Daniel Sonnet sat quietly in his upstairs office above the pub, trying to focus on his work. However, the sounds of merriment from the boisterous group seated at the bar below proved to be a constant distraction. Laughter filled the air, punctuated by the occasional shout as patrons jovially tried to make themselves heard over one another. Despite the amicable atmosphere, the muffled din still managed to irritate Daniel. The noise, although not angry or aggressive, was nonetheless persistent and made it difficult for him to concentrate.

They should be arriving any minute, Daniel thought. He sat at a desk in a dimly lit room with a lamp in the corner flickering every few minutes. A few buckets were peppered throughout the floor, catching raindrops from the cracked, leaky ceiling. Daniel debated having his own cup of mead, but he didn't like to drink before an important meeting.

Daniel stared at the dusty walls stained with an aging yellow, then he watched the ticking clock in the corner. He exhaled, opened the top shelf of his desk with a key, and started reading his favorite book to pass the time.

"The Secret History of Iox Magic"

Just as he turned to the bookmarked page, there was a knock on his thick wooden door. Daniel threw the book back on his shelf and locked it up.

"Come on in," Daniel said.

Jonathan Nexstrum opened the door. A tall, handsome man with light brown hair and a pointy nose. "The prospective apprentice has arrived," Jonathan said.

A lanky nineteen-year-old with a few pimples on his forehead with blonde curly hair stepped inside. "Hello," he said with a shaky voice.

Daniel noticed Patrick's jittering as if he had just finished drinking a cup of coffee. "Hello, Patrick. Please, take a seat." Daniel gestured at the chair in front of his desk.

"I'll be outside in case you need me," Jonathan said as he closed the door.

Patrick stood there, his mouth slightly ajar.

"Please, take a seat right here." Daniel pointed.

"Oh my gosh, yes, sorry about that." Patrick shuffled towards the seat and plopped down. "Sorry, I'm just very nervous, that's all."

"You have nothing to be nervous about."

"I hear the iox magic is very painful to receive."

Daniel cracked a grin. "Sure, attaining the iox ability is painful, but you're not actually getting that today. This is more like a job interview if you will. But lower stakes, in a way. If you don't mind me asking, what's your current element?"

"I'm a wind mage, sir. A Winderon," Patrick said as he dried his palms on his black pants.

"That's what I was. How wonderful. Jonathan said you and I would get along well."

"As long as I'm not a Voltrun, right?"

Daniel's smile fell. "I know it's just you and I in here, and we can joke around, but electric mages are needed in this operation as well. Really, any mage. It might be good for your to benefit from the help of an electric mage somewhere down the line. I have ideas, but we'll get to those later. Can you tell me why you want to join our movement?"

Patrick nodded. "Yes, I've heard that this is the most powerful form of magic in existence. And I feel like I have reached a point with my wind sorcery that I want something more. I've heard the stories about it too, and it's been captivating."

"Very good. You seem like a well-mannered and mature young man. I'm glad to hear that you're interested. We need people like you to be part of our operation. Do you have any questions for me at the moment?"

"Uh, yes. So, uh, Jonathan told me that this would be a... lucrative endeavor."

"Absolutely. Iox magic will undoubtedly lead to a path of riches that are beyond your imagination."

"Uh-huh. If that's the case, please, I don't mean to be rude, but why are you in this rundown office in a crummy building? Please, I don't mean to offend, but this isn't exactly luxurious, you know what I mean?"

Daniel wasn't phased by the question. "Yes, I understand. Part of me clings onto this place because it's been owned by my family for generations. It's also rather unassuming. I would host this meeting at my true home, but it's in a hidden location that is difficult to get to. This is a place where no one is looking around town. You understand? We also have to establish a level of trust. If you were to find out where my other places of work are, I'm vulnerable. This place is my least favorite of the bunch. If you snitch and tell someone I was here, I have no problem abandoning this place."

