Tao Shi woke just before dawn, by the time he had made it to the stream, bathed, and walked to Oghum’s Shrine, the sun was just peeking over the nearby hills. He lit a small stick of incense and performed his morning ablutions, cleaning his heart and preparing his mind for the day. Arriving at the longhouse that doubled as a school before anyone else, Tao Shi stood by the door and welcomed each student from age four to age twelve into the modest building. Once all eight students were seated, lessons began. The oldest students Eithan, Judi, and Jake learned about rotating crops through different fields to prevent the ground from turning barren. Jenny and Brien knew their letters but didn’t know some of the bigger words yet. Tao recruited the two of them to help teach the youngest ones how to sound out the alphabet while guiding the two towards understanding some of the more complex words they would encounter. One of the core tenets of Oghum stated that everyone should be able to read Heaven’s will. They’d just started for the day when there was a rapid knock knock on the wall behind the students.

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

When 6 woke, the knocking had ceased and Alea was pushing the bedroom door open. 4 and 5 stood by the door and greeted Alea as 6 slid out of bed. After a quick wash in the basin, the water dripping over their bald head and hairless skin, 6 slowly moved to join the others. Alea gave 6 a sparkling smile as they approached, enthusiasm brimming in her voice.

“Good morning, 6. Did you sleep well?”

“Uhm yes, um I think I did.”

6 felt a little confused about how the morning could be good, and if this morning was good, what did a neutral evening look like? Distracted by thoughts of what an evening of neutrality would look like, 6, 5, and 4 were led by Alea to the garden, and then through the hedge maze to where the Karma crystal waited. Alea directed them to tap their Karma splinters against the node with a soft, patient voice.

“One at a time, walk up and tap your splinter against the node, if your splinter has attuned there should be a reaction, you’ll see a light and the inside of the crystal reflect who you are to become.”

When Alea finished speaking she looked towards 4, giving them a knowing, warm smile and beckoning for them to approach the crystal. Nodding, 4 acknowledged Alea’s smile with one of their own. They stepped up to the floating node only to pause, splinter held in pale trembling fingers. Turning back, 4 looked at 5 and 6 as they pressed their splinter directly to the floating crystal of power. A few moments of nothing passed, and just when 6 wanted to ask if it had worked, 4’s eyes widened and their body tensed, before a blinding white and blue light swept across the field. Everywhere the light touched, a low deep hum soon followed, pulsating and beating with a steady rhythm.

Thrum. Thrum. Thrum.

Almost as quickly as the noise started, it abruptly ceased before a loud shriek and thunderous clap filled the clearing. When 6’s ears stopped ringing and they opened their eyes again, the light had just begun to fade. Slowly, 6’s eyes readjusted to the now dim light of the clearing and swiveled towards the crystal to see a young girl stepping away from the Node. Strands of sapphire blue and olive green hair fell down from her head, covering her ears, floating just above her shoulders. Each strand was thick and twisted, a faint shimmer of moisture clinging to it, giving a freshly washed look to her locks. When she turned around, 6 was struck by her vibrant, deep sapphire blue eyes. When 6 let their pale empty eyes travel over the girl’s form, they realized she was wearing 4’s clothing.

“4, is that … is that you?”

6 barely managed to stammer a few words out, shocked by the abrupt changes to 4. When the girl wearing 4’s clothing stepped closer, 6 noticed that she stood just a full head taller now.

“It’s me, 6. I mean I’m still 4, 6. I mean anyways! That was ah-mazing!”

4’s voice shook for a moment as she responded. Her new voice was softer, with a higher pitch than before, with almost melodic qualities to it now.

“Wow, you got taller! Why did you change your hair?” 6 spoke quickly, a large smile spreading across their face as they circled the new 4 letting out gasps of amazement.

“Well, I don’t know. It just felt … right I guess?”

4 glanced back at the Karma crystal, her tone uncertain as she explained the feeling of being attuned to an eager audience.

