“May I enter the Hall of Names right away?” Wolf’s eyes sparkled at the thought.

Opening his second Mind Hall would create options for him. He’d already finished carving the floors and columns, leaving only the door to work on. Wolf only worked on it because he was idle. But he didn’t expect any benefits from it.

“There’s a month-long queue—” Richard wanted to explain, but his boss waved a slender hand.

“It’s fine. You go there now, and Dick…”

“It’s Richard, Sir.” Headmaster Smith explained his brilliant plan, but his aide interrupted him.

“…will notify the waitees that administration moved their slot by an hour.” Headmaster Smith didn’t bat an eye as he shoved all responsibility and public indignation on Richard’s shoulders.

The elderly secretary seemed unsurprised. He lowered his gaze a bit, giving Smith a frosty look, loudly exhaling. Wolf wasn’t sure whether it was because the Headmaster called him Dick again, or because Headmaster Smith just dumped a day’s worth of calling Archmages and handling their disgruntled arguments in Richard’s lap.

“Apparently, I’ll handle it for you.” Richard rolled his eyes and sighing once more, using simple gestures to confirm Wolf’s second guess.

And old man Richard really delivered. Half an hour later, Wolf once again entered the black room he had visited when taking the entrance exam. He moved to stand at the center of the platform, which, like last time, raised him into the dark chamber above.

Unlike last time, Wolf didn’t wait for the dazzling display of dancing lights to hypnotize him. He sat and closed his eyes, entering his Mind Palace. The young man’s Mental Aspect opened its eyes and inspected the room. Ten fully carved columns stood there, but Wolf wasn’t satisfied with them.

The only one that was his personal touch was his father’s statue, propping up the heavens. Everything else was Lonely Eagle’s heirlooms, or arcane depictions he made entranced.

His Mental Aspect climbed down the stairs, passed slumbering Silver, and walked down the aisle. He paused mid-step and looked at the clashing elements carved into the bone-white surface of his fourth column.

“These aren’t mine. They aren’t Lonely Eagle’s either. I’m not sure why, but now that I focus on this carving, a deep sorrow washes over me and I feel a strong sense of loss. Does it come from another past life? The one before Lonely Eagle? How far do my memories of reincarnation stretch?” Wolf didn’t know yet. He was too young, too naive and hadn’t experienced enough to comprehend the truth of his existence.

After several moments, he couldn’t withstand the pressure of morbid thoughts and past lives stretching their fingers beyond the veil of death, grasping for his soul. He weakly sought comfort from the only person in his life who mattered. Wolf came over to his father’s atlas and touched his hand against the warmth.

I am certain. To save my son… The familiar words echoed in Wolf’s mind and the youth clenched his fists.

“I will save you.” Wolf’s Mental Aspect sadly patted the column, then looked away.

Multicolored mist gushed into his Mind Palace, and the shadowy color of death seeped into the first Mind Hall. Wolf walked through the mists of peaceful passing, about to step into the corridor drowning in vivid colors.

Myriad hues passionately churned before him, twisting in a chaotic swirl of universe’s authority. All of it free for the taking. All of it awaiting a wisp competent enough to seize it.

Suddenly, the young man turned and gazed at the tenth column.

“Wish me luck.” Wolf took a deep breath, then solemnly stepped into the whirlwind of colors. The familiar auroras danced madly around him, just like years ago. What appeared like madness had underlying rules to it. Wolf noticed that the hue of death departed from the chaos, while two surges of color poured into the two closed doors.

For a moment, Wolf’s Mental Aspect tried to deduce his third True Name while watching the flow of metallic navy blue enter the third Mind Hall.

“Snap out of it; there’s no point trying with the third Mind Hall before it’s complete.” Wolf looked away, focusing on his immediate task.

The second door drew in a vibrant green. It was the green of a freshly germinated plant, full of vitality and hope. Wolf moved over to the door and pressed his palm against it. He closed his eyes. In a half-conscious state, he lifted his other hand against the door. Finally, when he pressed his forehead against the warm, woody surface, a distinct aura of life flooded him.

