The corridors of Alfheim Academy stretched like golden arteries through a heart of magic and history. Tall arched windows filtered the sunlight into flowing rivers of color, violets, blues, greens and the marble beneath Rain's boots glimmered with etched runes and old names. Statues of long-dead warriors lined the hall like silent judges.
He walked alone.
His staff clicked softly against the floor, but each echo only reminded him how hollow he felt.
"What am I doing here?" the thought came, not loud but persistent.
Back in Midgard, he had fought to survive. He had bled and earned every inch of skill. But here… here were gods in training, Nobles! Heirs! Monsters like Tev who could forge artifacts with a glance, or prodigies like Grey who wielded infinite Uud like it was breathing.
Rain clenched his jaw.
The sleeve of his uniform brushed against the edge of his armor underneath...Enoch's gift. A piece of home. Of real work. But even that felt distant now. He had come so far, yet the world had only grown larger, colder, and more impossible.
"You don't belong here."
The chilling whisper echoed through his mind, old and familiar. The voice of his self-doubt personified. He didn't even need to imagine anyone saying it. He said it to himself often enough almost like a split persona.
He reached a balcony overlooking the sprawling academy grounds. Below, students passed like threads in a grand tapestry, robes fluttering, voices laughing, powers flaring in practice courts.
He gripped the stone ledge and stared out, the wind catching his silver hair.
"They don't know what it's like," he thought bitterly. "To be from nowhere. To carry nothing but pain."
He closed his eyes.
Somewhere deep in him, that flicker of Authority still unborn, stirred. Not in brilliance! Not in fire! But like a spark in old stone. The voice of doubt, the dreams he didn't understand, the feeling of being watched by fate itself.
Maybe he was out of place. Maybe he didn't belong here.
But maybe that's exactly why he had come.
Rain turned the corridor, his thoughts a tempest of insecurity and doubt. Around him, the golden walls of the academy blurred like a dream he no longer felt part of. Every step echoed hollow. Every memory of the forge, of the classroom, of Tev's effortless display was a weight pressing on his shoulders.
Then he collided with something soft and human
Books clattered against the floor. A gasp. A flurry of parchment and robes. Rain stumbled back instinctively.
"I-I'm so sorry!" came the flustered voice.
She was already crouched down, scrambling to pick up the scattered scrolls and tomes. She looked up...and froze.
So did Rain.
There she was. Not dressed in the finely-tailored uniforms of the Royal Class but in the simple garments of the common class student. A modest blue cloak with a silver clasp. Her glasses were slightly crooked from the fall, but nothing could dim the radiance of her features.
Her golden hair caught the light like woven threads of starlight. Her eyes, purely blue widened with awe… and something else. Recognition?
Rain stared, mouth half-open. Something ancient moved in the depths of his soul. A memory without shape. A warmth without name.
"I was deep in thought," he murmured as he bent down, their hands brushing over the same book. "Forgive me… I'm Rain. And you are?"
She was still staring at him, not in fear now, but awe. Her lips parted slightly.
That glow…
She had never seen a glow like his before. His Uud was not merely radiant...it sang. Like a hymn from the heavens. Not even the Royal Class students shimmered like that. There was something otherworldly about it, something she'd only ever read of in myth. It danced across his skin in unseen waves. It moved through his breath like light through morning mist.
"Catharine! my name is Catharine."
An awkward silence swept up the two and this built up Catharine's anxiety. She didn't realize what was happening until it was too late.
Her body flickered.
And then it shifted.
Unbidden, her form reverted into her Lumin state, a translucent being of woven light and mist. Her books fell through her arms as they became intangible. Her cheeks flushed crimson in horror and disappointment.
"No no no.....what did I do?!"
She hadn't vanished. She was still right there...invisible now to his sight. Her heart sank as he looked around confused, assuming she had run away.
Rain sighed in surprise as the girl vanished before his eyes, brushing off his robes. "Catherine," he said quietly, still tasting her name on his lips. "Catherine…"
He stepped forward.
And walked right through her.
Catherine shivered. The raw, golden Uud clung to him like the warmth of a sunbeam. As he passed through her, she felt it intimately, its harmony, its pain, its beauty.
