The Elements of Mentoring

[Yevheniy Kharchenko]

It had been strange thing coming to New Zealand, a strange new set of experiences that he hadn't entirely anticipated, they had arisen out of the shadows so to speak. He had problems with the language, English not being his strongest suit, but as he was slowly improving, this enabled him to become more engaged with the population around him. Coincidentally it also help him because Yevheniy had joined the Scitorari, becoming part of the elementalist subgroup which had seemed most natural to him, while not unlike most others in his dislike of muggleborns and muggles, he had been more interest in the origin of magic, the use of the elements: Yev didn't just want to be the guy yelling in the corner about how wizards were better. He had never been particularly studious while at school but Yev was keen to learn this, keen to widen his knowledge in this very specific field. In joining this particular subgroup he had been offered the chance to be mentored by one of the other members, someone who had been a part of it for longer. This concept was foreign to the teen never expecting to need it, but he had accepted, knowing that getting himself into the mix of things was important, improving his understanding of where he and those he surrounded himself with stood. He obviously would never be able to move forward or get to know any of his comrades in arms unless he took the opportunity and tried, gave these strange things a chance. That and while the teen was just travelling around seeing the little bits and pieces of the world there would be no harm on improving his knowledge on the side. The teen rationally knew that he wouldn't be able to just travel around always, doing some more training under the wing of that man from the meeting seemed only right, to better position himself. It wasn't like the teen had better things to currently do with his time, so he had no real excuses as to why not.

Yevheniy's first meeting with that strange man was talking place today, it was where he was currently headed, and he had ventured to the headquarters of the sub-group with trepidation, unsure of what to expect and hoping that he wouldn't help up hating it. Yev had cleared his day, even turning down going out with the friends he'd brought with him to this country. The teen was curious, he had no interest in leaving because of a terrible meeting but that would impact upon future decisions surround this place. Unlike with school the teen was willing to put in the effort and stick it out as long as he possible could, but his as long as he could was perhaps shorter than most. Yev didn't know how well it would work out, but he was willing to give this all that he had, after all he was out of school and just trying to find something to do with his life. He knew he would likely fight with the person teaching him, and do less than friendly things, Yev didn't like being told what to do. Yevheniy wandered through the halls of this strange building taking in the sights and sounds of it, the winding staircases and seemingly never ending hallways. Paying attention to the world which had surrounded him, trying to make sure he would remember the way there and back, since from the little he'd seen he was likely to get lost often. Finally after much searching and wondering Yev finally stumbled upon the room he was meeting this person, the name escaped him, he couldn't remember if he'd been told it, or if not. Suddenly standing at this door the teen felt nervous, a feeling he hadn't felt in a while. He shook himself mentally and just knocked firmly on the door. He didn't enter as he might've done at school, this was different, this was new and the teen didn't want to do anything wrong on his very first day. If this, whatever it was could be referred to as the first day of anything, this was all very new to the teen and he didn't know what to expect, all he hoped was that it was good.
​

This is truly, spectacularly awful, others will be better.

 

[Horus Chalthoum]

Horus was trying to get used to the fact that he had his own office now. A few days ago, he had returned from a mission succeeding in acquiring an ancient relic that his instructor had order to find and bring it to the headquarters. In order for an ambitious Elementalist to climb from the bottom to the next level of their corporate pyramid, was to complete a certain number of missions successfully. Hierarchy for the sect was very important and those who were good enough to qualify were rewarded generously, the type of rewards depending on the new ranking of course. In Horus' case, among the new privileges was his own office and room. Pretty nice bonus for someone who used to sleep at the shared dormitories with the rest low ranks.

