There’s a funny thing about being a baby in a sea of new experiences. It numbs my mind. My thoughts feel like they’re wading through a thick mist with a small light to guide them. Emotions and fears cloud every step. They only got worse when I was amped up and excited.

I watched balls of fire cascade into a rainbow formation and fall down onto a gathering of metal dummies. I was in full baby mode, clapping my hands together and squealing with delight. Baby me had the ultimate laid-back attitude.

Spires struck into the sky and stone walls stretched beyond my sight in the Zodiac complex. We’d even passed a zoo, but I hadn’t been able to see the animals inside.

“We have the best independent fighting units in the country.” Marv leaned over the parapets and gestured grandly at the destroyed dummies. “If you hear those Athena guys claiming otherwise then they’re liars and charlatans.”

I gurgled happily. The wall was smooth, made by machines. Or magic. The group of magicians waded through the melted dummies, checking the damage they had wrought. Some of the metal had melted completely, others didn’t have a single mark to show for the fireball’s effort. Each magician had a bronze mask on and refused to take it off even in the warmth of the mid-day sun.

My father squeezed me tighter as I struggled in his hands. I wanted to see more. The sky shimmered with a faint teal light, magicians roamed the grounds, and I could hear the sound of sword fighting. It was a dream come true.

I just had one question.

Did we have to bring the bird?

The puffer preened cockily as it looked down on me from my father’s shoulder. Its belly spread out in all directions, it weighed more than me. I poked my tongue out at it. Its crooked leg shot out and pushed the edge of my blanket off me.

This guy.

I sniffed at it and looked away. It didn’t deserve my attention. There were magical shows and otherworldly wonders to watch.

“Well now, seeing is one thing, understanding is another.” Marv waved his hand, and the next round of fireballs flew into the air. “You scripters don’t do the magic part of the process, right?”

My body rattled from side to side as my father shook his head. He was not a subtle man.

“Well, that won’t do for our young friend here. I won’t be there every time to explain things to him, so I’m going to give you the basic rundown of how this works.”

“That way I get to answer the constant and annoying questions.”

“You said it.” Marv smiled.

I huffed. I wasn’t going to be annoying. I was going to be adorable. No. I chided myself. I’m here to learn so that I don’t have to rely on them.

“The first thing you have to know is that we call any skill that uses mana a spell. And spells cost a lot of mana.” He paused. “Do you have any spells, Teral?”

My father shook his head.

“Good. The complete basics it is.” Marv raised a hand over his brow to cover the glare of the sun. “Look at those dummies closely. Some are destroyed, others are unharmed. Obviously, the difference is in skill level-”

Obviously. I scrambled to write this all down in my mind.

“-what you might not know is that each spell uses the same amount of mana. Unless you have a bloodline, regent or skill that decreases mana usage cost. But those are rare and I know people that would tear you limb from limb for knowledge on how to unlock them.”

I shuddered. His tone shifted, and his eyes narrowed. “Those aren’t the kind of guys we employ, but you never know who you’ll meet. Make sure your son never reveals his skills unless it’s necessary.” He turned around. “On a lighter note, this also means that if he gets training early, his skills will be much more valuable. You said he can only shoot out dirt, right?”

Yeah, that’s right. Got a problem with my dirt, Marv? Don’t forget I can blackmail you.

I’m joking. Maybe.

I don’t have enough blackmail material yet.

“That’s great.” Marv’s enthusiasm was infectious. “If he’s attuned towards nature then he can probably learn more of the earth-related elemental skills. Those guys… well I’ll show you.”

My father raised his hand. “And we can’t tell his attunement until we measure his mana, right?”

“Five years.” Marv chirped. “Hey, Indra!”

A bronze mask walked towards us at Marv’s call. It was tough to differentiate everyone when they all looked the same. I don’t know how Marv did it. I squinted towards the new man’s mask. It had slightly different etchings, but I don’t know how Marv saw them from so far away.

“Yeah?”

“Can you show us the living wall?” Marv’s eyes sparkled.

“Oh ho.” Indra turned towards us. “Our guests want to see the famous living wall of Zodiac! Well, why didn’t you say so?”

“I did say so, Indra.” Marv moved aside to let the man work.

I stared down at the stone underneath us.

Was this wall alive?

I didn’t feel any trembling underneath my feet. No rhythmic earthquakes that suggested something large was breathing. It looked like an ordinary wall.

Indra stamped his foot on the ground, and something bright hit my eyes. I blinked away tears and forced myself to see the magic, and then I stopped struggling and stared slack-jawed at the swirling cyclone of magical symbols in the air. Blazing orange magic passed through my dad and I like we were invisible, and it centred around Indra’s feet. The symbols peeled out of the air and onto the stone wall, and with a shift of his shoe Indra broke off a piece of the wall and kicked it into the air.

No.

He hadn’t kicked it. It was moving on its own. The stone moved through the air like a liquid, racing from side to side and wherever Indra directed.

