“Where are we supposed to go?” Yuriko asked a minute later after they got out of the crowd of disappointed teenagers. A couple were sobbing quietly into their hands while a few were leaping about in joy.

Yuriko noticed that only a couple of kids in Gwendith’s posse looked happy and the rest, crestfallen. Ella-Mai had an odd look on her face while the main girl had a smug smirk.

“Guidance rooms,” Kato hummed, “well, let’s go ask at the registrar.”

“What about you two?” Yuriko asked the twins. “Will you go back to the inn or would you like to tag along?”

“We’ll go with you.”

“Oh, thanks for the support,” she smiled at them.

When they arrived at the concierge in the administration building they were directed deeper inside. Guidance meetings were scheduled at an office a few hallways away. They arrived at the admissions office and Yuriko asked the attendant for a schedule. She was given one for an hour before noon, which was a bit less than an hour from now. The venue was even further down the hall.

They wandered down the hallway and came into a great hall where there was a ten pace high metal sculpture as the centrepiece. It was surrounded by a pond and she could see colourful fish swimming under the water lilies. A beam of sunlight, originating from the ceiling from a set of skylights, shone directly on the sculpture which looked much like a bunch of squiggles and squares.

“Abstract art,” Kato muttered, “never much appreciated it. But it was a project from Lunette that won a bit of acclaim a couple of decades ago and they decided to display it here.”

There were several benches for them to rest. Kato plopped down on one while Yuriko paced. The twins sat at another bench. Braden closed his eyes to meditate while Orrin tapped his fingers on his thigh while looking a bit discomfited.

After a while, she sat next to Kato and asked, “Can you teach me the shooting technique from Da’s Heritage?”

“Shouldn’t you focus on your own speciality?”

“Yeah but I don’t have any Animus technique to use with the Plasma Caster. During the training camp, we only managed to take down a Wanderer in melee but if my marksmanship were better then none of us would have been hurt.”

“Look, Yuri,” Kato sighed, “I didn’t protest much when you started training with several melee weapons, but branching out by cross-training ranged and melee will leave you mediocre. You’re better off mastering one aspect before you train the other one. You’re not anywhere near mastering melee techniques.”

“Oh, but…”

“I know you wanted to be like Da, Yuri,” Kato sighed. “But, you have your own path too.”

“I just…”

“Don’t be too stubborn, little sis,” Kato said with finality. “Besides, even if I’m willing, my techniques aren’t more than a different application of Empowered Strike so if you really want to, you can try deriving it from there.”

Yuriko nodded gratefully.

When it was close to the appointment, the four of them made their way to the office. The sign on the door said only the applicant was to enter and companions were to wait outside. With a shrug, the boys took a seat at the wooden benches and Yuriko opened the door and went inside.

“Yuriko Mishala Davar, please have a seat.”

Yuriko found herself in a long room with a U-shaped table. There was a seat at the top of the U, where the one seat would have the focus of every eye seated at the table. There were only six seats out of twelve that were occupied. She recognized Master Antiga and Instructor Gethen, as well as the proctor from Sharom, the cat-eyed woman. The remaining three were unfamiliar to her.

“Good morning, masters and instructors,” Yuriko said with a short bow before she walked up to the chair and sat on the edge, back straight, hands on her knees, and her shoulders pulled back.

The instructors had crystal screens in front of them and they looked at what Yuriko assumed to be her exam results. She waited in silence while the adults murmured amongst themselves for a minute or two.

“So, do you know why you are here?” the cat-eyed woman asked.

“No, ma’am.”

“Well, it’s simple enough: you passed both Sharom and Agaza’s elite trials but you cannot be in two Elite classes or enrolled in two different academies at the same time.”

“Oh, thank you! In that case, I wish to enrol in Agaza!” Yuriko said enthusiastically.

Master Antiga clicked her tongue. “If only it were that simple.”

“What…what do you mean?”

The cat-eyed woman gave her a knowing look and cleared her throat.

“Your results in the Sharom trails vastly overshadow the results from Agaza. The proctors have agreed that Agaza will withdraw your spot on the Elite roster.”

“But, shouldn’t the choice be mine on which path I should take?” Her knuckles were white from how tightly she clenched her fist. She could feel her teeth grinding and her jaw muscles spasmed.

“The resources the Empire gives to its promising youth are limited,” Antiga said bluntly. “Frankly, if you didn’t apply to the other academies then you probably would have secured a spot in Agaza.” She frowned. “Actually, if you wanted to enrol in Agaza, you didn’t need to take the Elite trials in the first place.”

“My Mum wants me to enter Sharom.”

“Ah, well isn't’ it good that you passed Sharom’s trials then? You have quite the benefits for being in the elite.” Cat Eyes said with a toothy smirk.

“But, I don’t want to go to Sharom, I want to enrol in Agaza! It’s why I took the Elite trials in the first place.”

She was trembling, Yuriko abruptly realised. There was a lump on her throat that she could barely speak through and she felt hot tears welling out of the corner of her eyes.

“Now, now. No need to get upset. Tell me, why do you insist on enrolling in Agaza? You should know that training in the right course will allow you to make progress faster than forcing yourself on another path.”

Yuriko rubbed the corner of her eyes while she looked down at her knees. She took several moments to compose herself.

“I want to study at Agaza because it's one of the prerequisites to enter Legion Vagaris,” she said firmly.

