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The room James entered was absolutely incredible. Windows stretched from floor to ceiling, showing the bright blue sky and thick trees underneath, like a jungle. A large wooden desk sat ahead, giving the impression of an office, which, of course, it was. The boy that opened the door went to stand against one of the walls, leaning without a care in the world, although his eyes never left James. Images similar to the murals near the ship were hung all over, but their meanings were still quite incomprehensible. Captain Olar bowed.

"Lord, while investigating the massive spike of dimensional energy detected a short while ago, we discovered this boy with traces still on him. He says his name is James Newman and that he has no idea where he is. He claims to know nothing about interplanetary civilizations, nor about aliens at all. He has not acted in any way that could pose a threat, but I wanted to ensure that my judgments were correct."

"That was the correct call Captain," an old voice said. James spun around and saw a huge centaur walking slowly around the edge of the room, over to the desk. Although his coat was gray and his hair white, he had an unmistakable aura of wisdom and power.

James stiffened, unsure of what to do, and then bowed. "Um, hello Lord Eternius. I really don't mean to be a threat and if you could help me that would be much appreciated and..."

"James," Captain Olar muttered.

"If I could find out more about this planet too, I've never been here before and oops that sounded bad and I from a planet that doesn't really communicate with aliens and that sounded much worse..."

"James," Captain Olar said again, a bit louder this time.

"I really should stop talking I'm probably just making things worse off but I really don't want to die or get interrogated or anything so please Lord if..."

"JAMES!" Captain Olar yelled. James shut his mouth. "Stop rambling. That isn't Lord Eternius."

"Wait, what? But the big centaur with age and wisdom and stuff ..."

Said centaur was covering a very large smile at the moment and a couple of chuckles could be heard.

"He's not Lord Eternius. His Lordship is standing over there." Captain Olar pointed to the man still lounging against the wall, failing to hide a grin.

James' mouth crashed into the floor. "This guy is the great and powerfully ruler of several different planets? He's barely older than me!"

"You should watch your mouth. Remember this is the man who..."

Lord Eternius laughed, cutting Olar off. "It's fine. I know that I'm not much to look at, but I am actually the leader of this planet. Among other things. And I think I should be able to help with your little problem."

"Really?!?"

"Of course. As Olar said to you before, if I can't solve it, no one can. Have a seat." Eternius gestured to the nearly empty room.

Olar coughed. "Um, sir. I believe you sent your chairs to be fixed after a... slightly explosive incident last week."

"Right, I forgot. Let's fix that. Have a seat." Eternius waved his arm towards the center of the room and 2 chairs fizzled into existence. He sat down and James just kind of plopped into his.

"Right, so you're not from here. Or from a world with interplanetary knowledge?"

"No, how did you guess?"

"You look completely rattled, especially when I made those chairs appear. Adding to that from what I've heard about you so far, it was simple to figure out. Honestly, it's amazing you haven't collapsed."

"Why, do you have this problem often? Are there more people like me?"

Lord Eternius shook his head. "No, you're very unique. There are systems in place to prevent people from teleporting or materializing here, but this is the first time in my entire life I've ever seen them breached in such a massive way."

James raised his eyebrows. "You look 25." Olar coughed into his fist and the centaur turned around to hide a laugh.

Lord Eternius rolled his eyes. "Well, looks can be deceiving. I may look 25 years old with your planet's method of measurement, but I'm more along the lines of a couple billion."

James fell out of his chair. "What... What units is that in?"

"Years. A billion seconds would just be a pain to calculate out. Hm, looks like a shorted a circuit in his brain." He rapped on James' head. "You ok in there?"

James blinked and nodded. "Ok... Just working on processing the latest of great revelations. I think I'm nearing overload here."

"Yes, turning your views on the universe upside-down will do that. Now, let's get you safely back home and you can forget all about this. Can you explain what happened right before you came here?"

"I was racing home to prevent my, um, house from blowing up when I ran off a cliff."

"Not a good idea for a species that can't fly."

"I noticed. But when I hit the ground, instead of breaking every bone in my body, I entered this strange misty place and it felt like I was falling at a tremendous speed.

Lord Eternius shared a glance with the centaur. "Yes, you entered what is known as the Aether Plane. It's easy enough to access, but how did you end up here? There should be no way to materialize in the middle of a park on one of the most heavily guarded planets in Reality. Nothing else in between the mists and landing?"