Patrick nodded. "Is there any way you could prove there would be a future of guaranteed money coming in a––"

Daniel sighed and unlocked a shelf on his desk. Pulling out a sack filled to the brim with coins, he dropped it on the desk and untied the tiny rope. A pile of gold cash sat between them, Patrick's jaw dropped, and his eyes bulged.

"For your trouble on coming out here tonight." Daniel grabbed a gold coin and flicked it with his thumb, ringing as the disc flipped hundreds of times, landing on Patrick's knee.

"Are you serious, sir? Can I really have this?"

"Absolutely, you'll find I'm a benevolent leader."

"Wow! Thank you so much! I've never held a gold coin in my life."

"A while ago I had never held a gold coin either, Patrick. Giving myself to iox magic was the best thing I've ever done."

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"So, I have another question. Is it true that you lose your element when you receive the iox magic?"

"For the most part, yes. You lose out on all your wind abilities, but it's replaced with much more powerful magic. Your iox magic would be unstoppable to anyone."

"Anyone?" Patrick echoed.

"Well. Unless it's an Honora gage."

"So I'd be defenseless against an Honora mage?" Patrick asked.

Daniel laughed once through his nose. "I don't mean this as an insult, but Patrick, you're not going up against any Honora folks anytime soon. Only two people in the country are Honora mages. They're not going to waste their time with you."

"Even so, do you know how the iox magic stands up against those with Honora power?"

Daniel smirked. "Do me a favor. I want you to throw a bolt at me right now."

"But sir, are you sure? This doesn't feel right."

"I think it's better to show you than to just tell you. You'll shoot a wind bolt at me, and I'll shoot an iox bolt at you. Then you'll see for yourself what happens."

Patrick grimaced.

Daniel stood out of his chair and beckoned for Patrick to stand up. "Please, this is part of the interview process."

Patrick hesitated before nodding and standing up.

"Go to the other side of the room." Daniel pointed to the left as he walked to the right. "Plus, we can take this as an opportunity to see how good your aim is."

Patrick stood at the end of the room, avoiding the buckets scattered around the floor.

"Let's hold our hands up, and on the count of three," Daniel said as he raised his palm and aimed it at Patrick. "Three..."

An emerald energy sphere whipped up and spun around in Patrick's palm.

"Two..."

A spinning white globe with cloudy wisps appeared at Daniel's fingertips. They were both the same size.

"One!"

Patrick shot his bolt at the same time as Daniel. The projectiles collided in the air, but Daniel's ball of energy devoured the wind bolt and zoomed through the air until it struck Patrick in the chest.

Patrick flew back, smacking his body off the wall and collapsing. His limbs twitched a few times.

Daniel approached him and nudged Patrick's shoulder with his foot.

"You okay?" Daniel asked.

"Yeah," Patrick croaked. "My skin is just burning all over."

"What normally happens when two elemental bolts collide?" Daniel asked although he knew the answer.

"They cancel each other out and disappear."

"And that's not what happened just now, is it?" Daniel smirked.

"Not at all," Patrick said.

"Why don't you stand back up again? And this time, I want you to use a wind strike against me. I will only use an iox bolt again. Are you ready?"

"Can you give me a moment, please, sir? I'm still recovering."

"But of course. Here, let me help you." Daniel lifted Patrick up, holding him steady until he could stand without support.

Daniel went back to the other side, waiting for Patrick to finish recuperating. Patrick took numerous deep breaths before finally saying, "Okay, I'm ready."

Patrick lifted up both arms, creating two green energy spheres, smashing them together.

Again, Daniel charged another smoky white ball. "On the count of three, three, two, one!"

With a flick of his wrist, Patrick unleashed a vibrant green pyramidal blast. However, Daniel was quick to respond, launching a modest ball of white energy that sliced through Patrick's attack and made direct impact. The force of the blow sent Patrick careening into the wall, yet even in the face of such power, Patrick remained steadfast and upright.

