It was becoming increasingly clear that she was doing something wrong in this new life. She went through the routines set by the technicians. Rise at the light. Get sustenance. Run 10 laps around the compound. Practice abilities for 3 hours. Gain sustenance. Sleep and then repeat. 
It was too much like her old life in the labs, and she knew she had to do more and become something in this world. But she wasn't sure what she lacked. 

It wasn’t until she made a trip to the closest town, that wasn’t on the floating isles, that she realized what it was.

Great beasts shimmering in blue in silver. Saddled and ridden by the folk of the town. It was rare to see someone who did not have one of these beasts following after them.

ALICE informed her, they were Sky Beasts.

It was when she asked an adult, “How does one get to the floating isles?”

The man let out boisterous laughter until he saw her straight face, he patted the neck of his sky beast. “It's nearly that time of the year, youngin’ the Choosing Festival will be here before you know it.”

“The Choosing Festival?”

The man pointed toward the floating isles, “You want to get there, you’ll need a sky beast. Or a sky ship but the common folk can’t afford them.”

After asking around 2851 discovered that the Choosing Festival was when the near-adolescent children climbed the cliffs surrounding the isles. At the top of the cliffs where the wild sky beast nests resided, a select amount of children would be bestowed an egg. This would become their future mount, the fortunate were said to be truly blessed for they’d be able to make a better living on the floating isles than in the surrounding farming villages.

The next Choosing Festival would be in 5 days at first light. Those not chosen would have to wait until the next year when they’d have to go against the other children.

2851 looked toward the cliffs her eyes squinting to see the flying beasts soar across the skies. Well, the answer was simple, if she wished to make something of herself she would need to get a sky beast.

As the week approached 2851 used her trading system to prepare for the 2-day event. One day to climb up the cliffs, the second day for the choosing where the wild adult sky beasts would choose children to bequeath an egg to. ALICE encouraged her to practice her abilities more vigorously before the event.

[IF YOU SHOULD FALL, YOU COULD HAVE THE WATER FROM BELOW CATCH YOU.]

2851 shivered at the possibility but each night she practiced by a nearby river that ran over the top of the cliff where the cabin sat. Moving the water the way she had been taught, creating waves, and long tendrils that she would motion to pick up branches she set aside. It was different working in a lab environment to one with real air, sunlight, and nature.

[YOU HAVE REACHED LEVEL 10. EFFICIENT ENOUGH IF YOU ARE IN DANGER.]

The first day of the Choosing Festival had arrived. 2851 was ready with her backpack, some rations, water (she’d traded for some bottles), and climbing gear she’d also traded for.

She stood at the foot of the cliffs looking around at the many children dotting the bottom of the surrounding cliffs. She had surveyed the surrounding rock faces ahead of time from her abode and noticed the harder-to-reach crag went up into the sky beside her domicile.

At first light, as everyone began to climb their selected cliffs, 2851 used her new ladder to cross the crack between her cliff and the other. The ladder creaked forebodingly beneath her but didn’t break as she crossed to the other side. She left the ladder behind in the crack before taking out her climbing gear. Outside help was forbidden in the Choosing Festival however the children could bring whatever they liked to help them climb the cliffs. With her backpack behind her, she dusted her hands with some chalky dirt she’d found before stepping up toward the rock and swinging her rope up with its claw until it reached a crag more than 10 ft up. She pulled on the rope to make sure it wouldn’t slip before tying it to her harness and beginning the climb up the rock face.

As the early sun rose she was soon exposed to patches of hot sun and then shadow when she reached a jutting piece of rock.

Shortly after she took a morning break for sustenance sitting on a small ledge on her cliff, she heard shouts coming from across the way. Squinting her gaze she saw a child hanging from a ledge while jeers from other children came from above. The other child’s glaring orange hair could be from far away and his small frame looked barely the age that was required, eleven to twelve was the minimum age requirement.

The child would not be able to hang on for much longer and yet his comrades did not seek to assist. 2851 gazed at the distance to the water below the cliff-side they were at with that kind of fall the child might not survive. Looking around 2851 saw there was a ledge that jutted out beside a waterfall that separated her cliff-side and theirs.

[WHY SAVE THE CHILD?]

‘Why not?’ 2851 looked at the child, a child so small they probably wouldn’t have survived the tests and element injections from her old world.

She was already making the climb to the ledge overlooking the waterfall and the child. She didn’t understand why the child only held on with one hand until she neared to see something white and fluffy in his arm-hold.

2851 cupped her hands over her mouth and shouted across the roar of the water, “Hold your breath!”

She could just barely see the orange-haired child glance her way eyes wide with fear.

“I’ll catch you, prepare to drop.”

Arms slightly shaking, she breathed out her anxiety and rose them. Her brows furrowed as she focused on the flow of the water and sculpted it into a long arm of water reaching out to the boy.

“Now let go!” 2851 maneuvered the water so that it caught the boy as he fell, he sank into the water tendril before she quickly retreated it to herself and dropped him on her ledge. The boy dropped to his knees coughing.

“You have the spark!” He exclaimed once his coughing subsided, his wide sunset-colored eyes looked at her with awe even as 2851 shrugged.

