The training grounds buzzed like usual — bursts of light, heat, and noise filling the air. Kael was still trying to perfect his lightning arc, and Aiden had half the ground shaking again.
Jayden stood apart, arms crossed, watching water swirl loosely around his fingers. It didn't feel right — his control had improved, sure, but there was something missing. Every time he tried to focus, he saw his mother's face. The hospital room. The stillness.
"Bro, you zoning out again?" Kael called from across the field, his tone sharp but familiar. "You're starting to look like one of those meditation weirdos."
Jayden gave a small, tired smirk. "Maybe that's what it takes to get better control."
Kael shrugged, crackling with another failed surge. "Or maybe you're just overthinking again."
Aiden stepped forward, wiping his hands on his uniform. "He's not wrong though. You've been off lately."
Jayden didn't reply. His water sphere collapsed with a quiet splash, soaking his boots. He just stared at it for a second — the way it reflected the light, like a pulse.
Something in him knew his problem wasn't power. It was purpose
Jayden hadn't told anyone why he came to Keystone. Most students came to get stronger, to climb ranks, to show off.
He came because his mother was still in a coma.
The infirmary back home said there was nothing left to try. But the Academy had healers — real ones — who did things that weren't in any hospital books. That was enough reason for him.
After few hours, the academy halls were quieter. Jayden followed the corridor past the main training dome — down to where the Healing Class was stationed. The air here felt different. Calmer.
Students in white and blue robes were practicing on wooden dummies that simulated wounds. Some were using water techniques to patch artificial skin, others channeling energy through their hands.
An instructor, an older woman with streaks of gray in her hair, noticed him.
"You're not on my list."
Jayden nodded. "I wanted to observe. Just for today."
Her tone softened slightly. "Water user?"
He nodded again.
"Then maybe you're in the right place," she said. "Take a seat. We're starting with essence transfer
He'd signed up for a new elective — Healing Arts, run by a senior water instructor named Renna Sol.The Healing Division wasn't popular. Only a handful of students filled the room each session. The instructor, Renna Sol, was a Water user like him.
It wasn't a flashy class. Most people ignored it because it didn't make you stronger in combat. But Jayden had his reasons.
Renna stood at the front, short hair, calm voice, sharp eyes. "Healing isn't about fixing. It's about understanding what broke, Water remembers shape," she said on the first day. "If you can understand that, you can learn to help the body remember how it's supposed to feel."
she said, walking between students.
"Water users have the highest success rate with organic restoration because of flow alignment. But that means control. Gentle control."
Jayden nodded without speaking. The words stuck with him.
He practiced with both hands over a glass orb filled with mist. The goal was to condense the mist into a liquid sphere without cracking it. Easy on paper. Hard in reality. Each time he got close, the orb either froze or shattered.
Renna passed by, watching from the side. "Good. Your balance is there. Keep refining your focus. Healing isn't a trick, it's patience."
Jayden nodded again. He could tell Renna didn't care about compliments or grades. She just wanted the work done right
Jayden sat at the back, trying to follow along as she spoke about channeling calmness instead of control. But his focus slipped. Healing wasn't just technique; it was emotion.
He was still staring at his hand when a quiet voice spoke beside him.
"Didn't think I'd see you here."
Jayden turned — Kira was leaning on the doorframe, holding her notebook.
"You spying on me now?" he said, half-smiling.
Kira raised a brow. "Please. You think you're that interesting?"
He chuckled. "So what brings you here, then?"
She tilted her head toward the class.
"Curiosity. Fire isn't exactly good for healing. I just wanted to see how you were holding up."
"You're really in that healing class?" she asked.
"Yeah." He hesitated, then shrugged. "Guess I'm trying something different."
"I thought you'd pick something more… offensive."
He shrugged. "Power's not the only thing that matters."
"Sure, but healing?"
He looked at his hands. "Someone I care about needs it."
She studied him for a second — long enough that he looked away first.
"You're doing it for your mom, right?" she said quietly.
Jayden froze. "Who told you that?"
"Kael. He talks too much."
He sighed, looking down at his wet hands. "…Yeah."
Kira finally spoke again. "You'll figure it out. You always do."
He looked at her. "You sound like you believe that."
"I do."
Kira didn't say anything after that. She just sat on the bench next to him, while the rest of the students practiced.
Outside, the sound of the main training dome echoed faintly — lightning strikes, fire bursts, roars of competition. But here, everything was quieter.