It was nighttime and the Masters and Students sat around a campfire close to one of the Summer Domes. Harry was resting as he was still very exhausted after channelling Ryu's power through himself to extinguish Aeros with the help of the others. The Students looked at the Masters expectantly hoping for answers but for the past week since the defeat of Aeros, the Masters had been evading the subject. Finally, Master Fencer spoke up.
"You wish to know about what we meant when we said our powers flow through different channels right?" Master Fencer asked.
"Are you really going to tell us?" Buern asked expectantly.
"We will tell you as much as is relevant to your current journey. The rest you are going to have to learn on your own" Master Fencer said.
"Are you sure about this Fencer?" Master Kyem asked.
Master Fencer nodded.
"Where are you even going to start? I doubt they'll understand everything now" Master Andrea advised.
"That to a large extent is dependent on how much they've grown" Master Fencer said.
"We're ready" Estelle said.
At that moment, Harry awakened from his slumber.
"If you're going to be talking important stuff, don't leave me out" Harry said as he sat up.
The others laughed at him.
"First of all, do you recall the riddle I taught you when we first encountered one another?" Master Fencer asked.
"I do;
Seven Canons
Seven Masters
Seven Stones
The Seven Canons and Seven Masters
Are One and the same
If this mountain is my home;
Then each have their own
The mountains are separate
But only Geographically
They are tied together
By the same History
But that is not all for there are Seven Stones
What is it that makes these Masters unique?"
Buern recalled the riddle.
"I solved a part of the riddle but I'm not certain I completely understand it yet.
Seven Canons may be Seven Weapons
But a Canon can also be the realm within which a story occurs
Seven Masters are the Seven Masters of Jo-lan
Across the Seven Canons
Seven Stones are the Seven Virtues
Each Tale and Master personifies.
All the Masters share the same mountain
If you refer to Jo-lan's Common History
However they each have a mountain
If you refer to Jo-lan's Unique History
Personal to the Masters
That is why they are not connected Geographically
But have the same History"
Josec explained.
"That's quite the impressive deduction Josec. You've realized I'm sure that the geographical separation of the mountains refers to Jo-lan's Unique History personal to each Jo-lan warrior and the historical oneness of the mountain refers to the Common History Of Jo-lan every Jo-lan warrior knows" Master Fencer said.
Josec and Buern nodded. Harry, Estelle and Jason listened closely since this was all new to them.
"However, that isn't all" Master Andrea said.
"That isn't all? What else could there possibly be?" Jason was astounded.
"You said it yourself. Seven Canons may be seven weapons but a canon is also the realm within which a story occurs. Each Master has a mountain making the mountains Seven as well. The Seven Mountains represent their personal history however the Masters are also connected to a Canon each, thus connoting Seven Realms" Master Fencer said.
"Seven Realms? What do you mean by that?" Harry asked.
"Masters Luna, Kyem and I come from this world you are familiar with however Masters Colette, Pheisl, Ayumi and Andrea come from different worlds" Master Fencer said.
"Different worlds? By that do you mean planets?" Harry asked.
"No, not planets…exactly. More like dimensions except for the fact that you could consider each of the realms separate from one another, each without knowledge of the other, having their own unique flow of time and history" Master Fencer explained.
"But if three of you are from here, that makes the total count of worlds five" Harry noted.
"Yeah, but I wouldn't get hung up on the numbers. There are Seven Great Realms in total. Each Realm is inhabited by countless worlds" Master Fencer explained. "However, regardless of how separate these realms are and the fact that they normally have no knowledge of one another, they are all united by a common legacy. This legacy is known as 'The Legacy Of Life'. In this world, that is what you call Jo-lan and that is why we remain Jo-lan Masters regardless of world" Master Fencer explained.
"The Legacy Of Life?" Buern asked.
"I do know that Jo-lan in our ancient tongue means 'to give life to' so this makes sense to me" Harry admitted.
The others nodded.
"The Seven Great Realms are bound together by the Legacy Of Life. You have witnessed this Legacy many times I believe Josec, and you four, Jason, Estelle, Harry and Buern should have witnessed it at least once in some form. In this world, this legacy is the mythical force known as the Crimson Phoenix, symbol of Rebirth. In its raw form, it is the force you know as Benedict's Ark and all worlds inhabiting the Seven Great Realms are connected to this Great Ark through Twelve Gates. In Ryu's world, Benedict's Ark manifested as the Seven Ryu, Seven Great Clans each wielding one of Seven Elements. In Master Pheisl's world, Benedict's Ark manifested as the force known as the Unison Courts and in your world Josec, it has already began to manifest once more as it did once in your history" Master Fencer explained.
"However, there is also a force that seeks the destruction of this Legacy. A force commonly referred to as 'the darkness of the worlds'. In Ryu's world, this force manifested as the Dark Dragon Tristran, in Master Pheisl's world as the Dark Dragon Armageddon and in your world Josec, Harry, Buern, Estelle, Jason, it is the force you know as…" Master Fencer paused with a grim look on his face.
"The Black Dragon…Souryu" the Students interrupted.
"Masters Andrea, Ayumi, Colette and Pheisl did not just beat a general of Souryu. They defeated the darkness of their homeworlds" Master Fencer explained.
"There's one thing that bugs me though. What did you mean by each of the realms have their own unique flows of time and history?" Harry asked.
"Let me explain. Benedict's Ark is the place where all of time converges, in other words, a timeless realm. Josec, you and I have met before, right before I prepared to confront the darkness of my homeworld. However, this event has not yet occurred in your homeworld's timeline" Master Pheisl explained.
"You mean…I am yet to encounter you?" Josec asked.
"It means, to me, we have encountered in the past before we first met in my cave however to you, our first encounter in my cave is your first time meeting me. To put it in simple terms, I am coming to you from your future and our first meeting to me according to your homeworld's flow of time is yet to happen" Master Pheisl said seriously.
"Sounds confusing" Harry laughed.
"That's what happens when you try to explain something that is timeless within a context of time" Master Pheisl said.
"We are glad you shared all of this with us. We feel like we finally have a broader understanding of the scale of our quest, right guys?" Estelle asked.
"Certainly" Jason replied.
"I also understand why you said nothing earlier. The scale is way too huge and we wouldn't have understood a thing you said without the experiences we've gained so far" Josec admitted.
"For now, our task here is complete. We must begin making preparations to find and take down the next general of Souryu" Master Fencer said.
Everyone agreed and then they prepared to sleep. As they lay down staring at the stars, Buern, Estelle, Harry, Josec and Jason began to converse.
"Master Fencer was right. This world is much bigger than we give it credit for" Harry said.
"Yeah, just imagine the scale. Seven Great Realms each inhabited by countless worlds" Jason said excitedly.
"The Legacy Of Life and the Crimson Phoenix are connected? That certainly was interesting to discover" Harry said.
"The fact that the Legacy Of Life is what connects all the worlds was even more shocking. Seven separate realms each with their own flow of time and history yet united by a common legacy. I guess the realms aren't that separate after all" Buern said.
"I guess so" Estelle said.