《Summoned Eight》


 Prologue 1

    My eyes opened to a scene that made my stomach churn. I was in a dungeon, tied to a chair. The damp air reeked of mildew and rust. I struggled against the ropes binding me, but they didn''t budge. With a sigh, I gave up.


    Skud. Was this how my life ended? Pathetic.


    "Indeed, it would be pathetic if your life ended here," a gruff voice answered my thoughts.


    I froze, my heart racing. "Hey there, buddy. Mind telling me why an honest street kid like me is tied up in a scary room like this?"


    "Honest?" The man''s voice dripped with flat disbelief. I sensed a flicker of amusement, a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, I could talk my way out of this.


    "Do not worry," he said, his tone flat. "You will leave this place eventually."


    What? Could this son of a skud actually read my thoughts?


    "Mister?" I said, trying to sound as clueless and innocent as possible.


    "Yes, child?"


    "Why am I here? I swear I haven''t stolen anything worth this much trouble. A bite of food here and there, maybe a coin or two, but nothing expensive. You''ve got the wrong guy."


    This time, I was being honest. If this man could read my thoughts, lying would only make things worse.


    "Honestly, I have no idea why I''m here," I added, my voice trembling slightly. I wondered if I was being too pushy with the scared innocent child act.


    "Liar," he said, his voice cutting through the air like a blade. "You might deceive others, but never yourself. You know that better than anyone."


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    I let out a shaky breath and forced a chuckle. "I''m telling you, you''ve got the wrong criminal."


    "You want more, don''t you?"


    "More?" I asked, irritation creeping into my voice.


    "Yes. More money. More strength. More renown. No matter how much you pretend, we both know you won''t be satisfied as a mere petty thief."


    I clenched my jaw, anger bubbling beneath the surface. Satisfaction? Of course skudding not. I was less than human as far as the world was concerned. Who the skud would be satisfied with that?


    The man stepped closer, his presence oppressive yet strangely encouraging. It was as if he could hear the thoughts I was too ashamed to voice.


    What I wanted wasn''t just wealth or survival. I wanted to walk in the presence of the most powerful men in the world and steal their attention¡ªsteal their admiration¡ªright out from under their noses. Renown. Strength. That was what I truly desired.


    The man pulled out a dagger and placed it in my hand.


    "Your choice," he said. "Let it go or take it."


    I gripped the dagger like a drowning man clutching a lifeline.


    "Abandoned at birth, ignored by the world, forced to survive in the mud," the man said. "I recognize your resilience. From now on, you shall walk the path of the thief."


    My breath hitched at his words, though I couldn''t fully understand their meaning.


    "There are seven others like you," he continued. "Once you wake, close your eyes for 20 seconds."


    As his final words echoed in the dungeon, darkness enveloped me once more.

 Prologue 2

    I woke in a green field,


    breathing in clear air carrying the scent of grass. I did not question


    where I was or how I got here. Kidnapped? In danger? Maybe. But this


    felt nice.


    "Interesting.


    You are nothing like the last one. He was quite jittery." A voice


    interrupted my thoughts. I sat up, glancing in its direction. A lone


    tree stood there.


    The tree chuckled-not the rustling of leaves, but a distinctively human sound. "So that is how I appear to you."


    "Where am I?" I asked the tree.


    "This place is not yours to know, for your stay will be fleeting." A pang of regret bloomed in my chest at its words.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    "Can''t I stay? I don''t want to go back."


    "Fret


    not, child. You will not return either. Raised in the slums, with no


    clean air to breathe, your kindness met only with distrust and


    hatred-that was your life. I recognize your trials. From now onward, you


    will walk the path of a healer."


    "A healer?" I frowned. "Like the priests?"


    The


    thought disgusted me. Priests were men who did good deeds to look good,


    leaving as soon as that was accomplished. I wanted no part of their


    hypocrisy.


    "Similar


    but different," the tree replied, its tone unbothered. "Do not worry; I


    am certain you will find it to your liking. Before you leave, remember


    this: there are seven others. And once you wake again, close your eyes


    for twenty seconds."


    I didn''t understand its words, but I nodded. The tree felt trustworthy-unfathomable and intimidating, but trustworthy.


    Soon, the world grew dark once again.

 Prologue 3

    "That''s interesting," a voice said, cutting through the silence. "Most would have shown some sort of reaction by now."


