Exillium is a school for the "Unworthy", as referred to by the Lost Cities. It is designed for Elvin children who have committed crimes or broken laws of the Lost Cities. Hence, they are banished.
Most attendees who grow up after their time in Exillium are either banished forever or allowed to get a job in the Lost Cities. The attendees are referred to as Waywards, instead of Foxfire's prodigies. Exillium attendees are laughed at by some of the more 'stuffy' nobles. Waywards are not allowed to announce their names or know the names of other Waywards. Exillium focuses on skills, such as slowing their breath, night vision, regulating body temperature, suppressing hunger, levitation, blinking, and telekinesis. The location of Exillium changes every day, but is always in the Neutral Territories, however, for a period of time, it was moved to the Lost Cities for the other elves to learn skills and not just focus on talents.
The three instructors, called coaches are in charge of three separate groups of Exillium: Coach Wilda (red), Coach Bora (blue), and Coach Rohana (purple). Each color corresponds to a hand or hemisphere. Left is red, right is blue and ambidextrous (called Ambi) is purple. Left are more rational and come up with good solutions. Right are quick thinkers, but as a result, they are more reckless. Ambi is ambitious and may take longer but always get it done; they're also unpredictable.
Sophie Foster, along with her friends, go to Exillium in Book 4: Neverseen. Sophie is in Ambi, after setting herself on fire. Linh actually puts out the fire for Sophie. Their uniform includes a silver-studded black half mask, steel-toed boots, fitted black pants, a black long-sleeved shirt, and a grey vest with silver buckles and chains across the front. Under the collar of the vest is a hood that cast's the wearers' face in shadow. They also wear pins that reflect the abilities of the elf.
Ability Pins
Hydrokinetic: Swirling waves with drops of rain
Shade: Silver with a black hand reaching from the center
Telepath: Blue with a silhouette of a face and a lightning bolt zapping across the brain
Inflictor: Black with a silver hand radiating jagged silver lines
Polyglot: Purple background with pink lips and a white speech bubble
Teleporter: A starry sky background with a flying alicorn
Technopath: Dark green with a silver handprint covered in black lines like circuits and wires
Empath: Red with an open book and a silver heart painted across the pages
Flasher(?): Yellow with two hands holding the sun
Guster(?): Tree with wind-whipped branches
Vanisher: Cloudy sky and a figure that is black on one half and squiggly rainbow colors on the other
Charger: Person with an electric volt covering them
https://blazetailx.deviantart.com/art/Keeper-of-the-Lost-Cities-Ability-Badges-673959858
Exillium is not well supplied by the Council. Minimal food is provided, and the mats and tents are worn out. The coaches are forced to use fear to keep the students in line. There are many students and only three coaches, so the coaches would be easily beaten if the students decided to rebel. The coaches use harsh methods of turning the Waywards against each other. However, Sophie tells Councillor Oralie about it, and she uses her money to fix the problems. Many of the locations Exillium is stationed at have severe conditions, shown in Neverseen when Sophie and her friends attend it.
Hemispheres
Ambidextrous (Ambi) Hemisphere
Ambis are ambitious though they make take longer to find solutions but always get it done, taught by Coach Rohana.
Color: Purple
Left Hemisphere
Lefts are rational and come up with good solutions, taught by Coach Wilda.
Color: Red
Right Hemisphere
Rights are quick thinkers, but as a result of this, they are more reckless, taught by Coach Bora.
Color: Blue
Known Locations of Exillium:
- A cold, rocky clearing on the slope of a mountain, so wreathed in mist that the ground couldn't be seen. All around were slender, healthy trees untouched by the plague. This was the first place Sophie and her friends leaped to attend Exillium and was where they were divided into their Hemispheres. They also practiced appetite suppression here.
- The side of a sheer cliff that overlooked a withered, plague-infested forest called Bosk Gorge with twisted, cracked tree trunks and sagging branches. Mounds of fallen mold green and sallow yellow leaves blanketed the ground. Sophie, her friends, and the other Waywards worked on levitation here, and was also where Sophie and Fitz found an infected gnome that they later brought to the Lost Cities.
- A large, sweltering desert with rolling, wind-rippled dunes of bleached white sand. No plant life thrived there, not even cacti. The Waywards worked on body temperature regulation in this dessert while Sophie attended.
- A dark, gaping cave in the side of a rocky mountain, where the Waywards were led deep into the mountain to practice night vision. The air was damp and black and blotted out any light.
- A chilly, glassy lake at the base of a snow-capped mountain, where Sophie and everyone else practiced holding their breath. The Waywards were given wetsuits, goggles, and swim caps to wear for the task. Sophie inflicted positive emotions on Linh here to help calm her, and therefore gained Tam's trust. The twins and Sophie leaped to their home in Wildwood soon after.
In Neverseen, Sophie convinces Oralie to send more supplies for the Waywards, turning Exillium into a much better place. They gain more coaches, new tents and mats, and more food for lunch, and even breakfast. This results in the coaches being much nicer and encouraging the students to work in groups and be friends. Eventually, the masks become optional and everyone uses their real names. It allows the coaches to realize even the "higher" classes have mercy and kindness.
In Lodestar, it becomes mandatory to attend Exillium. However, it's no longer a school for exiled children but rather a day camp to hone skills. Skills are different than abilities because even the Talentless have skills. Instead of being dangled from the Arch of Dividing, they fill out a packet to determine which hemisphere they go in.
Known Attendees
- Coach Rohana (instructor) - the coach of the Ambi (purple) hemisphere. She has creamy brown skin and black hair that is straight and shiny. Rohana is Sophie's coach and she gives her information about Ruy Ignis
- Coach Bora (instructor) - the coach of the right (blue) hemisphere
- Coach Wilda (instructor) - the coach of the left (red) hemisphere
- "The Boobrie Dude" as named by Keefe - healer
- Sophie Foster (former) Hemisphere: Ambi
- Dex Dizznee (former) Hemisphere: Right
- Keefe Sencen (former) Hemisphere: Right
- Fitz Vacker (former) Hemisphere: Left
- Biana Vacker (former) Hemisphere: Left
- Tam Song (former) Hemisphere: Ambi
- Linh Song (former) Hemisphere: Ambi
- Ruy Ignis (former)
- Timkin Heks (former)