I. A Chaotic Morning on the Slopes of Kelud
If there was one thing the initiates and residents of Mahasakti Academy on the slopes of Mount Kelud feared above all else, it wasn't an apocalyptic prophecy or a sudden ambush by dark cults. What they feared most was the break of dawn on an ordinary day. At this legendary academy, morning invariably heralded a brand-new chapter of chaos orchestrated by the three most troublesome students in recorded history.
The day kicked off with a sharp explosion in the back kitchen.
BOOM!
A plume of dark, soot-filled smoke billowed high into the clear blue sky. Out of the smoke stumbled a twenty-year-old youth, coughing violently. His handsome face was smeared with black ash, and his fiery red hair stuck out in wild, spiky tufts like burning embers. He was still clutching a bronze cauldron with a gaping hole melted straight through its bottom.
"Sakka Geni!" A furious roar echoed from the kitchen doorway. The academy's head chef—a rotund old man wearing a drenched apron—emerged, brandishing a massive wooden ladle like a war club. "How many times must I tell you?! Do not try to boil tea water by channeling Fire Prana directly through your palms! This is your third cauldron this week!"
Sakka Geni flashed a wide, cheeky grin, white teeth gleaming against his soot-stained face as he scratched the back of his neck. "Sorry, Master Chef. I just thought... if I sped up the boiling process, the initiates could get their hot tea faster before morning physical training. I was just trying to help!"
"Help my foot! The water evaporated instantly and the cauldron melted!" the chef growled, his chest heaving with a rage that nearly matched the heat of Mount Kelud's volcanic crater.
Before the commotion in the kitchen could settle, a melodious lute melody drifted across the main courtyard—where mid-level students were attempting morning meditation beneath a sprawling banyan tree—shattering the sacred serenity built by the academy elders.
Reclining casually on a high banyan branch was a twenty-one-year-old youth. Dressed in loose, light-green robes symbolizing the element of wind, his sharp, charming features were accentuated by a sly, practiced smirk. His eyes darted toward a visiting delegation of female disciples from Dieng Mist Academy.
"Oh, fair maidens of the misty valley," the youth sang smoothly, matching his silky voice to the strumming of his lute. "Why struggle to find stillness in silent meditation? Merely gaze into my eyes, and you shall find an eternal peace no chant could ever offer."
One of the young women blushed bright red, while the others giggled behind their sleeves. Meanwhile, the male students meditating below snapped open their eyes, glaring up at the tree with murder in their gazes.
"Bayu! Get down here! Stop harassing our guests!" a senior instructor yelled, his face turning crimson.
"Ah, Elder, one cannot force the wind to alight. It merely flows wherever its heart desires," Bayu Bajra replied with a playful wink. Dropping from the branch as lightly as a feather, he landed effortlessly in front of the prettiest disciple, presenting a fresh wildflower that seemed to materialize between his fingers out of thin air.
In another corner of the courtyard, an equally bizarre scene was unfolding.
A broad-shouldered youth, standing head and shoulders taller than most young men his age, stood before a massive wooden cart loaded with heavy river stones. Nineteen-year-old Krisna Tara was a disciple dominant in the Earth Prana element. He had an innocent face, honest round eyes, and a demeanor so calm it bordered on agonizingly slow.
A middle-aged instructor stood beside him, arms crossed over his chest. "Krisna, your task today is to clear out this cart and move its contents to the back storehouse. Remember my words: clear out everything until it's completely clean."
"Yes, Elder," Krisna replied dutifully, giving a firm nod with an utterly serious expression.
An hour later, the instructor returned to check on his progress. He froze mid-step, eyes widening in sheer disbelief.
The cart was indeed completely empty of river stones. However, the wooden cart itself had been shattered into unrecognizable splinters. Nearby, Krisna sat cross-legged, casually feeding a pair of sparrows boiled cassava crumbs from his pouch.
"Krisna..." The instructor's voice trembled with shock. "Why... why is the cart destroyed?!"
Krisna looked up, meeting his instructor's gaze with absolute sincerity. "You said, 'clear out everything until it's completely clean.' Since the cart was caked with dried dirt that wouldn't come off, I figured the cart itself had to be broken down and removed along with the rocks, so the courtyard would be completely clean of that old junk. Isn't that right?"
The instructor clutched his chest, feeling his heart skip several beats. "You... you smashed the academy's inventory cart just to clean off some dirt?!"
"Yes, Elder. I was very thorough," Krisna replied with a proud, innocent smile.