    I remained silent. The world around me was dark¡ªso dark that I couldn''t tell if my eyes were closed or open. Was this how it ended? A fitting conclusion, I supposed. Any fragile hope I had for restoring my ruined family to its former glory had long since crumbled. Life wasn''t a story. And if it was, I wasn''t even in the cast.


    "Just end it already," I said finally, weary of the waiting.


    "You misunderstand," the voice replied, calm and steady. "Your journey does not end here. This is merely the beginning."


    A hoarse laugh escaped my throat. "The beginning? Of what? I''m tired. I don''t need your beginning. What I want is an end."


    "Truly?" the voice asked, a hint of amusement threading through its tone. "Is that truly what you desire?"


    "Of course," I answered.


    "Then why haven''t you ended yourself long before now?" The question hung in the air, sharp and cutting.


    I paused, unsettled. Why hadn''t I? Was it instinct? Fear? I chuckled bitterly. I had never gotten what I wanted. Now, even death was beyond my grasp.


    "What you want is not death, child," the voice claimed, resolute. "You want escape. I will give it to you."


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    I remained silent.


    "If you truly wished for death, you would have seen countless paths to achieve it. Hold your breath. Stab your eyes with your fingers. Bite off your tongue. That barely scratches the surface. Did those methods even cross your mind?"


    They hadn''t. Was the voice right? Was I so pathetic that, even in the face of despair, I clung to some hidden hope for a happy ending?


    "Not an ending, my child," the voice urged gently. "What you desire is a beginning. One filled with joy rather than pain. Could you truly have it?"


    The idea stirred something deep within me. A beginning. Could such a thing exist?


    "Robbed of the joy that should have been yours, robbed of the family you deserved, robbed of status by your own blood¡ªI recognize your resilience," the voice proclaimed, growing louder with each word. "You will walk the path of the shield."


    The path of the shield? What did that mean?


    "When you wake, remember to close your eyes for twenty seconds. And remember this: there are seven others."


    Seven others? Seven others like me? Before I could unravel the meaning behind those words, the world shifted. Sleep''s embrace pulled me under.

 Prologue 4

    When I opened my eyes, I saw a forest stretching endlessly around me. I could not hear the sound of any animals yet I could smell the fresh and rugged scent of nature. Above, the sun shone comfortingly. It''s light warm rather than scorching. I tried to sit up, but my body refused to obey.


    I waited, expecting to hear the barked orders of a master or feel the sting of a whip forcing me to rise. But there was nothing¡ªno shouts, no pain. Just silence, broken only by the rustling of leaves.


    "No one is going to force you up, child," said a voice, soft and feminine.


    Startled, I turned my head toward the sound. Sitting on a nearby rock was a small, gray mouse, its beady eyes focused on me. Was I hallucinating? People said madness came for those who broke under the weight of their chains. Had I finally reached that point?


    "No, child," the mouse replied, as though reading my thoughts. "You are not mad."


    Her voice was calm, soothing. It held no trace of mockery or cruelty, only understanding. I blinked, trying to make sense of the situation. A talking mouse? It had to be a trick of my weary mind.


    The mouse sighed, her tiny whiskers trembling. "Indeed, the world was not kind to you."


    I snorted at her understatement. Scarred from birth, sold into slavery as an infant, and forced to toil under the sun until my body screamed for relief¡ªthat was my life. Kindness was a foreign concept.


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    The mouse scurried closer, her small frame radiating an odd sense of warmth. She rested against my head, her fur soft and comforting. We stayed like that for what felt like hours, the forest around us a cocoon of peace. Slowly, impossibly, I began to believe that this was real.


    "Am I... free?" I asked, my voice cracking under the weight of the words.


    The mouse''s whiskers twitched as she offered a smile. "Yes."


    "Will I need to go back?"


    I didn''t mean slavery¡ªnever that. I would die before returning to chains. I meant humanity. Would I be forced to return to those I blamed for my sad excuse of a life?


    The mouse tilted her head, considering her response carefully. "Not immediately. You will have time to heal, to grow. But eventually, you will return. There are others you must meet."


    "Others?"


    "Yes, seven others like you. Together, you will forge a new path. I assure you, your new home will bring you joy."


    Her words were strange, yet they filled me with an unexpected sense of hope.


    "Born into a world of pain, stripped of your humanity, and forced to suppress your true self¡ªI recognize your scars," she said softly. "From now on, you will walk the path of the arrow."


    Her words puzzled me, but they also comforted me. For the first time, I felt seen, understood.


    "When you wake, close your eyes for 20 seconds. Goodbye for now, child. I wish you prosperity."


