When morning came, Evran felt a familiar throbbing in his skull, though it was more responsive to healing magic than his last headache. Come to think of it, when had that headache disappeared? That was right after he woke up in the ship’s infirmary. Perhaps the headache had something to do with the aurasight enchantment?

  Evran rose from his bed and stretched, his back stiff from the hard stone bed frame beneath his thin sleeping pad. He made a mental note to collect some straw to increase the padding. Maybe a layer of soil, too. He tilted his head back while forming a small amount of water into a ball above his open mouth. Then he dropped it. The cool water splashed against the back of his parched throat. The salty meat skewers and the alcohol had left him quite dehydrated, but that was only ever a temporary problem for a mage. He’d gotten quite skilled at the water ball trick, which saved him all of five seconds in making a stone cup from earth magic. Evran wondered if he could create water directly into his stomach without somehow drowning himself.

  After getting dressed, Evran made his way to the washing basin in the common room to clean up his face. He was shocked at the amount of trash they’d somehow manage to produce from last night’s party. Most of it was vegetable scraps and meat trimmings, the latter of which were beginning to smell. Then there were the wrapping papers they’d kept the food in. Lastly, there was a large amount of wastewater in the draining basin located on the outside of the structure opposite the washing basin.

  Evran started by throwing all the trash into the wastewater basin, then froze it with magic. He considered making a small wagon out of stone, but decided it would end up being far too heavy. He’d seen plenty of wheelbarrows about the camp and decided to borrow one of them instead. After returning with one, he used fire magic on the wastewater basin to release the block of trash ice. The thermal stress ended up cracking the stone basin, but that was a simple enough thing for a mage to fix. Evran loaded the freed block of trash ice into the wheelbarrow just in time to delegate the responsibility of dumping it to Indon, who was finally up and about.

  “Fine, but only because of how amazing our hut is,” he reluctantly agreed. “Hey, why doesn’t any of the trash we dump into the void come back to us like Keloran’s Rings?”

  “Dunno. Maybe it has to be enchanted to survive the passage? Or maybe because it’s trash! Even if we enchanted something valuable, whoever found it in a hundred years likely wouldn’t know of it. It’s not like we’re as famous as the Mad Queen. She documented every detail of those rings and made a big spectacle of throwing them over the edge. A shame she never lived to see the first one recovered.”

  “I don’t know, ‘Evran’s Rubbish’ has a nice ring to it,” Indon joked.

  Evran smiled and shook his head. “Anyway, I’m off to go shower back on the ship. I’ll see you at breakfast.”

  While the students were being tested on their wilderness survival skills, they were not so cruel as to deny them access to the bathrooms and showering facilities on board the ship. Otherwise, they would need to have each student dig out their own latrine, and the camp was already overcrowded with crude shelters. And if one of those collapsed on its occupant, the worst that could happen was only death.

  After his shower, Evran met up with the gang for breakfast at the dining pavilion. They were serving an unappetizing porridge along with weakly spiced sausages and bland biscuits. The academy’s food always left something to be desired, but today’s offerings were particularly horrid. To make matters worse, the previous night’s meal had spoiled their pallets.

  “Hey Ler, got any skewers left over from last night?” Narro asked, only half joking.

  “I was just thinking the same thing,” he responded. “There’s a rumor going around that the head cook once drank a potion to make him an amazing chef, but all it did was make anything he ate taste good to him!”

  “I assure you, Mr. Ilner, no such potion exists,” said Professor Grist, appearing behind him. “Or I would have taken it myself long ago!” The oafish professor laughed gleefully at his own joke, then continued his rounds about the pavilion.

  Despite the lackluster meal, Evran dutifully ate his fill, expecting to need the energy for the day ahead. After breakfast, the group made their way to the front gate to report for duty. At the front gate stood the familiar tag board used for keeping track of students. On the opposite side, a crude map of the island was posted on the wall. The island consisted of a central plain with a mountain at its center, along with three peninsulas of various sizes jutting out towards the south, northwest, and east. Base camp sat in an inlet where the southern peninsula met the central plain. The island had been divided into many small regions, each assigned a number.

  A covered stall stood beside the map, with a long line of students queuing in front. Evran and Lerrum volunteered to join the line for their respective teams, while Arietta left to search for hers. At one point he overheard Narro complaining that she hadn’t been placed with Evran and Kaila. His confidence was greatly bolstered by the idea that Narro felt his girlfriend was safest with him, not that he would ever admit such a thing explicitly.

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  The line moved relatively quickly, and after a brief wait, Evran found himself at the front.

  “Name?” asked a young woman behind the desk. Evran recognized the woman from around the castle, but wasn’t quite familiar with her role.

  “Evran Wright. My team is all here; I’m with Kaila Krewt and Indon… something. Don’t recall his family name, if he had one.”

