As their training continued over the passing months, Kai and everyone else at the orphanage quickly came to realize that Maya was nothing short of a magical prodigy. The difference between her natural abilities and those of her friends became more pronounced with each passing day, creating a gap that seemed to widen rather than close despite their shared efforts.
Maya grasped everything magic-related with an intuitive understanding that left both Rowan and Kai struggling to keep pace. Concepts that took the boys weeks to comprehend, Maya would master in mere days. Complex magical theories that required careful explanation and repeated practice became second nature to her almost immediately. But her natural talent extended far beyond simple comprehension—since the very beginning of their structured training, she had been able to draw in significantly more ambient mana than either of the two boys, and more impressively, she could purify that raw magical energy to a much, much higher degree.
This superior mana manipulation made even her most basic spells extraordinarily powerful compared to what Rowan and Kai could produce. Maya could conjure fire that burned with intense, controlled heat. Where Rowan could coax a few flowers to bloom slightly faster than normal, Maya's fire magic could accomplish feats that seemed to belong in the realm of advanced practitioners rather than a young girl still learning the fundamentals.
Recognizing this exceptional talent, Mary began having serious conversations with Maya about the possibility of attending a proper magic school when she grew older. The idea immediately captured Maya's imagination—she had always possessed that peculiar and insatiable desire for strength, power, and the dream of becoming a "hero" like the legendary figures she read about in old stories. The prospect of formal magical education, of learning from master mages and pushing her abilities to their absolute limits, filled her with an enthusiasm that was almost palpable.
Obviously, the orphanage's meager resources could never afford the tuition for a proper magical academy. But Mary was confident that any reputable school would eagerly offer a full scholarship to someone as naturally gifted as Maya. With this in mind, she made Maya a promise that would shape the girl's entire approach to her magical development.
"If you continue to train hard and develop your abilities," Mary told her one evening as they sat in the small library, "once you're old enough, I'll send a letter to the Brightspire School of Magic. It's the most highly acclaimed magical academy in the world, located right in the Irdath capital of Brightspire."
Maya's response was immediate and wholehearted agreement, her eyes lighting up with a fire that had nothing to do with her magical specialty. From that moment forward, she resumed her training with an even bigger flame burning in her eyes—not just the desire to master her abilities, but the concrete goal of earning admission to the most prestigious magical institution in existence.
Meanwhile, as Kai slowly improved his own magical capabilities, Mary surprised him with an unexpected gift: a well-crafted wooden practice sword. The weapon was simple but sturdy, clearly made by someone who understood both woodworking and the requirements of combat training.
"An augmentation specialist should master a weapon," Mary explained as she handed him the sword. "Your magic enhances your physical capabilities, but those enhancements are most effective when channeled through proper martial skills."
Kai wasn't particularly enthusiastic about adding sword training to his already challenging magical practice routine, but he could see the logic in Mary's reasoning. If his specialty truly was physical augmentation, then learning to fight effectively would maximize the potential of his abilities. Somewhat reluctantly, he agreed to begin weapons training alongside his magical development.
While Maya excelled and Kai adapted to new challenges, Rowan continued to improve at a very... average pace. His progress was steady and consistent, but entirely unremarkable when compared to the rapid advancement of his friends. Unfortunately, being average next to someone like Maya might as well have been considered poor performance. Despite this disparity, the difference in their magical development didn't create any tension or jealousy between the three friends. If anything, they had become rather inseparable over the years, their bond growing stronger with each shared challenge and small victory.
Kai found it eerily easy to get along with Rowan, despite the significant difference in their mental ages. Looking at his friend's patient, methodical approach to problems and his gentle, introspective nature, Kai recognized something familiar—he saw himself in Rowan, immediately for mostly the bad parts of him.
More time passed with this established routine of training, friendship, and gradual growth. Soon they were eleven years old, then twelve, their childish features beginning to show hints of the adults they would eventually become. Throughout this period, Maya continued growing stronger at an almost alarming rate, Rowan improved steadily in his earth magic, and Kai began demonstrating physical feats that were genuinely unbelievable for someone his age.
Even without a proper teacher and relying only on old combat manuals from Mary's modest library, Kai's swordplay had become commendable for his age. The combination of his augmentation magic and dedicated practice had resulted in a fighting style that was raw but effective, emphasizing speed and precision over elaborate technique.
Eventually, his thirteenth birthday arrived: 3/12 1027 AT.
Kai had been happy to learn, years ago during his early education at the orphanage, that this world used a calendar system nearly identical to Earth's. Weeks consisted of seven days, months contained thirty to thirty-one days, and there were twelve months in each year. The only significant differences were that the months in this world had no names and were simply referred to by their numerical order, and the calendar itself had begun after the death of their most revered religious figure, Thelosus.
Kai had read extensively about Thelosus over the years and found the historical figure genuinely intriguing—a legendary hero who defeated the mad king and his army of demons so many years ago. But his interest paled in comparison to Maya's fascination with the figure, who she seemed to idolize with an intensity that sometimes worried her friends.
For reference, Kai's birthday—or more accurately, the day he had been left on the doorstep of the orphanage as an infant—was the 12th day of the 3rd month of 1014 AT (AT= After Thelosus). Maya's birthday fell on 1/22 1014 AT, and Rowan's on 3/2 1014 AT, making Kai technically the youngest of their group despite his adult memories.
Today marked his thirteenth birthday, a milestone that felt both significant and strangely anticlimactic. As Kai woke up in his familiar bed within the orphanage dormitory and began preparing to start his day with the usual routine he had absolutely no idea that very, very soon, everything in his carefully ordered world was about to change forever.
A/N: The Maya glaze needs to be stopped!