“Ah, like your old man,” Cat Eyes nodded. “Well, if that’s your only goal then you’d be pleased to know that the Legion doesn’t exclusively recruit from Agaza. Or for that matter, any legion will try to recruit those who are the best in their fields. Agaza is mostly a leadership-based school and while Master Antiga tells us that your leadership skills are…passable, I can tell you right now that your talent at Animus manipulation is one in a million. Add to the fact that your parents wish for you to enter Sharom, there is certainly no reason for you to insist otherwise.”

“I...well, I’m sure my Da would support my desire to enter Agaza.”

“And why didn’t he?”

“Uhm, he left for the Tidelands early this Season and hasn’t returned yet.”

“Ah, well, your legal guardian has made her choice. You’ve tested and the Academies have determined the best path according to your talent. You can reject the Elite class but you’ll still end up in Sharom anyway. So why not accept the advantage?”

“May I add,” Instructor Gethen interrupted when Cat Eyes paused, “that you may take courses in Agaza as your cross-discipline studies? Add to that the regularly scheduled StartDay Armed Forces Reserve Training and you won’t miss too much from being enrolled in Agaza.”

“And,” another proctor from the Sharom side continued, “that most Legions recruit spellweavers and runescribes as well. If you become a Sharom alumna, you will be welcomed by most Legions as a specialist.”

“I…”

Yuriko hesitated. Their words sounded sweet and reasonable but she couldn’t help but think that there was something more. For that matter, why were they all so accommodating? Even Master Antiga didn't look as unfriendly and forbidding as she usually seemed. Yuriko met their eyes one at a time and most gave her an encouraging nod. Cat Eyes kept her slight smirk but she nodded too.

You don’t have much of a choice. Don’t forgo advantage.

If she didn’t like it she could always study back at home but that would mean long years in the local militia before she could qualify for Legion application. They were right, anyhow, and there was always more than one path to get to her destination. There was no use insisting on going through a particular path if a better one presented itself. Especially if the original path turned out to be blocked with landslides and rubble.

“Very well,” she replied soberly. “I accept Sharom’s offer.”

“Good girl,” Cat Eyes said. “Good choice. Well, here are your admission papers, handbook, and assorted requirements you have to fulfil.”

Yuriko stood, a bit unsteadily, but she stiffened her knees before striding up to Cat Eyes. The tawny-haired woman grinned and handed over a packet of papers.

“I’m Professor Kiyo Alfein, by the way, and you’ll probably see a lot more of me in the future.”

“Oh, nice to meet you.” Yuriko said a bit perfunctorily, “thank you for pointing out my options.”

“You’re welcome. I’m sure you’ll come to enjoy your time in Sharom.”

A little bit of Yuriko wanted to wail and scream. Why was her Mum intent on sticking into her business? She was her mum, sure, but again, she’d never shown any interest in her training before. She’d always let Da handle all of Yuriko’s training. She didn’t even comment last year when Yuriko had started marksmanship training.

Although...all of these masters say that her Animus manipulation talent was better off for training in Sharom. They can’t all be mistaken, right?

With a tired sigh, she took the packet, spun on her heels and left, giving a short curtsy to the panel before she closed the door.

“So, what were the results?” Kato asked as soon as she came out.

“Sharom,” she answered dejectedly. “Apparently, I undid myself by doing too well in that exam.”

“Oh, that means we’ll be in the same academy!” Orrin said brightly.

She returned his happy look with a baleful stare. “Let’s go back.”

As they were walking to the waiting shed, Kato walked beside her and asked in a quiet voice, “What does it mean for your goal?”

“They keep telling me that Legions recruit from other academies too.”

“Well, it’s true. Not everyone in the legion is a warrior. Besides, having varied skills within a team does a lot for survivability,” Kato said consolingly.

“Yeah, so they’ve said. I just can’t help but feel that I’m being prodded into a pen and I don’t like it.”

“Hmm, true, true, but let’s be realistic, what are your choices?” Kato asked, “Either take the Academies shortcut or go directly into the militia and spend decades building yourself up before you can enter.”

“Is that what Da did? I recall he and Mum didn't grow up in Rumiga.”

“Huh, you know what, I’m not sure. Mum never spoke about where she was from and Da only said he grew up in the plane of Ulmira.”

“Huh, there’s a thought. Maybe I could apply for the Imperial Academies in the other planes.”

“As a transferee? It’s possible. But you’ll have to make sure your records are good enough. Besides, I think that’s a waste of time. Vagaris spends most of its time exploring the frontier and they only make infrequent journeys inwards. Stick to your current course, I don’t think there’s a better one right now.”

“I still don’t like it,” she insisted stubbornly.

“Don’t be like that Yuri, and please don’t do anything drastic. Da still hasn’t returned and I don’t want to worry about you, too.”

“Fine,” she huffed before pulling away from the boys. She refused to speak to Kato or the twins on the ride back to the Shepherd’s Cross and locked herself in her room once they returned.

She sat on her bed in a meditative pose and dove into envisioning her Animus. She felt choked and blocked in, with no civilized way of venting her raw emotions. She settled for bashing into her Heritage pattern instead, only for it to result in a wasted afternoon. She lay back on the bed, staring at the wooden beams above her with her tummy growling at her.

Yuriko lay there for the entire afternoon until near evening, the growling from her middle caused Kato to knock furiously at her door, complaining that he couldn’t think with the noise she was making. With a sigh, she got up and went down for dinner.

Perhaps tomorrow she’ll feel better.