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including Rhünilde were gathering.
'You finally made it,' she said as I approached her.
'What's that supposed to mean?' I asked, smiling.
'Do I really need to spell it out for you?' Rhünilde laughed, hugging me. 'It's going to be a difficult evening.'
I nodded, looking around and seeing hundreds, if not thousands, beaming at us. Countless fathers and mothers, siblings, grandparents, relatives and neighbours all gathered to wish us luck in the test.
'Only seventeen?' I questioned, counting the number of candidates. 'Seventeen?'
Rhünilde nodded. 'The smallest number they've seen in many years. It's not been a great year for anything really has it? Especially after the most recent Matak scare.'
'True. But I would have thought that the scare would have encouraged more people. I guess I was wrong.'
'Good evening ladies and gentlemen!' called a
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booming voice.
I turned and saw that the head priest, Bartholomew, standing at a large lectern.
'Here we go,' I said quietly.
Bartholomew went through all the details along with a prayer, in which the whole settlement dropped to their knees - a sight that was truly awe inspiring. And then the real test began as the names were slowly called out.
I sat down and waited patiently - I knew that I would be one of the last, if not the last person to be called with a surname like Veln.
We watched as countless girls walked into the site, overgrown with weeds and moss and stood there while Bartholomew incanted a spell. The expectations of the crowd seem to increase as each girl was unsuccessful.
'I guess we're the last three,' said a girl beside me, with long blond hair. 'I'm Renla Syn.'
'Arra Veln,' I introduced, 'and this is Rhünilde Tarn.'
'Ah - the last girl,' Renla said, sympathetically. 'I guess it's horrible isn't it? Being at the end -
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