  “No matter! You’ve been assigned to region twenty-four! Here’s your survey packet and equipment. If you hear a bell, drop whatever you’re doing and return to camp. Don’t worry! You’ll hear it no matter where you are. If you find yourself in dire straights, send up a red flare and we’ll send help. If you see a red flare near you, please try to help. You’ll get there faster than any rescue squad. Lastly, do not enter any labyrinths, false or otherwise. Stay safe out there!”

  It was the same practiced speech she’d delivered to the students in front of Evran, so he’d already heard it a half dozen times. He thanked the woman and returned to his team with the survey gear in hand. They met in front of the large map.

  “We’re assigned region twenty-four,” said Evran. “Looks like it’s up there.” He pointed to the region at the top of the map. It was on the northern coast, where the peninsula met the central plain. It would be a lengthy hike.

  “Without knowing the terrain, I’m not sure which side of the mountain we should take,” said Indon. “I’ll ask around for some info.”

  “Good idea!” Kaila replied enthusiastically. She reached into the survey pack and pulled out a copy of Native Flora of the Seventh Band. “I’ll be the one to document the local plant life. A very elvish task, don’t you think?”

  Evran nodded. “I guess I’ll be doing the soil and rock sampling. Wait, that’s what all of this heavy gear is for!”

  “Too late! It’s not like we can have our front-liner carry such delicate equipment, and our other, prettier mage already has her assignment. Tough luck, Evran!”

  Evran groaned in protest. He suspected Kaila had planned all this out in advance, but the distribution of assignments made too much sense to argue. That left the task of documenting the local wildlife to Indon. All he’d need to carry was a book and list, much like Kaila. Meanwhile, Evran would be carrying around half an alchemy lab on his back.

  While waiting for Indon to return, they double checked their gear. Like most of the students, Evran and Kaila wore their school uniforms and barrier amulets, but each had their own unique sets of accessories. Evran has his new staff and belt, along with a comfortable pair of enchanted boots that boosted his speed and earth magic proficiency. Kaila had her silver wand, and a matching set of white leather vambraces and greaves. She really went overboard with all the white. Evran activated his aurasight and looked at Kaila, just to see some color on her.

  “Peeking again?” she asked.

  “So you can sense when I use it! How does that work?”

  “I’m not telling. I prefer knowing when I’m being leered at by lecherous boys, thank you!”

  “Lecherous!?” said Evran indignantly. “Is there another obscure elven custom I’m violating or something?”

  Kaila laughed. “Relax, I’m just teasing. You can look whenever you want.” She smiled and weakly punched his shoulder. “So are you gonna tell me what color I am?”

  “Cyan,” he replied. “You aren’t beating those ‘Ice Princess’ allegations, I’m afraid.”

  “Really? That’s hardly better than saying light blue!”

  Their conversation was interrupted by the arrival of Lerrum’s party. His assignment was even more distant, located on the southern edge of the northwest peninsula. Evran was keen to accompany them partway to their destination, unless Indon learned of a better route.

  “See, Lerrum, Evran isn’t forcing Kaila to carry any of the testing equipment. What a true gentleman!” Depri complained.

  “Good idea, Lerrum. Hey Kai…”

  Kaila glared at Evran. “Don’t even think about it!”

  Impatience got the better of Narro, who insisted their team leave immediately. There would be no joint venture today. They exchanged goodbyes and good-luck wishes, then hurried off into the forest beyond the main gate. Not too long after they left, Arietta returned with the rest of her team. She was paired with Selsey and her new boyfriend — some fourth year. According to Arietta, they hit it off a few days ago after being assigned to the same team.

  Evran struggled to tactfully explain to Arietta that Narro had already left, but he wished her good luck with her exploration before going. Kaila had helped sell that lie, as she wouldn’t have believed it otherwise. They showed her where their and Narro’s squads were assigned, and learned that she’d be exploring the southernmost tip of the island.

  All the while, Selsey was doing her best to lavish as much affection on her boyfriend as she could, in hopes of making Evran jealous. It was working more than he’d like to admit. Barely managing to remain polite, Evran wished them well and waved them off when they departed.

  “That was quite the display,” said Kaila, the moment Arietta’s team was out of earshot. “You alright after all that?”

  “I’ll live,” said Evran, kicking a small stone at the wall in frustration. He was left to marinate in his jealously until Indon finally returned a few minutes later.

  “I managed to find the adventurers who scouted the island yesterday,” said the young wolf. “There’s a stream that hugs the western base of the mountain, then runs north, cutting right through our survey area.”

  “That’s great! We can just follow the stream the whole way there,” said Kaila.

  Grateful for the information, Evran gave Indon a pat on the back and handed him his set of survey supplies — a monsters compendium, a bestiary of mundane insects and animals, and some forms to document what they would find. After one last check of their supplies, the team set off into the untamed wilderness of the virgin island.