Professor Kaylastal led me back to the central area of the compass hall. There we made for an arch carved out of the wall between the north and east hall. The rune beneath it was active already and we stepped through.

White light forced me to squint and cover my eyes. When my sight returned, I found myself standing on a wide grassy plain. Trees surrounded the field on all sides and the sky was bright blue with fluffy clouds drifting by. In front of us a small brick building stood alone in the field; however, many black boxes floated in the air dozens of yards up. Each was large enough to hold the professor's classroom within it and they moved constantly, drifting back and forth.

“What are those?” I asked.

“Some are trial Boxes. They hold different environments for magister duels and trials. Others are simple spectator boxes. Today, we won’t be needing those.”

We entered the building where two men were standing behind a single long desk. Donovan stepped up to the man on the left, a dark skinned man with gold tattoos on his arms, neck and face. He wore a white vest over bulging muscles and a gold band held up his hair in a topknot. He smiled with gleaming white teeth, saying, “Welcome back Magister Kaylastal. Here for the first year duels I assume?”

The other clerk looked like he could’ve been this one’s younger brother, only he looked bitter—like someone who had forgotten what happiness was and lived every moment only thinking negative thoughts.

The professor nodded. “But for the time being, send us to a private room. We’ll join the rest of my class later.”

“Of course, Professor.”

The man touched something on the desk as he nodded.

There was a flash of light, then darkness. A woman’s mechanical voice said, “Welcome to gallery three, magisters. This has not been reserved. No ambient settings entered. No catering selected. Would you like to adjust the ambiance?”

“No,” the professor answered.

“Understood. . . Settings accepted. Would you like to order—”

“No, we don’t need food. We won’t need drinks or service either. Just shut yourself down for five minutes then send us back.”

The woman's voice paused, then answered, "Understood. Then please enjoy your stay and have a wonderful day."

The professor turned to face me, his dark eyes examining me carefully. I was about to ask him what he wanted when he said, “Show me your spell tome.”

“Why?”

“Did you name her yet?”

“No…actually I was going to ask if it might be possible to trade her for a different tome?”

Professor Kaylastal narrowed his gaze. His eyes pierced mine, freezing me in place. He folded his arms, leaning forward slightly, as he said, “What do you think, boy?”

“But she’s broken, or defective, or whatever. She only has two spells. How am I supposed to be a magister if—”

“Doesn’t matter kid, you can’t just trade our spell tomes and besides that tome you have is actually pretty special.”

I lifted the book, staring at her cover, then turning it so he could see the faded runes. “I don’t think so, she seems really useless and doesn’t even have a proper title.”

The professor frowned as a vein appeared on his forehead. After a moment he sighed, shaking his head. He held out his hand, saying, “Just give me the tome.”

As soon as my fingers released the book, he flipped her open. Finding her two spells he asked, “Can you read these?”

I grimaced, shrugging at his question. “Can a dual horn fly?” I snapped. “Obviously not.”

The professor rolled his eyes as Kayla personified behind him. “I wasn’t talking to you, dumb ass. Just be quiet for a minute.”

Kayla smiled smugly as she leaned over the professor, resting her chest on top his head.

Ignoring her, he pointed to the runes on one of my spell tome’s pages. “This one?”

Kayla nodded. “It’s an isolation spell, and this one makes fire…but it’s a bit strange. It doesn’t follow the usual patterns.”

Professor Kaylastal nodded.

Furrowing his brow, he studied the page intently. After a long moment of silence, he turned to the next page, and the next. When he reached the end of the book, he closed it and handed it back to me.

“However useless she may seem, that’s the only spell tome you’re getting until you convince it to allow you to take another. Name the tome, boy. It’s the first step. After that, get to know her.”

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

He paused to consider for a moment then added, “Try not to think of her as a spell tome, but as a friend.”

A friend?

“But didn’t you say no spell tome could be trusted?”

Professor Kaylastal nodded. “I did, and it’s true. A spell tome is the embodiment of Id. It only cares for its own needs, so will only act for its own benefit. Sometimes that might mean protecting its magister, but if the spell tome feels that your death is necessary, then…” he trailed off.

His dark eyes fixed on my spell tome, then he added, “You are only as strong as your bond with your tome. If the spell tome has no use for, or desire to protect you, then you will not survive as a magister.”

“Maybe I’ll call her, “Two Spells.”

The spell tome shuddered and the professor shot me a glare. “Dexter!” he snapped.

I shrugged.

