Nearly as soon as her vision faded to black, a pinpoint of light appeared in Olivia's view that slowly widened to reveal a new scene. Momentary vertigo assaulted her as her body tried to make sense of the sudden change of perspective. She was no longer standing in a comfortable tavern looking into the faces of her friends. Rather, she was standing on a marble dais overlooking a smooth, stone archway stretching for a mile or more across a cloud-filled chasm. On the other side of the archway, rising into still more clouds from a rocky spire, was a walled keep with dozens of soaring towers.

The keep had to be one of the largest buildings she'd ever seen. She could imagine a professional sports arena sitting comfortably within its high, gold-speckled white walls. Pennants flew from most of the towers, all of them seemed different, but from this distance, Olivia could only make out their colors, not the devices depicted on them. As she stood, slack-jawed, staring at the building, noticing new detail after new detail, a new sight came into her peripheral vision that took her breath away.

A flying ship was approaching the wall of the keep. It looked like a seventeenth-century galleon, but in addition to its masts filled with sails, long spars ran out the sides like wings with more sails. Whatever force propelled the great ship and kept it aloft seemed to emanate from a dozen swirling golden rings that spun along its keel. Olivia watched as the ship slowly floated to a stop near the top of the keep's wall, and she could just barely make out little figures moving along the deck and ropes being tossed out to secure the ship.

Olivia looked down at the marble dais on which she stood and saw a set of steps leading down to a stone walkway. Following the walkway with her eyes, she could see that it led to the archway and also branched off to lead around the curve of the mountaintop she was apparently standing on. At first, it seemed like she'd arrived unnoticed, for she couldn't see anyone around, but as she started down the steps, she saw a small figure slowly approaching across the great stone bridge.

Looking over her shoulder, Olivia could see the rocky peak continue for several hundred feet. She turned back toward the path and started walking to meet the advancing figure. She was about fifty feet from the archway when the figure reached the near side and stopped to wait. Olivia could see that the person was small, maybe only four feet tall, with long silvery hair. As she grew nearer, she could discern a definite feminine quality about the person. At first, Olivia thought her skin was very pale, but as she got nearer still, she saw that the woman wore thick white paint on her face and neck, with dark blue stains painted around her eyes and on her lips. "Hello!" Olivia called as she stepped onto the foot of the archway.

"Welcome! We were all surprised that the token from the Chebli Sea region was activated. I am Yunsha, and I'm pleased to be your greeter." The woman had a high but sedate voice, speaking in a steady cadence that made her diction seem very precise.

"Hello, Yunsha. I'm Olivia." Olivia continued to step forward and held out a hand to the diminutive person. Yunsha reached out with both hands to grasp Olivia's in a warm, gentle grip and squeezed, and as she pulled back her hands, Olivia noted that they were clad in white gloves.

"It's very nice to meet you, Olivia. We haven't had anyone from your region at the academy in nearly eighty years."

"Is this entire complex Fainhallow Academy or is it just one or some of those buildings?" Olivia paused to gape at the massive structure once again.

"Oh, this is all the academy. Thousands of residents practice their arts within, and each year we have a new class of students. Some remain, some head home, but our population grows steadily. Oh, that's not even taking into account the diplomats, merchants, and tradesfolk that live within the walls. Come, though, let me show you around, and you'll start to get a better picture of things." Yunsha beckoned for Olivia to walk with her and then started back across the archway.

Up close, the archway was massive; Olivia could imagine four lanes of traffic going across it back home. That being said, she didn't have to experience any vertigo looking down at the clouds - they walked toward the center, and the wide expanse made her feel like she was at ground level. "There's no traffic on the bridge?"

"Oh, not this time of year. The journey down the peninsula and up the mountain takes a month by wagon, and most people visiting via that route come with the caravans at midsummer and midwinter. The midwinter caravan is a sight to see! Huge wagons shielded from the elements and drawn by Thunderak lizards." They continued in silence until they crested the arch of the bridge, and Olivia could look down its expanse to the immense, open gates of the academy. The gates looked to be made of dark metal and were swung wide, revealing a deep arched tunnel through at least fifty feet of stone.

"That wall is truly immense!" She breathed, partly to herself.

"Oh yes. When the first Grand Mages created this school, they had in mind to defend the students from any outside interference. If you think the physical protection is impressive, you should see the wards." They continued down the slope of the arch to the gates, and Olivia saw that only one guard was on duty at the huge gate. "Hello, Barnt," Yunsha said as they walked through the gateway into the tunnel.