    Her voice was the last thing I heard before sleep claimed me once more.

 Rude Awakening

    When I opened my eyes again, I was no longer in a dungeon. In fact, I had no skudding idea where I was.


    "What''s a baby doing out here?" a gruff voice said.


    Baby? Which baby? I tried to get up, but my body wouldn''t cooperate. Skud. Was I paralyzed?


    A


    shadow moved into my field of vision. A giant man with messy black hair


    and an even messier beard stared down at me, his expression a mix of


    confusion and mild concern. I found it impressive how he managed to make


    beard as short as his appear messy. He wore leather, with his muscular


    physique rather obvious.


    "Hey there, kid. Where are your parents?"


    Parents?


    I blinked, and a horrible thought struck me. Slowly, I lifted my hands.


    The tiny, pudgy hands that waved back at me were not my own. No. No,


    no, no! My expression contorted to that of absolute horror. These were


    baby hands-my baby hands.


    I tried to scream, to let out a string of curses, but all that came out was a pathetic "Aaauuggh!"


    "Alright, you little brat," the man said, sighing. "Guess I''ll take you too."


    He


    scooped me up, not at all gently, and slung me into his arms as if I


    wasn''t a fragile skudding baby. I wanted to scream at him for his rough


    handling, but it wouldn''t do any good. My baby mouth refused to


    cooperate. Damn it all.


    As he walked, humming to himself, I took


    stock of my situation. First, I was a skudding baby. Again. Second, I


    was abandoned. Again. And third, this grumpy giant had apparently


    decided I was worth lugging around, for god knows what reason. Hell, I


    might even be an offering for some cult.


    "Looks like Will''s going to have a twin sibling," he muttered to himself.


    Will?


    Was this one of the "seven others" the dungeon man mentioned? If so,


    where were the other six? And sibling? So I wasn''t going to be


    sacrificed? Wonderful news.


    The man''s humming grew louder, and I


    remembered the other part of the dungeon man''s instructions. "Close your


    eyes for 20 seconds." Might as well see what happens.


    If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.I squeezed my eyes shut and started counting.


    ========================================


    <b>                                   INFORMATION                                  </b>


    ========================================


    <b>Name:  </b>                    Unassigned


    <b>Age:   </b>                        <1


    <b>Occupatio</b>n:         Thief (Unawakened)


    <b>Affinity:     </b>             Lightning (Unawakened)


    <b>Achievements:</b>   None


    ========================================


    What


    the skud? Information my ass-I didn''t know what half of it meant.


    Before I could dwell on it further, the man''s voice pulled me back to


    reality.


    "We''re


    here," he said, stopping in front of a small wooden cabin. The smell of


    roasted meat from inside drew my attention, and my baby stomach growled


    loudly.


    The door


    swung open, revealing a woman with dark brown hair and a kind smile. She


    looked too pretty-and too pleasant-to be stuck with Mr. Grumpy.


    "Galt! You''re back!" she said, pulling him into a hug. "Will''s been missing you."


    Her eyes fell on me, and she gasped. "Oh! Who''s this?"


    "Found the brat abandoned in the fields," Galt grunted. "Figured I''d bring him along."


    Her hand flew to her mouth. "How terrible! The poor thing! Come, the child must be starving!"


    You''re skudding right I was. The smell of meat had made me realize how starved this body of mine was.


    She


    snatched me out of Galt''s arms, cradling me with surprising gentleness


    while fussing over how dirty I was. Her warmth felt so alien, it almost


    made me forget my predicament. Almost.


    From


    the corner of my eye, I spotted Galt in a chair, holding another baby.


    Was that Will? The kid had his fist shoved in his mouth, drooling all


    over himself like a regular baby. Was he pretending? Or was he actually


    normal?


    I stared at


    him, with many important questions popping into my mind. Where was I?


    Who was I? What was I? And most importantly, what the skud was I


    supposed to do about my predicament.

 Guard

    When I woke, I wasn''t surrounded by darkness anymore. In fact, my eyes opened to lights, noises of people whispering amongst themselves, the smell of perfume, and a man with an angular handsome face peering down at me. He had fiery red hair, deep brown eyes and a short haircut that somehow managed to make him look even sharper than he already was. Also, the man was gigantic¡ªor was I tiny?


    I attempted to lift my head to look at my surroundings but found I couldn''t. Interesting. I tried to question the man in front of me, but found myself incapable of speech, with incoherent babble being the only sound I was capable of producing. Interesting. The man was still peering down at me with a rather peculiar expression.


