The Start of a Change

It was now the day of Kye's birthday and the festivities were in full swing. Kye had been busy constantly talking with distant cousins, friends of the family and people invited for diplomatic reasons. Kye was now talking with a few boys his age, Callum Rienhart, Drake Fellos and Felix Untergart. This was the first time Kye had met them but they had found themselves in similar situations as prodigies of their prospective houses. Callum had been training with the knights like Kye, although he wasn't as talented as Kye was in martial skill, his body and fitness was far more developed, standing nearly a full head above the others and with broad shoulders. The Rienhart family was known for producing Knight-Paladin's and having the largest standing force of Knight-Paladin's which they used to support regular foot soldiers and the Runewalker knights on the western border of the territory.

Drake was talented in magic, primarily mana manipulation and runic circles. While the Fellos family were typically experts in enchantment and forging runic equipment but Drake was able to write runes in the air and use them as a normal magic circle. He was rather thin but had kept up his physical stamina through constant training so that he could be active in combat later on.

Felix was from the Untergart region in the south of the Runewalker territory. They had large amounts of mineral mines due to the mountainous region they inhabited. They also were famed for having very hardy people that volunteered for military service in large numbers. Everyone was trained in some form of combat, even if they didn't go on to be career soldiers and instead work in the mines. Felix was being trained in military strategy so that he could lead a battalion when he had grown older. These four boys were laughing and chatting away on the wing of the entertainment hall.

"Ahahaha oh, man. That's a great story, Felix. I bet she thought twice about messing with you after that one."

"Haha, you bet she did. Sisters are such a pain in the ass."

"Truth Felix, tell me about it. My younger sisters keep trying to get into my room and fiddle around with my stuff."

"You think that's bad Callum, imagine having your research notes scribbled on by a five-year-old that you can't get mad at."

"Seems like the three of you have it rough with younger sisters. Thankfully, all mine are older than me."

The three others nodded and they all sipped on their drinks at the same time. Kye thought that having these people on his side would be beneficial in the long run, but more importantly to him right now, they were extremely relatable and good people that he enjoyed talking to. Even though this was their first time meeting, Kye felt like he had known all of them for many years and the others felt the same about each other. While the three boys had known each other since they were babies, Kye felt like such a natural fit into their little group that now he had joined them, it would feel weirder if he wasn't here.

Unbeknownst to the four of them, their mothers were all currently looking at the gathering of boys and laughing to themselves. Their sons were getting along well and this eased any apprehension they may have felt towards one another as they began to talk about their sons and other mother things. With wine goblets in hand, the four mothers forgot their diplomatic duties and indulged in being mothers for the day, enjoying all the delicacies brought to the party by the Runewalkers.

After a few hours of talking, it was time for the birthday cake to be cut and served. Enjoying the sweet treat, many of the young ladies began chatting amongst themselves as the four boys wandered around talking to others in their peer group. They were all rather good looking, so although they were too young to care about such things as girls, many of the young ladies present that talked to the group of boys found themselves entranced by their outward attitudes and good-natured bantering, leaving many with a good impression of them.

Frey was talking with the fathers of the boys as they slowly got drunk on the alcohol being served by the servants of the mansion. They were shouting and being boisterous but few seemed to mind even though this was a 'high society' event. What this was, more than anything else, was a young boys birthday that few thought he would live to see. It was a time for celebration and thanks for the miracles of fate and destiny, not something that should be tainted by backroom deals and backstabbing.

Kye and the others were sitting down at the main table, enjoying a rowdy conversation with one another. For a brief moment, Kye's eyes found a young girl who looked rather uncomfortable and wasn't talking to anyone. Kye knew better than to just let this go.

"Sorry guys, I'll be back shortly."

"What? Where you going?" Callum asked with an inquisitive look on his face.

"Off to the gentleman's room, won't be a sec 'kay?"

Kye was informal but they didn't mind and went back to talking. Kye made his way over to the girl who he didn't know and signalled over a servant.

"Two cups of water please." The servant bowed.

"Certainly young master." Kye then leant his back against the wall so that he was level with the girl.

"You okay?" She blushed and lowered her gaze and didn't respond. Kye decided that he should continue trying to talk with her.

"Not used to parties like this?" She gave a slight nod and Kye smiled.

"Me too honestly. This is my first one and it's a bit overwhelming." The servant arrived with two smaller cups of water on a silver tray. Kye took both and thanked the servant.

"Water?" The girl nodded and took one of the cups from Kye's hand.

"...-nk you..." Though the word was mostly cut off by the surrounding sounds, Kye knew what she had said and smiled.

"Anytime." He raised his cup for a cheers and she timidly knocked the lip of her cup against Kye's and they both took a drink.

