Crystal Doors #1 by Moesta Rebecca & Anderson Kevin J

Author:Moesta, Rebecca & Anderson, Kevin J. [Anderson, Kevin J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 2009-10-30T23:00:00+00:00

20

ALL NIGHT IN THE Citadel dormitory, Vic watched his cousin stew over the sabotage of their experiment. He felt just as incensed, but also mystified. At Ocean Kingdoms, when his dad had mentioned going away to lie low, Vic had never expected it would be to a place like Elantya. His father’s warnings through the magical window had convinced him that he and Gwen would have to stay here in the island realm.

So, they had to fit in somehow and take advantage of the unexpected new realities here. But if someone had wrecked the crystal array to prevent them from making contact with his dad again or opening a door to Earth, maybe Elantya wasn’t quite as safe for them as his father had hoped.

“We have a lot to learn,” Gwen said.

“No kidding.” Vic could barely keep himself from rolling his eyes.

“So it’s time to start.”

The next morning, when the cousins followed Lyssandra and Sharif to the Citadel for their first official day of courses, Vic tried to keep an open mind. Unfortunately, he’d had more than his share of bad luck at Stephen Hawking High with a couple of prison-warden staff members who looked at school rules as unshakeable laws, and teachers who did not understand his quirks or reward his unorthodox (though often effective) ways of learning.

If a subject interested him, Vic could sit still for hours and concentrate until his legs cramped. At such times, Gwen joked that she could come in with a brass band and he wouldn’t even look up. But for most subjects, his attention span was not very compatible with all the distractions in a standardized classroom.

Vic let out a soft groan. “Just what I needed: a whole new batch of instructors telling me how stupid I am.”

“That is not how our sages teach,” Lyssandra reassured him. “During a discovery session, for example, a sage guides discussions and asks thought-provoking questions so that all in attendance may come away with a richer understanding.”

Well, that did sound more interesting than chalkboards and essay questions. “So it’s kind of like a classroom lecture, Jeopardy-style.”

Lyssandra touched a hand to his arm and drew the context from his mind. “Ah, I see. The participants are not told what conclusions to draw. Many perspectives are offered, and spirited discussion often continues in small groups long after the discovery forum has ended.”

“No homework. No worksheets. No essays. And no wrong answers — sounds like my kind of class after all,” Vic admitted. “I wonder what the final exam looks like.”

Lyssandra smiled. “Life is the ‘final exam.’ Our discovery today, however, leads into a praktik, where we will put our learning to use.”

The Citadel buildings were linked by covered walkways and interspersed with arches, gardens, fountains, and water clocks. Even the sculptures moved with crystalline engines powered by sunlight.

Sharif expertly began to roll Piri’s glowing ball up and down his arms and balance it on his hands. As he continued contact juggling, flickers of pink light showed how much the nymph djinni enjoyed the ride.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.