He knew life. He recognized it; he lived one, more than one; yet he couldn’t define it clearly, let alone understand it. Wise men beyond count searched for the meaning of life and they all failed, finding tranquility at best, inner demons at worst.

The vibrant green glow washed over Wolf like a tidal wave. He let it remove his doubts and misconceptions.

As Wolf opened his mind to the mysteries of the universe, a scene drew him in. He found himself in the middle of a storm. A fierce gale blew over a raging verdant sea, tugging on Wolf’s robes and tousling his long hair.

Lightning flashed across the sky while green waves tossed broken wood and debris into the air.

The tempest smashed at Wolf’s body, yet those winds passed through him trying to draw him somewhere. He resisted, fascinated by the scene.

“Am I really that far off?” This storm had little in common with aurora’s lively essence. Wolf focused on the only visage of life he believed he knew.

Wolf vividly recalled how Archibald gave up his life to protect that of his child. Wolf relived the entire memory, but it was an uphill battle. The winds blew and tried to carry his consciousness back out of that scene. He had no time to contemplate life. The effort of maintaining the sequence siphoned all of his attention.

Finally, the gale threw him out and back into the tempest. The storm still raged. Contrary to Wolf’s expectations, this flashback didn’t help calm it down. The only difference was that the violent lightning stopped flashing across the sky and condensed into a blurry, bright-green sun.

The sun’s emerald rays burned away Wolf’s memory, attempting to remove his focus from it.

The youth finally realized he’d gotten something wrong. That simple realization removed the haze which blurred the sun.

Looking at the increasingly yellow light, Wolf ceased resisting, no longer focusing on his father’s act of protection. As soon as Wolf stopped fighting, the storm suddenly didn’t tear at him as violently. His vision grew fuzzy, then Wolf went blind.

He didn’t panic at the sudden loss of sight. Wolf found himself in a warm place. Waves around him crashed and water gurgled as loud rhythmic beats filled the world. Despite all the noise and constant bobbing, Wolf was serene.

His memory submerged him in the trace of Life which all conceived creatures shared. Wolf cried and the surrounding warmth absorbed his tears.

Darkness, warmth, waves and gurgles, the loud beating accompanied them for an eternity, until the radiant wave of green washed them away.

Wolf’s throat clenched and tears ran down his cheeks. The gale didn’t blow them away. The storm died down, and the raging sea calmed. World’s colors were wrong. The sky was turquoise, but the dim sun reached the normal yellowish-white.

Before he wiped away his tears, Wolf’s world once more turned green. The youth submitted, allowing the breeze to whisk him away from the passing storm.

Wolf’s sight was blurry, as if smudged. Everything before his eyes was the color of ivory, except for one blot of light pink straight in front of his face. Wolf blushed. He knew that the pink blot was his target, and he realized what was happening. Still, he had no power to resist. With difficulty, he opened his toothless mouth, then bit down.

Tears welled in his eyes. He had missed.

The baby boy tried once more, this time sensing the warmth of flesh in his mouth. He bit and sucked with all his might, and tasted the warm flow of milk. He ate. His heart thumped. He grew. He lived. Food is Life. All matter and energy we take in helps us extend life and all life should be grateful for this offering it receives.

The scene ended, as did the storm. What remained was an embarrassed, crying teen and the green sea, frozen in time. The green hue disappeared from the sky, which now assumed a light blue. The sun shone and several white clouds crawled in the distance.

The heaving sea turned into a grassy landscape dotted with hills, the debris piled up together into a blob of brown, but the scene remained unclear. Wolf knew he had made giant leaps towards his goal, but he wasn’t there. Not yet.

He still felt the light breeze, too faint to tug him. It caressed his moist cheeks, materializing his memories of a woman beyond his reach.

Feeling that familiar warmth, Wolf wanted to see the blurry woman of his memories. The yearning tore at his heart, but it was in vain. She was gone. Wolf didn’t have the focus to further contemplate his True Name. His understanding of Life was too shallow, his mind too immature.