“Once upon a time we used to have ordinary barriers protecting us.” Marv pointed up at the shimmering teal cloud in the sky. “But then we realised we had all these walls for invasions and if magicians got their magic past the barrier then we couldn’t do anything. Even a single high ranked fireball can do so much damage. We don’t want to lose a single friend.” Marv turned his attention to the symbols below Indra’s feet. “Some smart eggs in another section made this ritual for us. The only one of its kind in the world.”

The liquid stone buzzed past us, and I let out the breath I’d been holding. It came out a mist. I stared at it, and realised I was growing colder. Then something appeared in front of me. A spear of ice flew through the air from Marv’s hand, and I watched it soar in an arc above the wall.

The liquid stone shifted and raced up towards the spear and enveloped it like glue on paper. The spear immediately stopped moving, and then the stone brought it down to the ground, letting go of it. The spear fell down onto the ground, useless.

“That’s just a small section.” Marv’s chest puffed out. “We need fifteen trained magicians with a nature attunement to make this baby fully operational. We have twenty at the base at all times.”

He clapped Indra’s back. “We haven’t had a battle here in over fifty years. Your son can have a pretty comfortable life here doing a lot of nothing.”

Indra gestured with his fingers at Marv, his thumb and pointing finger raised, but then froze when he saw me staring. He tucked away his hand sheepishly.

Some kind of rude gesture?

I’ll make sure to keep this important information in mind.

“It was something I’d always heard about. But seeing it in person is…” My dad looked shaken.

I felt bad for him, but then the liquid stone zipped past my face, and I reached out to grab it.

“No.” My father swatted away my hand.

“It’s okay.” Indra said. “It won’t hurt him.”

The stone dropped into my hands, and I giggled joyfully. It felt like putty. The material slipped through my fingers as I ran my hands through it, covering me. It didn’t feel heavy. I concentrated on it, trying to make it move with my mind.

This is what earth manipulation would let me do, right?

“I think your baby is going to poop.” Marv said.

I stopped concentrating.

The people around me laughed and the stone flew out of my hands and back towards Indra. The symbols blazed orange again, flying into the air. The liquid fell to the ground and merged with the greater wall, and then Indra kicked at the ground and the orange symbols flew into his robes.

Even the puffer was impressed. It jumped off my father's shoulder and pecked at the spot the liquid had disappeared into, its fourteen claws clacking against the solid material. Then it gave up and flapped back up to its spot.

“You don’t use your hands to cast?” My father shifted me around so that I could see the two magicians fully.

“When you’re working with a wall it’s better to use your feet.” Indra said.

Marv coughed. “What he means is no. We don’t have to use our hands for magic. Kids usually do it because it’s easier to imagine, but magic can come from anywhere.”

What? We don’t have to shoot it from our hands?

I stared at my palms in betrayal. I thought the dirt was firing from them because it had to. I was doing it wrong the whole time. I could have been kicking dirt into the air…

Or shooting it like a dragon!

The majestic creatures that permeated legends and myths in my previous world. My mind flushed with images of me firing a breath of stones and rock spears at people. I could become a living earth dragon.

I squealed with delight, and immediately got to work. I raised my hand and spoke my skill name, shooting out dirt into the air from my hands.

Then I concentrated. I didn’t care if it looked like I was constipated, I wanted to fire a dirt breath. So far all of my magic was about visualisation. I imagined the image of a dragon in my mind, its fiery breath sweeping across towns and mines. It’s majesty fierce and it’s scales impenetrable.

I used my skill again, and this time the dirt was created from the tip of my lips, shooting out like the majestic fire of myth.

The puffer flapped its wings and half of it flew back into my mouth. My tongue was encased in dirt, my new baby teeth crunching on the powder and my throat’s gag reflex activated instantly. The taste of victory was replaced by an earthy grit.

Oh heck, friendly fire. I’m hit. Man down. If I die, tell my wife she never existed.

I looked up for help from the adults. They were all laughing at how adorable I looked as I choked to death.

“Now, now. I’m sure that is very uncomfortable.” A familiar voice called out from behind my dad.

I looked up, tears in my eyes from the unexpected dirt backfire. I could make out the glittering of the sun against a silver mask. It was the man that had visited my house with Marv.

The man hovered his hands above my head, and waves of dirt flew out of my mouth and into the air. I immediately felt better, the earthen taste disappearing.

My saviour.

“I was on my way to greet Master Wilhelm when I spotted you.” The silver mask ran another wave of his hands over me and sparks of dirt floated out of my mouth.

I could see each one encased in small drops of water.

“I will allow you to accompany our guests today.” The silver mask turned to look at my dad. “Perhaps there will be something to gain for all of us.”

“Sir, are you sure?” I could see the surprise on Marv’s face.

Silver mask nodded, and then turned towards me.

There was a gleam in his eyes.

“What a fast learner you are.”