“When I touched the crystal, I felt pulled towards certain things, certain reflections. My hair was just … one of those things.”

Her hand drifted up to her hair, pale fingers brushing through the long thick strands of hair and coming away with her fingertips glistening wet with drops of water. 6 watched one drop fall from a faint blue fingertip and onto the verdant green grass below, before twisting to look at where Alea stood, silently observing them.

“You knew this would happen?” they asked.

“Yes, but I didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up. For someone’s first attunement to the Karma Nexus, the Voice of the World will descend and assist in altering their body. The scholars here seem to think that the World wants physical bodies to be a reflection of their owner’s spirit.”

Alea slipped into the tone of a lecturer while she explained what happened to 4, pausing only when 5 moved up to the Karma node and tapped their splinter against the floating crystal. There was no pause this time. Light filled the garden, white mixed with brown and yellow, like dirt and clay laid against a pure white background. Shielding their eyes with their hand, 6 squinted and tried to make out 5’s silhouette. A deep gong echoed through the clearing as the light and the accompanying thrum faded to reveal 5.

He stood taller; his clothes stretched over a broader frame and seemed ready to tear in places. He was only a hand shorter than Alea now, towering well above 6 and even 4 after the change. However 5’s shiny bald head remained, but his body had widened out. Once standing thin like a scarecrow, 5 developed sturdy shoulders, a well-defined jaw, and bulky limbs made to appear bulkier by the comically overstretched clothing. When 5 turned around to face the waiting 4 and 6, His eyes flicked up, displaying square irises and soft golden pupils.

“Well, what do you think?” 5’s voice hadn’t changed as drastically as 4's, still soft and mellow, but the tone was now more confident, each word spoken with care.

Feeling excited by the changes to 5, 6 looked from him to the crystal.

“5, your eyes are square and gold! How did you get the crystal to do that?” 6 spoke rapidly, rocking back and forth on their feet as they struggled to contain their excitement. Turning, they gave Alea a pleading look, pale eyes big and lower lip slightly jutting out making it clear they wanted their turn with the crystal. When Alea nodded her head yes, 6 took off towards the node, leaving 5’s explanation of his new eyes unheard.

Skidding to a halt before the large floating crystal, 6 slammed their splinter against the side of it and waited. And waited. And waited. When nothing happened for a moment, 6 pulled the splinter away and then pressed it once more to the side of the node. When several breaths had passed, Alea’s hand fell onto 6’s shoulder.

“It’s okay, 6, it just means your splinter hasn’t finished attuning. We’ll try again tomorrow morning,” Alea's voice was soft and smooth as she consoled 6.

She gave their shoulder a soft comforting squeeze and turned them around to face her. Her sparkling emerald eyes met 6’s blank eyes, her smile once again in place as she offered something new to focus on.

“How about we go get breakfast for now? You must be hungry. I’m sure 4 and 5 need to refuel after their transformations”

Turning back, 6 pressed their splinter against the larger floating crystal just one more time. When nothing happened, 6 let out a sigh, their face drooping sadly as they stared at the unresponsive crystal. Alea helped 6 slide the splinter back under their shirt, then she steered 6 back towards the waiting group. 5 and 4 both gave 6 a warm smile and together they followed Alea out of the gardens.

Rather than go directly to the cafeteria, Alea took a detour through the halls to a small supply room pausing only to speak to an older woman. She had 4 and 5 step inside one at a time for new properly fitted uniforms. Once 4 and 5 were clothed in a similar pair of white pants and a white shirt to their originals, Alea promised to bring 4 and 5 back to the small woman for a proper measurement. Exiting the supply room, 6 saw a scowl spread across Alea’s face briefly before she schooled her expression in that reassuring smile and began to lead them to the cafeteria proper. 6 kept their head down for most of the walk, torn between disappointment and excitement. Sighs occasionally slipped from 6’s mouth, frustration about not being able to attune swelling inside of them. While they walked to the promised breakfast, 6 daydreamed about how they would look when attuned. 6 let their jaw go slack, their eyes large as they went through the motions: grab a tray, stand in line, move forward. The whole time they wondered if they could get claws from the attunement, or maybe wings, giant scaly wings. Maybe Alea would let them fly in the garden. So, when it was 6’s turn and the chef asked what 6 wanted from the kitchen, “What’ll ye be havin’?”