Horus liked his office and its minimalism. It was a spacious, rectangular room of polished, white concrete floor and walls with no windows. When someone entered inside had to walk the 10 meters distance to reach the long, glass desk that seemed almost superfluous, since there's little to no paperwork to be seen. Two leather, black sofas with metal legs were facing him as he was sitting on the high back chair behind the desk. There was no other furniture in the room. A wall-mount aquarium housing gryndilows was covering most the left wall. It was casting a low, blue glow illuminating the room, creating long shadows. On the right wall there was only a metallic world map canvas. Magical beacons were flashing on specific spots on the map. The most eye catching was a red dot blinking on somewhere in the middle of Atlantic Ocean. Blazing notes cast by Flagrate spell, bearing Horus' handwriting, were also floating over countries, constituting of either a few words, numbers or symbols.

On the wall behind him was flashing in blue the pyramid of the elements and symbol of their sect, its eerie glow adding to the rooms lighting. On the desk before him, an apparition was shape shifting upon the wave of his right hand. At first it was a set of different kind of gemstones rotating around an invisible point. Horus pointed his index finger at a pale one and information written in Flagrate ignited next to the gemstone's apparition. His jade eyes read through it swiftly and he flourished his wand to scribble on the air a few more lines that were added to the floating, blazing text. Then he waved his hand and the apparition changed into a 3D map of an underground tunnel network in New York city. His eyes followed the orange beacons representing his associates taking part at an operation as they were navigating An operation was taking place there and Horus could see his associates taking part as orange beacons navigating through endless junctions. A knock on the door made him shoot a glance on the closed door of the office. He waved his hand again and the apparition transformed into the headquarter's map. His attention focused on the pair of footprints standing outside his door. He had completely forgot that along his new privileges, his promotion was also bearing a new responsibility. The mentoring of a recently joined Elementalist. He pointed his hand to his right and the apparition zoomed behind him as it turned into an orb, half dark, half reflecting a wraith-silver light. A waxing quarter, the night's moon face, was levitating at the right back corner of the office now. It was hovering smoky and pale behind thin scudding clouds. "Come in." he invited the young man inside as he placed his elbows on the desk and interlocked his fingers.

 

[Yevheniy Kharchenko]

Standing outside the room that he was supposed to go into, the teen couldn't help but think of what his father or uncles might think of what he was currently doing, what he was planning on doing or would end up doing. They had always been supportive of the magical cause but had never been interested enough or driven to sign up. They had hated and moaned quietly, but the difference between them and Yev was that they had known upon leaving school what they wanted to do. They knew where they wanted their life to lead them, Yevheniy on the other hand had never known, he had never been certain of where his life might lead him, so anything interesting was an option. He had never been sure of what he wanted, never really made a decision about what would be best for him. All he'd ever done was try to figure out what might just be the best way forward, what might capture his interest the most. He took everything day by day, week by week, he was reckless with his life, little regard about doing things which could result in him getting either into a lot of trouble or seriously hurt, he cared little for his own safety or really that of others. The teen was just about moving through each day, Yev was about just trying anything and everything, he didn't care about himself enough to ever think that any of what he was doing was wrong, that he would be on the wrong side of history. He didn't ever think that a bar fight he might have one day over something stupid would end badly, he was sure of himself, that no matter what he would always turn out just fine.

When the voice on the inside said come in, Yev took a deep breath and then walked into the room, he walked with purpose, stood strong, no time to appear weak. He flashed a small smile, a polite smile as he walked into the room. He allowed his pale blue eyes to just skirt around the room, taking in the different things which were in his eye line. He didn't know what this would involve, he didn't know what he was even going to need to do, but seeing some of the different things made him think that whatever it was, out of all the different sub-groups of the Scitorari this was likely to be the most interesting, he was pleased with his choice. He was really looking forward to whatever he might learn especially if anything that was currently about the room were things that Yevheniy was going to be able to do, or something similar. "Afternoon," the boy's voice was pretty accented, he was new to New Zealand, and though he'd been born in an English speaking country he'd definitely lost most his ability to speak the language, and his accent was more apparent now than it had ever been. He stood in front of this man's desk and instead of sitting just stood, extending his arm to him, "Yevheniy," he told him, introducing himself, in case this man didn't know or had forgotten his name. It was just a way of making things happen, of moving this forward.
​

