I stood immobile in place, and it wasn’t until he was out of sight that I regained control of my senses. Just as mysteriously as he had arrived, he disappeared into the darkness of the forest.

Who is he? I thought.

Looking down at the chips of wood and what remained of the tree trunk, I noticed the charred edges that slightly smoked as if it had been slashed through with a blade of fire.

The wind felt ominously chilly, so I grabbed my bag and made my way straight home, replaying the event the whole way back. This was the first time I had met another Valkryn besides my parents.

And even though his aura felt weak, he had to be powerful enough to conjure a portal of that magnitude and destroy a tree that massive.

Mom turned around as she heard me open the door. “How was school?” I heard the running water and dishes clinking against each other.

“Good,” I answered simply, hoping to end the conversation there.

The faucet squeaked shut and her footsteps approached. Leaning against the doorway, she wiped her hands on a towel. “That’s a little hard to believe.” She raised an eyebrow at me, and I knew she was well aware of the fact that I had not gone to school today. Again.

I sighed and confessed, “Okay, I was at the meadow practicing.”

She shook her head clearly disappointed with my life decisions. “Just because it’s your eighteenth birthday, does not mean you can go slinking around playing hooky.”

“I wasn’t “slinking” around. And since it’s my eighteenth birthday, I think you should just let it go?” I tried my luck. “I’m going to be attending Vanderwald, so Foundational school doesn’t even matter anymore.”

She was silent, knowing on some level that it was true. Only Valkryns—Celestrians who developed a Ceres—were admitted into Vanderwald, while all others were required to complete Foundational school followed by Cultivation school. “Are you at least ready for your interview tomorrow?” Mom always changed the subject when she knew I was right.

“As much as I can be,” I lied. I still wasn’t really sure how to present my Ceres tomorrow. And after today’s debacle, I felt a bit disoriented to say the least.

“Well, make sure to get enough rest. I’ll bring dinner up to your room.” The ridge between her brows creased. She worried so much that even when she did manage to relax there was still a slight indentation.

I nodded and skipped up the stairs, my mind wandering back to the unexpected meeting.

Would I see him again? He definitely wasn’t from around here. And, though I had never traveled to different dimensions, I knew the thing he came through was some sort of portal. But I had been under the impression that there were only mirror portals—never a portal that ripped through the air like that one had.

I slapped my hands against my cheeks. “Get it together,” I ordered myself. This is neither the time nor place to be worrying about some guy.

I took a moment to recenter myself by meditating on my Ceres, hoping to calm my wandering mind. The deep amethyst presence within me grew familiar. The more I meditated, the more control I had over my Ceres.

My mind wandered, thinking about the strange black stone and the symbol etched on its side—an arrow with a sharp base.

Suddenly, a strange feeling surfaced from within me—a cool, chilling sensation, but not uncomfortably so. I concentrated on it and noticed a separate entity, a dewy silver aura. The latency was murky but possessed an undeniable charisma, however small it felt.

I concentrated harder and the pale silver Ceres became more pronounced. Urging it forward, around, and down inside of me, I was overwhelmed with the fluid and smooth maneuvering.

“Selena!” Mom’s shrill voice broke my focus and my eyes shot open to a winding display of a shimmering metallic substance enclosed around me.

Dad stood beside her at the door; his arms around her shoulders were the only thing keeping her upright. She clutched the handles of the tray so hard that her knuckles paled.

I touched the smooth, detailed edges of the substance, and it disappeared almost instantly back into my hands.

“Chrome,” Dad whispered. “This is it.”

“This is what?” I asked, inspecting both sides of my hands where the chrome had disappeared into.

“This is what you need to show at your interview for Vanderwald tomorrow.”

I shot up. “There’s no way! I don’t even know how to control it.”

“Selena, listen to me. This is what you need to show. Practice it tonight and I’m sure you’ll catch on to it quicker than you think.”

I was silent. One night to practice a Ceres? I thought doubtfully. Has he lost his mind?

“Selena Somerset, trust me.”

“Okay,” I conceded with a long sigh with my hands up. I hated the idea of presenting something I wasn’t comfortable with, but Dad had never led me astray before and I hoped this would not be the first time.

“The substance is called chrome. I’ve only seen it once before, but I could never forget it,” he affirmed.

“Chrome…” I repeated.

Before I could ask any questions, my parents slipped away to leave me to practice. The material seemed indestructible, but when I willed it back, it returned like liquid. While being extremely malleable when I concentrated hard enough, the chrome formed into any shape I wanted. However, I was only able to hold the form for a minute or two. That wasn’t nearly long enough to make an impact for my interview presentation.

The unfamiliar aura made it difficult to focus on for a long period of time, and I huffed in frustration.

Recalling the twin blades Dad trained me with, I began duplicating its image from memory, adding an extra flare with a spinning guard around my hands for the grip of the hilts. The chrome was a light, yet resilient, substance. Two minutes passed before the blades slipped away and left me gasping in struggle, again.

Hours passed and my head throbbed from the constant intensity required to maintain a physical hold on the chrome.

Am I really planning on displaying a Ceres I didn’t even know I had until the night before my interview? The risk was huge. The only thing that kept me going was the assurance of Dad’s advice.

The bed felt like clouds as I sunk into the cushions, exhausted from training. Finally, eighteen and my first real adventure was about to begin. Adventure out of this region, at least. Langia was beautiful and peaceful, but that was about it.

Vanderwald Academy was a boarding school; I’d miss my parents, of course, but the thought of exploring the rest of Celestria made me jitter with excitement. I belonged out there, meeting new Valkryns like the mysterious man in the meadow. Something called out to the deepest part of my soul.

3 a.m. I groaned, closing my eyes and willing myself to sleep. If I didn’t get enough rest, then I was sure to screw something up at the interview.

Shaking away the negative thought before it became a self-fulfilling prophecy, I forced myself to drift off into a deep sleep. That night I dreamt of a pair of gray eyes. I knew these eyes. I had seen them long before.