Aethernea

by Cloe D Frost

  The warm colors of the houses mixed with vivid colors of the decorations gave Ashar a warm and pleasant feeling. The feeling was only enhanced by the background noises. Kiel could hear soft cooing of gugoo, the pleasant chirping of tiwi followed by the quiet buzzing of their wings, and even strong swishing of dragon wings. The chatter and laughter of men and women alike, spread from all sides.

  Ashar was bursting with life, one could tell immediately that it was one of the five biggest cities in Halnea.

  This wasn’t Kiel’s first time in Ashar, he used to live here, before moving to Beyd.

  He didn’t dislike Ashar, he wouldn’t mind calling this place home once again. Kiel’s mouth twitched into a small smile.

  Elaru pointed at a complex of large buildings far in the distance. The buildings were situated on the outskirts of the city, surrounded by empty plains on one side, and a forest on the other.

  Ashar University of Magic.

  Kiel’s eyes glittered. That was his destination. That was his future home.

  Elaru turned to him and grinned. “Let’s fly!”

  Fly? Kiel looked around them - even though one could rent a dragon to get around the city, Kiel noticed that many people were jumping roof to roof via Acceleration, and even more were flying around in the air purely by magic. Their presence on the roof didn’t make them stand out at all. In fact, upon further inspection of the roofs, it looked like they were specially made to be walked on.

  They were not roofs in the traditional sense, they were orange stone platforms, sturdy enough to not crack by having an Accelerating person crash into it full force. The buildings also had wooden pillars around them for holding up carpets and drapes hanging from the roof.

  At first, Kiel had thought that their purpose was to shield people from rain and the sun, but they might have also served to soften the fall if someone were to lose their footing and fall off the roof.

  Even though he used to live in Ashar, he had seldom been allowed to leave the house, so being in the big city was not something he was used to – it felt foreign and strange. Even though Beyd was an argel town, and argel often used magic to fly and accelerate, there weren’t many people in Beyd that flew around. It was rare to see someone jumping from roof to roof because it was considered impolite. Roofs in Beyd weren’t designed for walking and could collapse easily.

  “Fly? Why don’t we just rent a dragon?” Kiel raised an eyebrow at Elaru. There was a “Rent-a-dragon” office just ahead of them.

  “Renting a dragon is for people who can’t fly! Besides, those dragons aren’t racing dragons, they can’t hope to keep up in speed to two excellent mages such as ourselves!” Elaru was grinning ear to ear.

  When her feet left the roof and she floated upwards, Kiel realized that they had been holding hands the entire time. Why now? Because her hand was pulling at his, beckoning for him to join her.

  He frowned and let go of her hand. It was inappropriate to hold hands with a female unless they were romantically involved. And he didn’t like people touching him.

  He pretended that the sudden loss of comfortable heat in his hand didn’t bother him.

  “There is a long way to the university. You just gained the ability to cast Acceleration magic. Are you sure you can sustain it the entire way?”

  There were many different ways to make one fly with magic. From the most rudimentary ways, which relied on Accelerating every few seconds, which looked like the person was jumping without touching the ground, to the most advanced ones which completely nullified the effects of gravity. Elaru was skipping the entire learning curve onto the last stages of flight. Kiel felt inferior for being unable to cast any Transmutation spells. Not that he had tried. He just didn’t know any.

  “It’ll be fine. I’ve seen Acceleration magic so many times that I can cast it in my sleep.”

  Acceleration was an impulse spell, it had immediate effect and then it disappeared. Making an impulse spell into a sustained spell, a spell whose effects persist over time, was not as simple as one would be led to believe.

  Kiel didn’t bother to argue with her. Instead, he concentrated on overcoming his own reluctance to fly. He wasn’t sure if it was because he was afraid that he’d run out of mana, or because he was afraid to finally set out to the skies, after all this time.

  Certainly, he wasn’t afraid that he couldn’t keep up with her magic. He had been using Acceleration magic since he was born. It wouldn’t be a challenge to beat someone who just started using it for the first time a few minutes prior.

