and Fitz Vacker (Level Five, Level Six)
NAME: Barth the Reaper
SESSION: Agriculture
MENTOR TO: Sophie Foster (Level Three)
NAME: Sir Beckett
SESSION: Elvin History
MENTOR TO: Sophie Foster (Level Three)
NAME: Councillor Bronte
SESSION: Inflicting Training
MENTOR TO: Sophie Foster (Level Three, Level Four)
NAME: Master Cadence
SESSION: Linguistics
MENTOR TO: Sophie Foster (Level Three)
NAME: Lady Evera
SESSION: Multispeciesial Studies
MENTOR TO: Sophie Foster (Level Three)
NAME: Sir Harding
SESSION: Physical Education
MENTOR TO: Co-Mentor to All Level Three Prodigies
NAME: Lady Iskra
SESSION: Technopathy Training
MENTOR TO: Dex Dizznee (Level Three)
NAME: Sir Leander
SESSION: Multispeciesial Studies
MENTOR TO: Keefe Sencen (Level Three)
NAME: Sir Rosings
SESSION: Elvin History
MENTOR TO: Stina Heks (Level Three)
NAME: Lady Veda
SESSION: Elementalism
MENTOR TO: Sophie Foster (Level Three)
NAME: Lady Belva
SESSION: The Universe
MENTOR TO: Keefe Sencen (Level Four)
NAME: Lady Zillah
SESSION: Shade Training
MENTOR TO: Tam Song (Level Four)
NAME: Lady Sanja
SESSION: Elvin History
MENTOR TO: Keefe Sencen (Level Six)
A NOT-TO-BE-MISSED EXPERIENCE
AS ANYONE CAN CLEARLY SEE, attending Foxfire is truly a tremendous privilege. And those who call themselves prodigies become immersed in a unique environment, rich with exciting traditions, powerful knowledge, and lasting friendships.
Highlights of the school year include:
The Foxfire Opening Ceremonies: Before the new school year begins, the prodigies gather to perform for their families in a musical extravaganza, including a light show, costumed dances for each grade level, showers of edible confetti, and a very special presentation from the elite towers that includes the blooming of the splendors and the flight of the flickerwings. The campus is decorated in a variety of bioluminescence for the festivities, and the Council attends—and speaks to the audience—wishing the prodigies a successful year of study.
Midterm celebrations: Hard work should be celebrated—even before the results are in. As such, prodigies are directed to hang their thinking caps from their lockers as soon as they complete their exams. The next day, they fill them with gifts and treats for their friends, which they then open while their parents meet with their Mentors to receive their grades. The whole campus is decorated for the occasion, and treats float through the halls for prodigies to catch and enjoy.
The Ultimate Splotching Championship: Most of the activities in physical education are more casually organized, but the Ultimate Splotching Championship is an exciting exception. Prodigies battle each other using telekinesis, with the losers being eliminated and the winners sparring against each other until the Ultimate Champion is found—and rewarded with a pardon, which can be used to skip one assigned punishment.
Final exam celebrations: These festivities are similar to the midterm celebrations—though the gifts exchanged tend to be more extravagant. And the principal closes out the school year with an inspiring speech, followed by another shower of edible confetti and a coordinated cape toss between all the prodigies.
A new beginning for the truly exceptional.
EXILLIUM
FOR CENTURIES, EXILLIUM HAS BEEN viewed as a place for the unworthy—a school only attended when there were no other options. Waywards were sent to Exillium as punishment, after most had been banished from the Lost Cities.
But Exillium was originally created to be a space of alternative learning—a haven for those who take in knowledge a little differently, where all can grow and thrive. Additionally, Exillium was meant to offer a path toward redemption for those who’d made mistakes in their past.
Somehow those visions were lost over time—but Exillium is working hard to bring them back!
Thanks to the efforts of Sophie Foster—and the assistance of Councillor Oralie—Exillium has begun receiving the funds and support needed in order to transform the educational experience into what it was always meant to be.
In fact, Exillium recently set up their tents on the Foxfire campus for a joint educational venture that benefitted everyone in the Lost Cities! Every elf was then able to experience being divided according to their learning style before working through some of Exillium’s skill-based curriculum with our three talented Coaches. And everyone could clearly see how simple and effective the Exillium approach is.
Still, many in the Lost Cities cling to old misconceptions about Exillium. So for clarity, two former Waywards (Tam and Linh Song) have shared their experiences. And while Tam doesn’t hold back from revealing Exillium’s old, unfortunate ways, Linh points to the school’s bright future—and the hope that someday attending Exillium will be a choice many will eagerly make.
BASIC PROGRAM ORGANIZATION
HEMISPHERE
LEARNING STYLE
TENT COLOR
COACH
Left
Favoring logic and reason
Red
Coach Wilda
Right
Favoring spontaneity and creativity
Blue
Coach Bora
Ambi
A hybrid of both approaches
Purple
Coach Rohana
TAM SONG’S EXILLIUM EXPERIENCE
The worst thing about Exillium was that the rules were all designed to strip away our identities and leave everyone feeling powerless—and I get that the Coaches were super outnumbered and trying to find a way to keep some kind of