I am awake the next day, still in my chair, as sunlight shines on my face. After a moment of confusion, I pop. The clock reads five minutes shy of my first class. The robes I slip on are black, and the material is soft but durable. I sprint towards the Sanctum, fumbling through my satchel for the sheet leading me to my first class that day. This robe is comfortable, but it nearly trips me five times. I reach the classroom roughly ten minutes after it starts, attempting to slink a seat in the back.

This— My elemental magic class is nearly four times larger than creation magic. I note a slender young mage holding a strange contraption with six small gems set in the base. A handle protrudes from the top with several symbols marking indentations. I can hardly see anything from the back apart from the red-robed Mage fiddling with something underneath the base.

“Well, look who decided to show up.” An unpleasant cadence sounds from the front of the room.

“Yes, Mage, I apologize for my tardiness.”

"Your apologies are worth little to me. Now that you are all here, we may begin. I am Mage Calen. Elemental magic is the most common, with hundreds of subcategories. We will have to move quickly. All of you continuing in elemental magic will take more specialized courses than the other magics. So, it is crucial to categorize you first. There are three types of elemental magic and six categories. The three types are as follows: combustion, conversion, and configuration. We will explain these later in the class. For now, remember their names. The six categories in which you can have one or multiple affinities are fire, earth, water, wood, metal, and organic. Hundreds of further specializations exist, but they are all categorized under these. You will find materials easier and harder to work with within each category. The ease with which a material molds depends on an individual's efficiency, power, and understanding of each type of material. For example, an inefficient yet powerful metal mage will have no problem working with materials of lower density, like iron. They will have a harder time working with materials with higher densities, like steel. This difference is because the Mage's power can only compensate so far. It will lessen the difficulty if they understand dense metal intimately. With the large size of elemental classes and the difference in education, I expect you to do personalized research. Our class time will be primarily one-on-one to help you with any problems or questions. We will also teach certain milestones and principles in a more general sense. All of these are in your syllabus. I will test each of you individually in the spirit of such expedience. This device determines both your type and category. I will then give you a personalized study plan."

We line up, and I am at the end. As a person touches the device, there is a moment of stillness shortly accompanied by a light glow on two gems: one type and one category. Two or three lit in a few cases on the bottom tier. On my turn, the Mage holds tight to the device while giving me a wary look.

“We will do your examination after class.” Mage Calen whispers.

Slightly put off, though I understand their reasoning, I return to my seat. A few helpful pointers for navigating the Athenary pour from the Mage, then another review of the syllabus, which has few practical lessons, but we will receive a permit to use the rooms independently. After class, as everyone flees, I walk up to the front desk and proffer my hand to Mage Calen.

“Ready when you are.”

“All right, all right, here you are.” They relent, handing over the device.

As my hands clutch the cold metal surface, a slight jolt tingles through my fingertips against the etchings. One gem on the top row gleams, punctuated by a grunt from the elemental Mage. After contemplating, they stalk to the gem in the back of the room. The light vanishes as they press their hand to the wall. Every gem on the device glows with soft light, barely illuminating my hand. Only one Gem from the top tier glows visibly, though.

“This is astounding. I have never seen such a reaction. You truly are a rather peculiar case.” They remark, turning the light back on.

“What does this mean?”

“I believe someone has told you of your affinities?” They ask.

“They told me I had a minute affinity in everything; practically useless.” I huff, sitting at a desk.

“Not exactly. You see, a person with an affinity for mental magic can have a higher level of internal creation magic than someone with an affinity for creation magic. As we believe it, the difference in being able to practice magic or not comes from the deviation of an affinity from your baseline. With all your affinities equally balanced, I do not see how you can practice magic.”

“So I am entirely useless?”

“Castlillio believes you have an innate ability that utilizes your unique affinities. If you want my opinion, then yes. We are unaware of how you passed the test. This deviation from all the rules we thought essential is troubling.”

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“Well, how do you know I am one of these innate practitioners?”

“There is no record of someone passing the entrance exam without it, but it is possible.”

“What does that mean for my training?”

“For now, consider looking into internal applications of elemental magic. I can provide you with a permit. This access will give you more information to make a choice. I believe you should talk to Castillio about your other concerns. She will be able to provide much more helpful input.”

“Thank you, Mage. I appreciate you looking out for me. I apologize if I seem angry, I just feel rather lost.” I thank them reflexively as I stand to leave.

“I am not helping you, farmer. I am doing what my role requires.”

“Yes, mage.”

My next class is destruction magic, which I arrive at on time. Unfortunately, someone seems to be guarding the door. The faces of my four opposers light as they spot me entering the floor from the stairwell. I need more time to come up with options. I can’t show them weakness. I stop short of their reach with a look up expectantly.

“You do not belong here.” The reedy voiced individual at the head informs me.

“And you’re the judge of that?” I rebuke, trying to push past the four goons.

“Slow down. We just wanted to talk to you. I am initiate Gallah. Yes, there is a relation before you ask. I have heard from my father that you are actually from a farm?”

