"We have no one within the academy who can properly train you, and without proper training, you will be a danger to not only yourself, but those around you."
These words scared Monica to the point her body started to shake. The air surrounding her charged with a blend of anticipation and fear, she pulled them up to her chest then wrapped her arms around them as she rocked back and forth.
The seven-year-old boy, his eyes filled with the innocence of childhood and not wanting to see his best friend in fear, stood before approaching the visibly distressed Monica then with wide, empathetic eyes placed his hand upon her left shoulder. His voice, soft and reassuring, cuts through the girl's worries like a soothing melody. "Hey, it's okay," he begins, his earnestness palpable. "I know it's scary, but trust me, everything will turn out okay. We just need to learn how to manage our magic, that's all."
He crouched down to be at eye level with his friend, offering a warm smile carrying the weight of genuine understanding. "You're not alone in this, you know? We can figure it out together. Maybe we can practice together, and it won't be so scary anymore. Magic is supposed to be fun, right?"
Monica, still anxious but now met with a glimmer of hope, looks up at him. The boy extended his small hand to hers, a silent promise of companionship and support. "Even if things go a bit wonky sometimes," he adds with a mischievous grin, "I bet we can turn those mishaps into the coolest adventures ever!"
The wizards surrounding the two children smiled at the resilience shown by the two knowing no matter how hard they may have tried, they could not have possibly diffused the small girl's fears as effectively as those few words from her friend.
As Monica relaxed and returned his grin, he added, "Besides, we have places to be, we can't stay here anyway. We have to meet everyone in Marsgate soon."
The three women looked at Poralis who simply nodded his head. "They are not from our time, or perhaps, we are not from theirs. The council has a serious matter to discuss regarding this, but they have their own place and what we know as Marsgate has advanced greatly to what is now the capital city of a new kingdom years removed from our Yendora. We have little time to prepare them before they must be pushed or pulled into their own time reference. This is the matter before the council for later tonight."
As the gaze of the three women of various ages flickered between Poralis and the youths, the spikey-haired Stephen returned leading a humanoid tortoise adorned with a long, flowing robe resembling the earthy tones of the tortoise shell beneath. The patterns on the robe's carapace covered its back glowed softly with intricate mystical symbols of earth, water, air, lightning, and protection. This creature had a human-like face, but with a beak-like nose. As one looked upon the creature, its eyes exude an ancient wisdom.
Its fingers were adorned with delicate webbing, granting it a connection to the elements of water and earth. Walking toward the group, the creature moved with a deliberate and steady pace, reminiscent of a tortoise's unhurried gait. Despite his seemingly slow movements, an undeniable aura of magical power surrounded it.
The green-haired man looked at the group around the table before making introductions to the youth. "Archmage Alden, this is Von, and his companion is Monica, if I remember correctly." The small girl nodded. "Von, Monica, this is Archmage Alden, a master of elemental magic, who draws inspiration from the natural world. His robe shows the various elements he possesses the ability to manipulate including the magic of creating protective barriers. He is also one of the members of the council and the director of the elemental colleges. There are currently no elementalists who can challenge him in his four specialties. Not only this, but he is revered by his students and other instructors as a guardian of ancient secrets and a wise counselor for any who seek his guidance. His very shell serves as conduits for mystical energies with each of the scutes enchanted much like his robe acting as a focus. Due to his age, wisdom and knowledge, many other instructors reach out to him for his insights into the mysteries of the magical realm."
Looking closer at the glowing symbols on the tortoise beast man, it became apparent they weren't merely glowing, but each symbol was created from the element and its entire robe acted as a conduit and focus for the elements represented. Even under the scrutiny of those around him, his calm and patient demeanor, characteristic of tortoises, failed to hide a deep well of magical knowledge and a keen understanding of the balance in nature.
The tortoise man shook his head then, in a calm, slow, elderly voice, responded, "I don't think I will ever live up to your introductions, Stephen. Of course, once you live to your second millennium, I would hope your skills in myalomancy would be at least as capable as mine in my chosen elements."
Turning to Von, he looked at the young boy. He was small for a human, under four feet tall for certain and maybe 60 pounds dripping wet if he were fully clothed. The youngster didn't stand out physically in any way as his features typical of any young child, with a soft and innocent countenance. His brown hair appears slightly unkempt, suggesting it could use a haircut. Despite his petite stature, there isn't much noteworthy about his physical appearance. If he were to turn sideways, the lad could probably disappear without trying. Continuing to eye the boy, he didn't see anything remarkable enough to indicate he had any magical aptitude at all, yet his test scores better than many who studied at the academy for years.
"So.... Von...." He continued to stare at the boy. "The reason there are so many masters here for your results is at hand. You are a promising student who has yet to begin his magical journey through the diverse realms of magics available to you. We have verfied your results several times, and your tests have shown remarkable results for someone twice your age. In cartomancy, the divination via cards, the enchanted cards responded to well to your presence revealing an apprentice level of affinity for this mystical art, indicating an adeptness in deciphering the arcane messages hidden within the cards."
