Lorien adjusted his white linen shirt after descending the Campus’s main stairs—orange warm sunlight already hovering far above the high rooftops. It wasn’t his usual hour to leave, but the day carried its own exception.

  Professor Zenith, who wore a long overcoat and held a briefcase in hand, awaited right at the end—toward the start of the cobbled streets. The man’s dark eyes shone with expectation as he faintly smiled at his troubled student.

  “Shall we go then?”

  The boy with the silver eyes nodded and followed the man through the busy streets of the Central District. They walked past many storefronts placed within the foundations of brick skyscrapers, along with the distant humming of the Gondola shuttles accompanying the commuting march. Lorien felt out of place, as he rarely wandered outside the East Port District—especially during rush hour. Zenith, however, walked with the calm certainty of an adult who made himself belong anywhere.

  Beforehand, Arin’Zenith had managed to arrange the meeting quickly—in a popular tea shop within the Central District, commonly frequented by the New Liceas University staff. The place itself was built upon an old darkwood fa?ade, surrounded by tall, clean panes of glass.

  The man ended up gesturing toward a simple rounded iron table, placed right beneath a warm yellow lamp. It was only afterward that Lorien recognized the person waiting for them, none other than the researcher from the Mechanics and Engineering board.

  He, who also wore a dark overcoat and a scarf, laughed when contemplating Lorien’s insecure movements.

  “It 's alright. Come sit along.”

  Along with Zenith’s insistence, Lorien adjusted his seat further into the table, swallowing in the presence of both important men.

  “I must admit, it is unusual for me to spend time with students after work hours,” the board member brought up, leaning comfortably back.

  “I’m sorry if our petition was quite sudden, Hidna.” Arin’Zenith interjected, just for Lorien to join in too.

  “Sorry for the trouble…”

  Hidna adjusted his black scarf in order to free a part of his neck. “You two seem to be somewhat alike: shy, but also quite shameless” he mustered. “Regardless, I’m glad to share my knowledge with someone who seeks it very earnestly, Lorien.”

  A waiter arrived with quiet steps, taking an order of hot tea from both men—five drakes each. Lorien, hesitant, settled for only a cup of water. Their conversation resumed right after.

  “I was surprised when Arin informed me of your sudden interest in Chemistry. I hope the board’s decision on your prototype didn’t discourage you from becoming an inventor.”

  “Not really. I just think it’s important to know how the world works…”

  Professor Zenith crossed his arms while board member Hidna leaned forward.

  “I guess you have been wondering why I am the one helping you out despite not being a chemist myself, right? Back then, the academy used to have a more holistic approach in terms of the competencies of inventors. One needed to be versed not only in the assembly of parts and machinery, but on other underlying sciences like the study of physical and chemical reactions, mathematics, even in the arts of drawing and sketching. Nowadays, those have turned into optional classes for the sake of pushing students into specialization and teamwork.” he explained, right before receiving his tea from the teashop’s waiter.

  “Which you were never a fond believer of.” Zenith teased.

  “Hence why I’m glad one of our students is finally pursuing the path of the greats.” Hidna finished.

  However, Lorien’s true interest was placed in understanding the rules and limitations of the cube’s mysterious power of transmutation.

  Eventually, Hidna pulled a pen from his overcoat and began writing on a napkin.

  “Two main substances define existence: matter and void. Matter is anything that bears mass, and occupies a volume or space. Void, by contrast, lacks all matter, and it can possibly be considered as space itself.” he said. “Now, every piece of matter in existence is formed by structures we call atoms, and atoms themselves arrive from even smaller subatomic structures called particles: with positive, negative, and neutral energy charges.” He finished by sketching simple diagrams along.

  Interestingly, Lorien recognized those forms by instinct. He had glimpsed those structures before while performing transmutation in the alley—within the images projected in his mind’s dark domain. Yet, Hidna’s depiction seemed almost childish in comparison to what he had devised, merely the rough stroke of a broader impression.

  “The variation within these subatomic particles is what defines elements. Hydrogen for example, a substance rich in atmospheres, holds one of each; the oxygen we breathe, eight; iron, twenty-six; and gold, seventy nine. Countless more exist scattered throughout the universe—most of them forged as early as the dawn of time.”

  “Okay but, let's say… how can chemistry explain an element like iron possibly turning into gold?” Lorien inquired, awaiting the explanation in the napkins.