    His intense stare made me want to shrink back. My body refused to cooperate, for which I felt slightly grateful. I may be paralyzed but at least I wasn''t paralyzed with fear. I tried to think back to before waking here. Darkness, strange voice, seven others, close eyes. Might as well do what the strange voice had said. There was not a lot else I could do.


    The voice had recommended I close my eyes for 20 seconds after waking. Very well. Closing my eyes, I soon noticed something even more interesting than my current predicament.


    ========================================


    INFORMATION


    ========================================


    Name: Ferris of House Scutum


    Age: <1


    Occupation: Shield (Unawakened)


    Affinity: Earth (Unawakened)


    Achievements: None


    ========================================


    Ferris of House Scutum? Who was he? My eyes widened as I read the screen, focusing on the "Occupation" field. Shield? Wasn''t that the path the voice had mentioned? Did this information belong to me?


    A sinking feeling settled in my stomach as realization dawned. Refusing to believe it, I opened my eyes and raised my arms¡ªwhich unlike the rest of my body, moved. They were short, pudgy and white. Not a single scratch or mark on them. Unmistakably the arms of a baby. The man, still staring at me, smiled when I raised my hands and grabbed hold of them with his larger, calloused hands.


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    He scooped me up and held me in his arms gently. Before me was a crowd of people, dressed as maids and knights. Their eyes were completely focused on me, their gazes filled with interest. The maids and knights did not seem to be like the ones of my previous life. None of their heads were bowed in fear, none had markings of beatings or whippings, and none looked at me with anything but warmth. I was not quite sure how to react.


    "Hear ye! I declare the birth of the successor of House Scutum! Ferris!"


    It finally struck home. I was reborn. Reborn into a noble family at that. And unlike last time, my new family seemed well off. Memories of my previous life reared their ugly heads. Memories of losing my house to my uncle, of watching as he took away everything important to me, and of me pathetically being completely unable to do anything about it.


    I turned to stare at the man holding me. He noticed me glance and smiled lovingly. That expression, I had only seen it pointed at others. Never me. Before I could stop myself, my face was covered in tears. Was my wish truly granted? A joyful beginning?


    The man, upon seeing my tears, started panicking and soon I was snatched away from him by a woman. She wrapped me up in cloth raised me to meet her eyes. She had the same expression the man had had.


    She had bright blonde hair and kind eyes that mirrored the man''s warmth. "Now, now, little king," she cooed, nuzzling here face against mine. "You mustn''t scare your father like that."


    The tears which had almost stopped, started pouring out once more. This beginning¡ªthis joy, I vowed to shield it from any who dared desire to take it.

 Home

    I regained my


    consciousness surrounded by warmth. The scent of plants filled my nose


    and excited murmurings of people nearby pierced my ears. Slowly, I


    opened my eyes to be greeted by a strange sight. Clear skies peeked


    through a thick canopy overhead, casting dappled sunlight across


    unfamiliar faces. Upon seeing their faces my eyes widened with fear.


    The mouse had sworn this would not happen! I was supposed to be safe.


    One of the people staring at me smiled excitedly and whistled. "Never thought I''d see the day I became a father."


    What


    was he talking about? Like all the others, he had white hair and pale


    skin. His hair was long and messy but he still managed to look handsome.


    Upon looking at him more closely I noticed something strange about his


    ears. They were pointy.


    A women, also with pointy ears, put her hand on his shoulder and smiled at him.


    "It


    took quite a bit to tie down a wild animal like you." She said


    chuckling. Then, turning to stare at me her smile grew wider. "But it


    was worth it."


    I


    tried to open my mouth to speak but found myself too weak to. Was I


    drugged? And who were these people? Were they even human? What was wrong


    with their ears?


    Trying


    to make sense of the situation, I thought back to my conversation with


    the mouse. Heeding it''s words, I decided to close my eyes for 20


    seconds.


    ========================================


    <b>                                   INFORMATION                                  </b>


    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.========================================


    <b>Name:  </b>                    Unassigned


    <b>Age:   </b>                        <1


    <b>Occupatio</b><b>n</b>: Archer (Unawakened)


    <b>Affinity:     </b> Wind (Unawakened)


    <b>Achievements:</b>   None


    ========================================


    Was this... my information? Why was my age less than one? I shivered at the idea of being a baby once again.


    "There there," the women cooed, "you must be frightened with all these people. Don''t worry my princess, this is your home."


    Home? I had a home? Me? The concept felt foreign to me. I slowly opened my eyes.


