The next few years in the aviary swept past in a blur. The flocks began to delve deeper into their specific courses. The wrens had become proficient in their healing wards and potions.
They had spent the last six years honing their craft and mastering their abilities. By the time the youngest wren had turned ten, the flock had become the primary healers within the aviary. The sick bay, once empty, was now lined with wrens hard at work, concocting mixtures and brews to heal all sorts of wounds.
The Falcons had all grown beyond their means. Most of them now stood six feet, with only a few outcasts barely meeting the five-eleven mark. The majority were round in the midsection, but bore strong arms. They had found themselves to be the maintenance team for the aviary.
Any oddity in any of the tower's chambers, or a broken support beam, and a falcon was there repairing it. They had all grown to master the craftsmen's rune, as well as stability charms to ensure structural integrity.
It was hard to wander the halls of the aviary and not see a falcon's addition. With free range, when it came to adding things to the aviary, the falcons may have gone overboard. Large statues of the flock's members were hidden along random corridors.
Random structures that seemingly don't add any functionality to the aviary were common as well. Though a few of the boys found a slight annoyance with the falcons' creations, the architect seemed to take pride in them. When he made his way out of his study, that is. The last few years had seen the architect retreat into his own studies.
Few boys had seen him more than a handful of times within that time. Those who had seen him had reported seeing an echo of who he once was. A frail, hollow husk wandering the halls, slowly dragging its bony fingers along the stone. Aldric and Harden, on the other hand, had seen quite a bit of the architect.
Harden spent a lot of his school days in the depths of the aviary, practicing his defensive charms. Aldric spent his training periods outside on the beach. Aldric was tasked with mastering the skills he had already acquired while maintaining steady lessons with the architect.
Aldric spent his free time practicing his more challenging feats. His current focus was mastering the shadow walking rune. With the ability to quickly cast the charm, he could freely enter and exit the shadow realm more swiftly than with hand signs.
However, the time he'd spent mastering the rune had come at a price. His once dark hair was now peppered with white strands. His silver eyes looked nearly like the architect's, except his iris was still visible. Both phoenixes had grown into their position in the aviary and become idols to the flocks below them.
Aldric wandered the halls, gathering the attention of any eye he passed. His stature was tall and confident, barely glancing at anyone he'd passed. Harden was normally covered in freshly treated gashes and bruises, and seemed to gather sympathetic gazes.
The years had been rough on them, though, beating them down until they didn't know if they wanted to stand again. Though they were above the other flocks, and Aldric had found himself at the right hand of the architect, they felt a growing distance between them and their mentor.
Aldric felt the drift more, as his classes had suddenly taken an abrupt halt toward his twelfth birthday. He and the architect had gone from five courses a day to maybe two if Aldric was lucky. He couldn't help but feel a few rooted frustrations when he thought about it.
Why would the architect lose interest now? Now that he had become greater, why would his training suddenly stop? The answer didn't come clearly, nor did rational clarity. To him, he'd done something wrong, and he wasn't let in on his punishment.
He stewed and steeped with his feelings as he and Harden made their way to the high perch. They were silent as straggling flock members brushed past them. They scanned the walls of the tower they grew up in. The walls were patched by falcons in different spots, while posters of the wrens' treatments were splattered randomly.
"Seems everyone is finding their place here, huh?" Harden asked, fingering the lifted corner of a poster.
"Feels more like they've been given their place. Odd that we haven't," Aldric said, his tone bitter and distant.
"The right hand of the architect seems like a pretty great place to be if you ask me," Harden rebutted, shrugging slightly.
"Right. The right hand of the man promising to teach me everything, but barely scratching the surface. You know, I've had to start borrowing texts and scrolls from Moxxy just to teach myself something new," Aldric rolled his eyes and lifted his arm, where three large books were tucked.
"And how is it that you have access to a library, I'm not sure anybody else is aware of?" Harden's words hung in the air as Aldric's expressions shifted rapidly.
"I'm not trying to discount how you few Al, but I think someone ought to remind you that you, by all accounts, are the architect's favorite. Don't hang on to the job assignments so tight. Do you really want to fix the toilets around here?" Harden asked, looking around the stairwell.
Their feet echoed along the steps as they reached the perch. Roughly, two hundred boys sat at their designated seats, sitting straight and quietly watching the stage. When the pair passed in the archway, they saw him.
The architect sat slumped back in his throne, picking at his thin fingers as if waiting for something. The two boys made it to their table and rested their elbows along the cold surface.
"Ah, now that my phoenixes have graced us with their presence, we may begin," the architect said, halting his picking and standing unsteadily. He clacked to the forefront of the platform and cleared his throat.
"I would like to start this morning's announcements off by saying a hearty happy birthday to those of you turning twelve," he began with a steady round of applause.
"That being said, my lucky few, please remain where you are after this; we have a few things to discuss," he added. The boys at neighboring tables clapped for their designated tween before refocusing on the architect.
The architect went through the normal routine and announced changes to class schedules. A few of the younger boys had finally been granted their own dens, and a boy from the Falcons table was reprimanded due to a rather phallic structure he'd left in one of the stairwells.
For Aldric, listening to his mentor felt like life or death. He honed in on every word as if they had been directly for him. He waited for any hidden message, nothing. He waited for a glance indicating any special coursework, nothing. Then, he waited for any acknowledgment at all, nothing.
The last of the announcements had come, and the flocks had begun to trickle out. Before long, Harden gestured his goodbyes, and Aldric was left with the other twelve-year-olds.
"Apologies for having to hold you, boys back, but it is imperative that we discuss your roles moving forward," the architect began as the thunderous footsteps subsided down the stairs.
"Falcons, at age twelve, your duties within the aviary expand. As your powers advance, so does your yearning for growth. Use your new permissions not only to fix and add, but to destroy and recreate. While this may seem daunting, understand that this next step will push you all toward your architectural goal," he stared at the Falcons' table and talked uninterrupted before dismissing them for later instruction.
"I do not believe we have any wrens lucky enough to be here with us today," he stated, waiting for any rebuttals to the statement. When there was no response, he continued.
"Raven's, this next step in your schooling will throw you headfirst into your skill appliance training. Your new courses will have you utilize the skills you've acquired thus far in simulated scenarios. Take this as you will, but be warned, I did not design these courses to be easy," again, he waved the ravens away.
That's when Aldric had learned he and Jasper shared a birthday. He caught a glimpse of the lanky boy as he strutted out, his pant legs hanging high above his ankles. Then, he was alone. He gazed up at the architect expectantly, but nothing was said.
"Excuse me, sir?" He chipped, his voice squeaking as it left him.
"Don't worry, dear boy, the phoenix courses will continue to advance as well," the architect said, his tone almost annoyed or irritated.
"Yes, sir, I'm just wondering if there are any changes I should be aware of now?" The boy asked his determination to outweigh his nerves.
"As a matter of fact, there is," he began, gazing up thoughtfully.
"As my right hand, you will be trained to be the aviary's secret weapon. This means that, like a raven, you will be tasked with eliminating those who wish to do us harm. In addition to this task, you will also be given tasks seen as too extreme for lesser flocks," he instructed. Aldric gazed up, hanging on every word as they left his mentor's lips.
"That is why, tomorrow you will be receiving your first job. You will report directly to my office before daybreak. There, you will be given your assignment as it has been appointed by the master magus, then, and only then, will you prepare yourself you leave the veil,"