“Be the necklace-fire of stars,

The cauterizing lightning.

Bewilder us with good.”

― Seamus Heaney, The Burial at Thebes: A Version of Sophocles' Antigone

After eating lunch in the mensa they compared their afternoon schedules. Alyssa’s showed ‘Void and Necromancy for beginners’, tomorrow would be ‘Water the first building block of life', the day after that would be Saturday with time allotted for their homework. The next week would begin with ‘Alchemical Arts of Healing’ she looked forward to that.

Mireille had ‘Art of the Storm, lightning-based Spellforms’, and every second evening there were lessons in sword fighting. She had one free afternoon because of that. She frowned a bit, that was no good deal in her opinion but whatever.

Alea had her first lesson in ‘Let there be Light, Creation and Manipulation of positive Energy’.

Alyssa hugged Alea before they left and had the girl promise to take Lorelle with her.

They split up and Mireille wandered towards the leftmost academy building. It was a smaller affair than the main one but still very impressive. Ascending the front steps she spotted two bronze statues depicting eagles on pedestals beside the door. The eyes were made of different darker materials and seemed alive. She heard hasty steps behind her and the brother-sister pair of half-elves- She did not know if that was the correct term- hurried up to her as she opened one of the large door wings. She waited for them to reach her.

“Thank you.” The sister bowed her head. “We did not know where the course concerning lightning and storm magic would be held." The dark green robes were flattering in light of her green hair that went to the middle of her back.

The brother mumbled, still a step behind the girl, “...parchment was missing.”

The large blue-green eyes of Vivienne – Mireille remembered her name from the self-introductions- crinkled at the corners as she smiled at her brother. “Yes. We had an incomplete schedule. But all’s well that ends well. Wavemother protects.”

She turned to Mireille. “You are Mireille, correct? Let us go inside we should not block the front door. I would be grateful if we could accompany you to the lesson.”

“Certainly, come on in.” Mireille held the door. The boy, Valens was his name if she remembered correctly kept a bit of distance and hurried inside. Vivienne smiled and entered too.

The three of them walked through the echoing corridors. The floor was polished granite in a checkerboard pattern, different in ornamentation to the main building. It seemed the motifs of the decorations were more oriented towards air and water. Ships sailed over deep waters crawling with sea monsters. Gigantic typhoons ripped trees out of the ground and half-seen warriors clad in lightning fought inside the stormclouds.

Mireille paused to have a closer look but as she saw the siblings briskly walking further ahead she hurried after them.

The courtyard, which was their destination, was marked on the small map that had come with her schedule. And as they finally found it, they were close to being late. The corridors and small inner courtyards that alternated without rhyme or reason had made it hard to find their way.

The door to the yard was edged in copper runes and made of dark, polished wood. As Mireille touched the knob to open it, small discharges of lightning arced from her fingertips and the door opened on its own. Daylight shone into the corridor blindingly bright as their eyes adjusted.

An aged voice called. “Enter please.”

The courtyard was on the smaller side between twenty and thirty yards lengthwise. There was a roofed walkway bordered in columns that went around the yard. The building was four stories high and the area would most likely be shaded for most of the day. As it was shortly after midday the sun shone from high above illuminating most of it. The ground was paved with enameled stone squares. Each was light blue with a rune in the center. The columns were decorated with reliefs of the gods of sea and air.

There was Thyomena the Wavemother surrounded by dolphins and whales her hand gripped a glaive, the bladed tip a crescent moon surrounded by a field of stars. It represented the interconnected nature of the tides and the moon, the stars symbolized the astronomy necessary to find your way out on the ocean.

