It wasn't Mi-Yung's problem to care for and make Celeste into a warrior. She promised to teach her some manners and planned to do it the right way, but not in every way. So what if Ellie took her torch and worked on some matters better? It was more than satisfactory across the board, although she could do a couple of things better.

  “Alright,” William said. “Are there ways to learn about those paths? Systems and Ranks and Skills and so on. Ideas before becoming a Walker sound like a good thing to know. It is fair to ask.”

  “No, and yes, and... you are asking way too much. A LOT can wait. You can’t fly without wings; talking about flying doesn't count as strength. Just wait and be fine, and if you won't take it, I take it that you already got the hang of it with Ellie, Kaufman, or Outside. How much, though?”

  “Bits at most, but I want your teachings since you took it that far. It's too late to regret it, so...” William bowed his head across the table and pleaded before her.

  Celeste looked confused about whether it was insulting, good, or if she should do the same thing. Ellie stopped her in time.

  Smiling, Mi-Yung didn't mind this idea and agreed. “What about you two?”

  Ellie didn’t care. “I wouldn't mind your help from time to time, but Celeste is a troubled girl in many ways. I think I can help her more than you, and it needs special kind of responses.”

  “If you say so...”

  “I mean it!”

  “And I don't care if you do. I kind of know what I am good at, and kids might not be that.”

  “Oh.” Ellie didn't trust that she meant that, and had no other choice but to move on. She was happy that she didn't refute her outright.

  ***

  The power of Walkers was a topic as old as their existence, standing for the warriors of mankind. To Mi-Yung’s knowledge, Outside had a rather twisted impression of them. Some people considered them utter saviors, others as storms that needed to be cut for the whole Dawn to break, while a large chunk considered them heroes or straightforward, powerful people.

  “Basics, eh?” Mi-Yung wondered and began speaking in a new room. “Emblems affect everything like electricity does a machine. Around, within, and outside of our bodies, they are the cause and creators of strange effects. They are reasons we are called Walkers. They manifest as we grow, walk, creak under the System, and fully mend within the adulthood and power of Arcana.”

  “There are three kinds of Emblems. One is full of Vectors—a type of strands made of dense Arcana. They embody many forms and can’t turn back to pure Arcana. They either look like geometrical concepts or abstract lines. Their forms vary or go in whatever direction Walker wishes to handle, thanks to a tolerable level of molding, or it’s entirely innate.”

  William was silent even when Mi-Yung was getting ahead of herself and started talking about quite complicated stuff.

  “Vectors are no Arcana, but it is a magical energy as well. Vectors can't become something lost. Arcana is much smaller. Tinier. Since Vectors are a major sequence of this energy, they have their weaknesses and greater powers, but they aren't weaker or stronger than Arcana. It is no apple or orange, you see. Flavors and elements and—”

  “I didn't hear it... like that. What about Arcana?” William asked and halted her lesson since it was getting annoying.

  “Not yet,” she clapped, and her eyes sparkled once in a delightful light. “Vectors appear like a swirling storm. Little hands, lines, needles, waves made of them, and so on. They are straight-up matter that matters. Walkers then draw with them like pencils and guide them around the world. Their bodies are akin to a canvas and empty sheets of paper. It has layers, and many kinds of papers, yes? That's the best analogy I've learned, and it is—”

  “Hey! Her eyes snows!” Celeste pointed loudly, jolting Ellie, while Mi-Yung stopped her lecture.

  “I don’t think so,” Ellie argued, hoping she would listen to Mi-Yung better.

  “It is her Arcana, I suppose?” William guessed and pointed to Mi-Yung. It wasn't hard to guess, though differences between Arcana and Vectors could be sublime, mild, or very hard to guess.

  Mi-Yung chuckled and figured her leaking sight helped with nothing. Still, what Celeste said felt kind of funny, and it was true that showing was better than talking.

  “I don’t actually prefer Arcana or Vectors. I am an Arcalyst specialist, and I prove it with the unique perks of my tiers. Rank 6 is a fairly big deal, kids, and I don't need to prove their differences since they do something completely different to me.”

  “So, you aren’t a Warrior? I mean… Class is important, no?”

  “What is Arcalyst?” Celeste asked without caring about William's question, and Ellie felt things were getting out of hand. She whispered something in her ear until the conversation calmed down.

  William was curious about what kind of Walker Mi-Yung was. It sounded good, but that could wait, as Mi-Yung herself wasn’t fine with revealing this without trusting every one of his points.

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  She excused both of them.

  “One could use Vectors to Mold weapons, mix them with Skills, get Skills themselves, or fit in various effects or manifestations. Most should stay on par with Walker's Rank, and one can't really choose to become Vector Type or something else. It is already decided.”

  “Yeah... but Arcana? I heard about Mutants and Elementalists quite a few times.”

  “And? They are all Walkers anyway, with Vectors or Arcana, so who cares? Vector Type is its own thing, but what makes Elementalist and Vector Type Walker is more up to your mind, correct?”

  “Are you asking or answering or what?” William said with defiance and a healthy dose of curiosity.

  Mi-Yung chuckled. “I am saying that because they make sense. Elementalists are sheer dedications of elements that fuel Vectors or Arcana, like very flavorful paint. It is a permanent attachment, affinity, if not innate effectiveness, with effects that adhere to a whole Emblem. Fire, water, ice, wind, light, shadows, gravity, and so on. It's not about the talent or learning opportunities. One either has this flavor or doesn't. In other words, Pure Arcana or Pure Vectors full of Arcana alone are typical, while Pure Arcana are usually up to Elementalist, while dense clusters of awakened Vectors are up to Vector Type. So what's the difference?”

