Welcome to Gaia! ::

Acelin layed on the ground a bit catching his breath as if he just came off a coaster. He was caught off gaurd by the hug more surprised by the solild wings. At the question Acelin looked up grinning. "Just fine." he said smiling as he looked around. Just like in his head, the room was dark, and it semed like no light could penetrate it. He closed his eyes but didn't hear anything. He walked as best he could keeping his hand against the wall.

His hand brushed against something it wasn't stone almost like iron. The sound resonated against the room, pounding against his head. Again he felt his mind repressing his memories. He closed his eyes as he forced the memories to come through. It felt like a force threw him against a wall, this time collapsing to his knees.

He stayed there his arms wrapped around himself shacking. He looked up at the chains, there he was kept prisoner down here. Someone kept him here, he didn't know who though. Through the impronment memories something pleasent came through. He whistled, it traveled through the area like a light wind. Soon a heavy a wind was felt and something seemed to be comming. An animal more of a person.

Soon something heavy landed, through the shadows, the object was darker, bigger. Almost like a bird, except different. A griffon. Acelin smiled at the creature, "Mona." he said as he held his hand out. The griffon smelled him before poking him lightly. Acelin smiled as he turned and walked back to Kael. "I don't know by who, but I was kept prisoner here. I don't know how long, it was here I learned my elements, the basics of my magic. Also where I met Mona." he said, 'Moan' being the name given to the griffon.

Jackal raised a brow slightly, but inwardly the thought of being in that library the headmaster spoke of was enough to peak his interest. He was quite the studious young man, and books could never make him lose interest. If he really wanted he probably could finish reading the class books in a day or even two, but he would practice things within the confined pages.

"Extra lessons, eh?" He briefly repeated as a question as he pulled out a cigarette from his pocket, and the lighter from the other. Placing the thin stick between his lips as he worked on getting the lighter to burn, "I might take that idea in the future, but we'll see." He managed to get it to ignite, then rose it to the tip of the cigarette.

"For a school, this is no average size... even for what appears as a magic boarding school. Ain't it a bit larger than most special schools?" He looked over to Ahkra again, a bit more fully with the lit cigarette between his lips.

Ahkra raised an eyebrow at the cigarette, but didn't do anything about it. "I personally don't mind if you smoke, but I'd prefer if you didn't smoke around the other students, for the sake of their well-being. And also, please don't smoke around Kael. He's very sensitive to toxins." Poor Kael was so sensitive to his environment that even a strong incense could knock him off his feet.

"And, yes. If you see anything particularly interesting in one of the libraries, especially the main library, feel free to ask one of us if you are interested in learning it. Or if you think of anything else. At least one of us should be able to teach you just about anything you can ask, within the scope of your own potential."

He considered Jackal's comment on the school, and touched the black stone of the hallway wall in a familiar fashion, as if he and this keep had known each other for a long time. The stone was warm, as if this place itself were alive.

"This is a very special place," he said softly. "It's not just a school. It was standing long before I decided to take up residence here. It's sentient, powerful, and continuously evolving. It's a living thing. When I first came to this place, it was abandoned. Yet despite that, there were no flaws. The rooms were warm, and lights already in place. Some rooms were already fully furnished. Some, I haven't yet seen. I furnished the main level, where we are now, as a home for myself and Arc. It is absolutely dependable to hold back assault, which regularly occurs for us. Soon, some of the other Elements and Incarnations came to live here, and now almost all of them do. It's easily large enough, though, that I don't feel at all crowded. We've survived quite a bit, in these walls, and when I decided to open up a school, I thought that there could be no better place. Yes, it may be ridiculously large for a school, but it will easily house myself, Arc, all of the other Elements and Incarnations, and all of the students without crowding. And, more importantly than that, if attack comes again..." he trailed off a bit. "We'll be in the safest place we can be."

Raien let the boy down gently, and shifted back to his regular form, offering a small smile. "It is, but don't worry, you'll get used to it." He picked up Shin's luggage and led the boy through the great hall, with it's high arched ceiling and fireplace lounge, then through various corridors and up a flight of stairs before reaching a hallway with doors on either side. Counting three down, he opened the doors, which led into a magnificent bedroom. "This one is yours," he said, setting the boy's luggage down next to the bed. He was still concerned for Shin, too, since the boy hadn't seemed like he was doing too well when Raien had stumbled upon him. Raien hesitated a bit, then asked, "is there anything I can get for you, or do for you..? I know that the way here must have been fairly difficult...."

Kael smiled softly as the griffon lowered her head, gently reaching out to pet her cheek lightly. When Mona roared, however, even though it was in pleasure, Kael flinched a bit at the volume of the sound, his pointed ears sensitive.

As he led the way, the room seemed to open up into a large cavern, like the others, and Kael could just spot a staircase at the far end, which looked millennia old, and as if it could easily disintegrating at a touch. He was wary of the steps, but knew it was their best hope for getting out of here. "All right, let's try those stairs," he told Acelin. They needed to go up, since the chute had taken them into what was apparently the deep underground, and from what he could sense, there were no openings in the ceiling of the cavern which he and Mona could fly through. He did, however, hear the faintest hint of water running somewhere in here. An underground stream, or slow river, perhaps.

After a few minutes, they reached the winding staircase. It was probably a bit narrow for Mona's comfort, but she'd be able to climb it. Kael considered the aged stone which formed it for a moment, and touched it with one hand. The step he had touch crumbled. "That doesn't exactly look promising," he sighed. Summoning his power, he closed his eyes in concentration. It was as if time was rapidly rewinding for just the staircase. The fallen parts hovered back up to reattach, and the deep dust reunited with stone. The staircase regained its solidity, as if it, apart from everything else here, had been built just yesterday. He opened his eyes, which had a residual blue glow to them. He patted the now-solid staircase. "All right, it should be good, now." He led the way first, sliding his hand into Acelin's to keep the boy near him, and started up the staircase. When they reached the top, a door loomed before them. "This must be it." He reached the the doorknob, but it wouldn't turn. The door was locked from the other side.

Ahkra's expression softened, hearing the last comment. He pulled the boy close gently, looking straight into his eyes. "Jackal," he said softly, gently taking the cigarette out of the boy's mouth, just for a moment. "If I thought you were vile, you wouldn't be here right now." He leaned forward, intent on convincing him, and kissed the boy softly, sweetly. "If anything, I'm worried for you. They say, black magic invites misfortune. I simply couldn't stand to see such a sweet boy as you fall victim to it." He gently ran a hand through the boy's hair. Jackal seemed cold at first, but hearing his words waver, he knew that deep down, this boy truly was sweet. Not evil or sadistic, or anything characteristic of those who followed in the black arts. "All that I ask, my dear, is that while you are here, you explore the other magics. They can do anything you wish, as well, and in those I, and the others, can teach you."

On a whim, Ahkra put the cigarette to his own lips, inhaling, and winked, before handing the cigarette back.