Beside the Mayor's residence was the council hall that also served as the location for the town's yearly selection of Acolytes for the Black Tower.
This year was expected to be no different from any other, and the expansive hall of 1,000 feet (0.3 km) was filled with tens of thousands of people, all here to support the six dozen young children both male and female who were chosen for this year's candidacy.
The oldest here was eighteen, a lanky girl with ponytails, and the youngest was seven, a child still sucking on his thumb in nervousness.
There were both tears of joy and loss on the faces of their parents as they watched the proud faces of their children. For the children, this was the chance of a lifetime, they would become heroes and command powers to shake the heavens and the earth.
The parents knew, however, that when they left, only the successful returned years later as Mages or not at all.