There was Yrgos the Worldstrider, the fickle one, the bearer of the words of creation. He was depicted as a titan made of clouds running over mountains and seas, bearing a horn in one hand from which sprang wind and storm, and a chalice dripping rain in the other. In the legends, he was depicted as unreliable, even traitorous at times, and quick to change his mind but also disinterested in power and dominion. The absent demiurge who was said to have formed this world with his children, the gods, was said to have entrusted the words spoken at the dawn of creation to this powerful but distant son. Jaros was rumored to have employed Nirileth to steal some of those words which formed the basis of the magical languages and it is said that in the most fierce of storms where stone is sundered and mountains suffer there can still be heard an echo of those words.

An old man stood in the middle of the yard, while sunlight shone on his balding pate. He had white hair that fell to his shoulders and a beard that went to his belt. Piercing, sky-blue eyes were deeply set in an emaciated-looking face. He wore robes of a light blue color, cinched at the waist with a copper cord from which hung several pouches. He leaned on a twisted root-staff with a fist-sized pearl set into the tip. The wood seemed to have grown around it. His hands were gnarled as the wood he held and thick veins coiled on their back.

Several other students were already in attendance and looked up, roused from idle thoughts or a friendly chat.

“Now that we are all assembled, let me introduce myself. My name is Arkenbracht the Younger. Most call me Professor Ark and I am fine with it.” He smiled a bit. “Time is a funny thing. If you are younger than someone else, you will never catch up. But you will not remain young all the same. So, yes, my brother is a few minutes older and we share the same name. It's tradition. But you will most likely never meet him, so it won't be an issue probably.”

“This yard was specifically crafted to contain the energies of air and lightning so that we can train here without worrying about the integrity of the building. There will be a written test to ascertain your level of competency in the more theoretical aspects of storm magic. But today I would like to see you use your magic to give me a glimpse of your potential and proficiency.”

He clapped his hands, the staff held in the crook of his left arm. “Let us see what the others can do. We start with…” he gestured and a piece of parchment rose from a bench in the walkway. “...Monika Alston.” He looked around and a delicate-looking girl with short, blonde hair came to the front and bowed. “Please gather around here.” He pointed to one side of the yard. Arranging everything to his liking he nodded.

“So, I would like for you to use a spell that you think you are proficient in. It can be everything, it need only be from the schools of lightning or air, water is acceptable also. We will learn about the magic that makes up a storm, lightning will be the focus but the other attendant elements will have their time to shine.”

Expectant eyes turned on the pixy-like girl. She swallowed once and nodded before bracing herself. She intoned a spell formula, glyphs gathered around her gesturing hands, and with a rushing sound, the air around her rushed forth in a funnel. Steamers of mist wove from her hands and directed the turbulent winds, dust and grit struck an invisible barrier before it could do harm to the columns. The magic lasted only for a few seconds then she gasped and ended the spell while drawing deep breaths, hands braced on her knees.

“Well done. You could do with a bit more endurance training but all in all a respectable effort.” Professor Ark marked something on the still hovering piece of parchment. “Next is…”

She was the third to be called upon. “Mireille Annirstochter. I heard that you are a special case. Please show us what you can do.”

She thought for a moment then took the place of the boy before her and braced. “Sialysalethussar” She had trained with Vanessa and with the passage of time, the lightning felt like a familiar friend, a caress rather than a violation.

Deep within her chest -something- opened, a torrent of power rose. Lightning webbed her right arm, glowed in her eyes, light bridges flickered between her teeth, her fingers, her hairs blew back with small sparks springing from the tips. With a deafening crack of thunder that drowned out every other sound a bolt of incandescence, as thick as an arm, slammed into a barrier that had not been visible before.

The crackling lance of energy seemed to undulate between her outstretched hand and the wall of magical force before it faded. Strained spellglyphs became clearly visible and energies that had been absorbed by whatever spell protected their surroundings flowed into the ground and the runes in the paving stones began to glow with a soft light.

Mireille shook her head. Small sparks spat from her hand and grounded into the surrounding earth, webs of lightning still sizzled on her body a bit of smoke rose from the ground surrounding her. She stuck a finger in her right ear and grimaced. There was an unpleasant ringing tone that had not been there before. She felt a bit of fatigue but far less than she used to.

