Anticipated Arrival

All of Erebos’ pushing and shoving to get everyone back proved to be a frivolous endeavor, especially considering that no one was keeping watch when they finally made it to the inn. Since it would be hard to evade a worker if they rode the elevator back up, they instead tailed another group heading up the stairs.

The first floor of the inn was probably too crowded for any of the staff to watch anyway, with wagons and people coming and going. Making it back around 6 o’clock, the three of them merged into the crowd and slipped into their respective rooms without being caught. The others in Erebos’ room were asleep as they came in, so it was just a matter of waiting until the room check to wake them.

To be honest, Erebos hadn’t expected their expedition to go off without a hitch, but he was glad that it happened even if he was a bit reluctant. Gaining more insight into the natures of his friends was always important, and he got to see a kinder side of Rumina that she makes an effort to hide. But even though he enjoyed hanging out with her now, being two years apart meant she would be off with her own friends of the same class during their time at the Capital. Although a little saddening, Erebos figured that he might as well make the best of it for now and hope that they’d have an occasional get-together.

He was having these thoughts while standing awkwardly in their room, too close to their normal time to wake up but far enough that he didn’t have anything to do. Vanov seemed to be an early riser, however, and was slightly confused as to why Erebos and Jiron were fully dressed and standing about before they were supposed to be up.

Vanov: “Did you guys sneak out or something, I can’t see why you’d look so traveled already.”

Vanov was right on the nose with his guess, especially with how Erebos and Jiron looked a little ruffled from their rush back. Giving each other a guilty glance, they admitted their wrongdoings and came clean. It’s not like Erebos thought Vanov would give them away, but less explanation and confusion would be preferable.

After a brief explanation he seemed to understand, so they left the matter there and prepared to leave once everyone was awake and ready. Everyone traveling had a brief breakfast at the inn, which turned out to be the clearest giveaway when the three friends who had complained about not being able to go out all looked traveled and didn’t eat anything.

If the staff were more observant this fact might have been noticed, but they must have been too sure of their own security to give it any thought. It’s not like there would’ve been many consequences either, especially considering that their primary concern was not having everyone gathered to leave at an appropriate time. Still, Erebos preferred to have his record unmarred before he even made it to the academy, swallowing his guilt and promising himself to try and disregard the orders of the staff less.

***

The interlude of their journey came to a close, and the procession of wagons departed from the lower station later that morning. Despite being a mere rest and breakfast for most, that morning served as a bond between Erebos, Jiron, and Rumina that wouldn’t soon be forgotten. Even though he’d only known her for a few weeks, sharing the extent of his abnormality and receiving her understanding brought a sense of closeness to Erebos that few others had.

Although they might be a few years apart, Erebos tried to stay optimistic that the three of them would be able to share moments like the restaurant again. Occupied with such thoughts, he gazed distantly out the window of the carriage, taking in the sights and sounds of the ever-environment.

The roar of the aqueduct’s water channel had quieted considerably despite the deck meeting its level once again, with around half of its original flow. Only a couple hundred of feet above the ground, the carriages passed through country similar to the beginning of the trip. Flat plains stretched onto the horizon, but after about 100 miles of travel, new features began to appear on the landscape. Rather than being populated solely by farms, the fields were broken by vast quarries and mining complexes perforating the earth.

Vanov’s Sister: “Those mines are quite interesting, aren’t they? The only places rock crystal can be found are underground, nearing the center of the world.”

Noticing his gaze towards the quarries, the girl broke her usual silent demeanor and continued on about the subject.

Vanov’s Sister: “Some say its a natural formation, but I subscribe to the theory that the crystals were remains from the ancients themselves. There’s archaeological evidence of dense buildings once existing over the most concentrated deposits of rock crystals, after all.”

She continued to go on and on, not really paying attention to whether Erebos was following or even paying attention. He smirked at her absorption into her own interests, but when she finally noticed his smile, she choked up and trailed off awkwardly.

After a couple more days and nearly 100 miles, such exchanges began to be focused on the impending arrival to their final destination. Instead of endless plains in all directions, distant mountain ranges began to converge on their left and right, as if coming to meet the end of the aqueduct.

Mines became far more frequent than farms, with entire towns centered around the larger clusters of quarries. Although only rock crystal had been mentioned, other valuable ores and minerals were probably being extracted alongside. But just as the concentration of the deep gashes into the earth couldn’t get tighter, the carriages came up to the end of the flanking mountains. More mountains encircled the center of the world and therefore the Capital, with the western and southern ranges to their left and right combining into the circular range.

