As Kira caught up with the others, the ground beneath her began to vibrate to the low distant rumble of an approaching carriage.

She turned, surprised that it had not stopped back along the pathway in the clearing with all the others, but instead continued on until it reached the very edge of the sparkling mossy shelf.

This grand, direct approach; the sheer size and magnificence of the huge carriage; the haughty pride of the four large, white horses which drew it; all clearly denoted someone of a very high rank; and as the coach stopped, a hushed whisper began to circulate amongst the crowds that this was the vehicle of the Grand Harmonist himself.

Kira knew she should keep going and get into position with the others.

But how could she be expected to resist such a sight?

A true, once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity?

Surely her chaperones wouldn’t mind?

Just this one time?

She stopped and gave herself permission to observe the august spectacle, unlike anything she had ever witnessed before, or was ever likely to witness again, curious to take in the details of its opulent splendour.

The carriage was richly adorned; its intricate panels inlaid with brightly coloured carvings and statues which glinted and sparkled, picked out by the purity of the rising moon. But they also glowed from within - the flickering symbols of gold and ruby shimmered with a spectral, internal light, as they twisted and writhed across the body of the coach.

Five torches blazed brightly on the roof, each with a deep mysterious intensity - four in shimmering shades of orange and blue, while the fifth, central flame, burned in a pure and sincere yellow.

A finely dressed coachman got down from his position at the front of the carriage and placed a set of dainty golden steps on the ground. He held the door open wide for its occupants, and Kira couldn’t help but feel that such a luxury would have saved her and the other girls an unseemly amount of ungainly clambering in and out of their own high wagon - but she refused to allow this petty jealousy to spoil her enjoyment of the pageantry.

Around her, the entire crowd had fallen silent and gazed on in wonderment as they jostled forward to get a better view.

Kira found herself standing near to Sisters Maud and Enid.

A loud gasp of delight rippled through the congregation as five tall young men descended from the carriage.

Kira strained her eyes into the dim night; she had never seen a boy before, and was a little too far away to get a really good look, but it seemed to her that they had much broader shoulders and a fuller outline than girls.

Each was dressed in a fine silk robe of a different hue and shade of blue. They stood straight and motionless, forming a line leading away from the carriage steps.

“Those are the Apprentices,” Sister Maud announced in a hoarse whisper. “One for each of the five magikal disciplines.”

“How handsome they look,” Enid replied, without tearing her eyes away.

A wave of expectant anticipation surged through the assembled crowd of Believers and clerics. They held their collective breath for what seemed to Kira to be almost an impatient lifetime, until finally a slender man, with a fine dark moustache, curling above a serene smile, emerged from the depths of the carriage, and graced them all with his presence.

His robe of flowing gold was inlaid with intricate swirling patterns of deep blue gems; his head supported a large, soft, delicately woven turban of turquoise, fastened in place with a golden pin and a large flawless ruby. Even from her distance, and across the darkness of the evening, the dazzling colours were richer and more exquisite than any manuscript illumination Kira had ever seen.

His cloak made it appear as if the Harmonist floated down the steps to the ground in an effortless, ethereal manner. He did not bother to concern himself with the crowd or any of the others gathered there, but focused only on his contented smile and the glory of his own authority, as he preceded to the centre of the Grove’s Heart, in a series of exacting and fastidious steps, causing the twinkling moss of the plateau to glow brighter beneath the weight of his aura.

As he strode past the crowd, the two good Sisters stood open-mouthed and gazed intently on the imperial magnificence of the Harmonist.

The five Apprentices followed on behind.

“Look at the workmanship on their robes! What wonderful material! Far better than the coarse cloth of even our very best vestments!” whispered Maud.

“How handsome they all look,” said Enid.

“How much would such material cost? I wonder how it would feel to be clothed head to toe in such a fine, glossy luxury?” said Maud.

“How handsome they all look,” said Enid. content.

Kira had also noticed the fine silk robes, but was more distracted by the sight of Sister Maud’s bulging, covetous eyes.

Surely this was exactly the type of worldly vanity that years of devout prayer should have extinguished long ago?

And hadn’t they told her and the other girls, just a short while ago, not to gawp, or even look at the men?

How could it be fair for the nuns to stare when the novicellae weren’t allowed such a privilege?

And after all, this was her very first time out of the convent - surely she should be allowed to notice something of the outer-world?

The older nuns had probably already been out of the convent on any number of previous occasions.

And by now, the sacrosanct purity of the moonlight should have taught them the empty sinfulness of this world; just as the Venerated Opus had taught…

“Kira! What do you think you’re doing! Didn’t I just tell you not to gawp? Don’t you know it’s improper for a girl to stare?”

The sharp tones of her guardian jolted Kira back to the dark of the evening Grove. She looked up and caught the flash of Sister Maud’s gimlet eyes.

The Grand Harmonist had already passed by, and the rest of the crowd had followed him towards the very centre of the circle, ready to take up their assigned places and prepare for the ritual to begin.

“Well? Don’t just stand there idly girl!” Maud barked: “We should all be in our positions by now! Or do you think you are so important that the whole ceremony should wait for you?”

Sister Enid frowned at Kira and shook her head.

“Honestly! I knew we should never have brought that girl!”

Kira’s cheeks burned as she hurried across the springy moss toward the centre of the Grove to ready herself for the mysteries of the Great Ceremony.