Professor Ark nodded and clapped twice. “Well done. I concur with the assessment of the administration. You will have a hard time fulfilling all the necessary criteria, but you have a chance. I did not think we would need it, but I will now heal the damage caused by the thunder and then I will erect an air barrier to protect the spectators.”

The students were murmuring and chatting with each other, some even covertly pointed, and most seemed impressed. Vivienne smiled especially brightly at Mireille and nodded her encouragement. Her brother, Valens, also seemed intrigued and nodded towards her from behind his sister's back.

The old man spoke some words and gestured. The sky darkened and a soft rain began to fall, glowing with a soft blue light. Were the drops touched the skin they were absorbed and Mireille felt refreshed, the ringing sound ceased. 'Just like Alyssa's song,' she thought and smiled to herself.

The spells that were shown were mostly of the more basic variety. The more spectacular ones came from students who had some background in the magical arts it seemed. Even so, no one wanted to lag too far behind and they put a lot of effort into showcasing their skill. Windblades rushed into the magical screen, a small dust-devil reminiscent of the one she had seen in the dueling grounds, a hand made of a cloud-like material perfectly imitated the gestures of a tall, black-haired girl.

Vivienne came to the fore and nodded towards Professor Ark. She then put her hands together as if praying. Her lips parted and she began a spell chant. Without drawing breath, impossible without magical aid, she spoke words in a dialect of some magical language- Mireille was unsure- then from the ground and the air streamers of water condensed and lightning began to flash as an athletic feminine figure made of dark clouds and veined with flickering lightning formed before her. The eyes were pinpricks of fulgent light focused on the summoner, the hair was like cold mist rushing along a river's surface. Vivienne gestured and the humanoid figure bowed before beginning to dance. Twisting and tumbling through the air the strange dancer flashed with lightning and left afterimages superimposed on her own movements so that it seemed like many dancers merging and dividing. Over the course of some minutes, the clouds began to lose cohesion and the creature faded into mist and then dispersed completely.

Professor Ark clapped twice. “Very well done. Good control of the medium. The use of a sylph is inspired. I can see you have the talent of your ancestors.” He nodded and stroked his beard as he made another annotation. “Next.”

Vivienne, winded after the effort, came to stand beside Mireille. Brushing back her green-tinged hair she unconsciously exposed an elongated ear. Her large blue-green eyes looked at her. “What you did was amazing too. I would like to talk some more if you have time after classes?”

“Certainly. My sword lessons will start tomorrow.” Mireille smiled.

It was her brother's turn next. Valens cautiously went to the front, visibly uncomfortable with being in the spotlight. The professor nodded. “Begin.”

The young half-elf drew a deep breath and then began a complicated incantation. Moving his hands in supporting gestures mist began to stream from his body, water built into a big sphere, as large as a smaller barrel, and with a turning gesture using his whole body, the ball elongated and extended towards the sky, forming a waterspout nearly ten yards high.

He controlled the roaring mass of water with precise gestures. Streamers of water still rose from his body and Mireille began to wonder where it all came from. After a few minutes, the water collapsed again washing over his boots and the floor nearly up to the first waiting students. True to his words the Professor had conjured a barrier made of transparent air which stopped the small flood at last.

The old man clapped twice. “Very good. I knew you had a personal gate but witnessing that is always a pleasure. Please have a rest.”

Valens hesitated then went to his sister. When he thought Mireille was not looking he threw his sister an accusing glare which she returned with smiling indifference.

The lesson continued until everyone had a turn.

Before the end of class Professor Ark distributed a written test with the admonition to have it ready in time for the next lesson.

“I think I now have a notion of where you stand ability-wise. I would like to have some words with,” he looked at his list while furrowing his brow. “Mireille Annirstochter, Vivienne and Valens of Kruogs Breach. That is all. Class dismissed.” He clapped once.