    "Look at those eyes!" The man exclaimed happily. "She''s got the eyes of a hunter just like her mother!"


    "No!" A new voice yelled. "My little sister is going to be a mage like me!"


    A boy around the age of five approached me with a cute frown on his face.


    "Don''t let mother turn you into an archer!" He pleaded. "Mages are cooler."


    The man tousled the boy''s hair, grinning mischievously. "Right you are. Your father is quite the reputable mage himself."


    "Really?" The women¡ªmy mother said, her tone dangerous.


    The


    boy pouted, tugging on his mother''s skirt as she laughed. "I''m serious,


    Mother! Magic is better than arrows!" His plea was met with a deadpan


    stare from his mother. Magic? Was the boy obsessed with fairy tales or


    something?


    She grabbed my supposed brother''s ear. "It seems like you need some ''lessons'' young man."


    Although


    they appeared to be bickering, I felt warmth behind it. This warmth..


    could I be part of it too? A mixture of anticipation, worry and fear


    churned within me.


    "Now hush!" The women said, putting an end to the boy''s protests. "You might scare your sister."


    Looking


    at the women, I noticed even more irregularities. Her white hair, pale


    skin, and pointy ears which everyone had weren''t something I could


    ignore. They brought to mind a legend I heard as a child. Elves.


    Fictional tales of creatures living in forests far away from humans


    emerged from my memories. Were these people elves?


    The mouse had not lied. I had not returned to humans. Here, I felt I could heal.

 Light

    What greeted me when I opened my eyes was an elderly man smiling at


    me. His eyes were unlike any I had ever seen. Not in color but in the


    wisdom they hid behind them. It was as if Light itself was hidden behind


    it. Staring into it, I slowly sunk deeper and deeper into a trance and


    my ears began hearing a soft hum.


    The man blinked, freeing me from


    my trance and causing me to cry out. Everything about my conundrum was


    incomprehensible.Including my yelp, which sounded suspiciously like that


    of a baby. That was when I finally noticed the man I had been staring


    at was massive. No, I was tiny. Was I a baby?


    The man chuckled and


    put his hand on mine and brought his mouth close to my ears. "May you


    be able to follow the path of Light child."


    The Light? Was it the


    thing behind his eyes? The absurdity of the situation finally sunk in.


    My breath sped up as I attempted to make sense of my new reality. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    The


    tree had said to close my eyes for a bit.  I prayed with every part of


    my being that would somehow fix whatever went wrong and put me in a


    baby''s body.


    ========================================


    <b>                                   INFORMATION                                  </b>


    ========================================


    <b>Name: Spacius</b>


    <b>Age:   </b>                        <1


    <b>Occupatio</b><b>n</b>: Healer (Unawakened)


    <b>Affinity:     </b> Light (Unawakened)


    <b>Achievements:</b>   None


    ========================================


    I


    had no idea what any of this meant. All it did was confirm I was indeed


    a baby. Where was I? Who was I? In midst of my confusion and panic, I


    chuckled when I realized How was I? was a in fact valid question in this


    situation too. How absurd.


    The tree had promised that in this


    life, my actions would not be met with distrust and betrayal. For


    whatever reason, I believed it. And I still did.


    I sighed


    deeply. For now there was nothing I could do except trust the tree.


    Trust the Tree, I repeated to myself. if I had said that to me just a


    few hours earlier I would have thought the me right now was insane.

 Thief

    It had been a year since I had woken up in a field and been unceremoniously¡ª and rather roughly¡ª


    been brought into a homely cabin. Much to my disappointment, my new


    brother Will was not one of the seven others the wierdo man mentioned. I


    had tried communicating with the brat, but he just grabbed my skudding


    nose.


    And now I was once again being carried by


    Galt to a place I had never seen before. Admittedly, I had not left the


    cabin much since I had first arrived. Not being able to walk tends to


    significantly halt all attempts of exploration, I found. Being a baby


    was not as skudding easy as I would have thought. Being unable to take a


    dump myself or be able to ask for anything without crying was the most


    skudding annoying thing imaginable. My mother Helen, may the skudding


    Light be with her, was somehow able to understand what my crying meant.


    It


    was bewildering to watch her instantly realize I was thirsty by the


    sound I made. But thank skud she could. Galt as a single father would


    have been a death sentence.


    I started enviously at Will, who was


    being carried by mother. Galt hummed to himself as he walked and


    unfortunately for me, his musical talent was not much better than his


    parental ability.


