The Lost Element

Chapter 5

Ardiel thought she had seen it all at this point, the inside of the college must be at least relatively normal. She couldn't have been more mistaken. The wooden doors stood twelve feet high and eight feet across, but you could open them with ease. They weren't heavy, nor did the squeak when you opened them. Upon entering the school there was a faint scent of coffee, with an underlying hint of pine. 

After a few steps in she realized the wood she was walking on was real hardwood. Light brown in color, it matched the rest of the school. Every step she took echoed through the vast empty halls, where the roof stood what must have been at least twenty feet high. Immediately, she fell in love with the feel, the look, the smell of that place. It reminded her of home, but only more legitimate in its' architecture.

The foyer was a long hallway with a cafeteria tucked into the walls on both side as you walked through. Right now, everything was dark and closed down in there, but she assumed it would open back up when the programs started in September. At the end of the foyer was an opening to a large, domed room that had four hallways coming out of it, not including the one she was walking down. The closer she got to the domed room, the better she could see what was in the middle.

The center of the room was a large circular centerpiece set into the floor, with pathways marking a cross over it. They were similar to how crosshairs would look. The pathways were made of more cobblestone that looked like it had been there since the dawn of time. The circle was broken into four segments by the paths.

One segment of the circle was a small pond, somehow shimmering blue that seemed to have an eternal depth. It was the bottom left part of the circle, if you looked down upon it. A tall tree sprouted up from another corner, it had sort of looked like a forearm coming down, and where it had touched the ground, a hand sprawled out forming roots. It was the top right part of the circle. The third section held an orb, submerged in the ground. The orb glowed with a reddish-orange hue, and seemed to emit heat as you entered its proximity. It was the top left part. 

The final was potentially the most mysterious, as it was shrouded in fog. Electricity bolted through the fog, mimicking a thunderstorm in the ground, and making up the bottom right part of the circle. A thick, lingering layer of mist clung about eight feet off the ground, but never strayed farther than the perimeter.

Stones surrounded all of the four corners, acting like borders around the four segments. In the center, where the four pathways met, was a globe. A large globe, probably a meter in diameter, it was a perfect representation of Earth. You could see every nook and cranny, every little island, right down to the major landmarks. Volcanoes seemed to be glowing, clouds were circling, oceans were waving and the grass was growing. Even little storms were covering it here and there. It was almost an exact replica of the very place we exist. 

"What is this place, Illya?"

"Welcome, Ardiel, to the College of the Elements."

"This is absolutely amazing! How did you guys do this? The amount of effort and technology you guys must have used-" Ardiel hesitated for a moment. "Wait, I thought there was no technology allowed here."

Illya chuckled at the bewildered look on Ardiel's face.

"Well you are correct. This was not done with any technology, but only with the energy of our students."

"I don't understand, it's impossible to do this without *some* sort of technology."

"Yet here it is, right before your eyes. Have you ever heard of Reiki, Ardiel?"

"Well, yeah, I'm actually a level one practitioner."

"What if I told you that it can do more than heal?"