"See you when the classes start," her companion gave her a warm smile before scurrying away.
There was nothing left but to follow inside. Of course, she tossed a short glance at the scary girl and felt relief to see she was gone.
Inside, Maya was met by a group of women in a foul mood. She was able to catch glimpses of them whispering to themselves about Maya's late appearance.
"I—I'm sorry." Feeling insecure and unable to find Daria in sight, she stuttered as she quietly apologized, unsure herself what for.
"We have never accepted an applicant this late," the leading woman grumbled. "But, oh, well, what can we do? Since you're already here, let's begin."
Following her guide, Maya arrived in a spacious but empty room. The light was dim, creating a mystical ambience. There was a chill in the air and she was met with a distinct pungent smell she couldn't recognize but felt at once foreign and familiar. Maya was directed to kneel at the centre of the room, where a ring was dented into the worn-out stone slab.
From there, she had made a conclusion the room was even more bizarre than she initially thought. It looked like it was in its entirety carved inside of a stone and the rest of the building was built around it. It appeared like a ceremonial room for some ancient ritual that has been used for centuries.
Moments after, women in ceremonial-looking dresses walked in.
"May Light follow."
They greeted her quietly before proceeding with their tasks.
While kneeling on the cold floor, Maya watched them pour water out of a beautiful amphora onto the floor where it encircled her through the dented ring. Another one gracefully arranged a ring of pebbles around her, pouring it out of a specialized bowl like they were a most precious thing. Two of them carried in a contraption made out of wood holding a ring enveloped with beautiful wind chimes, placing it carefully above Maya. And the woman that led her in here, who seemed to be in charge, lighted up candles around the room.
"Let's start the evaluation process," she announced.
Internally preparing to witness the magic for the first time, Maya couldn't shake off her nervousness. Leo was gazing around curiously.
"In the absence of the High Priestess, I will take over the lead."
Four women in total, each taking their position encircling Maya while the leading one began chanting in an unknown language. The rest soon followed chanting in unison. Maya wasn't sure what she was expected to do so she continued to kneel quietly on her spot.
Soon, the chanting women reached a point of beautiful harmony and began to move graciously in a trance-like dance. Then suddenly the whole room began to react as subtle vibrations began responding to their invocation.
The circle of water was rippling, the pebbles began to softly bounce off the floor, and the flames danced and flickered while the chimes began to sing, creating melodic tunes to follow along.
Her eyes widened.
'What does it mean? Are they all my elements?'
The performance continued, becoming louder and louder with chaotic torrents of proof of magic filling up the room. Maya was amazed. She wanted to greet the Elements and join in on the play.
Priestesses chanted louder and louder until suddenly stopping with a final unison shout. As they stopped, all the turbulence stopped with them. Flames dwindled, water turned calm, and pebbles halted. Leaving only the melodic sound of stirred wind chimes to resonate through the room for what seemed like one moment lasting forever.
"The Elements have chosen," the leading priestess proclaimed. "Maya Watergate, the venerable Element of Air has taken you under its wing."
'Air?' Maya was surprised and somehow disappointed, feeling that they got it wrong. Haven't all four elements danced just moments prior? If they named any other element she would have accepted it, but Air?
Perhaps it was a disappointment because she was expecting something special. After all, she was looking at Leo who no one else was aware is in the room with them right now. Was seeing Leo not a power but a delusion?
"Are you sure?" Maya blurted out.
"Yes. We are sure. The Elements are never wrong."
"What does that ensue?"
"You have a special affinity to the Element of Air. The wind is your domain."
'What can you do with wind?'
They must've seen her expression which put them in a sour mood.
"Show some gratitude and respect. You've received a great honour being chosen at all. Not many get a chance for salvation. Elements are all equal. And praise the Light for leading them to you."
"Sorry."
Maya held her head down and proceeded to the next room to get officially enrolled as a student of the academy.
"Aren't they a bit insensitive? Never knew a salvation would be so pissed for no reason," Leo mumbled to himself.
So far Maya hadn't had the greatest experiences. Suddenly she missed Daria — a woman she only knew for a couple of days. It was to be expected a fresh start would be a difficult battle. All she needed was to endure until things were better.
A guide led her to an office where a lady behind a desk was hastily collecting papers and shoving them into a folder. Just like everyone she encountered in this building, she looked stressed and in a rush. Maya felt like her own matter was only distracting her from her real job.
'What kind of hours do they work if they are here on Sunday evening, and a new student is not their main concern?'
The woman was quickly filling up some forms while mumbling to herself.
"Maya Watergate…" She suddenly looked at Maya. "Do you wish to change the name?"
"Ch-change my name?" Maya was stumped by the offer.
"It's a fresh start. Some choose to change the name. It can be whatever you want. I will change all documents to refer to you with your new name."
"How very inclusive…" Leo mumbled, then added: "You should try 'Maya the Great Backyard Princess.'" It was an inside joke, referencing their childhood games where they'd pretend her backyard was their royal domain.
"I will keep my name. Thank you," Maya hurriedly answered, before Leo could say something that would inevitably make her react.
She felt the woman's relief, as it would mean she would have to do more paperwork if she changed the name. The woman rummaged through the office collecting some more papers.
"Oh, so an air mage," she glimpsed at a freshly received paper. "One as myself."
Maya wondered if she was good at it if her job was working in an office. Not knowing how to respond or even if she should start a small talk with a person who already appeared busy, Maya kept silent.
After stamping papers and asking Maya to sign multiple documents, the woman finally handed her the filled-out forms in a folder. "Everything you need is in there." She paused thinking and scratching her chin. "Aha. Garbs. I'll be right back."
It took only a couple of seconds and the woman was back with a pile of neatly folded clothes. She put it in Maya's arms and added a messenger bag on top of it all. Maya couldn't help the criticizing thought that it would be more useful if she gave her the bag first so she could put all the things inside.
"Here's the voucher for the tailor to prepare your uniform. This will suffice for tomorrow." The woman handed her a new piece of paper and patted the clothes she gave her. Then she opened a red velvet box with a beautiful intricate silver brooch. "This is the academy emblem. Don't lose it. The rest is waiting for you outside."
With everything piled up in her arms, Maya was unsure of what to do now.
"Oh. Your dorm is out on the main path and to the left. Find the building with your letter — Delta Major, female dorm."
She pulled the folder underneath the clothes and pointed it where the symbol was written, before putting it on the top of the pile in her arms. She showed her which key was for the main entrance and which was for the room, before hooking them on one of Maya's fingers, which were just under everything she was holding in her hands.
"The school starts tomorrow at 9 o'clock." Then she clapped her hands, satisfied. "You are now officially a citizen of Mellgrah and resident of Amellan. Welcome! May the Light guide you."