    "Helen, you''re good with the brats right?" Galt asked Helen, breaking the silence.


    "Compared to you, even a beast would look like a royal nanny." Helen replied, smiling to herself.


    "Your fault for marrying me." He shot back. "Any guesses for their class?"


    "I


    hope both become mages." Helen said, playing with Will and staring at


    him fondly. "I''m sure they would enjoy his mother teaching him."


    Galt scoffed. "One of them better be a thief or I''ll be a complete bum of a father."


    What was this? Did Galt want his children to be thieves? No he had mentioned something about a class before. That felt familiar.


    ========================================


    <b>                                   INFORMATION                                  </b>


    ========================================


    <b>Name:  </b> Deyja Greencloak


    <b>Age: </b>1


    <b>Occupation</b>:         Thief (Unawakened)


    <b>Affinity:     </b>             Lightning (Unawakened)


    <b>Achievements:</b>   None


    ========================================


    Was this what he was talking about? I snorted. Galt was in luck. He had picked a thief as his adopted son.


    "Teaching


    them your sweaty fighting won''t change that dear." Helen stated. As


    kind as she looked, she had a rather sharp tongue when it came to anyone


    other than Will and me. I hoped to never find myself on the wrong side


    of it myself.


    The scenery around us was that of a regular town.


    Wooden houses with stone bases, the occasional stall. People bustled


    about, too busy to glance much at us. From what I could tell, we lived


    in a rather rural and out of the way area. Not well off, but not broke


    either. A decent life.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    We arrived onto a building that reminded me


    of the temples in my previous life. People in my past life did not


    truly believe in any deity. At least not where I was. A temple just


    served as a place where priests could extort an absurd amount of money


    from any poor skud who made his way there and if he was lucky he would


    get out with his injury or disease cured.


    Here, the people


    looked up to the Light. It was more of a concept than a deity. They


    believed that for every person there is a path lit by Light, and any who


    follow that path will never be abandoned or left to suffer. It was an


    interesting concept.


    The temple was served by people who wielded


    the element of Light. Not that it had any relation with the concept. It


    was merely good symbolism.


    The temple stood taller than any


    other building I had previously seen, with a graceful and slim stone


    structure. Silver engravings covered it and seemed to shine under the


    sun''s glow. In front of the temple were many other parents, holding


    children who looked the same age as me and Will.


    I was curious to see what this ceremony was all about.


    The


    temple doors opened to reveal a man dressed in silver clothing. He was


    middle aged and perfectly fit the image I had of a priest of the Light.


    Gray hairs, kind eyes and a calm air around him.


    "Parents, I request you form an orderly line before we proceed with the ceremony. Yes, very good¡ª


    thank you. Now one by one, each child will touch the plate in my hand


    and I will reveal his or her path. I wish you all luck in walking the


    path of the Light"


    The


    man calmly organized everyone and displayed a plain stone tablet so


    that all could see it. One by one, parents made their children touch the


    tablet and the man announced their class.


    "Chris


    Tigres! Path of the Shield! Ava Forwitch! Path of the Mage!" One by one


    each child had their class announced. Every time a child touched the


    tablet, it glowed slightly and I could vaguely make out the text on it.


    Finally, it was Will''s turn.


    "Will Greencloak! Path of the Thief!"


    Galt


    let out a satisfied breath and smirked at his wife. Who looked back


    with a smile scarier than any glare I had seen. Poor man.


    Once Will''s name had been announced, people began whispering amongst themselves.


    "Greencloak? You don''t mean¡ª"


    "Is he really his son? Galt¡ª"


    I


    couldn''t make out much of the conversation but it slowly became


    apparent that the name Greencloak was drawing quite a lot of attention.


    And


    finally, came my turn. The man smiled at me kindly and presented me


    with the tablet. Eagerly, I touched it. How did this thing work anyway?


    The tablet glowed softly, and words began to appear on it.


    "Deyja Greencloak! Path of the Thief!"


    Galt


    let out a hearty laugh upon hearing the news. Which frankly, shocked me


    more than anything else. His deep laugh caused me to flinch slightly.


    This was the first time I had seen the man express his emotions so


    clearly.


    Helen, who had a slightly disappointment frown on her face quickly got over it and rushed towards Galt and I with Will.


    "This isn''t fair." She muttered. "Couldn''t at least one of you picked the same path of mommy?"


    "Tough luck!" Galt exclaimed, cackling. "I''ll make void treaders out of these brats even if it kills them!"


    Helen groaned.