  “Degree of elements, or how strong are the Vectors? It is about growth at Rank 0 and how their sequences come to existence in the Awakening. That's why their type is so consistent and elements are important.” Ellie suggested, sounding clever and much more interested in this talk than anyone else in this room.

  “Yes. It is about that and Emblem. The last type is like a blue moon, rare and—”

  “Wait. Wait.” William waved his hand and stopped Mi-Yung again. “Elementalists are whatever. What is that paddling and weapon-making? Could they do that too?”

  “Molding, you mean? That’s just a basic shaping of Arcana and Vectors. It's normal. Don't tell me you don't even know about it?”

  “I mean... why do I ask?”

  “You said your ideas about Outside and how Walkers fight and stalk Outside. With what, or with whom? Weapons. Helps. Skills. Buffs. Teams. That's it, but put that into proper terms if you feel like talking,” Mi-Yung added just in case, which was enough for William to shut up and for Celeste to get invested.

  “The last type is Mutant. That's a type where one is neither an Elementalist nor a Vector Type because it is utterly broken in ideas. They are rarer than the rarest elements. There could be Vectors, and even fitted with fire or all that other stuff, but neither of them points to the previous types, that, by the way, makes most Walkers in the world.”

  “Why?” Celeste asked.

  “Because Mutants are the way they are. Unique. Rare. Met with conditions and strengths that rival strange primal tendencies.”

  “I don’t… get it?” Celeste muttered and noticed Ellie muttering something again. She didn't listen and leaned towards Mi-Yung. “Are they monsters?!”

  “No. Darks are. Think of them as strange Walker variants that grew up in strange Rank 0 conditions. Besides that, ways and links about these archetypes are not even everything. They have Classes, as William suggested. It is another flavor, but this one is about the System. Being a Mutant requires differences that the other two types can’t possibly achieve. Their effects and powers are strange and hard to put into words. They could be weaker or much stronger than the first two, or very individual, or independent.”

  “Where to draw the line?” Ellie asked, wishing for a pen and her diary.

  “Quality. It is the same across the board. As long as one aspect of these three archetypes acts as the majority, one is that.”

  “But someone could follow other principles?”

  “That's right, but they would still be one archetype. It is individualistic, as Skills and certain matters with the System point to some level of customization and focus. Also, a person can learn all disciplines, even across fields, streets, or seas apart.”

  Ellie didn't expect this to be so open and varied. Wasn't this way too obscured and complicated? Darks were already so crazy and winning, and Walkers had only three types? Frankly, she didn’t know much about Classes, which was one issue for her curiosity.

  “Don't think it is bad, kids. Emblems and how to use them are very subjective and changing. That is one reason why everyone is unsure about young Walkers, but they should never be ignored. Every generation is proving new gifts and records, like Darks. It is evolving, or we are.”

  “How do Mutants fight? Have I seen one?”

  “Fight? Well, I am unsure what you've seen, William, but it is possible, like me, to tell how horses and cats run and jump. For the most part, Mutants have very physical points and exhaustive visions. Emblem could change their physical bodies, thread aspects of reality bending, elements, Darks, or handle ideas like dimensions, time, and spirits.”

  “Those sounds like strange properties...”

  “Right?” Mi-Yung nodded to Ellie.

  “That is rather... big explanation. Thank you.” William said.

  “I am not over yet. These are the types, so how about the start of everything? Emblem and the System. That's where pain and learning open. Without either, we are nothing. You have yours in your arms, two of you, that is. Mine is in my torso, so what do you think is the difference?”

  Mi-Yung said, gesturing to her neck and pulling her finger down.

  “Position,” Ellie said quickly.

  “Obviously. What else?”

  “I have no idea,” William said, pondering and touching his right arm.

  “Flow?!” Ellie almost shouted.

  “Correct, Ellie. You are sharp.“

  Ellie quenched her fist and felt proud.

  ”In short, it is called a Localization, and it is as important as the archetype. I won't touch upon the Mutants much. Their uniqueness is too odd, so I will speak about the others instead. Location of the Emblem gives the Cycling and Molds their strength and Walkers their potential weakness. We can’t change it, no matter how you work on it. Arcana and Vectors, it doesn't matter what it is. What is further away from the Emblem, the weaker it gets.”

  “That makes total sense.” William unwillingly said, hoping he was understanding it, but he wasn’t sure.

  “Important parts are the entire human system. Bone structure. Nerves. Blood vessels. Veins. Muscles. Lungs... well, most of our insides have to undergo some level of change and transformation. Neither of those is easy, pretty, or normal. We are still humans, yet we aren't one either. From blood, flesh, and Emblems, that scatters to strangeness in the further Ranks.”

  “OH!” Celeste slapped the table and jolted Hound up until he howled in shock. Did something bad happen? Not really. Celeste hummed and scurried to express her voice, but failed miserably.

  “What are you curious about?” Mi-Yung said, leaning closer to her and trying to be understanding.

  Celeste struggled until she remembered everything from the past days. Didn't that old leaf say a bunch of similar things? Dreadus did too, and how body and temple made a building and sky, and… was that it? She wasn’t sure anymore.

  Then, Mi-Yung was also there. “That… chair?”

  “Oh, that,” Mi-Yung figured her topic must have touched upon a shroud of wisdom over the past couple of days. Most things did not bother this girl. It was more about her awareness and what she could bring out of her head. It wasn’t easy, much to her expectations about this brand-new world.

  After omitting his bottle, William felt a dry throat, and wondered if his hand was a fine Localization. He checked it with his left hand and judged he had no answer to it.