"Not that I can remember."

"Troubling. Nonetheless, I'll have to figure it out later. Getting you home is our priority. Just tell me where you are from and I can send you home right here, right now."

"Really!"

"Yes." Eternius smiled. "I do have a bit more than my age going for me. Now, where are you from?"

"I'm from a planet called Earth."

"I've never heard of that planet or its inhabitants before. Give me one second." Lord Eternius created a sort of holographic screen, on which he quickly paged through a long list. "Your planet isn't listed in our directory. I figured as much, seeing as you guys don't know other life exists. So, our best bet would be to do a Reverse-Relocate, which sends you back to your previous location in the universe. It'll send you back to Earth and then we can keep an eye on you further in order to figure out what caused this mess in the first place. Sound good?"

"I think so. So when this is done, I'll be back home?"

Eternius nodded.

"Then let's do it! When can we start?"

"Like I said earlier, right now. Stand up."

The chairs moved out of the way and Eternius and James stood in the center of the room. Eternius raised his hands up and a purple line of energy zipped into the air. The line wound around to create a symbol in midair, which crawled with energy and sparks. "You know, I'm actually borrowing a bit of my sister's power for this. My thing is space, not time."

"You have a sister?"

"Yep. Her name's Eon. Pretty nice, although we've definitely had our differences before. Now, there's one and two and there you go!"

"Done already?"

"Yeah, this is actually pretty simple compared to what I do on a daily basis. Alright, here you go."

Eternius clapped his hands together and yelled, "Relocate!" The symbol flashed and James felt a force take hold of him. His hand began to dissolve in front of him and he realized he was being sent home. But as he continued to disappear, he felt a great pressure envelope his entire body.

"Somethings wrong. It's like there's something fighting me!"?

James could barely hear Eternius shout over the ringing in his ears. The pressure increased tenfold, feeling like it would tear him to shreds.?

Dimly, he could make out Eternius yelling. "If this continues, he'll die! I'm stopping right now, damned be the consequences!"

The glowing symbol abruptly stopped shining its purple glow and James felt the pressure on him vanish completely. But at that point, he was simply too tired from his entire ordeal thus far. He? felt hands shaking him as he lost consciousness and wished to wake up in his own bed, safe and sound.

When James did awake, he was indeed in a bed. But he immediately figured out that was not his own due to the ceiling above his head. The entire thing looked like a beautiful image of space, except that it moved as well, James rubbed his eyes and sat up, now fully aware that the events of the previous day did in fact happen. He didn't feel scared or curious, he mostly was just tired.

A person knocked on the door, which was a small wooden construct inlaid with gold. "Hello, sir. Are you awake? May I be permitted to enter?"

James hopped out of the bed, checked briefly to make sure he had clothes on, and then answered, "Yes, you can come in."

A creature made of pure water opened the door and walked, or rather slid, inside. "Thank you, sir. I am a butler assigned to your room by Lord Eternius in order to make sure you have everything you need this morning."

James blinked. He had a butler.

"You have a meeting with Captain Olar in 1 hour. I would recommend taking a bath and there are fresh clothes in the wardrobe and drawers. Simply ring the bell next to your bed if you need anything. So you have any questions, sir?"

James shook his head. "I think I'm fine, thank you." The water construct nodded and left, closing the door as it did so. James turned back around to consider his options and spotted a door leading off to the left. Entering into a large tiled space he assumed was the bathroom, James decided to follow the construct's recommendation and bathe before meeting Captain Olar. He was still wearing his dirty clothes from the previous day, after all.

James ended up soaking for almost 30 minutes in the tub, which was very large, set into the wall, with more of the ornate gold finish around the edge. After climbing out, James looked around for a towel but suddenly felt a warm air blow over him, drying him instantly.

"Amazing! Every time I forget I'm on an alien world, something new pops up."

He went over the drawers that the construct had mentioned, in order to put on clean clothes. He was worried because he had no idea what was worn on this planet, but his fears were ended when he discovered that there was only one pair of clothes in the entire dresser.

"By the way," James thought as he put on the outfit. "I really need to ask Captain Olar the name of this place when I see him. Calling it "This Planet" is getting very tiring. And what the heck am I wearing?"

