*Yuwwe Tyhal, I repeat Yuwwe Tyhal, please make you way to the Resonance hall!*
Not too long after the proctor's announcement, a girl with long, bright, flowy yellow hair and glistening gold eyes came. The girl looked like she knew what she was doing, but either way, the proctor still had to run after her and make sure she knew about the rules since it's his responsibility.
Because Shry didn't have anything to do besides waiting there, he decided to follow the proctor and greet the next participant, maybe even make a new friend.
"You're Yuwwe Tyhal, right...? Do you know the rules?" The proctor asked, as he repeated the sentence he'd repeated hundreds of times today.
"I—" The girl was about to answer, but then she saw a sky-blue-haired boy run up beside the man, causing her to hesitate.
"Oh... Perfect timing actually." The proctor was confused at first by Shry's sudden arrival, but then he thought of a good idea to kill two birds with one stone.
The proctor took out two small sheets of paper from a stack and held each of them out to both Yuwwe and Shry. The proctor was already planning to make Shry read the rules again, so what better time than now?
"Please read every word on this paper out loud," the proctor ordered.
Yuwwe constantly glanced at Shry, confused by his presence. She kind of wanted to know who he was, but just like every other kid here, wanted to go into the resonance hall as soon as possible, so she held off on that,
But to her surprise, Shry spoke to her first.
"Hey, nice to meet you! My name is Shry, and you must be Yuwwe, right?" Shry asked in a friendly tone.
"Oh! Yup, that's me. Nice to meet you too." Yuwwe replied with a slightly surprised but welcoming tone.
Yuwwe was not necessarily opposed to talking to Shry, but this wasn't the best time for them to be chit-chatting. So she gestured for them to start reading before their conversation escalates
After that brief conversation, Shry and Yuwwe began reciting the words on their papers; they tried to read in sync. At first they somewhat managed it, but as they continued, their reading speed and habits clearly differed from each other causing the recital to go a bit chaotic.
"Alright Yuwwe, you may pass, but make sure you follow the rules diligently." The proctor glanced at Shry as he said that.
Hearing that, Yuwwe nodded and smiled. Yuwwe couldn't wait any longer, and now that there weren't any further obstructions, Yuwwe swiftly made her way to the resonance hall with some pep in her step.
"Good luck! And also, you can open the door by pushing the center!" Shry waved to Yuwwe as she left.
Now that Yuwwe has left, a strange silence fell between the proctor and Shry. The proctor was still thinking about all the causes and outcomes that may have occurred during Shry's test, but he still couldn't pinpoint what truly happened to Shry.
As for Shry, he didn't have that much of an opinion on the matter. Since he doesn't know how the Resonance Hall usually works, his perception on the matter is pretty cut and dry.
"Oh yeah, Mister, what is your name?" Shry asked out of curiosity.
"Oh, huh?" The proctor snapped out of his thoughts.
After thinking for a moment, the proctor decided that there's no harm in telling Shry his name.
"My name is Hytile Luftra," the man answered.
"Also, can you recount your situation to me one more time?" Hytile asked as a mild look of contemplation dawned on his face.
"Alright, Mr. Luftra!" Happy that he now has a name to attach to the proctor, Shry jovially agreed.
Shry recounted his story again, and this time, because he had time to ruminate over the details of his situation, he was able to add a couple more additions to his account, giving Hytile more information to work with.
Sometimes, Hytile will stop Shry in the middle of his recounting and ask him some questions to get a deeper look into Shry's perspective. Hytile also occasionally made sure that Shry remembered the rules thoroughly by asking him questions and correcting him whenever he answered wrong or had minor misconceptions about the rules.
"Mr. Luftra, can you tell me how the resonance hall works?" Shry asked curiously.
After hearing about snippets on the machinations at work to make the resonance hall work, Shry got really curious, and he thought. who better to ask than Hytile who seems to have a lot of knowledge about the Resonance hall
"Oh, sure," Hytile answered positively.
Even though there was no point in teaching Shry, Hytile was happy to satisfy Shry's curiosity. Besides, he might gain more insight on how to move forward from the problem at hand.
"First of all, there's a reason why we demand that participants stay silent unless instructed otherwise. That's because the resonance hall is highly reactive to any sound."
Hytile looked at Shry for a second, and after seeing his sparking curiosity in his eyes, Hytile couldn't help but smile.
"Following what I said, our heartbeat and breathing also make sound, but when inside the hall, those sounds will actually be captured by a machination in the hall and used to further identify your biological frequency and, in turn, your resonance to the numerous different element frequencies." Hytile continued.
As Hytile paused to take in a breath before continuing, Shry thought that it was a good time for a question that's been on his mind.
