Chapter 16
960 Words
The Academy’s library was magnificent. I had never seen so many books in one place. In my world, the internet had erased the need for libraries, but I always preferred reading hardcovers. So my first impression was as if I’d stepped into my own private heaven.
“What a beauty,” I breathed in awe.
There was no librarian here. Instead, an odd device hovered near the entrance — something like a tablet. When I placed my right hand on its surface, glowing words appeared out of thin air, and a disembodied voice spoke them aloud.
“Welcome, Ariel from the House of Water. What is the purpose of your visit to the library?”
“We were assigned an essay for Fundamentals of Magic. I need to learn more about my element — and refresh my memory on the last hundred years.”
“Very well,” the device replied. “Searching.”
A few moments later, the words materialized again.
“Complete. Your first book is on shelf 1162, in Sector Three. History of the World, volume seventeen, is on shelf 3256, Sector Six.”
“Thank you,” I said to no one in particular and headed off in search of the books.
The ancient library held at least several million volumes.
Sector Three was along the way. As far as I could tell, this entire section was dedicated to Water magic — everything related to the element.
I grabbed several books, then went looking for the history section. Sector Six was deeper inside. Along the path, between rows of shelves, were reading tables and, here and there, comfortable couches and armchairs. It was the perfect reading atmosphere. Oddly, I seemed to be the only person in the library.
Sector Five caught my attention too — it held books about the Fifth Element and the magic of mental refinement.
Sector Six contained the histories of this world. While I searched for volume seventeen, titles like Dragon Legends and The Epic of the Four Elements kept catching my eye.
Learning what had happened in the past century was a priority, but if I wanted to survive in this world, I needed to start with the basics. Thank the gods I knew speed-reading. Otherwise I’d have to move in here for the next few years. Although, given Eleanor the viper and Noah the jerk outside these walls, that didn’t sound like the worst fate.
Once I finally found volume seventeen, I took a few more books for good measure, then settled into the comfiest chair I could find and began reading about events from a hundred years ago.
“Aria, how do I even figure out the dating system here? What year do we need?” I asked my imaginary dragon.
“I won’t get into details yet,” she replied, “but here years are counted by cycles. Each cycle has an animal patron. Each animal belongs to an element. The Monkey belongs to Fire—this is the sixty-eighth Year of the Monkey, in the Cycle of Iron.”
“Kind of like the Chinese zodiac in my world,” I said.
“Similar,” Aria agreed. “But not the same. I arrived in your world during the Fortieth Year of the Silver Tiger.”
I flipped through the pages until a section caught my eye.
“The Rebellion of the Silver Tiger”
After Lea Arn’s disappearance, the House of Air rose in revolt, demanding the return of the heir to the Great House of Air and the newly chosen Supreme.
All the Air dragons soared into the sky, beating their mighty wings and creating a hurricane of unprecedented strength, lifting water and earth alike into the air.
The House of Air commanded all dragons to obey their Supreme’s will.
Dragons of Water and Earth also took to the sky, throwing off the riders they had once loyally served.
A colossal storm tore across the world, destroying everything in its path. For the first time in thousands of years, dragons did not stand with humans — they towered against them. Betrayers of the elements, violators of worldly law, were no longer worthy of their divine power.
By dawn, the dragon storm faded. In the morning light, the previous Supreme, the Fire dragon Boniface, returned with Lea Arn’s dead body.
What had truly happened on Mount Isaac, no one knew.
After returning the Supreme’s body to the House of Air, Boniface ascended into the sky with a heart-shattering roar — and then unleashed an all-consuming flame, erasing the Great House of Air forever.
The dragons left the world, leaving behind only three eggs — due to hatch in a hundred years—to serve the new Supreme, one worthy of saving this decaying world.
“Rebuilding and Reordering the World”
The world destroyed by the dragons and Boniface was rebuilt jointly by the Houses of Earth and Water. For five years, people tried to restore their former greatness. Without dragon patronage, magic resisted them. The House of Fire stood aside, only observing.
Once the world was rebuilt, people realized that until the dragons returned and chose a new Supreme, the old traditions had to continue.
The House of Earth was chosen as the new ruling House. Sylvester Vars, a mage of Earth, became the Supreme ruler. A year later, he rebuilt the Academy of Elements, where heirs of the Great Houses — Fire, Water, and Earth — could train in elemental magic and strengthen ties between their Houses. The Academy accepted students only from the three Great Houses. Hope for an Air heir faded when Boniface disappeared into the unknown in pursuit of the dragons.
The book continued with various events that shaped elemental society.
- Writer
