Cadfan Bendiks’ mind, ordinarily a stern and vicious thing, was for once in a state of peace and relaxation. Fully focused on the sounds around him, eyes closed, and his breathing slow and steady, the only thing in his thoughts were the droplets of water, hitting the harsh bottom of the suspended bowl with a wet plopping sound. In what feels like an eternity, and yet an instant, the sounds changed: Drop by drop, the noise became a light thud, water meeting kin instead of the harsh surface of ceramic, echoic into a melody known through the eons of time.
Similarly, Cadfan could feel his earthly worries get drowned under the shallow surface of Water. He knew, by now, that they weren’t gone per say; such a thing would be both difficult to achieve in a single session of meditation, and unadvised to boot. But below his train of thought they remained, out of sight and out of mind, steadily buried by each drop of water.
“Water is a force of tranquility. Its soothing aura appeases all that partakes in its song. This very attribute makes it …”
Before long, the flow quickened. Whereas once, only droplets fell, it had evolved into a trickle, slow and unhurried still. It fell in a single, continuous line, bridging the source of the water to the container below. The natural music it emitted changed into an unending burbling noise, growing in volume by the same occasion.
This shallow stream followed the same path the drops once did, calm and unhurried. Similarly, his stream of thought remained slower than usual, less reactive and more sluggish. Yet, unaffected by any boulder of worry or ripple of self-doubt in this state, he knew this serenity wasn’t without its use.
“Yes, Water is a force of harmony. It is necessary in all known forms of life, and serves as a bridge between those lives, allowing them to touch one another and understand. Yet it - “
A sudden gust of wind from his left breached the harmonious sound, the wet sound of a splash and a sudden shriek all that was needed to know where this gentle stream was carried. Yet, remarkably quickly, the disruption was forgotten, and the once gentle trinkle followed its natural path towards freedom.
Such disruptions were nothing but a temporary obstacle for the flowing river, diverting but for a moment his attention before being left behind. Serenity in forgiveness, as his teachers would say.
“Careful now! While Water may bring the idea of freedom to some, of a view of the ocean that stretches unto the horizons itself, it lacks the whimsiness of Wind, and tends to prefer well traveled tracks. Steady is the flow of Water. It may be diverted or temporarily stopped, however … “
Yet ever faster it kept going : Soon, the bowl, completely full, let his bounty escape its grasp.
The spill happened on both sides of the container, and those twin currents renewed the cycle. The current was in flux but for a moment, and soon, the two deltas plunged into the air, hitting the bowls placed just a step below. The ringing notes grew in intensity, becoming impossible to ignore for most. Another teaching tool, to help develop the ability to focus.
Unbidden, errant thoughts start bobbing to the surface. The sounds of peaceful Water... starts to be mixed with something else.
The new surge was stronger. Faster. This time, the two bowls capitulated quickly, and Water marched ever forward, conquering ever expanding swaths of earthly wares. First 4, then 8, before finally reaching the second to last step, with its 16 bowls. The cacophony followed suit, having grown ever louder, the once tranquil notes morphed into a song more fit for a war song.
Without Cadfan’s notice, the watery nymphs nearby fell under the song of his soul. Attracted to the war drums they heard, they coated his brow with cooling water, giggling while washing off the beads of sweat that poured from his body.
Water is most known for being tranquil and serene. However, he knew well that its hidden depths could hide a myriad of other attributes. Water was associated with mystery for a good reason, after all. One could never be quite sure whether the crystal clear lake was as shallow as it looked. Whether that small springs of mountain water was as refreshing as it appeared,or in fact bearer of terrible ills. Or even whether that seemingly tranquil river wasn’t hiding a terrible strength in its currents.