He gave each of the three students left a friendly nod, stroked his beard, and said “I only wanted to make you aware of an offer the school extends to more gifted students. You should have heard about affinity already?” as they all nodded he continued. “And there was talk of methods to deepen said affinity but with a cost, am I right?” Again they answered in the affirmative. “Ms. Annirstochter, your case being somewhat special I can foresee no downside to using the methods available. You would strengthen your grasp of lightning-based magics and lessen your non-existent abilities in water and earth-based spells. I would like to appoint a tutor to give you some supplementary lessons on Sunday, what say you?”

Mireille was a bit torn at the prospect of limiting her free time, but on the other hand, she remembered the feeling of helplessness as she had faced Lucien and even the battle of Sorringen so she gave a firm nod. “Yes, I would be grateful!”

Giving her a satisfied smile Professor Ark nodded. “So, with that concluded I could extend the same offer towards you two. You are both highly specialized already and I think it would not cost you too much, but take your time and make no snap decision, a damaged affinity is not easily repaired.”

Both siblings gave thoughtful nods. “Thank you for the offer, my brother and I will think about that.” Vivienne bowed gracefully.

The sun hung low in the sky as they left the building.

“Where do you two want to go?” Mireille asked as she evaded a group of chatting students exiting the building with them.

Vivienne smiled and answered, “How about we go to our dorm for a cup of tea? After exerting myself I don’t think I am up for an evening in the city. We could also just stroll around a bit but my legs crave a nice cushioned chair.”

Valens was hanging behind his sister as usual. They both had fine even delicate features which suited Vivienne but let Valens look a bit more feminine than the latter was probably comfortable with. They moved with somewhat inhuman grace.

The uniform for boys here was just a dark green tunic with golden accents and trousers, the same practical belt. The only affectation was the half cloak and brooch.

“I think a cup of tea sounds fine. Might there be cookies too?”

“But most assuredly.”

They walked through the academy grounds. The dormitory they arrived at was one of the more fancy buildings, not as fine as Maximilians for example but it would not be out of place as lodgings for lesser nobles.

They entered through the front door facing the street running around the central square. There were calls and chatter, the clattering of a wagon carrying supplies. All that was muffled as soon as the thick wooden door fell shut.

“Ah. That's better. You would think with us both being air and water mages, that we would fewer problems with loud noises, but that only goes for injuries done by thunder for example.” Vivienne explained while she busied herself in the kitchen attached to the dining room. The arrangement of the rooms mirrored that of her own dormitory. Only the quality of the decorations and furnishings differed- and most probably the number of people that lived here was significantly lower.

Having filled a cauldron with water flowing from a tap in the wall, she activated the runes in the iron stove with a word. Infused with crystal dust they began to emit a fierce heat and soon she poured the hot water into a teapot, prepared with fragrant leaves.

Vivienne put the pot and some cups on a tray and they walked down the corridor. “Val, could you open the door for me please?”

Valens hurried to comply trying nonetheless not to touch Mireille in the process.

The red-headed girl raised an eyebrow and looked at Vivienne who sighed. “Nothing we can do.” She smiled. Her brother looked a bit confused.

The room was nearly the same size as the one Mireille and her friends called their own, but there were two beds and two larger tables, two wardrobes and a seating arrangement in a corner, the last was missing in the other dormitory and Mireille made a mental note to ask if it could be added, it seemed mighty convenient and comfortable.

“So, please have a seat.” Vivienne balanced the tray as she shut the door, then went towards the small cushioned sofa in the corner. A low table stood nearby and there she placed down the tray. Yawning behind one daintily raised hand she sat down and sighed. “Ah, that is heavenly.”

Mireille sat down near her and Valens, who looked distinctly uncomfortable sat down on the other side. After each had received a cup of steaming tea and a cookie. Vivienne leaned back sipped her tea and said. “I wanted to get to know you better. We of Kruogs Breach use air, lightning, and water magic the most. You have a personal gate don’t you?”

