“Well, not really that either….” Piers said. “It’s a sign the restraints are failing, and your spirit is on the verge of breaking out.”
“That seems like something we should be looking into,” Aless pointed out. “I don’t recall that happening during my training at all.”
“Ah, well,” Piers replied, laughing nervously, much to Aless’s confusion, “it’s been happening since the beginning of time, really.”
“You’re not acting like yourself, Piers,” Aless mentioned. “It’s like you’re hiding something.”
“You haven’t seen me since I was twenty-three winters old. People change over time,” Piers said.
Aless sighed at this. Piers was hiding something, Aless was sure of it. It was just a matter of figuring out what it was. Finally, after a few more minutes, he was able to see the monastery between a few trees. He smiled slightly, remembering all of the times he had there before his restraints had broken.
The monastery itself was surrounded by a tall wooden fence, complete with a main gate with elemental seals on it, allowing only those trained in the elemental arts to be allowed in. It was mainly for the safety of the clan members, though once every few years someone would venture out, or in, to keep in touch with the citizens and gain access to some of the newer inventions. However, beyond those rare occasions, it was fairly uncommon for anyone who could to open the gate and venture out for any large amount of time. Even with their strength, it was dangerous to wander around the area—if a group of slave traders or militia discovered an unprotected mage, theywouldn’t rest until theyhad captured him or her or been killed themselves.
Piers immediately walked to the gate, placing his hand without a moment of hesitation and releasing some of his mana, causing the doors to immediately part in his favor. He gave Aless a small smile, walking in and approaching the main temple.
Aless followed, sparing small glances toward the Water and Fire Temples, both positioned close to the gate on opposite ends. There were five temples dedicated to the worship of the spirits, positioned in a pentagonal shape around the main building.
However, use of the individual temples was largely outdated at this point for anyone besides the guardians. Before the restraints had been created, the vessels were sealed under the podiums in deep, locked vaults, and many students would bring food or make prayers in their honor. While his punishment was still being decided, Aless himself had been sealed inside the Water Temple’s well, and he remembered it as an awful experience. The pits were deep, dank, and filled with nothing to stop the endless boredom the days brought.
In modern times all apprentices, scribes, and guardians would stay in the Main Hall. There were five different barracks in the basement—several to house the various groups of elemental trainees, as well as five separate, slightly larger rooms to satisfy the guardians’ needs and allow them to work closely with their apprentices before the spirit needed to be transferred.
On the main level there was a library, a room of several seamstresses, a small nursery for the children of scribes and abandoned orphans with a gift in the elemental arts, a large dining hall, a kitchen, and a private meeting chamber for the five guardians. Behind the meeting chamber there was a large stairway leading to their bell, used for calling in clan members for meals or when one of the spirits took control of its vessel.
Aless examined the new decors lining the walls of the main hall. He had to admit, he was incredibly impressed by the clan’s rebuilding efforts—the place managed to look considerably better than before. It had a nice combination of traditional and contemporary inventions and decorations. After the sheer destruction he had caused, Aless was surprised they’d managed to make the place look this incredible.
“We’re expected in the main meeting hall,” Piers explained, leading Aless through the dining hall. After living in the woods for such a long time, Aless had lost a lot of his sense of time and meal times. He’d eat when he got hungry, as opposed to when the bell sounded. It would be nice having someone else cook for him. He had spent more time than he liked eating small woodland animals.
All the trainees were eyeing him with interest, whispering amongst themselves. They were clothed in the specific robes of their element for the occasion, or so it appeared to Aless. Unless policies had changed, which they very well could have, all members of the clan were permitted to wear whatever clothing suited them unless told otherwise. The clan leader must’ve done this for his arrival.
Aless smiled, walking over to the students of Serac. He could remember being amongst them so many years ago. The bright-blue robes hadn’t changed since he had been training—and seeing all the members covered in them gave him a nostalgic feeling.
