Elwin awoke from his bedroll to the cool breeze of fall.
Sparrows chirped away on the bastion windowsills of the great ziggurat, its inhabitants not yet roused from their morning slumber.
The gates of the great forge of TERATANIS was wide open in the east. The Sun peeked through and waved its rays on the faces of the Fradihta and professors, still deep asleep, and not finding the attention that it hoped, hid back behind a lofty rising cloud.
Elwin rubbed his eye, and for a second panicked where he was, and how many centuries he'd been asleep, when the memories of the previous day splashed itself like cold water to the forefront of his mind.
My Quan!
Elwin reached for his left, and felt on his fingers metal cool to the touch. There in a case lain with white velvet rested two things: his braceloom, shaded plain silver, upon which the octagon disk would fit near the wrist; and the disk itself, which had now cooled to a silver grey, giving off hints of iridescence like the surface of an opal, scattering shades of the rainbow upon certain angles. Their true colors would only manifest when Elwin wore it for the very first time, after assembling them into a proper Quan.
Elwin massaged his sore shoulders and neck and looked around to see everyone still sound asleep; they were all in uniform, and all their hair and face were streaked with ash and soot from the day before. Isaac was so deep in his slumber that he was drooling into his bedroll, his round spectacles sliding off his face, probably not having had the time to remove them before he collapsed from exhaustion. Katherine was asleep too, her burgundy hair loosened beyond the bedroll to the floor, tussled like tendrils from a fire; Mirai was... Mirai was there, asleep, hugging the components of her Quan to her chest. Elwin looked away and struggled himself up, his legs shaky and dull.
He didn't want to rouse the others now, so sweetly asleep, and he didn't know how much sound his Quan was going to make when he assembled it, so he quietly tiptoed towards the eastern gates of the forge. The Quanmaster lay deep asleep, leaning against the side of the forge walls, arms crossed; Professor Aionia was sound asleep too, her back against the gates of the forge with a single knee up to keep her from slipping. Elwin's eye moved to her Quan of glimmering white and amber, and below that, her bandaged left hand, still holding the blood of the oath dedicated to the altar; her expression that of exhaustion. Next to her lay Professor William, his muscles spent, slumbering supine with arms spread wide as if to hug the ceiling high; Professor Thales dozed upon a small chair, arms crossed, his white beard and hair drooping with gravity. Professor Helen rested a little way off, below her a cushion of ash, sleeping on her side, though her face was frozen in contortion as if experiencing a nightmare; and finally, Professor Irina rested her head upon the corner frame of one of the wide windowsills, her fall jacket folded into a makeshift pillow below her hair.
A pang of compassion and gratitude struck Elwin's heart at the sight of those six esteemed figures, because it was by their tireless help for all of the three continuous days and nights that he was able to forge his Quan to success. Elwin felt that he didn't truly deserve the magnitude of their sacrifice, and that pained him.
Nevertheless, he lowered his head in respect, and strode out of the eastern gate to the ziggurat's exterior.
All around him the morning was quiet.
Sitting upon the edge of a great slanted drop by the Temple of TERA and SERA, upon the summit of the ziggurat with the forge far below him, Elwin cautiously pulled the braceloom upon his forearm, fastening it with buckles of leather and metal. The braceloom felt cool upon his skin, and surprisingly light, as if it anticipated how and where he was going to move his arm; it held on tight even as he swung and rounded his arms. The braceloom was well-made, and he was satisfied. But incomplete without the disk, its color was still a plain silver.
Elwin took a long, deep breath, and held the disk of octagon close to his braceloom upon his forearm. He was ready to make his Quan into a unified being.
To his surprise, he didn't need to physically place the disk upon the braceloom; as he approached it, the disk of octagon unexpectedly buzzed to life. Elwin let it go, fascinated; and as he did, the disk spun in the air like a wheel, looked this way and that, and observed Elwin like a curious little creature.
Whew! What is this place? Looks like a few eons have passed by since I last saw the surface.
The disk spoke directly into his mind in a series of curious melodies. It would've taken him by surprise, if not for the Quanmaster's lessons; a part of himself lived in the Quan now, and now it was conscious just like him. The metal could finally express in words, well, in words unheard, to Elwin.
The last time I saw the surface, I remember there being lots of volcanoes and ash and meteorites falling from the sky.
Meteorites? Elwin asked.
Yeah, the disk answered. Back when the world was all hot and molten. You wouldn't know how far back that was, would you?
Not really, answered Elwin.
No matter! It replied. I was only a tiny fleck when a volcano launched me to the bottom of the sea. And there I waited for a long, long time by myself. Then all my friends joined me, helped me grow into something larger. Hey guys, say hi!
Numerous murmurs greeted Elwin in the back of his mind.
How long were you down there in the ocean? Inquired Elwin. It felt like you were lonely.
Lonely? Yes, of course. The shelves of the world shuffled me deeper and deeper under the ocean until I could no longer see the sunlight nor the sky. Not that I really missed the red sky, but pitch dark does get old after a while. At one point, there was nothing around me except the cold water. I closed my eyes and slept for goodness knows how long, and if it hadn't been for my friends that joined and grew around me, I would have slept forever.
That sounds awfully sad, commiserated Elwin.
But now I have you! bubbled the disk, jumping and wheeling with joy. I was really happy when you chose me. Stuck on that shelf and gathering dust for decades on end, I thought my fate was to always be alone. But you came all the way and reached out to take me home!
