The sky boat followed the Unicorn River towards the northern end of the Valley, where Qrowdell Academy sat. Also along the shore ran a wide cobblestone road that connected the campus to Pixiewick, with paths forking off here and there to homesteads, farms, and ranches. 

Soon they began descending onto an enormous stone parking lot, along with dozens of other arriving sky vessels. Swarms of people were heading to the enormous gothic-style mansion at the other end of the lot. It was mostly dark in color with pointed-arch windows and multiple towers jutting up. A sign above the main double doors displayed the school logo - a silhouette of a crow spreading its wings - and contained within were the words:

QROWDELL ACADEMY

-MAIN HALL-

“We’re finally here!” Dorian cheered excitedly.

“Time to own that exam, right buddy?” Emmett said as he and his parents came up behind them. 

“Hell yeah!” he replied as they bumped fists. 

They followed an influx of people through the front doors and down a long hall. Many types of Otherkin were present there - humans, elves, dwarves, catfolk, dogfolk, foxfolk, goblins, tieflings, etc. The hall opened into an absolutely massive octagonal Atrium that rose up seven stories high to a lattice glass ceiling. Curved staircases sat at the northwest, northeast, southwest, and southeast walls, looping around stone pillars to give access to all seven floors. 

Each level had an interior wraparound balcony overlooking the polished wood floor of the Atrium, and numerous pointed archways and halls led off to other parts of the mansion. The walls were lined with cast-iron sconce lamps holding magical purple flames, but they were rather dim because it was still daylight.

“If you haven’t checked in yet, please let us know!” called out a man in an elegant suit and tie as he addressed the swarms of people. There were several faculty members walking around, all dressed just as formal as the first man.

Dorian and Emmett approached a woman who verified their names and pictures on a touchscreen tablet.  She then pointed to the other side of the Atrium, opposite the main entrance. “Okay, you’re all set! Head out through those doors and follow the floating arrows to the Urban Training Field.”

“Okay, thank you!” the boys replied. The doors she pointed to opened up to a spacious courtyard and garden. Green hedges and rows of multicolored flowers lined the outer perimeter, and a stone dragon fountain sat in the center. A brick road led from the back of the Main Hall, through the courtyard, and then forked off into multiple paths leading to various parts of the campus. 

A line of red hard-light arrows floating in the air led them along a specific road, which curved into the forest some and then split into over a dozen smaller paths. According to the map board posted there, each of these lead to a different Training Field, with Urban being the largest.

They followed the flow of people to a high stone wall which had a sign above a tall archway that marked it as the Urban Training Field. As they passed through, it opened into a massive circular stadium. Many rows of seats overlooked a central area that simulated a downtown city environment. A myriad of buildings sat along the grid-like streets, with a few parks and lakes spread about. 

“If you are a Candidate, please head through here,” said a man, pointing to a smaller archway in a sidewall that led to the locker rooms. “Families of Candidates, please continue into the stands to get seated.”

“You both got this!” John said with a smile. 

“We know you’ll do great!” agreed Emeralia. 

“No matter what happens, we’re proud of you both!” said Archie.

“I know you’ll give it your all!” added Koga.

Each set of adults hugged their kid, and then they all pulled each other into a massive group hug. 

“We’ll make you proud!” promised Dorian.

“Yeah! We’re gonna nail it!” agreed Emmett.