The Goldarian shore seemed, to Aureolyn, a lifetime away. She leaned against the peeling metal railing of the massive ship and gazed out at the ocean. The ocean, she thought. A month ago it had seemed just as foreign to her as the so-called glistening streets of Goldaria seemed to her now. It had seemed like a myth, a fairytale, nothing more than empty words told by the Sisters who cared for her. Nothing more than words, it seemed, but here she was. The sea was her new home. For the next two weeks the ground she walked on, the air she breathed, the world she saw would all belong to that pounding, twisting, wretchedly beautiful giant.
The September sun poured its rays onto Aureolyn's skin. The sky was cloudless and blue and the wind whipped her yellow hair around her face. The small crystals under her left eye glinted in the morning light. Almost unconciously, she reached up and touched one with her finger. The mark of the Celestines. The makers of miracles, the learned in magic, the keepers of power. She was proud of her title, but the stigma attached to it made it difficult for her to admit it.
It wasn't her choice to become a Celestine. When her mother died she was sent to the House of Greats just like all the orphans were. The House of Greats was an unofficial school run by the Sisters of the Church. The Sisters taught the children everything they knew about the ways of magic and other forgotten arts. They told her that once Aureolyn came of age, she could choose to either continue her education in the elemental arts and become a Cryelestine, become a Sister herself, or to go out into society and lead a normal life. Looking back on it, Aureolyn realized that leading a normal life would have been impossible, not after she tasted the power that came with elemental magic.
If Aureolyn had gotten the chance, she would have without a doubt chosen to become a Cryelestine. Everything changed, though, when an unfortunate group of Celestines destroyed her life forever.
Aureolyn felt a small tug on her shorts. Looking down, she saw a little boy, Chipper. While not blood related, Chipper and Aureolyn had both been students at the House of Greats
The September sun poured its rays onto Aureolyn's skin. The sky was cloudless and blue and the wind whipped her yellow hair around her face. The small crystals under her left eye glinted in the morning light. Almost unconciously, she reached up and touched one with her finger. The mark of the Celestines. The makers of miracles, the learned in magic, the keepers of power. She was proud of her title, but the stigma attached to it made it difficult for her to admit it.
It wasn't her choice to become a Celestine. When her mother died she was sent to the House of Greats just like all the orphans were. The House of Greats was an unofficial school run by the Sisters of the Church. The Sisters taught the children everything they knew about the ways of magic and other forgotten arts. They told her that once Aureolyn came of age, she could choose to either continue her education in the elemental arts and become a Cryelestine, become a Sister herself, or to go out into society and lead a normal life. Looking back on it, Aureolyn realized that leading a normal life would have been impossible, not after she tasted the power that came with elemental magic.
If Aureolyn had gotten the chance, she would have without a doubt chosen to become a Cryelestine. Everything changed, though, when an unfortunate group of Celestines destroyed her life forever.
Aureolyn felt a small tug on her shorts. Looking down, she saw a little boy, Chipper. While not blood related, Chipper and Aureolyn had both been students at the House of Greats
