The Day of the Naming Initiation had arrived. The preparation was complete. I put on a white outfit—a blouse and simple trousers—but over that, I wore a warm, long grey coat, as the weather had turned quite cold. Ready, we set off for the Sanctuary.
As we walked, the cold was biting, and although the sun was adequate, it wasn't enough to warm me. We walked through the village, our footsteps echoing on the stone slabs of the roads. Our breath was visible in the air, as the frigid air lightly nipped at our skin. More and more people gathered as we progressed, some whispering, others laughing with excitement. The feeling of participating in something monumental began to weigh on the atmosphere.
The procession was set to pass through Luminous Cryst before reaching the Sanctuary. Other children were already prepared, and when we arrived at Luminous Cryst, the Sontakai and Cremus families were already there.
They were participating in the festival too. As we walked, more and more people joined the crowd. Just as we were almost leaving the boundaries of Luminous Cryst, on my left, I felt as if someone was standing in the crowd, watching me. I stopped in my tracks for a few seconds. I turned, but no one was there. Then, two hands nudged me gently.
"Move along," a voice sounded behind me. "It's time to learn what name you will be given!"
I looked right—it was Hitomi. I looked left—it was Galaxia. I was flustered by the situation, but they hadn't noticed a thing. They were smiling eagerly. We were nearly at the Sanctuary, which was already visible from afar.
The Sanctuary was dazzling. The area was now rocky, and two huge hands, made of stone, seemed to hold it almost in the air. I realized that the dense summer vegetation and lush trees had hidden its base. Now, only the staircase was visible, though I could see water running from the Sanctuary's base.
We stood beneath the Sanctuary while people streamed in from all sides of Crystallphaos. Others had come from great distances, families of all classes. When the Volkenhart family appeared, everyone stepped aside. They stood quite far to my right. I didn't pay much attention, but they have prestige and reputation—they are one of the families holding the line against the attacks. They arrived with three daughters and one son.
Just as I was looking right, my mother nudged me, pointing out that my father was coming.
My father was approaching in his uniform, as if he were coming out for a parade or something similar. My mother was beautifully dressed in a gown and a jacket, and the girls, like their parents, were dressed in their finest. My father said he didn't want to miss the celebration. He came quickly but would leave again like lightning. Before joining us, he went to greet the Volkenharts. As an officer, he had to perform his duties.
Then he came to us. "Sorry I'm late, and sorry that I'll be leaving again soon, as you can see," he said, gesturing to his uniform. "I came in my work uniform, not my formal attire. Hmm, forgive me, Aether, but you see, some things never stop moving."
He smiled and stroked my hair, pressing down on my head on purpose. I tried to pull his hand away. He started to giggle, and when he removed his hand, I began to fix my hair, which was quite bushy and long.
I glared at him sideways. "Hee… won't I ever grow up? When will this end!"
He simply smiled. "Don't worry, my son. As difficult as it seems, these are your best years. Enjoy them – the rest will come later, along with their problems!"
Just then, the Mystic ascended to the Sanctuary, beginning his address.
We all looked at him. He looked at all of us in turn. "Welcome to the initiation ceremony. We have gathered here today to bestow Names from the Energy of All Things. I see we have many children today, and all of them are quite promising. Some parents may not believe this, but you see, that's how it goes. Why do you treat children as mere children, and not as individuals with potential? You often want to see them accomplish what you yourselves could not. It doesn't work that way, and you will see it in time, because these children are quite promising. Let us begin gradually."
We all looked at each other with joy! Then a voice rang out: "All children of seven years old, come up to the Holy Circle."
We all looked toward the Mystic's position. He gestured for us to ascend!
As we approached the Sanctuary, the feeling of awe intensified. The rocks and crystals seemed to shine under the sunlight, while the whispers of the people blended with the sound of the wind.
So we went up, all of us bewildered. We looked at the spots in the circle. The Mystic had to place us; otherwise, we couldn't go alone. And so, the Mystic began assigning positions. My head was buzzing with anxiety—I couldn't hear anything! I didn't know how to react until I heard: "The son of the Eras family, take your place."
I was the thirteenth child. I was at the top of the circle. The Mystic simply stated the position telepathically, and you just went! As I observed it, it wasn't exactly a circle. It was more like the Sun embracing the Moon, with an altar in the center.