"I'm Kye by the way. It's a bit noisy in here, did you want to go out onto the balcony?" She gave a slight nod and Kye gently took her free hand. He guided them through the sea of people and eventually found the door to the balcony. Stepping out into the weather, Kye noticed that it was cold. Seeing that the young girl was wearing a short-sleeved dress, Kye took off his jacket and placed it on her shoulders. He then leant against the railing of the balcony and looked up at the stars.

"I always loved looking at the night sky. Everything just felt so small in inconsequential when you looked at the vastness above you, y'know?" The girl looked up with Kye and let a small sigh out. It wasn't one of admiration or frustration, but one of sadness.

"I may not know you or what you're struggling with but if life has taught me anything, it's that letting your problems go only leads to them coming back even bigger later on. Whatever you're thinking about, you need to do something about it even if it doesn't accomplish anything right now. Sometimes, a really large problem can be dealt with piece by piece until it just, goes away."

Kye looked at the girl and gave a boyish smile. She blushed but didn't avert her eyes from Kye. After holding his gaze for a few seconds she looked away and bashfully drank the rest of her water. Kye figured she wanted to be left alone for a bit and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't carry your problems alone. It doesn't end well." He then began to walk away but before he could open the door, her bell-like voice spoke up.

"Charlotte... my name is Charlotte." Kye turned back around and gave one last smile.

"Well then Charlotte, best of luck in dealing with whatever it is you're going through." and with that, Kye opened the door and re-entered into the party.

There was a reason Kye did all this. When he looked Charlotte in the eyes he saw deep-rooted hatred for a world that left her behind. Perhaps she had skills that were seen as useless or she lacked proper nurturing. Kye knew this look because he used to see it every day in the mirror when he woke up. The deadness at the centre with the false attempt to appear cheerful caked over the top, it was a simple deception that those who didn't care wouldn't bother to look deeper into. The appearance that everything is okay was enough for those with no interest. Kye was saved by one man from The Tower of Magos who believed in his theories and saw genuine skill in his talents.

Those words were something he left him with before he died from an illness that Kye tried desperately to cure but failed. If someone had said those things to him before when he was young, Kye wondered how different he would have turned out. But, ultimately, that life was over and in this one, he had what he deeply desired all along. Without that man, he would have remained numb to the positivity of human connections instead of desiring it. Kye hoped that with those words now imparted onto another soul in need of them, he would set Charlotte on a path towards something greater than loneliness and broken dreams. Kye sat back down at the main table.

"Hey, that took a while." Felix said as Kye finished the rest of his cup.

"Yeah well, I've been drinking a lot of this juice stuff. It's a wonder I didn't need to go earlier." Felix just shrugged and finished his own cup. Callum leant into the table to bring his face closer to the others.

"So, any idea when we'll see each other after this? Not like our houses are close in relation so chance meetings won't be happening." Kye thought about it for a bit before speaking up.

"Well, when I turn ten I'm going to start training with the foot soldiers so when I'm thirteen I can join them for a few years. How about you convince your fathers to do the same thing and we train together here?" Callum looked at the others and nodded.

"I'm fine with it, joining the soldiers would be an inevitability for me and Felix but what about you Drake?"

"If you three are going I will. No way am I going to be the only one who misses out." The four of them shot each other grins.

"Well then, on Kye's tenth birthday next year, we'll meet up and start training again. Until then, we all have personal messenger birds so write frequently okay?" Kye jumped out of his seat.

"Screw writing, I've got one better, follow me." The three boys followed Kye up to his room where he pulled out a secure runic case. Unlocking it, Kye pulled out four metal tablets and a few Spellweave batteries he designed for smaller devices. These tablets had rows of different letters and a small projection crystal at the top. He handed one to all the boys as well as five batteries.

"With these, all you have to do is type a message out and then hit this red button. Once you do, after a slight delay depending on how far away the receiver is, your message will be displayed through the projection crystal." They were surprised but happy.

"So it's like those fancy communication array rooms they have at guilds and stuff right?"

"It works functionally the same, yes. Just that these are portable and with less range. Given that we're all likely to be within the same territory, it shouldn't be a problem."

They all stored the tablets in their coats and rejoined the party where they found that the music had changed from the typical ballroom pieces to the newer music being made by those with mana instruments. The loud bass and thumping of the drum were conducive to a more freeform and primal type of dancing that the younger boys relished. Kye shot a look at his father who just raised his glass and smiled. Shaking his head, Kye joined the others in taking the floor and moving his body to the beat of the high tempo music in a way that was not becoming of nobility.

Throwing his momentary worries away, he lost himself in the music and enjoyed his night with his new friends. These four boys hadn't even known each other for a full day and yet at this moment, they felt that this new bond would stand the test of time. They would eagerly await the coming of the next year where they could begin to deepen their friendship even more and experience things together. These friends would bring the start of a change in Kye that would please Alayah, who was watching from her garden, very much. It was here she would witness Kye's change from a misunderstood genius who only cared for his experiments into a beloved leader that cared for those close to him.