Aturs, Year of Severus, 15, I.R., the 32nd day of Fall, Arenfall

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Arterius stood eagerly at the long table inside Lord Prestonheim's tent. The dim lighting from the torches made it hard for him to focus his thoughts. The flickering light of the flames made him more anxious than ever, as he tried to think of what to say to this freed slave his godfather was about to introduce to him.

He was excited to see a freed slave. It was the first time he'll ever get to see one. Prince Arterius' fascination with freed individuals stemmed from the stories he read about those slaves who rose to become outstanding members of society and some as heroes.

He always loved how the stories portrayed them overcoming their hardships and near-death experiences through sheer determination and will. To him, it was an inspiration that got him going despite his own hardships.

He rhythmically tapped his fingers on the wooden table as he waited and waited until finally, Stolas entered the tent bearing some good news.

"The freed slave would be here in a moment." The ward smiled as he took a glass of water and drank it. "Aghh…I still think that this is a bad idea. You cannot put this responsibility to a slave—I meant freed slave!"

"Nonesense, Stolas, if my godfather trusted him, then I think I should do too." The prince answered as he grabbed a chair to sit.

Stolas approached him and whispered in his ear, "I can't put a finger on it, but I don't trust him. He's too refined for a slave." Arterius looked at him with a baffled look on his face.

As soon as he finished, Lord Prestonheim, Commander Crovar and the freed slave came into the camp.

"Prince Arterius," Lord Prestonheim bowed. "I present to you Adaloun, the freed one."

The freed slave bowed his head low and greeted him, "Fair greetings, my Prince." He smiled. "I am the one they called Adaloun, a humble slave, freed by Lord Prestonheim."

Arterius examined the freed slave from afar, "Adaloun, you say." His eyes moved to scan Adaloun's body. His Ardant physiology stood out from the rest of them. "You have a fair amount exousia."

Adaloun looked at him baffled from his remark, "Pardon me, your Majesty, but can you gauge ones exousia through site alone?"

The prince noted how Adaloun felt uncomfortable he was with the conversation. "I-I am sorry for that remark…that was…insensitive of me." He stood up from his chair. "I didn't come here to ask you about your race, I came here for a more important matter." He gestured them all to sit.

"Did you bring that?" Arterius asked as he awkwardly tried to call the Aetherium by a different name, in fear that the freed slave may not know about it.

"When you say, THAT, you mean the Aetherium stone?" Adaloun pulled out a small smooth glowing stone from his pocket.

Arterius leaned over from table and reached out his hand, "Would you mind if I take a look?"

Adaloun looked at Lord Prestonheim hesitating about handing the stone to the prince. The prince saw Lord Prestonheim's eyes speaking with Adaloun's. The freed slave doubtfully gave the stone to the prince, passing it to Stolas.

His ward felt the stone in his hands and played it along his fingers before giving it to the excited prince. Arterius felt the stone in his hands. He lifted it up into the light and saw the pale blue lines rippling around the stone. For a second there, he thought that there was water inside the stone, but there was none. It was just a beautiful glowing stone that mystified philosophers and great minds from its first discovery a thousand years ago.

It has been written on one of the books he read, the mysterious and powerful Aetherium. A stone thought to have been made from a celestial body that had fallen from the sky. Its power had never been contested, in fact in some legends it has been said that Aetherium was a common weapon used by the gods and the early settlers of the known world.

The weapons were said to have transcended and ended wars as easily as they began. However, the damages it caused proved to be more than the gods had anticipated. Most of the weapons were gone by the end of the Age of Wonders.

The weapons were destroyed during a cataclysmic event that most philosophers and scribes debate until this very day. But one thing was for certain during that fateful day, the aetherium and aetherium-based weapons were wiped out from the face of the earth.

Prince Arterius looked at the stone once more and was mesmerized by its wonderful striations and ripples that seemed to be moving casually on its own. He remembered a scribe who wrote about a weapon exactly describing the ripples and striations of the Aetherium.

It has been said that the Prima Household held a vault that no one was able to find. His ancestors said to have kept the treasures of the races they have conquered in that vault. From the faerfolks mythical fleeces and gloves to the Eastern kingdoms black scythe. But in that vault, there was one weapon which they had kept in secrecy from the rest of the world. Legend has it, this was the weapon they used to unify the warring territories and created the Principalia that they've known today.

The pale blue spear of Semius Prima, the first of his name, the Xandata. It was said to be a spear gifted by the gods to them for their courageous service during the end of the Age of Wonders, but who knows? It could just be a myth. A way for the people to fear and respect their House and gain the power that they have enjoyed now.

Even if that story might be a myth, the stone he had on his hand wasn't. It felt like it was alive. He took aetherite from his pocket and placed it on the table. He felt the aetherium stone vibrate as he placed the artificial element on the surface of the table.

Everyone was at bated breath as they saw the aetherite reacting violently at the presence of the aetherium. The artificial stone bubbled and lit as if to explode. Stolas approached Arterius and yanked him out of the way while the old knights began to create a magic barrier on the table. The freed slave was pulled away from his table, but he seemed to be calm about the entire situation.

Arterius seriously thought about the reaction on his head. It wasn't the one he expected. He thought that the aetherite would simply move around the stone and vice-versa, but it was more than he had hoped for.

The aetherium leapt out from his hand and went into the violent aetherite. It hovered over the pale blue liquid before suddenly lighting up. The blinding light lit the entire tent forcing all of them to close their eyes.

At that point, Prince Arterius thought he made the worst mistake he could ever thought. They might die due to his miscalculation, but instead the light simply faded, and the stone dropped into the table in a gentle thud.

"I-is everyone alright?" Commander Crovar's voice cut through the silence.

Prince Arterius looked around as he slowly opened his eyes. Everyone was fine, the tent was still in its place, and everyone still had their limbs attached. The table however, looked burnt. Small veins of ember ran through the center of the table, the smell of burnt wood filled the air.

"Cough…cough…" The smoke from the burnt wood pierced his nose. "That's an awful burn."

"It was an awful idea." Stolas whispered in his ear. "We could've died!" His ward scolded.

"Prince Arterius," Lord Prestonheim called for his name. The prince looked over to where his godfather was. The old man was pointing at something on the table. "The stone, look at the stone."

Arterius' eyes widened as the stone seemed to be devouring the black burnt wood surrounding it. They could hear the wood crackle as the stone consumed whole table in front of them.

"Amazing!" Prince Arterius exclaimed.

"That stone consumes energy around it." Adaloun explained. "It will activate and devour the energy around it." He added.

"Impressive." Prince Arterius tried approaching the stone. Stolas had to yank him away from another dreadful mistake.

"Don't. Go. Near. It." His ward had to word it out for him.

The stone finally stopped consuming the remaining table and simply dropped to the ground. Adaloun stretched his hand towards the stone. It quickly floated and went back to him. Arterius was shocked to see such marvel.

He yanked away from Stolas and approached the freed slave with eyes filled with wonder, "H-how did you…do that?" He asked.

"This stone seemed to latch into an energy it fed on. Or so I think." The freed slave scratched his head, even he was still confused with the nature of the stone.

Prince Arterius didn't understand anything of what he just witnessed, but his mind got to thinking about the "what-ifs" and the uses this stone could be utilized for. He foresaw its potential and power to make the Principalia stand at the top of the world.

He smirked at the freed slave, "You say there's trove of that at the bottom of the mines?"

Adaloun nodded, "Yes there is but—"

"Let's mine them! Let's do it!" The Prince's eyes shone like that of his master's.

Crazily determined, and willing to risk it all.