Nice Byx

"Illumination"

Nice Byx

                                                                       "Illumination"

The sounds of grass and leaves crunching under my feet were drowned out by the blare of the bayreed, signaling the beginning of The Illumination. I quickly turned my lazy jog into a brisk run. The baggy sleeves of my robe flew wildly and the bottom made it hard to fully extend my legs. I silently thanked Kya that after today I wouldn't have to wear this stupid thing anymore.

     Realizing that I would never make it in time at this rate, I turned left sharply, and took a shortcut through an indigo bush that towered above my head. This turned out to be a big mistake as the prickle of tiny thorns informed me that I had cut through a glowbush. Or rather, it cut through me. I closed my eyes and pushed through, emerging on the other side with a few minor cuts and scars on my face, thankfully my robe had protected me from the majority of the bush's onslaught. Maybe this stupid thing wasn't so bad, I thought as I checked it for holes and tears.

      "...day, a momentous day in which your story, young Dullards, begins. Today you will gain vital knowledge about yourselves, your people, and most importantly, the Light inside of you. This Light, as you know, is what ties all of us together and separates us from the dark." 

     I could hear Sage Syn's voice as I stepped from the grass onto the dusty brown trail of dirt leading up to the Conservatory. I pumped my arms and ran, my mind wondering what the ceremony actually held in store for me. It's said that no one can ever truly know their affinity beforehand, but most people already had an idea, or moreso a hope, of where they wanted to end up. I wasn't most people. I was one of the only people that didn't have an inkling of what my affinity would be. It's not that I didn't care, it was that none of them seemed to fit me. 

     As the Conservatory grew closer, my thoughts began to shift. How in the name of Kya was I going to get in there without anyone noticing? I peeked my head through the entrance of the Conservatory. All the Byx were gathered in a long circle enclosing all the Dullards in the middle. Sage Syn was also in the middle, adorned in aqua blue robes and there was a white conticurl embroidered in the middle of his chest. Beside him there was a tan sprite with shaggy dreadlocks resting in a ponytail on his back. There was no way I could possibly sneak in, leaving me with only one option. 

 I walked through the circle, careful not to meet any of the eyes on me, and without a sound took a spot in the crowd of Dullards tuning in to the Sage's message. I swear I could feel every pair of eyes boring into me.

      "...4th Illumination ceremony, and as you know, I have preceded over all of them. It's been my greatest pleasure serving as the Sage of the Byx, but unfortunately my time has come." The sounds of many overlapping gasps filled the Conservatory. Sage Syn had been the Sage for as long as anyone could remember. And I mean that in the most literal sense. Every Byx knows that there has to have been a Sage before him, but because of The Light Purge, anyone who would have known who it was had died. 

     "Fret not, because although my Light is flickering, remember that our Lights can never be truly extinguished, they can only be covered temporarily. Since my Light is diminishing, I am no longer able to uphold my duties as Sage. My replacement is amongst you all." Sage Syn peered directly at us as he said it, but it felt like he was only looking at me. Even without his Ky, he had a mystical quality about him. I had never even thought about what would happen if Sage Syn died. This had never happened at Illumination ceremony to date. It was crazy to believe that I was standing in the same group as the next Sage.

   "As such, this Illumination will be slightly different. Before I illuminate each of you, I will dip my finger in Skrill. This will have no effect on most of you, and regardless of what you've heard, it will not harm you."