I stood in the doorway observing the damnedest thing I’d ever seen. Kevin in his brown gherkin and trousers was accompanied by two mages, one dressed in red and the other in green. All were performing some unknown ritual. They brought their knees up to slap their hands midair, left, right, left, and repeated for a good 30 seconds. Next, they jumped while simultaneously bringing their hands up in an arc and their feet out. After landing they jumped again, this time bringing all their limbs in before they landed a second time. The fire mage then held Kevin’s legs as he lied down, then sat up from a prone position, over and over again.

I took a long sip from my stein of ale. Was this some sort of punishment? His fellow mages’ faces were hidden inside of their robes so I couldn’t judge from their expressions. Other mages were scattered about the inside of the walls, practicing their spells, arcane manipulation, or just reading. While I didn’t really want to talk to Kevin, I had to make sure he remembered yesterday’s bargain. Excepting the few solitary mages, the bulk were gathered in three groups near the northern, eastern, and southern walls. I kept drinking as I stuck close to the spire, walking until there were no people between me and a section of the wall.

I headed straight to one of the wall’s towers and climbed up after reciting a small chant while holding just my pinky and thumb out. There was a crackle and the tower seemed to have disabled. From what Virgil told me, it only disabled the inside safety which prevented students from using the stairs to access the walls. I began a leisurely walk around the spire observing the other mages. The walls and towers had enchantments and some complex enchanted lodestones that prevented spells from damaging them. More importantly, from damaging me…

Several mages in green below me at the northern wall were succeeding at raising, lowering, and just plain moving swaths of grass and dirt. A few others of their ilk were dressed only in their shorts, performing slow stretches and flexes. It would’ve been hilarious save for the brown glow that illuminated from the veins of their skin. There were about two dozen men and seven women about this work, the women wearing sarongs to hide their breasts.

The more they stretched and focused, the brighter the glow. As the intensity of the glow grew, so too did the size of their muscles. Hmm, maybe the earth arcane was worth learning?

That being said, Agrippina hadn’t been very impressed by either earth or fire. I knew she was biased, but her strength was undeniable. Even with her petite body, I had no doubt she could end these incredibly strong specimens in a matter of moments. Well, there were still six days until classes began, no need to make any rush decisions now, best to soak it all in over time.

Near the main gate, along the eastern wall, the fire mages were blasting practice dummies of different materials. They raised their staves, chanted for a short length, and then a ball of fire would fly. The newer mages would have to perform their chants longer for much smaller fireballs than the seasoned mages. The senior students could produce a ball the size of a human head in only 1-2 seconds. Their dummies were sturdier with metal and stone parts.

From the aftermath of the barrage, the wooden targets were mostly unaffected due to poor aim. Where the lucky or skilled mage managed a hit, a small hole burned and smoked on the dummy. The stone and metal dummies were far more unfortunate due to the skilled students’ fireballs being far more powerful, and more importantly, far more accurate. Most hits were on the chest, resulting in shattered stone and charred metal. One senior girl somehow managed to actually turn the stone to lava!

A few of their fellows stood at a distance from them, conjuring flames and manipulating them. One mage made a fiery bird that managed to fly around for several minutes before evaporating. Others made shields of fire around themselves while their fellows shot at them attempting to break through. Most had no difficulty enduring the attacks, but one unfortunate mage was blasted by an insanely powerful blast which launched him into the wall. He bounced off with a wet crack before landing with a hard thud onto the ground.

“Hahaha! Godsdamn newbies! If you are going to be a fire mage you have to focus! Healer!” A tall mage with long hair gleefully mocked.

I looked him over carefully, there were several markings on the sleeve of his red robe, his brown hair was well maintained, and he wore far too much gold on his wrists and neck. From his ostentatious display of wealth, I pegged him as a minor noble, or perhaps just a rich merchant’s son. I backed halfway into the tower’s doorway and watched. Whether it was luck, or just the inherent danger of using magic, this was an opportunity…

A woman in a white robe sprinted towards the scene. Looking carefully, I noticed two other mages in white, both located on the peripheries of the other groups. Smart. The woman knelt over her charge, her hands sweeping several times, inches over his prone body. One hand was empty while the other held a flowery looking wand, ugh, so tacky. She whispered comforting words to the poor sod as her eyes shone white. She was analyzing the damage most likely, hmm, with physical injuries I always thought healers just went straight to work healing.

