The Hall of Aptitude felt different the moment David stepped inside.
The temperature hadn't changed, but something in the air had. Sound carried differently here—footsteps echoing a fraction longer against polished stone, whispers thinning out without anyone asking them to. The vaulted ceiling arched high above, carved with thin veins of crystalline circuitry that pulsed in slow, steady intervals. The glow wasn't bright. It was controlled.
Tall crystalline pylons rose from circular platforms arranged in careful rows across the chamber. Each one hummed faintly, a low vibration that David felt more in his chest than in his ears. Academy seals were etched into the base of every platform, layered with scuffs and faint burn marks from years of testing.
Hundreds of cadets lined the perimeter in assigned sectors. Some stood rigid, overcorrecting their posture. Others shifted constantly, flexing their fingers, rolling their shoulders as if preparing for a fight rather than a reading.
David stared at the nearest crystal.
"It looks like it's judging me already," he muttered.
Castiel snorted softly. "It is."
"That's comforting."
Castiel leaned slightly closer. "Relax. Worst case, it says you're useless and they make you mop the combat dome for two years."
David glanced at him.
Castiel's mouth twitched faintly. "I'm kidding. Probably."
"You're not helping."
"I'm trying to."
David shook his head, but some of the tension in his chest loosened.
Then the far doors opened.
The shift wasn't dramatic.
But it was immediate.
Several cadets straightened unconsciously. Conversations lowered to near silence. Space formed in subtle ripples.
The heirs of the Twelve entered without announcement.
An Ignivar girl moved through the hall with faint heat shimmering along her shoulders. A Ferronax cadet brushed his fingers along a metal railing; it rippled under his touch before settling again. An Icewind student paused near a glass partition, frost tracing outward from her knuckles.
They weren't showing off.
They didn't need to.
"Try not to stare," Castiel murmured.
"I'm not."
"You absolutely are."
David looked forward.
"They put on their boots the same way we do," Castiel added quietly. "They just cost more."
David almost smiled.
The testing bell chimed overhead.
The murmur died completely.
"Aptitude evaluation will now begin. Step forward when your name is called."
One by one, cadets approached the pylons.
A boy pressed his palm to the crystal. Light surged upward in a clean column.
Level 1 — Minor Wind Affinity.
The next.
Level 2 — Strength Bias Confirmed.
A low ripple of approval followed.
Then an Ignivar heir stepped forward. When her hand touched the crystal, it flared bright but stable.
Level 3 — Thermal Alignment Confirmed.
No surprise. Just confirmation.
David's name illuminated.
Wyn, David.
His throat tightened.
"Go get your destiny measured," Castiel muttered.
"Encouraging."
"I do what I can."
David stepped forward.
The crystal hummed louder as he approached. The vibration crawled faintly up his arm before he even touched it.
He placed his palm against the surface.
For half a second—
Nothing.
Heat crept up his neck.
Then the crystal pulsed.
Once.
Twice.
The internal light didn't rise cleanly. It fractured into thin spirals that folded inward instead of outward. Gold flared at the center. Then crimson. Then something darker, dense enough that the glow around it dimmed.
The hum deepened into a harsh vibration.
The hall lights flickered.
A sharp tone pierced the air.
The projection above David flickered.
Level —
The word stalled.
Inside his mind—
system:
External Scan Attempt Detected.
system:
Source — Academy Crystal Matrix.
system:
Masking Protocol Engaged.
The crystal vibrated harder beneath his hand. Fine fractures of light spiderwebbed across its surface. The air felt heavy, as if pressure were building behind his eyes.
A few cadets stepped back.
"What is that?"
"Did it break?"
"Is that normal?"
It wasn't.
For a heartbeat, David felt something inside him push back.
Not consciously.
Instinctively.
I am:
Do not resist.
The voice was steady. Ancient. Measured.
David forced himself to breathe evenly.
The fractures sealed.
The vibration stopped.
The internal light stabilized.
The projection finalized.
Level 1 — No Recognized Affinity.
A few nervous laughs surfaced.
"Glitch."
"Cheap crystal."
"Just a one."
David slowly removed his hand.
His palm tingled faintly, as though he'd touched charged metal.
He turned.
Several heirs were still watching him.
Not amused.
Not dismissing him either.
Studying.
From the observation balcony above, a woman in a dark military coat had not moved during the malfunction.
Commander Elara Vance.
A thin scar traced down her left cheek. Her posture was straight, her gaze unwavering.
"Continue testing," she said evenly when an instructor looked up at her.
Her eyes never left David.
"Cadet Wyn," the instructor called. "Proceed to secondary combat evaluation."
Secondary Evaluation
The chamber door sealed behind him with a heavy click.
A Blue-tier evaluation construct formed at the center of the room—elongated, plated, reptilian in shape, with visible seams at its joints.
It attacked immediately.
David barely redirected the first strike. The impact rattled his arm.
system:
Enemy Identified — Evaluation Construct
Threat Classification — Blue Simulation Variant
Estimated Combat Level — 2
The construct adjusted, sweeping low.
