(Revised – Academy Briefing)
The hall dimmed slightly as the maps stabilized.
Masako folded her hands behind her back.
"You will not meet the candidates today," she said, anticipating the question before it formed."You will not know their names.You will not judge their strength."
A murmur spread—disappointment, curiosity.
"This," Masako continued, "is not character study."
The sigils reshaped into five simple emblems, each marked with a settlement seal.
"This is context."
🔥 PYRAEN — Fire Settlement
A scorched plateau appeared.
"Pyraen teaches acceleration," Masako said. "Emotion-driven response. Power first, evaluation second."
She turned slightly.
"In wartime, Pyraen creates momentum."
Several students nodded.
"And casualties," Masako added calmly.
The nods stopped.
"Fire villages burn fast. They must be used carefully—or not at all."
💧 AQUELIS — Water Settlement
Canals replaced stone. Flow over structure.
"Aquelis survives through adaptation," Masako continued. "They change shape under pressure."
She tapped the image once.
"They are difficult to destabilize.And equally difficult to trust."
A pause.
"Water remembers every container it has escaped."
🪨 GAIATH — Earth Settlement
Mountains filled the wall.
"Gaiath values endurance," Masako said. "They reinforce, they resist, they hold."
Students straightened instinctively.
"Earth villages are relied upon to maintain lines," she continued."But reliance creates dependency."
Her gaze hardened.
"When they fall, everything behind them follows."
🌪 ZEPHRA — Wind Settlement
The image shifted constantly. Paths overlapping.
"Zephra rejects fixed systems," Masako said. "Speed. Information. Autonomy."
A few students smiled.
"They excel in reconnaissance and disruption," she continued."They obey outcomes, not orders."
Masako's voice sharpened.
"Wind villages often leave the field before you realize they were ever there."
⚡ VAELRION — Lightning Settlement
The final map did not expand.
It contracted.
High altitude. Minimal markings. Warning indicators rather than features.
"Vaelrion," Masako said quietly, "does not produce formations."
The hall stilled.
"It produces decisions."
No one spoke.
"Lightning settlements are not evaluated by volume," she continued."They are evaluated by consequence."
She turned from the map.
"And that," Masako said, "is why they frighten governments."
The maps faded.
Masako faced the students fully now.
"These villages are not enemies," she said."They are variables."
A hand rose. "When will we meet them?"
Masako did not answer immediately.
"When the world needs to decide what to do with you," she said at last.
The silence that followed was heavy—but instructional.
"Study their patterns," Masako concluded."Not to predict them."
She paused.
"But to recognize when you are becoming them."
The sigils vanished.
Class dismissed.
And somewhere in the academy, unseen and unannounced, preparation for the first mass Assessment quietly began.