Long shadows were now lingering from the numerous trees surrounding the village, as the sun briefly shared the sky with the moon.
However, Kona and Doran were yet to come out of the room.
"They've been in there for the whole afternoon, dear! Will the Elder manage?"
Just as Eve was whispering to Junas - who'd just come back from the fields – the door finally swung open. Doran, the trusty stick supporting his weight, strolled outside of the room, calmly. His expression looked… enthusiastic?
"Oh! Good evening, Lady Eve! Junas..." Doran nodded towards the man, smiling politely.
"Good evening, Elder. You seem… well, I don't mean to sound rude, but you seem quite satisfied. Perhaps, did you… did you uncover what happened with Kona?"
Eve asked, hopeful.
The old man, without interrupting his stroll towards the door, grinned:
"Well, maybe, I'm not sure yet… We shall see that tomorrow! Who knows what Fate has planned for that young man…"
As Doran quietly left the room, Kona's fair hair peeped outside his room.
The discussion he'd had with Doran… No, with Master Doran… He was now feeling a bit different.
Those simple words the man had pronounced had struck him. The boy didn't understand much about feelings or life, naturally, but that afternoon he could feel that something had changed.
Doran hadn't given him a solution to his pain. He didn't say:
"Ok, well, this is how you feel better. Go on and do it."
He'd told him something different. A vague, simple instruction, that had nothing to do with feeling better, and yet it felt so incredibly fitting.
Please, just move forward… Honor them with your life…
His master had given him a direction.
That night, the boy cried deep tears, but no nightmares haunted his sleep.
But what exactly had Doran told him, you ask? And what did the two of them discuss?
Well, you see, after Doran managed to establish that thin, feeble connection with the boy, the Elder's job truly began.
He had to understand whether Kona was mad, cursed or, well, a sorcerer - although that was quite unlikely.
The book that the Elder had brought along was one of the texts he'd come across as a young explorer, the "Manual of the young sorcerer". Initially, he'd pulled it out just to grab Kona's attention, but then…
As Doran asked more questions about the visions, investigating their nature and how they'd started appearing, the explanations the kid gave him felt so incredibly close to what the contents of the Manual.
It must be a coincidence; it has to be. But what if it isn't… In that case…
The more they talked, the more fuel was added to the spark of adventure inside the old timer's heart.
And slowly, Doran actually started believing that maybe, just maybe, that kid was neither cursed, nor was he mad.
---
The sun of a new day had risen over the forest, and Doran had come back to talk with Kona. Well, talk isn't an accurate term.
During the night, he'd studied the Manual (Manual of the Young Sorcerer) in great detail, and had found out about quite a few interesting things.
Basically, that tome explained in fairly great detail how to become a sorcerer.
According to the book, some special minds are able, through intense and rigorous spiritual training, to develop a sixth sense.
This new acuity allows sorcerers to perceive the "Flow", which - Doran figured this out - it's basically just another form of energy, like heat, momentum or gravity.
Through the manipulation of the Flow, mages could apparently do marvelous things – although Doran was yet to read that section of the book, so for now that'd remain a mystery.
Out of all these hardly believable ideas, there were two things that had caught the Elder's attention.
Firstly, the book mentioned another way to acquire the sixth sense: it stated that exposure to extreme Flow fluctuations could induct its birth as a natural reaction. However, this was quite rare: most of time, it caused death.
This had left Doran wondering… could this be tied to what happened in the ruins?
In any case, I better not mention this. I wouldn't want to stir up bad memories.
The second eye-catching thing was, instead, a practical method to determine weather or not a person can manipulate the Flow.
In other words, Doran had found a way to prove the existence of magic.
The man with the stick cautiously opened the door:
"Good morning, Eve. I have come to disturb you again, it seems."
"Oh, Doran, you couldn't possibly disturb me!"
The limping man slowly approached Kona's room, and after swinging it open, declared with a grand voice:
"Young man! Are you ready yet? We're going out today!"
Kona turned his head, his right cheek sinking in the pillow. Despite the good impression Doran had left on him, Kona wasn't feeling that much better.
Ok… I have to… I have to keep moving.