6’s reply was immediate and loud, “WINGS! Big ones! Huge scaly wings.”

A snort came from the other side of the counter, causing 6 to look up and see a heavyset woman with rosy cheeks grinning down at them.

“I’ll see about havin’ wings on the menu sometime dearie. For now, let’s get ye som’ breakfast,” Her words and the ladle she waved led 6’s attention down to the counter where several heaps of food were laid out.

6 pointed to the large amber-yellow egg and several strips of meat. The sturdy woman used a pair of tongs to pile the meat and egg onto a plate and then slid it onto 6’s tray. A smile spread across 6’s face at the smell of the breakfast food, and their smile and gratitude only grew as she placed a warm loaf of bread on top of 6’s now overfull plate.

“Thank you, Ma’am”

6 inclined their head as they spoke, showing the cook gratitude and respect for the meal. They remembered last night; manners were important, they could get you places. The Princess had seemed to appreciate them at least. The heavyset woman behind the counter just chuckled and waved her ladle at him once more. A small spray of thick white gravy flicked from the ladle to drench the top of the 6’s bread.

“No need for ma’am this or ma’am that, name’s Olena. Now enjoy the food, sweetheart.”

Olena’s grin morphed into a genuine smile as she spoke, shooing 6 away to eat their food she twisted her ladle to point towards the main dining table. Almost intoxicated from the delicious rich meaty smell, 6 drifted over to the table and sat. Their insides growled as the scent of seared hog, roasted garlic, and several other herbs floated up to their nose. A glance around the table told 6 everyone else was enjoying their own meals, and they greedily began to devour the delicious food.

They quickly found the most efficient way to eat everything was to pile the large orange-yellow egg and the thick juicy slabs of hog on top of the now mushy, gravy-covered bread. When 6 finally looked up from their meal it was to a stunned table; 1, 3, and 4 were eyeing the empty plate in front of 6, their own plates still half empty. 2 was busy following 6’s example and piling everything on top of some bread. 5 was consumed by his own slow deliberate pace, savoring each patient bite.

Eyes narrowing, 6 realized there was something very wrong. 5 still bald with awesome square eyes. 4 still very blue and damp. 2 and 3 were the same as yesterday, just like 6. 1 however had changed, and where had he gotten that robe? 6 frowned as they looked over 1, long white hair ran down to his now pointed ears. His pupils stood out in shining pearly white, rimmed in black. 1 looked elegant, wrapped in a night-blue robe with a 1 embossed in silver on the collar, his outfit clearly custom in comparison to the other’s uniforms. 1’s knuckles lightly tapped against the wooden table, drawing the group’s attention to 1. He waited a moment before speaking with a fluid, silky voice befitting his new appearance.

“Maybe, take your time with your food in the future? Especially when the Princess is here. Last night was a disgrace.”

6 felt their jaw clench and their eyes narrow as they stared down the table at 1, not appreciating his reprimand about their food. When 6 looked over at 4 and 5 for support, 4 shrugged, shrinking into herself, and looking down at her food. 5 gave a blank stare in return, completely unconcerned.

1 cleared his throat loudly calling the table’s attention back to him before he spoke,

“Well?”

6 paused before speaking, something catching their tongue and holding back their words, “Fine.”

They didn’t know why it had been so difficult to say such a simple thing.

For the rest of the meal, 6 sat in silence, only occasionally sipping from a small cup of water. When Alea returned, they walked their tray and cup back to the counter and inclined their head once more as a sign of respect for the meal.

