Chapter Three

Rielen waited a few hours before Hyla came to collect her. She didn't know what to expect. 

She was in an unfamiliar place, in a city she had never been in before, taken from everything she had ever known or loved. 

Her emotions were ragged. The only rest she'd had in days was at a small inn, and the only kindness shown to her was a maid at that inn. 

You could say she was done. Hyla didn't speak as she led Rielen to another part of the palace. They went through so many twists and turns, up and down stairs. 

There was no way she could memorize where they were going. Not that she wanted to. 

Even if she escaped, she could never return home. It would be like giving her town a death sentence. 

The gift of magic was the highest, and most controlled, honor the country had. 

It was said a long time ago, several generations ago, that magic was a gift that everyone shared. 

Gradually, more and more were born without the gift, and the need to test children became evident. 

Now, it was rare to have magic than to be without it. The country then learned to live without magic and the conveniences it often brought. 

In little villages like Vale, there were maybe one or two children ever recorded to have magic. 

Well, guess there were three now. Not even the Magistrate's family was exempt from the selection. 

There was little to no information regarding what happened after a child was selected, though. 

For some reason, the process that occurred after a child was selected and transported to the Palace had always been a mystery. 

The two of them reached an office decorated lavishly with The Kingdom's colors.

"Presenting Rielen of Vale." Hyla bowed after introducing Rielen and left the room.

The door sounded loud as it came to a close behind her. Rielen waited until the small man behind the desk turned around. 

"Vale, let's see. Only two previous selections on record." He thumbed through some paperwork before finally looking up at her. 

"Please sit. I am sure you are very curious about what your lift will be like from this point on."

He pointed to a chair directly across from him. 

"Fifteen. Looks like you are a late bloomer. You reacted to a nature stone. Interesting." 

Confusion filled her thoughts as he rambled on. 

"Hmmm. Nature teachers are hard to come by. You will have to do most of your learning by book. I assume you were taught how to read and write?"

Rielen nodded. Her father made sure to teach her as a child. She remembered him telling her that nothing is more embarrassing than not knowing something you could learn.

  "Good. Good," the man said. "That will save us a good deal of time. You wouldn't believe the number of selections I have had to send to general studies before we could begin teaching them."

"Oh, where are my manners? My name is Grend Fallows." He reaches out to take her hand before continuing. 

"Rielen, the process you are about to go through is tremendous. Not only do you have a rare type of magic, but you are also a girl. 

In the History of Sylphia, no woman has passed the testing. The boys will try to knock you out before you even get there. Because of this, we have had to change our policies and train the girls separate from the boys."

She took a tentative breath as he continued.

"There is one thing you will notice going forward. For girls to be selected is quite rare. They make up about 5% of the selections. The boys have taken it upon themselves to think they are better because of this. 

There will be events where you will have to deal with bullying, and they most certainly will try to knock you out. However, if you learn well, you can withstand the coming battles." 

'Part of me wishes I could knock these so-called boys off their high horse,' she thought. 

In Vale, the only boy to treat her like an equal was Eon. 

The rest of the boys tried to belittle her because she wasn't as physically strong as them or because she was smaller. 

She really hated to be ridiculed just because she was female. 

"Let's see," Grend went on. "You have been settled into the East wing. Let's make that your permanent residence for now, as the boys are in the West wing. 

You should try to avoid them as much as possible. We have instructed the guards to keep them out of the East wing."

"There are currently four other girls there as well. However, their gifts are very different from yours, and you will most likely not share any classes. 

How long your training lasts depends on how quickly you can develop your gifts. More will be revealed to you by your instructors."

He waved his hand, and the door opened behind Rielen. Hyla was waiting to escort her to a dining hall. 

Rielen was welcomed at a small table of girls of various ages. Then she waited patiently while copying the surrounding girls.

******

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