 

[Horus Chalthoum]

The door of his office opened and the young man entered inside. Horus' looked at the newcomer intently as if he was intending to bore a hole through him with his eyes, to see right through the perky social mask, the subtle smile and the air of confidence, to the private person that the boy was keeping hidden inside. The candidate reached before the desk and Horus nodded at the brief greeting. From his accent, Horus had the spontaneous impression that the person he had before him was of Eastern European decent. He was familiar with the accent while they had many people in their fraction from that part of the world. The Elementalists were possibly the most multi-cultural out of the five Scitorari sects while they were looking for talent overseas. He stood up to shake the boys hand while his piercing gaze met those pale, blue eyes. "Welcome. Horus Chalthoum. I'll be your mentor." he said with not the slightest twitch to betray if he was truly pleased to make his acquaintance. The strong, assertive handshake the two of them exchanged was a good first sign. Possibly Horus had in front of him a young man full of potential. He was going to find out soon. "Please, have a seat." he motioned at the black sofas and himself had a seat behind the desk.

Horus waited for a few moments for the boy to sit comfortably before beginning with the introductions. He preferred not to browse through the list of recruits and read through the boy's profile. Horus preferred learning about an individual from the way the way they were bearing themselves during a conversation. "In case you're wondering how you are supposed to address me, Horus will be just enough. We don't have that much of age disparity so I wouldn't like to hear any mister or I don't know how else you would have addressed someone around the age of your father." he cleared this out before anything else and continued. "For anything you might need or you want to ask, you bother only me. You might be wondering how you're going to function in our sect and this is my job to find your true potential. If this helps, it's my first time mentoring so this is going to be a first for both of us." he made sure to mention this principle as well. If he wanted to stay they had to coordinate in the best way possible. "You will learn more about me while we'll work together. The only things you might need to know about me except from my name, is that like to be quick, informative, that I want you to be disciplined and that at some point you'll might want to kill me." he stated humorlessly but he made his point that he wasn't going easy on him. "Time is ticking, so I'll cut straight to the chase."

He stood up and walked over to the walled aquarium. "We are only interested in the best of the best." he began saying with his back at the boy while watching the gryndilows swimming behind the thick glass. "That's were I come in." he turned around to look at Yevheniy and make sure he was listening to what he was going to say. "Your talent is raw, but it's... obvious. We have the means to refine that talent and make the most of what you've got, and I'm not talking about money." he said as he slowly paced at the other side of the room to look at the metallic world map canvas, on the opposite wall of the aquarium. "I'm talking about power." he revealed and turned around with his hands folded behind his back to see Yevheniy's reaction to the sound of the word power. If that's what he was craving then he was at the right place. "We're prepared to give you a unique opportunity. A chance to prove you've got what it takes to hang with the best. To learn how to harness one of the most ancient branches of magic. The magic of the elements. We believe it is the ultimate power and for us it's all about power. Grabbing it, keeping it, using it. Power is our currency. Our DNA. Our god. We want to control the world. To provide the blueprint and give the instructions. You can have a huge part on this if you like. So it's up to you to grab that opportunity by the balls." he said as he returned back to his desk to sit down.

He remained silent for a couple of moments while his jade, green eyes studied him closely. "Based of what I've seen so far, you might be what I'm looking for. Or you might up dead. Time will tell. Tick...tock." he said and for the first time a soft smirk lifted his lips. "When I first joined the sect, I was part of a circle of other recruits as it is used to happen with newcomers. We were seven back then. Only two of us have survived ever since. Most of them died during operations but some of them were taken out by their own partners." he briefly explained what he meant by saying that he might end up dead. He was going to refer to that matter at length later. For now, he wanted to know why his apprentice had decided to join them. "We usually find 'you' no matter where you live or who you are. In your case, you found us. Why the Elementalists out of all Scitorari sects? I think you suit best the Prejudices." he wondered, his voice laced with sarcasm. Horus had just initiated the game of doubt to make the recruiter express the reason he wanted to be one of them and claim his place as a partner.