“Now, now, Master Serac, there’ll be plenty of time for that later,” Piers teased, grabbing Aless’s arm and pulling him away from his sector.
Aless rolled his eyes, allowing Piers to pull him into the meeting room and away from the clan’s prying eyes. He took a deep breath and examined the door. It was engraved with all the old traditional depictions of the spirits. Aless was surprised to see this had been rebuilt from the old design—during his feral rampage, one of the few things he remembered was destroying the door with a burst of water strong enough to cut through flesh. It had taken decades to chisel before, and that had been on a wooden canvas. The new door was metal decorated with jewels to match the demons’ colors. Aless idly wondered how much the clan had spent on it.
Piers reached forward, gripping the handle and prying the door open, inviting Aless in before slamming it shut.
Piers stepped forward and bowed, shutting his eyes. “Master Cyril,” he greeted, “I bring our dear Master Serac from his tiny cabin in the middle of nowhere and offer him back to you, to honor your side of the deal. His exile has been served.”
From the table a tanned girl with loose curly hair snorted. “How many of those words do you actually know the definition of?”
Piers laughed at this, raising his head and standing at full height. “It’s fun to pretend sometimes.”
Aless took a moment to examine the members of the table. Sitting at the head was Cyril, or so Aless assumed. He had aged, but still resembled the same man he was before Aless’s exile. Cyril was from an island on Far East, giving him dark hair, fair skin, pointed ears, and almond-shaped eyes. His hair was streaked with white strands, and his face was covered in deep wrinkles, but he looked virtually the same as he had ten winters back. His skin was littered with a crisscross of white and black marks, representing the spirits that had inhabited his skin.
The girl to Cyril’s right remained silent, hardly sparing a glance for Aless. Aless didn’t recognize her, but she looked awfully young to be a guardian, and her body didn’t show any noticeable signs of having a spirit inside her. She was immensely pale, looking similar to people from the mountainous Far North. She was small, too, easily over a head shorter than Aless. Her eyes were eerilypale, and her face was too serious for her soft features.
At Cyril’s left was another woman, the same one who had spoken earlier. It surprised Aless, because throughout the years there had been very few instances of women managing to house a spirit, and even when they did, they were usually separated by a few decades. The woman at Cyril’s left was tall, taller than Aless even, and broad, but she really was an incredibly gorgeous, curvy woman. She looked as if she was from Far West, reminding Aless heavily of Piers. However, her hair was a dark-brown color, rather than Piers’s shocking red, and it fell around her back in tight curls, decorated with various beads and feathers. Her skin was covered with bright-green markings, as was typical of Petra’s guardian. It was a huge step up from the old, decrepit man they had before, especially since she looked far calmer than he remembered Petra’s old guardian ever being.
“It’s our pleasure to see your return, Aless,” Cyril greeted, standing and making a small bow, gesturing for the two women to do the same. “I hope you managed to have some enjoyment in your exile, however du
ll it might’ve been.”
Aless stepped forward and bowed to Cyril. “I thank you for your generosity in allowing my return,” Aless said with full sincerity.
“I also hope you understand that we would not be allowing this if I thought we had a better option,” Cyril said. “However, there is no one available to take your place. You are lucky that we are not simply throwing you under a temple.”
Aless swallowed. He had expected something to that effect. “I understand.”
“Do try to keep your restraints on. Next time we will not forgive you.”
“I will,” Aless promised.
“About that, Aless,” Cyril added, “we need to discuss the incident.”
“I’d agree,” Aless replied, sighing. “What do you want me to say?”
“Well, firstly I’d like you to know we do know it wasn’t your fault,” Cyril stated. “The spirits are unpredictable at best. However, I would like to know what brought on the… incident.”
Aless glanced nervously at Piers. “I was frustrated before I went to sleep—being a guardian at the beginning was immensely stressful,” he explained. “After that I remember waking up restrained and covered in blood,” he answered truthfully.