---
"Alright, student. We have reached our destination. Who thought such a village could host this kind of magnificent location!"
Following the sluggish pace of the limping Elder, the two of them had slowly approached an isolated corner of the village, just inside its perimeter. There, a little waterfall cascaded into a narrow stream, which twisted amongst the sparse trees, concealed by mossy rocks.
"Look! If you succeed today, this place will become your training ground! Like it?"
Does this old man know that I've lived in this village since I was born...?
"Succeed…? There's a test?"
"Ah! I'm glad you asked. Yes, there is a test."
Doran sat down on one of the rocks surrounding the river, staring right into Kona's eyes.
"Sit down, boy. Before we start, I need to explain a few things."
Confused, but kind of curious, the white-haired kid sat on one of the rocks on the other side of the stream.
"Very well, where can I start from… Ah! Yes! Listen up. Firstly, yesterday we've established that the chances that you're mad are quite low. Now, from what I've read on the Manual, it seems that those twisty spirals that you see are, basically, some kind of energy."
Kona slightly tilted his head:
"Energy?"
"Yes, energy. Food gives you energy, and wood is burnt for heat, which is still energy. Do you understand, son?"
"I think so, master. Energy is like a hot pan, right?"
"Well, yes, kind of. Now, apparently, sorcerers are able to manipulate this energy, and do all sorts of things with it."
Kona's eyes widened slightly:
"Fireballs, Magic Darts, Freezing Arrows! Spells!"
Doran smirked. It was nice to see that gloomy kid slightly excited, for once.
"Your knowledge of ancient legends is quite remarkable, kid. Yes, those things. However, today we won't be doing any of that."
Clearing his throat, the Elder continued.
"The exercise that you'll perform is the following. Firstly, you'll have to gather in your mind a memory, a strong memory. It doesn't matter if it's joyful or miserable, but it must recall powerful emotions. You've got that?"
Kona, although slightly disappointed by the lack of fireballs, nodded.
"Very well, then. Subsequently, you must concentrate and try to visualize the remembrance in your head. Simple, right?"
Kona titled his head to the right:
"So, I have to think really hard on a bad memory, right?"
Doran let out a subtle giggle:
"Yes, that's another way to put it. Want to give it a try?"
The boy nodded, and adjusted his position on the rock. Then, closing his eyes, he tried to concentrate. The sound of the waterfall, the stream bumping off of the rocks, the birds chirping. Gradually, all these sounds faded into the deep black of his mind.
What memory would he choose?
Oh, that might work.
As his breathing rate began to decrease, an image started to form inside his brain. A memory of him and his father. That time, when Kona was yet to celebrate his ninth birthday, Junas had brought him along to Varelan: his first great adventure.
The white-haired boy tried his best, concentrating as much as he'd ever done in his life. However, even after a vivid depiction of that memory, nothing had happened.
"Master… I… I can't do it."
"Son, did you even try? It's been just ten minutes. The book says that this can take hours! Come on, try your best. I'm sure that you can do it!"
Naturally, Doran wasn't sure in the slightest.
Kona sank into the black sea of his mind once again.
Maybe I chose the wrong memory. Perhaps, I should try something… something sad. Something extremely sad.
Given his recent mental state, he didn't really fancy the idea of diving deep into his worst memories, but…
This is my step. This is how you move forward, Kona!
The boy explored all of his possibilities. That time he got lost in the woods, that time he said a bad word to his mother…
None of this is going to work. Maybe…
Slowly, the memory of what his father told him began to arise:
"Your friends, son… Unfortunately, they aren't here anymore. I'm so sorry, dear…"
No. I can't. I can't do this.
Just then, another picture, which had gone lost in that deep black sea, gradually surfaced. It didn't seem like anything special to Kona: it was just a picture, a frame, filled by a blinding white light. Nothing more than that.
Wait… This… This is intense. How can it be? It's just light…
Kona began visualizing it, and that bright light slowly lit the darkness in his mind.
Then, at once, he felt it.
As the boy opened his eyes, a blinding torrent of light erupted.
Doran grinned.
There it is, Kona. This is your first step.