After attending to their daily tasks in the hall, the triplets headed to meet Íthil, as agreed with Master Khan. With a bit of grumbling, Íthil accepted to take them. That very day would be the Festival of Flame and Hammer, a festival where parents and guardians would go to the academy to celebrate the beginning of the Red Moon month with their children or wards.
The water of Dremoria's central lake shimmered with the multicolored hues of the city, which dressed itself in the festival's colors. Gently, they murmured on the horizon and were complemented by the ethereal reflection of the moons in the lake. Íthil and the three youngsters, Rein, Zein, and Dein, walked along the lake's shores.
Large, six-winged dragonflies fluttered, voraciously chasing midges and water moths. They danced colorfully and flickeringly, touching the water with their wings, creating crisscrossing patterns as if challenging each other to a duel of aerial prowess.
— An… then… ha!... then you survived a Koshin Obore! Ha… ha… — said Rein, exhausted but amazed and breathless from running after Íthil.
— Seriously!… Ha…! Ha…! Haaa…! Let's rest a bit, Íthil… — Íthil turned to see Zein, who was panting heavily. The triplets, accustomed to their desks and hours of reading, could barely keep up. Íthil moved with astonishing speed along the lake's edges.
— Master Íthil to you… and Superior Íthil also works — he replied, slowing his pace just a little.
— What are we looking for, sir? — Dein said, saluting him at the end like a soldier on a mission.
— That's right, Private Dein! We're looking for Quelontas; it's laying season — Íthil smiled faintly, which startled the boys.
— Yes, sir! — the three youngsters saluted, their spirits revitalized by Íthil's great charisma.
— Look! The Red Moon is in the center of the lake — said Zein, excitedly.
— Don't you think it's strange? Look at the sky; there's only the normal moon; however, there are nine moons reflected in the lake, don't you think that's strange? — Rein asked aloud.
— The lake is a window; it reflects the world of the moons. What you see is called the flock: the eight colorful moons and their mother, the Ocher Moon, watch us from there — Íthil replied to the boys.
The youngsters looked at Íthil, interested, with a sparkle in their eyes.
— And why do we see them in the lake? — the boys chanted in unison, intrigued by the phenomenon.
— What? Aren't you supposed to go to the Mageia school? — Íthil grumbled at them.
— We had barely learned to read and write when we arrived at the academy — said Zein with a bitter smile.
— Truth be told, our mother enrolled us to save money on us — Dein said, a little sadly.
— She was never interested in us; as soon as she found out she could enroll us and leave us at the temple as boarding students, she dropped us off at the entrance with only what we were wearing — Rein added, throwing a stone into the lake with visible anger.
— I see — Íthil didn't want to press the matter further. Zein noticed this and pushed a little for fun.
— If you like, we can live with you; even if it doesn't seem like it, I can cook — Zein said, winking and posing seductively for Íthil.
— No! — Íthil replied dryly, completely devoid of emotion.
— What, not even a hesitation? — Zein felt rejected and let herself fall onto a stone.
— Hahaha! — the brothers laughed.
— Single forever, Zein! — the brothers cheered together.
— What's wrong with you, deformed fetuses! — Zein threw stones and branches with astonishing aim at her brothers, hitting painful spots without fail.
Íthil watched the scene, letting the boys laugh and have fun, when he perceived the triplets' appearance differently: their poorly cut hair and worn clothes made more sense now.
— They probably cut each other's hair; their clothes are all patched up with whatever they can find — thought Íthil.
— But then? You still haven't told us why the moons are seen in the lake but not in the sky! — Zein asked genuinely interested.
Íthil brought a hand to his face. — Really? Well… — Resigned, Íthil began the lesson. The triplets gathered next to each other on logs and rocks.
— Anise Chassieur forged a pact with the Ocher Moon in this very lake. The Ocher Moon is the most powerful of all moons, and thus, Anise became the first Mageia — the twinkling of the scene and the singing of the animals set the mood for Íthil's tale, which, like magic, enchanted the boys who until then had shown no curiosity for any lesson, much less had attended any class.
— The Ocher Moon has not formed a pact with any other Being of Khuarhya, but her daughters have: Zosma, the Red Moon; Talita, the Blue Moon; Regulus, the Green Moon; Raslas, the Purple Moon; Ran, the Pink Moon; Phact, the Gray Moon; Merak, the Black Moon; and Nerak, the White Moon — Íthil said as they passed through tower-tall mangroves. Fireflies accompanied them as they gazed lost at the moons' glow reflected in the lake's waters. The Mageia lessons continued as they moved around the lake.
— And so, each moon took a firstborn. You can see that in your classes; honestly, I never learned them — Íthil continued until a rustling of branches alerted him, and immediately, he took shelter behind a fallen mangrove trunk.
— Excuse me… Master Íthil, that Quelonta we're looking for, are they small, right? I mean, we're not after a very large animal or plant, are we? — Dein, trembling, took shelter behind his older brother.
— What are you talking about? Uh… Quelontas… Roofs of the Forest! — Íthil said in a low voice as he hid behind bushes and logs.
— What?! — the youngsters raised their voices. At that very moment, they heard a moan accompanied by a low and resonant song above them.