2851 tilted her head to the side. Before pulling one of her rations from her backpack and offering it to him, she’d noticed his pack had been confiscated by the boys who were only laughing at his peril rather than helping.

“What is that?” She pointed to the wet bundle.

“A Myini fell from its nest and couldn’t fly!” He looked down worried only to notice a pair of big eyes looking at him from his hold.

Seeing that the boy seemed like he would be alright, 2851 placed a ceramic water bottle by his side and the rest of the ration she’d broken in half for him before nodding and looking up the cliff face.

She was a little under halfway up the cliff face. Swinging her hook she tossed it to the next crag above her way and began to make her way up the rock face. The cooling mist from the waterfall sprayed her cheeks. She flicked her fingers and the droplets rolled off her hands and the rock-hold she made her way up.

“Wait! What’s your name?”

“Name.” She whispered, “I don’t have one.” Names were only given to the children in her old world who joined society, she had been inefficient.

“Where do you live?”

2851 didn’t bother to answer and continued up the rock face until his shouts could no longer be heard.

It was just about dusk when she finally reached the top of the cliff face.

Large woven nests layout across the wide expanse. Beautiful creatures with ice blue wings, river blue beaks, and silver piercing gazes watched from them as the other children made their way up. The wings of the sky beasts glimmering in the arriving night air. Their long echoing cries echo around.

Well, this would be an interesting night, not wishing to sleep on the edge of the cliff 2851 ventured closer to one of the towering nests. A shiny beak peered over the top and glimmering eyes watched as she lay down beside the nest beneath its shadow.

2851 woke with a gasp as she felt her clothes were tugged and she was pulled out from the shadow of the nest. Her gaze met silver. She slowly went to her knees, unsure of how to proceed. This segment of the Choosing Festival was sacred. None knew exactly how the skybeasts accepted the child.

Carefully she raised herself to her knees, keeping her gaze upon the sky beast in front of her.

ALICE chimed. Her interface flickered in front of 2851’s eyes, disappearing once she read it.

[NAME: N/A, WILD SKY BEAST

ABILITY: ICE/WIND

STRENGTH: UNDETERMINED]

Slowly pulling her backpack forward she brought forth a piece of bread she’d been able to make with her resources a couple of days prior. She lifted the piece offering it to the large beast.

Glittering silver eyes stared at her before eating the bread making a small chuffing sound bumping 2851’s hand and peering at her pack with unveiled curiosity.

“I’m sorry there’s no more of the homemade bread. Just rations. I have a feeling you won’t like that much.”

Still, she unwrapped a ration from its silver packaging before offering it to the giant beast who immediately shook its head at the smell and let out an indignant squawk. The staring continued until the beast seemed to make up its mind and began herding 2851 back toward its nest its wings bracketing her as if stopping her from escaping. It sat promptly on its haunches the tip of its long tail brushing the ground with its feathers back and forth as it watched her.

‘I think they want me to climb into the nest.’

Peering around the cliffs nearby she could see a variety of situations. Some had the sky beasts chasing off children until they hurriedly climbed away from the nests. Others picked up the children with their talons and took off with the children screaming only for the beasts to dive down and dunk them in the water before spiraling up and letting out chortles that sounded like laughter. Looking back at the sky beast behind her, 2851 she couldn’t help but think she’d gotten it rather easily.

“Why did you make it easier for me?”

The sky beast tilted its head before it turned its head and watched as several children pushed their way to the nests across the way, before looking back at her. A rumble came from its throat almost like a purr before it went down on all fours and nudged her back toward the nest again.

The nest was taller than her, with woven trees along its sides. Vines and flowers adorned the sides. As she reached the top, another nudge from behind had her slipping and sliding down into the soft grasses at the base of the nest.

‘ALICE do you know why the nests are so large if the eggs are so small?’

[…SEARCHING THE DATABASE…

ADULT WILD SKY BEASTS GROW LARGER AS THEY AGE. THEY LIVE MUCH LONGER THAN THOSE WHO ARE BONDED.]

‘That’s…’ 2851 wasn’t sure what feeling she felt from that, ‘sad, I think.’

A squawk from above woke 2851 from her thoughts and she saw the ice-blue scales reflecting the morning sun on the head of the sky beast. It nodded toward the nest as if encouraging her to choose.

2851 lifted the grasses searching the nest for the eggs. The first was a mottled blue and white dotted. 2851 passed it without a thought seeking out others. Several more dotted in a variety of blues, but it was odd she felt no desire to grab one. Then out of the corner of her eye something sparkled in the light, hidden in the weaves of the nest and covered in mud was an egg of a deep indigo blue. Stepping forward 2851 wiped the egg of the grime with the sleeve of her tunic. A smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she saw an egg with an almost scale-like pattern with a slight opalescent sheen. It was beautiful.

“This is the one.”

A gem in the rough. Something about it called to her. She quickly realized she would have to take out all her belongings from her pack for the egg to fit. With a brief look at the sky beast that had not moved from its spot peering over the rim of its nest, she took some spare tufts of grass to line the bag just for extra insurance.

She would keep it safe. The first thing that was truly hers in this new world.