Rejoining the others, 6 fell in besides 4, at first they struggled to follow her new longer legs. Once they settled into a good rhythm behind Alea, 6 slid their splinter out from their shirt, their fingers slowly feeling over the small shard of crystal. They felt reassured by its weight, by the hard unyielding feel of the splinter as their fingers squeezed it. Just ahead of 6, they watched 2 and 3 walk. They were completely identical to each other and to 6, meaning others hadn’t been able to attune today. 4 stepped closer during 6’s musings, smelling faintly of saltwater and algae.

“What do you think the first day of class will be like?” 4 leaned in to speak privately, her still new voice, soft and melodic.

“I don’t know. . . I’m still not sure why we are going to school.” 6 said.

It was a relief to say it out loud. 6 had been bothered by this question since yesterday’s conversation with the Princess.

“Wellllll, do you know the name of the kingdom we are currently in? Or what day of the week it is? Have you tried to read or write?” they asked.

She was prepared for 6’s doubt, and 4 fired off question after question in response,

“Ramalur. Does it matter what a day is called? And … no.”

6 responded just as rapidly, having paid attention to some of what the Princess said last night. An uneasy feeling still filled 6’s stomach about waking up one day and suddenly being made to attend a school.

“Stop worrying about it, we get free food, free board, access to a magical crystal, and an education! We could even learn actual magic! It’s the second day here and I’m stronger, faster, smarter, what will happen in a week?”

Her eyes almost sparkled as she excitedly explained all the benefits they would receive. Upon noticing 6’s worried face, her tone changed to a softer soothing one as she finished.

“An education might not be so bad.”

6’s reply was half-hearted, but they managed to give 4 a weak smile, the conversation falling into silence as they walked together, till they reached their first class.

Alea led them into an open, ornate classroom, the soft light of the magical lanterns catching the adornments of the glittering cathedral ceiling as the group proceeded into it. A gaudy golden wood desk sat at the front of the room. Carved gargoyles clung to the sides of it, their feet and body functioning as table legs, supporting the heavy slab of wood above. Behind the desk sat a large blackboard, several thick stacks of vellum, and multiple bookcases littered with scrolls. A cluster of smaller, yet still sizeable desks sat neatly facing the larger one. On each of the smaller desks, a small slate tablet and a stick of chalk were placed.

Once everyone was seated, a loud horn noise blew into the room followed by a sudden POP! and abruptly, a round, well-dressed man appeared behind the desk. Clad in gold-trimmed white robes with a silvery gargoyle embossed on the right lapel, a pair of gold spectacles lacking any lens, his outfit perfectly matched the ornate gargoyle desk. His heavy belly bounced as he bowed slightly to the group, his right hand conducting an extravagant flourish.

“Hello children, I am your Dean, Arturo Setyrus. I’ll be teaching you general knowledge and Ramaluran culture. I also moonlight as a spectacular summoner, and if any of you show growth in that area, you ‘might’' get lucky enough to receive MY private tutelage.”

Dean Setyrus’ introduction shocked 6, they couldn’t help but wonder if the man had been hiding behind the desk. And where had that horn noise had come from? When 6 started to look around they saw Alea open the door and slip out of the classroom. Just as the door opened, 6 saw a man in a dark red dinner jacket walking away from the classroom with a brass instrument under his arm. The sound of wood scraping against stone drew 6 away from solving the mystery any further. 1 had pushed his chair back, stood from his desk and given the Dean a deep bow in return, “It’s a pleasure to meet you Dean Setyrus, I am trainee number 1. We all look forward to learning from you.”

The courteous response seemed to please Setyrus, as the heavyset man inclined his head towards 1,“It will be all my pleasure, I’m sure. You may be seated, trainee number 1.”

Setyrus waited for 1 to take his seat before he turned to regard the other students and launched into a lecture, “Today we begin with the lesser of the two subjects I teach, general knowledge. We here at the Royal Accelerated Training School believe each of you needs a firm grasp of the basics, the fundamentals, the simplest of simples.”

