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Dominik and his grandfather had arrived late to Turin the previous night, and the moment he was shown to his room, exhaustion overtook him. He collapsed onto the bed and slipped into a deep sleep.
While asleep he fell into a dream.In his dream, Dominik saw labyrinthine structure shaped like a circle with large stones dotting around the circle at regular intervals. The stones had all sorts of carvings on them and they held different weapons. The structure was golden brown. He saw maze-like corridors until he reached a circular chamber. In the center of the chamber stood a stone dais, and on it, he saw his father, fire streaming from his hands. A young boy stood beside him mimicking the motion and conjuring flames of his own. The scene felt both vivid and distant, as though it belonged to someone else.
Dominik awoke from the dream drenched with cold sweat and he felt a pounding headache, the dream's imagery still fresh in his mind. He wondered if it was a dream or a memory. As he tried to piece it together, he put his feet over the side of the bed and took his time to really observe his surroundings. The room was the most luxurious place he'd ever been. That was where Epiconsules resided in his imagination with the room being fully furnished with blue velvet curtains, marble floors, golden pieces of furnitures like vases, all sorts of expensive paintings. How did someone who lived here owed his grandfather a favor. He though as a knock on his door interrupted his thoughts.
He turned towards the door as it opened to reveal his grandfather.
"Dominik, are you awake?" his grandfather's voice called as he stepped into the room.
"Yes, Grandfather. Come in," Dominik replied, rubbing his temples.
His grandfather entered, his gaze immediately noting the dark circles under Dominik's eyes. "Did you sleep well? You look very tired"
"I did, but I woke up with a terrible headache," Dominik confessed. "And I had this strange dream…"
" I guess you're just exhausted by the travels. It's expected though as it was a long journey here. Anyways,You must be hungry. I had one of the maids call upon you for dinner last night, but you were already asleep," his grandfather said, concern evident in his eyes. " About the dream though , we will discuss that in details later But first, dress up and come down for breakfast. There are some people I need to introduce you to."
Dominik headed to the adjoined bathroom to take a bath and got dressed quickly, his mind still buzzing with fragments of the dream. He left his room and tried to make his way to the dining hall, but the castle's winding corridors confused him. He had forgotten that the castle was incredibly large. As he wandered, he stumbled upon a corridor similar to the one in his dreams, he walked through the corridor and the held a faint sound, he walked further and he came upon the chamber with a stone dais on it. He was incredibly confused as the structure was the exact same one he saw in his dream, that meant it was not a dream but a memory. However, he doesn't remember ever being here. What was happening to him, not to mention, the whole place felt eerily familiar to him.
He looked through the chamber further and he saw a girl of medium height with a lithe body and short golden hair, green eyes, and honey-colored skin. She was creating gales of wind with her hands. As she moved her hands around in a circular motion she created wind that lifted multiple heavy rocks. She was being instructed by an old master who wore clothing similar to his grandfather. He was giving her instructions on how to control her powers better.
Dominik watched in awe as the girl's powers manifested. The man noticed him standing by the corner and called out, "You must be Dominik."
"Yes, sir. Good morning, Master," Dominik jumped in surprise at hearing his name but quickly bowed and greeted the man.
The girl stopped her practice and turned to stare at him, He gasped at her beauty. She looked like she had been carved by the best of sculptors . "Oh, you must be the boy who's going to train with the boys and I, I'm Aqua." She said while stepping forward to offer a handshake.
"Nice to meet you, Aqua. I'm Dominik," he replied, shaking her hand.
"I heard you'll be joining us to train for the consignment ? What element do you practice?" Aqua asked, her tone curious.
"I'm a Class 4," Dominik responded, feeling awkward and ashamed of his lack of elemental abilities.
Aqua's expression shifted to one of mild disdain. "This must be a joke. What exactly are you going to do as a class 4. And he's supposed to be at the consignment, that's just death."
Before the situation could escalate, the man intervened. "Enough, Aqua. Leave the boy be." "Yes master" the girl said while returning to her training. "Dominik, I believe you got lost. Where were you heading to?."
"I was supposed to go to the dining hall but I couldn't locate it" Dominik admitted. "This castle is enormous." He said under his breath.
"Follow me," Master Saif called a passing maid. "Lead him to the dining hall." The maid led the way while Dominik followed her. On the way to the dining hall, he kept looking around the castle and continue to experience deja Vu like he'd walked those grounds before making his headache worse. His headache was made worse when he remembered how small and powerless he really was here.
Upon reaching the dining hall, Dominik's jaw dropped at the opulence. There were all sorts of meals on the table. There was meat on the table. Dominik was shocked upon seeing it. His grandfather called upon him. "Have a seat, Dominik" his grandfather said pointing to a seat beside him. "I had someone go up to bring you here but you were not in your room. Where were you?" "I tried to locate the dining hall myself but I got lost and landed in a training hall. A master had a maid lead me here" he said. " That must have been Aqua and master Saif. You'll be training with Aqua and two others." "Anyways that two less to introduce." His grandfather said pointing to the other people at the table "that's Mistress Tamar, Master Rika, Master Saul." Dominik stood up and bowed to them in greetings.
A woman with a regal bearing called mistress Tamar smiled warmly at him "You're very welcome to Stonehenge. I hope you enjoy your six months here. "The other two trainees are out training with the other masters. They'll be back in a month's time and you can meet them then."
Dominik's grandfather continued, "You'll be specially trained by Master Rika, the man who welcomed us last night."
Master Rika grunted, "Since you've been to Laika, the training hall, I expect you there at noon in your training gear."
Mistress Tamar interjected, "Let's enjoy our breakfast first. We'll discuss training later."
After breakfast, Dominik followed his grandfather back to his room. Dominik's grandfather's room was even more luxurious than his. He wondered how his grandfather was connected to the castle. Not to mention, he was treated with Reverence. He still remembered Master Rika addressing him as master the previous day"Grandfather, how are we connected to this castle?"
"This is the Stonehenge of Turin," his grandfather explained. "Mistress Tamar is the mistress of the castle and an old acquaintance. She owes me a favor."
"What kind of favor?" Dominik inquired.
His grandfather evaded the question. "You've met Aqua. That's very good. You'll also train with two other boys. Alliances are very important at the consignment, maintain a good relationship with them. They're Class 3, but don't let that intimidate you. Stand your ground and use your intelligence. By the way, there's a lot more to learn when it comes to the various classes. It's a completely different ballgame for class 3 and above. Consult the library later."
Dominik nodded in response and he felt the pounding headache again. He held his head and squinted his eye in pain
"What's wrong" his grandfather inquired"I've been having strange flashes and headaches since I arrived."
His grandfather sighed. "I'll have a healer check on you later."
Their conversation was interrupted by the door creaking announcing the entrance of Mistress Tamar. "I hope everything is to your satisfaction ," she said to his grandfather with a slight bow. Seeing this, Dominik questioned who his grandfather really was. "Are you settling well, Dominik?"
"Yes, Mistress Tamar. Thank you," Dominik replied, trying to hide his discomfort.
She looked at him with a mix of kindness and authority. "How about I take you on a tour of the castle"
He looked to his grandfather who responded with a nod "I'd like that mistress "