Ernest: Apex Threat

Ernest was a young man. He came from a family of scarce resources but he managed to save enough to move from his rough neighborhood in Whyalla to the much more forgiving Adelaide. He had hopes of studying and becoming someone important... Farmer business was not his thing.

His hope for progress was born the instant his father read a letter. He was admitted in the University of Adelaide, thanks to a RBE pathway. He studied a lot for his UMAT and earned the 20th place among the 25 that were available. Ernest always dreamed about becoming a doctor, he fantasized about saving people the same way his mom did... He's sure that she is proud, looking down and rooting for him... If it weren't for those darned ticks and their paralysis...

Ernest arrived at North Terrace the day after the letter arrived. He was so excited! The university was very different from what he was used to see, for starting, he didn't see the smallest drop of seawater. That was a bit of a turn off, as Ernest was used to see the sea every day but at least he still got fresh air and a beautiful sky to look up.

The welcome committee was very kind, if a little enthusiastic. They showered Ernest with many welcome gifts and things like "You won't regret this!" and "We are so glad to have a new member!" They were a bit suffocating, but Ernest was too kind to demand being alone... Besides, it was his first  day at college! How he could deny such good treatment?  The male leader of the committee, a guy with prescription glasses, showed Ernest around before assigning him his dormitory.

The first day was very exciting and Ernest got to meet his Biology teacher. He was an imposing man, with  spiky black hair and freezing gray eyes. He wore light clothes, so light, that made him look like he was coming from a gym or something. He also had a little necklace, the pendant was a yin-yang symbol colored uniformly blue instead of black and white. When a curious Ernest asked the teacher about it, he simply said that he didn't like contrasting things.

Although good, Nile was very cold and unemotional. If it weren't for his profession, anybody would mistake him for a sociopath. He made it clear on his first class...

"You better adapt and be successful, or remain static and become extinct."