Wires And Wands

"Sir Lestair, wake up!" A voice called out to Tesric, along with a few light nudges to his shoulder. Tesric yawned and slowly opened his eyes, realizing who the figure standing over him was. "Yeah?" He muttered with a tired voice.

Looking down at him was Eryth, with a warm smile on his face. "Sir Ingram's told us to gather out on the deck!" he said with a cheery tone. He reached out his arms in order to help Tesric off the chair and table he had fallen asleep on last night, surrounded by a mess of tools and peculiar gadgets.

Tesric rubbed the back of his neck and scratched his head as he stood up, still not fully awake. "How long was I out?"

"Long enough for everyone to start wondering if you'd ever wake up," Eryth teased him with a smile. "The whole class is waiting for you outside, and they sent me to make sure you hadn't croaked."

"Well, thank you," Tesric returned the warm smile, "for being so reliable." He complimented Eryth and gave him a friendly pat on the arm.

As he turned to tidy the scattered tools on the table back into his luggage, Eryth stepped forward to offer assistance. "Oh, let me give you a hand with that."

Before he could render the assistance though, the unmistakable and irritable voice of Prince Darian echoed from all the way out on the deck. "Eryth! Come brush the dust off my cape!"

Eryth hesitated, his expression conflicted, torn between helping Tesric and serving his perceived superior. Tesric caught the conflict in his eyes and gave him a reassuring nod. "Go on, I'll handle this."

Eryth murmured a soft thanks, and with a quick bow of his head, he hurried towards the door, the quiet cabin now belonging to Tesric alone.

Tesric continue to put away his things, hands moving automatically as his mind wandered elsewhere. His fingers brushed against a battery that was resting on the table, and he stopped, taking a moment to hold it up in his palm.

Doubt crept up inside him, the reality of attending a school for mages without any magic, having to rely solely on his wit and intellect. It wasn't really the best circumstance anyone could have.

But the doubt was quickly overtaken by determination, a small smile tugging at his lips as he caressed the battery. Never lose that spark.

"I got this," he whispered to himself, now gripping the battery tighter, before putting it away into his luggage. 

After securing his luggage and hauling the giant thing out of the cabin door. He froze in surprise at what he saw on the airship deck.

The once open and Sunlit deck was now incased in a massive, dark and translucent cloud. It's surface shimmered like liquid glass, but it's texture was more like a heavy fog than anything, it cast the deck into a muted, shaded atmosphere. The air also felt cooler beneath it, as if it was still night time.

"What is this?" he muttered aloud.

"It's a shading spell," Appearing at his side was Quinn who was her usual self. Her gaze fixed on her notebook as well as the darkness cast above, it appears that it was something she studied before. "It's used to control temperature during hot weather and spare our eyes from overly bright mornings."

Tesric tilted his head while staring at the structure, trying to recall if he had ever seen the spell in his life. "Huh. Never seen anything like it in Vespera."

From the other side appeared Arden, who nudged Tesric's shoulder with a grin. "Took you long enough to wake up."

Tesric smirked, turning to Arden "You can blame her for that." He motioned theatrically toward Quinn. "She kept me up with her endless curiosity about my inventions." He then pressed his hand onto his chest, acting as if it was a sincere excuse. "Hardly my fault."

Quinn raised an eyebrow, the humor flying right over her head. "You kept yourself up," she corrected.

Tesric chuckled, "Fair enough." Then he asked in a non-joking tone to Arden."But seriously, last I remember we were all wide awake at the same time, how didn't you oversleep like me?"

Arden shrugged, "Just used to waking up fast when every sound might mean trouble."

Tesric nodded at him, the allusion to Arden's past not lost on him. Then he turned back to Quinn. "What about you then? Don't tell me you have some secret method to waking up I don't know about?"

Quinn adjusted her glasses, "I simply didn't sleep."

"At all?"

"No,"

"Okay, sure."

Arden laughed softly at the exchange of his two friends, as the three began strolling across the deck. They passed by Darian and Eryth, the prince stood straight with royally perfect posture while the farmhand dutifully brushed the prince's fur cape.

