Two Women appeared on the stage, the first one Dom could tell was Annabel Howard, however the woman beside her was much older. The second woman had an air of prestige, with greying black hair and dark eyes. She was slim and muscular and Dom felt that she would be quite strong. She was dressed in a black suit and stood sternly beside Annabel Howard. Dom felt like he recognised her from somewhere, there was a certain familiarity about her, but he wasn't sure where it was from.
"Is that Lady Camilla Mordred?" Jessica whispered to Roger from beside Dom. The woman at the fronts eyes gazed across the crowd, a dangerous glint in her eyes.
"I think so." Roger whispered back quickly, a gulp in his throat as the woman locked eyes in their direction. She didn't turn away and Dom could feel the tension from Roger as he turned away from the woman's stare.
"Who is Lady...." Dom began to whisper, but suddenly went quiet when Annabel began speaking, his mind still wondering who the other woman was.
"Good Afternoon everyone, I am Lady Annabel Howard and this is my esteemed colleague Lady Camilla Mordred." Annabel announced loudly in a pleasant tone, whilst the crowd looked at her with their full attention. "We have pulled you in to this small welcome meeting, before you head to the Welcoming Ceremony later. You are all to become members of the Hidden Peaks, joining our prestigious ranks and learning key skills that can propel you through life."
"Some of you will become key advisors in the future, whilst others may find other key roles in the kingdoms they are based in." Camilla began, taking over from Annabel, her voice sharp and loud. "However, the world is an ever changing place. Please look to those beside you, they may be fellow students now, and in the future even friends. Once you leave here and join your future paths, you may one day be the strongest of allies, or the worst of enemies."
Those in the room looked at each other, surprised by the darkness of her words. Dom looked at Jessica and Roger, who shared a similarly tense look with him.
"But, we hope it is the former and not the latter." Annabel smiled from the front. "Today you will first be assigned your personal tutor for the year who you will meet over the next few days, those that are here as full time students will move to the Ninety First Peak in two days, which is based to the North of us in the old town of Holmfirth. You will spend six weeks learning the basics of the Hidden Peaks, before being sent to the Peak we believe is the right destination for your growth."
"Those that have a special agreement in place and will be spending their time at one of the prestigious Universities on the mainland, you will leave with me in the morning to the Ninety Ninth Peak." Camilla continued. Dom knew this meant him, but was surprised when he heard a gulp of panic from Jessica beside him. "We shall discuss your assignments then."
There was silence for a few seconds, as most people were in the first group and would be travelling to the Ninety First Peak like Roger, however most of these were surprised that there was a second group within them that had special arrangements. Some began to whisper, but quickly silenced themselves when Annabel continued speaking.
"There are some key rules that you will be informed about in the Welcoming Ceremony, but those of the Hidden Peaks have even more. We shall outline the key ones here, but a list will be provided for your reading." Annabel explained. "You must not disclose anything you learn here with anyone who is not from the Hidden Peaks. You must also not inform anyone that you have joined the Hidden Peaks. The secrecy of the Peaks is fundamental to our existence."
"The worlds important people know that we exist, they know that the Hundred Sword Peaks of the Isles of Britainy are one of the most prestigious and secluded sects in the world. They know that some of those Peaks are for the training of their own advisors and mentors in the future." Camilla disclosed, "They have as much a necessity to keep us hidden as we do. For if the world knows of the Hidden Peaks, then our purpose becomes irrelevant."
"You will learn more about the why in the future, for now you just need to understand the rules." Annabel continued, "We do not talk to outsiders about the Hidden Peaks, we do not talk about anything you learn in the Hidden Peaks to anyone not off the Hidden Peaks."
"We do not talk to outsiders about the Hidden Peaks." Camilla reaffirmed sternly.
"For tonight, you will be staying in the blue zone, where lavish accommodation has been supplied for you. It is of a much better standard than those from the first Ninety Peaks, so please do treat your lesser colleagues with respect." Annabel explained, moving the conversation on to more positive topics. "They are a necessity and without them, the Hidden Peaks could not flourish."
"They are a guard that protects and upholds the rules that were agreed by the United Nations and Affiliated Kingdoms" Camilla stated seriously. Every time Camilla spoke, Dom felt that he recognised her voice, the sharpness ringing in the back of his mind. "After you are dismissed, the guards outside will direct you to your sleeping quarters, where you will be able to refresh yourselves. You will then be expected to meet back here in two hours for the Welcoming Ceremony."
"The knowledge and experiences that you will gain here will set you apart from your peers who are elsewhere." Annabel continued, "The Peaks are honoured that you have joined us, and we hope that in the future, you will feel the same honour as we do to be part of the Peaks."
