"Pearl?" Aiden wondered aloud as he looked at the small nearly pure white bird perched on the woman's shoulder.

“Quiet,” Jabari said, jabbing him the ribs. “Can’t you see her title? It’s Instructor Halding.”

Reluctantly Aiden turned his attention from little bird to the woman the bird was resting on. The woman's posture was rigid, and her hands were on her hips as she surveyed the group with evident displeasure. Her hair was dark, nearly black and pulled behind her neatly. She was wearing a dark blue dress, that seemed built for utility than elegance. The material reminded him of the tough material Elara’s pants had turned into when she needed to fight. Even though the hem touched the ground, something about her appearance made him certain that she was already prepared for conflict.

He looked over at the woman again and above her hovered the persistent title he had noticed before:

Talindor Instructor: Wizza Halding

He wondered why the title was still there even after he looked away. Until now, messages only appeared when he requested it, this one seemed to be there whenever he looked over at her whether he wanted it or not.

QCore hide the title, he thought, but it didn’t go away, QCore, remove the message, but nothing happened.

He focused on the message for a moment and more information immediately appeared:

Notice of Talindor Academy: Wizza Halding is hereby designated as the acting Regex, Seeker of Aspirants for Talindor Academy.

He wasn’t entirely sure what the message meant, but he wondered if that was the reason for the sudden tension.

He tried looking over at the bird on her shoulder to see if the system could maybe identify it, but it was so close to her that it seemed all he could see was her title and name. He frowned, there had to be a way to see if that was Pearl.

Morgan finally stepped forward breaking the awkward silence, “Instructor Halding,” she began, her voice sounding more fearful than she had been when they were facing the fiery Imps, or the burning Emberwisps or even the mob of rolling Bramblefangs, "We can explain,” she said simply.

The woman considered her carefully, looking her up and down as she stood there, “Wizzara Morgan Rosewood, Aspirant for Talindor Academy, have I asked for an explanation yet?”

Morgan answered quick, “No, Instructor Halding,” and turned her eyes back to the ground.

“Then back in place.”

“Yes, Instructor Halding,” Morgan answered and took her place back with the others.

Instructor Halding looked them over, as she spoke, “You can be certain that I will want a full explanation when I ask for one,” she said sharply. “But right now I want you all off that platform and out of my way so that I can see if there are any more of those things nearby,” emphasizing ‘those things’ with disgust.

Morgan immediately turned and headed off the runeportal, with Elara and Jabari close behind. Aiden followed them away from the stone and metal platform and onto the nearby road.

Hoping the dirt crunching under his feet and Elara’s jingling jewelry covered his voice, he asked a quietly as he could, “Jabari, Are we in some sort of trouble?”

Jabari shook his head and then whispered back softly, “probably not, but whatever you do,” and then, so quietly that Aiden wasn’t even sure he heard him, he added, “don’t mention your skills.”

Aiden frowned, and looked back at Jabari, about to ask why he couldn’t say anything about his skills, but Jabari just shook his head ever so slightly and Aiden thought better of the question.

He looked up at Instructor Halding who was standing in front of them, but she was still staring at the runeportal watching Dorian who hadn’t moved.

“He’s going to make this so much worse for us,” Morgan said, more to herself than to anyone else.

If the Instructor had looked annoyed before, she was downright angry now. “Aspirant Dorian,” she called out, her tone crisp and cool, “Off the platform, immediately.”

Dorian looked up at her and then gave her a small respectful bow. “I am sorry, Instructor, but I wound up here by error. I am not from this town. I must return to where I came, as I left my bag and must retrieve it.”

Instructor Halding took a deep breath, like someone accustomed to dealing with unreasonable people, “Wizzara Dorian Brumeux, Aspirant for Talindor Academy,” she began, her tone dry and irritated, “Did you see those creatures that were just coming toward this platform?”

“Yes, Instructor Halding,” Dorian said, still standing straight and talk although his voice was softer now.