Next, you were tested on chiromancy, the ancient practice of palmistry, the room indicated an apprentice level of affinity, hinting at his potential to unlock the secrets held within the hands for not only yourself but others in the future. Following this, the magic of books and sage wisdom, unfolded as the perfect choice of books responded to your aura indicating while untrained, you show a journeyman level of affinity in the profound discipline of bibliomancy as you showcased an adeptness in tapping into the wisdom held within ancient tomes.
You were tested for an affinity with arithmancy, the magical art of mathematics. Despite choosing one of the most difficult series of numbers your aura resonated in harmony with the magic of math showcasing a mastery that surpassed even the most seasoned practitioners, signifying unparalleled skill in deciphering the arcane language of numbers. Based on this one affinity, and the skill you showed during the test, there is little you can learn here, in fact, you could well become an instructor.
When tested for affinity with aeromancy, the ethereal nature of air magic your aura indicating an apprentice level of affinity and you already have a budding connection to the element of air, with a strong potential for growth. Again, with aimamancy, the enigmatic art of blood magic, you unveiled a connection to the mystic currents of blood magic indicating an apprentice level of affinity, suggesting a potential journey into the arcane realms of life force manipulation."
As the others stared in astonishment at the small boy, the tortoise was far from finished. "The awe-inspiring magic of lightning, astrapimancy, responded well to your aura well recognizing your potential to harness the power of thunderstorms and electrical currents. You have an apprentice level of affinity with this as well.
With chloromancy, the magic of plants, your aura showcased the growth and vibrancy of flora in response to your desires. It wasn't as strong as the others but appropriate for your age. You have a novice level of affinity in this natural discipline, suggesting another innate connection, this time to the verdant forces of the magical world. Your test for choromancy, the spatial magic that manipulated distances, revealed itself to also have a novice affinity in spatial magic hinting at the untapped potential in manipulating the fabric of space, a skill one would find useful once you unfold it with further exploration."
"Sir," the elven archmage, Alendoria, began, "Von has already shown a grasp above novice affinity when he pulled his temporal focus across the room earlier when blocking Eve's probe."
Von looked all around feeling self-conscious. "I didn't really know what I was doing, only that I wanted it."
The tortoise stroked his beaked nose with his webbed fingers. "Is this so? Perhaps you didn't show your full skill during the exam, or perhaps stress brought out the best in you. Something to note for future educational purposes." Looking toward Stephen, he stated, "write that down."
Stephen nodded as the ancient tortoise continued, "Now where was I? Hydromancy? Yes, fluid magic. Surprisingly, you again show an apprentice level of affinity in fluid magic, indicating another elemental connection. This one to the ever-changing nature of water and other fluids. By the way, Von, did you know a trained hydromancer can also affect blood and poisons? Just something to keep in mind as you study. Metallomancy was your next test. Here you showed a budding connection with a potential to command the forces of metallic elements amounting to a novice level. Normal for a up and coming metallomancer at your age."
Looking at the slate in front of him and frowning, he paused before continuing. "Here is something very unusual, hatchling. You have a novice affinity for the magic of death, necromancy as well as a beginner level affinity for life or healing magics. Together, they suggest a journey into the mysteries of the afterlife lying some time in your future. Perhaps you will learn secrets far beyond what we could imagine as typically, these two magics are diametrically opposite to one another. A strong healer can never learn necromantic magics and a strong necromancer may never truly heal someone despite there being some overlaps in what the magics can do, normally only one will exist in any given person, yet you have both.
You also have an apprentice level of affinity with the magic of light, phosphomancy. During your test, you were able to bend light around you making yourself invisible for a moment. This indicates you should be able to harness the brilliance of light in the future, a great boon for collecting demon cores. On the other hand, again, your aura showed the potential to command the destructive and transformative powers of flames known as pyromancy. This is often sought after by beast hunters as most beasts are naturally afraid of flames.
Unfortunately, we are still not finished as your aura showed a novice level of affinity for the mystical art of metamorphosis, we call transformation magic. Your again hinted at a potential as a wielder of transformative forces, suggesting a strong potential for adeptness in shape-shifting and alteration once you obtain training. As with transformation magic, it's sibling transmutation magic, who some like to refer to as alchemy's big sister, you showed more than a budding affinity with the art of substance mutation which is also at a novice level affinity thus another skill holding vast potential for exploration in your future.
Venomancy, the subtle magic of poisons, and tychomancy, the unpredictable magic of luck, also showed in your aura, but compared to the others, while not beyond your ability to master, as of this moment, there two were your weakest affinities, but again, you showed a novice level affinity in each of these leaving the potential open for mastery as you grow. Poralis, you may give him the final results."