Although everyone was tired and would have fallen asleep long ago, all eight were awake for slightly different reasons. The seven first years were eager to see the Capital appear to them after passing through the final barrier, and the eighth wanted to see their reactions. She didn’t even need to wait until after they cleared the mountains, for six of them pointed and chattered about a glow breaking through the peaks as they leaned out the windows.

As the mountains drew closer, such a glow was hidden from their view, but Erebos could see a sliver of the Capital through the far end of a distant tunnel. Piercing straight through the mountains, the aqueduct burrowed its way through and terminated in the valley within.

Collective excitement grew as the carriages entered the tunnel, with seemingly ancient columns passing by as they approached the other side. Any and all yawns and mutterings died down when the final arch of the tunnel’s exit revealed the valley beyond.

The channel itself dropped suddenly off, ending with a horizontal grate that allowed the water to fall into a vertical conduit. Collecting in a reservoir at the bottom, three similar reservoirs around the circumference of the valley collect the other aqueduct’s water. The deck itself took a sharp right and began a steady downward descent, hugging the edge of the mountains and connecting to a road traveling south from the valley’s center. Similar avenues traveled north, east, and west from the center, dividing the valley into four densely populated quarters. Thickest around the avenues and rising in height the closer they approached to the center, the city’s structures resembled the same affluence Erebos had experienced before. But rather than being less than half of the city in the previous case, splendid architecture and open air streets covered the entirety of the valley.

Such thoughts passed through Erebos’ head while he peered out the carriage’s left-hand windows, lowering his frame to give space to the others squeezing in. Although it took awhile for Erebos to work his way through the city and finally lay his eyes on the centerpiece, everyone else’s vision seemed to have focused there right away.

That was probably due to the fact that he had been examining the tower through the tunnel’s end previously, but even he had to re-evaluate the structure in the center once the full picture came into view.

Standing taller than anything he had seen before, dominating the horizon as if the ground itself existed only to support it, the central tower of the Capital Academy punctured the sky itself. Resembling the tower of the Confederal Academy in style and construction alone, the height and width were nearly double in both dimensions. Similar to the previous academy’s tower, it was capped with a large dome and sat on a wide base in the center of a courtyard.

A horseshoe-shaped complex sat around the courtyard, with wings continuing off of the horseshoe’s ends towards the north, and additional wings sprouting from the western, eastern, and southern sides. They had the same peaked-roof style of the other academy, but they seemed to stand above the previous’ buildings, probably around four or five stories tall compared to two or three.

Although his previous thought about the ground existing to support the tower was an artful embellishment, as he moved his sight towards the edge of the academy, a large exterior wall met a sharp cliff. A chasm reaching to the Lacuna below separated the edge of the urban area and the walls of the Academy, with four bridges in the cardinal directions and four aqueducts arrayed between.

Drawing back from the windows to let the others get a better view, Erebos sat towards the front of the carriage and watched the others gawking. He noticed Rumina leaning back with a smirk on the right-hand side of the carriage, trying to make eye contact with Erebos. He met her gaze but wasn’t sure what expression to make, so he just cocked his head in a questioning manner.

She chuckled at his reaction, which made him falter slightly, but she smiled back and raised up her hands.

Rumina: “Don’t expect me to be so excited, I’ve seen this view plenty of times before. It looks a lot more impressive when you’re inside the walls, anyways.”

She had an air of smugness when explaining that she’d seen it many times already, as if that somehow made her superior. Taking that as her own frivolousness, Erebos smiled in return and looked back out the window.

Rumina: “You’re probably spoiled on how impressive the whole scene is, though. There aren’t a lot of places that are lit so brightly all throughout.”

Looking at the other’s faces, it did seem like they were taking in the entirety of the scene rather than just the highlights. Scouring the landscape from the mountain peaks to the narrowest alleys with their eyes, the cluster of six must not have been used to a complete view of such a wide swath of land if what Rumina said was true.

Erebos might’ve had a hard time figuring that out for himself, but luckily Jiron made it easy enough for him to understand.

Jiron: “I don’t think I’ve seen anything brighter than that. It’s enough to light the whole valley on its own!”

Squinting his eyes and making that exclamation, Jiron looked off to somewhere around the tower’s dome, shielding his eyes from an apparent brightness. There must have been an artifice around the top of the tower, a sensible place if it was tasked with lighting up the entire valley.

Rumina: “Well, I guess you’ll see it soon enough. There’s no reason to stop in the city, so we’ll be in the Academy soon enough.”

Putting her hands behind her head and shutting her eyes, Rumina brought the conversation to a close as the carriage continued its steady descent. Resting his chin on his hands, Erebos gazed out of the crowded windows toward the broken horizon, looking into a mysterious yet alluring unknown.

***

“As far as introductions go, I am going to be your professor for Basic Theory of Artificery, Ankonim Zantiloran.”

