The sun set when the four reached Halmar, bathing the town in a shade of red. It was encased in a wooden palisade, with fields of wheat and produce outside. The few shops started to close while farmers and workers started to return home and the nightlife of the town grew awake, light shining out of bars and taverns with loud hubbub.

The four walked quietly into town. While some noticed the strangers, most didn’t care as it was a normal occurrence to see some wanderers around these parts. Ignoring them was the easiest way for them. While the three talked to each other Aiden followed them, lost in thought about what Al said.

“Seems like they didn’t hear the news yet.” Durak looked at the denizens drinking loudly at the coming of night.

“Doesn’t seem like it. Durak, take Aiden and Brute and get us some room at an inn. I’ll look for a branch of the guild and explain what happened.”

“Sure thing, women, after I find something, I’ll send Brute to tell you.”

Al took off, leaving the three of them to search for an inn. After asking a few villagers they were standing in front of a big three-story house. Loud noise came from the first floor, a tavern for guests and others. Beside the door hung a sign on which a bee over a honeycomb was drawn. As the door opened a bell chimed out inside the room, noticing the workers of the arrival of new guest.

“Welcome to the Honey-side inn.”

A young voice called out over the commotion. Durak looked around, finding the owner of the voice in a young waitress, not even grown-up. He made his way to the bar-counter where an old man stood, grey streaks in his brown hair. He polished a glass when he heard the footsteps, looking up at the newcomers.

“Three beds for the night?” The man asked with a husky voice, still polishing the glass.

“Four, and meals for tonight and tomorrow morning.”

“Then it’s one silver and 20 copper.”

“Come on, at least make it one silver only.”

“Then try finding something else. This is the only inn in town.”

“Damn.” Durak cursed. He took his purse, taking our two silver coins. “Give us some of your booze too and tell this fellow here the way to the guild.” After leaving the coins on the counter he turned around and walked to an empty table. “Hey kid, you want to be left behind?”

At Durak’s shout Aiden set into motion following him to the table. A moment later the waitress showed up.

“Hi there, guys! Welcome to our inn. Want some food and drinks? We’ve got some fresh meat pie today, also some early summer vegetable.”

“Meat pie sounds great. Also a few pieces of meat and some greens. Another two are coming. As for the boy…” Durak stopped looking at the boy.

Thinking Durak wanted him to choose on his own Aiden opened his mouth as Durak continued, making him stop in his movement.

“Do you have some kind of soup? A piece of bread.”

She looked at Aiden, sitting there in ragged clothes. “We could make a milk soup.”

“Thanks lad. And bring us three cups of some ale.”

“Sure thing!” The waitress smiled and walked away.

“You know I could choose for myself.”

“Just look at you kid. Just skin and bones. And you haven’t eaten anything since yesterday. If we feed you something firm your stomachs going to churn.”

After hearing Durak Aiden turned silent. Shortly afterwards Brute came back with Al in tow. As they sat down Al began to talk.

“Guilds decided to send someone to look at the aftermath. Didn’t believe the fall of Ramur so easily. At least sent some people to look out for the nights and when they see the town, they’ll inform the other towns nearby.”

“Stupid blockheads. They think this is some joke or what? Fuck.”

“By tomorrow evening we should see better results. If they sent someone with a fast horse, they should hear about it by midday.”

In midst of their discussion the waitress returned, bringing with her three cups of cold ale and a cup of water.

“Here you are. You three mercenaries? What’s up with the kid?”

“Taking care of him for now.”

“I see.” A hint of sadness flashed over her face before her smile returned. “Foods coming right up, will be right back.” She walked away, disappearing behind a door near the counter.

“If we’re already on the topic, what are we gonna do with him.” Brute asked. He gave the boy a look over. “Would probably better to leave him at an orphanage, don’t think he’s gonna last a week with his body.”

“Even if we left him it’s probably going to be dangerous near here too, given how Ramur ended up.”

“Boy, what’s your take on this?” Brute clapped the boy on the back, making him choke at his drink. The water went down the wrong throat making him a coughing mess. When he calmed down the food came, diverting their attention from the previous discussion.

The table filled with food enough for six grown man. A whole piping hot pie came out for Durak, while the plate for Brute contained a heap of chunks of meat and some side dishes. Opposed to their fleshy dishes Al’s food was a salad. Green lettuce, garnished with pieces of vegetable and oil filled a bowl, big enough to adjust to the needs of a mercenary. But as quickly as it appeared it soon disappeared into the stomachs of the mercenary. Meanwhile Aiden nibbled on his soup, his stomach turning from the first food after one and a half day. In silence he sat there and thought about what he should do.

After the last bit of his soup was gone, he turned his head up to look at the other three.

“Let me come with you.” His face turned stoic as he made his decision. “I want to become a mercenary. I feel like this is something I have to do.”