"Mr Luftra, Why is the Resonance Hall always so dark even when the entrance is open?"
"Hmmm... Well, long story short, Light itself produces a sound as well, an excessive amount at that. That's why when a person exits the resonance hall, their hearing will temporarily be hampered—" As Hytile finished his explanation, his eyes suddenly widened
At that moment, Hytile remembered that, when Shry exited the Resonance hall, it didn't look like it affected him at all.
Shry seems to have realized it as well, judging from his facial expression; his eyebrows were furrowed, and his right eyebrow was also raised slightly.
Shry was confused and conflicted at the same time; he even looked at Hytile with a suspicious gaze. Because He thought that Hytile might've been lying to him
Even though Hytile sensed Shry's gaze, he didn't know what to say. He knew he was telling Shry the truth, but he also understands that Shry would most likely not believe him due to his circumstances.
Hytile was a bit irritated; he wanted to prove his innocence, but he himself didn't know why Shry wasn't affected in the first place, because judging from Shry's recounts, even if the Resonance Hall wasn't working properly, Shry would've experienced it.
(I guess we'll be able to find out if this is going to be a problem once that girl comes out,) Hytile thought as he let out a sigh in defeat.
After that, Hytile pretended that nothing happened and continued with his explanations.
"Some might ask us why we still used the resonance hall to identify a person's resonance path instead of using modern devices like the sorters they use to sort out Node into their respective resonance paths"
"That's because they're lacking one major component, and that is because children can't produce enough Node like teens or adults,"
By now, Shry had already forgotten about Hytile's supposed lies. As he listened intently to Hytile's explanations
"You see, children are all born with unique biology that carries a resonating frequency that can allow them to create ant control any manner of creation to a certain extent, following the 7 Resonance paths: fire, earth, wind, water, nature, ice, and energy."
"When they are still a baby, it is impossible to identify their biological frequency, but as they grow older, their sound matures along with them and at a certain age, that frequency. Like a flower bud, it will open its mouth slightly, barely enough to identify its luster"
"because the sound of that frequency is still barely conceivable, it needs an environment like the resonance hall to identify their affiliation to the 7 Resonance paths."
While Hytile was teaching Shry about the Resonance Hall, an odd but familiar couple kept staring at them from a distance, confused by their son's situation.
"Did the test fail or did something happen?" Shelt, Shry's mom tilted her head with a face tinted with concern, causing her crimson hair to dangle slightly.
"He's fineeee; he is MY son after all," Kanum, Shry's father jokingly told his wife.
(Are you still hung up on that?) Shelt thought as she narrowed her eyes and side-eyed Kanum.
"I'm sure it'll be fine; it looks like he's having fun after all, so it can't be anything bad." Kanum answered, seriously this time.
"Haaah... you're probably right." Shelt let out a stressed sign, and hesitantly agreed with her husband's statement
While both groups were talking, the door to the resonance hall began to open. It expanded forward and then slowly moved to the side.
Kanum and Shelt also noticed this but didn't pay much attention to it since it didn't involve them. As for Shry and Hytile though, they were both anxious, especially Hytile, because, depending on the results, he might have to postpone the resonance day to a different date for the remaining kids.
A minute after the entrance opened, a familiar, bright, yellow-haired girl finally wandered out of the resonance hall with a bright expression on his face along with a now vibrant blue dress.
*Riiiiing*
The moment Yuwwe set foot outside, her face visibly turned distressed, and she plugged her ear with her hands.
Shry was worried about what was happening to Yuwwe, so he glanced at Hytile. But was calm as if he saw it coming. In fact, he was glad, since that proved that the Resonance hall wasn't majorly damaged.
"Is she okay!?" Shry asked, since Hytile wasn't moving to help the girl.
Without moving, Hytile gestured with his eyes for Shry to look at Yuwwe again, and when he did, Yuwwe looked completely fine, albeit a bit frazzled, but besides that, there was nothing that indicated she was in any pain.
"Whew, I thought she was dying," Shry articulated in a strangely comical voice.
Hytile looked at Shry strangely after hearing him; he found it quite funny, but he had to maintain his professionalism, especially for the next part.
"Yuwwe Tyhall, there's something I need to discuss with you" Hytile, from afar, raised his voice a little to reach Yuwwe.
Getting her attention, Hytile waved and gestured for Yuwwe to come to him.
"Hi Yuwwe, how was the Resonance hall?" Peeking from behind Hytile, Shry greeted and asked Yuwwe as she arrived.
"It was amazing! All the lights and all the effects were so pretty!" Yuwwe answered, still giddy from the events she went through.
Before their conversation spiraled, Hytile quickly interrupted them and asked Yuwwe for a favor.
"Can you give a summary on what you experienced in there?" Hytile asked softly.
