"Poison," Kael lied without missing a beat.
He met Thorne's heavy gaze, keeping his heart rate steady. "The beast scratched me before someone else intervened and destroyed it. The medic said it was a residual venom reaction."
Thorne glanced at the terrified medic, who squeaked and nodded frantically. Thorne didn't look convinced. He released Kael's wrist, the heavy pressure in the room lifting slightly.
"Whoever saved you left no trace. Unregistered Resonance use is a crime. If you remember anything, report it," Thorne commanded, turning to the door. He paused. "Report to the Scrapper Division tomorrow. Your time as an Initiate is done."
The door clicked shut. Kael let out a slow, shaky breath. He looked down at his arm. The black veins were slowly fading back to normal, but the memory of that power—the sheer, erasing force of it—was burned into his mind.
He didn't have a Core. He had a void. And it was hungry.
The next morning, Kael stood in the training courtyard holding a mop.
He was dressed in the brown overalls of a Scrapper. Around him, Adept students were practicing their Resonance techniques, blasting training dummies with fire, wind, and lightning. The air crackled with raw power.
"Missed a spot, Scrapper."
Kael paused. He didn't need to turn around to know who it was.
Rylan Vance. The Academy's golden boy. At seventeen, he had already reached the Vanguard rank. His uniform was immaculate, and his Core burned so brightly with Pure Resonance that it was almost visible through his chest.
"I'll get it, Vance," Kael said evenly.
"You shouldn't be here, Kael," Rylan said, his tone dripping with mock pity. "I told you years ago. The weak shouldn't pretend to be warriors. You'll just get yourself killed."
Rylan shoved past him, his shoulder deliberately slamming into Kael.
Kael stumbled, his hand instinctively shooting out to catch his balance. His palm slapped against one of the heavy, reinforced training dummies nearby. These dummies were powered by the Academy's central Resonance Grid, storing massive amounts of energy to withstand Vanguard-level attacks.
The moment Kael's skin made contact with the dummy's metal surface, his heart gave a violent jolt.
Thump.
It happened automatically. The dark void inside him ripped open.
The glowing blue runes on the dummy violently flashed black.
Then, the entire courtyard plunged into chaos. The lights overhead shattered. The protective barriers around the arena flickered and died. A massive, audible hum of energy was sucked from the ground, racing directly into the dummy, and straight into Kael's palm.
"What's happening to the grid?!" an instructor screamed.
Kael couldn't pull his hand away. The energy was flooding him. Not corrupted this time. Pure, unadulterated Resonance. And his body was eating every single drop.
He looked down. The black veins weren't just on his arm anymore.
They were crawling up his neck.