At the end of every week, the Professor checked out our progress with our Mudras. One day, when Bill was failing spectacularly at his Mudra for making objects grow bigger, and Ohda was busy helping him, Professor Winter called off the lesson and told the students to regroup in the garden.

If you think it's eerie to have a garden underground, you're not the only one. But it did wonders for all the nature-related spells and we could grow some fruit and vegetables. Raegan looked tense, as if she expected the Professor to deliver bad news. Her light blue eyes were misty, and her golden hair was messier than usual. In her dark turquoise clothes, that looked black in the shadows, she looked like she was attending a funeral.

While we didn't wear uniforms, the Academy gave clothes with its logo embroidered on it for the students. The colour was different for every kind of magic, and the Air Hierophants had navy blue and brown clothes, which fit nicely with my grunge style. 

"I spoke to Edgar Wollstonecraft this morning," the Professor said. "He told me of the doubts he was harboring. I was starting to understand what was going wrong with the Aether Realm and I think I should tell you."

We sat in a circle. The Professor's face was solemn.

"The Typhons who wear the dark red hoods, they are called the Reapers. Set is fighting them, while he's moving his forces through England to look for the Empty Mirror."

All of the students started speaking at once. Lucretia seemed shocked that the Professor believed the same legends as his own son.

But I knew how much Jeff would have wanted to hear his grandfather admit it, so I looked at him. Raegan smiled at us. She had a very expressive grin. She looked like one of those masks that the Greeks used in the amphitheatres — I had seen one once during a school trip. 

"The Reapers are, of course, looking for the Empty Mirror, too," Mister Winter added. "I do not know if it really exists, so don't take my word for it."

Some of the chatter quieted down.

"But what I do know is that it's the only object that's said to be used for taking powers from someone. In fact, the magic you take away would be stored inside the Mirror, which empty and hollow like a magical black hole. The Reapers want to take away Set's power..."

"Let them do it!" Lucretia commented. "Set killed my parents."

"But," Professor Winter continued. "If the god finds it before them, then he can hide it away forever, or destroy it. You do know that the Senate trusted me to choose students for the quests in the Aether Realm, as my school is the most famous in all of England."

I'd heard before that not every Enchanter in the world was home-schooled, but as far as the United Kingdom went, the Academy of Space and Time was the best place to be.

"So," he added. "Jake, bring me the pack of tarot cards."

Jake was grinning from ear to ear, as if he was expecting the tarots to choose him, again. I didn't doubt it could happen. The students were ten, and four could be chosen. I wasn't the greatest at maths, but it was almost half the number.

"Does this pack have a name?" I couldn't help but ask. "Like the Rider-Waite Tarots?"

"The names on the cards come from different versions, but I guess this pack could be called the Chronicle Tarots. Because if one knew how to, we could see the whole history of the Aether Realm repeated in patterns," the Professor said as he shuffled the cards. "That is also why they are foolproof for quests. I'm drawing to the different forces inside of me and connecting to the Aether to see which cards I should put down."

That said, he closed his eyes and put down four cards on the table. One on top, and three right underneath it.

He turned the first card over. "This one should reply to the question of who is the best student to see through the quest. As you can see, it's the card of the Jurist."

I felt Edgar tensing next to me. I wondered if it was so easy --- if the Professor would simply choose us based on the cards and our powers. But Jeff nudged me and told me, "The best is yet to come."

"The second card," Mister Winter turned over the card that was opposite to the first, the last one in line. "Replies to the question of who is the student who needs the quest. As you can see, it's the card of the Hanged Man."

We all hung our breath, because that could be any one of us.

"The third card," Mister Winter chose the one in the middle of the little row. "Represents the student who would be held back in the future if they didn't get to go now. It's the card of the Universe."

"Last year, it was me," Jake boasted.

"And the fourth card, last but not least," the Professor said. "Represents the person without whom the quest would undoubtedly fail, even if their role was a smaller one. It's the card of the Magus, today."

We all were silent, looking at the cards. I still didn't know how Mister Winter was going to choose us.

But then he performed a spell which I'd seen only days before, when Edgar had used it. The spell for revealing things as they are.

"The first student who gets to go on the quest, a very dangerous quest against gods and monsters, looking for an object that might not exist," the Professor said. "Is also the hero who is the best and most qualified to see this through."

The Jurist card shifted. A name appeared on it.

"Edgar Wollstonecraft!" the Professor announced. Everyone cheered, because Edgar was the best of us, magically speaking.

"The second student who will go with him is the student who is not necessarily qualified for it, but who needs the quest!"

The card shifted.

"Ryan Barnes!" the Professor said.