II. The Elders' Protest in the Grand Hall
By midday, the air inside the Grand Hall of Mahasakti Academy was thick with tension. The vast chamber, supported by massive timber pillars lined with gold carvings, was filled with academy elders seated in a semicircle before a simple teak throne where the Great Sage sat in quiet contemplation.
Standing in the center of the room were the three young men who had been driving the entire academy up the wall since sunrise: Sakka Geni, Bayu Bajra, and Krisna Tara.
"Wise Great Sage!" Elder Brahma, head of the Fire Prana division, stepped forward, his face flushed with fury. "I demand justice! Sakka Geni has destroyed three kitchen cauldrons, singed half off a basic-technique instructor's beard by sneezing while concentrating his energy, and yesterday... he tried to roast a wild pheasant inside the ancient palm-leaf library! The boy is a walking disaster for the fire element!"
Sakka Geni muttered under his breath, "The bird was delicious, Elder. I even saved you a leg, but you threw it away..."
"Silence!" Elder Brahma snapped.
Before Brahma could catch his breath, Elder Bayu—head of the Wind Prana division—stood up holding a thick sheet of parchment. "That's nothing! Bayu Bajra... he used the Silken Wind Step technique not to refine his speed, but to sneak into the female quarters of the Dieng Mist delegation to leave love letters! He also owes three silver pieces to a dice master down in the mountain village, using the academy's good name as collateral!"
Bayu Bajra offered a dazzling smile and waved a casual hand. "Elder, gambling is merely part of understanding the natural probability of the wind. The wind never knows where it blows, much like a rolling die. And as for the love notes... that was a cultural diplomacy mission."
"Diplomacy my eye!" Elder Bayu shouted, nearly throwing his parchment scroll at the boy.
Elder Nala—head of the Earth Prana division—rose with a heavy sigh, looking as though he carried the weight of an entire mountain range on his shoulders. He simply pointed at Krisna Tara, who stood at attention with a blank stare fixed on the ceiling.
"I don't even know what to say about Krisna anymore," Elder Nala whispered weakly. "Last week, I instructed him to 'guard the north gate so no intruders get through.' When I returned, he had ripped the two-hundred-pound wooden gate right off its iron hinges, slung it onto his back, and taken it to sleep in his hut! He claimed it was the only way to ensure the gate was truly 'guarded' and out of reach of bad guys. We had to hire five carpenters to rehang it!"
Krisna Tara nodded solemnly. "It's true, Elder. The gate was very safe under my bed."
Murmurs of agreement rippled through the remaining elders, all demanding the immediate expulsion of the trio—or at the very least, their exile into dark meditation caves for a full year before they permanently ruined the academy's centuries-old reputation.
The Great Sage, who had remained silent with his eyes half-closed, slowly opened them. His calm yet piercing gaze swept across the hall. Instantly, the complaints vanished. The Grand Hall fell into a heavy, magical silence.
III. The Great Sage's Secret Mandate
The Great Sage slowly rose to his feet. Though wrapped in a simple white robe, his frail frame radiated a prana aura as vast and serene as a boundless ocean. He stepped down from the dais, approaching the three troublemakers, who were now shifting uncomfortably. Even the usually flippant Bayu Bajra straightened his posture, sensing the formidable aura of their grandmaster.
"Brahma, Bayu, Nala... I have heard all your grievances," the Great Sage spoke softly, his voice echoing clearly to every corner of the hall. "You are correct. These three have never been able to follow the academy's rules properly. They are stubborn, reckless, and far too prone to acting without thinking."
The elders let out collective sighs of relief, expecting an expulsion order to follow. But the Great Sage's next words left the entire hall dumbfounded.
"Therefore," the Great Sage continued with a subtle smile, "I have decided to dispatch all three of them beyond the academy grounds, effective today."
Sakka Geni clenched his fists, a spark of fiery defiance flashing in his eyes. "Great Sage... are we really being thrown out? We were just..."
"Not thrown out, Sakka," the Great Sage interrupted gently. "You are being sent on a secret mission—one paramount to the future of all Nusantara. A mission that cannot be entrusted to star students who only know how to blindly follow ancient scrolls."
Reaching into his wide sleeve, the Great Sage produced a scroll made of aged bark, sealed with deep red dammar resin—the unique mark representing the supreme command of the Great Sage himself.
"The three of you shall travel to the Kingdom of Arcapura," the Great Sage instructed, his voice turning deadly serious. "There, at the city's southern gate tomorrow morning, you will meet a fifteen-year-old boy named Burhan. Your task is to guard him, protect him with your lives, and bring him back to this academy on foot."
