The next morning, Rygic awoke to find himself alone once more. It seemed that Quart was an early riser. He changed into the linen tunic and pants Skoshi had lent him and was pleasantly surprised to see that the clothes fit him well. He was also relieved to have spare clothing as he did not relish the thought of having to wash his clothes every night.

As he walked down the stairs, he was surprised to see Dreck was already sitting with Quart. Navigating through the busy dining hall, he swiftly approached their table. The scene before him confirmed Yaz's earlier observation about most testers returning home the day after the assessments. The room was bustling with activity, and the majority of individuals present were dressed for travel with their bags neatly positioned beside their seats.

“Good morning,” said Rygic as he took his seat at the table.

“Good morning. Did you sleep well?” asked Dreck. He gingerly placed a full pitcher of Earthroot tea in front of Rygic.

“I did, thanks,” answered Rygic as he helped himself to a steaming cup of tea.

“I am glad someone did,” muttered Quart. He had dark bags under his bloodshot eyes. It appeared he had stayed up all night. “It took me forever to go to sleep last night. All I could think about was how our first day at the academy would go.” He then sluggishly took a long drink from his cup, willing the tea to work faster. “Thank the spirits for Earthroot tea.”

Seeing Rygic had joined the table, Yaz walked up to take his order. “Morning Rygic. What would you like for breakfast?” she asked.

Rygic glanced at the plates in front of Dreck and Quart. Quart was having the same breakfast as the day before while Dreck was eating some dish made with light grey gravy. “I think I’ll go with what Dreck’s having this time around,” he answered.

“Good choice! That is one of my personal favorites. I’ll be right back with your food,” said Yaz before quickly heading to the kitchen. The conversations mostly centered around what to expect on their first day at the academy with the occasional groan coming from Quart. It wasn’t long before Yaz returned with Rygic’s breakfast. “Here’s your gravy on toast. Enjoy,” she announced as she placed the plate in front of Rygic. She then hurried over to another table. Quart peered over his mug in a sleepy haze as he watched Yaz swiftly move from table to table before he continued to mutter a few words regarding his need for her energy.

Rygic looked down at this plate. He felt a bit disappointed with the simplicity of the dish. Hopefully this will taste better than it looks, he thought. With a careful slice of his knife, Rygic separated a small portion of the meal. Much to his delight, the cut revealed a generous slice of thick toast and enticing morsels of meat concealed within the savory gravy. Not wanting to appear rude by continuing to inspect it, he promptly put the forkful into his mouth and was immediately met with a wave of flavor. A smile formed on his face as he savored the bite. His initial doubts were easily obliterated by the expert seasoning that elevated the humble-looking dish.

“That looks good,” Skoshi quietly said. Rygic nearly dropped his fork, surprised by Skoshi’s sudden appearance. He was so focused on his food that he wasn’t paying attention to anything else. A look of amusement was plastered on Skoshi’s face. Rygic had a feeling Skoshi had meant to sneak up on him. Quart and Dreck both wore playful grins. It seemed they had watched Skoshi approach and purposely didn’t say anything. Setting down a rather full travel pack, Skoshi took a seat at the table. He caught Yaz’s attention and pointed at Rygic’s plate. With a nod of understanding, Yaz quickly headed for the kitchen, and in no time, she reappeared with a steaming plate of gravy on toast for Skoshi before attending to the needs of other guests.

“What’s in the pack?” Rygic asked casually. He intended to conceal the fact that Skoshi had surprised him, not wanting to give any of them the satisfaction of catching him off guard.

“I’ll tell you after breakfast,” eluded Skoshi. “You three ready for your first day at the Academy?”

“Can’t wait, though a little nervous” confided Rygic.

“Me too. I nearly jumped out of bed and headed down here after waking up,” added Dreck.

Quart nodded and muttered a simple yes. “You might want another cup of Earthroot tea,” suggested Skoshi. He could tell Quart had hardly slept.

“Already on my third cup,” moaned Quart. “I’ll manage somehow. Maybe I can take a nap later.”

A pitying look appeared on Skoshi’s face. He bent over and rummaged in his travel pack. He took out a long dark brown root and a small paring knife. Skoshi then cut three small pieces of the root before putting the rest back into his pack. “Here, take them,” he said as he passed them over to Quart.

“What is that?” inquired Rygic.

“Earthroot in its natural form. They grind this root down to make Earthroot tea,” explained Skoshi.

“A little goes a long...” Skoshi began before stopping mid-sentence. He was looking at Quart with a mixed expression of humor and horror. After hearing it was Earthroot, Quart shoved all three pieces into his mouth.

Almost immediately after Quart swallowed the three places, his expression changed significantly. He no longer looked sleepy. Bright alert eyes looked over the group. The weariness that so heavily weighed him down had completely vanished. Rygic thought he could almost see the energy radiating off Quart.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Thanks, I needed that!” exclaimed Quart. He began to dig into his breakfast like a starved madman.

“Quart, you should have eaten just one, and then spaced them out the rest of the day.” Reaching back into his pack, Skoshi pulled the Earthroot out once more and sliced off two additional pieces before putting the rest back. “Now, promise me,” Skoshi spoke slowly and gestured with his hands to try to keep Quart’s attention before continuing, “You’ll only eat these one at a time and spaced throughout the day.”

Nodding his head vigorously while taking the offered Earthroot, Quart rambled “I promise!”

“I don’t know if that is such a good idea. Even his scraggly beard seems to be bouncing up and down with energy,” remarked Dreck.