No one but my friends was excited. I didn't know how to feel. Afraid, confused, and even a little prickled at the comment that this student hadn't been chosen to necessarily be a hero. But I was also excited, and I knew just the reason why I needed this quest.

"The third student," Professor Winter gave me no time to concentrate on his words. "The one who would risk changing their destiny and future path if they don't rise to this occasion is Raegan McIntosh!"

He announced it the moment the card shifted. Raegan was very moody and people didn't like her much, so no one cheered, but I did, because at least I had someone close I could trust more than Edgar.

"And the fourth person who is chosen," Mister Winter said. "The person without whom the quest would fail, even if it's not necessarily a big role that they will play. My own grandson, Jeff Winter."

I was happy beyond words that my friends were coming with me. But a bad feeling was pulling at my gut. It wasn't because of friendship we all got to go. We had been chosen, and the quest was so risky, I couldn't help but wonder what laid ahead in our destinies.

That evening, I invited the other heroes of the quest in the room I shared with Jeff to celebrate. Edgar kept saying there was nothing to celebrate, but in reality we wanted to get our minds off things. I looked for beer to drink, but couldn't find any. I also wanted to play Truth or Dare, but as soon as I tried explaining the rules to the others, I could see it was no use.

"I brought beer," Raegan announced as soon as she arrived. "Parties just aren't fun without it. I really like your room, it's so spacious. Of course my room is just as good. It's the first time I slept on a bed — back with my parents, I used to sleep on the couch."

My throat felt dry. I was about to ask her whether I had heard correctly — did her parents make her sleep on the couch? But I couldn't find the words.

"But your room," she added. "Has all those nice drawings pinned on the walls! I will ask Sean to draw something for me."

Last year, at the Academy, Sean shared his room with Jeff. Sean was an artist, with a brilliant mind and good with both paint and pencil. He wasn't so fixated on magic as the rest of us, but I'd often admired his skills.

"Should the three of us be in a room with a girl and cans of beer?" Edgar asked, raising an eyebrow. "Doesn't it look suspicious?"

"I am bisexual," I replied. "Everything I do could be interpreted as suspicious."

After that, the tension eased up, also because Raegan was like a friend or a sister to all of us, and I'd noticed Enchanters didn't seem to be as interested as human teenagers in making out all the time.

"Let's drink," Jeff suggested. "But let's not lose sight of what's important. Now that we know the whole story, I can't help but wonder if we found the paper about the Blasted Tower on purpose. Maybe the Reapers were behind it, in some way."

"It might be," Raegan replied. She patted Jeff on the shoulder, as if to say that she was proud of him. "Now that I think of it, you're probably right. Attaboy, you should always look out for danger."

"Let's not forget," I added. "The symbol of the New Faith."

Raegan frowned unhappily.

"Didn't you want to play that human game?" she changed topic a little too abruptly. "What was it called, again? Truth or Dare?"

If you have poor physical coordination, you can't stand booze and you take most things literally, when you play a game of truth or dare you should always be the bigger man and decide to tell the truth.

That's what I always do.

"Only if you're okay with me choosing Truth every time," I replied.

"I wouldn't dare you to do anything," Edgar rolled his eyes. "You're a walking disaster already, without having to go look for an excuse."

"Then," Jeff said, a little intoxicated. "I dare all of the people in the room to try and read each other's minds."

I was about to point out that it was black magic, and wouldn't Jeff feel guilty once he was sober? But the truth was that I was curious. Still, I didn't know the Mudra for it, and I couldn't catch the slightest thought from any of my friends.

Judging from Jeff's expression, he was not having the best luck either.

"Jeff," Raegan said after a while. "You're thinking about your father, aren't you?"

Jeff stood up. "Do you know how to practise black magic?"

"Please, your grandfather does too. I always balance it with white magic, so I don't lose sight of what's important. That's the trick to not become a Typhon, you know? Do not give in to it."

It was, probably, the coolest thing I'd ever heard. I'd always wondered why one's curiosity must be restricted. It was what had made me argue with Professor Winter every time.

After a while, Jeff dozed off, and we put him to bed. Raegan excused herself and went back to her room.

"Alice is probably looking for me," she said.

So, it was Edgar and I, alone. Jeff technically was still in the room, but he was sleeping so heavily he started snoring.

"So," I tried to make conversation. "It must be a good thing, to be chosen for the quest because you're the best hero to see it through."

I didn't want my words to sound petty, or my disappointment to show. The truth was I had many reasons for feeling like an outsider --- having been raised in the Human Realm, having started school a year after the others my age, being a hybrid and Variation were just a few of them. And now I was chosen for something bigger than myself, and the cards implied that it was just because I was the one who needed it, and not that the quest needed me.

