In Casinum, the sprawling capital of Agrium:

  Vod awoke to a knocking on the door of his room.

  He stood, brushing the sleep from his eyes, and he donned his clothing.

  He walked to the door, and opened it to see who had seen fit to speak with him.

  Standing at the door was Adrad, who, in his impatience, had already lifted his hand to knock a second time.

  Instead, he raised it in a hello. “Hey, Vod! How are you?”

  “I’m well.” Vod replied. “Why did you wake me?”

  “Well, there’s something pretty important I thought you would want to know now rather than later. You’ve been selected for the Emperor’s Trials.”

  “The Emperor’s Trials? What-” Vod cut off as Adrad raised a finger to forestall him.

  “Hey, hey, let me finish. You’ve also been finalized as a member of our squad. It’s been officially decided that you’ll stay with us permanently.”

  He moved to leave. “Follow me.”

  “Not much of an accomplishment, to be permanently labelled a problem.” Vod muttered, then walked after Adrad.

  Adrad laughed. “We all get called problems for different reasons. Some are just handfuls all around, like Radoran. Personally, I just don’t have enough respect for my superiors, apparently. I like to think of it that I don’t worship those above me, but the ones at the top of the totem pole don’t agree. That’s why I’m second in command to the strongest captain instead of being a captain myself reporting directly to one of the Three Blades.” His face grew slightly less full of mirth, taking the conversation slightly more seriously.

  “Now, I don’t think being a criminal has anything to do with it.” Adrad said. “I believe that the true reason has something to do with the fact that for whatever reason, The Emperor Himself has taken an interest in you.”

  “The Emperor?” Vod asked. “Why would he care about me?”

  “I honestly have no idea. Regardless, his interest is enough for him to personally ensure that you were assigned to us.”

  Vod wondered at the strange interference, confused, and Adrad clapped his hands together to regain Vod’s attention.

  “You wanted to know what the Emperor’s Trial was. Let me explain.” Adrad said, thinking of how to best describe it.

  Understanding, he spoke. “Every year, an event is held called the time of mirth. It was originally created by the higher levels of Agrium’s leadership to celebrate the destruction of the old regime and the renewal of our nation. When it was first held, the Emperor was surprised by the gesture, and, wanting to make it further more of an event, he created the Emperor’s Trial to add to it.”

  He sighed. “Contrary to what your experiences may suggest, the arena doesn’t actually get that much use. Even then, the only people who actually die there are criminals against the Empire. Traitors. Most of the time, when it does get used, it’s just for a duel to first blood or surrender.

  “The Emperor’s Trial is basically the same, but a step up. Your superior, in your case Ilyana, recommends you for the Trial. You will then be placed in a bracket based on your rank, and, depending on your placement in the tournament, you can be promoted. This is specifically for Aether users, of course. Regular soldiers don’t have dueling as a consideration nearly as much as Aether users.”

  “And I was recommended for it?” Vod asked.

  “Yep. It’s in two days, so you should maybe train up for it.”

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  “That soon? Why am I only being told two days before?”

  “Hey, it’s not our fault. The only reason you were recommended at all was because you impressed Ilyana on the mission, and that wasn’t even a week ago. We didn’t even know that you had actually been chosen until now.”

  Vod sighed. “I’ll just have to make up for it.”

  “Speaking of training,” Adrad said, opening the door to a room Vod had not been to before, “Radoran volunteered to help train you for the trial.”

  “I’ll have to thank him.” Vod said.

  “Oh, don’t worry about it. He didn’t do it out of his own generosity. He probably just wanted to test your strength.” Adrad said, rolling his eyes.

  “This is a special training area Ilyana reserved for you and Radoran.” Adrad said, stepping back from the door. “Anyway, regardless of personal faults, Radoran is a great fighter. He should be good for you to train against.”

  “Alright.” Vod said, stepping into the room.

  “Good luck!” Adrad said over his shoulder as he walked away. “We’ll be cheering for you when you compete.”

  Radoran was already waiting in the room, sitting on the floor with his arm over his knee.

  When he saw Vod, he quickly stood. “You’re finally here! Alright, ready for the fight?”

  “Somewhat.”

  “Somewhat? You don’t have time to be unsure! You have to get ready to fight already! Come on, hurry up!” Radoran said, falling into a fighting stance.

  I wonder how much of this he’s saying for his benefit. Vod sighed, then did the same.

  Radoran grinned, then rushed at Vod, starting with a jab to the throat.

  Vod held his hand out, and pushed Radoran’s arm sideways.

  Throwing a punch in retaliation, Vod unfocused his eyes, no longer watching any particular part of Radoran, instead watching the whole.

  He saw the slight twitch Radoran made less than a moment before the man moved to block, and he acted on it, sweeping at his leg while he was occupied.