 

[Yevheniy Kharchenko]

Yevheniy shook the man, Horus', hand firmly before taking a seat directly in front of the man, he wouldn't have often done that, not even in school, Yev would've stood just to be confrontational. It would've taken far more to get him to sit down, but this was more important, he actually wanted this, he hadn't wanted school in the slightest. However, this was and would always be better, so he sat as the man began talking. Yev almost snorted at the fact that Horus might've believed that Yev would call him Sir, Yevheniy would've only done so with a tone of annoyance or sarcasm never as a sign of respect. He didn't know this man, how could they expect to receive respect from him if they hadn't shown him that they deserved it. Yevheniy rarely said such things, and he wasn't about to start now, so at least this man didn't expect him to say say such a thing, not that it would've happened had the man expected such a thing. He nodded along as the man continued to speak, clearly interested in what he was saying, processing the information as it came, he didn't think that he was going to be of much good discipline wise, Yevheniy didn't care much for that kind of thing, he would try but if he had to break the rules or if he decided to push back he would, he didn't care much for his own well being so that wasn't exactly an issue for him, he didn't care enough to be concerned. He didn't think the man, Horus would be happy to find out that he didn't want to follow all of the rules to the letter and that discipline was the last thing on his mind, but considering the man was still talking he didn't feel like interrupting him to inform him of such a thing, if this went ahead the man would so find out. So, Yev remained listening to what the man was saying, attempting to just listen along without growing too bored. It was all very interesting, sure, but Yev just wanted to get started.

Yev had of course no idea what might be demanded from him, but he was more than willing to grab it with both hands, nothing fascinated him as much as raw power, of the origin magic and it's use for his own advantage. He would stand with these men, whomever they were in arms, comrades fighting the fight they believed in. He knew there would be little getting out of this, if he jumped into it too quickly he might make a mistake, but Yev had never practiced caution before there was no reason for him to do it now. So he just followed the man as he moved around the room, his pale blues focused with a determination clearly seeable within them. He wasn't so concerned with turning up dead, it wasn't something he cared about too much, he was young and his fascination and excitement over this trumped how he felt about the dangerous nature of it. As the man continued, finishing essentially by saying that Yev had found them rather than the other way around, stating that Yev would be better suited to the prejudices more than anything. Yev narrowed his eyes slightly,

"They are children," he returned, there was no malice in his voice, it was like he was stating fact, Yev knew that he could've easily joined them, he knew he would've less to do, but Yevheniy had always believed them like children, "They talk a lot, they hate openly but they do not do enough. They are busy with normal jobs and families," he continued his accent thick, he had to pause every so often to find the right words to use, "I do not want to sit around and just talk about things, I wish to act. I have no family to look after, I have no roots, I will give my all to cause. I am uninterested in just sitting hoping for movement, I was good at Dark Magic at Durmstrang, I want to learn about origins of magic, I want to be a part of something that allows my magic to grow rather than just my belly," Yev spoke calmly, implying that the prejudices were nothing more than people sitting around in a pub eating and drinking, "I am young, and I am willing, I am determined and motivated. I do not care about danger, I do not care about if I get hurt or not, why should my talents be wasted on such a sect." Yev wondered if that had passed this man's test, "The elementalists want to learn about the origins of magic, they want to use the elements to help be powerful. I want to be a part of that, I want to learn that. Power is what we need to win this war and this is how we get it,"
​

 

[Horus Chalthoum]

