Lost Identity: Eloria Series Book 1 | ✓

39: Decision

7/24/3028

Two soldiers still stood sentry outside my door the next morning.

"Sye-Liene Anmyn, good morning. Is there anything we can do for you?" The taller soldier asked.

"Can you get Keiran Anmus for me?" I asked.

"Certainly, Anmyn."

While I waited, I flipped through Faces of Eloria again. Just as Elossai told me and Martin, the only distinguishing physical feature of Syes was their eyes, but not all Syes had the same radiant sapphire color. Some had brown eyes with a light sapphire rim that only become a more striking blue when they used their powers.

Syes also had the power of projecting their emotions through touch, and this inherent power can be strengthened through training. As I read about their powers, the thought came to me that Stanjah had shared an emotion with me before. In Possen Fort when Elossai and I were in Martin's room without permission, Stanjah grabbed my arm and I felt something. The room dimmed, and I was struck by a deep sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. I knew now that she had projected her fear and apprehension, such that I truly grasped the gravity of the situation.

Curious to know more about Syelos, I pulled out my tablet from the drawer and turned on the device.

"Information about Syelos. Activate interactive hologram," I said.

"Affirmed." The tablet flashed a bright blue then a holographic projection of a map of Syelos appeared in front of me.

To the south was the mainland, and to the north were several smaller islands in a cluster. I zoomed into the south and selected Analos, the capital. The visual of a white stone building overlooking a busy fountain square appeared. The building was upheld by large columns and had several steeples.

In the square were people in bright, solid colored clothing and the women's dresses and trousers were fashioned with geometric cut-outs at the sleeves or back. Among the Syes were a couple Elos with their forehead gemstones in full display.

The tablet narrated: "Analos: the capital city of Syelos has a population of seven million, and eleven and a half million in the metropolitan area. Syelos's education system is widely-acclaimed in Eloria, producing highly-skilled scientists as well as corin manipulators."

"More information about corin manipulation," I said.

The tablet flashed blue and chimed two descending musical tones. "Syelos has the earliest exposure to corin manipulation in Eloria. Children in year five begin to learn theory and relaxation techniques. In the following three years, students are limited to meditation. Further education in corin manipulation is selected through examination with corin general studies taken in years nine and ten and specializing studies in the years eleven and twelve."

The more I read, the more interested I grew. The study of corin manipulation had many divisions that students specialized in and took years to perfect.

The divisions were Military and Operations and they branched out to smaller subdivisions. For example, the M-EW, Military—Enhanced Weaponry subdivision, specialized in the study of using corin enhanced weaponry, while the M-ES, Military—Enhanced Summoning subdivision, focused on the study of summoning corin energies.

Then, there was the Operations division which was subdivided into O-EM, Enhanced Machinery, and O-ETR, Enhanced Technologies Research.

I'd only begun to scratch the surface of the fundamentals of corin manipulation when I heard a knock at my door.