"M'lady Yunsha," he replied, bowing deeply. He was nearly as round as he was tall, and Olivia was impressed by the flexibility he displayed with that bow. At first, she thought he was an Urghat, but when she looked more closely, she saw that he had whiskers, a black nose, and his fur was short and sleek. Was he some kind of otter-man? They were past him and deep in the tunnel under the wall before she could speculate more. Their steps on the smooth flagstones echoed off the stone walls of the tunnel, and then, as they grew near the far end, bustling activity came to her ears.

The tunnel opened up into a courtyard that reminded Olivia more of a bustling market square in a small city than the typical courtyard of a castle or keep. Shops and stables lined the walls, and merchant stands of all shapes and sizes competed for room in the busy space. Olivia saw all sorts of people - some that looked like they were part goat, some Ardeni, some very thin people with gossamer wings, more of the otter people like the gate guard, even some floating, billowing creatures that emitted tiny jets of steam out of their bulbous bodies as they moved. Olivia stared, once again slack-jawed, at one of the latter, noticing that its body was partially translucent and that it had a cluster of violet eyes and several long tentacle-like limbs trailing after it as it floated past. "Never seen an Onaghi before?" Yunsha asked quietly, prompting Olivia to stop staring.

"I'm sorry! My people are new to this world, and so much is still very new to me!"

"Oh, don't worry, dear. The Onaghi have strange sensibilities and wouldn't even notice your staring. I didn't want to be rude before, but now that you bring it up, I think I have yet to meet one of your kind. I almost assumed you were a half-blood - part Ghelli and part Ardeni or Shadeni. Your people are new here, you say?"

"Yes, we're known as humans, and we're from another world. The System captured our spacecraft and deposited us near the, um, I think they're called the Gresh Woods. I had wondered if the different peoples of this world could interbreed! How fascinating!"

"Oh, we have so much to talk about! We'll have to schedule a tea after you're settled."

"That sounds very nice; thank you, Yunsha." They continued walking past the courtyard and down the main thoroughfare that ran up the center of the academy grounds. They passed several stone buildings with tall spires, and Yunsha remarked along the way what each building was.

"Here, they study the anatomy of the creatures of Fanwath." Yunsha gestured to a wide, circular-shaped building that had a domed roof.

"Oh my goodness - is that the name of this world? Fanwath? I can't believe I never asked Issa…." Olivia trailed off in thought.

"I take it Issa is a native friend of yours? Yes, those of us with an education refer to this world as Fanwath. Though some peoples name this world differently, using terms passed on from their ancestors that were present on one of the four worlds before the Great Joining." She continued on, and Olivia found herself lost in thought, imagining the immense power required to combine four different worlds seamlessly. "There is my favorite building - the main library." Yunsha pointed to a vast building that almost looked like a Gothic cathedral with its elaborate stone spires and stained glass windows.

"Impressive!" Olivia nodded, smiling.

"Yes, well, more than the building, the tomes within are what I love." They continued along the cobbled street, up some stone steps, and into the yawning, open hall of the academy proper. Olivia could see that the huge, barn-sized doors were held open by chains as thick as her wrists as they walked into the high, vaulted hallway. People hurried to and fro over the marble flooring, in and out of the many arched doorways that gave egress to the concourse. High overhead, hung from polished wooden beams, three many-tiered chandeliers filled the space with light comparable to a summer's day at noon. "This is the central hall of the academy where all paths converge. From here, you can reach the dormitories, the dining hall, the stairways to the upper and lower levels, the old auditorium, the first-year library, the administration offices, and the gymnasium. As you saw on the way in, most of the academy is housed in the other buildings on the grounds these days."

"It's awe-inspiring. Nearly on a scale with some of the larger universities from my homeworld. However, none of those colleges were on the top of a mountain and surrounded by an immense stone wall. And, of course, when I attended college, it wasn't for magic!"

"I'm glad to hear you have some education, magic or not - it will aid you here. Speaking of which, follow me, and I'll lead you to the administration office where your evaluation will take place." Yunsha turned and led Olivia through the third archway on their left. They walked through a series of wide hallways, all floored in the same marble as the entry hall with cream-colored plaster walls and lots of Energy-based globes of light to keep things bright. After a short while, they came to a room with a desk at the far end and several couches lining the walls. On either side of the desk were closed wooden doors.

A rather portly Ardeni woman sat at the desk. Her bright teal hair had lots of gray mixed in, but her green-blue eyes sparkled with wit when she greeted Olivia, "Ahh, the new arrival. Here for your evaluation so soon? You don't waste any time, Yunsha."

"Well, why bother showing her around too much or getting her a room if she's going to be sent packing? Might as well get the evaluation done." Yunsha shrugged.

"Sent packing?" Olivia couldn't hide the slight quaver in her voice.

"Oh yes, dear; we can't trust every hedge-mage that heads up a provincial office of the Guild to make good decisions about who should be coming to Fainhallow. You'll need to pass some exams first. Then we can talk about your contract."