"Instead of a national curriculum for education, what is really needed is an individual curriculum for every child.”

Charles Handy

Life continued onwards, each day a new lesson to be learned. We had yet to receive any more oaths from our cousins. But there was a reason for that. I sailed less with Father and was not allowed out of the boat after our brush with the sea monster. I can’t say that I minded too much enjoying the illusion of safety from inside the hull of the boat. I watched very carefully to ensure that Father did not run into something similar when he was in the water. However, the few times I had been out we had yet to see anything similar so were settling back into our routine when we went. The whole process was great for my sensory skills and continued to help level them. I was also building a mental map of the reef. The areas we had covered and the treasure of the ocean we had uncovered. It was not only pearls that I had pointed out to him, but he in turn had taught me about sea silk found on the foot of pen shells which we were also now collecting. It would provide us with very fine clothes indeed and perhaps be worthy of the caracol purple we could dye them. He was also collecting the finest largest shells which we could polish up. We even found some sea sponges to add to our showers. Either way, although I went out less with him each time our boat came home laden with fish and the other treasures of the reef.

The difference was that Lady Acacia now monopolised a significant amount of our time and directed it even when she wasn’t present.

Lady Acacia also had a different plan for each of us. Based on Aleera’s current stats she needed to improve Dexterity, Vitality and Senses in that order. To do so she created a program of study. Only after that would she focus on Mind, Clarity, Magic and Charisma but that would require a different plan. She had the free points to spend and the ability to do so but was waiting to see how much could be completed through natural growth and supported by improving skill levels first. That was not to say that those stats would be ignored simply that they would not be the focus.

Level: 12

Title: Lady

Name: Aleera Silversea

Age:10 years

Perks: Mighty, Resilient

Vitality: 75

Endurance: 101

Strength: 101

Dexterity: 80

Senses: 65

Mind: 65

Clarity: 60

Magic: 60

Charisma: 60

Free Points: 78

Based on my stats I just needed to improve my Charisma and to do so she had created a program of study. Where she excelled as a tutor was being able to teach separate curriculums with different aims at the same time through the same subject, Music. Looking at my stats I also needed to continue to improve my Strength, Endurance and Clarity in order to create a better-balanced vessel. Maybe it was time to show Lady Acacia our sky diving method.

Level: 12

Title: Lord

Name: Callen Kai Silversea

Experience: 516,900/ 819,200

Age: 2 year 7 months, 0 weeks, 2 days, 18 hours, 30 minutes

Health: 1430/1430 Stamina: 1103/1103 Mana: 1430/1430 Psi: 1430/1430

Trait: Long-Lived, Fast Learner, Super Senses, Source of Mana, Quick Witted

Attribute: Celerity, Durability, Supreme Strength

Vitality: 143

Endurance: 126

Strength: 101

Dexterity: 130

Senses: 143

Mind: 143

Clarity: 121

Magic: 143

Charisma: 61

Luck: 7

Free Points: 40

Where Aleera was learning a wide variety of instruments and practising increasingly challenging pieces of technical dexterity. I was performing the same pieces but being critiqued not for my technical levels but for my musicality, presence and the ability of my performance to sway the emotions of my audience.

I was insanely grateful for the secret consolidation I had done to gain the Tier 4 Skill Virtuoso. Without it helping me to handle the technical aspects of the playing I doubt I would have had the space to even contemplate how to affect my audience’s mood. Insight was also useful here as I was able to see how my performance was affecting my listeners and lean into the moment or draw it out as required.

Our audience was small just our inner family along with Des and Sinis but it seemed to be enough to help my Charisma move up a little more than usual. But it was not enough to make significant gains. So they were in discussion to decide whether it would be worth expanding the circle of those who knew about me to our Adals and the Silversea clan. On the one side, we had Grandfather highlighting his standard position that the best way for two people to keep a secret is if one of them is dead. On the other side was Lady Acacia extolling the benefits to the growth of Charisma stat by performing to a greater audience and therefore having a bigger impact.

She also had an extra argument for making the supportive Adal families aware of more of my abilities that none of us had realized or even contemplated.

It turned out that if Magic was my highest stat when completing an oath of allegiance it was possible to unlock the stat for the pledging Adal. This meant that we could possibly create our own mages for the Silversea house as Magic was one of my highest stats. I just needed to do a little more learning and it was sure to rise to the top again. Not something that would be too difficult with Lady Acacia willing to teach us Spellcraft, Spellsong, Runes, Glyphs, Enchantments and Sigils. Sure it would cut into my own mana capacity but with the Source of Mana trait, I already had a significant advantage in how quickly it regenerated.

It was no longer an argument over simply secrecy but now a question as to whether secrecy would hinder the growth of our house. The pros of widening the circle of secrecy were a greater gain in Charisma Stat, being able to consume the elixir at a quicker rate and being able to jump-start the number of mages available on our island. The cons would be our entire clan would be aware that I was more than merely normal.