  Kiel looked back to the university, measuring the distance skeptically.

  Elaru laughed, dismissing his unvoiced concerns easily. “Kiel, you worry too much!”

  “And you worry too little.” He glared at her halfheartedly.

  “It’s fine! It doesn’t matter if I can’t fly well or fly for long. If I fall, you’ll catch me!”

  Kiel’s soft glare turned into a real one. “As if I would catch you! You can go and die for all I care! That would free me from this mess.”

  She flashed him a mischievous grin and grabbed his hand again tightly, merrily pulling him upwards into the skies.

  Kiel bit down on his lips to not curse. Whenever she reached for his hand, it was always so quick that he didn’t have the time to dodge it.

  “You’ll either catch me or fall down with me mate!” Elaru laughed. The wind was blowing her hair around her like a mane.

  She was happy. She was really happy to finally be able to fly.

  And Kiel felt her happiness spread onto him. Whether it was because of her powerful, expressive aura, or an aftereffect of their bond that she claimed didn’t exist, it didn’t matter. Whatever the case, she was contagious. And, after all, he had always wanted to fly as well.

  He pulled up the goggles hanging around his neck onto his eyes so that the wind wouldn’t bother him. Elaru followed his suit and took out her own that were hidden under her scarf.

  Elaru took the lead and accelerated quickly forwards, faster and faster, pulling Kiel along high into the sky. He struggled, Accelerated away from her, but her grip on his hand didn’t lessen at all.

  The attempts to struggle free caused a weird dance to occur.

  “Let go of me, woman!” Kiel frowned in displeasure. No matter how he tried to shrug her off, she had a steel grip on his hand.

  “Nevah!” She laughed. Kiel even saw her flick her tongue to him briefly. How bloody childish!

  “Let go or I’ll kick you!” Kiel threatened.

  “Go ahead and try!” Elaru grinned, easily dodging his leg. It looked like she was a leaf drifting on the wind. Kiel frowned, he would indeed have trouble hitting her like this.

  “Stop pulling me down with you!”

  “Can’t you just fly us back up, mister ‘straight-A-student’?”

  “Fly on your own, darn it!”

  “But flying with you is so much more fun!”

  “I don’t care if you’re having fun! I am not having fun!” Kiel yelled over the loud sound of wind hitting their faces.

  “Did you forget I can tell when you are lying?” Elaru laughed merrily. Kiel tried to divert the conversation. He did, in fact, forget that she could tell his lies apart.

  “Stop it! We are attracting attention. People are looking at us!” Kiel felt his cheeks heating up, he tried his best to keep his emotions off his face. This is just too ridiculous! When was the last time he did something so unbecoming of a noble?!

  “So?”

  “What do you mean ‘so’?! Have you no shame!?” Kiel spat through gritted teeth.

  “Yes, I am shameless.”

  “Learn some shame then!!”

  “Teach me then.”

  Kiel glared at her, complained, even swore a few times. The wide grin never left Elaru’s face. She responded to him mostly in a joking manner, telling him that she would never let him go and taunting him to try and shake her off.

  “Are you deliberately going in the opposite
direction?!” Kiel hissed.

  “Of course not, I am just a bad flier.”

  “I can tell you are lying! Is our impending demise a joke to you?” She rolled her eyes at his exaggeration.

  “Drama queen. Stop worrying and have some fun!”

  “How could trying not to fall to death be fun?! I am not having fun!”

  Elaru laughed without a care in the world. “You are repeating yourself. Running out of curses already?”

  Kiel glared at her icily. He couldn’t admit it. He couldn’t say it was really fun. Trying to steer while taking into account actions of each other, it was like a game of rock, paper and scissors.

  The most fun game of rock, paper and scissors Kiel had ever had. Even though he complained the entire way, it wasn’t because he was worried about dying. He wouldn’t die as long as he had enough mana to prevent it.

  He complained because he didn’t want her this close to him. He didn’t want her to spread her glee to him, nor to hold his hand so tightly, and especially not to permanently engrave her presence in his pleasant memories.