He smells like spring… and sorrow…
Her heart beat faster. Embarrassment scorched her insides. She had ruined everything. And yet… she was still there, watching him walk away.
Watching the boy with Uud of the fabled Gods disappear down the hallway, utterly unaware of the effect he had left behind in her soul.
Rain stepped into the Arcane Theory and Authority Dynamics class, his mind still swirling from the encounter in the corridor. But the moment he entered, his face twisted, not in confusion or awe, but pure, simmering irritation.
There they were.
Grey and Tev, side by side as always, seated like they owned the heavens and everything beneath. Tev leaned back in his seat, arms crossed casually, a knowing glint in his deep brown eyes. Grey had one leg propped on the side of his ornate desk, twirling a white quill lazily with his fingers.
And both of them had those damned grins.
Rain narrowed his eyes, gripping the strap of his satchel like it was a weapon.
"Seriously?" he muttered under his breath, "More classes? With them?"
He dropped into the nearest seat with a frustrated exhale, trying to ignore the way his presence immediately shifted the atmosphere. A few other students glanced at him, then back to the trio, the Starbound duo, some whispered, not just top of the class, but top of the academy.
Before Rain could settle, Grey leaned in just a touch. His silver colored eyes gleamed unnaturally, reflecting more than just light. With his White Uud, his infinite Uud, he could see what most could not. His eyes, it was said, carried the gift of perfect sight: magical, biological, emotional, and even spiritual.
He peered at Rain closely, the grin fading just a little.
"You walked through a Lumin," Grey said calmly.
Rain blinked.
"...What?"
Grey tilted his head, studying the faint gold traces dancing in the ether around Rain's arm, remnants of a Lumin's touch. To most, it would have faded into nothing, but not to Grey. He could see the residual thread of Uud, delicate and lingering like a scent after rain.
"It's still on you," Grey murmured, voice curious now. "A soft trace. Barely clinging. Like she didn't want to let go."
Rain looked at his hand, confused.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh, but you do," Tev chimed in smoothly, folding his arms behind his head with a sleepy smirk. "I saw the look on your face when you walked in. Boy's been hit with a spirit-smitten stare."
"I bumped into someone in the corridor. That's it."
Grey smiled again, but this time, more gently. Not mocking.
"She wasn't someone," he said. "She was something. Lumin kind. They're not meant to phase by accident unless they're overwhelmed."
Rain frowned, his earlier irritation now melting into troubled confusion. He looked down at his hands again.
"Why would she...?"
Tev chuckled softly, leaning forward now, elbows on knees. "Maybe she saw what you are."
"Maybe," Grey added, "She definitely did!"
Their words echoed in his mind.
Rain didn't speak again, not because he didn't want to, but because something in his soul was stirring again. A name.
Catharine!
The golden-haired girl with sapphire eyes. The scent of spring and sorrow. And a Uud… like a distant lullaby he couldn't forget.
The door slid shut and the hum of student chatter died at once. Professor Sarbas Tenilion stepped forward, robes trailing like gathering storm‑clouds, his silver hair tucked back from a face sharper than any blade. He drew a rune‑etched staff in one hand and tapped it twice on the floor. A ring of soft blue light spread out, bathing every desk in the classroom.
"Good." His voice, though quiet, carried the weight of command. "You've learned to bend Uud. Now we turn to its partner in power...Authority! Today's lecture is your foundational master class on the nature, mechanics, and application of Authority."
The Basics of Authority:
1. What Is Authority?
Definition: The focused will that shapes raw Uud into lasting effects. If Uud is the clay, Authority is the sculptor's intent.
Quantum Lock: Uud and Authority exist as two "locked" forces, one supplies energy, the other provides form and permanence.
Professor's Demonstration: He raised his staff, and a sphere of pure blue energy hovered above the staff‑tip. "This is Uud alone, bright, raw, unstable. "With a gentle nod, the sphere shrank, its edges sharpening into a perfect translucent cube. "That shaping was Authority."
2.The Spectrum of Authority
Black Authority: Nascent will. Quick to flare, hard to control. Seen in novices, powerful in bursts but prone to collapse.
Gold Authority: Mature focus. Balanced and reliable. The hallmark of seasoned practitioners (like Princess Eleanor and Dregr).