Setyrus surveyed the six students during a pause and strode across the room to the blackboard as he switched from lecturing to asking a question.

“Let us establish a baseline to begin. The faster we get you all to a basic level of knowledge, the faster we can move on to more important topics like etiquette and culture. What city are we currently in?”

When no one responded, 4 spoke in a quiet voice, causing 6 to lean forward and strain to hear her, “Ra-Mal”

Setyrus nodded vigorously, his blonde straw-colored curly hair waving and wiggling in the air even after he stopped wobbling his head. He turned back to the board and began to write while slowly enunciating each letter.

“R-A-M-A-L. RAMAL, capital city of Ramalur. Now, do any of you know how to read?” His tone transitioned to one of boredom and tedium as if this was a question to which he already knew the answer.

“I can’t read the language you wrote on the board, sir, but I can read and write in- - Meshulish,” 1’s response was quick and immediate, but he seemed to struggle abruptly at the end, working to pronounce the final word.

“Meshulish: interesting, interesting, interesting, I’m pleased to hear that. I’m sure the Palace Librarians would love to sit down with you. In order to graduate though, all of you need to be able to read and write in Arkadian.”

The Dean quickly spelled out the word, sounding out each letter as he wrote it out on the blackboard, returning at the end to give the dot on the “i” a little spiral instead of a dot.

“I can read that.” A soft nervous voice spoke just before the Dean.

“Now we will begin with the Arkadian alphab-” Setyrus paused, and his body whirled around so fast there was an audible whistle of wind, the bounce of his heavy belly and curly hair suddenly not so amusing at the shocking display of speed.

“Who said that?” Setyrus swept a serious gaze over the class, as he spoke sharply.

“I did.”

It was barely above a whisper, but when the Teacher did not respond 6 slowly raised their hand into the air. 6 wasn’t sure how, but they knew the language, knew the word Setyrus had scrawled out on the blackboard.

“Very well, let’s put that to the test. I will write a word on the board, in Arkadian, and you will tell me what I’ve written.”

Setyrus’s previous boredom was clearly gone as he spoke, his new interest clear as he quickly chalked out a word on the board.

“Chalice.”

The reply was automatic and easy, 6 felt confident in this and began to focus on the task at hand.

Setyrus immediately erased the word and attempted another.

“Incense.”

“Recourse.”

“Dialect.”

“Gargoyle.”

Each new word Setyrus erased immediately became replaced with another. Finally, he turned back around to face 6 and the others after the final word had been called out.

Setting down his chalk, he mimed bringing his hands together in a silent mimicry of a clap as he congratulated 6, “Fantastic, Wondrous, Amazing, this is a great start to the new school year. We should start your formal education with dining, no, no, no, introductions and greetings. Oh! Proper attire for-”

As the Dean talked, he became increasingly excited, his large curly meticulously cared-for hair becoming disheveled. While deciding which curriculum to start on for 6, Setyrus paused as all of the trainees were now gawking at him and the class had come to a complete halt.

Clearing his throat Setyrus turned back to the chalkboard, hands running over his robes and hair smoothing out wrinkles and pulling things that had ridden up back into place before he continued to speak.

“Ahem, Ah-yes We will need to discuss a separate curriculum for you 6, the first week of this class will mostly be remedial for you otherwise. Today, however, you’ll need to stay in class and assist me with teaching your fellow students.”

Once the Dean’s focus had returned to drawing out letters of the alphabet on the board, several trainees glanced back at 6. 4’s head swiveled around and she gazed at 6 with her sapphire eyes, full of curiosity and a happy smile on her lips. 1 turned only briefly, giving 6 a blank stare, before giving the chalkboard his full attention. 2’s smooth plain face split into a huge grin and they flashed 6 a thumbs up.

The little outburst was exciting but tiring and 6 now intended to sit in silence for the remainder of the class, but Dean Setyrus clearly had other plans. For the next few candles, 6 was constantly called on. Setyrus asked 6 to: articulate each letter; explain the difference between this vowel with an umlaut and without an umlaut; and show how vowels are different from consonants.

