The first week with the doors open was eventful, to say the least. It seems that each flock had made it their goal to expand the island exponentially before classes started back up.
The wrens were the first to claim their settlement, building a small campsite near a hillside on the largest of the four beaches. The camp itself was crudely built with natural elements the boys found along the beach.
The rest of their time was spent examining the wildlife within the vale and the separate plants growing along the islands. The falcons found their area shortly after the wrens did. The group of pudgy boys had made quick work of one of the spires.
All of them individually began working on the same longe stone spike. One group of them worked on widening the base of the spire, while another carved holes and arches along the surface. The structure began to take the shape of a miniature version of the tower they grew up in.
The construction was far from as perfect as the architect's work, but it was noticeably advanced. The small tower slowly began taking shape after their third day of work, and by the fourth, they had all relocated inside where they continued working on something else.
The architect seemed to take great interest in the falcon's tower, as he had been seen visiting it numerous times during its construction. The ravens were the next group to settle on the islands. The small flock had made its way to the furthest place they could.
They had set up camp near a cave entrance along a cliffside. The cliff itself was large enough for the eighteen boys to stack comfortably. Tents weren't necessary because they had simply filtered into the cave during cold or bad weather.
Again, nobody else was too sure what they had begun working on, but Aldric was slightly curious. He'd watch as the shrouded flock filled the cave, and he'd raise his brow, but put very little effort into knowing what they were doing.
Harden and Aldric hadn't decided what their outside time would be spent doing. They'd spent four days outside and were no closer to figuring it out. That didn't stop them from experimenting in their free time.
While Harden found himself sketching runes that he'd tried creating in his notebook, he'd take pieces of the runes he'd learned in class and try switching out their elements, trying to create new runes.
Aside from a few of them puffing, and one of them creating a very hot glowing red orb, none of them worked. Aldric, on the other hand, hadn't stopped practicing since classes halted. Even there, as he lay in the warm sand with his fingers covered by its grains, he was cycling his life force and restoring the minimal amounts of energy he'd used.
It wasn't a very effective training session, but it would help to improve his automatic rejeuvenation. Aside from constantly recycling his energy, Aldric had also continued working with the craftsman's rune. He'd draw it randomly around the island in the sand, and create varying-sized statues, shrubs, and even a few sporadically placed coat racks.
He'd found humor in this activity, placing differing-sized coat racks, stone mannequins, and a few mud mushrooms. Each time he felt a portion of his energy drain, it would quickly refill within him. He felt a cold rush down his back every time he replenished his energy.It wasn't a soothing feeling, but Aldric found a sense of comfort in it.
Being the most advanced flock, Aldric didn't see a point in rushing through menial tasks like the other boys. He knew that if he and Harden were going to expand the island, they'd need to do it in a way that exceeded the other flocks.
They didn't need to build a duplicate tower with secrets inside. Nor did they need to study plants, or live in a cave. They needed to go beyond their current level. He bounced ideas around his young mind, searching for anything that would maintain their leading position.
Then it hit him. He knew the perfect addition to the island that would surely keep the phoenix flock at the head of the aviary. A large smile widened across his face, and he sat up in the sand.
"What about a window?" He asked, glancing toward the confused Harden.
"A window? What do you mean?" Harden asked, also straightening up in the sand.
"Think about it," Aldric explained, gesturing to the giant circling storm. "The only thing we don't have in here is out there."
"Yeah, we aren't allowed to go out there," Harden emphasized, his eyes looking slightly worried.
"Exactly, we can't go out, but why can't we see?" Harden thought for a moment, never breaking eye contact with Aldric.
"What did you have in mind?" He asked. The smirk grew into a large grin as Aldric laid out his plan. Harden listened intently as his friend explained his window. The plan itself sounded straightforward, but he couldn't help but feel nervous.
If they were to do this, would it be considered breaking the rules? Even more than that, what would happen if they got too close to the storm? The answers were far and few between, but the idea was a sound one. Harden contemplated as Aldric finished explaining, and then nodded hesitantly.
"Wonderful, let's go," Aldric said, excitedly jumping to his feet. He stood, gazing around the islands as the other boys scattered across the land. His eyes landed on the shallow of the ocean's mouth in front of him. The water extended out into a drop-off, and all the way out to the wall of storm clouds.
There wasn't a boat or any other visible way to cross to the wall, and probably for good reason. However, that didn't stop Aldric's idea; it simply put it on hold.
"We've got to get out there," he explained, pointing out into the open water.
"How do you expect us to do that?" Harden wondered. Aldric didn't have the answer at that moment. Truthfully, he hadn't thought that far ahead, and he didn't know how to swim. He could only stare and think while the waves crashed onto his bare feet.
When he looked down, he noticed the mud between his toes had felt more secure than its sandy counterpart. He wiggled his toes slightly, jamming his entire foot into the wetness before trying to pry it out. He felt himself get stuck under the weight of the mud as he pulled gently.
When he added more pressure, he felt the surface around his ankle begin to crack. Then, when he pulled firmly, his foot breached and ripped out of the wave. Quickly, as the tide retreated, Aldric dropped to his knees and drew two quarter-sized craftsmen runes side by side.
Harden gazed at him confusedly as he began pouring energy into the small markings. Two puffs of smoke happened one after the other, and the marks began to warp. Before their eyes, the drawn mark had begun to stretch into the water and toward the wall of storm clouds.
They disappeared under the water, but the red glow was still visible from the surface. Aldric watched as the hint of red glow rushed across the water and slammed into the clouds. The world was quiet for a moment as the two boys held their breath.
Then, like a poorly maintained elevator, two thin sheets of solidified mud rose, their faces placed together. The thin wall rose a few feet above the surface of the water before stopping. Then, like the walls of a trash compactor, the thin sheets of mud began to split away from each other.
The boys watched as the mud forced the two halves of the ocean apart. Their eyes widened in amazement as the muddy path in front of them cleared. Before long, the path in front of them was a trail of deep mud and dying fish. Their hearts raced, and their eyes widened. They were ready to approach the storm.