“We left you with Serac. During your stay in the woods, did you experience any weakening of your bonds?” Cyril asked.
“None. Even if I do not know what happened, Cyril, I will never let this happen again.”
“I understand, Aless,” Cyril answered, standing up and placing a hand on his shoulder.
The girl at Cyril’s left stepped forward, taking Aless’s hand and kissing it, giving a small bow. “My name is Kateline, Guardian of Petra. It’s a pleasure to meet you formally, Master Serac.”
Piers laughed at her actions. “You’re barking up the wrong tree, Kateline. Might as well not waste your time with your seduction,” he teased, walking over and giving Aless a small punch to the shoulder.
Kateline snorted. “I simply wished to be polite, or are you allergic to courtesy, dear Piers?”
Cyril nudged the remaining girl on the back, and she reluctantly slinked forward, offering her hand to Aless. “Selena, Guardian of Zephyr,” she spoke quickly, giving a small bow. So this was the girl who hated him with such a passion….
“Pleasure to meet you, Master Zephyr,” he replied.
She pulled away almost instantly, turning to Cyril. “Now, is that everything? May I go back to my training?” she asked, not bothering to cast another glance in Aless’s direction.
“I’m afraid not, Selena. As we discussed earlier you are still expected to be present for his reintroduction to the clan,” he replied, smooth voice managing to permeate the entire room.
“Come on, Lena, it’s only a few minutes. Besides, don’t you want to welcome Aless back? He’s my best friend and he’s been gone for ten years,” Piers chimed in, giving her a pathetic look.
Selena flushed dark red. “Can we make this faster, then? I have to train and I don’t have enough time to do it.”
“It all depends. Aless, is there anything you wish to ask of us before we reinstate you as the Guardian of Serac?” Aless gave a quick glance between the other guardians—between Kateline’s kind face, Selena’s severe expression, Piers’s teasing smirk, and Cyril’s calm smile he felt an immediate sense of belonging. It had been so uncomfortable all those years, left all alone, secluded from anyone who had trained with the elemental arts. During his exile not even Piers had come to visit him, a fact that made him slightly bitter at times.
But standing right here, in the private meeting hall, surrounded by fellow guardians, even if one of them hated him, he felt a sense of belonging.
“I wish to be reinstated as quickly as possible,” Aless answered.
“Then it is to be done,” Cyril declared, turning around and flicking open a trunk. He pulled out the five traditional vibrant coats. Kateline and Selena both rushed over to the trunk, donning the ornate green and white coats, respectively. Cyril himself wore the black one, passing the red and blue ones to Kateline to deliver to Piers and Aless.
Aless quickly donned his coat, not taking a moment to examine it. As heavy and uncomfortable as their traditional coats were, Aless couldn’t help but feel comfortable. It reminded him of an easier time, before old Master Petra had supposedly goaded him untilhis restraints fell off. He remembered the same process when he had been given his role of Serac’s guardian originally.
Cyril stepped forward and positioned himself ahead of Aless, Kateline, Piers, and Selena. Piers and Selena immediately moved themselves to his left, as if they were in a well-rehearsed dance. Kateline tugged Aless to the right, placing herself closer to Cyril’s side.
Cyril pulled open the doors, stepping forward and into the main dining hall. Instantly the students rose, sensing the importance of the moment as all five guardians had donned their official robes.
Cyril kept the clan at attention, gesturing for Aless to step forward. “Dear family,” he greeted, “I am sure I do not need to remind you all of the significance of this moment. You may all be seated.”
Aless took a moment to scan the room, attempting to assess the mana in the water elementals in particular. There were students there who would make immensely powerful scribes, he noted proudly, and a few who seemed like they could become decent spellcasters with training, but none at the level of a future guardian, much to his disappointment. It would’ve been nice to find an apprentice. He wasn’t about to delude himself into believing he would be alive forever. Even if he didn’t, should he lose control of Serac again, he wanted to make sure someone would be able to take his place. He moved his attention to the other factions, finding similar results in the fire and earth sections.
