an implosion. Scrya, Mark and Damian were discovered hiding in their bush and pushed inwards with the horde. They were all dressed up in gorilla costumes and wielding wooden clubs. They made gorilla noises while trying to invert Trozes gang's bodies through blunt trauma. In the chaos Trozes looked around for Ley to protect her but failed to find her. Ley watched on from afar feeling the buds of sympathy sprouting from her heart. When she felt the book once more the bud was nipped. Everyone had a price. That book far exceeded hers. She opened up the first page and read aloud

"Greater Revision- By Adrian Beaucroft..."

.........

They sat around the dark room in absolute silence. The pressure was hurting their heavily bruised backs.

"So what happened?" Asked Mark, unable to withstand the pressure any longer.

"We lost the first round."

"Did we even get them once?"

"No. They spent the day playing cards."

"Then what do we do now?"

"We remember, with a cold fury. It shall be our drive. With it we will win. Permanently."