"Inconclusive?" Alex gaped. "How could it be inconclusive?"

The black-haired student sat across from Frost and Frolick at a table in Greatwinter Hall. It was morning, and the hall was serving a hot breakfast of eggs and rye. They sipped hot honey tea.

"The frost stars," Frostiliucus said. "The patterned shapes along the spear were a blend of a dozen unique patterns."

"A dozen?" Alex said. "That makes no sense."

"That's what they said," Frostilicus said. "Beats me. I never knew the shapes had any significance before. Thought they were random, like any old frost patterns."

"Of course they have unique patterns," Alex said, condescendingly. "How could you not know that? Or right, Capscation." He rolled his eyes.

"Excuse me?" Frost said, cracking his knuckles. Alex was a little rude.

"Don't mind him," Frolick said. "Just his mannerisms, that's all."

Alex began, "I hardly think that —"

Frolick held up a hand to cut off Alex. Probably better that Alex didn't finish his sentence. With his other hand, Frolick forked a lump of eggs and shoved them into his mouth.

"As I was saying," Alex said, sipping his honey tea. "Frost shapes found in nature typically follow certain patterns as determined by their unique topological geometry."

"Topo-what?" Frolick said, shaking his head. His mouth was half full of scrambled eggs.

"Topology?" Alex said. "It's a branch of mathematics...never mind. What I meant to say is that every frost mage has unique identifiers that can be isolated from their frost patterns. It's like your genetic code. Everyone's is different. Children inherit a combination of genetic code from their parents."

"Genetic what?" Frostilicus said, shifting in his seat. "What in the Five does that mean?"

"Do they teach foreigners anything?" Alex said, puffing. He wrinkled his nose. "I suppose it would be difficult to learn genetics without advanced optical prismatics, which requires highly precise frost magic. It's very cutting edge stuff that my father studies."

"Ok," Frolick said. "We get it, Alex. We're dumb. You're smart. Foreigners are idiots. Frosthaven is the center of science and magic."

"That's not what I meant," Alex said, pausing. "But it's true. Perhaps you are smarter than I thought to recognize that fact."

Frost and Frolick stared blankly.

"I suspect," Alex continued, turning to Frost. "That when you and Halorax grappled over control of the frost spear, your frost patterns blended."

"Neat-o," Frolick said, his lips curling up.

"How is that possible?" Frostilicus said.

"It's like recombinant genetic sequencing," Alex said. "It exists in nature, but to actually see it in frost patterns...that's unheard of."

Frost only shook his head. Genetic what? These were new concepts that he'd never heard of before.

"Are you saying," Frolick said, pursing his lips. "That Halorax's frost stars and Frostilicus' frost stars had, um, little frost star babies?"

"Frolick," Frostilicus said, jabbing his brother in the shoulder. "The thought is disgusting."

"Exactly," Alex said, his eyes lighting up. "Couldn't have put it better myself. Very precise analogy."

"Really?" Frolick said, perking up. "See, I might make it in Everwinter after all."

"Now wait a minute," Frostilicus said, raising his shoulders and rustling in his seat.

"That must be what's got the Masters all up in a stir," Alex said. "This is a very novel discovery."

"But surely you would have discovered something like this before?" Frostilicus said. "And I also don't really see what's so great about it. New patterns. Whoop-de-doo."

"This is new," Alex said. "Blending of frost forms is not something that has been recorded outside of ancient history. Even then, it's only something that's rumored to have existed."

"But so what?" Frost said. "Why would anyone care?"

"Why?" Alex said, standing up. "Don't you see? This changes everything. You said the Masters were shocked, right?"

Frost nodded.

"Excuse me?" Frolick said. "Now I'm confused. And I thought you said I was smart." He pouted as he finished his sentence.

"You're very smart," Alex said. "If frost forms can blend. Then we may have been fundamentally wrong."

Frost scratched his head. "Elkriss did say something about a fundamental question. What does that mean?"

"The fundamental question?" Alex said, eyes wide and hands up. "Really?" His voice inflected upward as he spoke.

"Yes, that's what he said," Frost said. "Right before they said I was free to go and hurriedly ushered me out of the room. I suppose that means I'm off the hook."

"Is it like whether or not God exists?" Frolick asked. "Seems like a pretty fundamental question to me."

Alex shook his head. "No, no," he said. "Far more basic than that."

What could be more basic than that? Frolick shrugged.

"The fundamental question," Alex said. "Is what it means to exist."

"The meaning of existence?" Frostilicus said. "Isn't it just to exist. I mean how complex of a question is it?"

Alex rolled his eyes. "I thought you knew?"

"Why would you think we knew?" Frolick. "It's not like we've studied this stuff. Besides, we just know we exist because we do. Oh wait, we're stupid Capscations. Right..." He rolled his eyes, mocking Alex's gestures.

"Well," Alex said. "You talk about it an awful lot for foreigners who know nothing of our ways or teachings."

Frost shook his head. "That doesn't make sense, Alex. We don't talk about anything having to do with that."

"Five?" Alex said. "You throw it around like it's a curse word. Don't you have any idea what the Five is?"

"Five?" Frostilicus said. "That's just something we say. It doesn't mean anything in particular."

Alex rolled his eyes and sighed. "Foreigners are absolutely ridiculous. The Five Causes? They undergird all of reality, all of science, all of magic!"

Frost only shook his head. Capscatian culture was historically influenced by Frosthaven's, so it would make sense that their language would have picked up cultural tidbits, but that was millennia ago.

"The Five Causes," Alex said. "Will be taught in Master Alderton's philosophy class."

"What are these, um, Causes?" Frolick asked. "And what does that have to do with frost stars?"

"Everything," Alex said. "It has everything to do with frost stars and everything else for that matter."