  “In theory, you only need to raise that number from twenty-six to seventy-nine, but it isn't as simple as adding them up.” Hidna lifted his index finger. “One of the most sacred laws of chemistry discriminates that matter can be neither created or destroyed. Thus, the particles must be taken from somewhere else—and moving them is no simple task. There are many tiny invisible forces holding most things together. If there weren’t, the particles composing our bodies, this table, and chairs would have scattered long ago, and we would have ceased to exist.”

  Zenith laughed at the exaggerated imagery imposed by his peer.

  “That is supposing it could occur naturally,” Lorien tried to guess, “but what if such transformation were to be forced or pushed?”

  “Your inquiry approaches the second main limitation behind the transmutation of elements: there is no such thing as true control. In our history, we have only learned to manipulate the forces of nature. Take phenomena like fission, combustion, or electricity… We can make them happen seemingly at will, but only by taking advantage of nature.” he warned, then followed with another example.

  “The natural process that allows the transformation of metals usually happens within the furnace-hearts of stars, being almost impossible to replicate with a tool or in a lab environment. But let’s suppose you can actually break the forces keeping the elements together, and rearrange them freely… how do you ensure you manipulate the correct atoms and turn them into the correct substance? Such processes requires more accuracy and precision than clockwork—nothing short of a divine feat. There are truly no shortcuts to achieving such a thing, unlike what pseudoscience like alchemy seems to sell.”

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  Lorien immediately tilted his head at the mention of the forbidden alchemy. “Why not? If the principles still exist…”

  “Just like I told you, forcibly breaking the bonds between elements and forcing their correct rearrangement requires more resources and energy than it takes to extract the gold from natural sources. In economic terms, the process would only make sense if the transformation had a way to be reliable or made easy; but the promise of an easy transformation—whereas from a mystical artifact—are nothing but myth and folktale. That being said, in the only remaining way the purpose of the transmutation is defeated before it even happens.”

  Overall, board member Hidna had been very clear in his explanations, offering to expand on every concept Lorien could not initially grasp. After several minutes of talk, Lorien reached various important conclusions.

  Firstly, the power within the cube was not unknown or magic, and it still seemed to work along some of the logic of the world. On the other hand, the easy transformation suggested the cube possessed a form of technology or energy that enabled it to happen with ease.

  Lorien immediately thought of the white lightning surrounding him and the transformed objects from back then, suggesting that it could have possibly been the power source. Nonetheless, he still could not conceal the ‘infinite contention’ brought by Laplace when vaguely explaining the nature of the cube.

  Other important questions arose from that fact, such as whether his power was limited to a certain number of permanent attempts, or the exact meaning of the color between what he had witnessed both in the alleyway and at Gongola Station.

  Third, and most importantly, if he was already able to perform transmutation without much prior knowledge or preparation, then there was a door toward optimization and improvement.

  As the night fell, board representative Hidna excused himself, leaving the boy and his mentor behind—not without thanking Lorien for the chance to teach him about something they both seemed fond of.

  “Lorien, are you satisfied with the things you heard?” Zenith inquired as he adjusted his coat, ready to leave.

  “...somewhat” the boy answered, still thoughtful. “I think I have a broader picture, but there are many things I still have to figure out.”

  Arin’Zenith nodded with approval, only to be interrupted by the young one.

  “However, I still don’t know why I’m important in all of this. Why do I need to figure it out and not another person? Even if it serves my goals…”

  “Why not picture this: What would be of a sculptor if he valued himself more than the stone he is meant to shape? Why not carve his own body instead? Yet, in the eyes of others, the sculptor who sees value in the rock is able to infuse things with mastery.”

  “I suppose so…”

  “Lorien, the value you don’t give to yourself, you’re already giving to the world. Now imagine the person you could become if you start giving some worth to yourself.”

  When thinking about it, Lorien only received interference from the growing echoes.

  "You have always been the most apt to inherit my place,”

  Seeing his inability to imagine, the mentor patted him lightly on the shoulder. “There is still a lot you have to learn and see…”

  Having suppressed the otherworldly interference, Lorien paid his respects to his teacher and thanked him for setting up the meeting.

  The settled night and the bright yellow streetlights meant he was already late for the night shift at the Inn’s kitchen, so he decided to take the time altogether for himself.