“And you know they are dangerous?”

Dorian took a deep breath, “Yes, Instructor Halding,” he admitted.

Instructor Halding nodded knowingly, “And yet you still believe that you should just head off back to a forbidden Portal like Brookside?”

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At the mention of Brookside, Aiden heard a small gasp from Elara. He turned and she was looking at Morgan with wide eyes. If they had intended to hide where they came from, it was apparently too late.

“My bag contained things that are of great value to me,” Dorian began, "Retrieving it is an obligation that I have to fulfill wherever it is."

Instructor Halding cut him off, “Okay, we will do this a different way. Applicant Dorian, do recognize my title, Instructor of the Lyndon Academy, Searcher for Aspirants and Representative of Acceptance?”

“Yes, Instructor,” Dorian answered and seemed to stiffen a bit.

“And you acknowledge that you are an Aspirant to the Lyndon Academy?”

“Well, yes,” Dorian began then took a deep breath, “but…”

“Then, Aspirant Dorian, as an Instructor of the Lyndon Academy, I order you to get down off that portal, or risk rejection,” her words were a demand not a request.

For a moment, they just stared at each other; Dorian stood on the portal unmoving, while Instructor Halding watched. Although Dorian physically occupied the higher ground, the stern glance she directed at him made his position seem childish and immature.

“What’s happening?” Aiden whispered to Jabari.

Jabari leaned over and softly answered, “I can’t be sure, but I’m guessing he’s trying to use the portal, but she already locked him out.”

“You can do that?” Aiden asked surprised.

“I can’t do that,” Jabari answered emphasizing the word ‘I’, “but an Instructor can do that to an Aspirant.”

Aiden watched as Dorian continued looking at Instructor Halding as more tense moments passed.

Finally, Instructor Halding took a deep sigh, tilted her head to one side, obviously put out let it out said one word, “Now, Aspirant.”

Reluctantly, Dorian put his head down. Slowly, as if being dragged, he walked down off the portal, his white leather boots soundless as he took his place at the end of the row.

“Thank you,” Instructor Halding answered with a slight nod to acknowledge her approval.

“Now,” Instructor Halding said, looking at Morgan, “I would like an explanation as to what you were all doing over at Brookside. If I had not been here when you arrived you might not have made it back to the town at all,” she said looking at them again.

“Yes,” Morgan agreed with a polite smile, “we understand how lucky we were that you were here when we arrived, Instructor Halding,” Morgan began with a nod looking down apologetically.

“Luck!” Instructor Halding scoffed, “It was not luck!” She glanced down at her shoulder looking at the bird sitting there next to her, “If she hadn’t found me in Stonebridge, I would never have been here when you arrived.”

Aiden heard the words but couldn’t believe it, “Pearl it is you!” he called, “You’re alright!” he said and excitedly started toward them.

Instructor Halding held out a hand, “Not yet,” she said and Aiden stopped where he was.

“She was hurt badly,” she explained as she held her hand toward the bird on the shoulder who stood up and with a small hop stood on her palm, “But wouldn’t stay back at the town to get any help while I was headed to find all of you.”

Aiden looked at her and realized she was right. Pearl had been more severely injured than he had realized. Her feathers weren’t just singed, some were burned off and he wondered how she made the flight all the way from Brookside to Stonebridge.

He held his hands out toward Instructor Halding, but she made no move to transfer Pearl. “You are a very lucky child, Wizaran Aiden Stone,” she said.

“Yes, Instructor Harling,” he said, “I am.”

“Keep her safe,” she said and looked at him seriously and then slowly offered Pearl to him.

When their hands were nearly touching, Pearl hopped onto Aiden’s palm, and he pulled his hand close to his chest. He had lost her once and wasn’t going to lose her again.

As he held her against him, he wondered just how he would transport a bird.

As if reading his mind, the instructor tapper her shoulder, “She can’t fly right now, but if you hold her next to your shoulder, she may choose to stay next to you as she did with me.”