Yevheniy might didn't know it but every action he was taking, every movement, every expression on his face was closely observed by Horus. Their handshake was exactly as he wanted it to be. If it was a weak one, the young men might have been already out of Horus' office. Most people were underestimating the power of body language. They were giving mostly emphasis to words. Horus wasn't really a talker and this was all new to him. The observer inside him was never going to die. His piercing gaze could most of the time detect the real weaknesses and assets that most people were hiding or overstating with the use of well picked words. Horus let him talk and he listened and observed. A soft smirk touched his face. He had liked what he had heard. "You could make a great recruiter." he mused. His yellow green eyes were locked on his charge. "I much prefer to see you as a Shadestrider. You get assigned with missions, tasks. You execute them without questions and you get rewarded. At the same time you learn how to harness the power of the elements and you become part of the continuous quest for knowledge." he explained briefly. Not everyone was made for this demanding job but from what the young man before him had claimed, he seemed like he would do well as one of them. Horus was himself a Shadestrider and this was the only role he could teach well to Yevheniy. "Before I have the chance to test your abilities, I'm obliged to tell you a few things if you want to last a little bit longer around here" he said and prepared to advice him. Horus wasn't good at counseling but he wanted to keep his charge around for a bit longer, at least until the trials. If they were going to work well together, perhaps he could make it to the end and become a Shadestrider.

"Projecting indecision would be the worst thing you could do around here. Always smile and don't let them see what you're really thinking. This is a cannibal world so be always on guard. Someone will be ready to bite you when you'll be least expecting it." he shared this important tip. He sure was going to need partners but it was easier to fight water with fire in this sect than making friends. "For now you can trust me but you'll have to develop acquaintances with other recruits as well. Missions are easier completed when you have someone trustworthy to back you up. You'll have the chance to meet them. Choose them and don't let them choose you or they might choose as well where to dump your dead body" he continued in a deadpan voice. "Once the trial period is over, you're either in or you're out. As simple as that." he made sure that he wasn't wasting his time and that he was actually listened. "The Elementalists are very achievement focused. It's like Durmstrang you mentioned-only everything is hardcore. The ethic I would like to instill in you is aim high and achieve even higher." he encouraged the aspiring man. Only in that way he was going to outlast other recruits and climb fast the hierarchy ladder. "It's not just in your best interest, it reflects on me too and that is super important." he added to clarify that for now at least he had to comply with rules as he was representing him. "Make me look bad and I'll feed you to the grindylows over there as an object lesson to the next f*ck-up." he gestured at the aquarium on the wall and looked at Yevheniy to make sure he was taken seriously. "It is so cute when you new guys think I'm kidding." he sighed and shook his head before standing up from his chair.

"Enough with the talking. Come. Follow me." he prompted as he walked past him. He waved his hand and the offices door opened. Horus guided the recruit around the labyrinth of corridors and chambers. Perhaps a tour of the premises would have been wise but he wanted to get straight to the point and find out of what he was made of. They turned around a corner and a metallic sign on the wall with a carved arrow read: "Test Chambers". They walked past a series of doors. War cries, clashing sounds audible from behind them and bright flashes momentarily glowing from the cracks beneath them. They stopped at t closed door that Horus opened and let his charge step inside the circular, spacious but empty chamber. Another door was at the other side of the chamber and grotesque gargoyle sculptures were overseeing motionless from the walls. "This is where you can train and experiment with your power. Different chamber offers different ways to practice. I think this is a good one for a beginner." he said as he paced towards the middle of the chamber with his arms folded behind his back. "Now, what would be the element you feel more comfortable with?" he asked him and turned around to face him. Everyone practicing the elements had a special affinity with one of them and they were less potent with the opposite. It was a traction determined by once personality. The affinity in return was affecting the individual in its own way. Some people were blamed to be pyromaniacs, some other were suffering from acrophobia or they were really good swimmers. Most wizards and witches they were ignoring this connection but elements were the basis of the simplest levitating charms and fire-making spells. Yevheniy's elemental affinity would determine how their practice was going to progress.