— Shh! — Íthil silenced the boys. Something was moving above them. Rein clenched his fists. Dein, in a panic, put his hands over his head and huddled, looking at the ground, while Zein put her hands over her mouth and stayed still and on her knees. Right above them, the long neck of a Quelonta descended to inspect the surroundings.
— How aggressive are they? — whispered Zein, scared. Everyone moved prone in the opposite direction of the Quelonta. With some distance between them, they could see the gigantic animal clinging to the trees better and with a little less fear: a gigantic brown turtle with a soft, elastic shell, hung lazily above them as if it were a huge house suspended among the foliage, using its clawed feet. Turquoise-colored plants hung from the largest ones while it swayed its long neck with a large, heavy head.
— It's okay, Private Zein! Let's just keep our distance from them for now — Íthil began to take out the scroll Khan had given him to see if he could figure something out.
— I don't know what this is! — thought Íthil, his concern increasing a little.
— That's…! A Taur? — asked Dein, confused.
— It's a Leur, dummy! — Rein retorted, hitting his brother's nape with an open hand.
Íthil looked at them equally confused, as he analyzed the magical diagram.
— Damn it, I don't know what this thing is! — thought Íthil.
— Íthil knows very well how to use it, right? — Rein said firmly and without a doubt. Dein looked at Rein and then turned to Íthil with a look of admiration and expectation, while Zein, hypnotized, couldn't take her eyes off the Quelonta and its soft singing. Íthil looked at the boys for a moment.
— To begin with, do you know what a Leur is? — Íthil asked, still in a low voice.
— They are magical circuits created by the Mageia's thought through which the power of the corresponding moon flows, resulting in a spell — Zein said without turning, still looking at the Quelonta in wonder.
— Well, yes!, that's basically it — Íthil said. Rein and Dein looked at her in amazement.
— What? Sometimes I hear things from classes that I find interesting! — Zein turned and threw another branch that hit her brothers squarely in the face.
— As Zein said, they are necessary circuits for major rites. They are extremely precise and very delicate; even if you throw a handful of sand, you can interrupt them — Íthil told them in a low voice, while gesturing for the boys to take the other end of the parchment.
— There are three parts: the Leur means beginning; here we designate the name of the moon that will govern this diagram — Íthil pointed with his finger to the outer ring of the magical circle on the scroll.
— Daur, means continuous, and that's where our wishes are inscribed — he traced with his finger to the middle part.
— Niur, is the end, and that's where we pay respect and the price of our wish — Íthil extended his hand right in the center of the scroll, closed his eyes, and focused on it.
The three youngsters watched apprehensively. Íthil just concentrated and murmured incantations. Thus he continued immersed in the parchment for a couple of minutes. The three youngsters looked with fascination and close attention at that beast and its group singing sonorously in the forest.
— It's huge!, like a house. We could live inside it — Rein said, amazed.
— Look, its claws are so long they grasp the trees as if holding a stick; you could make a sword out of them! — Dein looked without letting go of the scroll next to Rein.
— There, its neck is as long as a ship and its beak has those weird saws on it! Oh, look, it's eating the mangrove nuts! — Zein looked excited and astonished. The huge animal moved among the mangrove trees on the lake's shores.
— This is a Leur of Nerak! It contains all possible diagrams of the invocation branch in a single Leur! I don't know if Khan drew this; usually, there's only one rite per diagram, but this one! It's so well drawn and planned that a slight change in use is enough to perform the other five rites! — Íthil murmured to himself, astonished.
— But it's incredibly fragile; just dust in the air is enough to interrupt it — Íthil thought, admiring the fine tracing work of the Leur.
The Quelonta raised its enormous neck above the trees. Other Quelontas joined it, singing their tunes of love and encounter in the air. Soon, one of them used its hind claws, quickly tearing off the tip of a rotten mangrove; this revealed an internal hollow that the Quelonta approached and sang even louder 
— Look, small Quelontas! — Zein jumped with her hands resting on a log.
— They're the males! — Íthil told them. A group of small, soft-shelled Quelontas glided from tree to tree, climbing and scurrying quickly among the foliage.
— Are they coming to meet the large Quelontas? — the youngsters asked.
— Yes!, but more than anything, they are preparing for the arrival of the Swamp Monkeys. These steal the Quelontas' eggs; the males can't fight them, they can only warn that they are here — Íthil told them as he led his group further south, where they had better visibility.
— But! What about the females? I don't think they'd hesitate to protect their clutches! — Dein asked while Zein nodded her head.
But not everyone was so excited. — Enough, not all mothers are good, and you know it! — Rein retorted bitterly, at which the other two youngsters stopped dead without saying a word. Heaviness and bitterness overcame the triplets.
— You're an idiot, Rein — Zein said without thinking twice, while Dein followed her, leaving the boy behind.
— This got difficult! — Íthil thought of something to try and ease the tension, so he gathered them again.
— Okay! Let's see what we can do with this Leur; let's find a flat spot to try and use it! Follow me, let's find out what this thing does — Íthil hurried them a few meters, and they finally arrived at a section of beach, where river stones speckled the shore. The three youngsters didn't speak a word to each other.
— The surface isn't large enough, but at least we're not too close to the nests; always give animals space — Íthil said while the three boys paid little attention.
— How does Master Khan do it? — Íthil wondered as the youngsters completely ignored him.