“Water spirits share many traits with the Faey. Yet, it is hard, if not impossible, to make sweeping generalizations about them, for it is one of the most diverse groups of elementals. Whereas water nymphs, such as the Naiads, are fairly prone to flight of whimsy, helping or hindering for the most obscure of reasons, others, like the Kappas, have well known and documented structures …”
Yes, Water could also be unforgiving and relentless: The frothing torrent of the rapids, quick to snap up any impudent traveler that dared to cross its path. The raging sea, unforgiving to those that suffer its wrath, sending them into her unknowable depths. The torrential and thundering crash of a waterfall, hitting with crushing force its base, reducing to powder anything caught in its grasp.
As his mind got overwhelmed by this powerful impression, a sudden flux of feelings and emotions started bubbling back to the surface. Cadan tried to react quickly, burying this unwanted current into the lake he had been steadily growing through his focus… but it merely caused the body of water to start to bubble and froth uncontrollably, before suddenly erupting like a geyser under his feet.
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All too quickly, all that could be heard was the thundering of the rushing current in his ears, all that could be felt the water surrounding his form, along with the feeling of being carried away by a mighty, unstoppable force, unable to resist as the pressure dragged out his own innate magic from the core of his being and -
Severin Aco’s violent shaking of Cadfan’s shoulders brought him back into reality, forcefully awakening him from his deep meditation.
The inescapable pressure, the feeling of being carried, the overwhelming resurfacing of emotions… All gone.
Well, nearly. He realized dimly that he could still hear a violent thundering noise in his ears. Yet, it wasn’t the sound of a geyser, or a waterfall, or even the brouhaha brought by the water flowing down the Water Fountain that had been brought for this class.
It was his heart. He could hear right now the furious staccato of his heart, as he fought for his breath and noticed the water coating his form, slowly sliding down and forming a puddle at his feet. Numbly, Cadfan distantly thought that at least, his clothes were soaked with water instead of sweat this way.
His tall friend’s frigid, scolding whisper served well enough to dissipate the last drops of manic energy this meditation brought him.
“What are you doing, Cadfan?! We were supposed to be only meditating! And you thought it was a good idea to entreat the River Naiades to boot?!”
Cadfan could only grimace in answer. He didn’t think the truth would placate his fellow student any, especially since it didn’t answer his own questions. Yet, before he could even try to articulate an answer, Severin noticed the state he was in.
There was a few seconds of silence, as both friends locked eyes. He wished he could say he stared back proudly, but the truth was that before long he was looking at the ground, biting his lips in frustration.
“Hmm… this wasn’t one of your brash plans, was it? Did it happen again, Cadf?”
And there it was. That mix of sympathy, concern… and a bit of pity. It burned him, and he straightened, looking at the carefully neutral face of Severin. Of course, his furrowed brows gave him away, as they tended to do.
Yet before he could start to distract him, they both felt a sudden tension settle on them. Considering where, and when, they were, they both quickly turned back to the teacher, Cadfan feeling a sinking feeling in his guts.
Professor Aldert Tam's eyes were firmly on them. And considering the frown that was steadily growing on his face, the professor was unlikely to let them go with a silent warning, this time. The old mercenary let out a sharp sigh that was heard across the entire yard.
Even before he straightened and, with a sharp gesture of the hand, stopped alimenting the magical device with his magic, the other students had already fallen quiet.
“Mr. Bendiks, would you care to explain where, in my instructions, I asked for you to start using your Magic?”
Seeing Cadfan struggling to answer, Severin tried to interject, a no-doubt well rehearsed speech on his tongue. Yet, before the young serbian could get a single word out, the steel tinted eyes of the professor were already on him, a silent warning in them.
“Well, Mr. Bendiks? It wasn’t a rhetorical question, to be clear, lad.”
Cadfan wetted his suddenly dry lips, before croaking out a reply, his voice steadily gaining strength as he regained his breath.
“Nowhere, Professor Tam. I just got too enthusiastic and didn’t manage to stick to meditation.” When he saw that his teacher’s eyes remained locked on both him and Severin, he quickly added “Severin was only reminding me of this.”
“While I’m glad to know you’re impassioned by the subject, you know very well what we ask of you before you enter each class. Would you all care to repeat it for me?”