“It’ll be okay. Besides, you two don’t want to be around when the Earthroot wears off. “The little guy will most likely be very grouchy,” explained Skoshi.

“Little guy?!” blurted Quart who then went back to wolfing down his breakfast.

With their appetites satiated, Skoshi suggested they head outside to which everyone agreed. They each thanked Yaz for their meals. Once outside, Skoshi announced, “I’ve brought you each a gift to take with you on your first day at the Academy.” The trio was surprised by the thoughtful gesture. Their curiosity grew as they wondered what he may have brought for them.

Digging through his pack, he pulled out a pair of gleaming daggers. Their hilts, wrapped in black leather; the blades, engraved with runes. A single mana crystal was embedded in the pommel of each. “These are for you Dreck,” offered Skoshi.

“Thank you Skoshi, but I can’t accept these. Judging from the runes, they must be enchanted. That must have cost a fortune,” remarked Dreck as he gently pushed them back toward Skoshi.

“Please take them, I had them especially crafted for you. As for their cost, I have a friend who’s a skilled blacksmith. The runes I engraved myself, so they are not very powerful. Still though, better than the starter weapons the Academy provides,” responded Skoshi.

“Thank you Skoshi. I will take care of them,” promised Dreck who humbly accepted them. He held the daggers in his hands with a tender delicacy as if he were holding a treasured heirloom.

“Your turn Quart,” said Skoshi as he started digging through his pack. Quart, still energized by the Earthroot, practically skipped closer. Skoshi then pulled out a long wooden staff engraved with runes. At the top of the staff sat a mana crystal. Rygic briefly wondered how Skoshi had managed to fit a staff inside his pack. Skoshi handed the staff to Quart’s eager hands.

“Thank you Skoshi! I will put this staff to good use!” Quart exclaimed. He delightfully gripped the staff and held it out as if to practice gestures and commands with it.

“Lastly, this is for you Rygic,” said Skoshi. From his pack, he pulled out a small metal wand. The wand was a very dark purple color. The purple was so dark, that Rygic initially thought the color was black until morning sunlight reflected off it. Its handle was wrapped in the same black leather as Dreck’s daggers. A mana crystal was socketed onto the bottom of the handle.

Rygic took the wand and held it up close. Tiny runes were engraved in it and the wand was strangely heavy for its size. “Thank you very much, Skoshi.”

“Skoshi, perhaps Rygic should have these daggers instead,” suggested Dreck. His tone implying that perhaps Rygic received the lesser of the gifts.

“I am fine with the wand, Dreck. Something about this wand feels right,” stated Rygic.

Dreck looked to see if Quart would explain but found him to appear totally engrossed with this staff. He glanced at Skoshi who seemed amused. “Well… Wands are typically the weakest of mage weapons,” he remarked as he fumbled around for the right words. “Not to say they are terrible. They are great for focus, always strike true, and a decent range weapon, but both their rate of fire and the damage they deal is the worst of the magical ranged weapons,” Dreck explained, somewhat expecting Rygic to show at least a hint of disappointment.

“That all sounds fine with me. I think I’ll keep the wand,” responded Rygic. Though the daggers were tempting, the wand did feel right to him. He held it in his hand and measured its weight once more before moving it to his other hand to feel which one was more natural.

“Good. You’ll find that wand to be well-suited for you,” stated Skoshi. It belonged to the last Aether Magic user, my former mentor Seveal Nillaf. He instructed me to pass the wand down to the next Aether Magic user should one appear in my lifetime. I have held onto it for more than 150 years.”

“I will wield the wand with honor, Skoshi,” promised Rygic, who now looked at the wand reverently. He was all the more pleased with his decision to keep the wand as opposed to trading it in for Dreck’s daggers.

“The wand should keep you safe as it did him. Of the five former Aether mages, he was the only one to pass away peacefully,” Skoshi said with a bit of a contemplative look in his eyes. “Now go. You three are going to be late for your first day of class.” Although the bit about only one in five Aether mages lived to die of old age somewhat unnerved Rygic, he was able to not think too deeply about the statement.

The three thanked Skoshi once more before leaving. Each couldn’t help but stare at their new weapons as they walked. As they speculated how the first day at the academy would go, they soon quickened their pace, not wanting to be the last ones there.

***

Yunea stood on her balcony as she looked far off into the mortal plane. A slight smile on her lips as she watched over her newest follower, Rygic. In many ways, he reminded her of her last follower, Seveal Nillaf. Not only were they similar in height and stature, but both possessed a kind, incorruptible soul and a strong determination to truly help others. Though it bothered her that so few chose her as a Patron, she couldn’t help but remember a time when she wasn’t so discerning and the consequences that followed.

“You seem to be in a good mood,” remarked Arista. Yunea was so focused on Rygic that she didn’t hear her friend, the Spirit of Death Magic, walk up.

Yunea nearly jumped but swiftly composed herself, masking her surprise with a smooth response. “Just checking up on my latest follower.”

“So few seem to possess the qualities you look for and those that do tend to back out after hearing about the drawbacks of Aether magic. We were quite surprised when you made your entrance. Some of us wanted to win the mortal over, but even more so after your entrance,” Arista playfully commented.

Yunea could only smile as she thought of her fellow Spirit’s antics. Though gaining new followers was a serious matter, the Spirits did enjoy boasting to one another about how many chose them. “I only wish there were more. If what Seiran told us is true, the tentative peace between the Kosany and the mortals will end soon.”

“True.” Arista took in a slow and steady breath as she overlooked the mortal plane alongside Yunea. “It seems the time has finally come.”