From that day I started going to the training grounds with torturer Harrold every single day. When it rained I joined the other cadets for their running courses outside of the shielded grounds. When someone was punished, we were all punished. So, if you had to do 100 press ups for going into a forbidden area then the rest of the people present have to do 50. If you were given 10 km to run after not checking wither your musket was clean and unloaded before handing it in then the rest of the people present run 5 km. The worst by far: If you did not pass the military law courses, that I still haven’t been given access to by the way, then the rest of the people there have to do jump burpees around the running track, all 3.14km of it. Even if you are not in the class or passed it before.

What this does however is bind everyone into classes, and into training halls. Mine is not the only training hall in the city or even in our particular area of it. Kids aged 6 and up go to the training halls for physical as well as intellectual training, if you think to cast a fireball, all you need is to chant some nonsense and then you are all good then I have another thing for you. One needs to do all the calculations for fuel, temperature, duration and distance before shooting anything. Forgetting even one of those could mean disaster for the caster or make it overall useless.

For example, forgetting distance means it will explode at the caster, forgetting enough fuel will mean it will go out before it reaches the set distance, forgetting the heat will mean you just sent mana at your opponent. Which can be useful in certain situations but is not advised.

So, from the age of 6, kids, both boys and girls study mathematics, history, literature, accounting, law etc. I have been given access to some of these courses and have wiggled my way into getting notes for the rest like military history and military law. Its nice to be young and at the age that people think you are cute and harmless. He he he …

“Hey Alan stop day dreaming and finish your set! We are almost done” someone calls at me.

“Sir, my name is Alexander Sir, Alan is standing next to you Sir” I reply as I get back to doing pull ups. The one yelling at me today is trainer Joff or as I like to call him “Hard ass #3”.

One…. Two…. Three….

“I don’t care what your name is George, kids like you are a silver a dozen and no one will care what your name is on the battlefield either. Didn’t Major Harrold beat that into you in the 1st month?” I hear Hard ass #3 yelling. A number of heads turn towards him as he never gets anyone’s name correct even by accident.

“I mean you Jeffrey on doing the pull up” he points at me. “The rest of you, GET BACK TO YOUR SETS” he finishes with a yell.

Everyone in the area shouts at the same time “Sir! Yes Sir!”. And pray Joff will walk off to supervise somewhere else.

Eighteen……… Nineteeeeen ………… Tweeeenty!

Done, now a short run around the track and off to the intellectual classes. It amazed me the first time I saw the curriculum, the kids here are taught some amazing things from such a young age. 9-year olds are working on differential equations and balancing accounts. History is taught from the perspective of our country and the propaganda that goes along with it but asking about other perspectives is not frowned upon… mostly.

In the year I have been coming here I have changed a lot, I can now run the full track without passing out (day 1). I have been doing light weight training too but mostly body weight training as it can get in the way of my natural development, and considering I am 5… at least physically, that is a very good idea. But the one thing I found most enjoyable has been learning about the history of the kingdom and the continent we are in and mathematic.

The kingdom is a small and surrounded on all sides by mountains, much like a bowl. We have problems with flooding but you know --- magic … not that much of a problem otherwise. We are seen as generally a neutral country with a very one of the best universities in this area of the continent. There are other competing establishments in the near area so lots of competition for the development of construction, research, magic and weaponry.

Most of the wars that do occur are not wars as I used to know. You see, humanity has an arch enemy, the Prime Beasts. All animals, mammals, reptiles, birds, humans/ what have you are born with a natural way to convert the mana in the air into magic reserves. Most animals use this mana to forage for plants, to dig their dens, to hunt each other etc. But every so often there is a mutation, instead of the animal converting only the mana that is required to perform the normal tasks, it will keep absorbing it until finally crystallised mana deposits are left in its brain. This inevitably leads to pressure on the brain and due to the location of the deposit, the animals go berserk.

They first start killing everything in their eco system, the killing and eating of the being will transfer the mana stored in the victim to the predator. Once the creature absorbs enough mana from the ecosystem the crystal deposits in its brain start to transfigure the normal brain tissue into crystal brain tissue. This gives the now beast a greater instinctual understanding of the elements it has affinities for.

The animal will now grow to double its size and will generally gain the colouration of the element it has most affinity to. Dual coloration or tri colouration variants are almost as common as the single coloured.

Smack!

“Hey Alexander, what did I just read? Please repeat it to the class” lecturer Michael instructs me after throwing the chalk at me. That guy is accurate! Note to self – pay attention in Lecturer Michael’s class.

“Um, On the 4th day of Vallis the knights of Erodium rode out …” I look at Michael attempting to judge his reaction. He does not look pleased at all.

“The knights of who? Our kingdom is named Rodium after the 1st king not Erodium.” I will give you 1 last chance to change your answer.

“Um, Sir, I apologise, I have not been paying attention until now” I said with contrition.

“Good, that is the honesty that we are looking to train into our future generation. Now for not paying attention you will write an essay for the cause of the last great Prime Beast war and what we can do to prevent it happening again in the future. You will then give a presentation to the whole training hall with your findings. I hope you have a strong enough voice, because if the people in the back cant hear you then you will be getting everyone there press up sets.” Michael instructs me.

“The rest of you just need to do the essay, and it should be easy because all of you have been paying attention to today’s class. Correct?” he asks everyone wryly. Some of the students fidget slightly but no one seems to have a problem with it.

“Now as for trying to lie, and to a superior. That is a much greater offense in the eyes of us instructors.” Michael scowls at me “for attempting to lie to a lecturer, you and the rest of the class will do the following – Run a circuit of the track, do 100 press ups and 50 sit ups. You will do 30 jumping burpees and 300 meters of lunges. This will be done in your own time, outside of classes or regular training.”

Everyone in the class winces with dread at the instructions and from the knowledge that the rest of the training hall is going to hate them too.

Michael turns away to the other side of the room and asks “Now who can tell me what was the outcome of said war and how we, as a kingdom benefitted from it?” All the while the rest of the class is giving me death glares. But they will get over it, it’s not like they have never been given punishment before. Maybe not as severe but so long as we work together we will be fine.

The presentation however, I am going to need an someone, or multiple someones that are good with projecting illusions and communications. Michael never said I couldn’t have assistants now did he.

After they day ends and we finish working off any extra training someone was given during the day, don’t look at me, I came out of the hall to find my father waiting for me. “Dad, what are you doing here? I thought mum of Arturia will come to pick me up today?” I run up and ask him.

“Well they are busy getting ready for the evening, and tasked me to come and get you” he replies nonchalantly.

“What, why, what are they getting ready for?” I ask in wonder “did something happen at home or did you get invited somewhere again?”

“Oh, I see, it seems you forgot all about it. We were wondering what got into you today. Today is your birthday son, we are going to be going to our old headquarters. You realise, its not only your special day, but your darling mother’s too? Ahh the freedom of youth.”

He turns and starts walking in the direction of home, “Are you coming, your mom will be upset if you are not ready, and we all don’t want to see that now do we?” he teases me.

“Yes dad, I am coming!” I reply while running to catch up with him.