She said something to the victim, allowing him to mutter something before she actually touched him. She declared something about a loving Goddess and mercy in a loud tone while her hands and wand pushed on his back. There were no illuminations, just a sense of tranquility as soft cracks echoed from his body against the wall. Another feeling washed over me, one I had experienced not long ago. The man’s labored breathing slowed, his distorted back began to stretch and lift back to what I assumed was normal for him. After a few minutes he sat up on his knees, took the woman’s hands and thanked her profusely.

Hmmm. What I witnessed was very interesting, from what I saw no one else felt the second feeling. I shuddered violently when it first hit me. Below me the fire mages’ faces were all bright and cheerful, as though they had witnessed a miracle. Something was off, story of my life, but still relevant to the situation. I pondered deeper in the tower for a while, but failed to reach any conclusions. Had I not previously experienced this feeling when I touched Kevin, I would’ve chocked it up to a mistake or misgivings on my part.

I sighed, another mystery that wouldn’t be revealing itself for some time. I knew the divine instructors would want nothing to do with me, but with Agrippina’s influence I would find the chance to better investigate this phenomenon. I walked quickly past the fire mages, my robe covering my head, and my face down. I did not want that senior bully to notice me, the mage he blasted into the wall may have been a newbie, but he was still more proficient than me.

In spite of his actions, citizens of the Lodestone Republic were actually quite polite. As everyone possessed a weapon, that was a trope that tended to enforce itself. That being said, when emotions ran high, fists would fly. Once the two parties reached a stalemate, or the other was beaten unconscious, things typically ended there. Only when the insult was too grave or the other party threatened you with a weapon, clearly threatened you, as in the weapon was pointed at the face. I used to follow that rule, until the second time my opponent surprisingly pulled a knife on me in what I thought was just a fist fight. Some life lessons are not easily forgot.

As for jerks and bullies in our world, they tended to get sorted. Strangely enough, they often managed to find themselves deceased. One could usually tell from the distance of the severed head to the body just how much of a jerk that person had been. Of course, that was when the jerk lacked requisite power or intimidation to back their harassment.

Rounding the corner tower, I was approaching the water mages along the southern wall. They were, dancing? Well, more like manipulating water around themselves while twirling. The majority were engaged in this sport. It was quite bewitching, especially the female mages’ moves. Oh, who was I kidding? I saw only a single male amongst them. It was rare for a man to be born with an affinity for water, perhaps as rare as it was for a man to be born with a uterus.

I ran my hand slowly over my face, attempting to wipe my embarrassment off. Though I had seen the potential of the water arcane, it didn’t change the fact that it was female dominated, much like the divine. Maybe it wasn’t Kevin, but me who was actually part woman? I scoffed that thought off quickly, no, at least I could drink alcohol.

Petty, I agree, but a man has to keep his dignity however he can. I checked the mages in blue who weren’t dancing. Several shot out blasts of water against the walls, some in ball form, others in a constant spray. I stared in surprise as the water just appeared out of thin air and spewed forth gallons. Must be a higher-level skill or some sort of spell, without a supply of water my arcane was useless.

Interrupting my pity party was a tall water mage. She was constructing shapes, balls, cubes, and gems. I watched intrigued as she eventually formed a fish that swam just above the ground. Our eyes met as we watched the fish’s motions. She smiled and waved at me. I stood up from leaning on the parapet and waved back. Without the distance between us I highly suspect her reaction towards me would not have been so mirthful.

By now I had completed a semi-circle around the spire, ending close to where Kevin and his motley crew were, training? Besides being determined to speak with him, my mood was also soured by the fact that nearly every mage made copious use of their staves or wands. Thanks to Agrippina I would be staffless my entire time here, nothing like a lot of pain for motivation!