Aiden lifted the bird slowly and carefully to his shoulder, and it hopped over and then settled down again.

“Now, that that is settled,” the teacher said looked back at the group, “Will someone explain to us exactly what you were all just doing in Brookside?”

Morgan took a step forward again, a small smile, as she looked at the instructor, “Well, as you know, the Academy portal wasn’t working today,” she shrugged, and a few strands of long blonde hair fell forward. Aiden expected her to push it back like she had done so may times before, but this time she ignored the loose hair and it framed her face softly, “So,” she continued, “no one has been able to portal to the Academy.”

“Yes, I am aware,” Instructor Halding answered.

“Well, Dorian of the Crystal shores,” she gestured toward Dorian, “and Aiden, a new arrival from the otherworld,” she motioned toward him, her green eyes showing pity for them both, “were both trying to get to the Academy when the portal redirected them to Brookside,” she said her tone apologetic.

“Is that the case?” Instructor Halding asked, looking from Aiden to Dorian.

Dorian gave a quick nod of agreement, and Aiden, unsure of what to say to being referred to as an ‘otherworlder’ just gave her a simple, “Yes, Ma’am.”

“Elara and I didn’t intend to go to Brookside either.” Morgan continued, “We just went out to gather herbs and were similarly surprised when we realized where we were,” her eyes went wide and seemed to show genuine surprise as she spoke. She was so wide eyed and soft spoken that Aiden wasn’t sure where the Morgan he had seen earlier today had gone.

“And what about you?” Instructor Halding said to Jabari, “Is that how you wound up in Brookside too?”

“That’s what happened,” Jabari said, “to all three of us.”

Instructor Harlick frowned as she looked at them and Aiden had the distinct impression that she was weighing their story. From the look on her face, he was fairly certain she didn’t believe them.

“So, you all just accidentally wound up in a forbidden town, and then immediately ported back,” she summed up their story for them, “Nothing else happened, nothing else to mention?”

Her tone was friendly, but the way she spoke made Aiden think that she knew they were holding something back. He looked over at Pearl’s damaged wing and realized that she had to know that it hadn’t been as simple as that.

“Well, we did run into a little bit of trouble,” Aiden admitted.

“But we got through it,” Jabari volunteered.

“And we took the runeportal back as soon as we could,” Elara added.

“That’s it?” Instructor Halding asked, obviously waiting for something else.

“Well,” Morgan said, glancing nervously over at Elara, “we did think we saw something there that we couldn’t quite explain in Brookside.” Morgan looked over at Jabari who nodded.

“There were creatures, in Brookside, like the ones you destroyed when we first arrived,” Elara said, then paused choosing her words carefully, “they didn’t behave like normal enchantlings.”

“Which is why Brookside is off limits,” Instructor Halding answered firmly. “It’s not safe. But now, as you already know they are not enchantlings.”

Aiden watched as Morgan and Elara exchanged nervous glances. “We thought maybe they weren’t, but we weren’t sure,” Elara admitted.

“Then you know what they are?” the instructor asked Elara.

“Maybe,” Elara said, “but sounds unbelievable.”

The older woman just waited.

“Riftshadows,” Elara said.

“Very good, Elara,” Instructor Halding said, “there are many who don’t believe what they see even when they see it. They are riftshadows. And they are no longer just at Brookside,” Instructor Halding said, “this afternoon, someone cast the World Spell, and just before it disappeared for the World Spellbook, many of us in Stonebridge felt a pull, almost like power was being pulled for a strong spell from the north, toward Brookside.”

Elara got quiet.

“And, since this afternoon, Stonebridge, the Academy and a few other locations in Drayden have been under attack by Riftshadows.”

Morgan gasped and Aiden watched as the color drained from her face.

Instructor Halding looked from one girl to the other, “So, now tell me again, just what happened this afternoon at Brookside?”