Laying a stack of books on his desk with a thud, the tall, upright professor gave his name with a wave towards the class.

Erebos sat nestled in the back left corner from the professor’s perspective, looking down onto the rest of the class in their tiered seating. Forming rows of continuous benches and desk space, the section was divided by a staircase running down the middle to the floor where the professor stood.

Appearing more as a noble than a teacher, he brushed a hand through his short, well-maintained hair and readjusted his glasses. He was explaining details of the syllabus that Erebos had already read over, so his mind was less focused on the professor and more on the events prior to his current class.

Despite arriving only a few days prior, Erebos and his fellow classmates had been thrust into their first semester immediately. After a day to settle in and rest, they had been given a tour of the campus and an overview of their upcoming classes on the second. Since Erebos and Jiron had displayed an existing affinity for artificery, they both skipped the introductory courses focused on wand usage and went straight to basic application. Though not guaranteed, Erebos happened to be in the same class as Jiron, alongside a mix of other first years. Since most still had to take the introductory classes, the current room was only at about two-thirds capacity.

Professor Zantiloran: “I’m sure you’ve already read and heard the rest from others, so we’ll just go straight into the course material for today. If you are present in this class, that means you have demonstrated satisfactory ability to use your innate flux in artificery. It does not mean, however, that you have a thorough understanding of the concept and theory behind this usage.”

Even though he wasn’t often confident about his abilities, Erebos thought that he had more knowledge than most about the subject, being his primary focus since childhood. It wasn’t surprising that he had heard most of this before, but there were plenty of details sprinkled in that he hadn’t heard before.

Professor: “Through the course of your education, you’ll be exposed to three overarching tiers of artificery. While I will refrain from going into specifics, this class will be concerned with learning the first tier, or using artificery to alter the physical properties of an object. This is considered its most basic application. Your second year will see to the second tier, or making an artifice alter its environment, and the third will concern either mastery of the second tier or introductions to the final tier, depending on your rate of advancement and course of study.”

Though further details of the third tier were left off, presumably because they weren’t important to the class, Erebos was left wanting to hear more. He planned on mastering all of what artificery had to offer, essential to one who planned on researching theoretical and experimental inscriptions. All material he had read on it was extremely vague, and he had yet to get an explanation from a proper artificer. A majority stopped after the second tier anyway, which was sufficient for most applications and careers.

Professor: “While a distinct separation of these tiers does not exist, there is a noticeable difference in the difficulty between making an inscription which affects the artifice itself or objects interacting with it. Artificers thus made such classifications to ease students into the practice, so we will be abiding by their precedent.”

Waiting for the professor to get to the substance of the class, Erebos glanced around at the other students in the room. He could only see the backs of their heads, but from the hair alone Erebos got a sense of the overall composition. There must have been around a fifty-fifty split between boys and girls, with most being a few years older than Erebos and Jiron. He hadn’t even considered that since Rumina was only about two years older than Erebos and ahead two years in school, she must have been accepted at a similar age to himself.

As for everyone he recognized, Jiron and one of the boys from the carriage were the only ones present. The others, including Vanov and his sister, were either in the introductory classes or another session of his current class. Rumina was of course in an entirely different wing, with most third-years occupying the Northwest Wing while first-years were in the West.

Professor: “But before we delve too deeply into the course material, we should start off with your introductions. Connections between students is an essential aspect of academy life, so as your first instructor I bear a responsibility to start you off on the right foot.”

Taking inventory of the room, the professor adjusted his glasses and set his eyes upon Erebos.

Professor: “We’ll start in the back, so stand and give your name, nation of origin, and presumptive course of study.”

Noticing the professor’s stare towards him, Erebos took this to mean that he was first, so he hurriedly stood up and shook his previous thoughts from his head. Bowing slightly and averting his eyes from the class, he gave a shaky introduction as everyone turned towards him.

Erebos: “I’m Erebos Afkoran, from the O-Odrenino Kingdom in Rafdina, and I’m planning to study th-theoretical artificery…”

Sitting down more flustered than he should have been, he tried to rid himself of residual embarrassment as the next student stood. He could feel the gazes of others piercing and examining him as he was singled out, a feeling he never enjoyed. Maybe he was just too self-conscious, but he always felt like others judged his strange appearance more harshly when the subject of an entire group rather than one-on-one conversation.

He tried to console himself with thoughts that most people probably didn’t care, and instead tried to focus on the students introducing themselves next. Although they were all dressed in an identical uniform of a fluxcloth mantle, blouse, and cape, with the only difference being a skirt that the girls would wear over their trousers and boots, each student could be from vastly different place and upbringing. The only way to know would be to hear it from them.