The pleasure is mine! Elwin replied in earnest. Welcome home!
Thanks for letting me see the sights and sounds of the world again, it replied. For that, I'll be with you, no matter where you choose to go.
And following that line, the disk began to spin with a clarity of purpose. It cleaved the air on its path to the wrist frame of the braceloom, settling itself on it like a potent magnet; it spun faster and faster, charging the air around it with antaric arcs, until at last, with a resonant CLANG – it anchored itself to the frame, and Elwin felt the rushing of energy through his arm and body as a lightning through himself. He felt ice in his veins and fire through his blood; for the very first time in his life, he felt like he could hear the whispers of the waters and the breezes of the world, even the breathing of the ziggurat below him. Elwin watched as his newly forged Quan sung a symphony of crackles, and with it, the disk shed its silver-gray into a brilliant shade of iridescent gold, leaving behind fluffs of metal dust that disappeared into the wind. The splash of color that started with the disk radiated outwards and shaved away the plain grey of the braceloom itself; in their place bloomed a deep hue of sapphire pine – a rich, dark green touched with a hint of teal that resembled a night sky shaded by veils of aurora – and upon its length materialized thin strands of gold that arranged into patterns of planetary orbits, like those he knew from his solar system. It was a breathtaking sight indeed.
Elwin closed his eyes and shouted the command he knew from his father.
"MAIOR FORTIOR!"
In lockstep with Elwin's command and thought, his Quan blazed to life, brilliant rays of light from the disk scattering in four directions, feeling like fire upon his wrist. The four radiant rays shrunk after half a minute to less than the length of his arm, like the imprint of stars upon photograms of telescopes, and settled into a steady hum.
Elwin swung his arm to gather the vapor of the air, expecting a modest stream to fly out as he was so accustomed; but what flew out was a ferocious jet, three times as large. It splashed upon the argent edifices of the ziggurat, breaking to fine mist, which groaned to acknowledge his presence. The birds perched nearby scattered away.
Everything the Quanmaster said was true. Together with his Quan, Elwin could perform feats greater than he ever could alone. He could rise, rise, and rise, just like his father did, just as his father battled the Marlin King and prevailed.
With it, he could finally defeat Lucian; and prove himself to the world.
The road to greatness was finally in sight.
***
"Now that all of you carry your Quans," announced Professor Aionia the next day, "you are expected to abide by the rules of conduct when you carry it at Aeternitas and the greater world outside."
Elwin remembered that night of previous winter, where Sandora and her crew jumped in to rescue him, their Quans blazing.
"Rule number one: you shall not use your Quans for ignoble ends, especially outside the Academy. These include, but are not limited to, the following: using your Quan to overpower and maim others without just cause, using your Quan to plunder, rob, or thieve, using your Quan to damage public property, and the most egregious of them all – using your Quan to take the lives of others. The only times where you will be permitted to take human life with the aided power of your Quan is in circumstances of war, for purposes of self-defense, or under explicit allowance made by the rules of competition and duels. Should you breach any of these codes of conduct at Aeternitas, or we hear any such transgression, be warned that your punishment shall be severe."
"These are the rules of conduct required of anyone that bears license to wield a Quan. As a first-year Arten of Aeternitas, each of you are hereby given these licenses in perpetuity, or until revoked. Collect these badges and carry them with you at all times. You must not lose these badges."
It was some quarter hour until Elwin and the Fradihta were back in their seats with their license badges in their pockets. Elwin looked to his kismets, who each looked to their Quan – Katherine's was plum-purple that gradated to a deep-wine, with a stylized pattern of the Sun and its rays descending to nourish the Earth; Isaac's was turquoise green that slowly finished to teal on the wrist, with motifs of what looked to be numerous comets and stars arranged in the brushstrokes of a circle; and Mirai's was the color of deep coffee that brightened to a lightning-gold, with engravings of a labyrinth and a bird with wings spread arising from the exit.
"Your eyes and ears, please," declared Professor Aionia amidst the skyward amphitheatron.
"With the forging of the Quans now behind you, we may show you the next stage of your journey here at Aeternitas: the Foundations of the Elemental Arts, or more precisely, The Foundations of the Mahamastra. While you may specialize in the Mahamastra of your choice when you choose your House, you will spend your first-year in developing a working knowledge of all Four Mahamastra, and not just your Maht."
A red-haired boy shot up his hand.
"Yes, Mr. Robert."
He stood up like a cadet in the Mythrisian Armée.
"Thank you for allowing my inquiry. Why must we learn of the other Arts, and not just our Maht the first year?"
"Good question. It's to equip you with the necessary skills to survive and help others in the event of war. What good will Fire be if you cannot draw water to cook?"
The professor continued.
"Learning of all four Arts shall also help you understand and cooperate with those whose Maht are different from yours. You will find that your familiarity with the four shall prove invaluable no matter where you choose to go, or which career you seek."
"I see. Thank you, professor," said Robert, sitting back down.
"For the very first introductions to the Forms," said Professor Aionia, making Elwin's ears prick up in attention, "you will move with the entirety of the Fradihta. And at the cusp of spring after the winter break, you will face your midyear examinations to gauge your progress together. Is that understood?"
"Yes, professor!"
"Go on then. May the MAHA be with you."