"So this is Kroywen magic..." said Alec, in awe of the massive building that laid in front of him.
As you know, Kroywen's School of Magic Arts, or Kroywen Magic, was the biggest magic school on Kroywen Island. So, in order to keep those expectations of being the best, it had to look the part, too. Resembling a royal castle, the school was enormous in size, covering 81 acres of land. Surrounded by tall, tall walls filled with symbols Alec couldn't read and elegant decor topping off the extravagant architecture. This school was the epitome of over-the-top and Alec couldn't get enough of it.
Meanwhile, while Alec was gawking at the school, Fay was dragging him along through the campus toward the main building. Inside the main building was the headmaster's headquarters, Professor Pyre's office. However, the walk over there wasn't a silent one. Unexpectedly, Alec had a million questions about the school.
"What are the huge walls for?" he asked while pointing. "They're so fancy and bright that they hurt my eyes, but they're so cool...!"
"Those walls have anti-magic stones placed all over them, keeping anyone from using magic on campus unless they have a school robe," explained Fay. She didn't turn back to look at him to answer, though. Her eyes kept the focus on what was in front of her, the main building.
"Ah, I see!" exclaimed Alec, pointing to the sky as if he had an idea. "That way you can keep anyone from trying to cause damage to the school intentionally!" Then, he tilted his head and placed his free hand on his chin. "But, what if someone with a school robe tries to attack the school?" he questioned. Fay shook her head.
"There's no one from this school who would do that. They're too passionate about their studies to ruin them like that so easily," she stated.
"Yeah, that's true," replied Alec. "Then what makes your robes let you use magic even if the school is surrounded by anti-magic items? Is it some sort of anti-magic canceling spell or something?" he asked. Fay shook her head again.
"It's not a spell. It's a rare item that's woven into all of our robes," she said. Then, she lifted her arm over her shoulder and pointed to the back of her robe, specifically at the school symbol. "You see the star next to the K? You noticed the gem in the middle of the star, right?" Alec nodded his head in response. "That gem, as long as it's touching us in any way, deactivates any anti-magic spells being used on us," she explained.
"Oh, that makes sense!" exclaimed Alec with a satisfied smile. "But, what if-?"
"I'm sorry, Alec," said Fay, cutting him off. "I'll answer any questions you have later, but right now we need to get to Professor Pyre's office. So, please stop slowing us down by asking questions. I know you're curious and want to know more about the school, but now isn't the time," she said. Alec slowly drooped his head down.
"I'm sorry..." he muttered. Fay sighed and knelt down slowly, looking at Alec.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to come off as demanding... I'm just worried about that mana you have inside of you," she said in a gentle tone. Alec raised his head up and smiled.
"It's all good! I'm just enjoying myself a bit too much," he said before laughing quietly. Fay smiled back and rose up.
"Well, you can enjoy yourself all you want later. Right now, we need to find Professor Pyre,"
"You need to find me?" A woman suddenly called out. As a reflex, Fay spun around instantly. She met eyes with the headmaster, Aem Pyre.
The headmaster was a tall woman who was in her mid-forties. She had long and messy orange hair tied up in a ponytail. The white robe she wore was similar to the student's, but with a few extra details along the ends to make it seem more official. The presence she had just by standing there was one of a powerful force, definitely a presence worthy of a headmaster.
Once Fay finally registered who it was, she bowed and placed her fist on her chest.
"Professor Pyre!" she exclaimed, still bowed down. "I didn't expect you to be roaming around campus today..." Aem chuckled and began walking toward Fay.
"Well, I finished my work for the day, so I thought I would take a refreshing walk," she said. "But, that isn't important now," She walked passed Fay and stopped in front of Alec, staring at him. Alec gulped and took a step back.
"So, you're Professor Pyre...?" he asked, his legs shaking slightly just from her being near him. Aem smiled and brought out her right hand, waiting for Alec to shake it.
"You must be Alec Cindercloud. You've grown a lot since I last saw you," she said. Alec stared at her and blinked a few times before tilting his head to the side, confused.
"Uh, yeah..." he muttered, shaking Aem's hand. "Wait, what? I'm pretty sure I've never met you...," Aem let go of Alec's hand and nodded contently.
"It was only when you were a small child," she said. "Erick wanted to show you off to all of his old friends,"
"Dad...?" whispered Alec. Those sentences. Those two sentences. They were enough to make Alec's head spin. Before responding, he slowly rose his arm and placed his hand on the top of his head. Then, he took a few deep breaths and shook his head. "You don't mean my dad, do you?" he asked.
"I do," she said, slowly closing her eyes and smiling. "I knew Erick very well," Alec's face couldn't keep up with the thoughts in his head. The only look he could put on was pure confusion and shock mixed into one even more confusing emotion.
"But... But, how? I don't understand..." mumbled Alec. Once he said that, Aem realized why he was so confused. There was only one answer for this, and it was in plain sight the whole time. Aem sighed and placed her hands on her hips.
"Erick never explained anything, did he...?" she said with an annoyed tone. Alec shook his head in response. Aem then sighed again but with more force this time. "Of course he didn't. I told him to explain it to you when you turned 15. I should've expected him not to," she grumbled. Fay took a step forward and raised her hand, trying to get Aem's attention.
"Um, Professor Pyre?" she asked. Aem turned to face Fay and smiled.
"Yes?"
"When you say Erick, are you talking about The Scorch Mage?" she asked. Aem nodded.
"Yes, I am," she said. "This boy right here is Erick's, The Scorch Mage's, son," Fay stood still like a statue, mouth agape. The look on her face was as if she had just learned some shocking secret that changes everything. But, since Alec had no idea what was going on, he wasn't really paying attention to Fay. He was thinking about what Aem said. Different thoughts went through his head, each one posing multiple difficult questions.
She's known me since I was a baby? How is that even possible? I'm not even from this world, so how the hell would she know me?
She knows dad? But, how would she? This is a completely different world, isn't it? Dad isn't connected to this world, is he?
Dad didn't explain something to me? What didn't he explain to me? I've only heard this about this world through stories, but did he know that it was real the whole time? Were all of those stories just past experiences that he had?
The Scorch Mage's son? Who is The Scorch Mage? If I'm their son, then that means it would be my dad, but there's no way that's the case, right?
Alec's consciousness was falling into a deeper pit of questions without answers. Until Aem called out to him.
"Alec," she said. The sudden voice shocked Alec back into reality, blinking multiple times rapidly in response.
"Huh?" he questioned. Aem placed both of her hands on Alec's shoulders, looking straight into his eyes.
"Since Erick never explained it to you, I guess I have to make up for his forgetfulness," she said. "I'll try and explain everything to the best of my ability, but please, try to remain calm. There's a lot I have to cover,"