Pain flared along David's shin as he clipped the edge of the strike.
He stepped inside its reach instead of retreating. Redirected the second strike. Rotated. Drove his elbow into a plating seam.
The first blow jarred his wrist.
The second shifted the armor.
The third ruptured it.
The construct dissolved into shards of light.
system:
Combat Output Registered.
system:
True Level — 2
system:
Progress Toward Level 3 — 41%
I am:
Grow quietly.
The chamber doors opened.
Commander Vance stood just beyond the instructor, reviewing telemetry on her wrist display.
"Replay from strike three," she said calmly.
The footage slowed.
David stepping inside the construct's center line.
Anticipating instead of reacting.
"Cadet Wyn," she said.
"Yes, ma'am."
"You have formal combat training?"
"My father sparred with me," David replied. "Basic forms."
She studied him carefully.
"Basic forms do not produce that timing."
David felt his pulse rise.
I am:
Do not elaborate.
He said nothing.
After a long moment, she nodded once.
"Level 1 confirmed," the instructor announced.
Vance did not look satisfied.
"Proceed to Home Room assignment."
After the Test
Castiel waited near the corridor.
"Well?" he asked.
"Level 1," David replied.
Castiel studied his face. "Sure."
Before David could respond, a voice spoke from his left.
"That wasn't a Level 1 reaction."
A girl stood there brushing dust from her sleeve. A faint cut marked her cheek.
"You're the one whose crystal reacted," she said.
"It stabilized," David replied carefully.
She tilted her head. "That's not what I meant."
She extended her hand.
"Nyra Vale."
David took it.
"David."
Her grip was steady.
"What did they give you?" he asked.
"Two," she said. "I missed a timing window."
She didn't sound frustrated.
She sounded certain she'd correct it.
Castiel glanced between them. "Home Room 1?"
"Yes," Nyra said. "I'd rather not walk in alone."
David nodded. "You won't."
They began walking.
Behind them, Commander Vance remained in the hall, watching their retreating figures.
Inside David's mind—
system:
Anomaly Concealed.
I am:
You were observed.
A pause.
I am:
This will not be the last time.
David kept his expression neutral as they moved toward their next assignment.
Level 1 on the board.
Level 2 in truth.
And something deeper—
Waiting.
Transitional Scene — After Aptitude
The corridor outside the Hall of Aptitude was louder than before.
Not chaotic. Just looser.
Cadets walked in clusters now, talking faster than they had earlier. Some were relieved. Some were disappointed. A few were already comparing numbers like they were bargaining chips.
"Level 3 on entry," someone said ahead of them. "Told you."
"Only because you're Ashenford."
"Doesn't matter why."
David walked between Castiel and Nyra, adjusting the strap on his bag.
He could still feel the phantom vibration in his palm.
Nyra noticed.
"You okay?" she asked.
"Yeah."
"You looked like you were about to pass out up there."
"Encouraging."
She smirked. "I'm serious. That crystal didn't just flicker."
Castiel glanced at David. "It glitched."
Nyra shook her head. "It reacted."
A group of cadets parted slightly as one of the heirs walked past — the Ferronax boy from earlier. He didn't acknowledge them. He didn't need to. The air around him carried the weight of someone who had never been underestimated.
David watched him go.
"So what happens now?" he asked.
"Now we find out who we're stuck with for a year," Castiel replied.
"Optimistic."
"I try."
They reached the intersection leading toward Dorm Building 1 and Home Room assignments.
A pair of Level 2 cadets passed by.
"Did you see the glitch?" one whispered.
"Yeah. That kid's crystal almost cracked."
David pretended not to hear.
Nyra elbowed him lightly. "You're famous."
"That's not what I want."
Castiel glanced sideways at him. "Relax, Cas—"
David stopped walking.
"Did you just call me that?" Castiel asked slowly.
David blinked. "Call you what?"
"Cas."
Nyra's eyebrows lifted.
David shrugged. "It's shorter."
Castiel stared at him for a full two seconds.
"If we're handing out nicknames," Castiel said evenly, "then I'll call you D."
David frowned. "D?"
"For—"
"Hey," David cut him off quickly, realizing where that was going. "Come on."
Nyra burst out laughing.
"Please tell me you were about to finish that," she said.
Castiel's mouth twitched despite himself. "I was considering it."
David shook his head. "You're not funny."
"Disagree."
Nyra wiped at her eyes. "Oh no. It's happening already."
"What is?" David asked.
"You two."
Castiel looked mildly offended. "We've known each other twelve hours."
"Exactly," Nyra said.
David sighed. "Fine. Cas."
Castiel hesitated, then nodded once.
"Fine," he replied. "D."
They resumed walking.
The tension from the testing hall hadn't vanished, but it had shifted. It felt less like pressure and more like momentum now.
Ahead of them, the doors to Home Room 1 slid open.
Castiel exhaled softly. "This is where it gets organized."
"Great," David muttered. "Structure."
Nyra bumped his shoulder lightly. "Try not to break anything this time."
"No promises."