Today Jack had no class. So, he was working on his own projects. Through all the things he had learned in class, he had come up with a lot of ideas. And with the academy, he had access to machines and technology not found anywhere else. The first order of business was testing a bullet idea he had. The different types of shells and casings had made him wonder what else could work as a design.

The idea involved the shrapnel shells he had learned about. The shells were designed to explode and blast shrapnel around the target area. The idea had made him wonder if you could first magnetize the target before releasing the shrapnel. It was a devious idea that sounds easy but was very hard to actually conceive. It required him to make a special magnetic field that only reacted to certain mana types. In the end, he had to put a pin in the idea because he couldn’t figure out how to make it work. Next, he worked on the powered armor design he had created. His idea had seemed so straightforward when he thought of it. Now he was attempting to build the armor he had conceived, and it was not nearly as easy as he had hoped. The copper inlay just continued to be difficult to work with. He had been working on his idea for weeks now and he had barely made any progress. Partly because he was too busy, but also because Ms. Belle was way too picky. Every time Jack thought he did a good job in laying the copper on the practice piece in her eyes he would make mistake after mistake. He hadn’t even gotten to the enchanting part yet. This is ridiculous. Jack was starting to get dejected.

“I need a break,” he huffed out and went for a walk. He had quickly picked up the habit of going for walks around the academy. The ground was beautiful and somehow, he always seemed to find something new on his walks. Today was no different. After strolling around trying to think of how he could improve his design Jack found a huge shop that was used to work on airships. There was one currently docked, and it was huge. He had seen a million in the skies, but he had never been close to one. It was so much bigger than he thought it would be. The ship was massive. The hull was a combination of wood and metal. There were a couple of people working on the beautiful machine. Jack just stared at it in awe for a couple of minutes, admiring the sleek aerodynamic hull that looked worn but extremely well-kept. The people working on it didn’t take him any mind, so he decided to get a closer look. There was a plank that led onto the ship, and he climbed it. He had seen so many in the skies, but this was his first time being on one.

He slowly walked along the ship. The wood was dark and worn. Some pieces looked newer than others. Sliding his hand along the railing the floorboards creaked slightly beneath his feet. He closed his eyes and imagined the wind blowing his hair as he flew through the sky. He had always dreamt of flying on an airship but never had the opportunity.

“She suits ya.”

The voice surprised Jack. He opened his eyes and spun around. A man had somehow snuck up behind him. The man was wearing tight leather clothing that he was used to seeing on the airship crews.

“Uh, she?”

“The Monarch.”

“Uh?”

“The ship my boy. The ship. You are standing on The Monarch! Finest air carver to grace the skies.”

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“Air carver?”

“Hahaha, what’s your name boy?”

“Uh, Jack Warwick”

“Well, Jack. Why don’t you tell me what you are doing on my ship?”

“Oh, uh. I’m sorry. I was walking around, and I saw the ship. And It’s very pretty. And I just uh.”

A smirk slowly grew across the man’s face as he watched Jack stumble through his words. “Relax,” he said with a smile. I’m just bugging ya.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Jack Warwick. My name is Captain.”

“Uh. Captain is your name?”

“That’s what everyone calls me.” He said with a smile. The man oozed confidence and charm.

“Are you the captain of this ship?”

“I sure hope so.” The man teased. “So, airships interest you do they boy? Have you ever been on one before?”

“Uh no, this is my first time.”

“Well let me show you around,” Captain happily showed him around the vessel. It was incredible. He learned that there were multiple types of airships that graced the sky. The Monarch is what’s known as an air carver. It looks just like a ship that sails the seas. It has a hull that tapers, and sails on top. The ship’s hull was highly enchanted to make it lighter. The sails were made of a rigid material that was able to absorb ambient mana that would power the engines. The sails were able to use wind power to move the ship, but that was only a small percentage of how they maneuvered. Each ship had an ion particle atomizer that would use extreme heat generation to push the ship through the air. The ship he was on called the Monarch was a mercenary ship that was mostly hired by the government to patrol the uncharted lands to the west of Lidad. That’s where Ariel is from. “Our ship is always looking for more elemental users. What element do you have?”

“Oh, uh, electricity.”

“Electricity really? Aren’t you a first-year? Weird. Well, I ain’t never had an electric user on my ship before, but you seem smart enough. We would be happy to have you aboard in the future. You’re a first-year, right?”

“Uh, yea.”

“Well, third year has an apprenticeship where you have the opportunity to try different fields. Come and find me then.”

“That’s a long way away,” Jack said.

“Oh. Just wait. The time will fly by.”

“Actually uh, I’m looking for a job this summer.”

“This summer? What d’ya mean?”

“I don’t have anywhere to go.”

“Really?” He scrutinized Jack for a moment. “You’re a weird one. But that’s ok. I like weird.” He gave Jack an extremely charming smile. “Well. Uh. We don’t usually have first years on board. But I do see that maintenance badge on you.” You could see him thinking it over. “Ok, you got a deal. We will be back in the city 1 week before the summer semester. We can finalize the details then.” He put his hand out. Jack shook. It was very firm.

Jack went back to the manufacturing shop and with a new motivation got back to work. Ms. Posie didn’t say anything about his extended disappearance. Now he was excited about the future. I get to fly. It still took a while but with his new motivation, he was able to make some real progress. The trick he found was magnetizing both the metal and the copper and then while merging them they would not separate. Finally! He lifted up two gauntlets up to the light. It wasn’t much but it was a completely working prototype. The gauntlets were designed after the simple medieval design, but then Jack had woven thin copper wiring throughout in an intricate pattern allowing him much better control over electricity.

He clenched his hands into fists and pushed some electricity into them. The gloves sparked to life. They emitted a soft glow, and he could feel the power coursing through them. Lightly tapping them together they sparked and buzzed on contact. I gotta go try these.

A little while later he was standing in his favorite practice area smashing practice dummies with his fists. This is awesome! He was able to charge them up enough that they would blast and slightly melt whatever he struck. Awesome. The next day was the opening ceremonies for the single’s tournament. He had been doing everything to try and not think about it. But now with these gloves, he felt ready.