Morning in Castel began with pale golden patches of light drifting across its bluestone walls. The sun had just risen, and the mist had yet to clear. Damp cobblestone streets gleamed in the morning light. They said a new kind of road was already under construction, one without even gaps between cobblestones.
People opened their doors and headed in groups toward the industrial district or the construction sites. The school in the south lay on the route many took to work, but most people attended night classes after their shifts, so it was especially quiet in the morning.
Today, though, a crowd had gathered outside the school.
New arrivals had no idea what was going on. Through the crowd, they could only make out something tall standing by the entrance. One impatient newcomer grabbed someone nearby to ask.
"What happened? Why is everyone gathered here?"
"Not sure. I heard they've put up some kind of structure?"
"A structure? Are they expanding the school too?"
"Not a building. Look over there." A man pointed ahead. Several people strained to see, but could only make out a few pointed shapes.
"A sculpture?"
"Right. A stone statue."
In the middle of the crowd, on the small square before the school, a tall statue now stood beside what had once been a bare entrance.
It was a rare sight. Castel was so remote that, before Theus arrived, even the Empire had left it off its maps and treated it as a deserted island. How could the islanders have seen anything like this?
Even the Candlelight Society's shabby church had seemed like a remarkable building to them. When Theus first built the factories, plenty of people had come to watch.
It was no wonder they were amazed now. They circled the statue, cautiously touched its