 Arden couldn't help but roll his eyes at the scene while they made their way toward the edge of the airship where Kaedra and their pilot, Ingram, stood engaged in what could only be assumed as a lesson on combat techniques.

"So, is this the proper way to swing an axe?" Ingram asked, holding a glowing axe that was made out of pure magical energy. His stance was wide, holding the axe in a overhand position, and his posture careful but still ready to strike.

"Perfect form, actually," Kaedra said approvingly, a grin on her face as she broke her own stance to give him a thumbs up.

"Oh, lovely," Ingram replied, visibly proud of himself. Just as his eyes caught the trio approaching, the magical axe dissolved into thin air with a simple flick of the wrist and the pilot turned to greet them. "Ah, hello, you three. I see you've all made good friends out of each other.

"Most of us, except for Prince Douche over there," Arden qupped, jerking his thumb backward toward Darian, who was currently enjoying a royal massage from Eryth.

Tesric chuckled, "I'm sure we'll warm up to him in due time." He said, trying to be the optimist he had painted himself as since he stepped foot on the airship, though everyone could tell his positivity toward Darian was quite forced.

Quinn, ever the realist, adjusted her glasses and took the analytical approach with her reply. "Factoring in Arden's background and your lack of magic, I'd say the chances of warming up are quite slim."

After her statement, Kaedra suddenly saddled up to Quinn and threw her arm around her shoulder, "Oh, don't be like that!" Kaedra said with a dangerous and yet oddly warm smile. "We're all going to be good buddies, right?"

Quinn swallowed hard. "I'd say the chances of warming up are quite high," she amended quickly.

Tesric snorted with laughter while Arden smirked. Kaedra gave the academic a quick but firm pat on the back before stepping away from her. "That's the spirit!" she said cheerfully, leaning on a magically constructed stool as the airship began to descend.

Ingram stood watching the students with a fond smile on his lips. He seemed to be lost in thought at the view, perhaps reminiscing about his own days at a magic school, maybe even at Pinkrose academy itself. His reverie was swiftly interrupted though, by a sharp magical chime that emanated from the wand attached to his belt.

"Ah, we're here," he announced, snapping back to reality. He pulled the wand from his belt and with practiced ease, completed a wand pattern, before pointing it toward the center of the magical shading around the airship.

The shading spell dissipated almost instantaneously, the warm sun cascading down onto the deck, and the view of the open sky was revealed in all it's glory. Other airships that drifted beside theirs was now visible, their dark clouds of shading vanishing in synchrony, leaving the students breathless.

"What are you waiting for?" Pilot Ingram called out with a booming voice, gesturing the students onboard toward the front railing of the ship with an inviting grin. "The view is all yours!"

Tesric led the students among him to the edge of the deck in a rush, eager to take in the sight of their new home. Quinn paused and muttered about the statistical likelihood of the front railings failing, but was interrupted when Kaedra threw her like a sack of potatoes onto her shoulders, running to follow Tesric.

Arden lingered behind, his focus was on something—no, someone else. Serena stood apart from the crowd on the corner of the deck hidden from view, but now without shading, her shadow writhed around in pain as if searching for any hint of darkness. The expression on her face wasn't pained, more uncomfortable, her hand blocking her eyes from the sun.

From behind her, Arden approached quietly, stretching his cloak out to cast a shade over her. The results were immediate, her shadow stilled it's writhing and curled around the cloak in relief. Serena looked up at him, a soft smile spreading across her face when she saw Arden.

Arden responded with a small, fond, slightly shy smile of his own. Without a word between the two, he guided Serena toward the edge where the others were so she could share in the moment.

The class leaned over the railing in awe, their gazes hooked on the enchanting landscape below them.

First was the forest, an wide expanse of not just green, but an endless variety of tree colors, their treetops stretching to the horizon. The trees swaying gently there were ancient, some older than society itself.

Next was the vast, shimmering lake, the surface so clean and clear even the inhabitants living in it could be seen for the airship. The size of the lake was something else entirely, even from up there it could have been mistaken for for a sea.

Finally, at the center of it all, Pinkrose Academy stood.