  Radoran managed to dodge backward, but he nodded in approval, smiling, and prepared to rush Vod again.

  Vod readied for the onslaught, and the battle-loving fighter in front of him dashed forward.

  Radoran jabbed with his right arm, then kicked at Vod’s side with his opposite leg.

  Vod dodged the punch, and stopped the kick with his forearm, before he attacked with his own punch to Radoran’s gut.

  Radoran caught the punch, and threw his own.

  Vod caught Radoran’s punch, and the two grappled for a moment. Radoran smiled wider, before pulling Vod closer, and then headbutting him.

  Vod stumbled backward, and Radoran kicked at his knee, but, despite being stunned, Vod managed to sidestep, and, with the moment of opportunity, landed a solid strike to Radoran’s side.

  Radoran grunted as the fist collided with his ribs, and he struck back at Vod, a right jab into another into a left cross.

  Vod moved forward, eluding the jabs, and kicked at Radoran as he blocked the cross.

  Radoran’s face focused, and he jumped over the low attack, landing a punch as he fell. He dodged Vod’s instinctive attack, and launched him backward with a solid uppercut.

  Vod fell backward, stunned, and saw Radoran, not moved at all from where he had punched Vod.

  Radoran stood, hands on hips, smiling as he looked down at Vod.

  “Not bad, not bad.” Radoran said. “You’re better than I worried. But not yet good enough.” He wagged his finger at Vod. “Come on, stand up. We aren’t done yet.”

  Vod sighed, and stood, ready to fight again. This’ll be a long two days.

  * * * * *

  Two days later, less than half an hour before the tournament:

  Ilyana sat with Vod in a room only a little separated from the arena. They heard cheering from the crowd as the preliminary duels that captivated the watcher’s attention proceeded.

  “Vod, I should have asked this earlier, but how much memory do you have? Did you wake up without any common knowledge about Aether?” The captain asked.

  “I only know what I’ve figured out or been told.” Vod replied.

  “What do you know about the four pathways Aether manifests in?” Ilyana said.

  “When we first met, you called me a Thaumaturgist. I knew instinctively that that name applied to me, but that is the only name I have any idea about.”

  “Ah. Well, that knowledge is perhaps the most important when you are sent into a fight.”

  She tapped the table absentmindedly as she spoke. “There are four paths Aether can randomly manifest in. The first, and the one you possess, is Thaumaturgy. It is also the most complicated, so I’ll come back to it.

  “Next is Architecting. Architects create a spirit and can then summon it at will. The spirit will always have an ability related to what it is, its form, or its composition.

  “Then there are Elementalists. They control a natural component, something tangible that you can visualize. The last, and simplest, are Occultists. When they kill a foe, they can imbue the foe’s ability into an item.”

  “What exactly makes Thaumaturgists complicated?” Vod asked.

  “They encompass every other possible type of ability, and are still at the same time defined. A Thaumaturgist has an ability that can be summoned fairly easily, but is applied in two ways at the same time. An external, or active method, and an internal, or passive method.

  “The external, or active, application is the most obvious. It is the typical manner in which a Thaumaturgist applies his abilities. For you, it is the direct manipulation of temperature. The internal, or passive, on the other hand, is the automatic application your body will do.”

  Vod consulted with the deeper part of his mind, then understood. “Mine is a nullification of temperature. It means temperature cannot affect me.”

  “That’s quite useful for you. It means you can fight without worrying about careful application.”

  She stood. “For the fight, I have an easy way for you to figure out which one of the four your opponents are. First, if they make something that acts independently of themselves, they’re an Architect. Second, if they manipulate some substance, they’re an Elementalist. If they instead use a weapon that emits some sort of form or ability, they’re an Occultist, and if they fit into none of these, they’re a Thaumaturgist.”

  Vod also stood, and nodded.

  “You should probably get to the arena. I’ll be in the stands with the rest of the squad. Good luck.” She said, then left the room.

  Vod stayed there for a moment, before he began walking to the arena, the stage on which he would perform.

  He stepped through the doors leading into the arena, and the crowd cheered.

  Seven people were standing in the center, and Vod walked towards the group.

  An announcer’s voice echoed, speaking to the crowd. “The final competitor approaches. Vod, the Redeemed Traitor, has arrived!”

  The crowd roared, and Vod stood there under their acclaim.

  “The first match is between Thana and Renlock! Would the other competitors please move to the viewing stands?” The announcer asked, and five of the competing group broke away to walk to the walls.

  Vod followed them, and, like them, jumped up onto the ten-foot wall and landed in a special spot in the stands.

  “The Emperor Himself is here to watch the battles, and it promises to be a good year! Let the first battle begin!” The announcer said, as the attention of the crowd focused onto the two people in the arena, ready to start the first match.