Sighing heavily, Donovan stepped out from under Kayla, giving her a scowl as he moved away. Then he turned back to me, saying, “She may be a book, but if her name is a constant reminder of your disappointment in her, it’s all but certain she will resent you.”

“She didn’t seem capable of emotions, and she said I can call her whatever I want so…”

With a huff, Professor Kaylastal looked at me as if he was trying to explain the existence and effects of gravity to a rock. “You need to understand that spell tomes are individuals. They each have personalities, interests, and even thoughts. It’s true they don’t feel emotions the same we do, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t capable of expressing them. Bottom line, the name you give her needs to be personal, it should express your feelings for her and, most importantly, it had better be positive.”

I sighed.

He continued, asking, “How do you feel about her?”

“She seems very technical,” I answered.

The professor rolled his eyes. “What does she mean to you?”

I paused, thinking hard about how to answer the question. When she first fell into my hands, I was filled with excitement. I thought she was the key that would unlock a path to joining my parents, exploring the world, and eventually becoming a stable adult. She was a tool that would allow me to make money and begin supporting myself. The way she appeared, I had convinced myself that she was special—that together we could conquer any challenge. I was sure I’d be a great magister just like my father always said.

Now, after spending a night with her, I felt only disappointment. She only had two spells and couldn’t remember anything important about what was wrong with her or how to fix her. She couldn’t even recall what she wanted to be saved from. My initial expectations were clearly too high and now I couldn’t stop thinking that I’d have been better off if I’d gotten a different spell tome, even a tome of love would be better.

“You were on to something for a moment, but now you’re going completely the wrong direction.”

“Are you a mind reader?” I snapped.

“No, but I saw the excitement in your eyes a minute ago, then you went back to that gloomy self pitying expression. What happened in the space between those two expressions? Focus on the positive thought.”

I looked at the half runes on her cover, thinking maybe I could try doing something with those. After several moments of staring, they still didn’t make any sense and I didn’t have any new ideas for a name.

Showing the runes to Kayla I asked, “Do these mean anything to you?”

She glanced over them, only taking a second before shaking her head. “Not a thing.”

“Don’t think so much Dexter, Just give her a name you like.”

Still drawing a blank, I stared at her cover for several minutes longer.

“I hope I never have kids,” I mumbled.

“What?” Donovan asked.

“This is too hard,” I groaned. “Why don’t they come with names already? Why can’t we just call them whatever their title is?”

He narrowed his eyes, tilting his head a little to the right. Then looking at Kayla he said, “Abysmal darkness and beasts of the dark plane, tell the kid why a title doesn’t make a good name.”

Kayla laughed. “I think you just did.” Turning to me she added, “Although in your case I think it would be even worse.”

She was right. I didn’t need to hear it out loud to know Visio. Amo. Leth. Exis. Nov. Thaum. Incep. Ny. Anni. would be a terrible name by every measure.

That name sucked, but as I looked at the runes they seemed to fade further until only the first sound of each could be read. “Valentina,” I said, knowing it was right.

The tome trembled in my hands, glowing brightly as a wave of confidence washed over me. Valentina fluttered open briefly, then the glow faded and she relaxed in my hands again.

“What just happened?” I asked.

Donovan and Kayla exchanged a glance, but both shrugged and the professor said, “I don’t know, I’ve never seen a spell tome react to a name like that. Usually it’s just some kind of acknowledgment. But anyway, you need to join the class and I still have a meeting with the administrators to get to.”

Turning his back to me, he approached the wall. A screen appeared and he tapped at it before saying, “We're done here. Bring us back to the main area.”

The woman's voice responded, “Understood.” As the screen vanished a bright flash brought us back to the desk. The man with the topknot was gone, but the other clerk stood in his place.

“Ready for the duels then?” he grumbled.

The professor nodded. “Send the boy to lobby thirteen. I have to meet with the administrators in the main atrium.”

Kayla reverted, taking her place in a leather pouch attached to Donovan’s belt.

The clerk grunted his acknowledgement as he pressed in several places on the desk. The man let out an agitated groan as a bright light transported me away.

Lobby thirteen was a circular room with four small hallways branching off it. In one hall there was food and drinks, in another was a restroom. Two others had tables and chairs set up throughout and stairs leading up to a balcony that connected the two spaces.

Jyanna was already sitting at a table eating pudding and fruit.

A few other students had arrived already, but they all seemed to be sitting apart from each other.

I sat at a table on the opposite side of the lobby from Jyanna and placed my spell tome down in front of me.