In fact, James' new clothes looked very strange: a close-fitting pair of a shirt and pants that were a single dark gray. They looked to be more like they went under something... there it was. James opened the closet, which was huge, to find a single piece of cloth hanging up. It was a bit drab, being again solid gray, but he tried to wrap it around himself in a way that made at least a tiny bit of sense. He was very much flying by the seat of his pants.

However, as he wrapped it around him, the cloth shifted and flowed, changing into a brilliant blue coat embossed with gold around the edges. It was not clasped at the top but was held together by some invisible force, tight to James' body. The bottom hung open past his waist and went down until just above his feet, wide in the front and completely closed in the bad. It fit like a glove.

As James was internally freaking out over his new gear, the construct knocked on the door once again. "Hello, sir. May I be permitted to enter?"

"Yeah, come in."

The construct flowed into the room and appraised James' coat. "Well, sir. I was instructed to assist you with your Arcian garb, but it appears you have fared well on your own. If we could make our way downstairs to the main hall, Captain Olar is waiting for you."

"Alright, lead the way."

The journey downstairs was uneventful, although the building was very bright, with light shining off paintings and the mosaic floor and walls. James did get to see how the elevator functioned, though. They stepped onto an outlined section of the floor, the construct pressed a button on the wall, and a circle of solid light carried them downstairs after the floor dissolved. James continued to be astonished at the differences in technology between here and Earth. It kept him keenly aware that this was a very alien place and that he knew almost nothing about how things worked here.

As the elevator landed in the middle of a large open lobby, James caught sight of Captain Olar lounging a chair against the far wall. The Nussocian put away the tablet he was holding and went over to meet James, a smile on his beak.

"Morning, James. Did you sleep ok?"

"Yeah, although waking up was a bit disorienting. What happened yesterday? Did something go wrong?"

"About that. Lord Eternius is going to talk with you later today after he finishes with some business. Until then, I was relieved of my normal duties to show you around. You seem to be taking to our clothing well, at least."

"I was wondering about that. That water construct had mentioned something about it being an Arcian garb when he went to fetch me, but I didn't have time to ask him anything about it."

"There are still quite a few things that you don't know about, and if you had been sent back successfully, then you never would have found out. However, in light of yesterday, Lord Eternius asked me to explain one specific topic to you."

"And how exactly does this connect with clothing?"

"A very long time ago, intelligent species developed methods for controlling the energies of the universe. Arcian cloth is woven from specific trees and plants that absorb that energy during their growth. Although it appears like a dull gray cloth, it can, well, read your energy and transform into the best clothes to fit your personality and style."

"Really? Are you wearing any right now?"

"Of course. Almost everyone on this planet wears a form of Arcian clothing; it helps express personality. For me, my armor is almost entirely Arcian, see?" Captain Olar pulled a piece of his suit away from his body. When it got far enough, it partially reverted into the same dull gray cloth that James remembered.

"It can even become things like armor?"

"Yeah, Arcian stuff breaks quite a few laws. Some even use it for their sword sheaths and everything. And a few very powerful individuals, like Lord Eternius, only wear Arcian clothes so they can be wearing whatever they need in a moment's notice. That water construct did a good job of fitting that coat you're wearing, by the way. It looks really good."

"He didn't actually do anything. I was trying, and failing, to put it on and then it just kind of turned into this coat."

James didn't know it was possible for a bird to raise its eyebrows.

"Are you saying that the cloth transformed by itself?"

"Yeah. Why, is that weird or something?"

"No, it's... complicated. But I'll have to explain later. It's getting late and if we don't get a move on, we won't get a good lunch."

James nodded and followed Captain Olar to the doors. They emerge onto the expansive grounds, which were boarded by a thick jungle. A couple of different species walked between the different buildings, but it was largely empty.

"Captain Olar, are we going to that shuttle hanger from earlier?"

"Hm? No, we're going a more normal way. And there's no reason for the Captain. Olar will do just fine."

"Alright. But if we aren't going to take that ship, then how are we getting to... wait, you haven't told me where we're going yet."

Olar smiled. "No, I haven't. I'm taking you on a bit small tour of the nearby city. And of course, we'll get lunch. As for how we're getting there, it's the platform straight ahead." Olar pointed to a very large and slightly raised circular platform. They stepped onto it, but James didn't see any shuttles or other vehicles.

"Where's the ship?"

