SHIELD OF THE GODDESS

CHAPTER ELEVEN

SHALA

SHALA WOKE UP EXCITED for the new day. She lit the oil lamp in her room, washed her face, and picked up from the table a clay tablet and a wooden stylus, the two objects that had changed her world.

A year had passed since her arrival at the Great Temple of Kitani in Feros. Today she was allowed to write a first message home to her parents. There was so much to tell them, and she couldn’t wait to get started.

Every morning for the past year Moon Priestess Idaya came to Shala’s room to teach her. The old woman had a calm and peaceful demeanor, and Shala immediately noticed that her mind was very quiet. She introduced herself as the temple’s Adept of Sensitivity. She knew all there was to know about Shala’s gift. But first she would teach Shala to read.