Page 118 of Slayer

People began to move and shift about the room, and it became clear there were more trackers and sentinels than arcanists. About ten to one.

“Strikers.” She pointed to the black mirror pillar. “And slayers,” she said, finally resting at the fractured raw Veil Stone pillar.

I shuffled over nervously with about ten other students. There was a stark contrast between how many of each type of hunter there were. Arcanists and slayers seemed the rarest, then strikers. The sentinels and trackers were plentiful. It meant some people wouldn’t be in a complete unit. I wasn’t sure what that meant for their future.

“Step forward until the pillar lights up and you’ve been assigned to your unit,” Celia said.

Jax was first, a sentinel. He didn’t hesitate, his boots striking the stone as he stood in front of the pale luminous pillar, which responded immediately. Light poured through its core before extending outward in a broad band that wrapped around his torso and shoulders. The stone hummed low and steady.

Jax peered around in excitement.

“Let’s try arcanists and see if there is a match for Jax.” Celia nodded to Winnie, a small girl with mousy brown hair. Winnie stepped up to the onyx and gold pillar and stood there, but nothing happened.

She stepped off.

Luna was next and the second she got close, the gold-veined pillar ignited. Layered light spiraled outward in complex patterns, runes forming and dissolving faster than I could track. Threads of gold wrapped her wrists, her throat, her temples, weaving into intricate sigils before settling into her skin. The entire cave seemed to brighten and stayed that way.

Jax was grinning ear to ear. He liked her, and they were a match to be in the same unit.

Lucky.

Derek nodded once to the line of trackers as if indicating that they should go next.

Over ten trackers walked before the pillar, but it was just dead stone, no reaction. I could see Harper’s leg begin to twitch, her foot bopping as she waited her turn. I knew without even asking that she’d be dying to be in a unit with Luna.

Harper’s turn finally came, and she barely reached the center before the dark pink pillar stirred. A soft tonal hum filled the space as silver lines shot across the floor beneath her boots, seemingly mapping invisible corridors and exits. The lines converged at her feet, then wrapped around her and settled there.

I didn’t know what kind of magic these stones and runes carried, but it was incredible to witness, other worldly.

Harper grinned.

Then it was the strikers’ turn. Two people tried before Asher stepped forward.

When he did, the black mirror pillar roared to life. Heat slammed through the chamber as the stone ignited with violent light. A sharp, angular rune tore itself into the air, blazing red and white before snapping into Asher’s chest like a brand.

He barely flinched.

Holy crap.

Then it was my turn, and I suddenly felt like an imposter. If this pillar didn’t light up, something was wrong with me, because it was clearly picking people with close bonds, and I was friends with every single person standing before these pillars.

Well, I was before last night. I wasn’t sure what I was with Asher.

The moment I stepped onto the dais, the chamber went unnaturally still, as if the fractured Veil Stone itself seemed to pause. Every pillar dimmed for a fraction of a second and then flared almost like the electricity was being tested.

Then the fractured pillar awakened. Light bent strangely around its core, wrapping around me as well in a dark blue hue.

The other pillars flickered in response and then glowed so brightly, we had to hide our faces before it went dark.

Derek raised his hand. “The conclave has formed a unit,” he announced. “Perfectly balanced, bound by loyalty and friendship.”

Runes ignited beneath our feet, five patterns, five paths, all linked.

“From this moment forward,” he said, “you do not fight alone.”

My gaze flicked across the room to Asher, hoping to see compassion there, maybe proof he was going to forgive me and give me a chance to explain, a flicker of hope that we were going to be okay. But the second I peered at him, he looked away.

“It’s well known that friends with close bonds and deep trust make the best hunting unit.” Celia began clapping, and everyone followed suit as we stepped away from the pillars and moved to the back of the room to wait for the others.