Orpheion Institute was a sublime castle that had withstood much more than age and war, it was a castle of remembrance and power.
Following the peace treaty signed nearly sixteen years earlier, Orpheion had become an elite institute where the greatest families of the kingdoms of Kaelor and Parvana sent their children to study. The most powerful magicians in Thepra were thus to be found in this establishment reserved for the very best.
Cristael Boëlthorn, head of the school for many years, was renowned for her strength and courage, despite her involvement in the war. The best magicians of the war were, for the most part, former students of Orpheion.
The institute was located in the northeast on a small island in Kaelor above the kingdom's capital, Valterys. It was only accessible by a single bridge, which could only be crossed if the student's admission had been validated. Orpheion was absolutely impressive, and everyone praised the quality of its teachings.
Devion Boëlthorn was a student at Orpheion.
To be more precise, he had just joined the academy and, although his talent was undeniable, the young boy, adopted son of the school's headmistress, had to face criticism about his real potential and a potential help from his mother.
Dev wasn't the type to worry about such low remarks. He was more the type to let himself be carried along and discovered. The young magician knew full well that he was at the dawn of everything and all his discoveries.
"Line up. First years on the left." The vice-principal, Jaz Blaese, passed between the unruly and frightfully excited students. "Second years to the center. Third years to the right."
Mr. Blaese was an excellent vice-principal. Together with Cristael, he ran the school with an iron fist, and he knew how to be firm, something that could be lacking in Cristael's tender heart.
"During your entrance exams, we assessed your symphony ranks. May I remind you that the minimum stage to enter Orpheion is the Resonant stage and therefore having undergone a double awakening." Jaz stopped dead in the middle of the huge assembly. No sound could be heard, and the students seemed petrified by the teacher's powerful aura. "Students. For some of you, this is a straight line. For others you're in the middle of the road, and for others it's just the beginning."
"He's showing off a bit, isn't he?" a student whispered to his neighbor, chuckling.
A spear of ice wrapped in a sheet of wind brushed against the student.
Jaz stood upright a little further from the student, his aura even stronger. For most of the students, it was the first time they'd seen a double element and with it a taste of the power of a Transcendent. Jaz caught his breath.
"I think we can resume."
Devion let a slight grin form on his face. He'd done the right thing in forcing Cristael to let him join the academy.
"Does that amuse you, young man?"
Devion raised his head. He'd been warned to be discreet, but he had definitely failed.
"Devion Boëlthorn." This time, Jaz stepped towards the young man with a smile on his face. "It's going to be an interesting year. I hope you'll do your mother proud, young man.
As far as discretion was concerned, it was a real dud.
At Orpheion, courses were run in such a way that each element was studied separately, even if it was only possible to possess a single element or a double element at most. Physical education courses were also given to ensure the most complete teaching possible.
Five elements and Devion possessed two. He was quite proud of this, but up to now he had decided to remain rather discreet about his skills.
At least, until the whispers about him died down.
The dark-haired teenager was sitting at a table at the back of the classroom, hoping to avoid attracting any attention after having made quite a name for himself a few hours earlier. Let's just say that bearing the same surname as the headmistress of Orpheion wasn't something that usually went unnoticed.
"Mr. Boëlthorn. Could you kindly remind us of the list of elemental types."
Devion straightened up suddenly and cleared his throat.
"Fire, Ice, Wind, Water, Earth and the double-."
"You can stop there, I'll continue." Professor O'Sullivan resumed. "As you know, there are five elemental types and three double elemental types. To recall those cited by Mr. Boëlthorn, there are: fire, ice, wind, water, earth as well as frostfire, blizzard and mist."
The teacher began to write the list of elements on the blackboard, then paused to turn around.
"Nevertheless despite the rarity of double elemental types, the real power of these is defined by symphony ranks. Could someone remind us of them?"
A red-haired boy raised his hand, looking proud. He stood up so he could answer.
"Mr. Blanchard, go ahead."