With a groan of long-suffering, and not a few stink-eyes toward the two students that provoked this lecture, the class repeated by rote this already well rehearsed announcement.
“There is to be no magic gathering, unless explicitly asked by your teacher. There is to be no magic shaping, unless explicitly asked by your teacher. And there is to be absolutely no elemental summoning whatsoever unless you are directly supervised by a trained professional.”
“Very good class” grunted Ser Tam. “So, let’s try again lad. Why were you breaking each rule we’ve painstakingly carved into your mind until you could recite them in your sleep?”
“Tis my fault, Ser Tam. I’m the one that bet him he couldn’t shape water outside of those armaments of his” Severin interjected, his face blank and his voice as smooth as could be. Ignoring the kick to the back of the leg he could feel coming from his left, he added: “I’ll bear full responsibility for this incident, Professor.”
There was a tense silence, as the old veteran Wizard seemed to give some thought to the idea, clearly ruminating on it. Yet, the quick glance he threw at the rest of the class had Cadfan, along with his fellow students, deflating. He knew, as they did, what was going to be said next.
“I’m sorry lads, but even if I believed that, I think you already know what happens when someone breaks the rules.”
Professor Tam then straightened even more, towering above the sea of students in an atmosphere as quiet as a tomb. A quick clap of his hands, and the almost thunder-like sound that it produced, quickly shook them out of this stupor, and they all - or nearly - scrambled to get moving as the good Professor started shouting.
“I want everyone here to be as soaked as our M. Bendiks over here, and I’m sure you know I’m not talking about dunking you in the pond. Get moving now! You lads want to start playing around with Magic? Then you better damn well be physically ready for it! I’m not having a student drop dead in one of my classes because you “got too enthusiastic” or on a Fey-damned dare!”
Joining actions to words, Cadfan and Severin watched in dread as the students too slow to start running were physically picked up by the veteran and bodily thrown to the - very well traveled - dirt track right next to the yard.
Not because they felt particularly bad for them - Or at least Cadfan didn’t -, but because the professor was clearly making a beeline towards them even as he went through the line of running students, shouting, pushing them forward or sometimes encouraging them as he felt fit.
Before long, the professor had joined them at the head of the file. His voice, this time, was lower, in an effort to give them some hint of privacy, which was appreciated in the spirit it was given.
“Mr. Aco. I understand and applaud your sense of sacrifice for your friend, but next time you try to shield them from their own messes, you’ll be sorry. You’re making the both of you a disservice this way.”
His eyes then fell on Cadfan himself, and they both softened, and glinted with something hard within.
“Mr. Bendiks. I can’t say I understand what you’re going through, exactly ; there must be a grand total of a hundred people alive who can. But what I can say is that this must cease. You must find a way to stop this rampant upscaling of magical use whenever you try to use an element linked with water or light ; or else I’ll have to ban you from using them altogether. This was Naiads this time. Last time, wandering Light Sprites. I don’t want the next time to be a Sirene, or a damned Seraphin.”
His voice was rough, yet not unsympathetic. It didn’t make it any easier for Cadfan, who could only - once again - grit his teeth and apologize. The professor was not yet done though.
“I know very well it ain’t exactly your fault, lad. But something must be done. If only so you don’t get murdered by your fellow after all the running around they have to do thanks to you!”.
Seeing his joke fall flat, Aldert cleared his throat and kept going. “I’m not asking you to fix it alone. Since it isn’t a question of pure focus, or a difficulty in getting into the right state of mind for your elemental meditation, most of the common teaching aids are unlikely to help you. I’ll ask you to meet with me after class. I’m hoping to introduce you to someone who could help.”
At these words, both young men stopped dead to look at their teacher, nearly tripping and causing a cascading failure behind them, if not for the teacher arm quickly pushing them forward.
After throwing a quick glance at them, he quickly continued in his more usual volume.
“Don’t stop just yet lads! The run is just starting! I’d say a nice, quick and easy 20 km run! Do remember to thank Mr. Bendiks and Mr. Aco for ensuring you all are kept fit!”