A low hum of nervous chatter filled the air as they waited, the initial bravado of some already beginning to fray. Names began to be called, one at a time, each student stepping forward towards a designated area, presumably the entrance to their individual trials.
Kael stood amidst the throng, his gaze sweeping across the diverse faces around him. Some were pale with undisguised fear, their hands trembling. Others sported forced smiles, attempting to project an air of confidence that didn't quite reach their wide eyes.
"You don't seem nervous."
An unexpected voice beside him made Kael turn. He found a boy his age smiling politely, his expression open and friendly.
"Should I be?" Kael replied, his tone flat, a slight shrug accompanying his words.
The boy chuckled softly, a warm, genuine sound. "No, not at all. Don't mind me, I just found you… interesting. While half the people here look like they're about to faint from fear and the other half are trying too hard to look like seasoned warriors, you… well, you look almost… lost. As though what's happening here doesn't concern you in the slightest."
'Lost?' Kael thought surprised.
Now that he thought about it, ever since Vice Headmistress Riliane had announced the next trial involved fighting a beast, a strange sense of… detachment had settled within him.
It wasn't confidence, exactly. More like… boredom. As though whatever monstrous creation they conjured wouldn't even be worth the effort of a proper fight.
Turning his gaze back to the still-smiling teen, Kael asked, "What about you, are you scared?"
The question felt almost foolish the moment it left his lips. Someone with such a bright smile plastered across their face couldn't possibly be feeling fear.
Ans as if to confirm his thought, The boy's smile merely widened, a hint of amusement dancing in his bright eyes.
Just then, a disembodied voice echoed through the hall, clear and resonant: "Darven, Kael."
Kael turned back to him. "That's me. I gotta go."
He offered a curt nod and stepped forward, following the direction of the voice, leaving the smiling boy standing amidst the crowd, his friendly smile still in place.
The disembodied voice led Kael towards a shimmering archway.
The western arena was massive, an open-roofed structure that seemed to stretch towards the horizon, its towering stands already filled with silent, robed observers who scribbled notes on glowing slates. In the center of the sandy ground, glowing constructs of various bestial forms flickered in and out of existence, waiting.
"Darven, Kael," the disembodied voice called out, echoing across the vast space.
He stepped forward into the designated ring, the fine sand crunching softly beneath his boots.
A pulse of raw magic rippled through the air, and the waiting construct in front of him solidified—a massive, low-slung feline form materializing from swirling shards of light.
Its lithe body was covered in razor-sharp crystalline plates, and wickedly long fangs of pure crystal gleamed in the harsh sunlight.
'Is this it?' A flicker of surprise, bordering on disbelief, ran through Kael.
'This thing looks at least a hundred times weaker than the Ravager that attacked our village. Must be a Feral.'
Well then. Lucky me.
Kael didn't hesitate.
He exploded into motion, his movements a blur of controlled energy. The initial exchange was lightning fast. He ducked low beneath the creature's first savage swipe, the crystalline claws whistling inches above his head, closed the distance in a heartbeat, and slammed his fist into its armored flank.
The construct barely staggered, a faint shimmer running across its crystalline hide, but Kael kept moving, his eyes already reading the subtle shifts in its posture, anticipating its next attack.
He feigned a step to the left, drawing the beast's attention, letting it think it had gained the advantage, then dropped low with surprising agility and swept his leg in a swift arc, catching its hind leg. The crystalline beast stumbled, its balance momentarily broken.
No Archive to guide him. No familiar weapons to rely on. Just pure instinct, hours of rigorous training, and the brute, untamed force he had been honing for a month.
The creature lunged, its crystalline fangs bared in a silent snarl.
Kael rolled beneath its massive form, the cold, sharp edges of its underbelly brushing against his tunic, came up swiftly behind it, and drove his hardened elbow into the base of its neck. With a sudden pulse of bright light, the simulated beast flickered violently, its form dissolving into shimmering particles.
"Trial complete," the disembodied voice announced, the words echoing in the sudden silence of the arena.
Kael stood there, breathing hard, his muscles coiled. Not from exhaustion—but from the intense restraint he had been forced to exercise. A primal urge to unleash his full strength, the raw power he knew he possessed.
He walked off the sandy field, his gaze fixed ahead. Above him, in the towering stands, the robed observers continued to scribble silently on their glowing slates, their expressions unreadable.