He gave us all a parchment to hold until he began the ceremony, and people from the Sanctuary placed crystal crowns on our heads. They were not the only crystals. There were four others spaced apart, forming an oval shape. I noticed that in the center of the circle, where the altar was, we had a large crystal. As I watched the Mystic prepare, I saw that we were all in key positions. I and the other children were standing on something like altars. All of us were connected to the crystal in the center, and the crystal to the altar.
And then the Mystic began.
When the Mystic chanted: “O you who possess the high authority of energy that is always invincible and have a share of the stars, the sun, and the moon, who tame all things and breathe fire and are the spark of life in all living creatures. O Aether, who appear from on high, and are the best first element of the world, O radiant offspring, who bear the light and shine with the stars. I call upon you and I pray to you to be gentle and serene toward us.”
The priests formed a circle. Their chants echoed like a resonance within my mind. The flames from the torches seemed to dance to the rhythm of their words, as if they had acquired their own consciousness. With every passing second, the weight of the moment crushed me.
It was then that I felt a cool yet quite strong breeze surround me, passing through my entire body! From the crown of my head to my feet, our aura began to be released, my crown floated, and a golden aura flooded me, yet it also flooded those around me!
The Mystic looked at me very carefully.
I don't know exactly what it was, because I looked at all the other people on the altar. Only Volkenhart's son and I looked strangely at our hands and feet. All the other people were simply relaxed. What was that?
Then, two of the Mystic’s assistants collected the parchments. They placed them on the altar, but in sequence, at key points, without getting mixed up. I was so excited that I heard nothing until I heard Eras. The names were passed onto the parchment as we held it close to our chest. That's how we knew which name went where.
As soon as all the parchments touched the altar, a beam of light appeared on the altar's crystal, and then it passed through the grooves it had and went to each parchment separately.
The Mystic opened the parchments and proclaimed the names. The names of the people around me were announced. Then it was time to say mine.
"For the thirteenth child of the Eras… it is…" The Mystic turned and looked at me silently for a moment, as if he knew something he wasn't telling me. His gaze seemed to pierce my thoughts, as if reading a secret written in the air.
"It is... it is... Pro-Prometheus, Prometheus Eras…"
The Mystic looked at me for a moment and smiled enigmatically. "Prometheus…" he repeated, this time in a whisper, as if savoring the name. "The name is only the beginning. The flame given to you… can illuminate or destroy. Be careful." For a moment, I thought his gaze pierced straight through my soul.
As the Mystic pronounced my name, I felt a shiver run down my spine. That name… wasn't just words. It was as if it was entering deep within me, as if it was already written somewhere inside me, but I didn't remember when or how. Was it mine, or was it imposed on me? Why did I feel an inexplicable heaviness?
The word "Prometheus" echoed in my mind. It was like a fire smoldering inside me, releasing both awe and fear at the same time. It was a name full of expectations, but also a burden I didn't know if I could carry.
My heart stopped for a moment. "Prometheus?" Not Aether? Not the name I felt was mine? I felt something strange – as if someone had detached me from myself. Or perhaps… was it the opposite? The sound of cheers seemed distant. I didn't know whether I should feel pride or fear.
Meanwhile, the Mystic thought: “W-what is this… why is his aura like this? Why aren't the other children doing the same, looking bewildered? Who is he… why? I’m seeing this for the first time. Even though he’s small, he frightens me quite a bit… It seems we have something interesting here. We must check what his parchment says in a second phase… Hmm!”
Back to the departure from the Sacred Altar
We began to leave the Sacred Altar. The Mystic wouldn't take his eyes off me as I descended, but I don't know why—I was smiling like an idiot! I looked with confusion! To tell the truth, I expected him to call me Aether, but he didn't... What's going on? Why?
The crowd started cheering with joy, as they always did at these festivals, and the music began!
I descended from the Sacred Altar to go toward my mother and father. Everyone congratulated me on my new name, although the change impressed them too.
My father looked at me, but his smile was strange—a mix of pride and hesitation. "Prometheus…" he said slowly, as if tasting the name on his tongue. "A strong name. A fate even stronger." His eyes darkened for a moment, as if he knew something I didn't.
My father specifically said, "I don't know what they say, but I'll continue to call you Aether. It's nice, right, Lux?"
My mother, on the other hand, reassured me: "You don't need to worry! Prometheus is nice too! And we can call you Promis—it's beautiful."
The Mystic had started giving the oracles, let's call them that—what the parchments wrote underneath our names next—how our destiny would unfold.