Mireille who had nodded along stopped. “What do you mean?”

“Strange, I would have sworn…” Vivienne leaned forward and inspected her. Up close her eyes were more turquoise and seemed to glow with an inner light. “...and I was right. You have a gate.” She leaned back and drank a bit of tea. “You know the laws of magic?”

“Somewhat?” Mireille tried to look cute.

Vivienne laughed. “You can't create, you can alter, you can pull and push, you can't truly destroy. The gods created the energies we are using and there will not be an iota less or more when we have all long since gone into the sea.” She smiled. “But there are other worlds, other planes, dimensions, realms whatever you call them. And a personal gate is a conduit, a smaller or larger point of access to such a realm. And with this, you can pull energy to you. Not normally matter, but earth and water magic might be able to.

You did not think that the power of your lightning bolt would have been a tad abnormal if pulled from the calm air of the courtyard? That is the reason most people simply manipulate the air that is already present. My brother here has a water gate, I have some other circumstances that let me draw on the plane of air. “

She smiled. “Tell me about yourself, you are not from around here are you?”

“I come from Saintscrossing out of Rivenlorn.” She gestured “from the other side of the mountains. Fourth child. I love cookies.” She looked at the cookies on the low table.

Vivienne laughed and handed her another cookie. “We are from the broken Kingdom of Kruogs Breach, both a small free city and a small kingdom if you want to call it that. We are distantly related to the ruling, noble family. And that lent us the opportunity to study at this academy. Which is very important for us. In Kruogs Breach or the Breach, if you want, it is seen as a mark of high distinction if you can do sums, read and write. We have a bit of a reputation as a nation of mercenaries and seafaring folk. Not so much as scholars.”

“We had some brothers out of the Breach who guarded us on the way from Grunewald to Kronenburg, even if only on the last stretch. They did leave a very positive impression.”

“Glad to hear it. What were their names?”

Mireille had to think hard about that and was a bit shamefaced as she admitted “I only remember two of them Titus and Samael. They were not the wordy type.”

“I know. I am an exception in that I enjoy a good conversation. Titus and Samael, brothers, I think I have heard of them. But the most well-known are those who remain in the Breach, so perhaps they left some time ago?”

“There was something about a river, Colphys?”

“Yes, it's a massive stream that splits into hundreds of smaller ones as it goes through a peculiar rocky region. It’s called Hundredstreams and is a part of Margrinar, our neighbor so to say. In actuality, there is a large stretch of no-mans-land between the Breach and this smaller county. Infested with monsters and home to some tribes of Wolfkin. So not close neighbors exactly.” She grinned.

They chatted a bit and Mireille enjoyed Vivienne's company quite a bit, which seemed to be mutual. Valens remained silent unless spoken to and even then he only said the bare minimum to satisfy courtesy.

They said their farewells and Mireille went home for dinner.

Back in the sibling's room.

Valens glared at his sister. His voice was an angry whisper. “What brought that on. Please ask me for my opinion before you invite people into our room.”

“If I asked what would have been the answer, mh?” Vivienne brushed her hair after she had removed the hairpins holding it up. She was positioned elegantly in front of the mirror hanging over her desk.

“That is no reason not to ask! It's my room too.”

“We could each have a separate one if that is your desire, the funds should be sufficient for that, it is also a bit improper for a boy and a girl…”

“Please, I did not mean it that way!” Valens shrunk back a bit.

His sister eyed him, large eyes glinting, then relented. “I was only joking. Mireille is special, she is good-looking, easygoing, and powerful even now just starting into the first year. We need every advantage we can get. I am a bit wary of her friends though.” She got up and went over to him hugged his head to her chest, put one hand on his head, and ruffled his hair. “Little brother, big sis will do her best.”

Valens struggled a bit and slapped the hand away with a half-hearted effort, blushing all the while.