Bayu Bajra raised an eyebrow, curiosity overriding his charm. "Just escorting a kid, Master? Isn't that a bit beneath us? Why not send junior initiates for something like that?"
"He is no ordinary child, Bayu," the Great Sage replied, fixing his gaze on the wind user. "He is the prime target of every bounty hunter in Nusantara. Dark sorcerers, ancient spirit beasts, and organizations that move beneath the shroud of shadow... they are all hunting his head. The journey back to Mount Kelud will take at least thirty days, and every single inch of ground you cross will be fraught with deadly peril."
A sudden chill settled over the hall. The elders exchanged anxious glances. They knew what a task like that meant: a high-level escort operation typically assigned only to master warriors or senior grandmasters.
"Great Sage!" Elder Brahma protested vehemently. "If this mission is so crucial and dangerous to our future, why send these three troublemakers?! Why not deploy our elite masters or proven warriors whose loyalty and skills are tested?!"
The Great Sage turned slowly, gazing at the hall walls adorned with stone reliefs depicting the history of Nusantara's ancient heroes.
"Brahma..." the Great Sage whispered softly. "Our elite guard and elders are too high-profile. Their departure would be spotted immediately by enemy spies. But more importantly..."
He turned back to look at his three disciples with profound warmth—the look of a father who recognized the hidden potential within his wild children.
"What that boy needs on his journey is not a rigid wall of bodyguards who only know how to bow and obey royal decrees. What he needs are companions brave enough to call him out when he strays onto the wrong path. He needs people who can teach him how to survive in the mud, not on silk carpets."
Stepping up to Krisna Tara, the Great Sage clapped a hand on the earth user's broad shoulder. "Krisna, your unyielding strength shall be the shield for his fragility."
He then looked at Bayu Bajra. "Bayu, your swiftness and trickster cleverness shall be the way out when every door is slammed in your faces."
Finally, he faced Sakka Geni. "And Sakka... the fiery spirit in your chest shall be the warm beacon that burns anyone who dares lay a hand on him."
The Great Sage pressed the mission scroll into Sakka Geni's hand. "Go. Learn from the world outside, and bring that child back safely. Remember this: this journey will not only alter that boy's life, but it will also forge who you are truly meant to be."
IV. First Steps of the Three Miscreants
The sun had just dipped below the western horizon when Sakka Geni, Bayu Bajra, and Krisna Tara stood outside the main gates of Mahasakti Academy. Each carried a simple travel pack slung over his shoulders.
Sakka Geni wore a sword sheathed in aged cowhide across his back, his eyes fixed on the steep path winding down toward the lush green valley below. His usual mischievous expression had given way to a rare, focused intensity.
"So... we're really heading to Arcapura?" Sakka asked quietly, his voice swallowed by the mountain wind.
"Of course, my friend," Bayu Bajra replied, adjusting his green sash with theatrical flair, though his sharp eyes carefully scanned the dense forest around them. "The Great Sage gave us our orders. And honestly, getting out of this boring academy is the best thing that's ever happened to me. I hear the women of Arcapura are famous for their grace."
Krisna Tara, meanwhile, was struggling under the weight of an absurdly massive cloth bundle slung across his back. Loud clanking noises accompanied his every move.
"Krisna..." Sakka Geni turned, raising an eyebrow at his friend's colossal pack. "What on earth do you have in there? Why is it so heavy?"
"It's a selection of choice river stones, Sakka," Krisna answered deadpan. "I figured if Arcapura doesn't have good rocks for weapons or throwing at enemies, I'd better bring my own from the slopes of Kelud."
Sakka slapped his forehead, nearly shouting in frustration. "We are walking hundreds of miles, Krisna! And you're carrying a pack of river rocks?!"
"Relax, Sakka. Don't let your energy flare up and burn my rock bag," Krisna replied calmly.
Bayu Bajra let out a rich laugh, slinging an arm around both of his friends' shoulders. "Come on, we've got a long way to go. Let's see just how annoying this kid named Burhan is when we pick him up tomorrow morning. I bet one silver piece he's a spoiled brat who'll cry the second his boots hit paddy mud."
"I'm not taking your stupid bet, Bayu," Sakka grumbled, stepping forward to take the lead.
Beneath the deepening shadows of dusk, the three flawed young warriors began their descent from the slopes of Mount Kelud. They had no idea that the spoiled brat they were set to meet at dawn was no ordinary boy, but the Sacred Mahaprana—a child who would test every ounce of their patience, strength, and loyalty in an adventure destined to become the greatest legend in all of Nusantara.