Sunlight streamed through the living room windows, adding a soft warmth to the wooden floor.
Ryan sat on a small rug, his black hair slightly covering his forehead, his blue eyes silently surveying the room.
The mother placed a cup of tea in front of him, while Ari sat beside him, trying to get his attention with a small toy.
Then there was a soft knock at the door.
Liara went to open the door and saw a familiar face. She called out excitedly,
"Astria"
Astria. replied
"Liara"
The two hugged. They hadn't seen each other since graduation, four years ago.
"I was surprised when you asked meTo teach your little brother,"
Liara chuckled softly.
"Haha, I knew you were in the area, so I wanted to ask a favor."
Astria laughed.
"Haha, maybe I should ask for something in return."
Liara asked Astria to come in.
"Come in."
Astria greeted their mother first, then their father, and then looked towards Ryan.
Astria had long, dark brown hair, blue eyes, and a youthful, well-defined face, with an air of seriousness and determination. She was of average height and began walking towards Ryan.
When she got closer, she spoke:
"You're supposed to be Ryan. I'm Astrea Fallon. I'll be your teacher."
"Now let's go to a practice room. I heard Liara mentioned one, and start the first lesson."
Ryan was surprised but said nothing. He stood and led the way towards the room.
The training room was like a closed room; when you were inside, you couldn't hear anything from outside, and there were no windows in it.
Ryan sat on the ground.
"Now you know about the elements, right?"
Ryan replied,
"Yes, there are nine elements: fire, earth, water, wind, light, ice, plants, lightning, and shadow."
"Good that what you have to know now , elements also have levels, from 1 to 8, where you can level up your element."
Ryan wondered,
"How?"
"To raise your element level, you need to circulate energy within your body."
Astria sat behind him and placed her hands on his back.
"Let's start by regulating your breathing first. Follow me."
"Inhale"
"Exhale"
"Inhale"
"Exhale"
"Can you feel it?"
Ryan began to feel energy throughout his body, but it was scattered.
"Yes, but it's scattered."
"This is normal now. Try to gather it in your chest."
Ryan began gathering the scattered energy in his body, but after an hour his breathing became faster, and he couldn't gather it.
"Stop."
Ryan looked at her strangely.
"Your breathing has become faster, so you can't gather it like this. Your breathing needs to be steady."
"But that's a lot of energy."
"Yes, most people take three years to accumulate it in their first stage, and the older the stage, the more difficult it becomes."
"Now let's move on to the last thing in our lesson today, and that's the spark."
'The spark that old man talked about last time.'
"A spark is a fire in the chest of the person who uses an element. Each spark has a color according to the person's element."
She took a breath and continued,
"Now close your eyes and focus on your chest."
Ryan closed his eyes and focused on his chest, then after a few moments he saw a white flame.
"The size of that flame will vary depending on the person."
"The more techniques you use, the smaller that fire becomes, and you need rest to reignite it; it's like fuel, but it refills automatically."
"Also, just because you're at level one doesn't mean you can't use level two abilities; that's a misconception."
"You can use them, but your spark will burn out much faster than someone at level two."
"Now."
Astria reached out to Ryan, placing his small hand in hers.
"Now focus on your inner feelings and take a deep breath."
Ryan did as she said.
"Imagine a gentle coolness settling into your heart and then spreading around your hands."
After a few moments, Ryan felt a slight tingling in his fingertips.
Astria smiled.
"Great. Now try to spread that coolness a little."
Ryan raised his hand in front of him, and then a small piece of ice formed on his fingertips, transparent and shiny.
"Very good. Now focus on your spark and see how it is."
Ryan focused.
"It's slowly fading, almost imperceptibly, but I can feel it."
Astria shook her head.
"Now you know that keeping your ability active diminishes your spark."
"Now imagine that coldness that fattens your heart melting away to deactivate it."
Ryan did so, and the ice cube disappeared.
"Good."
Astrea took out a book and gave it to Ryan.
"This is a Level 1 Abilities book. I'll come back in two weeks to see how you've progressed."
Ryan nodded in agreement.
"Also, try to gather your energy, and next time I'll tell you about the next step."
As Astria left, Lyara noticed her.
"How was it?"
Astria thought for a moment, then smiled.
"He's talented. If he goes to the academy, he might not achieve the same things I did, but he'll be one of the best students."
Liara spoke up.
"Okay, take good care of him this time. I'll be gone for a while."
Astria looked at Liara anxiously.
"Will it happen?"
Lara's gaze was calm and firm.
"Well, not now, but soon."