The list of demands grew on and on until 6 found their head down in their hands, fingers rubbing to alleviate the growing tension. The slight headache continued to build from the Dean’s overzealous method of testing him, while teaching the others. When Alea returned to the classroom, Setyrus paused his lesson to greet her with an even larger bow and more superfluous flourish than the one he had given the students. 6 let out an audible sigh of relief at Alea’s return, hoping for a break from this unexpected barrage of questions.

“Are we all ready to head to P.E.?”

Alea gave the Dean a slight bow in response, before turning to the class while speaking, a wide smile spreading across her tanned face.

“Ahhh, yes, the schedule. I am afraid we haven’t gotten to that quite yet. We were just about to broach the topic of classes before you stepped in, Miss Alea. Are you here early?” Dean Setyrus had ceased all movement as he spoke, the bouncing curly hair and large belly eerily still abruptly.

His words sped up as he raced to give an explanation to a now frowning Alea, “The very next thing, we werejustgoing overthe basics. Theverybasics.”

When a bell rang out through the building announcing the time, Setyrus visibly relaxed.

“See, I took so long explaining myself to you, Miss Alea, that the allotted time for class has passed. What a shame. Children, I bid you adieu, till the morrow,”

Setyrus’s pattern of flowery slow speech returned with the bell, and so did the constant movement of his extremities.

He lowered himself into a deep bow, bringing both hands together into a loud clap before him. A loud horn blast followed the clap and with a slight puff of golden glittery smoke, the Dean disappeared.

When the smoke cleared, Alea seemed to have a blank stunned look on her face, her fingers tapping against her robe lightly, yet once she turned to face the class her smile was back, warm and reassuring. She walked over to the chalkboard, her pearly white and pale blue robe swishing against the desk as she worked to find a piece of chalk.

“Dean Arturo apparently forgot the most important part of his class. The schedule for each day will be provided at the beginning of each class until we know where everyone's specific talents are best focused.”

Alea’s voice dropped into an even, soft tone as she took a piece of chalk, nearly liberated from the Dean’s desk and worked it across the board. Her motions were fluid, both smoother and faster than the Dean's, with her handwriting lacking any swirls or stylized flourishes, just simple plain blocky letters.

Merdi:

General Knowledge -A.S.

Physical Enhancement -D.T.

Lunch

Mentoring

Combat Training

Alea spoke each word after writing it, glancing over her shoulder at the group to make sure they understood each line before moving to the next. 6 definitely had some questions. What was physical enhancement? What was a Mentor going to teach? Why weren’t they just called instructors? And most importantly, what was for lunch? But when no one else spoke up, 6 hesitated. It was a struggle to focus their thoughts as the headache began to subside. Before 6 was able to summon the courage to ask their questions, Alea was leading everyone out of the room and back into the boring, blank, sterile, white hallway. On the way out of the classroom, 6 darted behind the desk and checked beneath it for the heavy man. Upon finding nothing, 6 wasn’t sure if they felt disappointed or a little more encouraged about the “Dean”.

6 raced to catch up with the others, worries of being left behind in the maze of hallways quickly sprouting up from memories of being left behind at the beginning of the maze. They sprinted quickly down the hall to catch up with the group, and only 5 looked back to notice 6 rejoining their march to class.

It quickly became apparent that 6 hadn’t needed to worry. This walk was taking longer than any other so far. Doors and hallways became less and less common as the path began to twist and take a slight downward slant. Eventually, they came to a stop in front of a large set of iron double doors that towered above them. Alea stepped up to the massive heavy doors; one tanned hand went to each massive door and pushed. There was a deep groan of complaint from the metal as it gave in to the pressure, the doors swinging inward to reveal a huge arena.

A dirt-packed floor filled the center, with a wooden floor and pillars ringing the dirt and meeting against stone walls. Head instructor Dreech and an older blonde woman stood in the center circle of dirt, speaking quietly to one another, the conversation ceasing as 6’s group approached.