"This is a bit easier than calling down a transport every time you need a ride. Remember how I explained that bit about energy manipulation? Well, watch!" Olar put his hands together and green energy arced outwards, surrounding them both. Another symbol formed in midair, different from the one that Eternius had used, and a matching one appeared under their feet. James was just about to ask what was going on when the energy flashed, and the world blurred and shifted. Suddenly, they were in the middle of a crowded city with magnificent structures soaring into the sky. The platform was the exact same and people of all types walked on and off, creating symbols and disappearing flashes of light.

James fell backward. "Holy crap! You guys have teleportation?!?"

"Is that what your species calls it? Judging by your reaction, I'd say you haven't cracked it yet."

"No kidding! We only have this type of stuff in books and movies How is this possible?"

Olar smiled. "Energy Manipulation. Eternius can explain better than I can, he practically invented it. You can ask him about it later, but we should get going. I assume you want to see more before we need to return?"

"Yeah, let's go!"

Olar led James into the city, filled with light and color. People busted all around, traveling on walkways that twisted and turned like roller-coaster tracks. There were pathways were different vehicles and ships of every kind zipped overhead. James even saw several people flying, either with wings or sometimes with no obvious tools at all.

"Welcome to Synthesis, the largest city on the planet of Aurellion. People from all over the universe come here for schooling and knowledge. There are markets that have something from every planet that span for miles. The entire planet is devoted to the upkeep of the schools here and development of the best of the universe's future generations."

"Wait, so this entire planet is basically one big school?"

"Pretty much. We call it the Arcane Quintessium, and almost everyone comes here at some point to receive teaching. Individual universes have their own schools, but this is the one at the center of it all. I went here when I was little, you know."

"Holy cow! How many students are here right now?"

"Only about 100,000. There's a break right now, but the main school year begins later this month."

Olar and James entered into the market sector of the city, which was bustling with even more people. Vendors stood in stalls selling everything under the sun and more, most of their wares being alien goods that James didn't recognize. Olar led him to a restaurant that took up a very large building.

"This is one of the best places to eat in Synthesis. I'm good friends with the manager, so we should have no trouble finding a table for some lunch."

Soon enough, a waitress took them to a table by a window that looked out over a vast expanse of trees and hills; a park in the middle of the city. They were given menus and then left alone to decide what they wanted to eat.

"Olar, can you help me with this? I have no idea what to get."

Olar laughed. "Right, I forgot for a moment that you aren't used to our food. Here, a grilled Ussoca steak should taste pretty good."

They ordered and afterward, James realized an issue that had been strangely absent since the beginning of his adventure.

"So," he began, getting Olar's attention. "How exactly can we understand each other. Or rather how can I understand all the people I've met so far perfectly. You guys don't speak English, do you?"

"That's what your language on Earth was called? Interesting. But no, we don't all speak the same language. I'm actually talking to you in Nussocus right now, the native language of my people."

"Wait... WHAT! But you sound completely normal to me!"

"Yeah, it's one of the more ingenious creations by Lord Eternius. All species have their languages analyzed and registered when they interact with alien species. Then, their words are automatically translated for every individual that hears them speak."

"But... but, that's like magic."

"That's because it is. Magic, I mean."

James just kind of stared.

"I'm not kidding you. Remember back when I was explaining about energy manipulation. Turns out every single intelligent species has a word for that sort of thing. They even all translate to the exact same thing when ran through the language translator. Magic is simply the manipulation of energies in order to achieve a specific goal."

James was almost speechless. "You're telling me that you guys are space wizards?"

"When that's translated to Nussocus, it sounds hilarious, but yes. We're space wizards. Or mages, as the technical definition goes."

"What can you guys do, exactly? Throw lightning or something?" James asked.

"Well yes, if you've got that type of magic; there are hundreds. Everyone's different and each person trains in their own style. I'm an Air Mage myself; it kind of fits with the whole bird thing. But we use magic in almost everything now, like that teleporter from earlier. Alchemists, Weirds and Arcane Engineers are constantly using magic to invent new technology to better our lives, and most other mages use their talents to defend planets and balance out the forces of the universe."

"And where do people learn magic?"

"Well, what do you think this school is for? Every planet has one, but this is the largest and greatest of them all."

The elation James felt almost eclipsed the shock and confusion of the previous day. "So you're telling me that this planet is flipping Hogwarts!?!"