The academy was a master piece of magic, modernity, and natural beauty intertwining. The grounds of the academy was an enchanted garden, overflowing with vines and roses that came in every hue imaginable. Red brick pathways snaked through the garden, leading to enormous buildings scattered around the academy that resembled symbols of the various forms of magic.

"Is this real?" Arden whispered.

"Oh It's more than real," Tesric replied.

The airship came to a stop and gently touched down at the Academy's grand entrance. A towering gate that seemed to be filled with ancient power, the intricate carvings of vines and flowers on the rough stone shimmering faintly.

Other airships landed nearby, five of them to be exact, each on their own designated platforms. Soon after, the shimmering conjured steps of Tesric and Arden's airship appeared, leading down to the grounds of the academy. Darian predictably pushed to the front of the class. "Royalty should always go first," he declared, striding down the steps as his cape billowed in the air dramatically.

The rest followed soon after, some trying their best to avoid stepping on his cape, while some couldn't be bothered to even try.

Tesric leaned toward where Arden was, expecting him to throw some sort of jab at Darian, but his fellow Vesperan was focused on someone else. Arden stood slightly apart, his cloak now off his body as he wrapped it around Serena to lessen her discomfort from the sunlight.

Tesric's eyes widened at the two, his lips twisting into a devilish grin. He leaned closer to where his Quinn had been standing, "Is it just me, or are those two—"

Quinn wasn't there.

"Quinn?" Tesric asked, glancing around the place in confusion.

Thankfully, it didn't take particularly long to spot her. She had wandered off a few meters away and was now crouched near a bed of flowers that had been growing in pots along the path. With her notebook in hand, she was entirely entranced by the botanical wonders, her sharp eyes darting between the notebook and the plants, trying her best to identify them.

Tesric watched her for a moment, before glancing over to Arden once again, who was now deep into a chat with Serena using sign, as well as making sure the purple cloak was neatly draped over her.

With no one to converse with, Tesric resigned to a life of solitude and turned his attention towards the towering entrance gates. Marveling at the intricate carvings, the wards at the top surveying the students, and every vine and petal that grew along the mossy surface.

His life of solitude, however, was short-lived. When the unmistakably, heavy and muscular arm of Kaedra striked playfully across his back, nearly making him stumble to the floor.

"See what happens when you only have two close friends?" Her voice boomed from beside him, teasingly gesturing toward his otherwise preoccupied confidants.

Tesric smirked. "And I suppose your solution would be to make more friends by crushing their hands during introductions?"

Kaedra laughed heartily. "Damn straight."

"You're actually serious about that, aren't you?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Kaedra replied, completely sincere.

The chatter of the students was cut through by the sharp voice of Pilot Ingram. "Students, follow me!" He commanded, now descended from the steps of the airship. Gone was the uniform of a pilot, now he wore a crisp, red, formal attire resembling that of a butler's.

Similarly, the pilots of the other airships led their own groups toward the center, each dressed with the same attire. The flow of the six classes of students converging into one point beneath the towering gate.

As Tesric and Arden's group neared Ingram, Darian spun around dramatically, the movement sending his cape dangerously close to slapping the others right in the face. "I know some of you may lack basic decorum," he began, tone dripping with royal arrogance. His gaze drifted toward Eryth, and he gave a warm, but manufactured smile. "Excluding you, of course."

"1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6..."

Darian continued, "This is a time for unity! We must present ourselves as a cohesive and dignified class." He raised his right arm into the air, like he was delivering a speech to his subjects. "Together, we will have to make an unforgettable impression on the headmaster, and if we do—"

"1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6..."

"Will you please stop counting!" Darian snapped, losing his patience as he turned to glare at Quinn in the corner.

Unfazed by the prince's outburst, Quinn looked up from her notebook, the expression on her face as shocked as one with a face as unexpressive as hers could look shocked. "I can't believe I overlooked it."

Arden, who was always good at seeing when someone had a problem on their mind, stepped closer, "Quinn, what's wrong?"

"I assumed it was just a policy change," Quinn said evenly, standing tall and gesturing toward the other five classes gathered around. "Pinkrose has always assigned six students per class. That's how it's been for centuries. But…."

The realization hit the class like a thunder strike. "We're the only class with seven.."