"There are five symphony ranks known to date. Latent, which represents the first basic magical awakening. Resonant which represents the second awakening and is defined by the appearance of a scar on the individual's body. Ascendant represents even more powerful magic. Transcendent, reserved for the elite of magic. Absolute, to date we have known very few magicians of this level but one notable one is our King Lazarus Morwynn."
"Very well Harris, thank you."
Harris gave Devion a quick glance of disdain, and the latter raised an eyebrow in incomprehension. If he was already starting to make enemies, these three years would be a long time.
"We'll get down to business. I'll nominate someone." The teacher swept the entire class with a glance. "Here, Miss Artheimer, you're very discreet."
Devion didn't know Carla Artheimer very well, he'd only heard of her from Cristael's stories. Carla was the daughter of the King and Queen of Parvana and one of the most important Parvanian representatives in Orpheion. She and her sister, Elena, had been sent by the rulers of Parvana themselves.
Carla stood up and joined the teacher facing the blackboard.
"Could you summon some magic particles."
Carla, still as calm and cold as ever, conjured up a fine flame of magic, blending two elements, ice and wind.
This was how Devion knew he wasn't the only double elemental magician in his class.
All in all, it was shaping up to be far more interesting than expected.
The course went surprisingly quickly and Devion was eager to get started on the physical education classes. Real practice was the best way to gauge his classmates, and the young boy had that slight competitive streak.
"Devion." A voice he knew only too well called to him from further down the long corridor running through Orpheion's east wing.
The institute was as majestic as it was grand, and in addition to an immense estate with several hectares for outdoor courses, it comprised a huge castle surrounded by two enormous watchtowers. Cristael had had them built ten years ago; the war had made her wary, and what she wanted most was the safety of her students.
The headmistress stood up straight, arms folded. Devion was well aware that he was about to be reprimanded. Yet she had told him to be discreet and not to provoke Jaz!
"Argh..." The young boy resolved to join his adoptive mother crossing a corridor lined once again with curious glances. He was obviously going to have to get used to this kind of attention.
"Are you following me?"
Devion silently resolved to follow Cristael, who had started walking in the opposite direction. His step was quick and his gait sure and slender. How could the young magician not be proud to be the adopted son of such a person.
By the time they reached the entrance to the headmistress' office, the sky was already beating down hard. It must have been around noon, and rather than be reprimanded for his lack of discretion, Devion would have preferred to run to the refectory.
To the boy's surprise, the room wasn't empty and another boy was sitting upright. He had gray hair, eyes, even grayer, and a detached air.
"Meet Sol. Sol, this is Devion."
Devion didn't look up. With his hands in his pockets, he continued to stare at the young boy, who must have been about the same age as him.
Sol began to smile and Devion's blood ran cold. Why did he look so frightening! Underneath his angelic exterior, Devion could feel the amount of magic and power radiating from the boy in front of him.
Water.
Sol was a water user. No doubt about it.
Cristael watched in absolute calm as the game of looks and egos unfolded before her eyes. Young children, two prodigies staring into each other's eyes.
With a flick of his hand, and without warning, Sol cast a water spell in the direction of the dark-haired man. The wave of magic enveloped Devion like a snake.
At that moment, Devion smiled and let the two elements that inhabited him awaken and take possession of his body. With a flick of his hand, he grabbed the water collar lacing his neck and froze it, then invoked a fire spell to melt it.
Ah... He'd succeeded in pissing him off, this little power play war was of no interest to him.
Devion raised his arm, his eyes radiating their green color intermingled with magic, he summoned a flame that encircled his arm and pointed at his comrade.
"That's enough." Cristael interrupted. "Devion, meet Sol. Sol Wolfrad. He'll be your roommate."
At that moment, Sol softened, stood up and grabbed his roommate's hand. His hand was frozen like an ice user's, yet there in front of Devion stood a probably very powerful water user magician. Devion, slightly surprised by Sol's sudden change of attitude, didn't react immediately. Dev finally softened in his turn. And so it all began.