"You see that? The iox bolt is stronger than an elemental strike. But did you notice that the strike weakened the bolt a considerable amount, no?" Daniel said.

"My body doesn't burn all over like the last time, and I didn't go flying. So yeah, I noticed it lost some potency."

"Very good. Do you see why there's no need to worry about an Honora mage? If you're shooting out an iox bolt, you're usually fine. But an iox strike? You can figure it out yourself."

"But how well does an elemental blast hold up against the iox bolt?" Patrick asked.

"Don't let your imagination run wild. A wind blast would squash the iox bolt, no problem."

"How about we give it a try?" Patrick asked.

"Are you insane? A wind blast would probably tear the roof off this place. That's a tornado we're talking about. Can you even conjure that?"

"I can do it, but I think I might be––"

Daniel waved. "Enough. I like your confidence, kid, but be careful with the tornado. I think you can conjure one up, sure. From everything Jonathan tells me -and I trust everything Jonathan tells me- you are one of the best and most skilled students. A tornado should be in your future. But I think we can earn your trust by having you get to that level and use a tornado against Attleton. Do you follow?"

Patrick gulped. "I'm not sure if I do."

"Please, let's take a seat." Daniel returned to his chair, and so did Patrick. "This is one of the ideas that I wanted to talk to you about earlier. So yes. I need you to show me that you are committed, but I don't want it to be a haphazard operation. It'll be calculated. Myself and Jonathan will try and help as much as we can. But we need you to recruit another student, and I need you two to attack the Unity Mage Statue on the Attleton Campus."

"Oh my gosh, I-I, uh, I don't want to uh hurt anyone but––"

"No one said anything about hurting anyone. This will be done in the middle of the night when no one is around, do you understand? Besides, you're attacking a statue, not a building."

"Uh yeah, that makes me feel better about it."

"Now, I don't want you to do this right away. It will be done safely and intelligently, so we'll collaborate more when you find another friend for the cause. This is about making a statement and proving your commitment. That Unity Statue is a point of pride on campus."

Patrick debated internally but nodded.

"The iox needs demonstrations of bravery to take hold. I think this mission would easily allow you and a friend to receive the iox ability. And since I'm very thorough in everything I do, you will not be in trouble. All of our tracks will be covered. Do you understand?" Daniel asked, studying Patrick's face for any hesitancy.

"Yes. Thank you for all of the clarification and for offering support. I think I'll be able to do that when the time comes. When are you thinking?"

"Let's give it some time. Let's wait for a couple of months to pass. If you're still serious about––"

"Believe me, sir, I am."

Daniel smiled. "Well, let's give it time to plan and be thorough. If you're still serious as more time goes by, I'll set up another meeting, and Jonathan will help you get back in touch with me. Until then, do you have any questions?"

"No, sir. I'm ready for a future of glory."

"Excellent. Jonathan said you were a good kid. Thank you for coming and bringing forth a positive attitude through everything we discussed. I have no doubt you will be a legendary disciple of the iox magic."

Patrick bowed his head. "Thank you."

"And you need to find another committed friend. We can only do so much with a few numbers on the iox team. I think there's nothing better than working alongside your pals as you get older."

Patrick nodded. "I understand. I'll be tactful in my approach for acquiring similar talent."

"Jonathan told me that other students look up to you, even from the other elemental mages. That's a real honor and rare to find. Were you aware of that?"

Patrick arched his brow. "No, Jonathan didn't tell me that, but I don't know how true that is. I mean, I focus on my school work and treat all my classmates fairly."

"Keep it up. I think you'd be a wonderful asset to this team, and it would help us gain traction to have you fully committed. But unless there's anything else you want to talk about, this meeting is over. Jonathan will communicate with you next on the following steps of the process. He will take you back to campus."

"Sounds good to me." Patrick grinned.

They stood up from their chairs and shook each other's hands. Daniel had Jonathan come in and escort Patrick outside. Jonathan rushed back into the room and said, "The twins are ready to speak with you if you're ready?"

"Of course."