Including Jiron, the boy from the carriage, and himself, a little over a third of the 20 students were from Rafdina. He’d heard from Rumina that the exam he was present for had a higher attendance than normal, and that it even had more successes in the third phase than usual. Such an observation seemed accurate when comparing to the class, with the remaining students evenly divided between Torgempra and the Capital’s outer provinces.

The complete lack of students from Editha was apparent, but that was to be expected. Even though most people didn’t like to think about it, the rising tensions between the Capital and Editha saw the latter withhold prospective students from attending. With only a class of around 300 this year, the normal numbers were usually above 400.

Finishing introductions and moving on to the actual material, the professor continued the class in his usual manner, providing Erebos with his first experience of education at the Capital.

***

History of Artificery and Artificers proceeded after the class on Basic Theory, something which Erebos was decently confident in, but there wasn’t anyone he recognized. After the two hour session of his second class, a lunch break followed before the afternoon block of classes for the day, to which Erebos and the other first years were in the third section. The third and fourth year students were served in the refectory first, while second-years got the next meal and third-years had the last.

Erebos and Jiron met up after their second period of classes, intending to eat lunch together. Finding new people might have been more in the spirit of the new academic experience, but everyone was far more comfortable sticking with their previous groups. They were technically branching out if you counted Vanov joining them, who happened to be in Jiron’s second class.

After getting their lunch and seating themselves in the corner of the hall, they chatted about their first-day experience. Everyone seemed to have had a good first impression of their professors so far, and they all didn’t have any complaints about adapting to their new environment. Their quarters on the first floor of the West Wing were comfortable, their classes on the second floor were interesting, the food was satisfying, and they had a decent amount of recreational time before their next period. Overall, they had few things to complain about.

After finishing their meal, the group left the refectory and headed back towards the West Wing. The refectory itself was situated in between the Northwest and Northeast Wings, so they had to go through the third-years’ hall on the way back.

While the different stories were separated by solid floors in the wings themselves, the central horseshoe that connected the wings together had gaps in the center of the second through fourth floors, letting one see all the way to the glass rooftop. But as the group left the Northwest wing and entered the central hall, they were unaware of a lurking presence behind them.

Making itself known, it grabbed the necks of Erebos and Jiron and sent them bouncing around to the rear.

Jiron: “GAH-ah-oh, it’s Rumina!”

Making a quick rebound from his initial startlement, Jiron grinned when he saw the source of the sudden grab.

Jiron: “I didn’t think we’d see a big shot third-year like yourself stooping down to our level.”

Rumina: “Ha, who said I was stooping? I’m just picking on some newbies, no more and no less.”

Despite the content of her words, she turned her grab into a hand on each of their shoulders, walking along with the group.

Rumina: “So, how was the first day? It’s certainly different at first, but you should get used to it pretty quick.”

It sounded like she was earnestly interested, so Erebos and the others paraphrased what they had said during lunch. She nodded along and smiled, seemingly satisfied with their answers. After they reached the entrance to the West Wing, she released them as the others turned to face her.

Rumina: “The first few days can be the hardest, but don’t ignore what the professors tell you about finding more acquaintances. You never know when you’ll run into something you can’t handle yourself, so having plenty of friends to help out benefits everyone.”

Erebos: “Can we consider you one of those?”

The question didn’t seem like a strange one to Erebos at the moment, but he reconsidered when he saw Rumina blush and look away.

Rumina: “That’s cocky expecting help from someone like me, especially because you know I have more important things to do.”

She looked up and sneered at his words, but her statement wasn’t spoken with malice.

Rumina: “But I guess if you have something to talk about now and then, it can’t be helped.”

She knocked both Erebos and Jiron on their shoulders and laughed, acting as if there wasn’t any age or grade difference between them. Hopefully the bond they formed over their brief journey was stronger than the division caused by such differences, and that was proving to be true so far.

Rumina: “Well, like I said, I can’t be seen hanging around newbies like you. But don’t run away scared whenever you see me, I wouldn’t mind a ‘hi’ once in a while.”

She faced away with those last words, but not before giving a wink and a wave. Although those sentiments would be normal from any other friend, they had a special connotation from her. Erebos couldn’t help but smile back at the teasing third-year, watching her long hair swish from behind as she similarly smiled away from their view.

Vanov: “Heh, you guys do seem to be pretty good friends after only two weeks. A connection to a third-year definitely isn’t a bad thing, so I’ll be going through you guys if I can’t find any better help.”

Jiron: “Hey, pal. She’s our resource, so you go find a third-year of your own to leech off of.”

Bumping him on the side, Jiron sent Vanov skittering off, but they both laughed it off and continued down the West Wing. Erebos smiled at their reactions and partook in the remainder of their jesting, saying farewells and heading off to their next classes when the time came.