"Last year, they draw for me the same card they drew for you today," Edgar finally said. "I still don't know why I needed the quest so bad, and I hate not knowing. It wasn't near as risky as this year's is, but it made me question my belief in people. A lot."

"You're doing just fine," I replied. "I mean, I know that I don't know you very well, but you're a grade A student and you figured out that we needed a quest all on your own..."

"I'm always telling you how much I have to prove to my father, but it's hard to make you understand," Edgar stopped me. "I'm not even from Essex. I am from Cornwall."

I did notice his accent was different, and now I could place it as Cornish.

"People from other counties can be admitted, of course. It's the only school that teaches science magic in the United Kingdom, the reason why it's considered the very best. But the majority of Enchanters are home-schooled, so it's safe to say I shouldn't be here. I fought for it. I think what I'm trying to say is... If I misjudged you at first, and you really believe in all of this too, you can fight for it."

I wanted to concentrate on his words. It was a very good pep talk, and one I'd never even imagined I could get from him. But all I could think about was that we were the only people in the room, both wearing pyjamas.

I felt a huge surge of relief that I'd gotten rid of my embarrassing, old blue pyjamas. The ones I was wearing now were part of the set the Academy had given us. Edgar's was pale pink, like most of the Jurist clothes, but he looked so confident in it, it didn't really matter.

"Maybe you should go," I said, and damned myself for the words. "I mean, aren't you tired? Or are you having trouble sleeping, like me?"

"My roommate, Jake, does not want me in the same room as him," Edgar replied. "It's okay. He'll get used to it. He has to."

"Why doesn't he?"

"Well, he's Jake."

The reply was enigmatic, and it honestly bothered me for some reason. Jake was a bit of an air-head, but he was the friendliest person I knew. Everyone liked him, and he liked everyone.

"I take some getting used to," Edgar added. "Considering that, before he studied here, Jake had a very big room and as an only son, he's never been asked to share."

"That makes sense," I replied. "And have you shared before? Any siblings?"

"I'm an only son, but I can adapt to new situations. You?"

"I was the only son my mother had. Which is a relief, considering that if I had a little brother or sister, it would be from the man she married --- Adrian Locksley. Let's just say he was a very unpleasant person."

When I saw that Edgar wasn't replying, I decided not to make a fool of myself further. I was about to say that I was the one who was tired, and needed to go to bed.

That was the moment when the door opened. I didn't know who could barge in into my room during the night, but I was grateful for the interruption.

Edgar stood up. The person behind the door was Jake. He smiled.

"Edgar!" he exclaimed. "You should probably go to bed, now. Mister Winter will be worried if he realises that there are students who are up past curfew."

Observing their interaction, I couldn't find anything wrong between the two of them. But I couldn't help but decide to trust Edgar's words.

"Did you come here to tell me that?" Edgar asked. He did look a bit tense. Of course, it probably stemmed from the embarrasment to be found alone with me.

"No. I wanted to talk to Ryan. Alone." Jake smiled again, and Edgar exited the room without even saying as much as a 'good night'.

"So, Ryan," Jeff sat in one of the chairs. I thought I would be a rude host if I kept sitting on the floor, so I took the other chair.

"I came to tell you that it would be a lot better if you didn't go on the quest," Jake finally blurted out. "There. It's in the open. I couldn't keep it inside any longer."

He ruffled his hair and sighed.

"Are you angry that you weren't picked this time?" I narrowed my eyes. "Or is it just that you don't trust me?"

"No, and no!" he sounded frustrated. "It's none of those things. But you're a Variation. Until your second power shows up and you understand which one it is, it's much more dangerous for you to go on a quest. Variations have even more uncontrollable powers than hybrids. They are... well, they are twice the Enchanter. So, it means that when you'll get good, you'll be excellent at this. But for now, it's too dangerous."

I couldn't believe Jake was saying this. As if I could just let down the Professor, and say no to the destiny the Chronicle Tarot had laid down in front of me. Besides, now that I'd seen that he didn't think me up to the task, I wanted to show him that I could do it.

Jake was one of those dog-eat-dog people, but a loyal student. If I proved to him we were in equal footing, we could have become friends. But it was not going to happen until I backed down every time someone told me something was difficult.

Like Edgar had told me, if I wanted my place in this world, I had to fight for it.

"Listen, Ryan," Jake looked wrecked now, and I realise there was something he wasn't telling me. "It's too dangerous for a Variation... You don't understand..."

But no mystery was going to change what I believed I had to do. Besides, the tarot card was right. I needed this quest.

"The cards chose me," I echoed Jake's previous words, that he'd spoken about his quest. "And I don't think they are wrong in their judgement."

"And by the way," I added, a little secret between the two of us. "I need this quest. You don't even know much. It might be my only chance to find where Set took my cousin Risa, and to save her."