"I'm not understanding the reference. Just because we have a translation spell working constantly does not mean references from other planets carry over well."

"YOU CALL THEM SPELLS TOO! THIS IS AMAZING!"

"Sit down! You're making a scene... DO NOT JUMP ON THE TABLE!!!"

After James had settled down and contained his excitement, the pair finished their meals. The meat was a bit like steak but was cooked with spices that tickled James' tongue and was the most exotic thing he had ever eaten (obviously). After walking a bit more, then teleported back to where James was staying, which James learned was X-Solae, one of the dorms for the Quintessium. Lord Eternius was coming by to talking with James about the events of the previous day, and so they did not want to be late.

James was led into a large meeting room, which was separate from the rest of X-Solae. Lord Eternius was wearing a circle into the floor with his rapid pacing around the room. James was surprised to see that the centaur was also there, standing by the edge of the room, trying to get Eternius to stop.

Olar closed the door behind them and Eternius finally stopped his pacing.

"James, how was your day? Did you enjoy seeing Synthesis?

"It was amazing. I've never seen a city so beautiful. And your technology is incredible. Teleportation, instantaneous translation, hell EVEN MAGIC!!!"

Eternius smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "You sound excited."

"Are you kidding? This literally fulfills every fantasy I've had since I was little. Real magic, like with spells and mages and everything! And even a magic school!"

"I'm glad you had a good time, but I have some very bad news. You might want to sit down."

"Why, what's wrong?"

The centaur and Eternius shared a look before Eternius turned back to James, sadness in his eyes. "I can't send you back to Earth."

James couldn't believe his ears. "What? Why? Is this a joke?"

"No, unfortunately, it's not. When I cast my spell yesterday, Reality fought me with everything it had, which is saying a lot. You almost died, and I was forced to cancel the spell early. I spend all of last night and today working on a solution, but right now, the message is carved into stone. Reality itself is refusing to allow you to return home."

"That's bullsh*t!" James yelled. "I thought you were 12 billion years old or something and the ruler of a whole flipping galaxy! How can you not send me home!"

"Even I am governed by the laws of this universe, laws that cannot be broken by anyone alive or dead. I will devote my considerable energy to returning you to Earth, but until then you will be stuck living here."

"So you are saying there still might be a chance?"

"In my entire existence, I have never come across a problem such as this. I WILL strive to figure out what is going on. But there are impossibly powerful forces at work here and they are not to be taken lightly. I have no idea how long it could reasonably take."

James sat down in a nearby chair, devastated. This entire time, he had been coasting on the idea that he would eventually be returned home and now he had found out that might not even be a possibility. He might never see his family again. But he was determined to not give in to despair.

"How can I help?"

Eternius looked incredulous. "You have no knowledge of magic or anything else, nothing that could possibly help us discover more. I'm sorry James, but you cannot..."

"Teach me then."

"What?"

"Teach me magic. Olar said that this the greatest school in all of the universes. Teach me how to use magic so I can figure out how to return to my home."

Eternius was shocked at the boy's resilience and drive. He was about to question James further, or perhaps say no altogether, when the centaur that had been standing quietly by the side of the room spoke up.

"I would say that is a good idea, my lord. I was going to suggest a similar arrangement, but it appears that we are of like mind."

James had forgotten that the centaur was even in the room. He did not say anything, however, and waited for Eternius' response.

"Really? But why would you suggest such a thing? He is from a planet that has no knowledge of us or of magic and its uses."

"Yes, but what else would he do while here? Waiting patiently does not seem to be his style and if he has the desire to learn he may well discover something you were not able to. You are not omniscient, after all. And, if he indeed is trapped here for the rest of his life..."

"WAIT A MINUTE!!!" James tried to cut him off but was silenced with a look.

"As I was saying, in the unlikely event that James is trapped here for the rest of his life, which is still a possibility that must be taken into account, then it would benefit him greatly to learn magic while he is young so that he can make a living when he gets older. Does that make more sense, James?"

James nodded, not really trusting his voice at this time.

"Either way," Eternius said. "James is from a nonmagical world. As a result, he cannot see magic and therefore cannot do it. And that is something that cannot be taught."

"On the contrary, I believe that he does have the ability to see and understand magical energy. James, the other night, what was the color of the energy that Lord Eternius used?"