As the Mystic approached us, I thought: Since I have my mother and father beside me, I don't know what could go wrong… Until the Mystic said the following:
"Young Prometheus," the Mystic said with an authoritative tone, "from now on, make sure to give your light to those around you, even if you have to go through a thousand hardships or even if you have to go to the ends of this world… You will get involved in many things, but do not let the fire be extinguished. You will see many wars, you will participate in them, you will be involved in games of thrones."
He looked at me quite aggressively. "I don't know what's happening, but the parchment seems to be fading. I cannot continue to read… I don't know what happened to you on the altar, because it is a mystery that neither we nor sometimes you can explain. If you know and want to say something, speak up."
My eyes had widened because that old man set me up for a firing squad! My parents were simply looking with wonder and fear. When I looked at them, they just smiled at me awkwardly.
The girls, as soon as they heard the oracle, simply hugged me and smiled with excitement because they liked what they heard the Mystic give me. The poor things didn't know what awaited me.
Meanwhile, I didn't know where to begin. Indeed, all this anxiety overwhelmed me. But now that I think about it, as long as I'm breathing, I'm fine—I'll manage to do something.
The girls reacted this way because Hitomi received an oracle from the Archpriestess to develop technologies and offer help to the world through them, while Galaxia was instructed to learn how to store and safeguard knowledge purely and wisely! Not bad at all!
As we laughed, played, and danced, it seems to me that the first beautiful things in this life are slowly coming to an end. Although I have some scattered images in my head, I don't know what they are, even though they are blurred. The only certainty is how wonderful we had it as children! We were only seven years old compared to our years of life—it's nothing. But this would soon end, and something new would enter our lives. The celebration was in full swing and getting livelier! Until I saw my father say goodbye and leave quickly in an army vehicle! And quite panicked, to be honest!
After this small feast, full of good food, music, and dancing, we were all having a good time. I decided to sit down near the tree stump bench where all the adults were sitting. Then my mother looked at me, smiling with happiness, and said to me:
"Look, you have to go to the Academy that both your father and I attended. For four hours a day, you will learn more about healing through energy, to understand what energy is, to feel it, to love it, and to see how everything is energy. That's why we call it the Energy of All Things, because no matter what you do, you leave an energy somewhere, and that has an impact on life. Both the good and the bad are an energy. Some don't care about these things, but when you step outside Crystallphaos, you'll understand very well what I mean. I gave you some elements of it, as did your father, although he gave you less energy, but more in physical strength. And after your studies, for the next four hours, you will work here at the Clinic, in the department with minor cases or resident visits with small therapies, so that you can gain experience gradually."
I looked at her with incredible admiration. In her department, she cared for pregnant women and all children. Before that, she was in the emergency room, back when the Clinic gathered all the war wounded. That's how she met my father… but I decided to try, without expecting much, to convince her not to get involved in all this from now on!
"Ohhh!" I exclaimed with childish surprise. "I'm only seven years old—it's not fair! Child labor is not right!!! Shame!"
She laughed heartily. "Hmm, yes???? On other Earth planets or other races, it might be so, but are you forgetting that we mature faster in mind and body? And you've only lived years. Besides, you'll reach and look more like a young adult, and you'll be a young man. Don't forget that we, the High Humans and the Half-Elves, are biologically strange beings, no matter how you look at it…"
"It's sad when you think that you see so much, but you can't do anything. Love, wars, death, and many other things. And you have to reach an age of years to close your eyes. Normally, Angels and Elves are eternal, but because of the interbreeding they did centuries ago, that part was lost. That's why when you see Elves from other races, they might behave indifferently toward strangers. You will understand how hard all this is, but you will find your inner strength to move forward, with a smile, and continue to give your flame." She said this with a bittersweet expression on her face.
To cheer her up a bit, like a good son, I stood up. I clenched my left fist to my chest, looked passionately toward the fire in front of our benches, and then toward the sky.
Full of confidence, I proclaimed: "Aaaah!! I understand! I'm starting immediately!!! From what I gather, this world is incorrigible, so with the Mystic's oracle, I must improve things! Right?!"
I looked at her and smiled, closing my eyes! I opened my eyes and saw her laughing with pride. What I was thinking was: No way I'm going to save the world, as that old geezer Mystic wants!