White Authority: Mastery incarnate. Rare and potent tools for those who've fused their soul with Uud (Ceaser, Bartolomeu).
Visual Aid: Three glyphs appeared on the wall, one in deep onyx, one in burnished gold, one in gleaming white each pulsing in turn.
3.Awakening Authority
Self‑Actualization: In Alfheim, elves wait decades (often forty years) to awaken true Authority. It emerges when one's soul aligns with intent.
Emotional Clarity: Key moments of crisis or revelation can fracture old patterns, allowing Authority to pierce through.
Exercise: Close your eyes and recall a moment of pure conviction. Feel its pulse in your chest. That is the seed of Authority. For Rain it was the moment Virmethorn stood before him.
4. Mechanics of Channeling
Gathering Will: Focus on a single, clear intent (e.g., "Shield my allies").
Anchoring to Uud: Draw raw Uud into your body, feel it like water filling a vessel.
Shaping the Flow: Use your will to clamp, sculpt, or expand that energy.
Release & Sustain: Let the shaped energy flow through the world, Authority holds its form where raw Uud would dissipate.
In‑Class Trial:
A student summoned a gust of wind (raw Uud).
Sarbas guided them to focus: "Now will it to form a barrier." The wind spiraled into a translucent dome, then held firm.
5. Common Applications
Barriers & Shields (combat defense)
Rune Construction (binding long‑term enchantments)
Realm Shaping (large‑scale, lasts until authority wanes)
Enhanced Blades (embedding Uud into steel, as Rain struggled with)
"Without Authority," Sarbas intoned, "your power is fugitive, bright, but ephemeral. Master this art, and even raw Uud becomes your servant."
As the lecture ended, Sarbas surveyed the class. "Tomorrow, we practice. You will each attempt a simple barrier. Remember: Uud is the metal and Authority is the blacksmith"
Rain sat forward, heart pounding. He knew the challenge ahead, molding his untamed will into focused form. But for the first time since the duels and the dreams of Ymir's voice, he felt a spark of clarity ignite in him.
And he was ready to begin.
As the glow of Professor Sarbas' staff dimmed and the master class drew to a close, the silence in the room stretched, not from reverence, but from a collective, muted sigh. Dozens of eyes slowly turned toward one figure seated at the far right of the first row.
Rain.
A few students tapped their quills in frustration. Some glanced at each other with rolled eyes or impatient frowns. They had all known this. Authority 101 was behind most of them before their eleventh birthday. This wasn't the Royal Class they were promised. This was remedial magic.
But none of them said a word.
Because Sarbas was still there. And so were Tev and Grey, who both sat calm and curious, eyes fixed on Rain.
One student 'Dregr Endramalch' a boy with silver eyes and braided hair, muttered under his breath, "What's next? 'How to summon sparks'?"
Rain heard it. He lowered his gaze. His hands curled into fists beneath the desk.
But just then, a voice whispered beside him.
"...It helped," Tev said, not looking at Rain, but speaking clearly enough for nearby students to hear. "I thought I understood Authority. But I never heard it like that."
Rain turned slightly, surprised. Then Grey added with a smirk, "It reminded me why my control is so perfect. A lovely refresher. Besides, any class the Princess skips is doomed to be boring unless someone like you stirs things up."
A few chuckles rippled through the back rows.
Sarbas finally spoke, just as the tension began to ease.
"You may think you've learned all this before," he said, glancing at each of them in turn, "but those of you who truly understand Authority know it's not knowledge, but familiarity, that reveals its true nature. Every return to the foundation is a step toward mastery."
That silenced the whispers.
He continued, folding his arms behind his back. "And for those of you who are wondering....yes! The Princess will not be attending our day classes. She receives private instruction, by royal decree. But her tests and exams shall be graded identically to yours."
He didn't say her name. He didn't need to.
Every head imagined the same glimmering figure: Eleanor, the heir of the Kingdom of Light. A presence so potent her Uud could silence entire lecture halls. The fact that she'd be tested like the rest of them, but trained apart, was both unfair and awe-inspiring.
Rain looked down again, thoughts drifting.
"Foundations," he whispered to himself, remembering Enoch's hands guiding his grip on a hammer. The crackling resistance when he tried to inlay his Uud into steel. That was before he even knew the meaning of Authority.
Now… he knew.