"Oh, okay!" Yuwwe answered positively but also somewhat confused.
Since the memory is still fresh in her mind, it didn't take Yuwwe long at all to deliver her account on what happened to her inside the Resonance hall
"When I first entered, it was a bit scary; I couldn't hear anything, not even my breath or heartbeat. After that, I think it took me about 20 seconds for me to calm down. After I did, I counted 30 seconds in my mind just like what the rules said." Yuwwe stopped for a second and looked at Hytile.
Seeing this, Hytile gestured for Yuwwe to continue.
"After that, I took my first step, and when it touched the ground, a *dull* sound played, and light spread everywhere for a second. When I saw that, I was very surprised, but just like the rules said, I didn't make a sound," Yuwwe quickly added.
(That didn't happen to me...!) Shry thought, frustrateded from being left out
"As I walked step after step, I noticed that the sound that rings every time I take a step sounded higher pitch, and the light that appears also looked like it was getting brighter each time too"
"Oh, I also saw these pretty flowers around the path, but they haven't bloomed yet." Yuwwe added and looked at Hytile like she was asking him if he wanted to ask her anything
Noticing Yuwwe's gaze again, he smiled approvingly and nodded, gesturing for her to continue.
"After that, the effects repeated and changed until I reached the altar and clapped."
*Pakkk* Yuwwe used a clap to emphasize her words.
"After that, the environment around me changed. When I turned around, the flowers that were around me bloomed, and dark blue glittery particles floated all around the air."
"And then suddenly, all the particles burst and turned into water." Yuwwe waved her arms upwards exaggeratedly like an explosion.
"It was like I was in the middle of an ocean," Yuwwe said in a light voice as she reminisced over that moment.
(That must be nice...) Shry thought as he pouted in jealousy.
Not noticing Shry's behavior, Yuwwe continued.
"After about a minute, I think... Some of the water suddenly charged at me... I closed my eyes, thinking that it was over for me, but when I opened them; after realizing I was alive, my dress turned dark blue, just like the particles" Yuwwe gestured at the dress she was wearing.
"Also, even though I touched the water, my hands did become wet!"
Yuwwe shaked her hands like she was shaking off water
"After that, nothing else happened. The water slowly faded away, and I walked outside."
As Yuwwe concluded, Hytile's face turned strange; he couldn't fathom what went wrong with the Resonance Hall. But either way, now that he's got confirmation that the resonance hall is working fine, he looked at Shry with numerous thoughts running through his head.
Hytile was still a bit hesitant about the current situation because of the nature of what Shry had experienced; no matter how one would look at it, there's no chance that there's nothing wrong with the Resonance Hall. But right now, all he could feasibly do was wait for the results of Shry's second round.
Since the resonance hall needed time to recalibrate and adjust before the next person could go in. Shry saw an opportunity for him to try to befriend Yuwwe.
"Was water the resonance path you wanted? I've heard the water resonance path is pretty special." Shry asked Yuwwe with sparkling curiosity in his eyes and ended his words in a whisper like he was telling her a secret.
"Yeah, I guess... but to be honest, I couldn't decide between nature and water." Yuwwe tilted her head, looking like she was conflicted.
Yuwwe felt satisfied but also partly regretful. Internally, she wanted both of the elements even though she knew it was impossible.
Throughout the past hundred thousand years, there wasn't a single musician who had managed to possess both the nature and water resonance paths at any point in their lives; not even the most powerful musicians could achieve it.
"My dad actually has the nature resonance path! and he told me all about it!" Shry excitedly told Yuwwe
"Really!" Yuwwe responds with stars in her eyes, signaling Shry to tell her more.
Shry was a bit taken aback by Yuwwe's excitement when she heard his father had the nature resonance path, but seeing how excited Yuwwe was to learn more about his father, Shry felt proud, like he was the son of a major celebrity.
"Yup! He even has Vestige unlocked..." At first, Shry happily propped up his father on a pedestal, but as he continued, he began to recall what Kanum uses vestige for, causing his voice to gradually get quieter and quieter.
Yuwwe was excited to learn more about the nature element and especially Vestige, but after looking at Shry's facial expressions, she felt a bit concerned for him because of his odd looking facial expressions, Yuwwe thought Shry may have had some terrible experiences with Vestige.
It wasn't as bad as Yuwwe thought, partly at least, because the main crux of Shry's disdain lay in the way Kanum uses his Vestige; it's because about 90% of the time, whenever Kanum uses Vestige, it is mainly to tease him.
Yuwwe wanted to talk to Shry about his father more, but before she could, a mature voice interrupted them.
"Okay, it looks like the resonance hall is ready now." Hytile patted Shry on his shoulder to get his attention.