I stepped in, looking around.
“Congratulations! Need a drink?” An older teenager holding a tray of wine glasses lifted it in my direction, but I shook my head.
“Not much of a drinker.” Belatedly, I added, “But thanks.”
The teenager nodded. “Suit yourself!”
I continued to make my way in, bypassing the celebrants and heading to the back tables. Some of the adults turned toward me. One of them pointed, and another stood and approached me.
She was a heavy-set woman, maybe in her thirties or forties, beaming a bright grin at me. I did my best to smile in return, but my best probably wasn’t very good.
“Hello, and congratulations! I see you just finished your attunement. You’re welcome to join the celebrants for a bit before you sign your papers, if you’d like.”
I shook my head. “Thank you, but I’d rather get this over with.”
Her smile diminished by a fraction, but she maintained a cheerful tone. “Of course, of course. I’m Professor Edlyn. From the look of that mark, I’ll probably be seeing you in my classes in a few weeks.”
I absently brushed my fingers against my forehead. “Oh, uh, great. I’m Corin Cadence. I haven’t actually seen my attunement yet.”
I took a glance at her own attunement — the one she had visible, anyway. I did notice she was wearing a glove on her right hand, and of course her clothing could have covered other marks as well.
It was a Shaper mark, like my father’s, but less complex. I’d seen several variations on each attunement mark, but they always had a core symbol at the center that looked the same. I didn’t know enough about how attunements worked to understand the variations yet.
She raised an eyebrow. “Cadence? As in House Cadence?”
I nodded silently.
“Oh dear. I — well, you should come have a seat, and we’ll get you sorted out.”
That wasn’t a good sign.
I followed her to a seat at one of the nearby tables, trying to ignore the looks that followed me from both newly-attuned and adults.
The professor slid a group of papers in front of me, but I didn’t look at them immediately. “What’s this all about?”
Professor Edlyn gestured at the papers. “Your enrollment paperwork for the Lorian Heights Academy of Arcane Arts. As you’re probably aware, all newly attuned are required by law to serve two years at the academy.”
I nodded. “Followed by two years of military service.”
“Largely correct, although those subsequent two years can also be spent in other approved government roles, such as tower expeditions. Only Lorian Heights can provide you with the education you will need to properly utilize your attunement.”
Of course, because it’s the only option available to me.
Every kingdom treated attuned differently. In Caelford, they had only a single year of mandatory university training, after which students were generally given apprenticeships. Their focus was on attunement-augmented manufacturing, developing both advanced military technology and everyday conveniences that were improved by attunements.
In the Edrian Empire, attuned were sent straight to the military, where they served for a minimum of six years. From my understanding, that duration was often extended, either at the behest of the attuned or by the will of the empire.
In Dalenos, attuned were sent to serve the church. Of course, the Dalen military also served the church — Dalenos was a theocracy — so many attuned still ended up with military-style training.
Valia had the best deal, as far as I was concerned. I only needed to sign away four years of my life, not all of them.
Of course, the nature of the attunement was also relevant, and I still didn’t know mine.
“Can I ask which attunement I have?” I made a little gesture, pointing at the mark on my forehead.
“Of course, dear. You have the Enchanter Attunement.”
I winced. If she noticed, she didn’t give any sign, she just continued talking.
“The Enchanter Attunement will allow you to create magical items and manipulate existing items. It’s very valuable for the development of new technology and providing useful tools to other attuned.”
But virtually useless on its own.
It was the diametric opposite of my family’s traditional attunement, the Shaper. One designed for overwhelming personal combat ability.
I spent the following hours nodding absently to the professor’s instructions while I signed away four years of my life, knowing that the mark on my forehead might have ruined many more.
***
The hours I spent on the train ride home were a stream of nervousness and self-deprecation. I’d faced several colorful death options earlier in the day, but none of them were as terrifying as what awaited me at the end of the railroad.
Home.
Disembarking at the Hastings Valley Station, I opted to walk the remaining two miles with calculated slowness. I could have hired a carriage, but I hoped that a sufficient delay might allow me to arrive after others had already gone to sleep.
No such luck, of course.
Cadence Manor was a beautiful structure, three stories of pristine white wood and stone surrounded by three layers of gates — a high stone wall, a barrier of hedges, and an inner metallic fence. The innermost and outer gates were etched with runic wards with a broad variety of functions, and the house itself was similarly protected. There were no guards outside, but the house itself could withstand a siege.
At the moment, Cadence Manor’s most remarkable characteristic was the man standing in front of the house’s open doors. Tall, athletic, and dressed in the long white coat with blue markings of House Cadence, he was the perfect image of a nobleman in his prime. His black hair was trimmed fashionably short, showing streaks of silver along the temples. His hands rested comfortably on a long cane that I knew contained a metallic blade.