However, the air sector was a different story.
In hindsight, he wasn’t entirely sure how he’d managed to miss this during his first walkthrough, but there was an immense wave of mana radiating from one of the pupils. It was overpowering. He quickly scanned his fellow guardians. Only Selena’s mana came close, and even then the force of the pupil’s drowned it.
“Now, if you would please step forward and introduce yourself, Master Serac,” Cyril requested, snapping Aless out of his distraction.
He stepped forward and bowed to the crowd. “It’s an honor to introduce, and reintroduce, myself to you all,” he began, standing up straight. “I am Aless, Guardian of Serac. I hope to be allowed to talk to each of you personally, at one point or another. I sense a lot of potential in you, and it will be my honor to eventually take one of you as my apprentice,” he finished, taking another bow.
The crowd politely applauded and was quickly interrupted by Cyril holding his hand up, quieting them. “Now, it is important we discuss the history behind Master Serac’s exile, lest it happen again,” he said. “When a guardian’s restraints fail for one reason or another, it is crucial that you both sound the alarms and get the attention of one of the other guardians. Master Zephyr, in particular, should be the first one you seek out. Do not try to fight off a feral guardian because you will fail, I can promise every one of you that. The incident ten years ago killed a good portion of our old scribes, guardians, and students. The best you can do is sound the alarms and fortify the barracks,” he elaborated, patting Aless on the shoulder. “Before we welcome Aless back to our clan, I would like us all to take a moment of silence to honor those who died that night.”
Aless looked back at Piers, Kateline, and Selena, all three of whom had lowered their heads. He followed suit, taking deep breaths to calm himself. When he first went into exile, he spent a good deal of his time trying to piece what he had done and who he had killed. It had been difficult. He lived the large part of the first year simply staring at the wall and trying not to cry. His eyes welled up with tears even now. He didn’t want to break down in front of everyone.
So he allowed his mind to wander back to that pupil he had sensed earlier. What was he like? How did he have such an immense natural force? Wa
s the pupileven a he? Aless allowed himself to wander off—perhaps it was a young man, someone with an innocent spirit and a gorgeous face, someone who could easily be coaxed into being Aless’s eventual apprentice, when he decided to take one, one who would share his bed on cold nights…. Back in Far South, Aless was sure people would have a fit over anyone in power bedding their students, but the monastery had always functioned differently from the rest of Nier.
Aless took a deep breath, reminding himself he was getting ahead of himself. For all he knew the powerful spirit belonged to a girl or was purely based in housing Zephyr. He hoped that wouldn’t be the case. Would he even be able to approach Selena, asking to meet a member from her domain? She definitely disliked him, and people in general, if her interaction with Piers was anything to go off of. It’d be inappropriate.
Cyril’s booming voice once again drew Aless out of his thoughts. “With that done,” he began, “I wish to welcome Master Serac, Aless of the Far South, back into the Cult of the Elements.”
The entire crowd erupted into applause, many members of Serac’s sector standing up to commemorate the event. Aless smiled at this, feeling almost like a local celebrity. The adoring gazes were great, and he couldn’t resist taking another respectful bow. He stopped once he raised his head, biting his lip. It wasn’t the time to get cocky. The attention was great, but he refused to let himself forget the destruction he had caused. There was always the possibility of his restraints breaking again, and as soon as they did, Aless knew almost every person in this room would be dead.
Eventually the applause began to die, and the clan members began sitting down, returning to their various meals.
Selena immediately turned to Cyril, unbuttoning her coat and passing it to Piers. She wore a knee-length button-down dress, a set of warm, thick leggings, and high worn-out brown boots. She looked more ready for a day of training than she did to welcome a new guardian. It was offensive, in Aless’s opinion. Aless looked worn down today, but to his credit he hadn’t had a chance to acquire any new clothing for years.
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