  He could feel his cold and apathetic mask melting like ice under her light, and he didn’t like it. Or did he?

  As the clear sky beckoned them closer, as the warm sun showered them with gentle kisses, and as the wind ruffled their hair and clothes, Kiel forgot all his worries. For that brief while, Kiel felt free.

  And for the first time in a long time, he felt content, maybe even happy? Perhaps Kiel couldn’t quite recognize that pleasant feeling because he was a stranger to happiness. He didn’t ponder and dissect ‘why’ and ‘what’ he was feeling, all he knew was that finally, after all this time… he was flying.

  For a moment, he even forgot that all of this was just temporary. That he shouldn’t get attached. Shouldn’t get used to this.

  And even though his mind knew that clearly, the heart was not the one to listen to reason.

  * * *

  The huge courtyard, surrounding the Ashar University of Magic, was paved with white stone tiles and decorated with trees, flowers, and fountains, making the building complex at the end of it look nothing short of a royal palace.

  The white buildings were numerous, large and each one of them was a peerless work of art. Even Rroda main house manor paled in comparison.

  Standing in front of the large buildings, Kiel felt insignificant. Like a bug looking up at a tall tree.

  He took a short while to catch his breath. Kiel and Elaru’s tug-war had ended with a slightly rough landing. Kiel was aiming for the gates while Elaru was aiming for the road next to them. Naturally, that resulted in them missing the top of the gates and falling onto a nearby tree.

  Usually, such a landing might have left bruises and scratches, but they were still under the influence of flying magic that made them effectively weigh less, and with their fast reflexes, dexterity and agility, both of them managed to pass through the tree like a hot knife through butter.

  When they were finally safely on the ground, Kiel glared and pointed his finger childishly, blaming Elaru for the fall, but instead of an apology, she just laughed. Seeing her laugh warmly, with branches and leaves sticking out from her hair and clothes, Kiel almost busted out laughing too. She looked ridiculous, her hair looked like a bird’s nest.

  Still, looking at her beautiful smile made it clear that she would look stunning even if she was bathed in mud and wearing rags.

  Kiel was starting to like her sincere laugh. It made everything seem fun. Like life was just a game to her. There was no place for sorrow and worry. Just fun.

  He could like such a world.

  It seemed to bring out a childish side to himself that he wasn’t aware that he possessed.

  He shook his head helplessly, trying to return his mental facilities to that of a proper adult.

  Kiel and Elaru passed through the gates and entered the foyer of the university in a hurry. In the middle of the foyer, there was a reception desk occupied by two men, looking to be in their twenties. They seemed to be packing their papers and boxes, preparing to leave.

  One of them was an argel with brown hair reaching his ears that had several dark brown strands. His eyes were chocolate brown and very warm. His appearance, coupled with his gentle aura, reminded Kiel of a cute pechuh. (Small fluffy round rodent with big beady eyes and a long bushy tail. Their fur usually comes in shades of brown or white. Because of their adorable looks and docile nature they were very popular pets.)

  The other one was an elibu with shoulder length bluish gray hair tied at the back. He had a scholarly air about him and dark green eyes that looked almost gray.

  Both of them had dense Mage Armours surrounding their bodies that marked them as mages.

  Kiel and Elaru accelerated towards the two. “Excuse me, are you taking entries for the exam?” Kiel called out to them.

  The two looked at Elaru and Kiel, noticing their ruffled appearance that looked as if they were in a catfight rolling through the bushes. The men exchanged a strange glance.

  The man with the gray hair hesitated a bit, his eyebrows furrowed when he looked at Elaru.

  However, the argel with chocolate brown hair, didn’t hesitate at all. He shrugged and smiled gently. “You’ve barely made it. We were just closing down.”

  When he heard the warm voice of his acquaintance, the other man sighed in resignation and took out some papers he had just packed. He offered them to Kiel and Elaru. “Fill up these forms please.”

  Elaru refused them. “I signed up for the exams months before. It’s just Kiel that waited until the last second.”