“I heard they are a shit farmer.” One of the larger two jests, prompting all four to snicker.

“Like I farm actual shit, or I am not good at farming? Either way, it isn’t very clever.” I note.

“You are bold; how cute,” little Gallah feigns, reddening.

“I would rather not talk to you at all. Are you going to let me pass, for fucks sake?”

“Yeah, let them through, Brud. Watch your back, shit farmer.”

“Always do, little Gallah.” I laugh, letting the last part slip after clearing the blockade.

But another surprise awaits me as High Mage Gallah stands at the front, surrounded by adoring faces. I sit at the back and marvel at the groveling students hanging to his every word.

“The key misunderstandings around destruction magic persist even to this day. Unlike magic viewed with better dispositions, destruction magic has yet to receive redemption. Yes, we have started. Get in here, Gallah. You see, the misunderstanding is derived, in part, from the worship of creation and subsequent demonization of its opposite. Another prejudice derives from the Theory of Dentropy. The theory states that the destruction mana in an isolated system will eventually lead to an increase in said mana. This theory unnerves most.”

“Does that make destruction magic the superior practice?” Asks Little Gallah, now near the front.

“In my opinion, it is the most dangerous to wield.”

I have already read about the theory, but mark it down anyway. High Mage Gallah is a windbag, but knowledge is invaluable from any source; you just have to filter out the crap. I pay less attention as they move into the familiar routine and mark the syllabus accordingly. So far, they have the earliest practical lesson in a week but the fewest classes towards the end of the bimester.

My final class directions lead to a decrepit room off a basement corridor. The rotting door flakes in my hand as I try to open it. I walk into a crypt, looking for the bodies. Instead, I only see an empty room with a chair, a desk, and a chalkboard. Their newness outshines the space that otherwise looks a century old. I sit in the chair while waiting to see what will happen. A prank is my first guess, disproved by the older Mage in dark gray robes entering the room from a different entrance.

“Yes. Well, hello there. I am sorry about the ‘classroom’. It has been a long while since we have had a death magic initiate. I think I might’ve been the last one—until you. I am Crucus, son of Hortey, the only resident Death mage. Therefore, I am your new Death Mage professor. This lesson is all rather last minute, so I don’t have much preparation. Let’s see here.…” He begins, trailing off behind shuffling pages.

“It’s nice to meet you.”

“Yes— no, not this one, here it is. Death magic is the least understood of all the essential magics. This misunderstanding comes from the belief that death magic perverts the soul. The reality is complicated. Though death magic can corrupt a soul, it is not an inherent effect of magic. The last recorded case was tens of thousands of years ago and requires an ancient relic— Regardless, death magic allows you to permeate matter with magic. Once charged, this matter produces predictable effects. However, such abilities often go underutilized. This lack and the law limit Death mages to mundane work, all twenty of us. Yes?”

“So you are saying that amalgamations are the only current application of this magic?”

“Well, yes and no. There are many applications, but they are strictly forbidden to study.”

“Why is that?”

“Well… I can understand your position, but it is not a question— I have a few theories, mind you, but again, it just isn’t a sort of thing— How about this? I will just say it is restricted to know. Anyway, back to what I was saying. Legal Death magic primarily applies to amalgamations. Once you have a sufficient level, you can do all sorts of things. You can adjust the level of decay or growth, and you can control the movement of things. However, you cannot simply put magic into a tree and tell it to stand up and come along with you. No, it is one of our most refined practices, as it truly needs a partner to shine. Inanimate constructs or amalgamations must be able to perform the necessary task. Do you understand?” Crucus lectures.

“I think so. Do you mean that if you wanted a tree to move around on legs, you would have to first make legs for the tree and then permeate those with magic?”

“Exactly, this is why early death mages animated the deceased bodies of living beings because we could not build a construct. It was the only viable thing to animate.”

“Then will you need to create internal structures such as a heart or a stomach?”

“Exactly the meat of it. You would need to create legs that would work for the tree, as a copy of yours wouldn't do. But yes, you would need the bones and the tendons to move the muscles. All you need are the structures allowing the creature to perform whatever function you wish. If you create a golem intending to have them eat food with you, you might put them in a stomach.”

“I see. Is that what you do? Create golems?”

“Oh, no. I am an amalgamator. I work in rune repair and primarily focus on maintaining our rune infrastructure.”

“That sounds interesting. Can I possibly assist you in this?”

“Well… it has been a while since I’ve had an apprentice. Are you interested in amalgamations?”

“I am. Being from a small village, I have not seen a mage who wasn’t also a priest. I would like to see more. The glow gems are an amalgamation, are they not?”

“Yes. We will see what I can do about that. For now, though, let’s get back to the lesson.”

He goes on like this for an hour or so, explaining the intricacies of forcing magic into a solid object. Density is a significant factor in this practice. Afterward, he walks me through a crudely drawn syllabus. I do my best to be an adequate student, listening intently and asking questions when I lose my pace. The initial two days crush me under their collective promise. I hardly return to my dorm before passing unconscious, promising to start on homework tomorrow.