Still, that in itself was not necessarily a bad thing as I would be able to visit all their trades and learn from them directly. My abilities could be explained as a product of the oaths as well as Lady Acacia’s training and elixirs neither of which would be a complete lie. Not precisely the whole truth but enough to suffice and explain my sudden growth.

It hadn’t been decided yet, but we practised our pieces together while aiming for different effects. Under Lady Acacia’s direction my skills for the Rebec, Aulos, Cornu, and Harp had all reached Level 20 while Aleera had reached level 10 with each of them.

“Why does Kai level faster than I do?” Aleera bemoaned my speedy progress.

“That is not strictly accurate as he was already starting at a higher level of skill.” Lady Acacia asked for accuracy in all things.

“Yes but why does he level so fast?” she acknowledged her exaggeration but repeated her question.

“Well obviously he is extremely unusual but there are probably several factors that have allowed him to accelerate his progress." She paused.

"Keep practising Kai." she gestured for me to continue and stop listening in. Luckily I could use my Virtuoso skill to continue the music on will I continued to eavesdrop on the conversation.

"First, there is the fact that he was aware of his stats from birth so that has obviously had an effect.” She started at the beginning.

“How would that have an effect? I can see my status and looking at it doesn't make it go up any faster.” Aleera argued.

“It is the idea that observation changes that which is observed. Especially if the observed is being aware it is observed.” She expressed a philosophical position.

“How does that make a difference?” asked confused.

“He has always been aware of what he is and what he has done that helps him to improve. This has helped him to speed up his progress and don’t forget that being aware since birth gave him a 5-year head start on you. It might be best to think of him as 2 and a half years and yourself as 5 years past the appearance of your stats.” She discussed the difference in time.

“Second he has been blessed with strong stats that are supporting his growth. He arguably has twice the capacity of mind so if he is not learning at twice the speed he really isn’t trying his hardest.” She pointedly remarked looking in my direction it looked like she was not completely convinced by my playing and probably completely aware that I was still listening in. But on the other hand, she didn't ask me to leave or comment again.

“How does your mind stat help you learn faster?” she asked.

“The stat allows you to think quicker, retain more, and you just have naturally more to work with. It doesn’t stop you from being an idiot through ignorance or arrogance. But will help you learn skills and structured lessons much faster.” she explained.

“Should I be investing into my mind next then to help speed my learning?” trying to think her way around her problem.

“No, we have an order for your cascade and we will be sticking to it.” She answered firmly. “Besides it isn’t just the effect of his mind stats that support his learning. He also has Fast-Learner as a trait. So if anything he is really underperforming a little in comparison to what gnomes get up to creating and their contraptions. But I suppose he is still a little physically limited so we shouldn’t be too harsh on him just yet.”

Harsh on me. I’m doing fantastic compared to everyone else on this island but then I suppose the world is wide and vast. Then again she could just be winding me up because she knows I am still listening in.

“We should however get on with today’s lessons.” She changed the subject.

. . .

We stopped our music practice and the conversation to review our spellcraft and our spellsong. She was not teaching us anything new for the moment, insisting that we master the first few spells for light, food and water saying, "These are your bread and butter for magic. Adrift at sea or lost in the depths of the lodestone these spells will keep you and anyone with you alive."

For Aleera this meant that she had to work on increasing the amount of mana she could pour into the spell and working on her control. For me it meant trying to restrict my mana to limit it to the size I wished without it exploding everywhere. My core was still slowly forming without wearing the amulet every second of every day.

. . .

“Before we finish there is a fourth and final reason why Kai levels quicker than most. As your Grandfather has put it he is a catalyst.”

“But what does that mean exactly?”

“Well, Catalyst is the human concept, not an elvish one.”

“We would say rather that he is an old soul. The Giants would call him an ice mountain. The Dwarves a pure metal.”

“Catalyst or Old soul. How does that help him to level?”

“Well, this is a matter of belief rather than something that has been able to be proved as they are few and far between. But, the idea expressed is that they have hidden depths. The Elves believe that the reason a Catalyst or an Old Soul is able to level so quickly is simply that they have already done it before but in a former life and some part of them or rather the system itself recognizes that they remember the skill even if they haven’t completed the action or achieved the action yet in their current incarnation. Then when they do complete the system requirements, it automatically awards them with some sort of amalgamation of their current life and past life skills. It, therefore, looks like they are levelling faster when in actuality they are simply regaining what they once had. The giants' philosophy is that like the ice on the surface of the water what you see is only a small amount of the mass beneath, that their system is somehow connecting to the forces of nature they are somehow intuned with and they are being powered by them. The Dwarves would argue that they are like pure metal already hewn from the earth and processed to remove all impurities ready to be forged. That they are the chosen of the gods and that their forging and purity means that they can be quickly forged without fault by the system. As I said it is a matter of faith.” She explained the thoughts behind other cultures' faith in general and in sweeping terms. But it all sounded fairly fantastical and a little close to the truth.

“Which do you believe?” she asked inquisitively.

“Well seeing as I’m Elvish I am particularly partial to our beliefs. But then I can see something you can’t.”

“What?” she pushed.

She paused before turning to me to answer, “The size of his soul.”