*Ryatt*

I don’t normally stay in the dining hall this long after breakfast. It’s nearly 9:00, and the sky outside hasn’t even begun to lighten. Rain bursts over the balcony in sheets of silver as I pour myself a third cup of coffee and rest my legs on the opposite chair, crossing my ankles. 

The obsidian walls in the cavernous room glimmer in the light radiating from the hearth. It’s quiet, peaceful. 

The two-story high wooden doors burst open, slamming into the ...