Ryan woke from his nap to the sound of wind blowing through the slightly open window. He had returned to his room after the physical fitness class that had nearly killed him, and had thrown himself onto the bed without noticing the passage of time. The sun had passed its peak and was beginning to tilt toward the west, meaning the afternoon had gone by, and the afternoon classes were about to begin.
He got up with difficulty. His body still ached from Instructor Vera's exercises, but he felt he had regained some of his energy. He looked out the window and saw students gathering in the academy's courtyards, some heading toward the halls, others lounging under the falling autumn trees.
"Advanced Elements class... then Legendary Creatures."
He stretched, rubbed his face with his hands, then got up from the bed. He dressed quickly and headed to the dining hall for a quick light meal. He met Edan there, who looked as tired as he did, but his eyes sparkled with enthusiasm.
Edan asked.
"How do you feel?"
Ryan replied coldly.
"Like I was run over by a horse-drawn carriage,But I'm alive."
Edan laughed. "That's enough. Come on, let's go before we're late."
They ate some bread and cheese, drank a glass of water, then headed toward Hall Eight.
**********
Third Period: Advanced Elements (Theory) – Hall 8
The hall was different from the previous ones. Its walls were covered with complex diagrams illustrating the flow of spark, the circles of elements, and their interactions with one another. At the front, there was a raised platform, and in its center was a transparent glass sphere glowing with a faint light. The large windows overlooked the back garden, where golden sunlight filtered through the falling autumn leaves.
Standing before them was a man in his forties, slender, with black hair streaked with grey, and sharp blue eyes. He wore formal robes, but they were slightly disheveled, as if he had spent the night in the laboratory. There was a small ink stain on his right sleeve, and his hair was slightly tousled, making him look like an absent-minded professor.
Professor Aldric Vane – an expert in elemental theory, said to have spent twenty years studying the interactions of spark with the physical world, and the last five years trying to understand the reverse effect of elements on their bearers.
He wasted no time on introductions. He began speaking in a fast, excited voice, like someone who didn't want to miss a single moment. He moved his hands constantly, as if drawing his thoughts in the air.
"Elements are not just powers. Elements are a language. A language spoken by the universe, and we try to imitate it through our spark."
He stood behind the podium and placed his hands on the glass sphere. It began to glow in different colors – red, blue, green, and grey – as if breathing with those colors.
"Today we will talk about something rarely taught in other academies: the reverse effect of elements on their bearers. Not how you use the element, but how the element uses you."
A short silence. The students stared at the glowing glass sphere, most of them having never heard this concept before.
"Every element leaves a mark on its bearer's body and mind. Not necessarily a physical mark, but a spiritual and emotional one. Fire makes its bearer more impulsive, quicker to anger, more passionate. Water makes them cold, rational, but they may become emotionally frozen over time. Air makes them fickle, free, but they may become unstable. Earth makes them steady, stubborn, but they may become rigid and unchanging."
He looked at the students with piercing eyes, as if searching their faces for signs of these marks.
"These are subtle marks, but they accumulate over the years. Some of you may have already noticed them. Some of you may have felt that your element affects your mood, your decisions, your way of thinking. Perhaps you've noticed that you become more irritable after using your fire, or colder after using your water."
He raised his hand and pointed to the glass sphere, which had turned a dark red, as if burning from within.
"Look at fire. Fire consumes. It wants more. Always more. The fire-bearer feels a constant urge to expand, to dominate, to ignite. This desire can be a driving force, but it can also become an addiction. Some fire-bearers lose themselves in their fire. They become monsters, burning everything around them, including those they love."
Ryan felt a slight chill run down his spine. The professor's words struck a sensitive chord. He remembered his fire that had blazed in the pit of flames, remembered how it had nearly consumed him. But he also remembered how the ice spark had saved him in that moment, preventing him from completely collapsing.
"Ice... stopped fire from breaking my heart."
He knew this feeling. He knew how the fire would flare up inside him when he was angry, and how hard it was to extinguish. He also knew how cold he became when he tried to suppress it.
Professor Aldric looked at the students one by one, and paused for a moment when he saw Ryan's expression, but didn't comment.
"But there is good news. You can resist these marks. You can train your minds not to be swept away by your elements. Awareness is the first step. When you feel your anger flaring, stop. Think. Is this anger yours, or is it your fire's anger? When you feel yourself growing cold, stop. Think. Is this coldness yours, or is it your water's coldness?"
Then he smiled a faint smile.
"There is an old saying among elemental scholars: 'You do not own the element; the element owns you. Unless you learn to own it.'"
Professor Aldric spent the rest of the period explaining how to recognize the mark of an element, and how to train the mind to resist it. He gave simple mental exercises, such as meditation and focusing on breathing, and imagining that the element was not part of you, but a tool you use through your spark.
Ryan listened attentively. He knew this topic was more important to him than to any other student in the hall. He had faced fire head-on, suffered from its burning, and felt the ice spark save him. If there was any student who needed to understand these marks, it was him.
He took many notes, and wrote a question in the margin of his notebook: "How do I know if my anger is mine or my fire's anger?"
When the class ended, Ryan felt he had learned something new, something important. He left the hall thinking about Professor Aldric's words.
"Awareness... that is the key word."