While I was thinking these things and watching Hitomi and Galaxia dance, I was ready to join them! Just as I took a step toward them, I felt a hand on my head. The hand I felt was the Mystic's!
I turned, completely terrified, because his hand was the size of my head! The Mystic was close to meters tall, and I was barely eters. He found it very amusing. "Hoo hoo hoo, my little one!"
With that "hoo hoo," I looked at him confusedly, because an image flashed in my mind, like a flashback of a fat man with a white beard. What's going on? Terrifying!
He continued to speak, undeterred. "You will see that it is your destiny! Ahhh, and things will happen so that you will see, you will hear, you will help, you will cry, you will love, you will be loved, you will hurt, you will be hurt, and so on! In everything you do! Destiny won't change just like that… You will have to choose from a vast range of different things: who you will follow spiritually, what arts you want to learn, what books you will read, and what will help you. What-How-Why, you will find out along the way..."
Although everything he was saying sounded... strange, I decided not to worry so much and go have fun. I have time ahead of me! So, I mostly dismissed it.
"Understood, I see," I said. "I'll do my best, but something tells me this won't be easy, right? I mean, for seven years I'll be in the Academy – working? Is that what you mean?"
The Mystic simply shook his head right and left. "Not exactly. That is another matter. The clothes, the therapies, the items, the filters, and the physical training... You will learn about the deities, about the pets. I might be forgetting something, I don't know! Haha, maybe it's my age!"
I looked at him with a blank stare and whispered softly: "Or the fact that you're blind???"
He immediately heard what I said. "What did you say??" Of course, I covered up with a foolish look. "Me??? Nothing… What would I say? Hee hee."
He opened his left eye. "What I was referring to before, you will see it in the course of your life… And it will happen, whether you want it or not."
My exhale was one of relief, but it could have inflated a balloon. I looked toward the fun. "Well, I'll slowly go over there, okay? You guys carry on!"
They simply replied: "Go and have fun!"
I walked away from the fire where we were sitting and quickly headed toward the fun! Hee hee hee.
Meanwhile, the adults started a conversation.
The Mystic turned to Lux. "Tell me, Lux, you see for yourself that the little one is excessively hyperactive, right? What does your husband have to say? Where did your husband go anyway?"
Lux, for her part, simply looked into her glass. "Yes, unfortunately, he had to leave again." She said this, nervously clutching her dress with one hand, out of anxiety and sorrow, fearing she might lose him. "Imagine, when I told Diomedes I was pregnant, he jumped for joy. He was like a puppy! I told him that this was a cosmic event because we couldn't have a child. And now I see this seed! Hyperactive, quick-witted, and full of life, eager to do things! I hope everything goes well! But the Nine Nations have no intention of stopping… So I don't know how things will turn out."
They were looking at the fire in the center. Then the Mystic turned to everyone, sighing. "Ahhh, I understand you! Do you know how many… how many children we have given names to, and how many of them are orphans? Forget it... It's better not to think about the chaos. Let's think about our valley and how to keep it safe, clean, and out of trouble! Let's not forget: the Metropolis Aithercryst, along with its surroundings, has a total population of only eleven million. So we have to play smart, otherwise we will be lost. We can't compare ourselves to the high walls that have a million ready-for-war population in their capital city alone! It's sheer chaos!…"
He looked at the stars and said in a relaxed voice, "Let's… keep the present, and let's prepare for tomorrow... tomorrow! We have strong people guarding our threshold! Eh, Lux?"
Although Lux looked and smiled, something inside her was breaking because she knew that the war they had experienced years ago was no game, and they barely escaped then. She simply brought herself to say: "Ah… you're right."
The Mystic stood up, placed his drink on the tray of the person passing by him at that moment, and said to Lux:
"It was nice talking to you, little Lux. I'm going to talk to the other families too! Have a good evening, and be careful with the little Phoenix!"
Lux started laughing. "Little? I'm only nine thousand years old. Yes, I'll keep that in mind! We'll give him everything we can! Although I don't think he wants anything else—he says he already has everything!"
The Mystic quickly replied. "HAHA, Lux! To me, you're little; I only have ten thousand years on you! I can imagine, Lux, I can imagine! That's why he's quick-witted! Good luck then! Good evening!"
The Mystic turned, nodded kindly, put his hands inside his robes, and departed.
Lux looked up at the sky! And then at us, who were playing and dancing. A woman came and sat near her, and they started talking. Thus, the evening passed happily!
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