“Students! It’s good to see you again. I hope your second day is going well. As you know I am Head Instructor Dreech, and this young lady beside me is Physician Brenna.”

Instructor Dreech was quick to turn and address them, his voice booming out across the large room. His previous strict and intimidating appearance was diminished by the soft smile and warm tone he wore.

Upon being introduced, Physician Brenna inclined her head towards the students in greeting. Streaks of gray ran through her blonde hair, long pointed ears just peeked out from beneath it, and the corners of her hazel eyes displayed lines of experience. She wore a simple and clean white robe like several other members of faculty 6 had seen so far, yet what differed from the other robes 6 had seen were the red leather pauldrons covering each shoulder, and the matching red leather pouch at her side.

Dreech paused at Brenna’s physical greeting, waiting for her to straighten before he launched into teaching, “Do any of you know why this class is called Physical Enhancement?”

4 raised her hand and seemed to almost tremble with nervous excited energy, only to deflate when Dreech spun away from them. He raised his right arm, his palm glowing with a faint earthen yellow while a swirling white traced over his fingers. Dreech checked to make sure the students were watching before he thrust his palm out. The motion was crisp and smooth, the glow and colors shooting away from his hand and splitting the air before him. A pulse of air pushed them back as one of the wooden pillars cracked in half; a hail of wooden shards sprayed out from the impact and thudded down into the dirt floor around it.

Dreech glanced briefly over at Brenna before turning back towards the students and continuing,

“Here in Physical Enhancement, I’ll be teaching each of you how to harness your unique capabilities. You were told about just how special each of you is, and how valuable you can be to the Kingdom. This is an extension of that, the Kingdom will provide you an education on enhancing yourself with cores and an education on how to use the abilities you gain.”

Instructor Dreech’s voice filled the room, and the group stood there with mostly blank uncomprehending expressions. All except 2, who stood apart, eagerly eyeing the broken pillar and flinging their palm at the empty air trying to mimic Instructor Dreech. Instructor Dreech gave everyone just enough time to regain their bearings before he squatted down. Even while crouched Dreech made 6 feel small. Dreech's large palm pressed against the ground, and with a rumble, the earth began to shake. Eight squat stone cubes sprouted from the ground, each rose directly behind a person, with Dreech’s own cube rising perfectly behind him to bring him from a crouched position to a sitting position.

“Have a seat, today’s class will be mostly talking.”

Dreech paused for a moment, his booming voice echoing throughout the arena despite their close proximity.

“Actually, until each of you acquire your first monster core, most of your P.E. classes will be talking. I’ll occasionally bring in other instructors to demonstrate the abilities and powers they’ve gained from consuming cores. They’ll get to show off a bit, but that’ll be all the excitement we’ll have for a while.”

Dreech’s loud voice and powerful presence was offset by a sorrowful and regretful tone when he announced the class would be mostly talking.

“Any questions, students?”

6 felt like their head was going to burst with questions, of course, a million questions. Unique capabilities? What on earth was a core or monster core? What in Delamor was happening? Predictably, 6 was so caught up in a series of ever-escalating thoughts, that 2’s excited rapid-fire questions came out before 6 could articulate anything.

“Will it all be like that? What kind of cores? What are cores? How do we consume them? WHENCANIGETACORE?” 2 asked.

“No, every core is different, even cores from the same type of monster give different abilities,”

Instructor Dreech seemed prepared for these questions and answered each of the rapid questions slowly.

Physician Brenna on the other hand seemed bored at the questions and slightly amused by 2 as they vibrated in place, almost bouncing up and down as Dreech explained further.

“Monster cores ... Scholars like to say cores are crystalized mana that is imbued with the essence of a monster. Hah, that’s an easy one, the same way you consume anything: eat it,”

At the final question Dreech turned and looked over at Physician Brenna, their eyes meeting, and a silent exchange took place before Dreech turned back to them. Dreech’s tone took a turn for a shade darker, the stern Head Instructor Dreech returning for a moment as he spoke.