The three looked at him. The boy seemed feeble, as if a gust of wind were enough to break him, but his eyes were resolute.

“You know that you’re in for some harsh times boy?” Brute asked. “You could lose your life anytime in this kind of work.”

“It’s okay, I won’t lose.”

Brute burst out in laughter at the boy’s answer. “Hahaha, oh boy, you’ll lose, and you’ll be beaten pretty often before you’re ready to take on even a basic job.”

Al sighed at the exclamation of Brute. “Don’t scare the kid before we even begin idiot. Then we should first explain some things to you. What do you know about fighting or magic Aiden?”

“I didn’t fight much before but could escape from most thugs in the slums. As for magic…” He paused a moment, thinking about the lessons at school. Why did I even go to school in the first place? As he lost himself in his thoughts Durak cleared his throat, returning his attention to the three.

“If you don’t know anything just say it.”

“No. It’s hard to awaken but said to be a changing point in life.” Aiden finally said, making Durak weary.

“Not wrong, but definitely not enough.” He exhaled, before starting a long monologue. “We can pass the point about awakening, given that you already are. Afterwards the magic manifest as these spots on your chest.” He poked Aiden at one spot, showing him his mark. “When your magic grows so do your spots as they become more and more before finally giving way to a constellation reflected in the sky. This is the last stage where one becomes a master like your old man Sam.”

“Wait. How could Sam have been a master. If he’d been one, he wouldn’t have to live in the Slum.”

“I don’t fathom to believe I know the thoughts of a master but if he was there it should have been with a purpose. But we are drifting off topic kid.

While the first spot, or better said your first power, only shows the general direction of your magic more powers are a hint to the true nature of your constellation. Each of your powers needs mana to use while your mana grows with your progress at your constellation.

With us three as the example we have a mage and two magic warriors. On the one hand I compel the earth to do my bidding as one power allows me to form it as I want, with bigger changes taking more time and mana. Otherwise I can quickly shoot spears made of stone. These are bound in their form, except for the size, and far quicker to use than the former one. As I use the element of my constellation directly, I am called a mage.

Magic warriors on the other hand use their constellation to empower themselves and their weapons. However, it doesn’t mean that their magic is only bound to their weapon, seeing how Al can make arrows out of wind or Brutes fire. But opposed to mages these powers are very limited.

About the powers themselves each person should have an innate grasp of them when they emerge. Your first power should be some kind of regeneration seeing how you healed all those wounds over your body. As for the second…” Durak stopped in thought, staring at the boys second mark. “How about you try to guess yourself. Try to focus yourself. You should feel the magic inside you.”

Listening to Durak Aiden closed his eyes, trying his best to suppress the noise of the tavern in his mind and focus on the changes in his body. Scars riddled his body after the last night and his bones creaked like a dry branch. In his chest he felt a sphere warming his insides. He reached out to it as it began to stretch itself, touching his damaged bones, heating them up as if to burn only to cool down again, fading with the pain. This should be the regenerative power.

He started to search again, leaving the power to roam free in his body and heal the rest of the wounds. Then he found another sphere, next to the other one. This one cold and rigid, unmoving and not responding to his thought. He focused harder, peering into the depts of this sphere.

As it seemingly turned bigger and bigger Aiden started to question this power. Soon it turned into its own world, showing him a small seedling inside a harsh desert, lashed at by scorching wind but unrelenting trying to grow bigger and bigger. He watched it but didn’t interfere unsure if he should help the tree grow or raise the wind to burn it down.

While the first power reached out on its own this second power left him wondering. Unsure what to do he left the sphere raising his awareness back to his body. He opened his eyes seeing the other three staring at him.

“Is something wrong?” Worry tinted his voice as the three looked at him.

This kid is exceptional. One shouldn’t be able to use one’s powers so quickly after learning it for the first time. “Look at your body.”

Aiden looked down, seeing how the scars over his body faded one after another, leaving behind the biggest one where the sword pierced his body. Afterwards his power went on to fill his malnourished body with strength, making small changes in the boy’s physic. Slowly Aiden’s body heated up while his vision started to blur.

His head started to spin as he slowly lost consciousness. Seeing the boy fall over Brute reached out, stopping him from falling on the floor.

Durak reached out, feeling the heat of the boy. “He’s fine, just overused his magic. Hey owner!” He shouted across the room to the man at the bar. “The rooms ready?”

Instead of answering the man grabbed something and gave it to the waitress. She ran over giving them two keys.

“The rooms are at the second floor, second and third door on the right.”

Brute took one key, threw the boy over his shoulder and walked up the stairs.

“Well that’s solves the problem of who shares a room.”

“Don’t think of doing anything strange.” Al snickered, playfully shielding her feminine parts.

“As if I would want an elf.” Brute exclaimed. “A real woman got to have a beard.”