"Please do enjoy your evenings, as the hard work will begin tomorrow." Camilla laughed, her laughter sharp, hurting the audience's ears and made Dom's eyes squint in pain.
"We shall call some names out, if your name is called out, please stay in your seat. The rest of you may leave and I look forward to seeing how you all perform in the future." Annabel explained, "Jessica Moon, Dominic Lazarus, Diane Chong and Kish Mandal, please stay behind."
"The rest of you, go and rest, tonight shall be a long one." Camilla laughed again, as those in the room began to leave, looking at the four of them that had stayed in their seats. Roger looked uncomfortable at first, as he had made a quick friendship with Dom and Jessica during their travels, but soon followed the leaving crowd.
Diane Chong and Kish Mandal were both sat much further forwards than Dom and Jessica. Diane had pale white skin and jet black hair, she was short and slim in stature. Kish had dark brown skin and short black hair, still with a nervous expression on his face from earlier. Dom waited for instruction, but Annabel and Camilla were discussing something at the front whilst the four of them waited.
"Why have we been kept behind?" Jessica whispered to Dom quietly, whilst Diane and Kish were both sat alone on different rows nearer the front.
"Are you one of the 'Special Arrangement" students?" Dom whispered back to her, feeling that was the most likely reason to be held behind. Jessica looked at him with a thoughtful expression, before nodding her head. "So am I, maybe those two are as well."
"Just the four of us?" Jessica whispered back, "They must be special to have been offered this option, it's a rare opportunity."
"I got the opportunity and I'm not that special." Dom replied seriously, to which Jessica grinned in response.
"You just don't know your speciality yet then, or you are hiding something." Jessica whispered, "But it's fine either way, at least we are in the same boat."
"As much as we promote positive relationships, rather than whispering at the back, would you care to join your peers at the front?" Camilla asked loudly, interrupting their conversation. Dom looked and saw that somehow whilst they were speaking Kish had joined Diane on the front row. Annabel and Camilla were both looking at them unimpressed and a slight redness appeared on Jessica's cheek at the situation. Dom feeling similarly called out, stood up and headed to the front. Diane was sat on the left, with Kish, then Dom and Jessica to the right of her. Camilla and Annabel stood over them and looked at them as if weighing them up.
"You have been kept behind as we will be leaving for the Ninety Ninth Peak in the morning, I expect you to be well rested after the ceremony this evening as we will depart at ten in the morning. You will have time to eat and everything else will be provided at the Ninety Ninth Peak." Camilla explained. "Diane and Kish, I will be your mentor for this year and will be travelling with you to the mainland and the University that you have joined."
"Jessica and Dominic, I will be your mentor for the year ahead. I will be guest lecturing at Central University and will therefore be able to supervise and support you both from there." Annabel added with a smile at the two, having already got to know the two students. "I however will not be travelling to the Ninety Ninth Peak and will instead join you at the docks in three days to travel back to the mainland."
"Letting them travel on your Yacht again?" Camilla commented in a judging tone.
"Of course, my students shall travel in the luxury they should expect in the future." Annabel replied seriously, ignoring the tone of Camilla's question.
"Do any of you have any questions before you are dismissed?" Camilla asked the four of them.
"What is the Ninety Ninth Peak like?" Diane asked, her voice crisp.
"There are One Hundred Peaks, and the Ninety Ninth is the second to only the Hundredth." Camilla replied, "It is based in a thick forest in the Scottish Isles, secluded and hidden in the natural beauty that surrounds it. It is the home to some of the most intelligent intellectuals in the Peaks as well as the most secretive departments."
"It is the Peak that all those that are deemed to have 'Special Arrangements' will be based in. Even though you won't live there often, you will have accommodation put aside for you." Annabel explained. "It will take almost the whole day to arrive, so Dom and Jessica, you will most likely only have one full day there before you need to leave."
"Kish and Diane, you will be there for a few days longer as you don't need to arrive at your new Universities yet." Camilla finished, "Any other questions?"
"What is a 'Special Arrangement' Student?" Jessica asked, clearly wanting to know what was special about the four of them.
"You are students that someone is watching over." Annabel responded. "You are given more freedom, but the long term expectations on you is higher. If you want to know who that person is, then you will need to wait for them to come forwards to you directly, but everything is done with the best interest of yourself at heart."
"We don't have time for any more questions." Camilla stated before there was chance for follow up questions. "Please all head to your rooms that have been allocated, the guards outside will direct you to them. Mr Lazarus, if you will please stay behind for a second."