James thought for a moment. "Purple, I think. And Olar had green when he made the symbol-thingy when we teleported."

Eternius raised his eyebrows. "You saw those? Describe the one I used yesterday."

"I'm not really sure how to. It was purple and was shaped a bit like a circle with a tail and the bottom. There were also a bunch of little shapes inside and I remember the center was a sun and moon in an eclipse, just like the symbol on Olar's suit."

"And that's not all, Lord Eternius," the centaur said. "If I remember correctly from the report my water elemental gave me this morning, his coat also manifested by itself, without external assistance."

"I was wondering about that. That coat is a very rare piece of Arcian clothing; I haven't seen it in a while. But the pieces do fit together. What do you propose?"

"Sorry for interrupting, but what the heck are you guys talking about?"

The centaur nodded at James and then turned to Eternius.

"Lord, I'll take it from here, if we're in agreement? You can dismiss Olar, who I'm sure has work to get done and return to your other duties. This is my job, after."

Eternius sighed. "I supposed you're right. I'll leave him to you, then. Let me know if you need anything. Let's go Olar." He walked out of the door and Olar gave James a quick goodbye and a smile before following him. James was left alone in the room with the centaur.

"Allow me to introduce myself, James. I am Sherru, the headmaster of the Arcane Quintessium."

"Wait. You lead the ENTIRE MAGIC SCHOOL!"

"Yes, you could say that. It was actually pure chance Eternius was here at all. He was checking up to make sure everything was running fine when you materialized. Otherwise, he would have taken several days to clear his schedule and make time to come down here."

"So why did you want to speak to me alone? And what were you and Lord Eternius talking about before he left?"

Sherru smiled and walked over to James. "You need something to occupy your time while we search for a way to send you back. And after seeing your excitement from earlier, I think I've identified the perfect solution. I propose that we enroll you in the Arcane Quintessium and teach you how to wield magic."

James was shocked. "Are you serious? I can't do magic!"

"Of course not. You've never been taught before. But you have the ability. Somehow, even though you came from a nonmagical world, you can see sigils and the magic used to create them. You even have some powerful energy yourself, if that coat of yours is any indication."

"But what about other students and classes? I don't have any knowledge about other civilizations, or even about the universe as a whole. I don't know anything about magic and I'm way too old! And I defiantly don't have the money to pay for something like that!"

"Let's go over those in order." Sherru ticked them off on his fingers. "Quite a few of the students that attend the Quintessium are from other worlds, so they don't necessarily have much knowledge about the greater universe. Second, you cannot perform magic until you are 15 years old; it's a law. So outside of certain familial techniques that are passed down, everyone is starting off from the same place, and at the same age as you as well. Finally, there is a substantial fund for students that need assistance paying for their education. As the headmaster, I am authorized to distribute it as I see fit, and trust me, you will not be a drain on it in the slightest. Any other concerns?"

"Um, no. So how exactly will this work?"

"The teaching year will begin in about a week. Every student will be arriving shortly, and you'll get a room assignment. I will give you a feasible planet of origin so you have an answer when people ask you. At the beginning of their first year, students go through a test to determine their magical affinity; what they are best suited at. Until then, I would advise that you make a couple of friends and relax. Understood?"

"Yes, Headmaster Sherru," James smiled.

"Now, I am sure that it has been a very taxing day for you. I would advise that you get some dinner from downstairs and then get some rest. Just ask any of the elementals if you need assistance. You can stay in your current room until we receive the room assignments, and don't worry James. Everything has been taken care of by me, so don't worry about money."

"Thank you, sir." James felt the urge to be a little more respectful now that he knew that Sherru was going to be his headmaster. He had always respected his teachers back on Earth, and he would continue to do the same here.

"If you need anything, do not hesitate to ask."

"Yes, sir." A water elemental led James out of the room and down to get something to eat. Dinner was as good as lunch had been, but James was still distracted. He understood well that he couldn't go home, but he still felt like this was all going way too fast. In the end, he decided that it was the best possible option, and that, if he would admit it, he was little excited to learn magic. After finishing his meal and returning to his room from before, James was told by the elemental that clothes would appear in the dresser and closet for tomorrow and that he should simply ring if needed anything. James thanked the elemental, took another bath, and went to bed, still contemplating the events of the day.