  The soft, kind smile that was plastered on Kiel’s face froze. That little… ! It was you that waited until the last second to tell me about the deadline!

  Kiel accepted the papers and waited for the men to take their eyes off him before he gave Elaru a sneaky glare.

  When Elaru saw his face which was half stuck in a soft smile and half glaring at her, she pretended to cough into her hand to mask her failed attempt at controlling her laughter. Kiel’s distorted expression was just too funny.

  Kiel’s glare disappeared in an instant when the brown-head turned to him and offered him a signature pen.

  Signature pens were filled with a special ink that acted as a glue for mana, so the first mana that came in contact with it would be stuck to the ink. This allowed the person using the pen to sign documents with their own mana. The first mana that the ink came in contact with after exiting the pen was the mana of the person using the pen. Since everyone’s mana was unique, their mana could be used to verify the identity of the person who wrote the signature.

  Kiel thanked the man politely and started filling up the forms.

  Unfortunately, Elaru didn’t give him the peace and quiet in filling the forms. Instead, she started conversing with the two. Apparently, they were assistant professors in the university, and because of the University policy, (“Important Muni stuff must be handled by Muni staff”) they had a draw to decide who gets the job of taking entry forms.

  They drew the short sticks.

  Kiel also picked up that the term “Muni” seemed to be a slang term used by students and teachers to refer to Ashar University of Magic. After all, “Ashar University of Magic” was a mouthful. People shortened it to “Magic University”, but since that was also too long, eventually, even that got condensed into Muni.

  Kiel also caught their names, Rau Eryey and Ahon Tonrai. Their last names were familiar to Kiel.

  Eryey family was one of the noble families. Their specialty was healing magic, and they owned a chain of hospitals and medicine shops.

  Tonrai, on the other hand, was a side branch of the Ruyle family. The Ruyle family was also one of the noble families. They specialized in breeding, taming and raising beasts. They also had their own quest lodge, dragon racing tracks and they owned a chain of “Rent-a-dragon” offices.

  Kiel was surprised how the university could make two nobles take entry forms. Draw or no dr
aw, it sounded ridiculous! This university was indeed something else…

  Elaru didn’t seem surprised, neither at the draw nor their last names. Kiel wondered if it was because she wasn’t aware of their status or because she was used to hanging around nobles.

  Kiel looked at the first form, he needed to fill in the regular stuff: name, gender, race and date of birth. But after that, there were a lot of other questions such as information about the pets he would be bringing (or, in his case, wouldn’t be bringing) to the dorms.

  He also needed to write details about his roommate preference. Explanation of the question gave some good examples: “I dislike animals, so I wouldn’t like my roommate to have one.” and “Since I am an elibu, I’d like my roommate to be an elibu as well.”, and some bad examples: “I’d like my roomy to be a hot girl!” and “I want to room with a noble!”

  When he filled up these forms last year, he was greatly surprised to find this question. He wasn’t aware that they would be required to share a dorm room. It made no sense to Kiel. The university was huge and luxurious, it wouldn’t pose any problems for them to give everyone their own room. So why did they force them to share? In fact, how did they expect nobles to accept sharing a room with someone else?

  Wait… why wasn’t there a question asking them if they would be staying in their dorms in the first place? There were plenty of people who lived in Ashar and didn’t need a dorm room inside the University. Was everyone required to stay in the dorms even if they didn’t want to?

  Last year, after his initial confusion, he left his roommate preference empty because he didn’t intend to enroll. But this time, he stopped to think about it.

  He didn’t care who he got as his roommate as long as the person wasn’t annoying. However, he couldn’t write “Someone who isn’t annoying” as his answer. He was tempted to write “Not Elaru Wayvin” as the answer, but that made no sense since he wouldn’t have been paired with her anyway. He would most definitely be paired with a male freshman.

  After a brief pondering, he decided to leave it empty this year as well. If he had a problem with his roommate, he could always switch rooms with someone else. Right? That’s how it usually worked in the university dorms, right?