Chapter Three

Meeting Iridian

After I got Ty turned into Toby the Ice Hound, we went to Ambrose's house for our level appointment. It felt pretty good, and I had awesome gear, courtesy of Ambrose. I also got a Seraph Wing mount and Kayla was refunded her money.

Iridian was a tall, light skinned wizard with subtle, purple eyes and onyx black hair that was as dark as a night sky. She was wearing some Storm symboled gear and a staff that looked like something that came out of a heater machine from the old days.

"Hey guys, I'm Iridian," she greeted. Iridian held out her hand, her trimmed fingernails purple with yellow Storm symbols.

"Hi, I'm Emily WinterSong. These are my friends, Luke GriffinFlame and Kayla SummerSong." I reached over and shook her hand. "We should get this luggage to our room." Each one of us grabbed a piece of luggage and went to our dorm.

When we got there, we saw Cody on the couch looking at The Spiral News.

"Cody, why are you looking at something so depressing?" I asked with a puzzled look on my face. Luke sat on the couch with him and Kayla went into her room to get a coat.

"It's interesting, and it's for an assignment Ambrose gave me," he replied, before turning his head back around to the large TV and pulling out a quill and small notepad to take notes.

"Wait, Ambrose can give you assignments? Why can't you just enroll now?" I asked. He still wasn't looking up from his little "workspace" because he was in deep concentration, which I possibly broke.

"Well, I have to be 14 to enroll. My eighth birthday is next week and when that comes, I am the allowed age to take an aging potion, where I'll immediately turn 11. After that, I have to take some special pre-enrollment assignments from the teachers other than Alhazred and Rose. Then, I'll turn 14, and can enroll and start as a Sorcerer." Cody finished his prompt explanation then returned to absorbing the news's information.

"Oh that makes since, but who are Alhazred and Rose?"

Cody was about to answer, but Luke cut him off to answer, causing Cody to cross his arms and turn his head away. "Alhazred is the Balance professor for levels over 16-60. Rose is the teacher for levels 1-16, and then 61 and over. Things have changed this year.

"Originally, Arthur Wethersfield taught up to level 16, and Alhazred taught everything over level 16, but Alhazred got very weak, and couldn't do the level 68 and over quests. As a result, Rose Sincotti from some Celestian colonies, originally Marleybone, started teaching. She mentioned how she learned everything from the ever-expanding, award-winning eWizook Understanding Balance by Logan LegendVault (penname MLHagan) in her autobiography, A Blossoming Rose, which I have right here."

Luke handed me a new, hardcover book that was Rose's autobiography. It had a pink cover with a rose and a petal that seemed to branch off into oblivion.

Iridian popped out of her room, startling me, considering I basically forgot she was here. She had put away her normal questing clothes and was now wearing some loungewear, consisting of a cotton, purple shirt with Storm symbols, Storm Shark house shoes, and some comfy-looking black pants that had to be made of some type of silk. She had a pin of a Storm symbol in her curly black hair.

Kayla emerged from her room dressed for the bitter cold, even though I was pretty sure it was summer outside. "Um, Kayla, why are you dressed like its two degrees outside?" I asked curiously.

"Oh, I'm going to Grizzleheim to visit my sister," she jittered.

"Wait, you have a sister?" I asked confused.

"Yeah, she lives in Grizzleheim, and her name is Alura MistSong. She dropped out of Ravenwood when she finished Magus studies and went to Grizzleheim to train to be an archer." Now that Kayla explained everything, I let her wander off to the weird world and sat down on the couch with Cody and Iridian.

"So Cody, how's the homework going?" I asked.

"Do you have a laptop or something, I have to type up a report," he mumbled. Iridian pulled out a shiny computer from her bag and handed it to Cody. His small fingers whizzed around the keys, making his report for Ambrose.

"In five minutes, my crafting slot will be open and I can finally become Initiate Crafter," Iridian mentioned.

"Do you enjoy being a Magus?" I asked with curiosity.

"Well, I do, but I'm about to experience something better: a Master."

"Cool, I wish I could be Master."

"What are you talking about, that's what's happening tomorrow."

"So, I'm getting a level appointment tomorrow?"

"Yes."