I thought about asking some pointers from my fellow students, but there’s little worse than a know-nothing asking you to explain something to them, much less an entire discipline. That and I had already begun to make enemies, best not to add too many to the ever-growing list.

I sighed and turned my attention back my slower runner and company. I finished my ale in one swig and alighted from a tower’s stairs.

“Ah,” my situation, the pressures bearing down on me, my damned feminine arcane, and most of all Kevin, were made just a bit more tolerable through the frequent application of alcohol.

Kevin and his two friends were now tossing a large leather ball to one another other while occasionally jumping. If this was some sort of game, it was amazingly boring and repetitive. There were still two or three hours before midday, but I needed to get this done.

All three were panting and sweating as they laid the ball down. They took a drink from their canteens and seemed to be finished.

“How’s it going Kevin?”

“H, hey Tome! Not bad, you?”

“I’m good, good. So, say, what are you and your friends here doing?”

“Oh, Me, Mintha, and Verdia were just exercising.”

My thin smile became thinner, why can’t he ever be clear?

“What exactly are you exercising?” Certainly not their minds, even if it was a lost cause for Kevin…

“Uh, our muscles?”

I grimaced thoughtfully, “Ho, wha, no, no, why?”

“To get stronger.”

“Did you ever consider working?” Or that peculiar thing called life.

I was still tired from my arcane practice the other day, so perhaps I wasn’t fully grasping what he was saying. Exercising was something you did to improve a skill or the mind. For physical strength, unless you were a noble, or had a posh job, one’s daily routine was good enough for strength. There would always be someone stronger or weaker than you. The earth mages were an obvious exception, they believed in strengthening themselves to an absurd degree.

“That’s what we are doing! The more you work on your muscles, the stronger and faster you become!”

Faster? Whoa, whoa, whoa….

“Faster? Heh heh, maybe stronger, to a small degree, but faster?” I asked apprehensively.

“Yeah! We work on our cardio, strength, and also stretching!”

I stared at him dubiously. Strength, maybe, to a small, inconsequential degree, but speed? My mind raced as I maintained my thin smile. Kevin wasn’t the quickest mind, and an other worlder to boot, which meant his knowledge had maybe a 10% chance of being correct. But, discounting the person telling me, if he was right, this was incredibly dangerous information. If my slower runner were to become faster…

“Hey, Kevin, could I possibly join your little group? I’d love to give this, exercise, a try.”

“Sure!” he turned to his companions, “Mintha, Verdia, this is my friend, Tome!”

The woman in red nodded at me, her hood blocking her visage save for her thin lips. The mage in green took a step towards me, removing her hood. She had light grey eyes, full glossy lips, and red hair. It was a face I had first noticed yesterday in the dining hall…

“Ah, so you’re his friend, Tome. You have no idea how much I have wanted to meet you,” she smiled brightly at me, her lips at least.

I returned the smile, being sure to have my eyes follow suit. Best not to let anyone know what you really think of them.

“A pleasure to meet you, any friend of Kevin’s is a friend of mine!” save his other worlder friends, but she knew that went without saying.

We stared at each other in an oppressive silence, Kevin and Mintha awkwardly waiting. We both kept up our smiles, sizing the other up. My right hand fell instinctively under my robe, gripping a well-placed knife.

“A place for everything…” I began.

“…And everything in its place,” she finished the line she had mouthed to me the other day, both her hands disappearing into her own robe.

Ah, it was one of those days that were becoming far too frequent for my tastes…

--------------------------------------------------

We live a society, my children. While the laws may be oppressive to some, without them we would not have civilization. This requires sacrifice and vigilance on our part. The Lodestone Republic faces three evils, the monsters of the forest and the deep, the deluded heretics of Schelm, and the other worlders. Of all of them, the other worlders may seem the most benign, but remember, without them Schelm would never have arose, nor the Second Calamity. You are not required to harm them, but you must be wary in providing aid to them. Most of all, you must never listen to their twisted philosophies and never tell them more than they need to know. Guests they may appear, but only in so much as locusts, rats, and pestilence are as well.

-Bryon Altol, Foris Magister, Sapphire, Indigo Hamlet.