“At the end of the week, the … school will have a field trip. You’ll each be expected to return with a monster core. The faculty here will help you grade and consume the core so you obtain the best possible abilities.”

2’s voice was the same as 6’s, but they spoke so rapidly, with so much energy that it surprised 6 to hear.

“Could we do it now?”

Brenna’s response was a dry chuckle, and Instructor Dreech shook his head before answering. “No. Now is for discussing what kind of core you might want. A core from a Vermillion Dire could give you wings of fire, allow you to spray fire from your hands, or coat a weapon in flames that only harm your enemies. A core from a Goldenshell Croaker could let you turn things to gold, allow you to bend and shape metal at your will, live longer, and even summon a shield of radiance. I want each of you to bring me a unique idea by next Jerdi, tell me which monster's core you want and what power you want.”

When Dreech ended his speech, he stood, and the cubes began to sink back into the ground.

Scrambling to their feet as their cube slid back into the ground, 6 couldn’t help but think that some of Dreech’s answers weren’t really answers.

It took some time for 6 to notice Alea standing among them and after a hush conversation with Brenna, she beckoned the group to follow her. She led them once more back through the large doors and into the expanse of white. While walking, 6 alternated between being frustrated by the fact the amount of time in class was less than the amount of time walking to it, and by their lack of monster knowledge. No matter how they twisted their thoughts, no monster came to mind, even the Vermillion Dire and the Goldenshell Croaker mentioned by Dreech were unknown.

When the group finally reached the cafeteria, 6 felt shockingly tired, each step causing their legs to feel less like flesh and more like rubber. Sluggish and exhausted, 6 took up the rear as they lined up for food. When it was their turn they looked from their feet, giving Olena a warm smile.

The scent of a warm stew and heavy spices brought some life back into their body. Olena gave 6 a knowing smile and slid a pair of heavy bowls to them. One was filled to the brim with yellow thin short grain of rice smelling strongly of saffron and cumin. The other bowl held a faint sheen of oil coating bits of bobbing meat, traces of steam rising from the bowl. 6 managed to mumble a “Thank you, Ma’am” then shuffled over to the round dining table. So absorbed by the food and so focused on not spilling, they failed to hear Olena’s sharp retort at being called ma’am again.

6 fell into their seat at the table and greedily began to devour the thick stew. Only a few spoonfuls in and they felt better. When they looked down to regard the bowl of rice, a spoon reached over and tapped against 6’s tray. Turning, they found 5 with a knowing smile on his tanned round face. 5 lightly tapped his spoon on 6’s tray once more, withdrawing it once he saw 6 was paying attention to him.

“Like this, my friend,” 5 spoke while bringing his spoon down into the bowl of stew, capturing a piece of fowl and a healthy spoonful. He then broughtit to the bowl of rice, stirring the fowl through the rice, the thick stew causing the rice to clump to the meat. Next, he raised the spoon to his lips and consumed the mixture all in one satisfying bite. 6 quickly mirrored 5’s actions, 5’s golden square eyes watching for a time before returning to silently consuming their food. 6 found the first bite of the yellow rice, combined with the hearty stew and meat to be the perfect combination. Each warm bite pushed away the fatigue of 6’s legs and made their belly feel full.

When Alea eventually came to fetch them 6 realized they had missed 1, 4, and 5 leaving the table, so enthralled in the meal they had missed their chance to ask them about monsters. The now much sleepier, 6 along with 2 and 3, were led by Alea back to the large room. Six beds still waited within, but the absence of the attuned trainees left the room feeling a little too large for the three of them.

“Someone will come fetch each of you when your mentor is available, for now, you can rest or do any homework you have from your first day,” Alea’s voice was soft and faint in 6’s ears as they laid back down on their bed.

Their tummy warm and their eyes heavy, they drifted off to sleep before Alea even finished speaking.