  Back in the dark alley next to the East Port District’s main avenue, Lorien placed some pieces of scrap he had gathered along the way onto the wet cobbled floor. He then uncovered the Nebuchadnezzar’s Vault from his bag and admired his own reflection along its edges, as well as the cold weight in his hand.

  “To test and find out the underlying rules…” he murmured.

  What followed after closing his eyes was the manifestation of the white sparks. Within the empty void of his mind, Lorien recognized the structures board member Hidna had mentioned, as well as some of the invisible forces binding them together—the ones that were not easy to break naturally.

  By his new reasoning, the metal pieces would need to draw matter and energy from somewhere, as it could neither be created nor destroyed. When performing the transmutation, Lorien noticed the scrap pieces pulling in atoms and particles from the surrounding air, with smaller portions taken from the cobbled floor.

  When he opened his eyes, one of the disconnected pieces had dissolved into dark, golden glitter.

  Lorien repeated the same process several times with each piece, each time obtaining a similar result. He only stopped when a sudden rush of exhaustion forced him to. At that point, he kneeled on the floor, gasping desperately for air. Despite not exerting any physical effort, his whole body was now fatigued. Moreover, the intensity of the white sparks had decreased significantly.

  He leaned against one of the walls and decided to wait until he was less tired before continuing. It took about an hour and a half for him to recover halfway.

  Then, in the second round of experiments, Lorien tried to transmute a bigger object—one of the pipes running across the bricked walls.

  Unlike the other transformations, that one almost drained all of his energy again.

  In his last attempt, Lorien distanced himself significantly from the objective. As a consequence, the object became much harder to envision, and it also required more energy from him.

  In the end, he dropped onto the floor, extremely tired but well satisfied. He accounted for his findings as follows: there was a limit to the number of transmutations he could perform with the Vault, with distance and size increasing the draining factors. By that same logic, he found that closer and smaller objects were easier to change.

  And so, he wondered if he could really only change one object at a time, or if the complexity of the material also increased the draining factor.

  Lastly, Lorien picked up a small piece of cobblestone, and instead of picturing glittering gold, he imagined the most simple particle that existed in the air. After manifesting the white sparks for the last time, he saw the stone dissolve into nothing, the object seemingly vanishing from existence.

  Interestingly enough, just as he was about to leave, Lorien noticed a smidge of water in his hand, right where the stone had just been.

  Although he did not realize it at the moment, the result of his transmutation had reacted with the environment, inducing the formation of new water molecules with the surrounding oxygen, thus creating a small portion of condensed water.

  Another thing left is to test on living things… he meditated as an afterthought.

  Regardless, he was amazed by his conclusions—his eyes lit with a restless fire that threatened to burn almost everything. Despite all the remaining variables, the Vault had now turned into a tool he could manipulate according to his heart’s desire.

  “It isn’t magic, but something that can be understood.”

  With that new conviction, Lorien made sure to collect all the gold into a smaller leather bag.

  “That is already enough money to get any person out of poverty,” a teasing voice behind him proclaimed.

  It was Laplace, who manifested from the lingering darkness without warning. Lorien looked at him briefly. This time, his eyes were able to look unfazed at the monster—then he raised the bag, weighing it in his hand.

  “It is. This Vault… it is important. Are you truly fine with someone like me owning something like this?”

  Just like before, the amalgamation of shadows made sure to study him in silence.

  “Are you? You seem to have uncovered much already.”

  Lorien insisted despite the puzzling answer. “There’s still one thing I don’t quite get. What could a demon like you possibly gain from this?”

  “I am nothing but a watcher, bound to bear witness to the chain of events unfolding.”

  “But even watchers expect something—amusement, for example,” Lorien questioned, prompting Laplace to smile with extreme maliciousness.

  “I’m afraid the stakes reach far beyond amusement—yet, I can’t deny the pleasure of participating in these little exchanges.”

  Right then, Laplace’s body returned to the darkness, and Lorien was only able to hear his voice again from above—standing right in front of a shining moon. “I wish you the best in the choices you make. Both our fates depend on it after all.”

  And so, Laplace finally vanished into the endless night.

  Even when left alone, Lorien still bore enough determination and knowledge to begin materializing his will—promising himself to change New Liceas for good.

  Little did he know, however, that the tides of change would reverberate far beyond the reach of the city—to times, situations, and places even dreamers would have a hard time taking form.